Don't You Just Hate It When The Man Is Right?

I feel the need to have this conversation tonight with this man. My toolbelt cowboy.

Mike, you were right and I was wrong. When you kept telling me over and over that the house could indeed be kept clean every day of the week I thought you were a jerk. A big man jerk. I insisted you were wrong and that there were bizillions of homes across the country with houses that did not stay clean. You kept insisting though that it could be done and it needed to be done and that I needed to find a way to do it. And still, I thought you were a big man jerk. Didn't you know that we have an uncontrollable 2 year old running the house? We have four kids in this house and you don't clean like EVER because you are so busy working hard for us. I truly didn't think it could be done.

But I was wrong. You were right. It could be done and it is being done. You told me to put the kids to work more. You said they are lazy and don't do any cleaning. You were right. I created a chore list sheet in Excel for myself and made it pretty simple. It is so simple that truly there isn't much of an excuse I could ever come up with to not get every single item on my list done. I gave myself Sunday off from doing anything but cooking of course. I gave each of the 3 kids who are old enough to clean a room that they are responsible for. Lexi has the kitchen. Amber has the small living room off the kitchen, Brandon has the family room. I told them I would completely clean each of those rooms but from then on they had to do quick little pick ups during the day. I have to remind them of course but for two weeks now our home has stayed perfectly clean in each and every room. You were right. Each of the six days of the week I pick one of the six major rooms in the house to clean so that by the end of the sixth day all six of the rooms have been completely cleaned top to bottom. Cabinets are wiped down, glass windows are cleaned, baseboards are wiped down, floors are mopped. I only do one major room cleaning a day but all the other rooms get light pick ups. Since the two living areas get pick ups by the kids they stay clean all week. All I have to do now is come along and do the major dusting, sweeping & moping, glass cleaning and little stuff that never gets done stuff.

Oh & when I kept complaining about my weight and you told me to just exercise during the day and I said I can't find the time and you said just stop what you are doing and make time I thought you were a big man jerk again. Oh, okay, I'll just stop what I'm doing. Right, clearly you had no idea what a SAHM goes through I thought. Doesn't he know I don't even have time to eat lunch half the time. But since I was making the excel sheet with simple chores that I really didn't think would work to begin with but I made just to prove you wrong and teach you a lesson I put exercise in each of the six days of my chore list. Even though I like my refrigerator clear of stuff, I put said chore list on the refrigerator so you could clearly see what I had been up to all day each day of the week and you would see all my efforts and yet the house would not be all clean and tidy and I wouldn't be losing weight either. I'll teach you I said. But, you were right and I was wrong again. I can't stand to not meet a goal and I couldn't let the word exercise not be crossed off the list. So, I put a movie in for Braxy or wait 'til he's napping and get on my aerobic step and do my own routine or a tape and I exercise for 20 to 30 min until I feel like I am going to fall over. Then I have popped in my Ab's of Steel workout tape that was in my drawers for the past 8 years unopened into the VCR and do a 10 minute ab workout every.single.day. I lost 1.5 lbs last week you big man jerk.

Now that I have admitted that you were right and your house has stayed almost spotless for two weeks and I am losing weight because I wanted to prove to you that you were wrong I admit that it can be done. I made life too hard on myself trying to do everything every day and you said I didn't have to. You were right. Now wipe that big grin off your face and go fix my two broken toilets or I am going to make an excel sheet for you too, you big man jerk.