#so I can completely rethink my schedule to accommodate it because I really want to take it

[bookwyrminspiration]

I...have to send... an EMAIL! *explodes everything away from me in a perfect circle with my mind*

[doctorstethoscope]

The Right Chapter Nine || Aaron Hotchner x Fem Reader

Hello and happy Tuesday besties! ICYMI, I posted a bit of smutty goodness for all of you 18+ folks here. If you’d like to be added to my general Hotch fic taglist please let me know! 

Read previous chapters of this fic here! 

contains: canon-typical discussion of violence, food mention, therapy, cuddling. 

wc: 2k

When you woke up the next morning, there were flowers in a vase on your bedside table. You’re smiling before you’ve even wiped the sleep away from your eyes, grabbing the sticky note that was stuck to the vase. 

“Would’ve sent these to your desk, but figured that wouldn’t go unnoticed by a team of behavior experts. Hope they made you smile anyways. -AH

An expert on behavior and he was only hoping that he could make you smile, you laughed to yourself, rolling out of bed and finding Aaron in the kitchen with a mug of coffee, packing Jack’s lunch. 

“When did you find the time to do that, Hotchner? Don’t you ever sleep?” You asked, and he looked up at you, breaking out in a smile. 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” He shrugs, looking back down to his carrot slices as you cross the kitchen in pursuit of a cup of coffee. He places the knife down and tugs you closer to him by the palm of your hand so he can drop a kiss to the top of your head. It makes you feel warm all over. You hear the insistent smacking of small feet on hardwood and step away from Aaron in an instant, not wanting to be caught by Jack. 

“Morning bud,” Aaron calls across the kitchen. Jack responds with a yawn, which makes you giggle. He smiles at you. 

“Are you gonna have to go catch bad guys again?” He asks. “I missed you and dad.” 

“Oh little man, we missed you too! We probably won’t get called away today but I can’t say for sure. If dad and I come home tonight, do you want to have a special movie night so we can all spend some time together?” 

Jack nods ferociously, and practically starts buzzing with excitement. “Can we watch monsters inc?” 

“Oh, that’s one of my favorites!” 

“Dad?” Jack looked to his father for confirmation. 

“Of course, bud. But you’d better eat all of these carrots I’m packing in your lunch if you want a treat.” Aaron smiled at Jack, who agreed easily. “Come on, we don’t want to miss the bus.” He said, ushering Jack out the door with a Danimals and an orange while you finished getting ready. You were struck for a moment by how easily you had slid into the Hotchner boys’ morning routines, and you realized that you would miss it once you found your own place. But it was for the best-- you hoped that you and Aaron would be serious enough to consider living together, but you didn’t want to force it too early in the relationship and cause problems. 

When Aaron comes back, you’re dressed and ready to head off to work. He grabs his briefcase and suit jacket off of one of the chairs at the kitchen table. 

“D’you eat?” He asked as he pulled his jacket over his arms.

“I had coffee. I’m not a big breakfast person.” You tell him, surprised that he hasn’t already noticed this about you.

“Grab a fruit.” He tells you. 

“Did you eat?’ You ask him, and the tips of his ears turn pink. “Yeah, that’s what I thought, Hotchner. Why don’t you grab a fruit.” You teased, tossing him an orange from the bowl and tucking a banana into your purse as you stepped out the door, with Aaron locking up behind you. He wrapped his free arm around your waist as the two of you walked to the car.

“I have something to tell you, and you’re going to be mad at me.” Aaron confesses about halfway through your drive to work. 

“Ah, so that’s what the flowers were about.” You said facetiously. 

“No, the flowers were from your boyfriend, this news is from your boss.” He clarifies. 

“Oh?” You asked, needing him to explain more. 

“You’ve got a psych eval this morning.” He confesses and you groan. 

“Ugh, Hotch, really?” 

“Even if we could ignore what happened with Josh-- which, for the record, you shouldn’t-- you were held hostage by an unsub.”

“For like, twenty minutes!” You interrupted him. 

“It’s bureau policy, dear. There’s nothing I can do about it.” 

“And you can’t just say that you gave me the psych eval and I passed?” 

“No,” he tells you, sighing. “For us to be together, we need to keep everything above board. Hopefully no one starts on a warpath when we decide we’re ready to share this, but if they do, I don’t want to give them any reason to undermine your professional credibility by arguing I gave you special treatment.” 

You’re a little bit stunned by Aaron’s use of “when” rather than “if.” It’s not in a bad way, of course-- it’s actually, really, really good, to hear that he’s just as in it as you are, even if you hadn’t expressed it very well yet. The idea that he’s already thinking about the future-- even if it is your professional future, not exactly a white-picket-fence kind of future-- gives you butterflies. You realize you’ve waited too long to respond when Aaron speaks up again. 

