How do you keep your house clean?

[DiannaC]

I'm just beginning to homeschool this year & I like a clean house. How do you keep your house clean & homeschool (plus have fun with your kids)? What are the priorities to keep clean? I typically vacuum & mop all floors weekly (we have hardwoods downstairs), dust, clean bathrooms a couple of times a week, pick up daily, & try to do a deep cleaning project once a week. Is that unrealistic with homeschooling? My kids are small so they can't do a ton of chores yet. And what my oldest does has to be supervised.

[momaof3]

Since your kids are small have they been home with you before now? If so your schedule really shouldn't change much because school shouldn't take very long.

[PrairieSong]

Since your kids are small have they been home with you before now? If so your schedule really shouldn't change much because school shouldn't take very long.

 

:iagree:

 

And also, as they grow and school takes longer, they will also be able to help you more. Even when they are very little, they can help pick up toys, maybe dust, match socks, etc. Don't discourage them because they don't do it perfectly. When mine were little they LOVED to help Mommy. I overlooked the not-perfect job they did because I wanted to encourage them and train them to be helpful. They knew it was just a part of family life.

[FO4UR]

Limit toys drastically. Limit food to the kitchen table only. Keep baskets around for collecting books.

 

 

Your 5yo may not be able to do very many chores right now, but by the time he needs more school time he will be able. My dc can run a vacuum & swiffer the hard floors. They may not do a professional job, but they certainly extend the time between *my* having to do it. I do all the toilets, but my dc can do the rest of the bathrooms. (Even my 6yo can wipe down counters, put dirty clothes in hampers, etc...) When you do a cleaning project, give them a small part of that project.

 

 

The biggest thing is teaching them those little daily habits. Shoes always on the shoe shelf, clothes in the hamper, coats hung on a hook, books in the basket, dinner plate in the sink, etc, etc, etc... Make it easy for them to comply by having low hooks for their coat, easy to reach baskets, etc. Don't do for them what they can do for themselves (and figure out ways for them to do for themselves). The actual cleaning doesn't take that much time...it's the tornado that occurs when 3 kids depend upon mommy to put away their stuff.

[KrissiK]

I don't. I have a housecleaning service come once a week. Otherwise I couldn't do it.

[Ellie]

I don't think what you're doing is unrealistic at all. I think that if you're in the habit of housekeeping now, it will be much easier to keep it up.

 

I do bathrooms just once a week, and dust once a week, on Fridays. I also do laundry on Friday, including changing sheets on the beds.

 

The rest of the time, I keep the kitchen clean, and no matter what happens or what the day has planned, I make my bed as soon as I get up. :)

[jelbe5]

WHAT!?! I'm supposed to homeschool AND keep my house clean, too? :tongue_smilie:

 

Sorry, I could not resist. Still working on the clean house part. :lol:

[Whereneverever]

We clean. Multiple times a day. We pick up before starting school, before lunch, and before bed. Once they are in bed, I clean more. There doesn't seem to be any way around it. :lol:

[MamaT]

I had 3 kids when I started homeschooling (youngest was a toddler), and I had a service come in once a week. That continued until we adopted child #6. At that point I had a newborn, 9 month old, 2yo, 6yo, 11yo, and 13yo. I had a mother's helper come in every morning on school days until noon. She did housework, and helped with the babies if I needed her to. Once they were all school age, I divided up the chores and we worked together to do housework. It helps if you make sure they get in the habit (really young) of picking up after themselves. Our routine right now is to do chores before we start school. It takes 20-30 minutes. Laundry is twice a week. I keep it switched out and then fold/put away after school or after dinner. They do their own sheets weekly. Many hands make light work. :001_smile:

[Priscila]

I prioritize the kitchen and bathrooms. If those are clean, I'm cool with everything else getting left undone for a few days, even. I do have to clean the area of the house where we're schooling. I can't concentrate and cannot expect my child to not be distracted if our immediate surroundings are trashed. I have a very low threshold for what I consider trashed. This is usually the living room, and I have always vacuumed the floors and cleared everything to its appropriate place in that room before starting school.

 

 

:lurk5:

[besroma]

There are a lot of good responses here. The book Large Family Logistics was very helpful to me when trying to plan my days combining homeschooling and cleaning.

 

We have several times a day that we "tidy up," and certain days of the week we deep clean different areas.

 

I train the little ones to help and overlook their imperfect jobs because I want them to learn to love being a helper in addition to learning the task.

