There was once a time when I kept my home immaculate. I enjoyed cleaning and swapping out decor, it was always sparkling, smelled gorgeous and was ready for any drop-ins. But then, two tots came along. *Cue the scary organ music.* Now the place is a heinous wreck half the time. And the tidy half only lasts about 10 minutes.
I love my kids and wouldn’t change them for the world, but trying to maintain a nice home while looking after them and giving them the freedom they need to learn and play can be a task. Truly, an impossible task. On top of the regular daily chores, I have piles of laundry, spills and accidents to clean up, and toys to put away… constantly. I know this is not news to you if you are a stay-at-home mom.
As a mom, like me, you’ll probably have accepted that your house is never going to look like a show home. But something drives you to TRY and keep some semblance of order in the chaos. You know that staying organized will prevent the stress of losing things, and of course you’ll need to keep the house clean for your family’s health. Here are a few simple hacks that can make it easier to keep a clean home with kids.
Replace downstairs carpets–or implement the ‘no shoes’ rule
Carpets downstairs aren’t always the best choice when you have a busy household. Guests coming in and out, kids and pets bringing the outdoors in, and things like food and drink spills can mean you’re constantly blotting up messes. If you want to make things easier for yourself, replace downstairs carpeting with an easy to clean flooring. Wood, laminate, natural stone or vinyl can be cleaned with a cloth or a mop in seconds.
Alternatively, you can always put down some rugs to make the space feel cozier, these can be replaced cheaply when they get ruined or you could go with a washable variety. I bought two rugs that are the [cheap] staples of my decorating scheme from iKea.
Carpets upstairs can be kept clean much more easily, especially if you implement a no shoes, food or pets upstairs rule. That way you can have a carpet company like All Pro Chem-Dry carpet cleaning come in once or twice a year just to keep things in shape.
But maybe you can’t afford to replace carpeting or maybe you are like me and like being able to spread out comfortably on your living room floor–I really love having carpet. The best way we have found to keep the floor really clean is to implement the ‘no shoes’ rule for the entire house. All shoes, for family and guests alike, come off at the door. We’ve had a much easier time keeping the dirt and germs at bay.
Related: The One Thing That Made All the Difference in My Home Productivity
Have a room for play
Does your living room resemble a toy shop? Yeah, me too. But lately, I’ve been working on transferring the bulk of them to the kids’ rooms. If you’re lucky enough to have an extra room in your home, a great option for controlling the mess is to turn it into a kids playroom. Here they can get their toys out and make a mess, but most everything stays confined to one space. Or, if you don’t have a spare room, simply keep the bulk of the toys in the kids’ rooms. In your other rooms, put a limit on the toys or kind of toys your kids can bring in.
Another great idea: creating a hidden space you can keep the toys they DO bring out of the play area. If you buy a storage footstool or ottoman then you have a place to quickly put things away when you have to tidy up. We don’t have an ottoman with storage, but our solution was to turn the loveseat at an angle so it creates an empty corner where Jonas can store his unused toys out of sight.
Related: 3 Ways I’m Kicking Clutter to the Curb This Year
Consider home services
I often feel overwhelmed by the length of my to do list. The truth is, there just isn’t enough of me to go around to do ALL the things. I’m a stay-at-home mom, so it’s likely that I have more time than working parents to do more around the house. I’m sure it comes as even more of a burden to moms who work all day and still have to come home to chores.
If this is you, it may be worth considering some home help! It never hurts to hire outside help if things are getting out of control. Having a cleaning service come once every couple of months can help get you back to square one (I may or may not be dropping a hint to my husband *wink*!) Or you could send your laundry to a company that washes and irons everything for you, which is something all moms daydream about. (Can someone also let me know when they create a service for washing dishes??) If you have room in your budget for this kind of assistance then don’t feel bad about making the most of it! Even if it frees up some extra time for you to spend with your children then it’s money well spent.
Keeping a clean and tidy home when you have kids is always going to be a struggle. But, let’s face it moms, it’s really okay. One day they’ll be grown and we’ll wish we were stepping on legos…. Okay, not really.
How do you attempt to keep an organized and clean home with kids? Share your tips!