I am not one of those moms who thrives on doing chores. Cleaning the house is not how I envision spending my days. I would always put off the cleaning that I did not want to do, and it ended up building up until I had an all day cleaning affair to tackle. Recently I decided to implement a simple cleaning schedule, and life has been much easier! I don’t have to spend all day cleaning because I focus on a few things a day and everything tends to stay rather tidy!

My Simple Cleaning Schedule

In order to keep m,y home spick and span, I started doing two things every week day to maintain cleanliness. By doing this, I never have to stress about a large day filled with cleaning, because I maintain it all week. I know it sounds simple and that’s because it is!

Monday

On Mondays I like to focus on my laundry and dusting. I try to get all of the laundry washed, dried and put away ( a huge accomplishment I know). Dusting really doesn’t take too long. I just go over all surfaces that collect dust with my duster and a little cleaning solution. Once these are done, my Monday cleaning is finished!

Tuesday

Tuesdays are floor days. There is probably still some dust on the ground from Monday, so I sweep, vacuum and mop my whole house. I then focus on the outsides of my cabinets. Kitchen and bathroom cabinets can get grimy so I like to give them a nice wipe down to keep them looking clean.

Wednesday

Wednesdays are probably my least favorite days of my entire simple cleaning schedule. They are bathroom days. After the first week or so it wasn’t that bad, but that first week was not fun. I had not realized all of the little nooks and crannies that get so yucky. Typically I take everything out of the shower and give it a good scrub, and then do the toilets and sinks. I also do all of the mirrors and windows in the house on Wednesdays as well. As much as I hate it, it does feel good having it done.

Thursday

Thursdays aren’t terrible. I typically do some more laundry and then focus my energy on cleaning my refrigerator. First I make sure any expired food is tossed out and anything that is getting close gets pulled to the front to be used. Then I like to wipe down all of the surfaces and then call it a day.

Friday

Fridays are pantry days. Similar to the refrigerator, I make sure nothing is expired and wipe down the surfaces. I like to make sure it looks nice and organized as well. This makes it easy to see what I have and what I need on my shopping list. When that is done I typically give my floors one more once over. With two kids and a dog, the floors never stay clean for long but twice a week seems to be a good number.

Saturday

I try not to do too much on Saturdays because we often are out of the house doing things. The one thing I do try to get done is a little organizing. I will make sure everything has a place that is easily accessible and looking neat.

Sunday

Sundays are my relax days. I like to spend time with my family at home, have a nice meal and just enjoy our time together. I might work on some of the organization but I don’t schedule real cleaning on Sundays.

Daily

In order for this simple cleaning schedule to really work, there are a few things I have to make sure I do every single day.

I like to make my bed every morning. Making my bed makes me feel like my room is just much cleaner than it probably is.

Dishes are also done on a daily basis. I hate when they pile up in the sink, so it is much easier to just do them every night and not have to worry about it.

The third thing I do every day is wipe down counter tops. When I am cooking, I wipe down the kitchen counters and after I am done in the bathroom I wipe down those as well. This keeps me from having any large messes or stains on my counters.

Finally I like to tidy up as my day goes along. If I get a book out to read, I put it back on the shelf when I am done. I am trying to get my daughter into this habbit as well. She now knows to put her toys away when she is done with them before she can play with something else.

Monthly

Then there are the monthly chores that take a little more time but need to be done. I don’t do all of these in one day. It is better if they are spread out over the entire month.

Usually on a laundry day, I will strip all of our bedding and wash that as well. It feels so good having clean sheets!

I will take my trash cans outside and wash them out with some soap and the hose on a monthly basis as well. Those things get so extremely gross! Trash misses the bag or a kid throws something away before a new bag is put in. Cleaning them keeps them from smelling and ensures they look nice.

Then there are the baseboards. I hate cleaning baseboards, but it has to be done. Recently I have enlisted the help of my four year old with this task though and it works out pretty well. Those dang baseboards tend to collect so much dirt that it is unreal! So every month I use my vacuum attachment and vacuum them and then use some cleaning spray and a towel to make sure they are nice and clean.

Extras

These are things that might get done once a month, but aren’t necessary always.

I am in charge of dog baths, and let me tell you it sucks. My dog hates water. You would think she is being murdered every time I give her a bath, but I can’t let her stink and get dirt all over my house. So every month or so she gets her bath and comes out looking so unhappy but so pretty.

I also try to declutter every few months. We somehow accumulate so much junk, it is unreal. I am always finding random things that we have no use for, so I put them in a donation box and take them to our local charity every so often. This really helps keep the house free of clutter, which is what I have been aiming for lately.

 

Now I want to hear from you. Do you have a simple cleaning schedule? If you do, what all does yours entail?  I am always looking to amp up my routines!