by Rebecca Remer

Created on: January 28, 2009   Last Updated: January 29, 2009

Usually, the full responsibility of waging the war against the time-devouring, and seemingly pointless task of housecleaning gets awarded to the already, busy mom. Those sweet, innocent babies that suddenly turned into toddler-messy-makers are responsible for most of the jumble; worse yet, they insist that they are physically and mentally incapable of cleaning their own messes (they usually express this by laying on the floor and throwing a temper-tantrum). The husband does his fair-share of contributing to the disorder. He stakes the claim that he is just "too tired" and does not "know how to wash the dishes" (plus his favorite TV show is on right now). Here are six helpful tips in maintaining a clean house while maintaining your sanity.

Tip#1: It's clean up time! I usually yell this out at around nine o'clock in the morning (but this can be done at any time of the day). The kids get to pick a chore that they want to do; they can clean the windows, vacuum, dust, wipe the doors, tables, or cabinets. Note: this is supposed to be a positive learning experience for the kids, do not push them or criticize them. For younger kids (3-6), this is mainly a way to help them get into a routine and start learning how to do simple chores. Do not expect them to put a dent in the housework for you. More than likely, you will have to put in more time and effort in teaching, and supervising them. For older children this is a good way to instill responsibility and they can take on larger chores. Another note: Do not make slaves out of them. If you need extra help, you can offer to pay them.

Tip#2: Make it fun! Make a fun game for the kids to help them clean up. If my kids have a bunch of toys scattered around the house, we will play a game where I will count to 30 (or whatever number seems reasonable in relation to the mess), if they can pick up all their toys and put them in their rooms, then they won, if they can't, then I won. If they win, they will get some sort of a treat or reward. To make it more fun for mom, she can turn on the radio, or plug in her MP3 player.

Tip#3: "Where is my knight-in-shining-armor?" Ok, this can be tricky territory here. Some men don't mind lending a helping hand around the house. Other men just don't have a helping hand to lend. If your husband gets up at 4AM and comes home at 8PM, give him a break. The weekend might be a good time for him to help with a load of laundry of dishes. Nicely suggest, "Honey, I've got so much to do, can you do the

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