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Cleaning your house. . .
I have a question for all the cleaners out there. I moved into a townhouse when I was 9 mos pregnant and obviously I wan't able to get much done. It's entirely white and needs color, but most of all I am having trouble cleaning.
LO is always needing to change environments and toys in the house so I feel like I never really have time to finish a project I have started. Does anyone have any tips for this? I get extremely frustrated and stressed out because there is so much clutter that has accumulated and I feel like I can't do anything about it, plus I finally get it clean and 2 days later back to the way it was. This is the first time I have an entire house to maintain, not just a one bdroom apartment, so it's exhausting and I haven't quite gotten the hang of it yet.
I'm sorry if this all sounds stupid, I just need a little guidance. I hate havng a messy/cluttered home.
TIA!
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Re: Cleaning your house. . .
I'm not a huge help as my kids are older now 5 and 7, but thinking back to when they were babies...
I did a lot of cleaning while they napped. Not sure how old your baby is, when mine were infants I would have them nap in a central location of my home and just clean around them while checking on them occasionally. As they got older and didn't sleep as much I'd do things like clean the kitchen while they had a snack in their highchair in the kitchen, or vaccuum the living room while they played in their exersaucer. I HATE clutter so overall picking up i just do throughout the day. When my kids were babies I had a one story house so that made it easier, I could just do what I had to do and could hear them from wherever I was. Now I have a two story house so its not as easy. I find myself still doing somethings like folding laundry into piles on my kitchen counter, then I can just grab a pile when I go upstairs. I also try to never go up or downstairs empty handed, there is always something on the wrong floor (we have three floors now). I am also making my kids help out more, they can put away their own laundry (though my 5 year old can't hang his shirts yet b/c he can't reach even with a stool) but he can do the rest and leave the shirts on his bed which I do when I put him to bed at night.
On weekends I used to tell my husband he could watch the kids or clean xyz...Again my kids are older now and don't need constant supervision so I can get to things while they play in their playroom etc.
Sadly i've also had to learn to let things go
I have ocd and was literally making myself so cranky and anxious over it all, I went on meds for awhile. I'm off the meds now and have learned that some things just aren't going to happen, i'm working full time and have two kids. I try my best and sometimes its not good enough and it makes me crazy, but it is what it is.
When my son was a baby I did the majority of my cleaning while he was napping. Now that he is older I can get him interested in a toy and get some cleaning done or give him the swiffer duster so he can "help".
I have found that the less stuff that you have, the easier it is to maintain. You may need to spend a Saturday decluttering your main living area's. Do you have someone near by that could watch your DD while you and your husband work on it together? If everything has a place I am much better at putting it back where it goes so my house stays cleaner longer.
You have a beautiful little girl! I dont have little ones but I have many friends with small children and they either clean/tidy up when the little one is napping or while the little ones are playing, my friends will do some cleaning in the area where the little ones are playing so they can watch the kids at the same time.
Hope this helps!
This was all so helpful! Thank you ladies =]
I will be going out to Xmas tree shops to get some of those wicker baskets, that's a great idea. I've already just started mulling arounf the house while LO is napping getting rid of clutter. It looks so much better already!
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Thank you =] She's a great baby! Lately she's been so good playing on her own I can finally keep a clean kitchen (It's my biggest annoyance, having a messy kitchen!)
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