My friend Mary of Giving Up on Perfect offered to write this post after a comment I made in my first Google+ Hangout where she was a guest. (She was there when I messed up and it didn’t record.) As I introduced her, I shared that I remember the first time I met her because she said she had been running her dishwasher every night(ish) since she read my post on that. This was EARLY in my blogging journey, and it was truly the first time it occurred to me that sharing what worked for me could help someone else.
According to Dana, the first time we met I walked up to her and said, “Your tip about running the dishwasher every night is totally changing my life.”
Now, look. I’m not saying I was lying. I wasn’t! But three years and then some later, I’m not sure I was telling her the complete truth either.
If I’d been brutally honest with my soon-to-be bloggy friend, I would’ve simply said, “I read your tip about running the dishwasher every night, and it seems like a good idea. I’ve tried it a few times and it works well for me. I’m going to keep on trying to do it but am probably going to fail way more than I succeed.”
But, really, I’ve never been known for my understatement.
So LIFE CHANGING it was. And you know what? Life changing it can be. WHEN I DO IT.
A few weeks ago, I joined Dana on her first Google Hangout to talk about her daily habits, but, well, only a few people were able to listen in and chat with us. [Plus I got a little tongue-tied when it was my turn to talk because honestly? I get super distracted by the Not Awesome that is my hair when that video camera is turned on.]
Just in case you missed the hangout and wanted to hear more about Dilemmas Solved by Dishwasher Discipline (feel free to use that one, Dana), I’m here to share with you how daily habit number one (i.e. running my dishwasher every night) really does change my life . . . WHEN I DO IT.
1. It saves money. I’ll let Dana explain the ins and outs of how running even a partially full dishwasher every night uses less water (and therefore less money) than hand-washing your dishes. For me? Having a clean kitchen saves me beaucoup bucks because I’m not tempted to eat out nearly as much!
When my counters are covered in dirty, sticky, stinky dishes, cooking – and therefore dirtying up more dishes – is The Last Thing on Earth I want to do. So, we order pizza. Or run to Wendy’s. Or Chipotle. Or whatever sounds better than carving out counter space to chop and dice and prep dinner for my family.
2. It saves calories. Obviously if I’m cooking more and eating out less, I’m consuming way fewer calories. And so is my family. (Unless you factor in that a clean kitchen also makes it easier to bake those diet-unfriendly goodies that we like so much . . . but no. Don’t factor that in. AHEM.)
3. It allows my family to help. If only my husband had a quarter for every time I’ve put on my martyr hat, whining about how, “Nobody helps me around here! I’m the only one doing ANYTHING! WHY won’t you HELP ME?” Well, honestly, it’s hard to help out in the kitchen when it’s so far gone, so completely covered in dirty dishes that I don’t even know where to start, much less where to direct helpful family members.
If I run the dishwasher every night, however, it’s pretty simple. When the evening gets chaotic and my husband offers to help, I can quickly direct him to the large, don’t-go-in-the-dishwasher dishes waiting to be washed, the ice trays that need to be refilled or the snacks that need to be prepped for lunches. And everyone’s happy.
4. It allows my daughter to check off boxes on her chore list. For now, my daughter loves doing chores. LOVES. Yes, moms of older kids, I realize this will change sooner than I’d like. FOR NOW I’m taking full advantage! And that means being prepared to have her help . . . which means getting the dishwasher run so she can put away clean silverware and “her” dishes (the ones that go on the bottom shelf of the pantry.
5. It keeps the ants away. Perhaps you’ve never had ants in your kitchen. If so, I want to know where you live so I can come live there. But until you let me move in, I have to face facts that ants sneak in from time to time – and when they find dirty dishes, left out like cookies for Santa, they go to town. And then they go back to their colony, tell their friends and BRING THEM ALL BACK TO MY COUNTERS.
Clean dishes means clean counters means a whole lot fewer ant problems.
6. It makes it easier to have company. Our house is currently for sale, so I have to keep things relatively clean (or super duper clean, for me) anyway. Having my dishes ALREADY IN THE DISHWASHER makes tidying up for a showing way easier. And the same goes for having friends and family over to visit.
My dishes still pile up on occasion. But they don’t stay that way. Not for nearly as long as they used to. Because I know how one simple habit really can transform my home and my life.
Thank you to Dana, for starting your blog, for being my friend and for telling me as many times as it takes to RUN MY DISHWASHER!
What new habit has changed your life?
Mary Carver is a writer, blogger, church planter, wife and mom. A recovering perfectionist, Mary writes with honesty and humor about her imperfect life at www.givinguponperfect.com. Her posts about everything from dieting and housekeeping to parenting and faith encourage other women to give up on perfect and get on with life. She also writes for (in)courage and is the author of Plan a Fabulous Party {without losing your mind}. You can connect with Mary on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. And if you subscribe to her blog (and why wouldn’t you?!), you’ll receive an ebook called Finding a Happier Ever After for FREE!
--Nony
So I had to Google dishwasher vs hand washing because I would have thought it was less expensive to stand at the sink. But I was wrong, so I really do need to try using the dishwasher every day. Without pre-washing them.
But I know exactly what you mean, Mary. It’s easier to prepare good, nutritious meals when all of your dishes are clean, and your counter is clear. It’s too easy to spend money on takeout, or a food like substance you can nuke in the microwave on a paper plate.
Okay, time for me to find Nony’s post on the dishwasher detergent she uses…and to make sure I pick some up tomorrow. My new challenge is to load and run that sucker once a day from now on. Or most days anyway.
