I love a clean house. Sparkling white baseboards, streak-free windows, throw pillows artfully arranged and toys placed perfectly on shelves. That would be nice, wouldn’t it? Trying to keep your house clean with 3-small children is nearly impossible. I’ve had seasons where I’m crazy about keeping my house clean and don’t get to enjoy my children. In other seasons (hello, newborn twins) I’ve completely let the housework go, which stresses me out. I have finally found the perfect balance. I’m able to keep my house clean with 10-minutes of cleaning per day.
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Seasons of Keeping Your House Clean
There are different seasons in life and often our house reflects the season we are in. Prior to having 3 children, I was an avid house-cleaner. I remember having a family member come to visit us when my firstborn was only a few months old. I dusted, cleaned the windows and vacuumed… and was upset that I didn’t have time to finish in the dining room. Fast forward two years (almost exactly!) and we had a 2-year old and newborn twins.
I realized that I had to let things go and I chose to sacrifice my clean house. Making healthy meals and taking time for self-care was more important to me. I still did dishes and laundry and cleaned the bathroom occasionally, but my house was a disaster.
Tips to Help You Keep Your House Clean
Ten-Minute Cleaning Schedule
I emerged from the “omg I have newborn twins” phase around the time they turned one. That’s when I made a plan and searched Pinterest for a good cleaning schedule. I tried out several and none of them worked for me. You see, even though I’d emerged from an insanely chaotic stage of life, my life was still very, very busy. I don’t have the time or desire to keep my house in pristine condition, but I do want it to be close.
That’s when I made my own cleaning schedule. I figured I can spend no longer than 10-15 minutes a day doing extra cleaning. I do 1 load of laundry per day and also clean up the kitchen on a daily basis. The ten-minutes of cleaning that I do is in addition to that. If that sounds like your kind of thing, you can download a customizable cleaning schedule here. Houses are not one size fits all, and neither are cleaning schedules.
First, make a list of everything that needs to be done on a weekly basis. For me, that’s putting things away, cleaning the bathrooms (sans showers), and mopping the kitchen floors. I do those tasks on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. Then, choose things that need to be done on a bi-weekly basis. For me, that’s cleaning my shower and changing our sheets. I rotate those on Thursday. You also can choose things that need to be done on a monthly basis. I mop the rest of my floors, and dust/clean mirrors and windows once a month. I do the monthly tasks on Friday. Since there are only two of them, I have plenty of time to catch up on anything I didn’t get to during the week, or deep cleaning tasks. Saturday and Sunday I only do dishes and laundry.
You can download my cleaning schedule here… and it is completely customizable to your house!
Hands are Always Full
Every time I leave a room of my house, I pick something up that doesn’t belong there. If I’m walking upstairs, there’s bound to be a sweatshirt or hair bow that I can bring to the bedrooms. If I’m going from the living room through the playroom to the kitchen, I’ll grab a few toys that are inevitably lying around the living room and deposit them into the playroom.
Make Your Kids Help Out
I don’t care how young your kids are, there are definitely chores that are age appropriate for them. I have my kids (Theo is 4 and Josie and Margo are 2) clean up before nap and before bed. It’s a work in progress, and the girls aren’t very good at it, but they are still required to help. I will usually sit with them and help.
Buy a Robot Vacuum
I’m not kidding. This little Robot Vacuum
has changed our lives. Theo named it pirate which I think is super adorable. You can schedule it to come on at certain times of the day including when you’re sleeping; I don’t have to add vacuuming or sweeping on my schedule because this little guy does it for us.
The Best Part Of Having a Ten-Minute Cleaning Schedule
Life happens and we don’t always get to the things on our to-do-list. The best part about having such a small amount of cleaning to do in one day is if I happen to be sick or busy that day, I just add that task to the next day or the weekend. Nothing ever gets dirty enough to the point that it takes hours to clean.
Don’t Forget to Download Your Cleaning Schedule!
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The ladies of the BFBN are all blogging on the topic of cleaning and organization today. Check out the posts below for more inspiration to help get your house sparkling clean!
Katrina from Mama’s Organized Chaos: Challenge Yourself to Not Clean Up After Your Child
Emily from the Journey of Parenthood: How to Encourage Your Children to Help With Household Chores
Christine from Christine Keys: How to Have a Clean Home When You Have Small Children
Valerie from Chronicles of a Babywise Mom: Easy Cleaning Schedule Options for Busy Moms
Kimberly from Team Cartwright: How a Block Schedule Will Make You a Better Mom