 

Limiting what they have in their rooms helps tremendously. If they can't keep it clean, remove some items and keep doing so until they can keep it clean. It might seem drastic at first, but it is actually a relief to them. The items removed can be reintroduced once the child can handle more. We do this for every room in the house (# of toys in family room, play room, etc.).

[I.Dup.]

We clean. Multiple times a day. We pick up before starting school, before lunch, and before bed. Once they are in bed, I clean more. There doesn't seem to be any way around it. :lol:

 

:iagree:

 

We have several clean up times throughout the day. I clean while I am cooking (ALWAYS) and I never go to bed with a dirty kitchen. I wipe down the bathroom 1 out of every 20 or so times I'm in there (so once every few days or so? I don't know my math may be off :tongue_smilie:) and I wipe down the floors with a wet towel in between moppings. We almost always have wet towels after a messy toddler bath playtime or sprinkler play, etc. The kids now have chores so that takes a load off of me.

 

Your kids are so young. School shouldn't be taking that long each day.

[ShannonS]

I LOVE Managers of Their Chores. The older three have 'chore packs' that they complete upon waking and after dinner. In use for nine weeks and it has been FABULOUS. It was a process to implement, but the results have been worth it. I do a lot less cleaning and much more guiding. The kids are really developing a work ethic and sense of responsibility without an allowance.

[BillieBoy]

WHAT!?! I'm supposed to homeschool AND keep my house clean, too? :tongue_smilie:

 

Sorry, I could not resist. Still working on the clean house part. :lol:

 

I know!!! I'm just as shocked. :lol:

[violingirl]

The keys for us are a schedule that we adhere to pretty strictly, routines that are firmly in place and set times of the year to purge excess. I work fulltime also, so cleaning and homeschooling really have to be done at certain times if everything is going to be accomplished. We always spend the mornings in the family room for school, there are set times for cleaning/chores and we don't do a lot of extracurricular stuff. We work hard not to have clutter so I rarely have to spend time organizing (which takes me way longer than cleaning)- everything truly has a place to go so it's easier to just put it there. I also spend time about once a month getting rid of stuff somewhere- I just culled a bunch of the boys' toys that they haven't used in ages. It makes it so much easier for them to keep their stuff picked up on their own.

 

It helps so much that no one family member is responsible for the house. We all work together to make sure the house is reasonably maintained. I'm so very grateful for a husband who pitches in just as much as I do- and often more!

[Soror]

Since your kids are small have they been home with you before now? If so your schedule really shouldn't change much because school shouldn't take very long.

 

Limit toys drastically. Limit food to the kitchen table only. Keep baskets around for collecting books.

 

 

Your 5yo may not be able to do very many chores right now, but by the time he needs more school time he will be able. My dc can run a vacuum & swiffer the hard floors. They may not do a professional job, but they certainly extend the time between *my* having to do it. I do all the toilets, but my dc can do the rest of the bathrooms. (Even my 6yo can wipe down counters, put dirty clothes in hampers, etc...) When you do a cleaning project, give them a small part of that project.

 

 

The biggest thing is teaching them those little daily habits. Shoes always on the shoe shelf, clothes in the hamper, coats hung on a hook, books in the basket, dinner plate in the sink, etc, etc, etc... Make it easy for them to comply by having low hooks for their coat, easy to reach baskets, etc. Don't do for them what they can do for themselves (and figure out ways for them to do for themselves). The actual cleaning doesn't take that much time...it's the tornado that occurs when 3 kids depend upon mommy to put away their stuff.

 

:iagree:

 

We have several clean up times throughout the day. I clean while I am cooking (ALWAYS) and I never go to bed with a dirty kitchen. I wipe down the bathroom 1 out of every 20 or so times I'm in there (so once every few days or so? I don't know my math may be off :tongue_smilie:) and I wipe down the floors with a wet towel in between moppings. We almost always have wet towels after a messy toddler bath playtime or sprinkler play, etc. The kids now have chores so that takes a load off of me.

 

Your kids are so young. School shouldn't be taking that long each day.

 

:iagree: with all of the above. Your children cannot help much now but their schooling should not take very long either. You get them more trained as the years go when school takes longer and you will be ok- but imo keep clutter to a minimum, have routines in place, and do a little bit many times and expect them to help. It takes longer now but it pays off in many ways if they are taught young.

 

Also, you should be training them now. The 5 yo can do a fair amount, I know my can keep her own room clean, help unload the dishwasher, help with cooking, cleaning in the bathroom, pick up toys around the house.

