Laundry Time

First of all, I'd like to turn your attention to the fact that today is International Women's Day! Check out the official website and see if there is a way that you and your family can honor the day in your home. In celebration of the strength of women, I did a treadmill 5K this morning (there was still ice on the ground outside, so I opted for the safer running alternative).

And now . . . on with my regular thoughts today:

As I was putting in the second load of laundry this morning, it dawned on me that each type of laundry has its own indicator for when it should be washed:

1. Mr. Music's clothes need washing when he's out of pants. This kid goes through an average of 2-3 pairs of pants/day. Sometimes they can be re-worn, but more times than not the food/playdoh/snot/dog slobber wins and the pants go in the laundry pile.

2. Little Sister's clothes need washing when she's out of socks. Like her big brother, she likes to change her clothes frequently. She's happiest in a shirt and undies (just about potty trained, she is!) and socks, so we don't have the same pants problems with her; however, she averages 4-5 pairs of socks/day. I'm not exaggerating. I was prepared for needing lots of shoes with a daughter (especially since her dad and I BOTH have a love for shoes), but I had no idea we'd have such a need for a mountain of socks!

3. Workout clothes have their own story. On great workout/running weeks, I wash the clothes when I can smell them (if we're both active, this can be after just 2 days!). Several days in a row of sweaty clothes really brews quite the odor. On not so great workout weeks, the clothes have a chance to air out between workout days, so I don't think to wash them until I'm out of my good sports bras.

4. Grown-up laundry sneaks in between the other laundry. Often this means having to be creative with clothing combinations when the pickings get slim. And of course there's carrying heaping baskets of clothes downstairs to the laundry room (good workout!) in hopes that two of our loads can be done before any of the other loads require attention, too. Someday this pecking order will change, right?

5. Since ousting paper towels, we do towel laundry a few times/week. Cloth napkins and wash cloths are the way to go! Even though these need more frequent washing, the kids can help fold them, so it doesn't seem like such a chore.

How about YOU? Are your laundry habits dictated by any particular family member quirks? Or are you the organized person who always does laundry on a certain day of the week? Come on, fess up!