Some of us were chit chatting in another thread about picking a room a month to really focus on and deep clean. It made me wonder how other people clean their homes.
Have you found a cleaning routine/schedule/groove that you feel comfortable with? Did it change tremendously after having children? How long did it take you to find something that worked for your family?
And please...tell us the secret to a clean house! (Okay, fine...we know there isn't a secret, but we can dream, right?)
35 votes
hostess / cantaloupe / 6486 posts
My last two months of pregnancy I didn't work so my house was outrageously, over-the-top clean. With a 3 and a half month old, it's not that clean but I definitely set cleaning goals daily. My key to a "clean, happy house" is to do my best for the day, always put self-care before home care & don't get upset if I don't meet all my cleaning goals for the day. They're mostly just maintenece but some days even that's hard to do! But we have a pretty good schedule going
GOLD / wonderful pomegranate / 28905 posts
We don't really go by a schedule. It's by a need by need basis. Overall DH does most of the cleaning in the morning and I do evening and weekends.
I will say with having a high needs baby then a very mommy preferred info toddler the household balance has been greatly skewed. Now DH probably does like 75-85% of the housework. I'm trying to be better and pitch in more at night and on weekends.
grapefruit / 4136 posts
I had a good handle on things in our last place but it was much smaller (we gained over 1000sqft with our new home) but I'm struggling in this house! 
eggplant / 11408 posts
My cleaning schedule is laundry once a week and the rest when the mood strikes 
I've recently been trying to vacuum and shake out the kitchen rugs and sweep/wipe the floors every other day, but it's a work in progress. Just don't look at my bathroom floor-it is embarrassing, and a NY resolution!
papaya / 10473 posts
We are starting one. If I can find it, I'll post it here. I needed something broken up into manageable chunks every day!
watermelon / 14467 posts
No, but we need one. With a baby who goes through clothes like nobody's business, I'm at least on top of the laundry.
blogger / wonderful cherry / 21628 posts
I don't have one. I just clean as needed. Today I'm doing some laundry and cleaning the kitchen. DH is organizing his garage.
pomegranate / 3895 posts
Every Saturday morning or Sunday after church we try to deep clean. We pick-up as needed, though. WE also use the "stairs method" - putting things that need to go upstairs on the stairs with the rule that if you walk by them, you need to take them up and put them in their proper place.
Hubby does the laundry. He ruins things every now and again, but it's totally worth it.
pomegranate / 3729 posts
@HolisticMama: I am SO not qualified to tell you the secret, but have you heard of flylady?? She has detailed daily, weekly, and monthly tasks and lists. I think I am going to have to try to use we system again because I just get SO overwhelmed. I will just modify it to fit my needs (for example, laundry in the morning isn't feasible for me).
nectarine / 2936 posts
Growing up my mom had a schedule with days of the week (Monday- kitchen, Tuesday- bathroom, etc). We would set a kitchen timer for 15-20 minutes and work as much as you could during that time and when time was up you were done. I always LOATHED it. As an adult I find the daily room schedule too confining, but I do like using the timer for a 15-20 min clean. You would be surprised how much you can get done when you know you only have to work for a short period of time!
cantaloupe / 6730 posts
I have a schedule that i made with the Home Routine app, but so far, I haven't used it that much. So really, our schedule is more like "someone's coming over tommorow! Clean the house!" Maybe I'll do better next year...
grapefruit / 4028 posts
I've looked at flylady lists, and I should probably start following them.
I clean on a survival only basis, lol. And that's with no LOs.
honeydew / 7444 posts
Usually as needed.
I vacuum the kitchen and dining room floors every other day.
Saturday mornings i vacuum the house and clean the bathroom. I'll run laundry throughout the day.
Sunday mornings i will put away our clothes.
I'm going to try and come up with a schedule in the new year.
honeydew / 7811 posts
I really struggle with this as a full time working mom of a needy baby with mommy preference and a DH who is almost always at work when I am at home.
cantaloupe / 6692 posts
I have one that is easy to stick to! DH really helps on the weekends and picks up the slack if he comes home from work and I had one of those days I just couldn't get off the couch (8months pregnant). It'll be easy to stick to when I go back to work too. It takes about 20-30 minutes everyday to really do a good job just doing the daily work. Big jobs take longer but DH always helps. I do laundry whenever it's needed. Usually every 4 days so I don't schedule it.
Sometimes I go a week without sticking to it and have to do a big catch up clean but when I'm able to stick to this I can breathe much easier and everything stays nice and tidy.
Here's my lovely schedule I made myself that's on my fridge! lol
persimmon / 1167 posts
@bpcmarj and @mrs. 64: That is exactly what I do. I was overwhelmed with the Fly Lady e-mails, but I do love her products. However- I really feel successful with my 15 minute increments. I feel like I can do any task for at least 15 minutes and before I know it- an entire room is clean.
I'm toying with an idea of picking one room to focus on and deep clean a month. I am picking the Den in January, because that room resonated with me...January is cold and I like being near the fire. It's cozy...So I will show that room some love this month.
wonderful pear / 26210 posts
I have a cleaning lady now, she does a deep clean twice a month.
In between, I vac and sweep the floors as needed. My son has a cordless vac that he follows me around with, so that's a big help! Each night before bath time, we pick up toys and put things away, it helps to keep the clutter under control.
As for laundry, I do it only on the weekends, and I iron on Sunday.
watermelon / 14206 posts
@Danizaur: I might copy this! I need a schedule, and yours looks like something I could definitely keep on top of!
pear / 1571 posts
@HolisticMama: Finally figuring out a cleaning routine and sticking with it is my New Years resolution. I got overwhelmed with the FlyLady stuff too, but setting the timer is definitely helpful. I need to optimize my Cozi better so I can sync calendars and stuff with DH. Another app I would highly recommend is one called Home Routines. It's been the best method I've found to work for me. Meaning, I stuck with it longer than anything else. And it does have separate zones and assigned rooms with deep cleaning projects every month. I kind of take those as optional, when I have everything else done.
cantaloupe / 6692 posts
@Dandelion: I love it! It's easy to keep up with. I found something similar on Pinterest and just reworked it to include things I needed.
watermelon / 14206 posts
@Danizaur: Yeah, I'll have to modify it for our household, but it's a really good template!
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