Cleaning The Kitchen After Supper

[SparkleNana]

Is this one of the hardest things for you to accomplish?

If it is NOT hard for you -- would you please share some tips on how to do this? Sometimes it is not so bad. But after a busy day - or stressful day -- or when there is a lot to do -- this becomes a big burden. :thud:

 

[momtomaddie]

I have to agree! I never seem to get to that part! I enjoy cooking and eating but I HATE the clean up!

 

[luludou]

I hate it but I can't stand it if the countertop and the table are full.... so I do it.... but after a day of work at the office, it's about the most I can accomplish. I don't have any tips.... it just has to be done.

 

[wadeallie]

For our family, the evening meal is the big one of the day and we all sit down together. I tend to make homemade suppers and as I cook, I clean up after myself so I don't have a ton of pots and pans waiting for me. Another hint, is I heat water on the stove so it's REALLY hot, and I add that water and bit of Dawn and a splash of ammonia to the sink. As everyone finishes their meal they take care of their plates..right into the hot water. These soak themselves clean while I put the food away from the table. I don't have a dishwasher but when I get to the sink, I drain the dirty water and refill to wipe the dishes down and rinse but they are basically clean already.

Another hint is to have your husband share the chore and he can wipe the dishes while you wash and you have some time together alone since the kids seem to disappear when there are chores to be done!

 

[teachermomof2]

Our kids put their plates, silverware and cups into the dishwasher after we eat. I clean as I go when making dinner for the family. It just makes it easier after dinner. I use a garbage bowl when I'm cutting things and opening packages. DH helps every night after dinner. He puts leftovers away and loads the dishwasher. I wipe down the table, counters and stovetop.

It's really easier as a team effort.

Lisa

 

[christmas3]

SparkleNana, this is the hardest thing for me to do. It always seems like I have dishes in my sink. I have even joined the Flylady and that still did not do it for me. The ONE thing that I finds that helps me is for my family to sit at the table and eat together. Most of time we are sitting in front of the T.V. I know that is the worse place to eat. if we eat in the livingroom I just do not get up and go back to the kitchen. AND that is just lazy. There I said it. But after a long day I am tried. I am going to try to set the table more. We enjoy when we sit at the table. I do not know why we do not do it more than we do.

It is time to start a NEW tradition in our house. Supper will be served at the table.

Christmas3
ackage: ackage: ackage:

 

[Ahorsesoul]

This use to be a problem before I started with Flylady. Now I just do it. I have a dishwasher so once everything is loaded I either turn it on or turn on the timer so it goes on at bedtime. Now that this is a routine, along with making my sink shine, I never find it a problem. I'd really like getting up in the morning to a clean sink. Well worth the few minutes for clean up.

One thing I do with hard to clean pans. I add a few tablespoons (sometimes more) of automatic dishwasher soap and fill the pan with hot water. I let it soak for an hour or so. This makes the baked on food come right off. No more hard to clean pans for me.

 

[jinglemom]

This is the one thing I try to accomplish everynight even when it kills me. I am able to do so much more the next day if I don't have to begin with a mess in the kitchen. Of course it never fails that my teenager or my husband wants to eat something after I have just cleaned everything up. :thud: I feel a little guilty, but I cheat sometimes and use paper plates.I especially do this when I am really tired, we have a late dinner from sports practice, or when my husband has to work and won't be home for dinner. It feels good to get a break every once in a while. We don't usually eat big heavy meals, we eat more simple, skillet/one dish type meals so I don't usually have more than a couple pots and pans to wash. I usually have my husband grill the meat or chicken since it is less messy for me that way. I usually have him grill a few extra pieces for me to use in another recipe for that week. Lately I have been thinking that I might start doing my cooking in the afternoon and just reheat it later. I tend to enjoy cooking in afternoon when I have more energy but dread having to cook and clean at the end of the day. I also like the idea of making enough for two meals and freezing one. I want to try that too. :rnament:

 

[JodyLynn]

I'm there with ya SparkleNana. About the only thing that motivates me is that I make it the LAST chore I do for the day. I think to myself, "Once I clean up the kitchen, I'm putting my feet up until bedtime." Of course, after some hectic days at work, even that doesn't motivate me and I wake up to a counter full of dishes. Ugh.

 

[Bren]

When I remove the dishes from the dishwasher I set the table with them. It saves me time & the table is ready when dinner rolls around. I clean as I cook. I can't stand to have the counters all cluttered while I work! I keep a small plastic bag to toss all the trash/scrap food into, tie it up & toss it outside in the big trash can after dinner. My kids clear their spots...scrape scraps into the trash, rinse dishes & put them in the dishwasher. My DH will do the dishes if I don't. I used to let them pile up when I was newly married, but I didn't have a dishwasher and I worked outside the home, so I do know where you guys are coming from :flower: . My biggest motivator to get it all done...I have had ants get in the kitchen a few times. OH MY! No food is ever left out overnight....once in awhile a few rinsed dishes are left in the sink, but NEVER any food.

Good luck finding what works best for your families :grouphug: .