“I understand if that’s a lot for you to take on, or if that makes you rethink things. I wouldn’t hold it against you if you decided this wasn’t worth the potential professional issues.” He adds nervously, clearing his throat. You reach over and put a hand on his thigh. 

“I think you’re worth the risk,” you smile at him, and watch him release a breath he didn’t know he was holding. 

 “Thanks for coming in,” Laura, one of the FBI’s resident psychologists said as you settled into the couch in her office. You err on the side of politeness and decide not to point out that you didn’t really have a choice. 

“Not a problem,” you smiled at her. 

“So how are you feeling?” She asked. 

“I’m good. I’m happy to be back at work, and to get my field clearance back. I’ve missed it.” You tell her.

“That’s right, you’d been removed from the field for a head injury.” She said, peering over your file. “Service related?” 

“No, I fell down a flight of stairs,” you lied, hoping she couldn’t read you as easily as Aaron could. 

“Hmm, so you travelled with the team even though you weren’t cleared for field work?” She asks, and you’re pretty sure you’re not imagining the judgement in her tone. 

“I didn’t go into the field. I stayed at the police station, in compliance to orders from my doctor and from Chief Hotchner. Unfortunately, the field came to me,” you attempted to make a joke. She didn’t laugh. 

“Was it not possible for your duties to be completed from Quantico?” 

“No, it wasn’t. The behavioral analysis unit works as a team-- we’re able to determine profiles as successfully as we do because we collaborate. My efforts, and the work of my team, would have been severely hindered if I had stayed behind.” You answer mechanically, trying, and most likely failing, to not sound defensive. “I fail to see how that’s relevant to my experience with Alec Gordon.” 

“I’m just trying to determine if you’re engaging in a pattern of self-endangering or careless behavior.” Laura answers honestly.

“I can assure you that my attitude regarding my work and the work of my team is anything but careless.” You bite back.

“You came back to work very quickly after your concussion.” She says, and it’s not a question, so you don’t take the bait. “Any particular reason for that?” 

“I felt ready to return, and Chief Hotchner was willing to accommodate my need to work partial days until I was fully recovered, so on the advice of my physician I returned to work on a modified schedule.” 

“Agent, I don’t need to tell you that withholding information in our session or on the forms you filled out prior to our appointment today, will only hurt you.” 

“With all due respect, I haven’t withheld anything and I resent the implication.” 

“Very well, agent. I will have a complete evaluation sent to your supervisor by the end of the business day.” 

“Thank you for your time,” you smiled, trying to make it look real. 

“The door is always open, agent.” 

“So, you kind of beat me to the punch this morning,” Aaron tells you as you’re walking out of the office together. 

“What are you talking about?” You asked.

“Well, the flowers were a part of my master plan to get you to agree to come to dinner with me tonight, but it seems you’ve made other arrangements with my son.” He smirks at you as you both climb into his SUV. 

“I guess now you know where you stand in the ranking of Hotchner boys.” You tease him. 

“It won’t get me ahead of Jack, I know, but will you let me take you out to dinner tomorrow night?” 

“Aaron,” you laughed. “You don’t need to take me out to dinner.” 

“Yes, I do.” He tells you.

“We already live together. You’re going to have dinner with me regardless of whether or not we eat it at a restaurant.” You tell him, gesturing to his place as he parked the car.

“Maybe so, but you’ve already decided that we won’t be living together much longer. I care about you, and I want to spend time with you, and I’d like to take you out to dinner.” He said, shifting to face you now that the car was stopped.

You rolled your eyes fondly, feeling yourself blush. “I’ll allow it.” 

“God, it’s like pulling teeth,” Aaron muttered sarcastically, breaking out into a grin as you laughed.

You both got out of the car and headed inside, where Jess and Jack were working on a puzzle at the kitchen table. 

“Dad!” Jack says, looking up to see his father and abandoning the puzzle, launching himself into his father’s arms. 

“Hey, buddy. Did you have a good day?”

“Yes, and I ate all my carrots so that I could have a special treat while we watch Monsters Inc.” 

“He’s been waiting to tell you that all afternoon,” Jess laughed, standing up from the table and crossing to you to give you a hug. When Haley died, you and Jess got a lot closer, through Jack. “It’s good to see you,” she says as she squeezes you. 

“You too.” You smile. “I’ve got to go change into my special movie night clothes,” you smirked, leaving Jess, Jack and Aaron in the kitchen.