Most days is still way better than…um…once a week. Not that I know anyone who does that…{me}. 🙂 Good luck implementing this habit! It really does make a huge difference!
That’s what I’m hoping. I just have to do one load without pre-washing, and if the dishes do come out clean, I’ll be spending far less time standing at the sink with a scrubby and paper towels. Now I can only hope, given how long I’ve neglected the poor thing, the dishwasher remembers how it’s supposed to work. It probably thinks it’s retired now. 😉
I run mine pretty much every night and have for years. My kitchen is the focal point of our main living space. When the counters are clear, EVERYONE is happier and there is much less tension. I love walking into a clean kitchen first thing in the morning.
There’s just something about clean counters that makes me smile, too!
I’m not one to wash dishes by hand….um….ever. Thank goodness I have a super helpful husband who does load the dishwasher most nights when he gets home from work and runs it. I have this thing where I build up in my mind how long it is going to take to stuff the dishwasher, but then, it doesn’t actually take that long. It’s also gratifying to my water-conserving–and-usually-green-self to know that the dishwasher actually uses less water. Woohoo! LOL
For a while, I would “race” my coffee pot in the mornings. I would start the pot and then race to empty the dishwasher before it beeped. Most days, I would win — even without having had any coffee yet! My days go so much smoother when I race the coffee pot in the morning because I can load the dishwasher all day long and remember to have the kids clean up their own dishes. Hehehe!
Love the racing coffee idea! One thing that’s helped me is timing just how LITTLE time it actually takes to load and unload the dishwasher. Really? Like I can’t spare 10-15 minutes each day?? (Okay, some days I can’t. But most of them…I can…even if I don’t want to!)
Because I also suffer from “slob-vision”, I credit Dana’s “slob-vision” posts for all of the improvements I’ve made in my house. The concept of “slob-vision” has helped me understand why I need to do some things every day no matter what.
I’m so thankful for Dana, too! And now I’m giggling about “slob-vision” 🙂
Now if only my dish washer would truly clean my dishes with out me pre washing them. 🙁 (Because we all know that is the ONE reason my entire house is not clean 😉 )
Hahaha!!!
I have to really rinse mine, too. Clearly we both need new dishwashers. 😉
Thanks for sharing you totally honest testimony today, Mary! Dana’s tips really do make a world of difference, when I implement them, and transformation really does occur, when I’m consistent.
And when this isnt’ the case, I love how I can slip back into Habit #1, again.
Yes! Don’t tell…but…I had let my dishes stack up for a few days over the weekend and got the kitchen back in order with Habit #1 JUST IN TIME for this post to go live! 🙂
he he he 😉 your secret is safe with me
Unless you have a large family. Then you run it in the afternoon and again at bedtime.
My father made me see a few years ago that I don’t have a dirty dish problem. I have a clean dish problem. No dirty dishes go into the dishwasher, because it’s always full of clean dishes. I told my kids if you keep the dishwasher empty I’ll load it. I don’t know why I hate unloading the dishwasher. I turn into a whiny baby when I have to do it. Loading it feels so good to get the sink and counters cleaned off. They seldom unload and therefore, I seldom load it. I really need to get over my bad self.
That’s how I feel about laundry. I can get it clean, but putting it away? Uggghhhhhh.
I’ve had a dishwasher for, oh…. a week and a half now. Perhaps as time moves on the novelty will wear off. For now though I am so enthralled with the fact that I can fill it up before bed and in the morning I have clean sparkly dishes, without having to stay up late scrubbing them myself. My husband, bless him, has even joined in the fun. I fill it up and load the soap at night and when he come in from work (3am) he throws in his lunch container and pushes start. That is so much better than having to scrub out nasty, slimy leftovers before packing his lunch the next afternoon.
I have quit putting anything plastic in the dishwasher. But I also went through all my dishes and got rid of most plastic and switched to glass. Therefore there’s still some to wash by hand but not many. And I also make my 5 children put away dishes
& I load the dishwasher. I love a clean kitchen in the morning so I make sure its clean when I go to bed. NO EXCEPTIONS!!
Lynne, I’m a whiner too so when I unload the dishwasher, I hurry and take out multiple things at a time and place them on MY HUSBAND’S side of the table. (It’s really his job anyway.) This makes less for me to put away and I can handle it much less angst. And then I put away the things that go on my side of the table. He doesn’t like his place at the table crowded, so he notices them quickly and they get put away. But when he doesn’t come back to the table right away, I end up putting his away too, but it still seems like much less of a big deal. ~~still have to work on that putting laundry away thing though
Where are you from? I recognized that shakes up anywhere. We have about 30 :/
This is a guest post from my friend Mary at GivingUponPerfect.com. She’s from Missouri!
One of the things I do that makes my life easier is making my bed as soon as I get up. It just makes my bedroom seem cleaner right from the start. Another one is the bathroom. After my shower I wipe everything down while it is still steamy from the shower. In this way I use way less chemicals because the steam loosens the grime, especially the mirror!!
I haven’t had a dishwasher in 47 years (since I moved out of the parents’ house at 17). But the habit of doing the dishes every night and putting them away every morning has really transformed things for me. At first, I was almost uncomfortable at having that big empty counter where all the dirty ones used to be piled! I, too, do a little racing–in the morning when I get up, I put on the water for my coffee and the water for my oatmeal. I put away half my dishes while waiting for them to boil, and then after I pour water into my French press for the coffee, I put away the rest while the oatmeal cooks for five minutes, and everything is tidy. (This also works if you avoided doing the dishes the night before–you can just as easily fill up a dish rack with clean ones while waiting for boiling water or oatmeal or toast.)