On house cleaning stuffs.
Before I had kids, I cleaned my house, top to bottom, up to my elbows in Soft Scrub and bleach…every week.
I would spend all day Saturday.
My house would be smelling the sweet smell of clean.
You could do surgery on my kitchen floor.
And then Henry came along.
And I was still working full time and then spending my Saturdays cleaning.
And I realized *very* quickly that this was not how I wanted to be spending my time.
I wanted to cuddle and tickle and play with my quickly growing boy.
Time that I would never, ever, ever get back.
And while I loved a clean house, I didn’t love it more than I loved my boy’s giggles.
Fast forward to today, with three littles.
And even though I am “home all day”, I prefer to spend my time cuddling my babies…because when I’m lying on my deathbed, I won’t care so much how sparkling my toilets were.
BUT, that doesn’t mean that my anal tendencies don’t still exist.
I still like my house clean. (And let me be clear: it is not nearly as clean as I prefer…and some days are worse than others…MUCH worse…I am always ACUTELY aware of dust bunnies, streaks and stray hairs…*very* *very* aware, but I am really working on it. I might seem like I don’t care on the outside, but on the inside, a battle is raging. Truly. I know that sounds dramatic, but it is what it is.)
So, I’ve found ways to cheat. Cut corners.
My house may be untidy oftentimes, but at least I know that when I pick up all the clutter, it’s relatively clean underneath.
I’m all about maintenance.
Here are my cheating ways:
Swiffer Vac
I did a whole post on my love of this a while back. But I Swiffer my floors every day. In the Spring when my dogs shed so much I am shocked they aren’t bald yet…it happens twice a day. Luckily it doesn’t take more than five minutes.
Daily Shower Cleaner
Whoever is the last person to shower sprays down the shower with one of those daily shower cleaners. The Method brand is my favorite. It smells *heavenly*. But whatever is on sale usually wins out. I think it helps keep things clean. Maybe it’s phsycological. But it makes me feel like I don’t have to clean the shower as often. And that’s about all it takes for me folks.
Clorox Bleach Toilet Tab Doohickys
I buy these at Costco in a box of 8 when they have a coupon. Plop one in your toilet tank, replace every 3 months. Or, whenever you remember, which is certainly way longer than every 3 months. Do these work? I think so. I ran out for a bit, and I really did feel like my toilets got gross faster. I haven’t done an official side by side experiment, but it seems to help. And I just kinda like the idea of a bit of bleach swirling through the bowl every time it gets used. Because toilets are pretty gross when you think about it. Which I try not to.
Pre-Soaked Wipies
I have one of these packages under every sink in the house. I wipe off my bathroom counters every handful of days. No, it’s not the scrub-til-its-sparkling clean, but it buys me time until I can get to it. Which is not often enough. Whatevs.
um, no i don’t own these. but when i googled mop, these came up. this seems WAY harder than the normal people way to mop???!!!
Bad Mop Job
Every few days I mop my kitchen floor. Don’t be impressed. Notice the title was “bad” mop job. This is where I don’t move anything. I seriously mop right around rugs, chairs, trash cans, everything. It’s all about getting the floor mostly clean. Or at least superficially clean so that I don’t feel so bad about letting Lu crawl around on it. I *try* (note the word choice) to really mop…like move every chair into the living room…once a week. Because 2 dogs, three kids and 2 adults…it needs it. But in case I don’t get to it…my midweek mopping keeps me less crazy.
Scented Candles, Glade Plug Ins, etc.
I have two dogs. Three kids. I’m really neurotic about being the house that “smells weird”. Come on, you all know someone who’s house has a funky smell. Don’t lie. Besides, your house can be unkempt and somehow if it smells like cucumber melon, you get a pass from the Clean Police. I have plug ins everywhere. Everywhere. And I burn a Yankee Candle on the weekends. And I almost always have some windows open for fresh air. Even when it’s raining. (and seriously friends…if my house smells weird, tell me.)
WHAT ARE YOUR TRICKS? AM I MISSING SOMETHING AMAZING AND VITAL? I want to know!
And don’t forget to check THIS out!
(disclaimer: i’m not getting a dime for any of these reviews from any of these companies. although that would be nice. this is just my personal list and observations. no endorsements or any of that other legal mumbo jumbo. that is all. fyi.)
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We are so alike! I only have one dog and one little, but still manage to only do the bare minimum around my house after working a full day. I can’t stand it not being “perfect”, but he might be my only baby so I don’t want to miss out on a minute that I don’t have to. Most of my tricks are the same as yours, except I also run a Swiffer duster over surfaces around the house. No visible dusk makes things feel cleaner.
