Most meaningful quality of life splurge

[Anonymous]

Hands down a gym membership with childcare included. Being a single mom with kids who still need supervision, this will give you time to yourself without having to hire a sitter. If you are taking a rest day you could just go sit in the sauna or hot tub or whatever.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I put the extra money towards travel and savings.

I’m baffled by people who complain about laundry. You put it in and walk away. What’s so hard?

Cleaners would be nice but I’d rather have that money for a nicer vacation.

Do you actually do the laundry in your house? Putting it in is one of many steps. Sorting, washing, drying, folding, putting away. Let me guess, your wife does all the laundry?

Seriously. Laundry is the bane of my existence.

But 8-10 hours? I do laundry twice a week for myself and two kids. DH does his own. It is not 8-10 hours. But I don’t pre-sort or iron, and kids put their own laundry away once I fold it - plus I’ve stopped turning the clothes right side in. They can do that when they wear it and they do, even if they somehow can’t manage to do it before they drop it in the hamper.

+1. I can’t figure out how laundry takes 8-10 hours. Are people changing 7 times a day? We have a family of 4 and we run one white load and one color load a week. It definitely doesn’t take 8-10 hours.

There's no way this is true unless your kids are tiny. Mine are 13, 15 and 17 who play sports. Easily we can do a load a day, not counting towels and sheets.

NP. Mine are 13 and 15 doing travel sports and I agree - I am always doing laundry. BUT it is just putting it in the wash and dryer. It's not like it's that hard. I run multiple loads through the week for sure! I actually don't mind folding. I would never outsource my laundry as I do high house cleaners and use dry cleaners. I would say one thing that makes my life easier is our machines are upstairs and it's nothing to stick something in the washer or dryer as frequently as needed. When it was in the basement or if you have to constantly carry dry clothes to fold up steps, that sucks. I just take it out of my dryer and fold in my bedroom in front of the TV so it's not a big deal.

You guys have time to be in front of the TV?

You get the idea...put clothes is wash...maybe 15 mins if you are collecting it from hampers. Do anything else till the washer dings. Spend 5 mins putting it in dryer. Do anything else till dryer bings. You did not spend two hours on laundry.

you can't really do anything meaningful while you wait. want to hit the gym? a full session is 60 min. want to take a barre class? that's 90 minutes. want to watch an episode? that's a full hour. just because you are not "washing" doesn't mean your time isn't tied up in said errands.

Ok I get not wanting to leave the house (though I do) but you can not make dinner, do other chores, chat with someone, play with kids or dog, read a book, do a craft or hobby...literally anything while your washer or dryer is going?

Fine, just slaving away for more chores. I get it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I put the extra money towards travel and savings.

I’m baffled by people who complain about laundry. You put it in and walk away. What’s so hard?

Cleaners would be nice but I’d rather have that money for a nicer vacation.

Do you actually do the laundry in your house? Putting it in is one of many steps. Sorting, washing, drying, folding, putting away. Let me guess, your wife does all the laundry?

Seriously. Laundry is the bane of my existence.

But 8-10 hours? I do laundry twice a week for myself and two kids. DH does his own. It is not 8-10 hours. But I don’t pre-sort or iron, and kids put their own laundry away once I fold it - plus I’ve stopped turning the clothes right side in. They can do that when they wear it and they do, even if they somehow can’t manage to do it before they drop it in the hamper.

+1. I can’t figure out how laundry takes 8-10 hours. Are people changing 7 times a day? We have a family of 4 and we run one white load and one color load a week. It definitely doesn’t take 8-10 hours.

There's no way this is true unless your kids are tiny. Mine are 13, 15 and 17 who play sports. Easily we can do a load a day, not counting towels and sheets.

NP. Mine are 13 and 15 doing travel sports and I agree - I am always doing laundry. BUT it is just putting it in the wash and dryer. It's not like it's that hard. I run multiple loads through the week for sure! I actually don't mind folding. I would never outsource my laundry as I do high house cleaners and use dry cleaners. I would say one thing that makes my life easier is our machines are upstairs and it's nothing to stick something in the washer or dryer as frequently as needed. When it was in the basement or if you have to constantly carry dry clothes to fold up steps, that sucks. I just take it out of my dryer and fold in my bedroom in front of the TV so it's not a big deal.

You guys have time to be in front of the TV?

You get the idea...put clothes is wash...maybe 15 mins if you are collecting it from hampers. Do anything else till the washer dings. Spend 5 mins putting it in dryer. Do anything else till dryer bings. You did not spend two hours on laundry.

you can't really do anything meaningful while you wait. want to hit the gym? a full session is 60 min. want to take a barre class? that's 90 minutes. want to watch an episode? that's a full hour. just because you are not "washing" doesn't mean your time isn't tied up in said errands.