[Susan of Croton]

I clean on Monday while kids (7th and 8th grade) work independently. Sometimes it gets out of hand and we all pitch in to do a mini-cleaning on Friday afternoon. All my kids know how to do laundry, etc. Those who learn how to milk must be made to milk.

[chepyl]

You have to develop habits. We did not have good habits the last two years. That has been my summer focus. I have been cleaning one room at a time. As I clean a room, we work on the habit needed to keep it clean.

 

Playroom - nightly pickup before bed or mid afternoon pick up if needed. Done daily, it tales five minutes. My 4.5 year old is excellent at organizing her toys after a little practice.

 

Bedrooms - laundry in hampers and toys stay in playroom. Bedrooms are for sleeping and dressing.

 

Kitchen - get cleaned once a day, after dinner. Breakfast and lunch dishes are.rinsed amd stacked as we go. I would burn out fast cleaning after every meal. This works much better. Generally DH cleans after dinner. I help some and will help more after baby comes. Right now, by the time dinner prep is over, I am sore and exhausted!

 

Living rooms - daily pick up. These two rooms still are not clean the way I want....they are getting there.

 

Laundry - I try to do a load a day. Wash dry and fold first thing in the morning. I can have it done by lunch if I get it in when I wake up.

 

Bathrooms- once a week.

 

I have not made it to the floors as a habit yet. We are still working on our routine. I am still getting the house back together after a long and sick pregnancy. My goal is to be clean by the time baby is.born and then keep up with the habits we have worked on this summer. It is only a few minutes a day.

[jenangelcat]

I don't spend much time deep cleaning. I do make sure that my house is organized and renovated in a way that makes cleaning quick and easy. We are currently only living on the main floor of our house so I only have 1000 square feet to keep clean. I also require that the kids clean up their own messes.

 

We're in the process of installing new flooring because the old one wouldn't hold a finish on it. I was mopping once a day and it still looked and felt awful. With the new floor I should only have to sweep daily and steam mop once a week if needed.

[Holly]

I try to keep our house relatively picked up...although "relatively" is a relative word. :lol: Even my 2yo can help put away toys and clothes. My 5yo helps in the kitchen, folds and puts away clothes, wipes down the table, etc. It's not as neat as I'd like, but she is improving (and I'm growing more patient). ;)

 

I try to "deep clean" one area on each floor of our house each day. By deep clean, I mean vacuum, dust, scrub smudges from walls, etc. I'm still working on this. Laundry is my priority on days where we don't have lots of outside activities. If I push myself, I can get 6+ loads a day. On busier days, I try to get a load or two. I try to load the dishes after each meal (doesn't always happen) and wash pots/pans/etc. once a day (sometimes waits until morning).

 

This all sounds good in theory, but our house is often a mess. I've been told it is clean, but cluttered. I'm working on getting rid of clutter, but it's hard to get rid of things when you have 6 people in one house! :tongue_smilie:

 

My biggest incentive is our once a month visit from the bug guy...having a relative stranger go through each room of my house is a huge motivator. It's pretty clean at least one day a month! :lol: My plan this year is to school 3 weeks each month and have the 4th week for re-organizing, deep cleaning, household projects, etc. I'm hoping this will help me stay on top of things a little better.

 

ETA: Also, prioritize what is important to you...like the PP mentioned, she needs her bathroom and kitchen clean. I have to have clean floors! I have the DC pick up all toys, clothes, trash, etc. that gets left on the floor (mainly due to 2 and 5yo). After that, I sweep and steam mop the kitchen/dining room floors every day or two...if it goes any longer, it drives me nuts! I don't like sticking to the floor when I walk across it. :p

Edited July 24, 2012 by Holly

[IsabelC]

I'm supposed to clean the house??! :tongue_smilie:

[MommyK]

There are a lot of good responses here. The book Large Family Logistics was very helpful to me when trying to plan my days combining homeschooling and cleaning.

 

We have several times a day that we "tidy up," and certain days of the week we deep clean different areas.

 

I train the little ones to help and overlook their imperfect jobs because I want them to learn to love being a helper in addition to learning the task.

 

Limiting what they have in their rooms helps tremendously. If they can't keep it clean, remove some items and keep doing so until they can keep it clean. It might seem drastic at first, but it is actually a relief to them. The items removed can be reintroduced once the child can handle more. We do this for every room in the house (# of toys in family room, play room, etc.).