“Jack, why don’t you go put on your pajamas, and we’ll start the movie in a little bit?” Aaron suggested, and Jack scampered off towards his room. 

“Do you plan on ever telling that girl how you feel about her, or are you just going to look at her like she hung the stars in the sky for the rest of your life?” Jess asks Aaron bluntly. 

“I can’t possibly be that obvious.” 

“Aren’t you literally a behavior expert?” 

“It’s being handled, Jess.” He assures her with a quick grin as you emerge from your room in soft flannel pants and a tank top. 

“Do you want to stay, Jess? We’re just gonna order a pizza and veg out.” 

“I wish I could. But you kids have fun.” She said, looking between you and Aaron. Jack comes running out of his room to give his aunt a kiss goodbye and you all settle on the couch. 

Jack inserts himself in the middle of you and Aaron on the couch, a slice of pizza on a paper plate in front of him with the promise of ice cream later on. Aaron’s arm rests across the back of the sofa and his hand plays gently with the hair at the nape of your neck. You tilt your head in his direction, pulling Jack into your lap so you can scoot closer as the movie plays on. Jack falls asleep before you can even get him his ice cream, and you take the opportunity to rest your head on Aaron’s shoulder, his arm wrapping around your shoulder and tracing comforting patterns into the skin of your upper arms until the credits roll.

[drkoestersmithrpg]

The Last Chapter Of Addict

Tony took Peter to bed, of course.  He performed well.  He could tell – Peter was very expressive with signs, moans, gasps and little yelps and a mouth that seemed to constantly be trying to form words, but failing.

Tony was silent, of course.

Silence was safer.

It was an odd thought he had after it was over, after they had showered and were snuggled in to sleep. “Silence is safer,” his brain told him.

“If you opened your mouth, gods only know what you might say.”

Because he was getting it. It was only the first night of their Three-Day-Weekend-Only-Breaking-For-Food-And-Homework-Sexathon, but it was the first night that he Got It.

“If you opened your mouth, gods only know what you might say.”  

Laying in his bed, freshly showered, holding a freshly showered (and blissfully nude) Peter asleep in his arms, he got it.  He was willing to say anything, absolutely anything, to keep this boy with him. Including proposing marriage.

He didn’t get up, right at that moment.  He lay awake, the boy snuggled into the crook of his arm, his own heart pounding.  Peter was dozing but not quite asleep yet.  He had a fistful of Tony’s pajama shirt in his hand, held close to his face like a child.  He started and twitched, sometimes mumbled, sometimes argued, in his sleep.  Tony watched in fascination, waiting, timing his escape.

Finally he couldn’t take it any longer – he worked his pajama shirt out of Peter’s hand and slipped away, mumbling something about tinkering in the lab.  Peter wouldn’t be surprised if he woke up alone.

Tony often made his escape this way.

Of course on those occasions he had really gone to tinker in the lab, tonight he went straight to the liquor cabinet.  

He poured himself a glass, then picked the whole bottle and took it with him.  He sat alone next to the window and glared down upon New York City, and drank.

“Drinking alone is a sign of alcoholism,” he joked to himself in the silent room.  He didn’t laugh at the joke.

He tried to think about something, anything, to get his mind off what he was thinking about now.  He tried x and y and z [ask von for tech] but his mind would stay on tech.  As per usual, his mind was on Peter.

His brain went back to his regular screensaver fantasy, the one he had been going over obsessively lately, which mainly consisted of various sex acts he had experience with that he could introduce to Peter in hopes to keep his interest.  Now that they actually had time for said sex acts Tony was beginning to realize the point was moot.  Tony had made it clear he was ready to offer anything, but Peter had also made it clear that he was only interested in the standard – Tony on top, Tony inside him, Tony’s head wrapped up in his arms (not that Tony was complaining.  The noises that boy made were so sweet.)  

Which produced an entirely new problem – if Peter wasn’t interested in new and exciting sexacts, what the hell did Tony have to offer?  (Tony had SUGGESTED one specific other thing, but Peter had given him a hard pass.  That hurt, but then again, who was he to demand anything?  He was demanding enough as it is.)

“You’re screwed, Stark.  You’re so fucking screwed,” Tony mumbled to himself.  He glared at the amber liquid in his hand.

He was so definitely, thoroughly and completely screwed.

Since the moment he first felt Peter’s cock growing hard in his mouth, he knew.

All the signs were there.  The obsessive circular thinking.  The dreams. The tension that began to build in his body when he realized how long it had been since had felt it, and how long it had been since he would feel it again.  And the reaching, the constant reaching for the thing that would numb the need/kill the time until he could taste it again.