Ok I get not wanting to leave the house (though I do) but you can not make dinner, do other chores, chat with someone, play with kids or dog, read a book, do a craft or hobby...literally anything while your washer or dryer is going?

I only have intense hobbies such as weight lifting, rock climbing and studying large data set. Chatting, playing with dog or reading are not stimulating enough. So yes, washer and dryer running does ruin my day for personal enjoyment, therefore, should classify as a 8 hour long chore.

[Anonymous]

We earn more than you and don’t have cleaners. I think this thread really demonstrates why poor people stay poor in this country. I know OP isn’t poor but still does the same thing. People get more money and think they deserve to splurge on themselves.

I’m guessing she has no college savings for her kids. That should be a priority. But people would rather splurge on themselves and then complain later that they need financial aid (paid for by the rest of us) because they were irresponsible with their money.

Look at the few posts saying to save it. They are the ones who got out of the lower class.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I put the extra money towards travel and savings.

I’m baffled by people who complain about laundry. You put it in and walk away. What’s so hard?

Cleaners would be nice but I’d rather have that money for a nicer vacation.

Do you actually do the laundry in your house? Putting it in is one of many steps. Sorting, washing, drying, folding, putting away. Let me guess, your wife does all the laundry?

Seriously. Laundry is the bane of my existence.

But 8-10 hours? I do laundry twice a week for myself and two kids. DH does his own. It is not 8-10 hours. But I don’t pre-sort or iron, and kids put their own laundry away once I fold it - plus I’ve stopped turning the clothes right side in. They can do that when they wear it and they do, even if they somehow can’t manage to do it before they drop it in the hamper.

+1. I can’t figure out how laundry takes 8-10 hours. Are people changing 7 times a day? We have a family of 4 and we run one white load and one color load a week. It definitely doesn’t take 8-10 hours.

There's no way this is true unless your kids are tiny. Mine are 13, 15 and 17 who play sports. Easily we can do a load a day, not counting towels and sheets.

NP. Mine are 13 and 15 doing travel sports and I agree - I am always doing laundry. BUT it is just putting it in the wash and dryer. It's not like it's that hard. I run multiple loads through the week for sure! I actually don't mind folding. I would never outsource my laundry as I do high house cleaners and use dry cleaners. I would say one thing that makes my life easier is our machines are upstairs and it's nothing to stick something in the washer or dryer as frequently as needed. When it was in the basement or if you have to constantly carry dry clothes to fold up steps, that sucks. I just take it out of my dryer and fold in my bedroom in front of the TV so it's not a big deal.

You guys have time to be in front of the TV?

You get the idea...put clothes is wash...maybe 15 mins if you are collecting it from hampers. Do anything else till the washer dings. Spend 5 mins putting it in dryer. Do anything else till dryer bings. You did not spend two hours on laundry.

you can't really do anything meaningful while you wait. want to hit the gym? a full session is 60 min. want to take a barre class? that's 90 minutes. want to watch an episode? that's a full hour. just because you are not "washing" doesn't mean your time isn't tied up in said errands.

Ok I get not wanting to leave the house (though I do) but you can not make dinner, do other chores, chat with someone, play with kids or dog, read a book, do a craft or hobby...literally anything while your washer or dryer is going?

I only have intense hobbies such as weight lifting, rock climbing and studying large data set. Chatting, playing with dog or reading are not stimulating enough. So yes, washer and dryer running does ruin my day for personal enjoyment, therefore, should classify as a 8 hour long chore.

You don't have to sit and watch the washer and dryer.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I put the extra money towards travel and savings.

I’m baffled by people who complain about laundry. You put it in and walk away. What’s so hard?

Cleaners would be nice but I’d rather have that money for a nicer vacation.

Do you actually do the laundry in your house? Putting it in is one of many steps. Sorting, washing, drying, folding, putting away. Let me guess, your wife does all the laundry?

Seriously. Laundry is the bane of my existence.

But 8-10 hours? I do laundry twice a week for myself and two kids. DH does his own. It is not 8-10 hours. But I don’t pre-sort or iron, and kids put their own laundry away once I fold it - plus I’ve stopped turning the clothes right side in. They can do that when they wear it and they do, even if they somehow can’t manage to do it before they drop it in the hamper.

+1. I can’t figure out how laundry takes 8-10 hours. Are people changing 7 times a day? We have a family of 4 and we run one white load and one color load a week. It definitely doesn’t take 8-10 hours.

There's no way this is true unless your kids are tiny. Mine are 13, 15 and 17 who play sports. Easily we can do a load a day, not counting towels and sheets.

