I love doing laundry.
Now before you think that my house is immaculate, you’d be intimidated to come over my house and I dress in pearls.
Not a chance.
There is something about doing laundry that makes me feel productive. I collect the clothes, sort them in two piles and begin the process.
Is it because my laundry room is in the back of the house where it’s just me, some dryer lint and stray pieces of cat food? Is it because this time is a quiet moment of my day?
When I was a young mom, I had a dear friend with the same size family as mine sort her laundry by colors. I don’t mean colors, darks and whites. I mean she washed a separate load of blues and she washed another load of pinks and reds, so forth. I felt like such a slug…
But in time, I matured and realized that my system works for me and there really isn’t any laundry police out there. I also have never had anyone comment on how dull my whites are so…
I’m good.
Folding warm towels on rainy days allows me to think through tasks I need to get done, future article ideas or talking to God about how I handled a conflict with a child. I need a lot of towels for that one. On days when I’m not rushing, I pray for each child as I fold their clothes.
Maybe it’s the texture of the clothes that I love. Maybe it’s because I can start and finish an actual project.
And now with years of experience, I know I won’t get upset when I deliver the towels to our bathroom cupboard and I see the laundry basket is
half full.
And I have to confess,
I do love pearls.
Do you like to do laundry? Or another repetitive chore? Why?
I have to say…. I’m not a fan of laundry 😉
Hey Dakota,
What a treat for me that you’d come by. I know I didn’t learn how to do laundry until I went away to school.
Thanks.
Mrs. Ud
I confess I do not get a thrill doing any housework. I can get lost in the monotony of such a task as handwashing the dishes or folding laundry, and it can help relieve upset nerves, but I’m not a huge fan of housework. I do think I enjoyed it more when my kids still lived at home, which is interesting to think about now.
Hi Jackie,
When I was younger, my house was far cleaner because I believed “that a clean house made you a good mom.” I don’t believe that idea anymore. 🙂
Thank you for your comment.
j
I really don’t mind doing laundry at all…but I’m NOT a fan of folding. Well, I don’t mind folding so much as I don’t like putting it away. Well, I DO like putting nicely folded laundry in drawers and on shelves to look full and neat. Hey, I guess I DO like doing laundry! 😉
I think it is just that we have SOOO much of it!
But I will confess that we don’t even separate our laundry AT ALL anymore! We have hard water and no water softener. I’ve tried all methods to soften the water and keep my whites white, but they ALWAYS turn a dingy grey. Sigh. So until we get a water softener (I’ve been hoping and trying to save for 15 years now), I just toss it all in! 😉
Well, Kate, Fortunately, I haven’t come across any LP…so I think you’re safe.
and…I said I make two piles but it’s not by color, it’s just because we always have a lot of clothes. I probably should have said 3 or 4 piles. However, people might have thought that I meant that I separate my clothes by 4 colors. No! Every once and awhile, I do collect all the whites and bleach them. But that’s rare. 🙂
j
I love laundry, too, Jan. And I thoroughly enjoy doing dishes. Well, most of the time.
Love hand washing pots and pans when everybody else has helped with the rest of dinner.
Jan,
I am so laughing right now because just today, I posted a blog about how I *hate* to do laundry! My conclusions about that task are different than yours, but I am glad to hear that you like to do it. Maybe one day (probably when we’re down to just the two of us), I will not mind laundry. Maybe I will miss the people who made the clothes dirty… Thanks for giving me a new perspective. 🙂
-@mymuddyshoes (Wendi)
Hi Wendi,
I went by your blog and loved your words of wisdom, too. Some days I have my kids do the laundry or at least, fold and put away. They’re learning good “life skills.”
Thanks for coming by.
jan
I’d take laundry over grocery shopping any day of the week. I even love folding. I learned long ago that if you fold laundry immediately as it comes out of the dryer it doesn’t seem like such a chore. Saturday’s a big laundry day for me and I have a boom box in the laundry room so I can listen to “Prairie Home Companion” and other NPR shows while I work. And I try not to do it every day – though I could – so it doesn’t feel like a task that’s never finished.
Michelle
I love laundry too. I usually do about two loads a day and it keeps me caught up. I must admit, at one point my girls had enough pink clothing at the same time that I’d do a load of pinks in addition to lights, brights, darks & towels.
Wow ~ would either Jan or Michelle like to come over to my house and do laundry! I LOVE to grocery shop [and cook for that matter]. Let’s trade! ;D
Lovely post ~ you make folding laundry sound so peaceful!
I don’t mind doing laundry so much, especially on a cold rainy day. I absolutely love folding clean dry towels right out of the drier and if I’m cold I sometimes snuggle up in the them. Ahhhh…I love the warmth.
I must say that I’m not a fan of laundry either…and there’s only two of us…most of the time! It ranks right up there, for me, with dusting – yuck! I live in jackets year round and am incredibly cold natured so I, too, like folding warm towels on a cold, winter day, but I’d prefer if someone would fold them for me 😉
I appreciate that you brought up the moment when you put away the towels and see the laundry basket is already half full again! Happens. Every. Time! Guess what my guest blogger wrote about for tomorrow’s post? Laundry! What a coincidence. (Or woo woo..you know I like that technical term.) Great post, Jan.
I enjoyed your post! A friend of mine once mentioned saying a prayer for each family member as she folded, and that idea has stayed with me. Recently, I found a FB status discussing the rapture and whenever it came, this gal was pretty sure she’d be doing the laundry- lol! And have you seen the blog the theology of laundry? It is new- the bio mentions how the author is amused to consider that one of the first things the Risen Christ did was to fold the cloth. Yes, there is inspiration everywhere, isn’t there? Thank you!
Hi PJ,
What a gift to have a new reader. I’m sure I heard the idea to pray for each person as I folded their laundry many years ago when my kids were young. It’s really helpful especially if I’m frustrated with a specific child. Thank you for stopping by and for your comment.