Busy moms do not have time to spend two or three hours a day cleaning. Pick up a few of these tips to make cleaning a breeze for busy families. Singles can learn these cleaning tricks before they pick up "dirty" habits!

Organize:

Have a cleaning station where ALL cleaning items are kept. This can be under a sink (for those with older or no children), top shelf in the laundry (for the toddler stage) or in a carry-all in a closet (great teen-aged access).

Schedule:

Clean bathrooms and bedrooms on Tuesdays & Fridays; Common areas Monday, Wednesday & Saturday; Laundry room & appliances on Sunday afternoon. Cannot do it all? Break it into smaller parts. Stick to your schedule, and you don't get behind!

Down Time:

While a machine does a task, do something else. Do you have five minutes? Clean the tub. Waiting for the dryer? Dust the living room. Dishes drying? Collect the garbage from around the house.

Everyday:

Simple tasks like making the bed go a long way to keeping your house clean. Clean as you go when you are cooking. If you take out a project, put it away as soon as you are finished. Adopt the rule that you are not finished until the mess is clean.

Mail:

It comes six days a week. Read it over the garbage can or paper shredder. Do it now. When you put mail down, it should be in the trash can/shredder, in a return envelope, filed for tax time or in your scheduler to be paid on the appropriate day. If you bank on line, you reduce the amount of mail you get and have to throw away.

Dishes:

Empty the dishwasher in the morning. Fill it during the day. Run it when you go to bed. No shortage of hot water, helps heat the house (if you use the heated dry cycle), and ready in the morning with clean dishes. Good for the psyche: Wake up to no mess.

Laundry:

When you take it off, put it away. Hang up your coat when you come in the house. Time for bath? Put dirty clothes in the laundry basket. If it is clean, put it in the closet or dresser.

Sort laundry at the end of each day- either by color or washing temperature. When a load is ready, drop it in the washer before you go to bed. In the morning, put it in the dryer. If you adjust your thermostat during the day to save on electricity, you will save even more by running the dryer when you are not home during the warm months. Reverse the cycle when you use your heater.

5 things a day:

Pick up and return to the appropriate place at least 5 things everyday. Employ all of your house mates. If you have been a clutter bug, do five things before each meal. Before you know it, you will not be able to find 5 things out of place!

Vacuum:

Keep allergens to a minimum by spending 15 minutes a day vacuuming. Keep it smelling nice and ensure that all the pet hair gets in the vacuum by mixing 1 part of liquid fabric softener and 5 parts water in a spray bottle. Spritz your carpet before you vacuum. Always dust before you vacuum to trap the most allergens.

We all live here.:

Everyone should pick up their own room. Toddlers love to put toys in the closet or toy box, if you make it a game! Teenagers like to talk on the telephone. The telephone does not get signal if there are clothes/books on the floor. Husband likes television? It does not get satellite signal while the trash can is full.

Everyone helps make the mess, therefore everyone should help clean up the mess. Even the uber busy mom can use these cleaning tips to keep her castle sparkling.

Learn more about this author, Ann Marie Dwyer.
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