How To Keep A Clean House As A Busy Mom
Keeping a clean house can be a daunting task when you have so much else to do already. These 12 simple cleaning tips will help you keep your home clean without spending all day scrubbing and losing your sanity.
As a busy and SAHM I have a lot these days on my plate. Especially when my kids are home and I’m struggling to homeschool them for the very first time.
I used to be a clean person. A total freak when it comes to cleaning and tidying! I used to spend most of my time cleaning and organizing my books when I was young. I kept track of everything related to my work and home when I grew up.
Then I got married and had babies, and things turned a little bit different. I finally saw with my own eyes what a pile of laundry is, what a toddler tornado actually means and how one actually loses sanity when one becomes a MOM!
Honestly, the reality of my life as a busy mom is I try to keep my house clean but none can expect to see it always clean neither do I. but during these 7 years of my married life I learned a few tips and tricks to keep my house clean and I love sharing my experience with fellow moms.
If you want to declutter your home, office, bedroom and don’t have any idea how to start, here’s a solution to declutter fast and get your house organized immediately.
How To Keep A Clean House As A Busy Mom (My 12 Tips)
These are my 12 tips on how to keep a clean house like a busy or a working mom. Following these tips makes things much easier for a busy or working mother to maintain and keeps her a whole lot happier. I do… to me and I hope it will for you too!
Make A Schedule And Stick To It
I know you probably would be frustrated by hearing this same advice from everyone over and over again. But tell me tell you, I tried everything, literally everything!
But since I tried to do chores according to a schedule and organized my life, I saw incredible changes. Pick one day for bathrooms, other day for kitchen, the next day for laundry and so on.
Before creating a schedule, I found myself cleaning way too much that I didn’t have time for anything else. Nobody wants to clean their house 24/7. Right?
So, what I try to do is, I designate days for different areas in my house. Each day I tackle one area or room. Note that I don’t deep clean my house every single day. I do that on monthly basis which I have sectioned in the house cleaning checklist itself.
Here’s My Simple Cleaning Schedule
- Monday – Plan Out An Entire Week
- Tuesday – Dust and Clean Floors
- Wednesday – Laundry and Bedrooms
- Thursday – Clean Bathrooms
- Friday – Clean Kitchen
- Saturday – Simple Decluttering
- Sunday – Swing Day
I would like to mention here, that I use my house cleaning checklist to keep a track of my cleaning schedule. This way I know what areas and stuff I need to tackle that particular day.
You can download it through the link at the bottom of this post. It’s FREE!
Plus, it has space for adding daily and monthly cleaning areas as well. Also, I don’t always do things assigned on a particular day. For instance, I may have a pile of laundry waiting for me before Wednesday, so I just don’t wait.
This schedule just helps me to keep track of stuff I need to do. And if I miss a particular day, I try to go it first thing the next day.
Set Cleaning Time Each Day
After you have made your schedule, try to allot time you need each day to dedicate to cleaning. A simple way is to set a timer for yourself.
When I do my planned chore every day, I try to designate time to do my task. It takes hardly 20 minutes or less for me to clean up daily and spares me a whole day without losing sanity.
You can figure out how much time you need to accomplish everything you have written in the checklist. Probably it would take 30 minutes of your day to clean a designated room and you will be done.
Like I said, it is better not to deep clean your room or house every single day but to do it on monthly basis. I do it, and I can assure you my house really remains clean for a whole month if I only tackle my chores listed on a checklist.
Make Your Bed First Thing
If you’re looking for tips on how to clean your house when you’re busy or working, this is the perfect tip for you. It is for me, I know!
There two reasons for me to make bed the first thing in the morning:
I can accomplish anything once my bed is made and my room looks tidy.
- I get one thing done right getting out of bed, which I know I have to do any time of the day.
- These reasons might not seem very convincing to you guys, but trust me making the bed is a small victory in all that cleaning process you have to go through the day.
I guess that’s why U.S. Navy Adm. William H. McCraven’s advice to graduates of the University of Texas, “If you want to change the world, start off by making your bed.”
My bedroom is a comfort zone for me. When I am exhausted that’s the place I relax. It’s the only place where toys are not scattered and there are no sticky fingerprints on areas in there. It’s my ultimate comfort area. So, I like to keep it clean and tidy!
Sort Your Laundry Right Away
If you’re a busy or working mother, then this is a perfect tip to keep your house clean and save your time. Buy a hamper and keep in your laundry room.