 

I love this.. if every time they do a job to their ability, which is by no means your ability, you can point out where they might have done better.. which will make them feel like they can't do anything right. But to just praise them for the job they DID do gives them this huge bursting pride. Kids can be so awesomesauce.:D

[MommyK]

I'm supposed to clean the house??! :tongue_smilie:

 

I almost simply posted "BWAHAHAHAHHAA... oh. You weren't kidding.. Well this is awkward.":tongue_smilie:

[trishhoward]

I pretend that it is and ignore that it isn't. haha!

 

I have a girl help me catch up about once a week.

[linders]

:lol::lol:

 

I've changed my definition of clean.

[NotSoObvious]

I think my house was cleanest the first year I started homeschooling because I was bright-eyed and bushy-tailed and was excited about "doing it all."

 

Now?...

 

I told my dd I needed her to help me clean the house today and she asked, "Why? Who's coming over???"

:lol::lol::lol::lol::lol:

[Parrothead]

The formal seat work for K'er shouldn't take very long. So things shouldn't change all that much. I did reading practice in the morning and "math" in the afternoon.

 

Most every evening we have family clean up time which means the house is tidied up (dishes, stuff and the floors dustmopped) before going to bed so I wake up to a mostly clean house.

 

As dd has gotten older and school takes more of my time during the week as a family (I didn't make all this mess) we do a group cleaning of the house once a week. With three of us working it takes 1.25 hours to clean 2400 sq. ft.

[dm379]

I told my dd I needed her to help me clean the house today and she asked, "Why? Who's coming over???"

:lol::lol::lol::lol::lol:

 

Mine do this too! Kinda embarrassing.

 

Everybody cleans for about half an hour before school. When we take breaks in our school we clean more. I'm usually too tired in the evenings so by 2:00 or so I give up and gets all messed up for the next morning.

[mom2denj]

I get up at 5:15 am every morning and get my dh off to work. This is when I do my cleaning, computer stuff, etc... You would be amazed at how much you get done when the rest of the world is still in bed!! =) I have been doing this for 20 years. Once in a while I will go back to bed, but then I feel completely useless for the rest of the day. :D

[DiannaC]

Thanks so much for all the responses! You all are right that schooling this year will only take a couple of hours, but I want to start good habits now. I do have both of my boys doing some things around the house now: setting the table, cleaning up the table, helping with the laundry, picking up their toys, making their beds, unloading the dishwasher, etc. The major cleaning is what they can't do a lot of now.

 

What I have gleaned from the responses is:

 

1. Teach them now to help

2. It is okay if isn't exactly like I would do it.

 

Also, I like the idea about getting up early. My plan thus far is to be completely ready before my kids get up (usually around 7:30am) & after breakfast to do some morning chores before starting school at 9am. We can work on a few other chores after lunch.

[Desert Rat]

Sounds like a plan! I never could just "let the house go". I can't concentrate if the house is not clean. I think, for us, the key is that we have a smaller house. Our house is around 1500 sq. ft. Every week I do bathrooms (showers every other week), linens, dusting, vaccuuming and mopping. I use a Hoover Floormate for all hard surface floors and it makes such a difference! What a time saver.

Now, the boys dust their own bedrooms and vaccuum. They strip their beds. The oldest remakes his. Both are in charge of putting toys/legos away. I do the rest because I like it done my way. I'm weird like that. I'm done with everything in about 3 hours. I know I more efficient than some people.

I deep clean- high shelves, washing curtains, moving furniture to clean under (all hard surface floors) about every 3 months. It used to be once a month so I guess I have learned to let it go a little!

I also clean 3 houses that aren't mine every week and organize a 4th.

[Georgiana Daniels]

We're supposed to keep it clean :001_huh: ???

 

JK. I like a clean place too, but I've had to adjust my expectations over the years....and some years are better than others.

 

Most of the time I have to approach cleaning like triage: first, stop the bleeding.

[justLisa]

We're supposed to keep it clean :001_huh: ???

 

JK. I like a clean place too, but I've had to adjust my expectations over the years....and some years are better than others.

 

Most of the time I have to approach cleaning like triage: first, stop the bleeding.

 

:lol: That's a good one.

 

None of us are bothered by the state of our home. It is not immaculate by any means, and we all like our stuff. I quilt, and have a room for it. DH has an office, and kids have their own space which is pretty tidy. DS is pretty particular about his room. For the rest of the house I always have a clean kitchen and keep up with laundry. I don't really sweep but rather vacuum, and I have a Bona for the hard floor and just swoosh it around randomly at times. I clean toilets and have clean bathrooms, but that takes me all of 5 minutes before a shower or something.