But illicit substances were out – Peter disapproved.  (Besides, he was an Avenger now, whatever that meant.)  As were other cocks- he had promised Peter that it was the “person attached to the cock” that he wanted, and he was loath to go back on that promise now.

“           -the thing he bragged about in WHICH  - “ he had bragged absurdly on the day he gave peter the roses, and he wished to god he hadn’t, because what he had voiced it outloud he realized how easy it would be.  They wouldn’t be Peter, of course, [???just like alcohol wasn’t cocaine???] but one thing could ease the tension until he arrived at the other thing.  But of course he had BRAGGED THAT HE WOULDNT DO THAT so now, of naturally, he couldn’t.  

Besides keeping cocks around at work to suck on during the day would just be admitting he had a problem, and he most certainly was not prepared to admit he had a problem.

But he most certainly had a problem.

He had, after all these years, managed to develop a sex addiction.

And Peter – ah god – Peter was so incredibly accommodating.  Actually changing his schedule and altering his daily life to accommodate Tony’s absurd demands.  The boy was flattered by the attention – for now – but it seemed obvious that he wasn’t going to be flattered forever.  He had already implied that Tony was more interested in the bodypart than the person and while the 12 dozen roses had seemed to work for the moment…..

….. the time would come where there wouldn’t be enough roses to keep the boy around.  

No matter what he did, this was doomed to failure.

He drained the glass and poured himself another, brooding.  

Why was Peter so much different than any other man?  

With other men there had always been a time before the fear came – a limerence period with nothing but peace and the joy of new discovery.  Before the fears came.  Before the realization that one (usually the other guy) wanted a long haul and the other (usually Tony) very much did not.  But with Peter that limeremnce (???) never happened – this had STARTED in fear.  STARTED knowing this was all painfully temporary, a momentary cease-fire in the verbal war, a tender cease-fire that was just long enough to remove clothing and exchange bodily fluids.  

Granted, the cease-fire had been extended, far longer than Tony had ever imagined, but that didn’t make it anything other than it was.  Every minute, every day, every sexual encounter was obviously the last.  That was the way cease-fires worked.  There was no lasting treaty, here.  

Someday, Peter was going to realize he had accidentally fallen into bed with Tony Stark and run for his life.

“Goddammit,” Tony said out loud to his drink.  His drink didn’t answer.  He lived so much in fear of that day he was almost eager for it to happen.  When it happened, it would be over, and he could recover.

Which was different from any of his other addictions – the drugs, the alcohol, the suits.  Each one seemed like they could easily last forever – actually it had appeared the suits WOULD have lasted forever – and maybe they would have, if it weren’t for Peter.

Peter.

Peter, who tasted like light.  (Jesus Christ, had he really said that out loud?  This is why talking during sex was a bad idea.)  That had been one secret he was ready to take to his grave, but dammit the boy didn’t taste normal at all.  The New York fans like to claim he had ‘radioactive blood’ and Tony could attest that other bodily fluids might be radioactive too.  Christ he was probably giving himself cancer.

“Not that it matters,” he muttered to himself as he downed his drink and started in on its brother.

He really was addicted to pain, just like his ex-wife said.  

And the kid was catching on, that much was certain.  Had pointed out that if Tony really wanted to taste him he could catch the taste on his tongue, not the back of his throat.  Smart kid.  But the kid didn’t know that the alcoholic can dream all day about the taste of scotch, only to chug it back too fast to enjoy the taste.  

And Tony, the addict, could NOT get Peter into his mouth without taking the boy down into his throat.

“Because no one will ever blow you the way I do, kid,” he muttered to himself, and that much, at least, was true.  He had that, at least, as a decent argument for when the kid decided to bail.  At least, as long as the kid never got around to asking why Tony was so damn good at this…..

“I just won’t answer,” he argued with himself.  He had gotten GOOD at not talking.  He was amazed at how easily it had been for Peter to shut him when no one else could, of course, he never needed anybody the way he needed Peter.  And if he wanted to be with Peter, he had to keep his damn mouth shut.

“Except when I’m sucking Babyboy’s cock,” he joked humorously.

Or when you’re texting.

Tony frowned at the internal voice.  Peter didn’t complain about the texting (except when he did.)  And Tony had been sparse with the texting, using it only when he flat out couldn’t take it anymore.  When he wasn’t desperate, he left Peter alone, knowing how busy the boy was.  Even when Peter texted him about mundane things Tony kept his replies short and to the point – Peter was an extremely busy boy, and Tony was proud he could give Peter space.

But then again…

Growling in frustration Tony stood up to find his phone.  He wobbled a bit (wait how many drinks did he just have?) but found it fairly quickly.  With shaking hands he brought up Peter’s screen…..

