I look around my house and see piles everywhere. There are piles of folders and papers the children have brought home from school. There are piles of laundry, piles of dishes, piles of things to do and papers to be filed. Sometimes my life feels like one big pile.
In an attempt to clear out the clutter of my house and mind, I have instituted a few tasks to help.
- Involve the children – my kids all have cleaning responsibilities. They do toilets, mirrors, dusting and clean the bathroom sinks and counters. The first few times they did their jobs we helped them. Now though, they are great little cleaners and aren’t afraid to get their hands dirty!
- Laundry baskets are my friend. I sort the laundry before I fold it. I make a baskets of shirts, one of pants and one of pj’s, underwear and socks. This makes it really easy to fold and get it done. When I am done folding the laundry, the kids take their baskets up to their rooms and are responsible for putting their clothes away.
- Dishes, dishes, everywhere dishes. My two oldest kids are big enough to unload the dishwasher. During the school year they only have to do it when I ask. When summer comes though, it is one of their daily chores. It really helps me to have them unload it in the morning. That way I can keep loading it all day and not end up with a sink full of dishes!
- Divvy up the work. Just like all individuals, there are some chores I don’t mind and others my husband doesn’t mind. So we have divvied up the work. I do the laundry – he folds the towels, sheets and our clothes, I fold the children’s clothes. I unload the dishwasher, he loads it. I sweep and mop…and so does he! We work together to get things done and it works really well.
We all try to take care of our things and clean up after ourselves. If we didn’t, our house would be in constant disarray. Even with working together, there is always a fair amount of dirt and clutter in my home.However, I have also found that by giving the kids a sense of responsibility and ownership for certain jobs, they are more inclined to do them, and do a good job. They take pride in their work and I love watching them learn.
What do you do to keep your house clean(ish) with lots of kids coming and going?
