Managing Your Home
As busy moms, one thing that can really side track us and get in the way of reaching our goals is housework. It's wonderful to have a clean and organized home, however it's a lot of time and effort to get it that way.One thing I have strived for is a way to manage my home so it's clean and comfortable. I have read several books on the subject and though trial and error have found what works best for me. You can adopt this method to suit your needs, so if you are not a morning person, do the jobs in the evening. In a moment I will outline my plan, however I have to say, do not be afraid to ask for help. I came to the realization there were five people living in my home, four of them perfectly able to do jobs around the home, but yet I was doing most of the cleaning. You may need to offer your kids a financial incentive to help you, but it is money well spent. Letting go of perfectionism has helped to. I pay my daughters (ages 9 and 13)twenty-five cents a load to fold laundry. No, it's not perfect, but things are put away and good enough. Daily CleaningEvery morning I spend about 20 minutes picking up around the house and cleaning things up. My children make their own beds and clean up their rooms. This really helps a lot in preventing big messes from forming and keep things like mail and school papers under control. It's also helpful if unexpected company stops by - at least your home is somewhat in order.In the afternoon, I take care of the mail, email and bills. I like to follow the rule of handle mail only once. If it's something to keep file it right away, if it's a bill to pay, pay it right away. Keeping ahead cuts down on piles of paper and clutter, keeps things organized and avoids late fees on bills you forgot to pay or lost. I feel it is the daily cleaning that helps the most. If it is something you are not used to doing it may take longer in the beginning, until you get your house under control, but then it will be manageable. Meal Time I also have a rule at home that no one gets a free lunch. You either have to cook or do dishes. Teaching kids to cook is an important life skill as is cleaning after you eat. This has cut back my time in the kitchen significantly. I also do menu planning and make use of my crock pot. Menu planning saves money in knowing what to shop for and not wasting food. Weekly CleaningFor bigger cleaning jobs around the house I have made myself a chart that includes things such as cleaning bathrooms, dusting, laundry, changing sheets and cleaning the kitchen. My husband does the vacuuming once a week. I have designed a rotating chart so each week the major areas get clean, but it never takes me more than two hours at the most. I try to get this done on Monday mornings, so I don't have to think about it the rest of the week.So my chart looks something like this: Week 1: Clean the bathrooms, dust the main floor, vacuum, take out all the trash, change sheets and laundry. Week 2: Clean the kitchen and mop, vacuum, take out trash and dust the staircase. You can customize it to suit your needs. Monthly CleaningThis too is an important part of home management. I have made a monthly cleaning chart too, for deep cleaning. I have divided my home, including the garage into six zones, then assigned months to each zone, so each area gets clean twice a year. The first six months you start it will be harder to maintain, but this will make your daily cleaning much easier.For each zone on the monthly cleaning cycle, I wash the curtains and rugs, wash the bedspreads (in the bedrooms)wash the walls if needed, declutter and redecorate if needed. You just really need to go in and get the dirt and clutter out. The first time I did my son's room, it took several days. He had just turned three and was transitioning from baby and toddler things to "big boy" things. I gave away three large boxes of baby stuff and several large bags of clothes. I organized his closet and made space in it too. I used to dread having to daily clean his room because it was always such a mess, now it's no problem because I have enough space for all his things and he is able to help put them away too. Six months later when it was time to deep clean his room again it went much fast. Speed CleaningI am also looking for tips and techniques to speed clean my home. Some of my favorites would be daily automatic shower cleaners, drop-in toilet cleaners, extra large clothes washers and dryers, Magic Eraser, and the Norwex mop.Have A Great Speed Cleaning Tip?Do you have a great speed cleaning tip? Share it! |
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