For residents

House expectations

Here’s how we live together. These expectations apply in every Blue Waters house. They keep the house safe, calm and focused on recovery, for you and everyone around you.

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Blue Waters Recovery Foundation · House Expectations

  1. Every day

    Why: A clean, orderly house is calmer for everyone, and small daily habits are part of recovery.

    • Make your bed every morning.
    • Do your own dishes as you dirty them.
    • Pick up trash when you see it, even if it isn’t yours. That doesn’t make it okay to leave your own behind: keep track of what you bring outside, and take it back in or throw it away.
    • When you get up from a common area, look around for what you brought and take it with you, so nobody else has to pick it up.
    • If a surface needs dusting, dust it.

  2. Your first 10 days

    Why: A sponsor, a home group and a service commitment connect you to recovery outside the house.

    • Get a sponsor.
    • Pick a home group. A home group is one specific meeting (its name, day and time), not the whole clubhouse.
    • Take a service commitment at your home group. You don’t need to wait for the business meeting. Offering to help clean up counts, and that’s what you tell a manager.

    A manager will check in until all three are done. Track them on the Start Here checklist and find meetings on Client Resources.

  3. Meetings & your meeting sheet

    Why: Meetings are where recovery happens, and your signed sheet shows you’re showing up.

    • Everyone attends 5 meetings a week. Any “Anonymous” 12-step meeting counts (AA, NA, CA, CMA and so on). SMART Recovery does not count.
    • Your 12-step meetings must be in person. Zoom and other online meetings don’t count toward your required meetings unless the program director approves an exception for extenuating circumstances.
    • You’ll get a meeting sheet. Have the chairperson or secretary of each meeting sign it.
      • Keep it folded in your wallet, and take it out when the meeting starts. It’s easy to walk out and forget to get it signed.
      • Snap a photo after each signature in case the sheet gets lost.
      • Hand it in at the Sunday 8 PM house meeting every week.

    Treat it like the egg you carried around in school: don’t let it crack.

  4. Work & your weekdays

    Why: A steady routine and your own income build the stability recovery needs.

    • Hold a steady job, or be off property looking for work Monday–Friday, 9 AM–4 PM.
    • If you’re not working, the common-area client computers are off-limits from 9 to 4. Use a public library or other internet access for online job searches.

    Job help: Jobs & Skills · Free classes and library programs: Free Education

  5. Rent

    Why: Paying on time keeps the house running for everyone and builds a habit you’ll keep for life.

    Rent is due every Friday for the following week. Ways to pay: Payments.

  6. Room chores

    Why: Sharing the work teaches teamwork, and newer residents learn from people who’ve been here longer.

    • Each room is assigned a chore, shared by everyone in the room.
    • Longer-term residents teach newer roommates how to do it.
    • Managers check chores daily. If a chore isn’t done, the whole room shares the consequence, not one person.

  7. Sunday deep clean

    Why: A clean room is a healthy room, and it’s how small problems get fixed before they become big ones.

    Every Sunday, everyone in your room works together to deep clean it.

    • Pull furniture away from the walls, then sweep and mop the floors.
    • Wipe the dust off baseboards and door frames (door jambs).
    • Organize your dresser.
    • Put away any medication. Never leave it out in the open.
    • Make a note of anything that needs repair, and bring it up with the managers at the Sunday 8 PM house meeting.

    After the Sunday night meeting, managers do a deep clean check of every room.

  8. Respect

    Why: Living together only works when everyone can trust each other.

    • Don’t take anyone’s food or belongings.
    • Don’t go into anyone else’s room unless they’re there.
    • Talk to managers respectfully. No mouthing off.

  9. Dogs

    Why: The dogs depend on all of us, and these habits keep people and dogs safe and prevent surprise dog-on-dog meetings.

    • If your room has a dog, there’s an assigned handler, but everyone in the room is backup. Make sure the dog gets food, water and walks when the handler is out for a while, like at work.
    • All dogs must be on a leash whenever they’re outside your room.
    • All dogs stay separated from each other unless our pet wellness director has given official permission.
    • If your dog sees another animal, don’t let it stop to sniff, stare, or investigate. Keep your dog moving.

      Why: A dog that stops to stare at or sniff another animal can get worked up fast. Keeping it moving heads off lunging, barking, or a fight before it starts, and over time it teaches your dog to ignore other animals.

    • When you walk a dog through the property, say “Dog!” out loud, in case someone else is there with their dog:
      • Before you leave your room
      • Before you go around any blind corner
      • When you go into or come out of a building
      • When you walk back up to the property after a walk

      Why: Not every dog gets along with every other dog. Calling out first gives anyone nearby with a dog a moment to pull back, wait, or change direction, so there are no surprise dog-on-dog run-ins and everyone, people and dogs, stays safe.

  10. Food Deliveries, Mail & Packages

    Why: No one outside the program is allowed on the property. That keeps everyone safe and private.

    • If you order groceries or food delivery, track it in your app and meet the driver outside the property yourself to collect it.
    • Mail and packages are available for pickup from a manager after 8 PM.
    • All packages must be opened in front of a manager. Mail is exempt.

  11. Phases & curfew

    Why: Phases give you a clear path forward, and more freedom as you grow in recovery.

    There are five phases, and everyone starts in Phase 0. To move up, you finish what’s listed for the next phase. From Phase 2 on, that means completing a set of the 12 steps and passing a verbal test on those steps, their principles, and associated materials. Your curfew gets later as you move up.

    PhaseHow you get thereCurfew
    0Just being here. You start here when you arrive.8:30 PM Sun–Thu
    9:30 PM Fri & Sat
    No overnight passes
    1Get a sponsor, a home group, and a service commitment at that home group (see Your first 10 days and the Start Here checklist).8:30 PM Sun–Thu
    9:30 PM Fri & Sat
    No overnight passes
    2Complete Steps 1–4 and pass a verbal test on those steps, principles, and associated materials.9:30 PM Sun–Thu
    10:30 PM Fri & Sat
    3Complete Steps 5–8 and pass a verbal test on those steps, principles, and associated materials. You may also be tested again on earlier steps.10:30 PM Sun–Thu
    11:30 PM Fri & Sat
    4GraduationComplete Steps 9–12 and pass a verbal test on those steps, principles, and associated materials. You may also be tested again on earlier steps. Congratulations, you’ve graduated from the program.No curfew

    Sponsor check-ins: The program director may contact your sponsor to confirm they’re your sponsor and that you’re actively working your steps. What you talk about stays between you and your sponsor. The director only wants to know you’re putting in the work.

    Testing applies to everyone, including Phase 4: weekly drug tests (urine) and breathalyzer tests. All residents are breathalyzed on holidays.

Questions about any of this? Ask a manager. We’re glad you’re here.

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