Review & Giveaway Info: Bootcamp for Lousy Housekeepers

Bootcamp for Lousy Housekeepers
Author: Heidi Schaap
Publisher: Shepherd's Gate Press
Audience: Adults
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Synopsis: (from author's storefront)

You're buried under piles of unfolded laundry. You can't set the table because all your dishes are dirty. You need to dust, but every countertop is covered in newspapers and last month's unpaid bills. Every drawer in your home is a junk drawer. Does this sound familiar? Do you want to manage your home better, but just don't know where to start? Bootcamp for Lousy Housekeepers is the book that can help you transform your home from "messed" to "blessed" in a month (or less!) and keep it clean FOR GOOD! Drill Sergeant Heidi Schaap teaches you what to clean, how often to clean it, how to maintain your newly-cleaned home and more!

My Comments:

OK - I'll admit it. I have much better things to do with my life instead of housecleaning... reading, blogging, knitting, gardening.... ummmmm - just about anything that doesn't involve cleaning the house. It isn't so much that I don't like cleaning as much as not knowing how to do it efficiently. My mother took care of all the chores while we were at school, so as far as I knew, the place just always looked the way it did with not much effort. That is, all except for my room.

When I left home and was on my own, there still wasn't a lot of effort with just myself, but after being married and with children and homeschooling, things can quickly get out of hand. Just the papers and books alone can quickly pile up and grow into monsters that take over the house with just a blink of an eye!

I received Heidi's book last month, and told her that to do an honest review of it, I would be using it and putting it to the test. The test results are in....

First, a little about the book's appearance:
The book arrived VERY well wrapped. It was backed with cardboard and was wrapped in strong plastic, and then in a box that had 2 plastic straps holding it closed. It arrived in perfect shape. The book itself is spiral bound, making it a dream to use! It can be left open with no worries of losing a page when you need to be working out of it. The book has many forms designed to be reproduced and the spiral binding makes it so easy to copy those forms.

I won't lie and tell you that the book will be the answer to all your prayers and have your house clean in a snap. Sorry. There's work involved and forms to fill out and schedules to make. I'll admit, when I first saw that there was time to invest before I could start cleaning, I balked at the idea. As a home school mom, the last thing I need to be doing is making out more lists and schedules. Right? WRONG!! Schedules keep me on track, so why wouldn't I be using them in my housekeeping routine as well. Ah, there's the magic word - routine. I didn't have one! No wonder I was having trouble.

I sat down and worked with Heidi's program and although it was a bit time consuming at first, it really was a blessing to me. The book is just jam-packed with information from planning a menu to cleaning to lawn and garden care. The outside care surprised me. I certainly didn't expect to find that listed in a housekeeper's guide!

As I went over the lists and made my own tailored to my needs, I found things that I was neglecting and really didn't think much about doing. I also appreciate that Heidi included an example of how each of the forms were to be filled out. She has also broken jobs down into what needs to be done when - daily, weekly, monthly, seasonally. It makes things not seem so overwhelming when broken down in this manner.

Yes, I could go on and on about this book. It is worth the time to set up the system and work it. After the system is set up, there's not much effort on your part besides following your lists and schedules that are tailored to your needs. This is one book that NEEDS to be in every housekeeper's home, or should I say in every home. I really will work if you put the small amount of effort in it in the beginning. I know my home looks much nicer now!!

Author Giveaway:

Heidi is giving away 2 copies of her book in celebration of Spring. On Saturday, March 20th, she will be picking the winners at random, so hurry and hop on over to her blog and enter today!!

This book was sent to me by the author for an honest review.