An Important Day
I have discussed on this blog quite a bit about my cleaning routine. I haven’t talked about one of the most important days of my week though and that is Saturday. Personally, I use Saturdays as a reset day for myself, my daughter, and our home. It is a quintessential part of my weekly routine and maybe it will become a part of yours too. Keep reading for all the details about my Saturday reset!
What is the Saturday Reset?
My Saturday reset is a much needed day in the week. A lot of things occur on Saturdays in our household. One of the biggest things is that it is laundry day. I do the bulk of the laundry in one day if I can. I have a few miniature loads that I do throughout the week as needed. Despite this, Saturday has always been reserved as laundry day in my house. One of the main reasons Saturday is laundry day is because it is also a personal care reset day. This means that we wash hair, do nails, and any other extra special pampering or self care that we choose to do. Because we are fresh and clean we also need fresh linens. Fresh linens in our home mean switching out bathroom towels and stripping and remaking the beds with fresh laundered sheets.
None of this sounds too thrilling or like it’s earth shattering but it is a busy day that keeps things moving in our household. I do enjoy that it is a type of busy in the best way. A little self care and pampering mixed in with off and on laundry all day is not too bad of a day of work but it is a lot to cram into one single day. Let’s dive into the details shall we?
The History of the Saturday Reset
When I was growing up my mom introduced me to the Saturday reset. Because she worked outside of the home Saturdays were her big day to get all of the home care and self care done. She packed way more into her Saturdays than I do now because she additionally did a lot of the home cleaning too since she was not home the bulk of the week to do it then. Still, we always used Saturdays to change the linens and freshen up for the week ahead.
I have to say, nothing feels better than a Saturday night. Climbing into clean sheets after washing up from head to toe feels amazing. As a Christian it is also nice going to church the next day at your best. It makes church feel a little more important and causes me to feel less lackadaisical toward the whole thing. Afterall, we are in the presence and partaking of the Supper at the Lord’s table – that’s a big deal! If we were to meet a celebrity or someone famous like someone of royalty we would likely want to look our best so for God Himself it makes sense that we should present ourselves properly (not that God cares but it encourages our mindset and represents it too!).
Christian or not, Sunday is also the first day of the week. It feels great to be ready and put together to take on the start of the week. Also, getting everything ready on Saturday means that you can have that one more day of rest before the work week begins again. Sunday can truly be a day of rest without the panic last minute the night before work or school begins again.
The Laundry
Let’s discuss the individual areas of a Saturday reset in our household. The first thing on the list is laundry. Laundry on Saturdays in our household consists of mine and my daughter’s laundry along with all towels and bed sheets. Throughout the week I do a small load on Tuesdays usually for kitchen towels, mine and my husband’s bathmat, and if there are any other towels, blankets, etc. that need to be washed I will throw them in this load or a separate one on the same day. My husband’s laundry is generally done on a random day of the week as needed because his work schedule is a bit wonky and causes his laundry needs to change weekly. This leaves just my daughter’s and my laundry along with the linen refresh that comes on Saturdays.
I do try and stay on top of the laundry through the day on Saturday. For one, putting laundry away immediately reduces—or even eliminates—the need for ironing, which is ideal. It is also nice to go to bed with the laundry completely done meaning washed AND put away. You can easily fold laundry from your couch or while playing with your toddler. Sometimes, just working on it intermittently through the day is what it takes to get it done, but I do try to have the last load put away before the next is done.
Self Care
Self care is a big part of our Saturdays around here. As a curly haired girl I wash my hair only once a week and my daughter is generally the same unless she gets her hair dirty throughout the week – she’s a toddler after all. Because of this I wash and style my hair on Saturdays. I also do all my extra self care – extra shaving, exfoliating, dermaplaning, fixing up eyebrows, clipping and filing nails, etc. This is a big bath day for my daughter, complete with a hair wash and an extra-long bubble bath. After her bath I brush out her hair and clip her nails and toenails.
Catch-up Day
Saturdays can also be used as a catch-up day for something that was missed during the week, but that needs to be done before the next week begins to start your week off right. This doesn’t happen often because I stay home with my daughter during the week and usually keep up with chores, but occasionally something still slips through the cracks. Saturdays are an excellent day to catch-up on whatever may have slipped through the cracks through the week. Like my mom, it also may be your main day to catch up on the home’s needs. My cleaning routine includes a flexible floating catch-up day to keep Saturdays open, but some weeks simply bring too much to do and too little time.
Every Home is Different
Saturday may not be your reset day in your household. Every home is different. We all have different living situations, life scenarios, a different number of people at a variety of ages living with us. Despite the differences, I do think that every household can benefit from a reset day. While my mom did it when I was growing up, my life looks different in many ways and I still utilize Saturday resets. When I was single and living on my own, or now that I am married with a toddler in the mix it not only works well for me and our home it has in each circumstance I have lived.
I encourage you to find your Saturday reset. Self care is so important especially as a parent or even just in general in our day in age where we are all running ragged and stressed out. Keeping up with things in your household like laundry becomes more manageable when you find a routine that works well for you. Laundry, like dishes, never really fits into a normal “cleaning” schedule because it is something that never ends. Instead I have found ways to work it into a routine that makes it far easier to stay on top of and not get too behind in where it becomes or at least feels unmanageable.
Rolling With the Punches
While Saturdays have always been my reset day it doesn’t mean that my days have not adjusted slighting depending on life circumstances. For example, our home runs on a septic system, so we can only do a certain number of laundry loads each day. I used to wash ALL the laundry on Saturdays, but now I have found what works in our routine and our septic system and have implemented the random mini laundry days throughout. While I liked finishing all the laundry in one day and getting it off my plate for the week, it created a lot of work for a single day. This new routine works well and feels doable and still satisfies mine and my family’s needs well.
Another big change was adding a toddler into the mix and my husband’s ever changing work schedule. I have learned how to work around it. For instance, instead of washing and styling my hair at night closer to bed, I wash and style it first thing in the morning. I may take another quick shower that night right before getting in my nice clean sheets, but it works better for our family’s routine if the big job that is caring for my hair is done and out of the way before the evening routine of getting our toddler down for bed.
The Beauty of the Saturday Reset
You learn what works for you and adapt your Saturday reset routine into whatever you, your family, and your household need at the time. But that’s the beauty of the day, it is truly a reset. You can do whatever works for you as needed to fill in the gaps that the rest of the week may have missed. I still feel like my Saturdays are full of rest and family time with some added (and much needed) self care and home refresh sprinkled in. I think that’s the best part—Saturdays stay fun, restful, and full of core memories with my family, while also setting me up for a great week ahead.
Looking for More Than Just a Saturday Reset?
If you are looking for more than just a Saturday reset I have a lot in store for you! As mentioned earlier, I have a cleaning routine that even allows for a floating day so if you are too busy that week to follow the routine to a T – no problem! If you want to check out the routine for yourself it is free to download. All you have to do is sign up for my email list which you can do on the homepage by clicking on the button that says “Download Your Checklist!”. I recently talked all about self-care in my latest blog posts. You can read all about my French-inspired skincare routine and my tips on how to feel put together everyday.
