If housework is leaving you overwhelmed on most days, then read on for some personal tips on how to keep a clean house with kids.
Before I had kids, I was a certified neat freak and vowed to remain that way to the end of my days.
My house looked like it was on display most of the time. Even my husband learned to go along with my ways. (As well as any friend that came to visit)
But can you imagine how stressful that was to keep up when my daughters came along? I mean, having Arianna, my eldest, alone was fine. But when Olivia, my youngest, popped into the picture, it was cray-cray!
At one point I felt like I was playing the floor is lava in my living room.
And I was struggling to stay on top on everything!
- I had my job with deadlines to fulfill
- My girls were craving for my attention most of the time when they’re at home
- I was breastfeeding and pumping several times a day
- I wanted to cook on the weekends because we ordered takeout on weeknights.
I looked at other moms who seemed to have everything under control and mom guilt hit me like a ton of bricks.
So I did what’s best under my current circumstances to keep a clean house with kids.
I lowered my expectations of what a CLEAN house should look like and I read this post to alleviate some mom guilt.
Read on if you’d like to know what I do on a daily basis to keep my house respectably clean with 2 kids in tow.
5+1 Tips on How to Keep a Clean House with Kids
1. Everything has its place and everything returns to its place
My house may not be spotlessly clean anymore, but it is organized. Even if it’s an organized mess. And I truly believe that it all stems from this habit.
I try to assign a drawer/ cupboard/ storage area to EVERYTHING. And if something doesn’t fit in anywhere, then I have a special “junk” drawer for that.
For example, I have a drawer for:
- food containers
- baking tools
- recycling bags
- cleaning cloths (yes, I have a lot)
- cleaning equipment
and the list goes on.
Find a storage solution that works for you. Stumped for ideas? Go on Pinterest for endless inspirations. Whether you’re a closeted Marie Kondo or just looking for organization ideas, there’s bound to be something that will work for your home and space.
The key is to RETURN items to their drawers/storage space once you’re done using them. Every member of the family should know where things go.
Nothing should be out of place.
2. Keep your hands full at all times
To help return everything to its designated place and have a clean house with kids in tow, keeping your hands full at all times is really important.
What this means is that whenever you’re moving away from one room into another, you should always be carrying something in your hand.
- See that dirty shirt lying on the floor as you’re about to go downstairs? Pick it up and bring it along with you.
- As you pass by the living room, see a used cup on the coffee table? Bring it along with you and drop it off in the kitchen.
- After you place the shirt in the laundry basket, do you see toys all over the dining area? Pick those up and head on over to the playroom to return them.
Get the idea?
Everything that is not in its rightful place should come along with you. Clutter, dishes, clothes… Anything that is misplaced and needs to be returned back to their intended space.
Make every trip worth it and keep the flow going. Pretty soon, you’ll have your clutter under control.
Bonus is that you’ll get in your step count for the day. More reason for chocolate!
3. Schedule short cleaning sessions everyday
It can be overwhelming when faced with the task of cleaning the entire house, especially if you have to do it on your own.
Big house. Small house. 5 rooms. 1 room. Unless you’re a Monica, it’s called a chore for a reason.
Being the parent, usually the mom, you’re in charge of keeping everything clean (well, presentable), and if you save everything for the weekend, that’s a very long list of chores to go through.
So what I’ve found to be helpful is to break that list up into small, manageable sessions that I can complete everyday.
With kids, keeping a clean house can mean only 10 minutes, 30 minutes, or a whole hour if you have that much time to spare.
It can be as simple as:
- Putting the clothes into the washer and dryer
- Putting away the dishes in the dishwasher
- Cleaning the kitchen counter
to something more time-consuming like:
- vacuuming one floor of the house
- dusting all counters/ fixtures/ cabinets
- washing the sinks/ toilets/ shower area
Make sure your cleaning sessions are manageable for you. And don’t expect the entire house to be clean ALL the time.
Cleaning will feel like less of a chore, and more of a habit.
4. Use good cleaning tools and products
I think this should go without saying, but let’s talk about it anyway.
The cleaners and equipment you use can make or break cleaning for you.
You may balk at the idea of spending 2 – 3 times the amount of a regular cloth, or a vacuum, or even a sponge. But if you have to keep replacing the cheaper option because it keeps breaking apart/ down, it all ends up costing the same anyway.
Cleaning tools that I’ve invested in and found to be really helpful and even cut my cleaning time down are:
- a powerful vacuum cleaner with good suction
- a few high-quality microfiber cloths (make sure that they’re really absorbent!)
- a high-quality microfiber mop with a squeeze handle
- a few high-quality sponges (that won’t disintegrate after several uses)
Good cleaners are important, too. Because there’s only so much water can do to dissolve stains.
Now, if you’ve been keeping up with your cleaning, then good tools can be enough.
But if you’re like me, then sometimes you realize that you’ve let your sinks gone on too long without a scrub and now they’re grimy in all the obvious spots.
This is where a good cleaner can cut through the dirt and stain and make life a little bit easier for our elbows. Just remember to give it some time to set in and work its magic. This goes for both store-bought and home-made cleaners.
5. Assign kids age-appropriate chores
Why turn down the chance at free labor? (I kid).
But in all seriousness, it’s never too early to instil a sense of responsibility and ownership in children. They should take pride and find joy in their house, seeing as how they’re living in it, too. And it doesn’t hurt that young children are always eager to please.
You can refer here or here for a list of age-appropriate chores for your children.
Now at age 4, Arianna helps out with:
- putting dirty clothes in the laundry basket
- clearing away the table after mealtime
- putting away the toys in her playroom
- mopping the floor
Young children may not get it in the first try, but allow their mistakes to be a learning point. Not only will it brush up on their gross and fine motor skills, more importantly, it helps children feel like they’re contributing and playing a role in the family.
Another reason why it’s important for children to help out with chores is so that they don’t see mom being the only person responsible for all the cleaning.
I used to save all my cleaning for their naptime, because I thought I could get them done quicker and without any interruption.
But aside from the fact that I had to tiptoe around while cleaning (which added to the stress!), they would wake up thinking that fairies had come to ‘magically’ clean the house. And now, even though I’m exhausted from all that cleaning, I still had to sum up what’s left of my energy to play with them.
So instead, I let them know that mommy has to clean the house because nobody wants to live in a dirty house. And if they want to play with mommy, then they can help out and get things done faster. Win-win.
Bonus tip: Get help
If you’ve tried all five tips to keep a clean house with kids and you’re still struggling, then maybe it’s time to consider getting help.
That can mean different things to different people.
- Asking family for an extra pair of hands over the weekend
- Asking close friends to help declutter/ organize a room
- Hiring cleaners to come over once a week
- Buying a robot cleaner to vacuum or mop the floor on a daily basis
As busy moms, I think it’s time we cut ourselves some slack and get help when we need it. Because there ain’t no shame in asking for help.
We don’t have to do it all to be good moms.
It may be tricky with the pandemic that’s been affecting all of us. But that’s even more reason to cut ourselves some extra slack. The physical and mental toll on our bodies can be too much.
And we need to prioritize self-care as this post will show you.
So there you have it, 5+1 tips on how to keep a clean house with kids. I hope you’ll find them useful in your journey towards having a clean(er) and more organized home.
Remember, mama, it’s more important that you are happy, than for you to be perfect.
