Actionable tips for mums who fancy doing something else with their lives rather than cleaning.
These are my 'Easy Tips On How To Clean Your House If You Don't Want To Spend Your Days Cleaning'.
I have nothing against those super mums who can keep their house spotless at the same time as looking after their kids, inspiring and motivating them. As well as keeping their brain sharp, looking and feeling good, etc. etc., I envy you, mums.
But alas, I am not that kind of mum. Sigh.
I have too many projects, ideas and other useless things that occupy my head any day. That is why cleaning always comes at the bottom of my to-do list. I simply don't fancy spending every 30 - 45 minutes of my baby's nap time cleaning. I'd rather write or draw or daydream.
But at the same time, I don't like living in a tip. Nope. So I devised a cleaning strategy that's worked wonders for my 'I-like-to-live-in-a-tidy-house self.
Cleaning and tidying up tips for busy mums who have dreams.
1. Always tidy up the toys
It might seem like a no-brainer - kids have created a mess, so let's tidy it up. But I know so many mums who just leave those toys lying around the house. They might be trying to teach their children a lesson - "well, if you don't tidy up, look what a tip we all need to live it". Which is lovely and admirable - we need to teach those monkeys good manners. But if they are too tired or too young to bother about the house is habitable, I am afraid it's on you to make it less messy.
So every evening, after my kids go to bed, my husband and I throw all their toys into allocated boxes. For example:
Lego boxes
Soft toy boxes
Chewable books (yep, they do exist)
Small dolls, etc.
The boxes we have are an eclectic collection from T K Maxx and Pound Shop (we are UK based). I have a few see-through and a few woven baskets. The boxes should not matter, as long as you have somewhere to hide those billions of toys.
2. Tidy up the kitchen and the bathroom every evening
Again, sounds like an easy task. But we feel tired and exhausted at the end of the day. Cleaning is usually the last thing we want to do.
Hence I recommend sticking with a bare minimum:
Load the dishwasher
Mop the floor
Use some sort of antibacterial spray to wipe the surfaces.
And you are done
Never ever attempt to do more in the evening. Unless you really really want to and have been looking forward to it all day. I know I have those kinds of days from time to time.
The goal here is to stay friends with other family members. We don't want to overexert ourselves and become too grumpy or start playing the martyr game.
3. Vacuumclean the main room once a week
I am relatively happy with keeping the room we camp at the most as clean and tidy as I can. Because we eat there, so there are crumps. We play there, so there are craft remnants, the hated glitter and playdoh, as well as dirt and grass brought by intrepid feet from the garden (thank you, guys).
So vacuum-cleaning or doing a wet clean in that room is a must.
The rest of the house - it can wait.
4. Vacuum-clean the rest of the house every two weeks
I sometimes vacuum clean once a month. Yep, I am that bad. But you know what? No one is suffering from it. I suppose if you have allergies, you might need to do it more often. But in our case, it does not really matter that the rest of the house is left to be covered in dust for as long as I can tolerate it.
5. Do occasional dusting when you feel like it
I hate doing the dusting. There is nothing else I hate more than that (cleaning-wise, I mean). So I dust when I vacuum-clean the house or when I feel like it, in between vacuum-cleaning. But yet again, as long as my mother-in-law is not coming for a visit - who cares if there is a hefty line of dust cuddling your TV set?!
And there you have it. My easy cleaning tips that help me to stay sane and survive this phase of my life when my kids are too small and require attention at all times.
Do you have any special cleaning or tidying up tips that help you to stay on top of everything that life throws at you? Please share with me - DM me on my Instagram @vicbwrites account because Wix requires you to create an account and log in if you want to leave a comment. And I know I would not want to do that.