It really is good to know that I am not the only one whose out of this world insanely clean ways have taken the back burner since the birth of my daughter. I used to be the “I-need-to-clean” every day kinda of girl, because if I didn’t I swear I would lose it. I agree that having kids, really does make you forget about all that stuff and just really enjoy being with them. Very great tricks to cheat the clean!!!! Love your blog!
.-= Stephanie´s last blog ..P.F.F. Face =-.
Okay, this is me to a T. Like, ME. I wrote this, right?
Today I will be hitting up Target for the Method shower spray- haven’t tried it.
And speaking of smelling *heavenly*- my house smells weird. Not sure why. It could be the 2 kids and 11 pets. Maybe.
Glad Plug-ins have been added to my list.
You are RAD. I am so glad I am not the only one with the inner battle over dust bunnies vs. cuddles.
xo
.-= Kimmie´s last blog ..Life as Planned =-.
Sooo, what does it say about me that my house was a mess BEFORE I had a kid? hee! I do vacuum daily, but everything else just has to wait until I get to it. I love the multi-purpose trader joes cleaner and I use it for pretty much everything. I also use the multipurpose wipes like you do. Mopping, EH…hate doing it -but also a must with pets. Hubs always says our house is clean enough to be healthy, but dirty enough to be happy :)
.-= Kirsten´s last blog ..Thanks Ashlee… =-.
You need a Roomba! My mom and I got up super early on Black Friday and bought each other one on sale for Christmas. It’s great! Thanks for the info on cleaning… it’s one thing that I’m struggling with being a new mom… not that I’m a clean freek, but I do like the house to look nice.
I am like OCD on crack, so when I had a baby, something had to give. I got tired of bending over and wiping the baseboards all the time. (Don’t ask.) That something was my wallet. I hired a duo to come in twice a month to clean my house. Cheating? Yes. Worth the fact that I don’t have any spending money? Definitely. I like to pretend I clean by putting Clorox bleach tablets in my toilet tank, sweeping, and keeping cleaning wipes in the bathroom, but who am I fooling?
um, how can you even STAND to be at my house??? i’m kind of getting disgusted at my nasty dirty house now that i see how clean yours is, even when its dirty to you. but thanks for the tips on cleaning in my naturally lazy manner – i’m heading to target tomorrow to shop. i mean to get those toilet bowl bleach tab things.
.-= lindsey – the pleated poppy´s last blog ..what i wore wednesday =-.
Random question but what scents are your plug-ins and candle??? I’ve pondered getting plug-ins too but am not sure what will actually smell GOOD. Some of them seem too strong. Your house always smelled nice so what is your secret? :)
.-= Brianna´s last blog ..And I’m back! =-.
I use a lot of Clorox hard surface cleaner. I just found this huge time saving tip for bath stuff- Drop the rubber no-slip bath mat in the washing machine with 1/2c or so of bleach along with any bath toys and they come out sparkling clean. I used to agonize with a toothbrush and harsh cleaners to get in and around all the suction cups.
I really enjoyed reading your post. I’m very impressed. What you call cheating I call perfect. I wish I was as good as you with keeping up on things. I have two dogs and two cats so I definitely have a hair problem. I agree that a vacuum is the only way to go when it comes to hair.
I am a cheater, but I make my own cleaning supplies. I know what’s in them, and I have fewer trips to the store.
Great post! I hate when I have a mystery smell. :-)
Love these ideas!! What a great blog that I am so glad I found!
Um, I am pretty sure you are my twin! I do ALL these things too! It’s so hard not to be able to clean the way you really want to, but I totally agree — getting those lovies and cuddles are worth SO much more than a perfect house!
Okay, I am VERY much aware that this is a DANG old post. BUT. I was going through the 31 days to a less messy nest on The Nester (because I’m finally able to admit that my home could stand to be less messy), and your link on her link-up caught my eye. Your title “I cheat” completely describes my cleaning mantra. We don’t have kiddos OR dogs, so there’s really no excuse for why our home looks the way it does except for laziness. I’d lOVE to deep-clean our house every weekend, but we’re newlyweds and both work full-time, and the weekends are the only time that we really get to play! So, doing the quick swiffer in the kitchens and bathrooms, running a quick vaccuum over our rental’s carpeting, and wiping down the counters as we use them holds us over until we get to clean hard-core. The toilet tabs are a GREAT idea, though; thanks for the tip!
Brittany´s last blog post ..franken-pants