What ya doin’ pretty baby?

 Letting those pretty college boys suck your sweet cock?

 I can part your physics.  ; )

 What do you expect from me?  I need my fix.

 Beads of sweat formed on his forehead and Tony read the texts like a blackout drunk read his crimes in the daily paper.  ‘Letting those pretty college boys suck your sweet cock?’  No wonder the boy was in a constant state of irritated at him.  ‘I can part your physics’ was embarrassingly sophomoric but at least it was on purpose. He often aimed for the embarrassingly sophomoric.  Tony was safe as long as Peter was only rolling his eyes.  It was when Peter was angry and shouting that his chest began to tighten.

Tony moaned as he read the texts.  He knew (and hated) the man who had sent them.  Normally Tony would think and rethink, type and retype, a single text over and over again until the majority of his texts would never see the light of day. Then (just like an alcoholic deliberately getting blackout drunk) he just hitting send as fast as he could type. But wasn’t that typical Tony?  Pushing people away before they could leave him.  Before they could run from him.

He started scrolling backward, looking and the other texts, the careful texts, the ones he had had stressed appropriately for.  

Then he found the video and his blood ran cold.

This was what Peter had been talking about (Tony had hoped Peter was confusing his own porn with a text.)  He had sent that video, one he had entitled ‘Want’ and dammit, dammitdammitdammit, he had sent it to the boy?!  Jesus Christ in heaven saints preserve us.  He had hit send on accident.  He threw the phone across the room and downed another drink.

This could have been it. This could have been the night he said the wrong thing (sent the wrong thing, dear gods above) and sent Peter running.

“I really am addicted to self-destruction.”  He couldn’t drink much more.  Peter was staying the weekend and he had to be functional in the morning. Still he looked hard into the glass, talking to himself.  “Addicted to pain, just like Pepper said.  Pushing them away before I have to open up to them…..no.”

But that wasn’t right.  It wasn’t that he pushed people away before he had to talk to them, he pushed them away before they had the chance to betray him, before they had to chance to lie to him, before they had the chance to murder him because he was endangering the company by announcing they wouldn’t sell weapons anymore.

But not Peter.

No, he was just trying to push Peter away before he had to open up to him.  That was all.

“A toast to self-destruction,” he said, pouring himself the last drink.

It was a form of pain, he mused, holding on to the razor’s edge of Peter leaving, standing right there at the edge of agony and heartbreak.  What if he just….ignored it?  What if he just pretended like it wasn’t going to happen?  Now that would be self-destruction.  Now that would be self-destruction at it’s finest.

Peter had seen him without his armor.  Peter had seen him without his meticulous shave and without his fine suit. Peter had made a demand and that’s why Peter had seen him without his biting wit, his constant humor.  Without that, he was just Tony.  And Just Tony had never been good enough for anyone. Peter wasn’t catching on, not yet, but…

“…I am falling up.”  He would never deny that it was sweet here, this razor’s edge of heartbreak.  Yes, obviously, that would make it all the more unbearably painful when Peter wised up and left, but until then?

Tony drained the glass and left it behind.  No tinkering, he was going right back to bed to hold his sleeping lover in his arms.  He was dedicated to self-destruction, and, well, this self-destruction was going to be epic.

[rafeegworld]

Things to Consider Before Hiring a Cleaning Service

Is Hiring a Home Cleaning Service or Maid Worth It? – Pros & Cons

My wife and I carefully calculated the cost of cat ownership before we took in our first stray. Our calculation wasn’t perfect, though. We failed to account for at least one hidden cost of owning pets: cleaning bills.

Now that we have multiple cats, our home is far dirtier than it used to be, and it gets dirty quicker. As renters, we spent valuable time and a considerable amount of money on weekly once-overs and monthly deep cleans. I devoted hundreds of hours over the better part of a decade to mopping wood floors in a succession of apartments.Sign up for an account at Simple by 7/31/19 4:59 PM PT and get up to a $500 bonus and 2.02% APY (with qualified activities).

Unfortunately, this wasn’t always enough. Poor pet hygiene contributed to a substantial reduction in our security deposit refund at our last rental property. Now that we own our home, we don’t have to worry about keeping the landlord happy – but that doesn’t mean we’re willing to tolerate mats of hair in every corner and fine layers of litter on the floor.

As our lives get busier and our household budget grows, we’ve relaxed our old “no professional cleanings” rule. We now invite a cleaning service into our home for two to three hours at least once per month. Although I’m still not entirely comfortable with the cost, I have to admit that our house is cleaner for it.

If you’re unable or unwilling to keep your home as clean as you’d like, perhaps a hired home cleaning service from Handy.com is in your future too. Here’s what you need to know to decide whether it’s right for you.