This hamper helps you sort your clothes, like one for undergarments, other for sleeping clothes, next one for towels and so on. Once the hamper if full, you can do a load.
If you keep your clothes right in the hamper once they’re dirty, you’re saving our time to sort your laundry. If you don’t want to go for a hamper, you can buy laundry storage baskets and keep your clothes sorted.
Keep Caddy In Every Room
This tip saves my time during all the cleaning process. I keep my cleaning supplies that I need in a caddy in a specific room. In every bathroom I keep cleaning supplies under the sink like bathroom cleaner, disinfectant wipes, garbage bags towel and gloves.
I do the same in the kitchen. For other rooms I keep an empty caddy where I can instantly pick stuff that doesn’t belong to that room, put it in, and get it organized.
This way I can quickly clean any room whenever I want to. I love handy cleaning caddy to organize my cleaning essentials.
Get Your Kids Involved
My little girl is 6 and my little man is 4, enough to be assigned chores now. They are my sweet little helpers. Although I don’t ask them to do actual chores, but assigning some tasks here and there keeps them busy while I’m able to do the actual cleaning.
For instance, I would give them a rag to dust with to one and ask the other to pick up the toys. This will keep them occupied for some time and I can do some other chores.
If you have kids at home, try to give them some age appropriate tasks to keep them busy. Involving kids in cleaning can have two straight benefits for moms.
First, it teaches them hard work and appreciation for the work mom and dad do every day. Second, when you get kids on board to clean with you get an extra hand and this helps get things done in less time.
So, you get to do extra work when they’re awake, which means more time for mommy during the nap time!
Get The Right Tools
It doesn’t matter if you own a house or live in an apartment where you don’t have to clean much stuff. If you don’t have the right tools for doing the right job, things can really get aggravating.
So, try to find get all the tools right for cleaning and maintaining your home. For instance, you shouldn’t use a normal window or basin cleaner to clean or sanitize your bathroom.
Instead of keeping your cleaning supplies all together, invest in multiple caddies to keep the cleaners and other tools organized in their respective rooms.
When you have the right tools, you will realize how incredibly easy it is to clean and organize your home in no time.
Keep Your Appliances Maintained
When figuring out how to keep a clean house when you’re busy, you need to pay attention on your appliances and how you care for them.
Like I said, you need to find the right tools for cleaning to save your time and clean your house. You need to take extra care of each and every appliance you have to make sure they are running efficiently.
For instance, clean your dryer vent six months to keep it working, or else lint will build up and you have to run the same load of laundry multiple times to get it dry.
Also, running a cleaning pod through your empty dishwasher will prevent buildup so that your dishes come out clean every time. This also goes for maintaining oven and microwave every month.
These small tips can minimize your cleaning time and help you keep your home clean.
Keep Wipes Everywhere
I love Lysol disinfectant wipes because they make cleaning super easy. You can keep these wipes everywhere like the bathroom, kitchen, and other rooms to disinfect and clean instantly.
I also like keeping a small pack of wipes in my bag and in the car even when my kids have outgrown the diaper years.
I like keeping them for cleaning kids’ hands before inevitable in-the-car meals and for regular cleaning of germ-prone areas like their cell phone, key fob, stereo, and steering wheel.
These wipes are perfect for cleaning and disinfecting but, you don’t like the strong scent of Lysol? You can use baby wipes to remove dust from furniture. Baby wipes are not just for baby’s delicate tushy.
Have A System For Toys
With two kids, we have lots of toys. Although I regularly go through the toys and ask kids if they don’t like any toy anymore, we can either donate them or get rid of them.
For toy storage, I like clear plastic containers with lids. I keep their small toys in them. One container we keep wooden puzzles and in other containers, we keep random toys like cars and train sets.
Kids are able to see what’s inside the box and it keeps most of the toys organized. For big toys, I like to keep this colorful storage bin to store them. I always ask my kids to keep their toys in these specific containers.
Get A Cordless Vacuum
Are your kids constantly spilling their food everywhere? Well, my kids are!
For small usual messes, I like a cordless vacuum. It’s perfect for picking up cereal and food crumbs. It’s a nice and better option when you want to sweep.
On the other hand, you can get your kids to do it because its cordless and easier to get up and running. Plus these kind of cordless vacuums are perfect for cleaning furniture tops and sofas.
