Most of us don’t enjoy cleaning, but we love coming home to a clean and tidy house. However, keeping a clean house as a working parent isn’t always easy. On top of your workload, you’ve got laundry to deal with, meals to plan, and bills to pay.
Keeping a clean house can get overwhelming real quick! And it can be even more challenging if you are a working mom or dad chasing little kids when you are home.
That’s when learning cleaning hacks for your home can be a lifesaver. It means you don’t have to spend the entire day cleaning or stressing over the messes at home.
Today, we are walking you through some busy mom and dad life cleaning hacks and home management ideas that help you achieve a clean and organized home. Here are ten secrets to keeping a clean house as a working parent.
1. Make Your Bed
If we are to enumerate things you can control daily, the top on the list is your bed. It will take only a few minutes, but making your bed before you start your day will motivate you to keep the house clean and be productive each day.
2. Clean Up as You Go
Did you make breakfast for the kids? Or did you try on three or four outfits to wear for work?
Clean them up and put them in proper places before you go. If you maintain this task every morning, there will be fewer things for you to do later.
3. Do Laundry Everyday
A daily laundry habit should be a part of any working mom’s cleaning routine. Pop a load in before you leave for work. Or, if your washer has a delayed start cycle option, you can set it to run before you arrive home.
Put the damp clothes into the dryer after dinner, then when they are dry, fold them during commercial breaks on TV.
4. Make a Plan
Having a working/ cleaning schedule is good to keep you on track. It will help you have a work/ life balance.
Every household situation is different, so make a personalized cleaning schedule that works for you. When doing so, ensure you are the master of your checklist and not the other way around.
Don’t put more to-dos on your list than you can tackle for a given time. Do the most important things first, i.e., making the bed, making breakfast for the family, etc. Don’t tackle other stuff if you haven’t crossed other tasks.
Easy Cleaning Tip: Maximize your time by not leaving yourself extra work to do the next day. Want to binge-watch Netflix with the family on a Sunday evening? You can dust or straighten things in your living room, such as blankets lying on the sofa while watching the show.
Too busy to create a cleaning checklist? Here’s a sample cleaning checklist and schedule for busy parents. Feel free to download HERE.
5. Follow the Golden Cleaning Rules
Here are some golden rules in housekeeping that you should live by. Sticking to these rules will help you achieve safe and efficient cleaning habits.
- One touch rule. When you pick an item on the list, don’t move on to the next one until you have dealt with that problem.
- Clean each mess sooner than later
- Clean from the top down
- Use automatic cleaning tools (e.g. dishwashing machine, robot vacuum). Let the tool do the work for you.
- Think dry, then wet
6. Make Sure Cleaning Supplies Are Accessible
Maintaining a clean house as a busy working parent is hard enough; don’t make your life even harder. Keep the cleaning supplies handy (i.e., keep the dishwashing liquid, sponge/scrub, and paper towel near the kitchen sink.)
If everything is in front of you at the sink, there is no excuse why you shouldn’t clean the dishes. If you keep the cleaning supplies in the storage or another room, you will be less likely to use them or be less motivated to clean your house.
7. Take the Mess Out
Are you finished eating a bowl of popcorn? Do not leave it in the sink; instead put it in the dishwasher. If you don’t have a dishwasher, wash the bowl immediately.
Is the garbage full in your kitchen? Tie it up, pull it out, and take it to your big trash can outside. Leaving on the porch or in the garage is a good way to attract mice, rats, or other rodents.
8. Make Space
How do you keep yourself clean and organized? Well, Marie Kondo has a suggestion for keeping your home tidy and organized. She lives up to the idea of cleaning your home once, and you won’t need to do it again by making more space.
To make more space in the house, make sure that every item found in your home has a designated area.
Too many toys lying in the playroom can be very messy. Too many clothes mean too many items to put in the laundry. Put these items in their designated places or declutter those things that no longer serving you.
Less stuff means that everything is under control, and there are fewer items to clean up.
9. Involve the Kids
Involving the kids with household chores is a great family bonding. This will not only help them be clean and organized as they grow older, but it will also help you as a parent who has to juggle work and household chores.
Household chores for 7-year-olds or teens may be boring and less fun for them. However, this doesn’t mean that you cannot make the cleaning chores engaging for them.
Turn on some music to dance and have fun while cleaning. Try a cleaning game or make a Star chart to keep them motivated.
Overall, being a working parent and doing household chores is pretty tiring. Have family members contribute to cleaning so you will not spend all your time cleaning the house by yourself.
10. Hire Professional Cleaners
Not all households have the budget for a regular professional cleaner. But if you do, you can keep up with daily home maintenance by relying on home cleaners.
Read our article – The Ultimate Guide to Determining If You Need a House Cleaner, to find out if hiring a professional house cleaner is right for you.
The cleaners can help you clean the entire house in hours for a task that may take you days to do alone while attending to kids and work.
Conclusion
Not all days are the same. There are days you’re productive, and some days you’re not.
Every area of your house may not get cleaned as you want. However, staying on top of your cleaning tasks and following a routine can go a long way.
However, keeping the house clean as a busy working parent doesn’t mean sacrificing family time. Do not put a lot of to-do lists when you know you can’t tackle it quickly. Follow the finish what you start motto before moving on to the next to-do.
If you don’t cross off any task from your list, it’s okay. Focus on your health and wellness.
If you are too busy or stressed out, it’s not wrong to ask for help from other family members or hire a professional cleaner.
