Lazy Girl's Guide to Homemaking

I want to talk about homemaking. The actual definition is, "the creation and management of a home, especially as a pleasant place in which to live." In today's society, we completely undervalue this. But guys, it's still just as relevant as ever.

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- Why Should I Care? -

We should want our home to be an environment our family can thrive in. I want my kids to have clean areas to play. I want my husband to have a relaxing space to come home to after a day of work. I want to be able to chill on the couch without seeing crap everywhere.

Honestly, this is always challenging for me. It's a never ending cycle. It's a thankless job. Add kids into the mix, and you have multiple people working against you. It's easy to get frustrated. Some days I feel like I just can't keep up. 

The phrase, "bless this mess", never sits well with me. Don't get me wrong, there is grace when it comes to keeping a clean home. But grace is not an excuse to be lazy all the time. We all have a bad day, a busy week, or a rough month. Personally though, I don't want to "own it". I don't want "mess" to become my identity. I want to be the best version of myself. I want to keep improving.

Life happens. Kids happen. I'm constantly battling laundry pileups, dumped legos, and jelly hand prints on my walls like every other mom. I'm totally overwhelmed some days. It's been (and still is) a learning process. At first I would just let things get so out of control, and just hope a magic cleaning fairy would come in and fix it all. Living in filth and clutter is depressing. I felt out of control. I felt forgetful. I was on edge all the time. 

I don't think it ever really clicked for me until we were trying to sell our townhouse. We had cleaned and decluttered so well before the potential buyers came. After they left, I was just like "Wow, our house looks so nice." "This feels so great to have a clean home." That feeling stuck with me, and I get a rush of endorphins when the house is all put together and clean. So when I feel like being lazy, and putting it off till another day, I think about how accomplished I will feel once it's done.

- Getting Motivated -

Figure out what motivates you the most, and do it! Something I love to do is drink a cup of coffee while browsing through the online Pottery Barn catalogs. The beautiful images of clean rooms really get me going. (I sound like such a mom. Haha.)

Go to Youtube and search for "Clean With Me" videos. You will find tons of inspirational clips of people tidying up their homes. It's super satisfying. 

Something else that I love to think about is the change of seasons. I like to envision what activities I'll be doing in the home, and how I want to decorate. For example, in October I picture the house all cozy and glowing. I think of a slice of warm pumpkin bread while watching the leaves fall from the trees. I want to burn apple-scented candles, and stare at my cute gold pumpkins. (And none of this would be as enjoyable with dirty diapers on the floor, and food-covered dishes in the sink. Lol!)

Pick out "fun" supplies. Find a yummy-scented cleaner, or make your own at home. Buy some cute cleaning gloves, and pretty scrubbers. I get a lot of my supplies from the Dollar Tree. 

Another thing that motivates me is my husband. I know he's out there working hard to provide for our family, and that makes me want to get up and do something for him. Remember the little things your family likes. For example, Cory always appreciates clean towels available, cold water bottles in the fridge, and a hot dinner on the table by 5 pm. So I always try to at least have those 3 things done for him by the time he gets home.

- Cleaning -

Super Quick Routine

You're not always going to have the time to deep clean everything at once. These quick steps will immediately help your chaos. 

- Lighting a candle is my favorite way to begin the process. 

 - I start with trash. I will just take a big trash bag and gather up everything upstairs and downstairs. 

- I put away the misplaced, miscellaneous items

- Go from top to bottom. I wipe down the counters first, and vacuum/mop the floors after. 

- Straighten up the furniture, push in the chairs, and fluff the pillows! :)

We try to never let our dishes pile up. Once we get a few mugs and cereal bowls, it's time for us to transfer them to the dishwasher.

I clean toilets and bathtubs probably once every 2 weeks. I don't do it as often as a lot of people, but sometimes you just have to do what you can. If it looks like it's getting dirty, clean it.

I do laundry probably twice a week. The most challenging part of it is getting everybody's stuff hung up and put away. Don't start laundry unless you know you will finish it. It's the worst when you find wet clothes you left in the washer. 

I absolutely love washing sheets. It's my favorite chore! I always add these. They make everything smell amazing.  It's also easier if you have multiple sheet sets. We always have a clean set ready in our linen closet.  Nothing feels better at the start of the week than fresh sheets and pillow cases.

- Daily Schedule for Sanity -

I try to wake up a little bit before the girls so I can make the bed and get myself ready. I've been making my bed every day for the last couple months. It makes me feel so much more put together, and eases a lot of my anxiety. 

While the girls eat breakfast, I try to do a few quick chores. I will gather up Lux's school stuff, stock the diaper bag, unload the dishwasher, and water the flowers on the front porch. Once they are done, I let them play for 10 more minutes while I clean up their food and drink some coffee.

We are usually on the go after breakfast. Preschool, bible study, play dates, the gym, or errands. I got this last year for Christmas, and I turn it on before we leave the house. 

 Once we get home, we usually have lunch, then nap time. (Woo!) Lux is old enough to entertain herself, so I really do have some time alone now. I usually spend the first hour just relaxing. Scrolling through Pinterest, Instagram, writing blogs, editing photos, or email and bill pay. The second hour I will do some laundry if needed, and then jump in the shower. Once it's about 3pm, I start dinner. About this time Thea wakes up, and I take her downstairs with me to get a small snack while I cook.

I find breaks in cooking where I can clean up. If pasta is boiling, I throw away trash, rinse off dishes, and put away ingredients I'm done using. Once everything is in the oven, I load the dishwasher with all the cooking dishes, wipe down the countertops, and start setting the table. After dinner, we run the dishwasher so we'll have clean dishes in the morning.

Typically now we have a couple hours left of playtime before the girls go to bed. Once we get them to bed, we usually do a quick cleanup of the living room, and then head up to bed ourselves.

Here's a tip for your bedroom. Leave no traces of the kids. It's mentally bothersome to me when I'm stepping over toys, or seeing their dirty clothes everywhere. I feel so much more relaxed if I put their stuff away before getting in bed for the night. 

Overall, I try to remember how grateful I am to live in a safe neighborhood, and have a nice home. I want to show God I'm thankful by taking care of what he has blessed us with.


(The vacuum and mop I've used for over 2 years are featured below.)