These make cleaning pretty easy and quick for busy ladies!
Declutter… For Good!
Like I said, you should assign each day a particular room that your can sweep and clean every day, but you should also figure out what you don’t need anymore and get rid of it.
I do a weekly cleaning where I try to declutter as much as possible and keep only things that I need. If you’re a busy mom and trying to figure out how to keep a clean house then I recommend you do a weekend purge.
All you need is to sacrifice just one weekend for a complete turnaround of your house. You can find how to declutter your home in one weekend in this article.
This is perfect for busy moms to save extra time as they don’t have to go through the stuff on daily basis. Remember, clutter attracts clutter. So, if you minimize clutter, you home will automatically stay tidy without putting so much efforts.
10 Minute Tidy Up Every Evening
This is what I do apart from following the clean home checklist. I set aside 10 minutes every evening after dinner and before bedtime.
This time is when we all as a family get along and tidy up rooms. Kids clean out their rooms, pick toys up, change into their sleep wear and get to their beds. My husband tidies up his stuff around his workspace.
I try to clean up any residual clutter around the house. I put away dishes, organize things around, finish up laundry and pick up a caddy and gather anything that doesn’t belong around the house. Then I sort it and put it away.
Finally, I try to clean the counter tops and a vacuum in the end. This makes my morning quite easy and I don’t have to over clean anything. This is what you can do as a busy mom, too!
Download Your Free Home Cleaning Checklist Here
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Final Thoughts
I really hope these 12 Tips on how to keep a clean house as a busy mom help you to keep your house clean without losing your sanity!
What are other ways you clean your house? Do you follow any schedule or a plan? Let us know too 😊
Don’t Forget To Pin It For Later!
Related Articles:
How To Declutter Your Home In A Weekend
How To Keep A Clean House As A Busy Mom
I am the Wife, Mommy, & Blogger behind All Moms Blog learning to run my own home and raise up kids while chasing my dreams. I work to support, inspire, and encourage moms in the journey of motherhood to make their lives easier without losing your sanity.
I love your 10 minute count-down! Helps always! Great tips and suggestions.
Hi, Elizabeth! Thanks. I’m happy you found it helpful.
These are awesome tips! As a SAHM, I know the struggle too well. A friend told me years back that she had a cleaning schedule which I had to try right away. It has been a life saver. I know what I need to do daily and skim over other tasks. It makes keeping the house in order much easier. Thanks for the help 😊
Hi, Ana! I came up with my own schedule because nothing is better than something you created for yourself to according to your own needs. I’m so happy I started following a plan years back otherwise I would have lost my sanity till now 😀
Love these tips! I hated the idea of a cleaning schedule until I made one, and now I find that it makes me feel more in control of cleaning, rather than overwhelmed. I know that my bathrooms will get cleaned on a certain day, so I can let it go the other days. Thanks for sharing.
Hi, Kelly! Keeping track of cleaning in the form of a schedule really helps. I know when I have to complete a certain task or clean a room. Designating days for cleaning actually saves a ton of time, plus you have other days left to do other things of your choice.
OOOH thank you! I have lost track with my mind after the last few weeks! I have downloaded the list too!
Hi, Yemi! I am glad your found the post helpful. I had almost lost my sanity during this time. I am now engaging myself in things I like and I’m glad I’m getting on track again.
Having a set schedule and routine definitely helps with keeping things on track with cleaning.
Hi, Anitra! Yes, it does. I simply can’t imagine my life without a schedule or else I will go insane with the amount of work I have on daily basis with two kids, especially now when they are home 😀
I loved this article! I am finding it so hard to keep my house clean with the girls home now so I will definitely put into practice some of these tips!
Hi, Sarah! Thank you. Let me know the results too 🙂
All of these are great tips! One thing I do that works great is my kids have to have a clean bedroom anytime they want to eat. That teaches them to tidy up as they go and never let their bedrooms turn into the pit of doom.
Hi, Sissy! That’s great. I teach my kids to make up their beds the first thing in the morning and keep their dishes in the kitchen. I few steps here and there will work overtime. 🙂
This looks an article that you wrote for me! I become stressful when l think all the staff to do at home and when l don’t finish at the end of the day. I ll try your tips thanks for sharing.
Hi, Francy! Thank you. I am so glad you found the post helpful. Getting the stuff done daily is really hectic, but one thing at a time will help you overcome the cleaning 🙂