NP. Mine are 13 and 15 doing travel sports and I agree - I am always doing laundry. BUT it is just putting it in the wash and dryer. It's not like it's that hard. I run multiple loads through the week for sure! I actually don't mind folding. I would never outsource my laundry as I do high house cleaners and use dry cleaners. I would say one thing that makes my life easier is our machines are upstairs and it's nothing to stick something in the washer or dryer as frequently as needed. When it was in the basement or if you have to constantly carry dry clothes to fold up steps, that sucks. I just take it out of my dryer and fold in my bedroom in front of the TV so it's not a big deal.

You guys have time to be in front of the TV?

You get the idea...put clothes is wash...maybe 15 mins if you are collecting it from hampers. Do anything else till the washer dings. Spend 5 mins putting it in dryer. Do anything else till dryer bings. You did not spend two hours on laundry.

you can't really do anything meaningful while you wait. want to hit the gym? a full session is 60 min. want to take a barre class? that's 90 minutes. want to watch an episode? that's a full hour. just because you are not "washing" doesn't mean your time isn't tied up in said errands.

I don’t understand how you are a functional adult with this attitude.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We earn more than you and don’t have cleaners. I think this thread really demonstrates why poor people stay poor in this country. I know OP isn’t poor but still does the same thing. People get more money and think they deserve to splurge on themselves.

I’m guessing she has no college savings for her kids. That should be a priority. But people would rather splurge on themselves and then complain later that they need financial aid (paid for by the rest of us) because they were irresponsible with their money.

Look at the few posts saying to save it. They are the ones who got out of the lower class.

People like you think time has no value. However, you are wrong.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I put the extra money towards travel and savings.

I’m baffled by people who complain about laundry. You put it in and walk away. What’s so hard?

Cleaners would be nice but I’d rather have that money for a nicer vacation.

Do you actually do the laundry in your house? Putting it in is one of many steps. Sorting, washing, drying, folding, putting away. Let me guess, your wife does all the laundry?

Seriously. Laundry is the bane of my existence.

But 8-10 hours? I do laundry twice a week for myself and two kids. DH does his own. It is not 8-10 hours. But I don’t pre-sort or iron, and kids put their own laundry away once I fold it - plus I’ve stopped turning the clothes right side in. They can do that when they wear it and they do, even if they somehow can’t manage to do it before they drop it in the hamper.

+1. I can’t figure out how laundry takes 8-10 hours. Are people changing 7 times a day? We have a family of 4 and we run one white load and one color load a week. It definitely doesn’t take 8-10 hours.

There's no way this is true unless your kids are tiny. Mine are 13, 15 and 17 who play sports. Easily we can do a load a day, not counting towels and sheets.

NP. Mine are 13 and 15 doing travel sports and I agree - I am always doing laundry. BUT it is just putting it in the wash and dryer. It's not like it's that hard. I run multiple loads through the week for sure! I actually don't mind folding. I would never outsource my laundry as I do high house cleaners and use dry cleaners. I would say one thing that makes my life easier is our machines are upstairs and it's nothing to stick something in the washer or dryer as frequently as needed. When it was in the basement or if you have to constantly carry dry clothes to fold up steps, that sucks. I just take it out of my dryer and fold in my bedroom in front of the TV so it's not a big deal.

You guys have time to be in front of the TV?

You get the idea...put clothes is wash...maybe 15 mins if you are collecting it from hampers. Do anything else till the washer dings. Spend 5 mins putting it in dryer. Do anything else till dryer bings. You did not spend two hours on laundry.

you can't really do anything meaningful while you wait. want to hit the gym? a full session is 60 min. want to take a barre class? that's 90 minutes. want to watch an episode? that's a full hour. just because you are not "washing" doesn't mean your time isn't tied up in said errands.

Ok I get not wanting to leave the house (though I do) but you can not make dinner, do other chores, chat with someone, play with kids or dog, read a book, do a craft or hobby...literally anything while your washer or dryer is going?

I only have intense hobbies such as weight lifting, rock climbing and studying large data set. Chatting, playing with dog or reading are not stimulating enough. So yes, washer and dryer running does ruin my day for personal enjoyment, therefore, should classify as a 8 hour long chore.

You don't have to sit and watch the washer and dryer.

Normally I would say it’s the DCUM Laundry Martyrs, but I think that this poster might have a genuine issue with attention and time management.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We earn more than you and don’t have cleaners. I think this thread really demonstrates why poor people stay poor in this country. I know OP isn’t poor but still does the same thing. People get more money and think they deserve to splurge on themselves.

I’m guessing she has no college savings for her kids. That should be a priority. But people would rather splurge on themselves and then complain later that they need financial aid (paid for by the rest of us) because they were irresponsible with their money.

Look at the few posts saying to save it. They are the ones who got out of the lower class.

People like you think time has no value. However, you are wrong.

Time doesn’t have “value” when she would need to pay cleaners more than she earns.

