This post is sponsored by Bona but the content and opinions expressed here are my own.
Life is messy, and busy – but a tidy home brings me a lot of peace. So, I make it one of my priorities to keep my home as picked up and clean as possible. I’m also a mom of two boys, who love a good mess, so sometimes that seems like an impossible task. Like any process, over the years, I’ve come up with systems and tricks that work for me, and make it easy for me to keep my home clean, without spending a ton of time on it. It’s the week of cleaning here on the blog, so today, I’m giving you a little peek into the ways I keep our home tidy.
Everything Has a Home
First, I find that starting with a clean foundation is key. It may take some time, I know it took me some time, but my home is finally at a place where everything has a home. What do I mean by that? I have a process for where everything goes, from shoes to book bags, to laundry, to mail. When everything has a place to be, it’s easy to put it away quickly.
Aside from your typical places that things should go, I have all kinds of catch-alls and hooks for the boys to put away their things.
I’m a shoes off at the door kind of momma, and things like book bags, and my own purse hang on the back of a closet door. In the living room I keep baskets for picking up those toys that always make their way out of the playroom. Periodically, when the baskets fill up I take them back upstairs to their playroom.
Store Them Small
I learned to love this little trick when it came down to reorganizing the kid’s playroom. I used to have a system of large buckets and totes that the toys would go in. They were categorized, but they were in huge amounts (because they have 1000 cars and trucks). So, whenever they wanted to play, they were dumping the entire thing to find what they wanted. Which left me with a huge mess.
So, I picked up several smaller containers and started micro-organizing things in them. I found the kids can find what they need easier, and I can clean up faster!
Clean Up As You Go (Or Once a Day)
I live by the age old rule of clean up after yourself. A mess is much more manageable when it’s picked up a little at a time. However, because I was driving myself crazy trying to clean up all day long, I started to allocate time for each task throughout my daily schedule.
Instead of rushing to wash dishes after breakfast, I let them sit in the sink until after dinner when I wash all of the dishes from the day. I wash a load of laundry most days, I’ll start it in the morning, put it in the dryer when I get home, then fold it after dinner. Mail and school stuff is put away as soon as it comes through the door in the afternoon, and every evening before bed we tidy the living room, and toss those toys into the catch all baskets. When I wash a load of white laundry each week, it reminds me to toss our sheets in the wash too.
Find Cleaning Products That WORK!
I remember my first years as a new homeowner, I tried every cleaning product on the market. Through streaks and build up, I found several products that have become my go-to’s. There is nothing worse than taking the time to clean your windows or your floors, only to find they dry all streaky and look worse than before you put in the work. When it comes to my wood floors, Bona is the king!
In my first home, I had no clue how to clean my wood floors. My mom didn’t have wood floors, so she didn’t either. I experimented with so many products, and natural cleaners (looking at your vinegar and water) and eventually had a film on my floors. They were dull, and ugly. After scrubbing them by hand to get them shiny again, I found Bona. I never looked back. Bona is the one product I’ve used over the years that dries without a single streak, and my wood floors are never gunky.
I’ve used both the spray bottle and the Bona Premium Spray Mop, but I prefer the spray mop because it’s so quick and easy to use. (Never mind the fact that the mop is nearly as tall as me, lol!) The microfiber cleaning pads are machine washable, and the refill cartridges come ready to use, just pop them in and get cleaning!
Clean by Task
When it comes time to do some of the nitty gritty cleaning, with my tried and true products, I clean by task instead of room. I personally think this makes the whole process faster.
The only room that I consider a task is the bathroom. I will start with one bathroom, clean it all, then move on to the other bathrooms in the house. However, when it comes to dusting, sweeping, mopping and such, I complete that task throughout the entire house before moving on to the next step. Sometimes I will clean one level of our house one day, and the other level the next day.
Don’t Ignore Those Walls
I make it a point to clean my walls, wash my couch covers, and dust my ceiling fans at least every other month. Sometimes if life is crazy it can wait, but you would be surprised how much cleaner your house will look in general if the walls and baseboards are clean!
Find a Routine You Love and Make it a Habit
It may sound like a lot of paper, but I probably spend maybe 30 minutes or so a day doing household chores, and my house tends to stay pretty clean and picked up, even with two wild boys running around. I’ve been doing so many of these things for so long now, it’s just a habit, I do it without even thinking about it.
-Brooke
Now, let’s…get…linking!!
Link up any post you would like to show off; your outfit, home decor, recipe, workout. Anything at all! Because, oh, hey girl! I want to see it!
