Maintain the mess...

I'm a mom of three little children. We have 2 dogs. We constantly have people over, play dates, family living with us on and off. We also have a mini homestead (it's growing! Especially this spring when we get more chickens and our goats!) so we are constantly tracking in the outdoors. As you can guess, cleaning is my current past-time, my worst enemy, my pet peeve,...I love it...I loath it. It's really a love-dislike (I'm cautious with the word "hate") relationship.
There's nothing I like more than a clean house. But cleaning it??? UGH! Especially after play dates, or holidays, or anything that just messes it up in a day! Sometimes it takes me up to two weeks just to get it back in order! So no-you're not alone when your home is a mess and it seems to take FOREVER to repair the damages done-mostly by little hands.

This isn't a post about how to clean up that GIANT mess. Or even a post specific to cleaning a certain thing/area. But I thought I'd give you a tip to MAINTAIN the mess. Stop it from suddenly jumping up on you when you least expect it.

One hour. Per day. That's it.

It's that simple. It can seem like allot, or not enough depending on the size of your home. I, personally have 2,300 sq ft (and kids think it's ALL for their toys) and it's just enough time for me.

When? Well, I break into my cleaning closet after lunch, after nap/rest time, but before I need to start supper when my darling husband is on his way home-usually from 2:30-3:30. (It seems like a cheat..) BUT it's so relaxing for my husband to come home to a clean house! If I do it early in the morning - it's wasted before it's even 12pm! I tried doing it before bedtime, but with cleaning up after supper, getting the kids ready for bed, nursing an infant, making my husbands lunch for the next day, soon there will be evening chores, it just doesn't work out.

Mid-day has been the best. You can get rid of the bulk of the mess, and the kids can pick up any other toys and their mess before bedtime without it seeming overwhelming to them. I prefer waking up to a clean house. It gives me more free time during the day to cook, blog, play and do school with the kids, really anything that's been on my list.

You don't have to make it spotless either. I set the timer (or just watch the clock.) And that whole hour is mostly spent just picking up the mess! With the occasional break to get the kids snacks, wipe someone's bottom, change a diaper, nurse a baby,...whatever comes my way. And I prioritize. Notice the toilet bowl needs a scrubbing? Do it during that hour! There's always tomorrow for another deep clean spot.

Happy cleaning!
Teresa