Getting organized -- cleaning

One of the biggest challenges I have had since becoming a parent is cleaning the house. I miss the old days when I could clean the entire house in one swoop. I knew that this wouldn't be possible anymore given the length of nap times, but what was the alternative? It is so difficult to find another way of doing things when the old way has become such a routine. Of course, add to the problem that our house is now 4 times larger than when we first got married, and I now have 4 more loads of laundry to do a week.

I started out just addressing the most glaring problems when I had a chance. This lead to us often realizing we had absolutely no clean clothes or the bathroom was beyond care. If I have time to clean one bathroom, it is going to be the guest bathroom, since that is the most used, but our bathroom was repeatedly getting looked over. I started to look online for a solution that would work for us. Unfortunately, we don't have the option for a house cleaner right now. (Someday, sigh.) I finally came to the harsh realization that I would be doing laundry and cleaning every day for the rest of my life. Okay, it's not as bleak as it sounds...

I like being organized and I realized I just needed to split everything up and assign it a day. Every morning when I wake up, I do one load of laundry. Getting in the habit of one load is so much simpler that having one day when I wash everything that this family wears. Less to wash and less to put away. I also have different areas of the house that I deep clean and declutter every day. I have to say, this has been amazing. Although I am cleaning every day, I find it takes me less time overall and everything stays clean. It really feels like only 15 minutes of upkeep, and then I am done.

The printables at simplemom.net have really helped keep me organized when it comes to a cleaning schedule. I love having lists to check off, so simplemom's mini docket was made just for me. If you are in need of some organization printables, check out the following sites...

Simple Mom printables (practical, basic solutions)

Design Finch printables (adorable designs, any kind of planner you would need)