sharing chores

Get yourself a cleaner. Your DH isn't going to change his ways at his time of life and you'll both end up resentful if you carry on as you are!

Join him on the sofa !

We have a cleaner so neither of us has to do anything except cooking and ironing, both of which I enjoy. DH does the DIY. We both do the garden. It's working up to now - well, he only retired on Thursday.

Mostly we share chores but I do admit sometimes I need to say oh my that tv looks dusty or I'm going to vacuum such and such and he will say give me a minute I'll do it. I prefer to do the bathroom myself as his idea of cleaning the bathroom doesn't meet mine.
Always cleans up the kitchen if I've cooked and he's not good at sorting out the washing although with a bit of advice he puts a load on. Not good with the garden but helps me with mowing and heavy stuff.. all in all its a good partnership I know I'm lucky.

My son and his partner both work long hours so have a cleaner 2 days a week but they can afford her and it means more quality time with their little son and to socialise with friends and family at weekends. So if you can afford it get someone in by all means..s

We share most of chores always have I'm not good in garden though .i do most of ironing so it evens out

When we were both working we shared the chores, now we're retired he seems to think it's my job. It makes me cross!

My husband grew up with a dad that helped with the chores so he is now willing to do them too - it makes a difference I think??

My DH helps around the house. He's just told me that he will mop the kitchen floor tomorrow morning. Mind you, it doesn't happen as often as I would like!

We have a tag team of two polish ladies who go through the house like a dose of salts. Working together they do a lovely job in one hour. Can't fault them and very reasonable cost.
Interestingly DH spent ages this pm taking the oven to bits and cleaning it beautifully. I think he got a bit carried away. Not complaining though. My current slightly incapacitated state (post knee replacement) has led him to notice the 101 little things that I just used to do automatically and which I now either can't or can only do effortfully. Maybe that's helped him to appreciate the jobs that need done? Whatever, its a most positive side effect of this knee business. He makes me tea and coffee too now. Think I'll keep limping pitifully!

Jane10 I am amazed and you should be very pleased that he actually sees the work that is to be done. Cleaning the oven I think is almost above and beyond the call of duty.

Many men would not see 3" of dust or notice a slightly sticky kitchen floor. He is definitely one to be appreciated. I was married to one who needed a map to find the kitchen, clothes washed and ironed themselves etc.

Carry on limping Jane10 it's always worked for me. We are fortunate that we can split the chores and each do the things we are best at. Husband does shopping, cooking and maintenance and I do cleaning, laundry and admin. Works for us, must admit if he does the cooker or any equipment it's taken to pieces and really well done as Jane said.

All housework is done by me to military marchout standard,every mm of skirting board is scrubbed with a toothbrush every square inch of gloss paintwork is washed and dried, every kitchen cupboard is emptied and washed every tile polished, cooker stripped and made new, bathroom bleached spotless, every light shade dusted, every item of clothing that has been washed must be ironed precicely every single week, anything less in my house is totally unacceptable.DH is allowed to do the dishes and hoover(now and then)

Charleygirl I am amazed too.
DH does the washing and ironing beautifully, can cook (he has only just realised!) but would walk over a dirty kitchen floor and never notice it.

grannypiper when can you come and stay?
You sound like my DM

Am stunned grannypiper!
I think DH only cleaned the oven after he had heated some M&S chicken Kievs at too high a heat. The whole place absolutely stunk (stank?). He couldn't stand the smell from the garlic oil spattered oven. He'd eaten both the Kievs himself so it was only fair that he cleaned the oven. I had a small salad. Halo emoticon?

grannypiper I am in awe of you. We lived in military quarters for nineteen years and the only time anything got done to actual march-out standard was at march out!! And the very last time we did it, I thought "thank God we don't ever have to do that again!" I know I can't be the only one. To get back to the original post, I'm very lucky with DH. We have a fair division of labour where the general housework is concerned; although I do all the ironing and cooking, he doesn't mind doing his share of everything else.

I'm assuming grannypiper had her tongue between her teeth.
My H has never cooked a meal in his life but when he was well he did iron well. When we were first married I sometimes worked late on Friday so I would do the laundry on Thursday evening and when he got home on Friday he would put it on the line. The neighbours thought he was very henpecked as real men did nothing in our mining community.

Gosh grannypiper, when do you find time to sleep? I've done quite a few military marchouts in my time and I admit, I take great pleasure in never having to reach that standard again.

I've spent today clearing and cleaning kitchen cupboards in preparation for Xmas food shopping, and getting rid of out of date items and I'm shattered. DP has been doing hard physical things in the garden, or so he says, so I guess we are fairly equal.

The only thing that's niggles me is that he wanted the dog and promised to clear up after it, but it always seems to be me on my knees scrubbing the kitchen floor and cupboards doors where the muck gets spattered.

grannypiper am astonished!! I am obviously a slut

When we retired I spent a lot of time and effort Not doing all the housework as I knew it would rankle eventually. Early on it would have been easier to do it myself and save a lot of gritting of teeth but now we have a good partnership so it was worth it.

We have always shared the chored really without much discussion. We both do what we do best, and it seems to work very well.

I cannot get my head a round those of you who have a cleaner once a week and then do nothing though!.

We clean right through every day, Bathroom, dust and hoover through, and I wash the kitchen floor twice daily ( On my knees). Mind you it is one of those kitchens one has to walk through to get to anywhere else so it takes a bit of hammering, and we have a dog.

chored =chores

Since DH retired in March this year we share all the chores.
The first week he drove me mad asking what I wanted him to do.
So I gave him a list
Next question was.
How do you want me to do ...?
So I did one training lesson each chore.
Now every 8th day ( have GC rest of time) we clean house together from top to bottom.
I have never wanted a cleaner as don't like the thought of somebody else in our house.
However I hate ironing so every other week a very nice man collects our ironing and brings it back 2 days later
Everything on hangers in plastic covers ready to straight in wardrobe.
Or neatly folded.

Shanma, we have a cleaner and do nothing the rest of the time but 'doing nothing' involves cleaning the loos, sinks etc, wiping work surfaces, hoovering the middle of the floor if necessary etc etc. But, I would only do the 'bottoming' once a week if we didn't have a cleaner. I am baffled that a house could need doing to the level you do it.

I must be really lazy and slovenly but, frankly, I have better things to do than clean.

I am to read about all the time other people spend cleaning. We have no cleaner. DH vacs throughout once a week, I give the bathroom a good going over once a week and the kitchen sink. Apart from that we clean kitchen surfaces whenever we use them and I do a bit of damp dusting when the spirit moves me. I get down and scrub the kitchen floor every three weeks or so. Two of us and a cat - how much dirt can there be?

I do the washing. DH does any ironing, but there's hardly any now that work shirts are out of the equation. Especially in winter, when even shirts will be fine hung straight up from the dryer.