Things to Consider Before Hiring a Cleaning Service

As you weigh whether to hire a home cleaning service, consider these factors.

1. Your Household Budget

According to HomeAdvisor’s estimate, U.S. cleaning companies charge $50 to $90 per hour, on average. Even the most efficient cleaning team working through a modest-sized residence is likely to take an hour to complete its work. If your budget can’t bear an extra $50 to $90 hit at least once per month, regular professional cleanings may not be in the cards.

Independent cleaners are cheaper, though my research suggests HomeAdvisor’s estimated $9-per-hour minimum is wildly optimistic. Expect to pay a single independent cleaner at least $20 per hour if they provide their own cleaning supplies and perhaps $15 per hour if you provide your own.

Solo cleaners take longer to complete their work than two- or three-person professional teams, so the price difference likely won’t be that stark. Still, cleaners not affiliated with hierarchical cleaning companies can better accommodate tight budgets – though budgets with very little leeway might not have room for any hired cleaning help at all.

Pro tip: If you haven’t set up a budget for you or your family, sign up today for Personal Capital. Once you connect your debit and credit accounts you will have a clear picture of where your money is being spent each month.

2. Your Home’s Size

Professional cleaning costs increase in proportion to residence size. According to HomeAdvisor, the typical single-family home costs $130 to clean. The American Enterprise Institute (AEI) pegged the median U.S. house at 2,467 square feet in 2015. A more modest home might cost $100 or less to clean, while a massive McMansion could cost $200 or more.

3. Your Cleaning Requirements

The numbers above are rough averages. Your personal cleaning requirements and preferences will determine where your actual cleaning costs fall. Factors that might affect your cleaning requirements include:

Your Cleanliness Tolerance. Do you demand a spotless home, or are you OK with some dust, grit, and grime?

Your Lifestyle. Do you cook full meals every night and frequently host guests? Do you treat your home like a museum? Or do you fall somewhere in between?

Your Family Size and Composition. Do kids and pets account for more than their fair share of the mess?

Your Home’s Active Areas. Do you rarely use certain rooms, or is your entire home lived-in?

Your Expectations For Cleaning Staff. Do you expect cleanings to be basic once-overs – vacuuming, dusting, mopping, and freshening, with special attention paid to the kitchen and bathrooms – or thorough deep cleans?

Longer, detail-oriented cleanings that cover the entire house will cost more than lower-key cleanings that skip lesser-used areas.

4. The Value of Your Time

How valuable is your time?

You can ask this question literally: Is your hourly household income higher than what you’d pay a cleaning service?

A more abstract way to frame it would be: Is it worth your while to devote the time necessary to clean your home to your standards on a regular basis?

Either way, this is a personal question. When I was living alone and working low-wage jobs, DIY cleaning was a no-brainer. These days, the dollars-and-cents calculation is a closer call, but I’m personally less inclined to take several hours out of my week to maintain an orderly house (or perhaps I’m just getting old). Your calculation might differ.

5. Your Family’s Schedule

Professional cleaning is disruptive. If you don’t mind hanging out around the house while one or more cleaning staff mill about, running vacuums and kicking up dust, this won’t be an issue. If you’d prefer to be out of your cleaning team’s hair, though, you’ll need to schedule cleanings when you’re at work or can otherwise be out of the house. If your cleaning service doesn’t let you schedule at precise times – as is often the case – then you’ll need to choose a date on which you’re reasonably confident you can be out of the house.

In households with at least one work-from-home or stay-at-home parent, scheduling is a real issue. My wife and I both work full-time, but I work from home much of the time, and the cleaning service we’ve been using occasionally schedules visits when we’re at home. In our small older home, that’s not really tenable, so we escape to a coffee shop or park if the weather’s nice.

6. DIY Cleaning Tolerance & Skill

If you enjoy – or, at least, don’t mind – cleaning the house, more power to you. As long as you can find time to keep pace with your home’s cleaning needs and meet your co-residents’ expectations, why would you pay someone else to do it for you?

Make sure your cleaning expectations are realistic, though. Budget one hour a month for something that requires more like two hours per week, and you’re set up to fail. Likewise, if you’re not keen on using step ladders to dust high places or scrubbing out caked-on cooking grease, you might want to rethink your DIY cleaning plan.

Cleaning Service Types & Costs

In our search for a professional home cleaning service, my wife and I considered three distinct options.

1. Full-Service Cleaning Companies

These are legitimate enterprises that employ multiple teams of two or more cleaning professionals. Some national cleaning companies operate local franchises; others are independently owned entities that have grown into regional service providers. Either way, your regular point of contact is generally an account manager or office-based crew supervisor.

