Making Your Cleaning Schedule Work for You
First, make a list of all the chores that need to be done around the house. Remember that some things may need to be done more than once a week. Think of each room in your house and each task that needs to be done in that room. Make the list as detailed as you can; you can simplify later.
Since they don’t need a place on a weekly or monthly cleaning schedule, put things that need to be done daily on a separate list. Dishes, feeding the pets, picking up, wiping off the counters, and that sort of thing may need to be done every day. Keep this list with your completed schedule to keep you organized and on track.
Add to your main list any weekly errands such as going to the grocery store, the bank or the library. Also, think about your family’s laundry needs. If you need to do laundry every day, add that to the daily list. Otherwise, it might be easier for you to do laundry on a certain day; perhaps clothes on one day and sheets and towels on another.
Consider your weekly schedule. Do you want to focus on one room each day? Another option is to have a week each month where you do a deep clean of a certain room. Do you want to do all of your cleaning during the week and have your weekends free? Don’t forget about trash day. Perhaps there is a day during the week where you are too busy to do any chores. I like to plan my grocery shopping on Sunday when my husband is around to have some input. Consider things like these before setting up your cleaning schedule.
Now consider the order of your chores. Are there any that should be done before others? For example, cleaning out the refrigerator should fall before your grocery shopping day. Grocery shopping should fall after menu planning – perhaps the day after the sale ads arrive in the mail. I like to vacuum the day before I clean the hardwood floors so that I can vacuum up any crumbs before sweeping. It’s also probably a good idea to clean the bathroom after giving the dog a bath. What’s on your list that might be made easier by doing something else just before?
Next, using your list, and perhaps a vague idea of what chores should be done on certain days, make a schedule. Simplify your list if necessary. You can just put “clean bathrooms” rather than having each task separate, if you don’t mind cleaning the entire bathroom in one day. Divide your list by how many days you want to be doing chores and that’s how many chores you’ll need to do each day. If you have 15 chores and want to work Monday through Friday, you’ll need to clean 3 things each day. Now, stick to your schedule. Every morning take a look at your schedule to see what needs to be done that day. And do it! I like to get my cleaning and chores done in the morning – preferably during naptime. Then I can relax – or at least do less demanding things – the rest of the day.
Make any necessary adjustments as you go along. Maybe your Mondays are just too busy for you to spend scouring the kitchen floors like you planned. Or maybe the grocery store is too crowded on Fridays. Whatever it is, make your schedule work for you and fit your life.
