Seven Genius Cleaning Hacks for Busy Mums
We all know kids can be messy. Really messy. Trailing crumbs around the place, running sticky fingers on the soft furnishings, pushing toast into the DVD player… I’m sure I don’t need to go on. When you’ve got children, trying to keep your house looking at least a little bit respectable can be a challenge, especially when trying to balance it with family time (and that oh so precious ‘me time’ once the kids are in bed!)
By embracing just a few handy cleaning hacks for busy mums you can keep on top of the household chores and still have plenty of time for the family and yourself.
Put the kids to work
OK so no one is suggesting your little ones should be out scrubbing the front steps or sweeping the chimney, but getting them involved in tidying up after themselves sets a good example for the future and might even be fun. It probably won’t turn out exactly like the nursery tidying scene in Mary Poppins, but you can make a game of it. Instilling tidiness in your kids from a young age won’t only help you now, but could also save years of teenage tantrums over tidying their rooms.
Make a routine of making beds
It may seem an obvious and really small change, but if you include making beds as part of your daily routine your bedrooms will instantly feel neater and tidier. This is definitely one to get the kids involved in – make it a part of their morning routine as much as getting dressed and cleaning their teeth. It doesn’t take long for something to become a habit and hopefully, after a few days of nagging the children to get the beds made, it will become second nature and you can concentrate on the bigger jobs.
Bulk buy cleaning products
I like to buy my household products in bulk as it saves money, which is always welcome! I also find that buying in bulk means I’m much less likely to run out and have to add an impromptu visit to the supermarket to my cleaning routine. Realising that I’d run out of furniture polish would probably be enough for me to put off the cleaning for another day, and the last thing I need is any more excuses!
Do a quick tidy every evening
Just 10 minutes should do it. Once the children are in bed, have a quick whip around the house putting away any stray toys, cups or plates. Plump up your cushions and straighten any throws and bathroom towels. There should be a place for everything, and everything should be in its place. Once sorted you can settle down to enjoy your evening without being nagged by the housework you haven’t done.
Set a timer
It’s so easy to procrastinate when it comes to cleaning. I’ve been known to while away many hours on the sofa, thinking about how lovely and clean the house is going to be when I finally get around to actually doing something about it. By setting a timer, you know that in 30 minutes you’ll be done and can move onto something more interesting. Set your timer, turn up the radio and have a speed clean, you’ll be amazed at how quickly the time passes!
Clean as you go
Finished your coffee? Put the cup straight in the dishwasher or give it a quick wash. Dog walked mud into the kitchen again? Grab the mop and run it over the kitchen floor. Food splashed onto the hob whilst cooking? Get a cloth and give it a quick wipe. Leaving jobs like this just leads to more work – and having it all to do in one go can be daunting. You could even give the cubicle a wipe whilst you’re enjoying a nice hot shower. It’s not always practical to clean up straight away but where it is, get it done so you don’t have to worry about it later.
Keep on top of the laundry
With children in the house, you’ll find your laundry basket will turn from empty to overflowing in no time at all. Try having separate laundry baskets for different colours or find a basket with dividers. As soon as you have a load of darks or whites, pop them in the washing machine and get them done. Like everything else, keeping on top of it makes it seem like a much less daunting task. But do make sure you put the clean laundry away once it’s dry as piles of clean washing lying around is just going to get in your way, and just wait until you can’t find that dinosaur t-shirt that your toddler absolutely has to wear to Grandma’s house!
Get Help From Professional Cleaning Services
If your schedule is busy and keeping your home clean becomes challenging, you can also seek assistance from Ottawa’s house cleaning services. Their cleaning experts use effective methods and tools to simplify the cleaning process. They even offer flexible scheduling options to fit your routine. Hiring cleaning services can simplify your life and provide you with additional leisure time for hobbies and moments with your kids.
There’s more to life than housework
The real key to keeping your home clean and tidy is doing small tasks daily. For me, this is a much better approach than having to spend a whole day doing a big clean and trying to get rid of stubborn stains that could have been removed fairly easily before they’d had chance to set.
Comments
I’ve been trying the timer method and it does make it more fun.
A useful list. Thank you.
The clean as you go suggestion is my favourite. I was a great fan of wipes for all sorts of cleaning tasks until I discovered how environmentally polluting they were.I try now to do bits of cleaning as I go with paper towels or laundered cloths, instead.
Starting the day with a half-wiped floor or half-cleaned bathroom is much less daunting than having to start from scratch.
Last thing before I go to bed, I visit my husband’s home office and our son’s music studio & rehearsal room, and collect stray coffee cups, plates and glasses. I put the glasses and crockery in the dishwasher, and then start it. I have tried asking them both to put their own things in the dishwasher, but it seems no matter how many times I ask, they soon revert to leaving stuff for Mum to do! And I’d much rather do a quick trawl myself than have to deal with cups and plates where stuff has congealed and gone mouldy.
My God-Daughter is really good if I have cleaning to do before we are going out she always helps me & she says that the sooner the cleaning gets done the more fun time we can have together, which I find really sweet of her & she is only 8 years old.
Fab tips here, i especially like the timer hack, i tend to have a splurge once a week doing a deep clean, then the rest of the week its just a quickie spit and polish
Great tips! No hacks myself – I’m terrible at staying on top. A little a day is my motto.