Cost of Full-Service Cleaning Companies

Full-service cleaning companies generally cost more than independent cleaners and gig workers. However, they’re often better at what they do and more efficient to boot.

According to HomeAdvisor’s estimates, full-service cleaning companies charge anywhere from $50 to $90 per hour, or $90 flat per 1,000 square feet. This range is lower by Care.com’s estimate: $25 to $35 per hour, though it’s not clear whether this assumes only one cleaning person on the job.

Our experience tracks with HomeAdvisor’s estimates. My wife and I got quotes for our 1,400 square foot house from a handful of professional cleaning services in Minneapolis. No biweekly quotes came in under $120, and the high estimate was around $160. We settled on a company that quoted us about $145 per biweekly cleaning because my wife’s employer had a $20-off-per-cleaning deal with them, cutting our net per-cleaning cost to about $125.

Besides home size, many factors may influence your professional cleaning estimate. The most notable include:

Location. Expect higher prices in major metropolitan areas with higher living costs. You’re almost certain to pay more for an equivalent service in San Francisco than in, say, Abilene, Texas.

Frequency. Professional cleaning services almost always offer frequency discounts. You’ll pay less per visit when you opt for weekly cleanings over monthly cleanings, even if your total cleaning cost is higher with the former. Our monthly cleaning estimates were higher, ranging from $140 to $180. One-off cleaning estimates were higher still; the service we eventually selected wanted $250 for a one-time cleaning session.

Bathroom Count. Bathrooms require more intensive cleanings than most other rooms. If your home has an unusually high number of bathrooms for its size, your estimate may come in higher than you expect.

Pets. Expect professional services to factor the number and type of pets into your estimate. All of our quotes accounted for our three cats.

Eco-Friendly Products. Cleaning services that use gentler or eco-friendly cleaning products generally charge a premium for it. You’ll want to have a detailed conversation about what each candidate company’s eco-friendly cleaning program entails.

Add-On Services. Most professional cleaners charge extra for add-on services such as refrigerator cleanings, decorative wood polishing, oven cleanings, and whole-house deep cleanings.

Special Needs. Professional cleaners may charge more for special requests or accommodations – for instance, dusting the area around an antique china display or reaching upper corners in rooms with unusually tall ceilings.

Pros of Full-Service Cleaning Companies

Pre-Vetted Employees. Full-service cleaning companies vet prospective employees before they hire them so that you don’t have to. Not all hiring practices are equal, though, so ask your company contact if this is a concern.

Faster Than Independent Cleaners. Professional cleaners usually work in teams of two or three, and perhaps more in larger homes. As the old saying goes, many hands make light work.

Potential for Better Work Than Independent and Gig-Based Cleaners. Professional companies’ training protocols tend to be more rigorous – or, at least, better standardized – than those of independent or gig-based cleaners, who may be self-taught or rely on prior professional experience. Professional companies are also more likely to act on customers’ complaints about shoddy or inconsistent work.

Cons of Full-Service Cleaning Companies

Costlier Than Independent or Gig-Based Cleaners. Full-service cleaning companies are almost invariably more expensive than solo cleaners. We’ll explore this further in the following sections.

Add-On Services May Add Up Quickly. Professional cleaning companies tend to limit the parameters of standard cleanings to “basic” services such as cleaning floors, vacuuming rugs and carpets, dusting furniture, freshening bathrooms, and wiping kitchen counter surfaces. Other services, such as refrigerator cleaning and detailing upholstery, often cost extra. Our professional cleaning company charges $25 to deep clean a refrigerator, for instance.

2. Independent Cleaning Professionals

These are solopreneurs or small businesses built by and around an individual or small team of cleaning professionals. Your regular point of contact is usually the senior cleaning person, who’s also likely to be the business’s owner. Some independent professionals have their own websites, but plenty use social media (usually Facebook) or third-party platforms (such as Thumbtack, Angie’s List, and Craigslist) to market their services.

Independent cleaning professionals tend to be cheaper than full-service companies and may also be easier to work with. The onus is on the customer to vet prospective cleaners, though, and even then, quality and efficiency might not live up to expectations.

Cost of Independent Cleaners

Independent cleaners generally cost less than full-service cleaning companies. How much less is the question.

In late 2018, I surveyed Craigslist cleaning service ads in New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles. Per-hour pricing started around $15 (though pricing this low was rare) and topped out above $40, with occasional new-customer discounts pushing down the final price. Flat-fee cleanings started around $50 for three rooms and went up from there. Independent cleaning teams, who were often couples, charged more, though not always twice as much.

