A few weeks ago I received this question through my website:
“Do you have any good resources on how to structure your weekly cleaning and organizing schedule? I find myself getting stuck on the weekends spending too much time cleaning and not enjoying my free time!”
Great question! First I must admit that my house is not spotless and I totally agree with comedian Phyllis Diller when she said, “cleaning your house while your kids are still growing is like shoveling the walk while it’s still snowing.”
There have been many times when I have felt like a slave to my house. In those moments I contemplate selling and moving to a small apartment with a view. But then spring arrives, I spend time in the yard and all of those House for Sale thoughts get pushed to the back of my mind.
There are a ton of resources online to fit your specific needs. For fun, type “weekly home organization schedule” into Google. Only 86,500,000 results! And if you'd like to get sucked down the rabbit hole of Pinterest, just search for “home cleaning schedule.”
I'll save you some time – here's what I use and recommend for daily cleaning and organizing that takes less than 30 minutes a day:
Kitchen
Do the dishes or load/unload the dishwasher
Clean kitchen counter tops and table
Sweep kitchen floor
Replace dish towels
Bedrooms
Make bed
Put away clothes
Living/Family Room
Straighten couch pillows and throw blankets
Put furniture back in place (how did the ottoman get across the room?)
Clear coffee table and other surfaces
Return toys, coats, books, shoes, mittens and more to their homes
Keeping up with the daily tasks makes weekly chores (laundry, cleaning the bathroom, vacuuming etc.) feel less overwhelming and time-consuming. Of course, all of this only gets done by delegating. Four of us live in the house so four of us help keep it clean. Seems only fair, right?
Do you have a question? Drop me a note – maybe I'll answer it next month.