[2squared]

We're supposed to keep it clean :001_huh: ???

 

JK. I like a clean place too, but I've had to adjust my expectations over the years....and some years are better than others.

 

Most of the time I have to approach cleaning like triage: first, stop the bleeding.

 

:iagree: I like a clean home as well, and we are working on getting it where I would like. My first step in triage is to not have any more babies! Seriously, 5 kids in 8 years + homeschooling has been tough.

Edited July 24, 2012 by 2squared

[Georgiana Daniels]

True, more people generally equals more mess. I figure no one will remember me for a clean house, but for the love inside. Well, I hope!

[lea_lpz]

My kids are about your children's ages, 3 &5, and they have some chores already. They have to pick up their toys, make their beds, get themselves dressed, put their clothes in the hamper, and feed the pets. My 5 year old does it alone and I help the 5 year old by picking his clothes out and helping to make his bed. If we don't have to go anywhere in the morning, we take breaks every and while the kids watch a cartoon or play, I'll do some chores around the house, or I will start at 10 am and do some housework in the morning, again in the afternoon.

 

At these ages, they don't have to spend a lot of time on school. We spend 1 1/2 hrs. to 2 hrs. So still a lot of time for other stuff.

[Farmgirl70]

Mine are in their late teens now--18, 17 and 15. I also like a clean house and the kids have helped with chores all along. As a plan B, keep this in mind, though: None of my potential regrets or the kids' disappointments center around the wish that we had kept the house cleaner. That's comforting :).

[Paintedlady]

Limit toys drastically. Limit food to the kitchen table only. Keep baskets around for collecting books.

 

 

Your 5yo may not be able to do very many chores right now, but by the time he needs more school time he will be able. My dc can run a vacuum & swiffer the hard floors. They may not do a professional job, but they certainly extend the time between *my* having to do it. I do all the toilets, but my dc can do the rest of the bathrooms. (Even my 6yo can wipe down counters, put dirty clothes in hampers, etc...) When you do a cleaning project, give them a small part of that project.

 

 

The biggest thing is teaching them those little daily habits. Shoes always on the shoe shelf, clothes in the hamper, coats hung on a hook, books in the basket, dinner plate in the sink, etc, etc, etc... Make it easy for them to comply by having low hooks for their coat, easy to reach baskets, etc. Don't do for them what they can do for themselves (and figure out ways for them to do for themselves). The actual cleaning doesn't take that much time...it's the tornado that occurs when 3 kids depend upon mommy to put away their stuff.

 

 

:iagree: I think this is wonderful advice. It's exactly what I would do.

[KidsHappen]

I don't. I figure I will clean it when the kids leave home. At least then it will stay that way.

[Myeightkiddies]

My bathrooms are cleaned twice a week. One of the bathrooms is cleaned three times a week due to the traffic (youngest son uses it more than others). Since I have older children, they help with that. I gave a "class" on how to clean it thoroughly and quickly. They were good at doing it thoroughly, but it took so long. Now it is no big deal.

 

Every room in the house is vacuumed twice a week. Floors (except kitchen) are swept and mopped twice a week. Once a week furniture, blinds, window sills, etc. are vacuumed/dusted.

 

The kitchen is cleaned throughout the day. At night, after my youngest goes to bed, I make sure all the dishes are done. Counters and appliances are cleaned (including inside of the microwave). Dining tables/chairs are cleaned. The floor is swept and mopped. Because of the traffic in the kitchen it is important to do this every night. Some nights I am exhausted but I still do it. Mornings are tough because it takes forever for me to "wake-up", and due to my RA, I'm really sore and stiff. I want the kitchen done at night.

 

Laundry is done every day. I do not let it pile up at all. Right now I am also purging more as we have many years worth of items. A lot has been donated, but I need more gone. This house isn't as large as my old house (it is overall but it is laid out differently, such as kitchen is smaller).

 

You have younger children, so a lot is on your shoulders. Just ask yourself which area of your home is most important to you to keep clean. It may be something that you prefer or dh prefers, or it could be an area that if you ignore it becomes too much of a chore. Be sure to keep that area clean. Then go to the next preferred or trouble-spot. At the end of the day, if your preferred or trouble-spot is clean, you will feel better.