THE STRUGGLE IS REAL
As a working mama, or just a busy mom, it can be overwhelming to tackle cleaning our house. I know when I come home from work at 5:30 or 6:00 P.M., the last thing I want to do is tackle the endless to-do list every mama has. Cleaning is never easy – there’s laundry, dishes, vacuuming, cooking, etc, etc. My problem was that on any given day, I didn’t want to give up precious time with my son. Then, I would feel too tired to tackle it, so, I would push it off to the next day. Of course, things would begin to pile up and it was definitely too much to take on after work. On the weekends, I would try to catch up, but then I would end up spending all day Sunday doing laundry instead of enjoying it with my family.
Luckily, we have a wonderful cleaning woman who comes once a month to deep clean. So for our home, it was a matter of maintaining it clean and tidy in between deep cleans. I had to figure out how to keep a “tidy home” in between. Everyone’s cleaning routine and needs are different. Your house may be bigger, you may have less kids, or maybe no pets. But one thing I think we can all agree on is that it’s nice to walk into a tidy home, one that doesn’t stress you out when you look around.
THE SOLUTION
With a goal in mind, I set about figuring out how to realistically achieve it. I jotted down all of the tasks that would need to get done in order for my house to stay clean. A lot of my tasks may look like yours: wash the dishes, make the bed, vacuum the house, etc. Some are more specific to me, we have a Siberian Husky and he sheds like a fiend. So, we had to figure out a way to avoid white tumbleweeds of dog hair in our house. This is the main list I came up with:
• Vacuum and Mop the Floors • Dishes • Make Beds • Laundry (SO. MUCH. LAUNDRY) • Clean the Kitchen • Clean the Bathroom • Dust • Clean the Refrigerator
This busy mama is a lover of lists, schedules, and planning; so I thrive with checking things off my lists. I had already decided that I didn’t want to spend more than 30 minutes a day cleaning. Also, my husband joins in and splits some of them with me so it doesn’t all fall on me. So, with all this in mind, I put together a schedule for myself in order to actually achieve this.
Guys- this weekly cleaning schedule worked so well for me! Breaking it down into small and manageable tasks and creating a cleaning schedule has been game-changing.
GAME. CHANGER.
WHY IT WORKS
My never-ending laundry pile on Sunday was solved by throwing in a load every other day as soon as I got home from work. By dinner time, it was ready to go to the dryer and by bedtime, I could fold it while watching tv with my husband.
Our trash is picked up on Thursdays and Sundays, so we do a quick once over of the refrigerator on Wednesdays and Sundays to throw out old food. The fastest way to refrigerator clutter is continuing to push back leftovers to make room for more things. By doing this the day before trash goes out, we make sure there’s no stinky food in the trash for too long.
Even the things that seem like they would take too long – vacuuming the rooms and mopping or cleaning the bathrooms- can be done in 30 minutes. Since you do this weekly, it’s still relatively clean. We have an upstairs vacuum which I LOVE. It’s lightweight and easy to maneuver, works really well, and comes with me from room to room without a fuss (plus it’s on sale now at Target!) As I mentioned, our Siberian Husky sheds a ton. So, we run the Roomba every day to keep the downstairs clean and my hubby Swiffers the stairs every other day to avoid tracking dog hair upstairs.
CLEANING EVERY SINGLE DAY?
Yes. There are things we try to do everyday which make a really big difference. We wipe down the kitchen countertops and hubby does the dishes. A messy kitchen wreaks havoc on an otherwise clean house. We make sure the family room is picked up every night, so that we don’t walk downstairs to a mess the next day. I have enlisted the help of our 15 month old son in this! Since the family room is his play area, we have him help us with picking up his toys. It has become a part of his nighttime routine and I hope that it will help him mind his messes as he grows up (I will surely laugh at my hopes when he’s a teenager and I can’t get him to put his clothes in the dirty hamper)!
YOUR TURN!
This isn’t only for working moms – stay at home moms also have to find time in the day between wrangling the kiddos.
I encourage you to think of ways you can streamline your cleaning routine. Tackling it all in a weekend can definitely be overwhelming and trying to get it done during the week can be a challenge when you don’t have a plan. What do you need to do to keep your house tidy? If someone came over, would it take you over an hour to pick up? Or could you do a 5 – 10 minute run through and be ok? Figure out what you need to do in order to keep your house tidy – and yourself happy. Give yourself grace! The point is not to give yourself more work, but to streamline the things you already do/need to do.
Weekly Cleaning Schedule
Here’s an Easy Weekly Cleaning Schedule for Busy Moms for you to make your own! Good luck mamas!
Ohhhh! What a nifty schedule template! So excited to print mine out!
Thank you Krystal 🙂 I’m excited to see how you fill yours out!
It can feel overwhelming when you look at all the tasks as a whole, but it feels so much more doable when you break it down like this! Thanks for this, Daniela!
Happy to share Becky, it really makes a huge difference!
Cleaning is SO overwhelming… especially with the kids home. Thank you for sharing this!
Yes! It feels like the mess never ends when everyone is home. I hope you find the tips helpful. Stacey!
This is a great idea! I love it, thank you for sharing. I’m looking forward to printing mine out and trying to plan it all out. It’ll be an ultimate to do list!
Thanks Ana-Sofia! I think the attorney in us thrives with lists haha.
Let me know how it works out for you! 🙂
I NEEDED THIS SOOO MUCH!!! Thank uuuu!!!
You’re welcome, Rachelle! I hope it helps you simplify your routine!
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