Pros of Independent Cleaners

Lower Cost Than Cleaning Companies. As noted, independent cleaners, especially solo types, usually cost less than pros. If paying as little as possible is your top priority, this is the way to go.

Potential for Greater Flexibility. Independent cleaners may be willing to include for free some or all of the add-ons for which professional companies tend to charge. If not, they may be amenable to a more customer-friendly pricing structure – for instance, simply adding the time spent on add-ons to the hourly total, rather than charging a flat fee that works out to a higher hourly rate.

Better Negotiating Power for Customers. You may have better luck negotiating with independent cleaners, particularly if you promise steady work. On the other hand, independents may operate on tight margins that limit their negotiating power.

The Same Person Cleans Every Time. When you work with the same independent cleaner or cleaning team every time, you’re more likely to develop a close working relationship with them. For scheduling reasons, full-service companies are unlikely to send the same cleaners to your house every time, unless that’s part of their value proposition.

Cons of Independent Cleaners

Vetting Falls to the Customer. The onus of vetting an independent cleaner falls squarely on the customer. Sure, you can check reviews and feedback on Angie’s List and HomeAdvisor, and you should always ask for references (more on that below), but that takes time. So does confirming that the cleaner is fully insured and running a background check, which you should do with any domestic worker.

Quality May Suffer. Independent cleaners may not offer the same quality guarantees as full-service companies. Short of terminating your relationship with the cleaner or unilaterally demanding they fix the issue without additional compensation, you may have little recourse to redress work that fails to meet your expectations.

Slower Than Full-Service Companies. Single-person cleaning teams can’t work as quickly as multi-person teams. Plus, full-service companies often hew to efficient, well-defined processes that get them out the door faster without impacting work quality.

Scheduling May Be a Challenge. If your independent cleaner already has a full client load, finding time for a recurring appointment that works for the both of you might be challenging.

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Transform The Primary Care Location To Serve Patients

Care obligations need to not be constrained to children especially in the scenario of an only kid. A individual in that predicament must search for out other family and even friends if almost nothing else for suggestions. Feel it or not family members like to be consulted and a closer bond may possibly be fashioned.

We just purchased what my common cardiologist instructed me to just take anytime my blood strain is higher. Thankfully, I became superior. But I did not allow that incident move. I contacted the clinic directors and claimed that doctor. She was reprimanded because she truly did not seem to care about me that day and some other sufferers also complained about her habits.

She additional that she shouldn't have to apologize for that. And now as a member of an all female pediatric team, she never has to. She is a single of a increasing quantity of feminine doctors who are banding collectively with other ladies to type lesser observe teams. For most, they say, the aim is to have much more manage more than their individual schedules and their will need for household time, above the quantity of time they devote with patients, and the way they observe drugs in basic.

The care offering children will need to pool their methods and test to take care of duties. The children residing in the region need to have to rather split the care offering responsibilities so that no is confused and the guardian or mothers and fathers are correctly taken care of. Children outside the house the location must concentrate on critical research matters pertaining to legal, financial and essential attributes related to institutional care. This way an more standpoint is accessible.

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Care duties must not be confined to children in particular in the circumstance of an only little one. A individual in that circumstance must find out other family and even close friends if nothing else for guidance. Feel it or not kinfolk like to be consulted and a nearer bond may possibly be formed.

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When to discover primary care medical professional? The age and medical historical previous is the factor that aids you in deciding about capacity primary care physician. Starting with children, infants, and adults have to set a halt to in a better fashion. In the instance of children, its vital to widespread monitoring progress. After older people, building certain you choose the health practitioner at all moments is dependent on the frequency amount. If individuals have electric power illnesses, then first refer to the physician. They enable to grasp each and every solitary move for sharing these kinds of option. The guidance to go well with medical doctor exclusively depends on the people age and the requirements of health care.

Waverly Hospital in Louisville Kentucky It is touted as just one of the "Most Haunted Places" in The usa. It is found in Louisville, Kentucky and it opened its doorways in 1910 as a little medical center to accommodate forty to 50 tuberculosis individuals. The white plague of Tuberculosis, a incredibly contagious disease, unfold by means of Louisville killing countless numbers and so the healthcare facility was expanded to 506 rooms. The patients at that time were handled relatively and offered the only remedy they could which was: clean air, excellent nutritious food items and plenty of sunlight. However several handed away and persons dwelling there have been traumatized by the assumed that they had been living their only to die.

The medical professionals there are the authentic McCoy with authentic certificates of authenticity. They even have common patients who want the hrs. These destinations are exceptional whether or not you are coated by insurance policy or choose to pay dollars.

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