[Anonymous]

Cleaners

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:And all these hidden tasks such as sorting laundry by color, spray n touch stains, flips the socks inside out, flip the pants outside in to protect hardware. towels need hot water, clothes need cold water. if you have a front opening washer, wipe the rubber clean after use to prevent mold, and clean out the dryer after use... no wonder everyone who works from home have nothing done except their laundry.

I do not flip anything. Stains..doesn't come up much.. squirt squirt done. I wash everything on cold as recommended these.days. No mold is our top load

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Cleaners hand down.

and congrats! and a one time treat of treats for you! and put another 5% in your 401k!!

+1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I put the extra money towards travel and savings.

I’m baffled by people who complain about laundry. You put it in and walk away. What’s so hard?

Cleaners would be nice but I’d rather have that money for a nicer vacation.

Do you actually do the laundry in your house? Putting it in is one of many steps. Sorting, washing, drying, folding, putting away. Let me guess, your wife does all the laundry?

Seriously. Laundry is the bane of my existence.

But 8-10 hours? I do laundry twice a week for myself and two kids. DH does his own. It is not 8-10 hours. But I don’t pre-sort or iron, and kids put their own laundry away once I fold it - plus I’ve stopped turning the clothes right side in. They can do that when they wear it and they do, even if they somehow can’t manage to do it before they drop it in the hamper.

+1. I can’t figure out how laundry takes 8-10 hours. Are people changing 7 times a day? We have a family of 4 and we run one white load and one color load a week. It definitely doesn’t take 8-10 hours.

There's no way this is true unless your kids are tiny. Mine are 13, 15 and 17 who play sports. Easily we can do a load a day, not counting towels and sheets.

NP. Mine are 13 and 15 doing travel sports and I agree - I am always doing laundry. BUT it is just putting it in the wash and dryer. It's not like it's that hard. I run multiple loads through the week for sure! I actually don't mind folding. I would never outsource my laundry as I do high house cleaners and use dry cleaners. I would say one thing that makes my life easier is our machines are upstairs and it's nothing to stick something in the washer or dryer as frequently as needed. When it was in the basement or if you have to constantly carry dry clothes to fold up steps, that sucks. I just take it out of my dryer and fold in my bedroom in front of the TV so it's not a big deal.

You guys have time to be in front of the TV?

You get the idea...put clothes is wash...maybe 15 mins if you are collecting it from hampers. Do anything else till the washer dings. Spend 5 mins putting it in dryer. Do anything else till dryer bings. You did not spend two hours on laundry.

you can't really do anything meaningful while you wait. want to hit the gym? a full session is 60 min. want to take a barre class? that's 90 minutes. want to watch an episode? that's a full hour. just because you are not "washing" doesn't mean your time isn't tied up in said errands.

Ok I get not wanting to leave the house (though I do) but you can not make dinner, do other chores, chat with someone, play with kids or dog, read a book, do a craft or hobby...literally anything while your washer or dryer is going?

I only have intense hobbies such as weight lifting, rock climbing and studying large data set. Chatting, playing with dog or reading are not stimulating enough. So yes, washer and dryer running does ruin my day for personal enjoyment, therefore, should classify as a 8 hour long chore.

You don't have to sit and watch the washer and dryer.

Normally I would say it’s the DCUM Laundry Martyrs, but I think that this poster might have a genuine issue with attention and time management.

Or OCD about getting the clothes immediately to the dryer. Germs and all that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I put the extra money towards travel and savings.

I’m baffled by people who complain about laundry. You put it in and walk away. What’s so hard?

Cleaners would be nice but I’d rather have that money for a nicer vacation.

Do you actually do the laundry in your house? Putting it in is one of many steps. Sorting, washing, drying, folding, putting away. Let me guess, your wife does all the laundry?

DP. Laundry is one of the funny things people have strong opinions about here. I think prewashing sorting is the hard part. We watch TV and fold. But I don’t get the complaints. (Wife here).

You have help. It takes me an entire day to do the laundry for my family of five.

I also have a family of five. Each person does their own. I think it’s important as a life skill to think about cleaning up after yourself and your own hygiene. Yes, even the kids — starting at age 5 the kindergartener helps do his own laundry and is proud of it! The older kids do it with minimal supervision.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We earn more than you and don’t have cleaners. I think this thread really demonstrates why poor people stay poor in this country. I know OP isn’t poor but still does the same thing. People get more money and think they deserve to splurge on themselves.

I’m guessing she has no college savings for her kids. That should be a priority. But people would rather splurge on themselves and then complain later that they need financial aid (paid for by the rest of us) because they were irresponsible with their money.

Look at the few posts saying to save it. They are the ones who got out of the lower class.

Emphasis on WE idiot! You have a partner who’s helping you raise your kids. When one person has to do they are more taxed by the experience because there’s not another helper. If OP wants to buy a helper from time to time I the form of a babysitter or occasional cleaner more power to her. Mental health is wealth. This should not prohibit her from saving for college.