The End of Weekend Cleaning

So many women email me and ask me what they can do to keep from cleaning all weekend. They ask me how to get their weekends back because they're tire of cleaning all day. There are many different ways to accomplish this based on the way your life is organized. But here is how I keep from cleaning all day Saturday or Sunday.



Monday

The first Monday of the month I clean the carpet in my living room. I dust the bookshelves and electronics. I take everything out the living room that is not supposed to be there and separate it into a designated bin for each family member. When everyone comes home, they can put away their own crap.

Tuesday

The first Tuesday of the month I clean the dining area carpets. I dust the chandelier and put away anything that is out of place.

Wednesday

The first Wednesday of the month I clean the carpet in the children's room. I do their laundry and put it away. I never do more loads of laundry than I have the time or energy to put away in that moment. I remake their beds with fresh sheets and dust. I also clean their bathroom.

Thursday

I mop all of the floors in the house. I do this every week.  I declutter the kitchen and refrigerator.

Friday

I don't do a damn thing in the house. I might clean my car out if I am going somewhere. But other than the usual touch ups, I don't do any cleaning.

Saturday

My bathroom is the cleanest in the house. So while I'm getting ready, I clean it. While my children are napping, I do my own laundry and and clean my carpet on the first Saturday of the month. I wake up between 6 am and 7:30 am depending on my children. I am done with my room by the time we leave the house at 9:45am.

Sunday

I don't do anything. I make my children clean up their own room and touch up their own bathroom.


This is why I am never cleaning house all weekend. Doing a little everyday allows you more time to do other things. Daily touch ups prevent a 12 hour day of scouring something that could have been cleaned up days earlier. I also keep a bin in the living room for all of my toddler's toys to be thrown into at the end of playtime. It's less work than carting them all the way back to her bedroom just to see her drag them back out. I keep everyone's laundry separate so that if only one person's laundry needs to be done, I don't have to sort through an entire house of laundry to find it. Also, it allows me to wait until I have more time and energy to do the other laundry. By touching up the floors at least every other day I find that the bucket mopping is less labor intensive. Cleaning the carpets at least once a month prevents irreversible damage and make your house look cleaner that it is.

Do what ever works for you. Just make sure you divide your chores among a five day period. And of course, delgate!