One thing I hate to do is chores. I am sure every person on the planet will agree with me on this statement. Who wants to spend hours at a time cleaning and scrubbing when we could be binge watching Real Housewives of Beverly Hills? When I decided to stay at home to take care of my son one thing I vowed to do was to keep the house clean and organized. Hey, I am at home all day, at least I want it to be pretty and clean? But, one thing I do not like, is spending a whole day cleaning and missing quality time with my family. So I have been using this schedule to stay on top of chores around the house.
First thing that is important is that the first time you do this you will have to spend at least one day of deep cleaning to get your house perfectly clean, then it will be just upkeep. This is my schedule:
Mondays
Mondays are bedroom days. I start my day by taking all sheets from our bedroom and my son's bedroom and washing them. While they are in the wash I dust our nightstands, blinds, windowsills, door frames, baseboards and crown moldings. I wipe every surface with cleaner and put new sheets on the beds and crib. I also do a load of all the blankets we have on our couch. It seems like a lot but it takes me an hour tops to do all this, which I do while my son naps.
Tuesdays
Tuesdays are bathroom days. I wash all towels, washcloths, changing table cover, hand towels and bathroom rugs. While they wash I clean showers and toilets, and wipe down counters and mirrors. I sweep the bathroom floors and dust the bathroom door frames, baseboards and crown molding. After towels are clean I fold them and hang new towels to be used that week. This is by far the hardest day since it takes me around 2 hours to do this, but again, it is not that much in comparison to doing the whole house in one day.
Wednesdays
Wednesdays are kitchen days. As soon as I wake up in the morning I put a load of whites on the washer. Then I scrub and sanitize counter tops, wipe any spills on the microwave, wipe the stove top, wipe the cabinets and sweep and mop the kitchen floor. I also dust the floorboards and the door frame. Finally I go through the fridge and toss anything that is expired and wipe any spills. I also do a quick tidy up of the pantry. Before going to bed I fold and put away that load of laundry.
Thursdays
Thursdays are my easiest day! As soon as I wake up I put a load of light colors. During the day I sweep the dining room floor and mop it. I clean the table and dust baseboards, crown molding, door frames and picture frames. I also clean my son's high chair. In the afternoon I do a load of my son's baby clothes and then fold them. I also fold the load of laundry I put in the morning.
Fridays
Fridays are living room days. In the morning I put a load of dark clothes on the wash. During the day I sweep the floors of the living room, mop, dust the floorboards, crown molding, door frames, blinds and furniture. I also wipe my son's toys and organize them.
Saturdays
Saturdays I vacuum the house and dust our stairs picture frames and floorboards.
Sundays
Rest, rest and rest some more.
Because I have this routine I have a decently cleaned house every day. There is always chores I do every day like put away my son's toys and do dishes. Every morning I unload the dishwasher and during the day I load it again. At the end of the day I run it and so I have clean dishes in the morning. By keeping this schedule at any given day I have less than an hour of house chores except on Tuesdays. This gives me plenty of time to take care of my son and have time to prepare dinner. This is what works for me and my family and keeps my OCD in check. It drives me insane to have a dirty house. I don't want to be a slave of cleaning, and I really, really like to binge watch Real Housewives!
I hope this helps you to create a cleaning routine that works for you!