Division of Housework

It is a common misconception that being a Stay at Home Mum means that you are responsible for not only the kids, but also the housework. Housework in itself is a horrible and never-ending responsibility. If you had the option to stay home and do housework all day (without the kids) or go to work, what would you choose?

The good news is that the division of the household chores is no longer so straightforward. Every family will be different. You may clean; your husband may cook and a gardener may do the lawns. You may do the lawns; your husband may cook and a cleaner may do the cleaning. You may cook, clean and do the gardens or your husband may be in charge of all of the above. If you are looking at ways to evenly distribute the housework to create more time for yourself, your children and your family, then below are some easy ways to do so:

Get Everyone Involved

If your children are old enough to actually complete the chores successfully (without making even more of a mess), then let them take some of the load. You can delegate some of the chores to them, such as sweeping, cleaning up from dinner, setting the table or folding the laundry. Use a reward system to provide incentive to help out.

Make “Housework” Time

Weekends are usually spent together as a family; however, the housework often doesn’t just stop on the weekends. Why not use a couple of hours every Saturday morning to do a different chore. Delegate different jobs for everyone in the household to do (mowing, dusting, floors, windows, toilets, etc.) and tackle one of these bigger jobs each week. This can make your chore load less intense during the week and provide a more shared routine when it comes to the housework. Rotate the housework around to make it less tedious.

Tackle Chores Together

Another option is to do these chores together. Rather than split up the housework, tackle each job as a team. Clean the bathroom together and finish it in half the time. While one of you mows the lawn, the other can do the weeding. You will be able to spend this time together and get the chores done in half of the time, hopefully leaving the rest of the day to spend as a family outside of the house.

Delegate Traditional Housework Roles

Traditionally speaking, the female is in charge of the cooking and cleaning while the male is responsible for paying the bills, repairing things around the house and doing the outdoor work. If this works for your family, then stick to it. There is no reason to step outside these traditional roles if you are comfortable with them and if you are happy with the division. Your husband may feel more comfortable helping out with chores that he is better at, such as fixing things, and may be more inclined to give you a hand with these ‘masculine’ tasks.

Having trouble convincing your husband to take a more active role around the house? Feed him this little tidbit according to a study published in the American Sociological Review, men that do help out around the house, taking on the more traditional ‘masculine’ roles such as yard work, reportedly have more sex.  So divide and conquer the chores and enjoy a more active social and sex life in a squeaky clean home.