Cleaning Schedule

I am laughing as I write this post because I currently want to pull my hair out. Seriously. My kids are driving me crazy.. and in the same thought I'm praying, "Please, Lord, give me gentle and kind words, patience, wisdom and understanding."

I've been meaning to share my 'cleaning' schedule. It helps me keep my housework semi-caught up. At least the "big" stuff. So here it is:

Mondays- Trash (our pick up day is Tuesday) and weekend pick up

*Even when you stay at home, Mondays are Mondays! The house is usually a wreck with stuff all over the place... especially if we were gone much of the weekend. Sounds crazy, right? But when we're in and out of the house a lot over the weekend, even if we're not there much, the house looks like a disaster Monday morning. We come in, change clothes, drop 'stuff' off, the boys play for a min while we get ready.. and nothing gets put away or picked up. So that's what I do Mondays.

Tuesday- Laundry/Change Sheets/De-clutter

*Tuesday is a minimal day too because we usually go to the library. So, I try to catch up on some laundry and change the sheets. I usually grocery shop on Mon or Tuesday too.. so I keep things lighter. I also try to pick one area of the house to declutter. And I mean something small, like the top of the fridge or the catch all bowl on the kitchen table.

Wednesday- Bathrooms

*This includes mirrors, sinks, tubs, shower stall, toilets (inside and out) and sweeping and mopping the bathroom floors. This also includes the sink, counter and mirror in our bedroom.

Thursday- Vacuum and Dust

*Yep, that's it.. I vacuum and dust... the bedrooms and the den. Exciting. Sometimes I vacuum really well.. like I get behind furniture, etc. And sometimes I just go over what I can see! If it's the Hubs week to be off on Friday I also try to get my Friday work done.

Friday - Sweep and Mop

*Sweep and mop the hall and kitchen. I hate mopping.

I try to sweep the floors everyday and of course I do the dishes everyday.. well most everyday. Sometimes the dinner dishes don't get done until the next day. I also do a load or two of laundry everyday.. but if you were to come over today you'd see two loads on the couch... it doesn't always get put up the same day! Here lately I've been on an organizing kick. And that is good.. because I am not organized. Today I organized the closet where I keep all of our craft and school things. So, I'm hoping to add some kind of organizational stuff to my week. I guess decluttering counts, right?

I made up this schedule to keep up on the important cleaning. Sometimes kids are sick... I am sick.. we are busy and it doesn't get done. And it's okay. My house is never perfect. I have kids, young kids and you know what? We live here! I have gotten into the trap where I worked myself to death to keep things looking perfect. And you know what? They never looked perfect! I would work and work on housework and at the end of the day, all I had was frustration! There was still laundry to be done, the boys had left their blocks in the den floor, I hadn't made it to the bedroom where my makeup was still strewn all over the counter, the Hubs had left his wet towel in the bathroom floor, that pile of mail and papers still waited on me by the computer... and it was 11pm and I was exhausted! So, now, I try to do the important things and do a few 'straighten ups' throughout the day and just let it be. I still catch myself going back to that frustration. But I have to remind myself what is important. My kids and hubby deserve a wife and mommy that is not frustrated.

Next, I'll share about the boys 'Chore Books' and our 5 minute clean ups!

*Disclaimer- Please don't think that this means my house will look tidy every time you come over. And please don't think this 'schedule' means that I have it all together. Oh me, that is far from the truth!