8 Ways to Clean Your House Quickly

Don’t you just hate it when you have a huge mess your the home? You live there after all. And you have people come to visit sometimes, right? And then you feel overwhelmed because it’s just too much keeping up with all that cleaning and tidying and stuff. Not because you are lazy. But because there a a gazillion other things you have to do and the list never ends…and the laundry, cleaning, cooking and organizing never ends either!

The good new is there are always shortcuts; things you can do to lessen the load when it comes time to actually cleaning the house. I try to set aside some time each week, usually at the weekend when I’m not working, to focus on the house cleaning, but I am working on making that time much less of a drag, and more of a moment just to finish off things.

Here are some ways to stay on top of all that cleaning a little more. I have been trying them out for a while and I have to say, I’m a lot less crazy by the weekend. I have less to do before I deep clean and that makes it all go by so much faster. Happy Mom!

1. Store dirty dished in the dishwasher, not in the sink so you can wipe down the sink in less than a minute

2. When you shower, wipe down the tiles and squeegee the shower doors

3. Every time you go upstairs, take something with you

4. Make the bed as soon as you get up

5. Hang up your clothes when you take them off or devote 1 minute every morning doing that before dressing

6. Brush teeth, wash face, moisturize then wipe down sink, and toilet….it becomes part of your morning/evening routine!

7. Have cleaning supplies handy on every level of your home. Grab a duster and dust an area as you walk though it. No need for heavy duty cleaning each day, just a light dust will keep things at bay

8. Train the kiddies….okay, this one is always a work in progress but if everyone helps for 5 minutes a day, things will improve. I ask my boys to pick everything up and put it away before bed. No excuses…or no games at the weekend!

What do you do to stay on top of the cleaning?

Green and Healthy Cleaning Products

I have been carefully selecting products which are earth friendly, organic cleaning products for a few years. I love them but they can get pricy. I decide to start looking for ways to cut costs without cutting back on effective cleaning or compromising my ‘greeness‘. I discovered that I can basically do away with any store-bought cleaning product in favor of a simple homemade creation. Creating a supply of some basic ingredients will transform you into a DIY chemist with the cleaning power to rival any store-bout product and with the wonderful quality of being eco-friendly and safe for your home’s inhabitants.

Supplies:
Baking Soda – this will clean and deodorize, scour surfaces and make water softer
White Vinegar – great on grease, mildew, stains and also an odor fighter
Borax or Mon Ami- (I love this product) – it will clean and disinfect, deodorize, soften water, and can be used on wallpaper, painted walls and floors
Cornstarch – great for windows, furniture, and as a shampoo for carpets
Hydrogen Peroxide – an all-round cleaner with disinfecting properties.
Salt – rust remover when mixed with lime
Lemon – wonderful for deodorizing and cleaning
I bet you already have most of these products in your home. Here’s my cleaning plan for the day:

Baking soda applied to a damp sponge for all the marks on my walls caused by crayon, grubby hands and general slobbiness.

My showers will get the mold and mildew once-over with one part Hydrogen Peroxide to two parts water in a spray bottle…ZAP!

I’m going to mix baking soda with a few drops of lemon juice in votive candle holders or small trays and place around the house for a fresh, clean scent.

My all-purpose cleaner consists of Borax or Mom Ami and water for my bathrooms.

If I have time, I will tackle my windows with cornstarch and water. Make sure the cornstarch is fully dissolved. Use crumples newspaper to remove any streaks.

Using these ingredients helps me feel good in the knowledge I am protecting my children from harmful chemicals. They are also much cheaper and very easy to make. I bought $1 spray bottles from Target which may not last a lifetime but do the job well. Best of all, I can keep my house clean…yep, these products really do the job beautifully.

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Make Your Very Own Green Cleaning Products (bobyreflections.wordpress.com)
19

Schedule

In order to make a change, I need to acknowledge how life is now….today….for real. I must not sugar coat it (too many calories), and I should paint as clear a picture as I can in order to successfully move into a healthier lifestyle.

I work. I am a mom. I run a house. I have pets. I have friends. I have family. I have pediatric cancer in my life.

Soooo…all these people and things pull at me in some way. True, they also give back in many ways, but each demand a great deal of time from me.

Weekdays:

Get up 5:30am, get ready, get boys ready and head to work – out the house by 7am
Day at work with 20+ students
Tues, Wed, Thurs, – posible after school meetings
Monday – after school, at home with boys, guitar lesson for oldest, homework, dinner, get kids ready for bed, hubby home late
Tuesday – after school either Gildas Club for sibling (Sib) of Cancer Kid (CK) or baseball, homework, dinner, kids to bed, grade papers, plan lessons
Wednesday – usually after school meetings, baseball, homework, dinner, I try to go to a dance class – it’s been four weeks since I last went, School work as needed
Thursday – 6am take CK to Clinic for chemo…get to work…after school Sib goes to therapy, homework, dinner kids to bed, school work as needed
Friday – After school is dedicated to FAMILY NIGHT. Take out and a movie or games.
Weekends:
Housework, laundry, organizing the devastation from the week
Try to hang out with the boys individually in an activity not involving schoolwork
Catching up with family and friends
Shopping for food and essentials
Catch up with any schoolwork needing to be completed
Saturday – swimming lessons and baseball
Sunday – baseball
Busy schedule which includes a 45 minute commute each way to work and back, the boys go to bed at 7pm and lights go out at 8pm – during this time we talk, read and snuggle.

So, when should I work out? How will I juggle the kids’ schedule? Will I make it to a gym? What about a class with a friend?

I have no idea….time to make a plan and see what happens…oh, and I need to revamp the dreadful diet of take-out meals and quick snacks on-the-go!