How to stay on top of cleaning in a busy family

You may be someone who finds cleaning easy and enjoyable; a way to decompress and have time to think. 

Or perhaps you’re like me… you love the end result of a clean home, but struggle to find the time or desire to clean frequently. 

Over the years I have adapted my cleaning schedule to fit our changing daily routine. 

For several years we also hired a cleaner (you can read more about our journey here).

So what are some easy ways to stay on top of cleaning in a busy family?

A house full of littles

If you’re in the season of young children, there’s no denying that cleaning with little ones underfoot can be very challenging. Regular cleaning sessions can feel impossible and a tidy home may feel like a distant memory!

The notion of toddlers and preschoolers actually ‘helping’ in the cleaning process when they are often the cause of the mess and the dirt seems crazy! 

Yet, we are training hearts and so providing opportunities to contribute to the family is really important. 

Here are a few things to keep in mind when your children are young:

• Breaking your cleaning time into manageable chunks and having small cleaning tasks keeps the overwhelm at bay! 
• Making sure your cleaning supplies are easily accessible ensures you can make the most of spare minutes in your busy schedule.
• Regular decluttering sessions (including of baby toys) means you aren’t moving extra objects around before or while you clean.
• Providing age-appropriate tasks that require minimal effort can make cleaning a team effort and that makes a big difference in the long run! 

Remember, when young children feel like important family members they develop a sense of responsibility and are much more likely to jump in and be willing to help. 

All hands on deck

My best hack is instead of doing the cleaning while the children play or do school, try to employ an ‘all hands on deck’ approach. 

This has made a BIG difference in our household. 

I also don’t want our children growing up with the impression that cleaning is just ‘mum’s job’. In a busy household, we all need to pitch in. 

The good news is that if many people make for a cluttered or messy home, those same many hands can make the job of cleaning much easier! 

This could sound much easier said than done. I get it; working with a whingey kiddo is never much fun… but neither is living with a stressed out, always-busy mumma 😉 

So, why not aim for a win-win and have the honest conversation to get your whole family on board. Your children will be learning life skills and honing a sense of satisfaction at completing a task and I can assure you, in years to come, you’ll be so thankful that you put in the hard yards of training and requiring your children to help. 

Lots of positive reinforcement, clear communication, and the right tools can get the job done faster!

Tidying before cleaning

One thing I often forget is that a tidy house isn’t the same as a clean house! They are different tasks and finding time for both can be tricky! 

If you can maintain a clutter-free environment with good storage areas, it’s far easier to maintain a clean environment and do the deep cleaning jobs. In our family, common areas are everyone’s responsibility and bedrooms fall under the category of each child’s daily activities. 

Staying on top of tidying is key to a cleaner home and making the most of precious family time. 

Trying to find the ‘perfect’ solution

In our home, while the quickest way to a clean house is still in the half hour before guests arrive (ha ha!) I have learnt that when everyone pitches in, a home can be put back in order fairly fast. 

Over the years, we have tried SO MANY different strategies: chore charts, weekly tasks, cleaning jobs linked to pocket money, buddy systems. You name it, we’ve probably given it a go. I’ve also tried my fair share of time-saving hacks straight off the internet.

Don’t be discouraged if you still haven’t hit on the ‘perfect’ cleaning system! It just proves that our methods need to adapt and change with our family. 

Life is continually evolving, so even the best system needs to flex and adjust according to our current commitments and energy levels. As the old adage goes, our schedules should serve us; we shouldn’t serve them.

This is really hard for me! As a person with natural tenacity, it can be a short hop from a fresh, new system and chore chart to me behaving like a sergeant major, ordering around the troops to finish the things on *my* list.

Right now, with what feels like a very full family calendar, I’m choosing to stick with the basics. The time will come when there’s more time, energy, and inclination to clean and care for our home. But for now, it’s not the top priority. So with time being of the essence, we’re using ’10 minute cleaning’. 

Our 10-minute cleaning system

Here’s how it works: 

Before I go to bed, I jot down the 5-6 cleaning jobs that I want to have done the next day. 

After breakfast, I read out the jobs and each child chooses something, first come, first served. This means that we mainly keep on top of the essentials (like cleaning toilets, wiping down sinks and vacuuming). We ALL clean for only 10 minutes. You’d be surprised by how much we can get done in that time! Add in some fun music (my secret weapon!) and the time flies.

The good thing is that if we don’t get to this in the morning, it works equally well at other times of the day! 

Tools of the trade

Finally, it’s important to use products that WORK and are simple. If our children are going to help, we need to provide tools that don’t frustrate them. This can mean smaller microfiber cloths for little hands, dusting mitts that fit, light spray bottles with water and mops that you can adjust the height of.

I also love the smell of essential oils and they are a great addition to the products we use with natural ingredients.

There are so many great low-tox products available. There’s truly no need to be spending money on chemicals that are harmful to our health and our home. My favourites are here – they have been such a gamechanger!

I hope you feel encouraged reading this post; cleaning is really not my favourite thing to do, but I know it’s a way to serve and bless my family by maintaining a lovely home to live in. And that reminder alone makes it a bit easier. 

I’d love to hear your best cleaning tips!