Bren :flower:

 

[Ahorsesoul]

When I was in grade school (many many ages ago), about every two months I would spend the day with my aunt. She hated to wash dishes!! She'd rinse them after every meal and stack them until there was no more counter space, or floor, or chair space left. Then I'd come down to help wash, dry and put away all her dishes. She'd make lunch and we'd keep going. I don't remember her kitchen without dirty dishes stacked all over. She must have had dozens of sets of dishes. But she sure could cook. I still cook some of her recipes!!

 

[christmas3]

arty: MY KITCHEN WAS CLEAN THIS MORNING!!!!!!!!! arty:

I set the table last night and after dinner everyone helped with the clean up. The kids took their plates to the sink, DH cleaned off the table and countertop and put everything back in the refrigerator and I loaded the dishwaher. Then I wipe down the table and countertop....DH forgot to do that but it was ok. It was really nice to get up this morning to a clean kitchen. Now I can started on today's chore instead of cleaning up last night's mess.

Christmas3
ackage: ackage: ackage:

 

[SparkleNana]

Christmasx3 - hooray!! arty: Good for you!!! This is what we ALL want and we want it every day!!!

The posts so far have been terrific! Please keep them coming! I LOVED Ahorsesoul's story about washing dishes with her aunt! It doesn't sound as if you hated it, Ahorsesoul. Also - your hint about dishwasher soap and hot water, left to soak in really caked on pans -- that is a great hint! Everyone's hints are great! We KNOW the rewards of a clean kitchen at night are wonderful -- that is why it is so frustrating when we don't achieve it!

 

[Cathymac]

Now you should know something about me before I get to the subject of this post...I absolutely HATE to clean, but I LOVE a clean house...

...so, now after a few years of making myself do it, I've found that I can't sleep if my kitchen is not clean. Seriously. Crazy, isn't it?

I also clean up after myself as I cook...mostly the pots and pans that I never have room for in the dishwasher. Then, after we all eat (together at the table, almost always. Occasionally, we have pizza in front of the tv off of papertowels, but mostly at the table, all together...)the kids are responsible for scraping their plates and putting them, their silverware and their glasses in the dishwasher. DH has even gotten good about doing that. Then I put away the food (I'm picky...they never suit me, so it's one of my chores...the boys have others that they do.) and wipe down the table and counter, and if it's not too hot, start the dishwasher. If it's warm in the kitchen, I turn the dw on when I do the coffee setup for the morning timer. Sometimes I forget, but it's gotten to be a routine now. I really think that's the key..establishing a routine. And, as a result, now I can't sleep if the kitchen is dirty! Clothes in the dryer...they don't bother me at all! LOL!

 

[MinnieCo]

I make sure my DD has the dishwasher emptied every afternoon, then I rinse as I go. Then after dinner, my hubby will rinse while I load and put stuff away. I should say he rinses sometimes...but either way, they are done every night. I'm also a flylady baby, so I know how good it feels to wake up in the morning to a clean sink. You'd think after 2 years though, that my DH would get the idea at the end of the night to put his cup on the side of the sink and not dump it in my shiny sink. But NOOOOOO.......

 

[chilli]

I have to say first, that I only cook for lunch on weekends (during the week, my hubby and I have both an cafeteria at work with cheap meals for lunch; so we only have a small dinner in the evening with less dishes).

On weekends we have the agreement that I cook and prepare the lunch and therefore he cleans up the kitchen afterwards. :grin:

But I agree with you: If I had to clean the kitchen after cooking, I really would hate it...

Chilli

 

[Christmaslvr]

I have to say that I always clean up after dinner, I've never not washed the dishes. BUT, it's cleaning the counters and stovetop that I seem to let go! I really need to get a "garbage bowl"! And it's rare that there are no dishes in the sink before I go to bed. It's only me and my dd, so we're not talking lots of dishes, but there is always something from a snack or dessert that I don't seem to do at night. It might only be a knife or a spoon, but there's always something. I do those in the morning with the breakfast dishes.

Oh, and I have left a pan soaking and never went back to wash it! (like right now!) :slap:

 

[HouseElf]

I clean as I go, and as soon as dinner is being served I quickly clean up the pots and pans - so that after we eat all there is left is the dishes. WFM :frosty:

 

[cmerth]

Sounds wonderful-- the clean sinks.

I struggle with this lately (past 2 weeks). My dishwasher died and we are not sure what is the problem. I have been having to hand wash dishes. This is a problem because I have a medical condition and by 6pm I am usually fatigued and pushing myself can be counter-productive. Hubby does his best to help out as much as possible. I have "tried" to go back and do the dishes after I rest for a while. Not every night do I muster up enough energy to go back and finish the sink of supper dishes.

I have tried to wash things as I cook but some nights it just doesn't work so well.

Like today... we had our farewell dinner for our friends and I have a few dishes to wash but I have done so much to get ready for the party today that going downstairs to do dishes overwhelms me.

Anyone have any energy to spare?? At least the rest of my house is clean.

 

[SparkleNana]

Cmerth - Get some delicious rest! That is one luxury we CAN give ourselves -- and NO feeling guilty allowed!

When I really really get behind in the kitchen, AND am really tired -- I try to do a no-work dinner. Something I have frozen in advance. VERY rarely, a take -out dinner. Luckily, my husband likes left-overs (if it is an occasional event) so it is great if I have cooked double recently! I need to put a little more thought into these no-cook nights.