I've never been great at keeping my house clean but now that we have two kids it has become even more difficult. I've tried a million different 'tips' for keeping things tidy but I can never stick with anything. I think I've finally come up with a decent system-I still get overwhelmed and behind at times but these things have definitely helped.
Being a stay-at-home-mom is definitely not as easy as I thought it was going to be. The thing I get overwhelmed with most is housework. Either I devote time to housework and feel like I'm being a bad mom, or vice versa. I don't expect to have a completely spotless house but I do want it to be livable. We've implemented some things each day to keep our house cleaner and so far it's working well!
How to Keep a House Clean with Kids
1. Do the dishes every day - I have serious issues keeping up with dishes. I hate making the time to wash them and they always fall down on my priority list. I've started the routine of washing dishes after breakfast every morning and that's helped immensely. Our daughter even enjoys helping and we get them done in about half an hour. When I wash the dishes I also wipe down the counter-tops and the stove, and wash out my sink.
2. Do a load of laundry every day - We have four people in our household and even though you wouldn't think we make a load of laundry a day, we definitely do! With our every day clothes, bedding, towels, pajamas, and my husband's work clothes, we have a revolving load per day (at least!) that need to be washed and dried. I find that if I do one load of laundry each day, I can stay ahead of the giant piles that I used to accumulate. This also includes drying, folding, and putting them away. We also keep laundry baskets in a couple different areas of the house because I got so sick of picking up clothes from the floor.
3. Try to pick up current toys before taking out more - Key word here: TRY. I know that sometimes it's impossible to get kids to pick up what they're playing with before they move on to something new. That being said, I hate when we get to the end of the day and the whole house has toys scattered throughout because we didn't pick anything up. I'm not one of those moms who follow my kids around and clean up after them but I do help them clean up so it's not such an overwhelming task.
4. Only offer a few toys - Along with #3, limiting the amount of toys has been helpful for us. I used to have tons of toys available to my kids and we'd have a huge mess by mid-morning. Now we have one shelf of toys per room, and that really seems to help. They actually PLAY with toys instead of just taking them out. We also have a couple large motor toys that get a lot of use.
5. Put away all toys before bedtime - One of our bedtime routines is to make sure all of the toys are picked up off the floor before we go to bed. When we get up in the morning, it's so refreshing to come downstairs to a clean floor and I find that my kids actually play with their toys more when they aren't all out at once.
6. Get kids involved - It's hard with young kids, but getting them involved in cleaning is SO important. Our 16 month old is great at holding the dust pan when I sweep or putting toys into a bin. Our (soon to be) 4 year old helps with dishes and folding laundry. We continue to explain to her that we all need to pitch in with cleaning if we want to have more time to play together.
7. Set a timer - One of the hardest things for me has been finding a balance between a clean house and happy kids. My kids are fairly good at entertaining themselves for a bit, but I hate when a day ends and I realize I've spent more time cleaning than I have playing with them. Now, I'll set a timer for fifteen minutes-for that time I'll do something like dust, vaccuum, clean the bathroom, etc. When that fifteen minutes is up, I'm done. I really had a hard time with that at first because once I start a project I like to finish it, but I've had to let go of some control so I can enjoy my kids being little.
8. Consistency is key - The thing I've learned most through all of this is that keeping a house clean is all about consistency. When I start to fall behind in one area, everything else seems to follow until I'm so overwhelmed I can't keep up. Doing certain things every day (laundry, dishes, toy clean-up) have made it easier to stay on top of the mess. When I stay on top of these things, I can find extra time to dust, wash windows, or clean the shower-all things that used to get neglected.
It's been a long road for me to get to this point and some days (especially if we're gone for a day or weekend) I still get overwhelmed with the amount of work it takes to keep our house clean. I find that I'm a better, kinder, more present mom when my house doesn't look like a tornado has just come through so it's become a priority for me. When we come home or wake up to a clean house, it's just a much more positive way to start the day.
I'm still terrible at keeping up with things like washing windows, mopping floors, dusting, etc. but there will be time for all of those things when my kids get older and don't need me so much!
Are there things you do differently to keep your house clean?
Share them in the comments!
I'm always looking for ways to work smarter, not harder!
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Amber Ludwig says
I absolutely agree with getting the kiddos involved!! So important to get everyone cleaning!! As for laundry every day, it sounds great but can really affect your electric bill!! Cheapest time to do laundry is after 9pm or on the weekends so we try to stick to that. 😉
Amber says
Ooh, that's super good to know about the laundry Amber! I had no idea there were better times to do laundry!
Rosie says
These all are good suggestions, just keep wacking at it! My mom had a friend with seven sons, all were living at home, she had one room she'd throw the laundry the pile looked like a mountain!