Life’s not easy when you’ve got to look after your husband, kids and home at the same time.
I admit the juggling role does prove to be very frustrating sometimes.
But, let’s be honest, you do want that spotless house, don’t you?
So, here are some simple hacks for all moms who’ve got a huge mental load.
#1. Priority Cleaning
Let’s start with the most important question…
Which is the most important room to clean in your house?
If you’d ask me, I’d say it’s a tie between the kitchen and my bedroom (yes, I sleep with my shoes and eat in my bedroom).
But, for most, the award would go to the kitchen. Without a doubt.
The kitchen is usually considered as the heart of a house, or more the “powerhouse” of a home. And, all the reasons stem from food.
Ah, how nice it is when the whole family – husband and wife along with the kids – gathered in the kitchen to prepare meals. It’s not just the taste of homemade food, but the whole atmosphere – the homely smell, the laughs and the little arguments.
But, the end results are shocking sometimes, with the dishwasher jammed with unwashed dishes, remnants from last night’s dinner still on the counters and not one tiny clean surface.
Personally, I think a cluttered bedroom is better than a messy kitchen.
So, if you had to clean the rooms according to the one you use the most, I’d start by clearing the kitchen from the list of unhygienic spaces.
#2. One Touch Rule
This rule is very, very simple.
Created by Ann Gomex, this rule is about putting your things away at once, without handling them more than once.
Don’t you often find yourself shuffling items from place to place before actually putting them back where they belong to?
Wait, wait, before you embark on the train of thoughts, see if you find this situation horribly familiar.
Imagine you came home from work, removed your coat only to lay it on the table before you walk off to shower. Then as you need to eat, you moved the coat from the table to the living room couch. And as you sat down to watch TV, you placed the coat on some random chair. The next day, you’ve wasted at least 5 minutes trying to find your coat in your closet when it actually never made it there.
Does that ring a bell?
That was me… with all things – purse, car keys, clothes, shoes, mobile phone and even underwear.
You don’t really realize it but you are actually wasting a lot of time with all those extra “touches.”
This is why the “one-touch rule” aims at saving your time and keeping your efforts for important cleaning tasks.
#3. Develop a Cleaning Schedule
As a working mom, I get that many of you may have a pretty hectic schedule, but trust me, there’s nothing more satisfying than a clean and neat house.
First of all, make sure you never give yourself the excuse of, “I don’t have time to do this or to do that.”
Out of your busy schedule, you need to find the time out to include a cleaning routine, even if it means cutting off gym classes.
Next, you can make a list of all the rooms that you’d clean most often. For example, the bathroom and the kitchen come as a set that can and should never be neglected.
Once the list of the rooms is done, attack the chores list.
Make a blueprint of your most frequent cleaning tasks.
As many moms like it: cleaning the toilet daily is acceptable but the floor can be cleaned once a week.
#4. Delegate
There are going to be days where you would feel to be on top of the world when it comes to cleaning. But, there are also going to be times when you’d just want to drop the ball and curl into bed.
It does feel great to take on much cleaning responsibilities as possible, but I think even Wonder Woman would throw a fit from all the running around removing stains and dust.
Now, let’s say there’s another adult in the house. Sharing cleaning tasks with that person would prevent you from freaking out.
It’s an all different matter if we are talking about your spouse as we all know how lazy these creatures can be (at least most of them).
But, even then, I suggest delegating some minor cleaning tasks to your husband, like washing the dishes during the weekends.
Are you a working mom? If yes, how do you balance all that madness?
