Monday’s are supposed to be laundry day. Monday came and went without a hint of laundry going through the washing machine. This week I have put off the inevitable. I have at least six loads that need to be run through, not counting towels. I got started today but there is no way I will finish it. I have found other things this week I would rather do because I have this love/hate relationship with laundry.

I absolutely loathe sorting clothes so to solve that problem I have a three basket laundry sorter. Whites, mediums and darks are all have their own bin. Seems pretty straightforward to me, darks in one bin, mediums in the next and whites in the next but having the laundry actually make it into the proper bins seems to be a bit out of reach for everyone in my family. I don’t know why, but every laundry day I find darks in the whites bin…not so good when you find a red t-shirt has been run through a load of whites. Every Monday I have to sort through each bin to take out what doesn’t belong. Doesn’t sound like a big deal, but it drives me batty because I am supposed to have a built in laundry sorter.

Socks are the death of me. I can not stand matching socks. Can’t stand it, can’t stand it, can’t stand it! So, to solve this little problem I bought everyone a lingerie bag to put their socks in when they are dirty. On laundry day the sock bags are supposed to be zipped up and put in the (proper) laundry bin. One kid can’t find their bag so they just throw all of their socks right in the hamper, scattering matches all through the laundry. Another of the kids didn’t zip their bag shut so their socks go skittering, willy-nilly through the washing machine. After the load has been run through I open the door to transfer everything to dryer when lo and behold socks come FLYING out of the washing machine landing everywhere but in the dryer. Don’t even get me started on how the socks attack after going through the dryer! I hate sorting socks so much when they come out of the dryer on the outside of their sock bag and are all unmatched they get uncerimoniously dumped in a laundry basket. It is where they stay until the kids need a pair of socks and have to go digging for them because I refuse to match the socks together. I hate socks.

The one thing I love about laundry is folding it. When one load finishes drying I take each piece out of the dryer, snap it to get the wrinkles out and then I lay each piece of laundry on the counter beside the washing machine. I make a nice flat pile of laundry and then when I have four loads or so laying flat I will take it all upstairs to our room, turn on “It’s Me or the Dog,” or “Animal Cops” and fold laundry. It is a little piece of “downtime” when I am actually accomplishing something. Folding laundry is just so mindless.

Love it or hate it, laundry is a fact of life when you have kids. Ah, for the love of my children…