When both the hubby and I were working extra-full-time hours, we hired a cleaning service to come in every other week and get the job done. Outside of wiping down kitchen counters, we simply let the dust bunnies (really, these should be called the dog hair bunnies, because that's exactly what they were) pile up until our fantastic service would come and clean everything away.
Now that I stay home, a cleaning service seems a tad excessive to me. But staying home didn't manage to change the fact that I, like you, really dislike cleaning! So I had to get creative when devising a plan to keep this house clean. This is what I've come up with to stay on top of the cleaning without feeling like I'm ALWAYS cleaning, or that the house is ALWAYS dirty:
- Do a little bit each day
For me, I have my "daily" areas and my "rotation" areas. The kitchen gets wiped down and dishes get done daily (ahem, multiple times a day). I also run the vacuum daily, but have divided the house into two sections and alternate what part gets vacuumed each day. Now, this is because we have hardwoods throughout the whole house (zero carpet) and one massive doggie shed-er and one who tracks in grass, leaves, various forms of nature, etc. Bottom line, just figure out the part of your house that has to be attended to regularly given your life circumstances and add it to the "daily" list. I would try to keep it to two to four things that you can't stand seeing a mess - your whole house can't end up on this list :)
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| Major time saver: Dirt Devil Express V6. It's cordless and bag-less and perfect for picking up dog hair in corners and along baseboards of hardwood floors. |
-Pick a task, not a room
The "rotation" consists of a task. I won't pick a room in the house and break out the duster, floor cleaner, Windex, and whatever else may be needed to clean it. Rather, I pick one cleaning item related to one task and do it throughout the whole house. For example, today I broke out the duster and dusted every room in the house. Tomorrow, I'll likely get a few bathroom cleaning products (say, toilet cleaner and soft scrub to clean the sinks) to work on our two bathrooms; then possibly the next day I'll break out the floor mop and cleaner to get the bathroom and kitchen floors.
Picking a task over a room means that you only have to prepare and put away one to two cleaning items. It's a huge waste of time to get all the stuff out to clean "just one room" - you'll spend half your time prepping and then cleaning up after your clean, as opposed to actually cleaning! Breaking it down by task enables you to get what you need out, get your work done and actually spend your timing cleaning, and then clean up only what you used for all the spaces in the house that used that cleaning item.
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| The Swifter Dusters makes dusting furniture and wall decor super easy: the replaceable wand covers actually trap dust so you don't push it around your house, nor have to spray toxic chemicals and then wipe them up for a proper cleaning. I can dust my entire house in 20 minutes with this little guy! |
I've found this to be a really helpful cleaning "hack" that helps to simplify the cleaning process and make it much more bearable. Remember: Have your "daily" list of things that need daily attention and limit that list to no more than four items. Then pick your "rotation" that uses one cleaning agent, and clean all areas in the house that use that particular cleaning agent. Happy reduced stress and more efficient cleaning!
If anyone knows of any similar tactics to use for laundry, by all means send me an email! I despise laundry and would love to hear about any ways/methods you have to make that a more enjoyable process.
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