Wondering how to keep a tidy house with little kids running around making messes all day? Look no further, these tips will help.
First of all, I don’t think it’s imperative that the house be tidy all the time.
However, an untidy and messy house really drives me nuts.
Relaxing or working in a chaotic environment is very difficult for me. And, unfortunately, I can’t go too long with a mess before it starts affecting my mental health.
Each of our standards are different.
Each of us grew up in houses that had a certain level of clutter, mess and organization. We got used to that.
More than likely, that is the standard to which we’d like our homes to be kept now. If your mother was very clean and tidy (as mine is) then a mess may be very noticeable to you.
If you grew up in a home where clutter, toys, or messes were common and not a big deal, then perhaps you don’t stress about the state of the house.
Whatever works for your family and you, keep at it.
How to keep a tidy house with small kids
If you are like me (God help you) then having children only means that keeping the house clean will be more challenging. It doesn’t mean it can be forgotten for a few years.
Here are some tips for those of us who won’t let the idea that we can still keep a tidy house die. Perseverance and endurance to us all!
Read: Easy routines to help keep a house tidy with kids
(1) Revisit your definition of tidy.
First and foremost, we mothers need to revisit what it means to be tidy. Tidy used to mean everything where we put it since the last time we moved it.
It used to mean that surfaces were clear, nothing was on the floor, things were in proper boxes and the house was almost always ready for visitors.
Tidy now will mean something different:
- A few baskets filled with visible toys in each room
- Books are on a bookshelf- any bookshelf will do
- The main surfaces are clear of anything used in previous days, but today’s clutter is acceptable
Here are some super cute baskets for kids rooms.
It may mean that throughout the day there will be times when the house is in full play mode which means, obviously, that the house isn’t always “company ready.”
The truth is, most company we keep wouldn’t even notice anyway. But for me, tidy will still look as though the house is in order and picked up. I have to remember that my definition of tidy is different than it was before kids.
(2) Work with your children not against them.
After my first child started crawling and pulling things around I was personally offended.
Does she not know that I want the house to look neat?
Is she doing this to pop my forehead vein?!?
After a while I realized that was not the case, and that I needed to figure out some good systems that let the kids be kids and let the house be neat and orderly, but still be home.
Read: An 18 Month Routine for Energetic Toddlers
I let them throw around their toys, games and blocks while they are playing. When they are finished we all pick them up together.
Of course, some days this is me standing over them handing them a block telling them to put it in the basket. Some days they do it happily, some days they run away.
That’s life.
However, if I let them run wild with things then I make them put it back later.
Win win.
(3) Downsize the knickknacks.
One way that I’ve managed to keep the house from looking like an indoor yard sale is to minimize the sit-abouts, tchotkes, and knick knacks.
If I want to put sentimental and decorative items on display I do so where they are above arms reach.
I downsized the knickknacks not because I wanted to teach my children to avoid certain things. I did it simply because the little ones only have so much willpower. 4,356 picture frames, candles and coasters are too much for them to resist day in and day out!
It goes without saying that kids will want to touch everything in the house.
Read: Minnamism for Kids
On lower surfaces I keep the bare minimum to be pleasing to my eye and it means there are less things strewn about the house.
Is it just me, or can a child somehow manage to dislocate about 35 things in one trip to the bathroom?
Want some 15 minute projects that you and the kids can do to get the house in order quickly? Download and print here!(4) Make daily sweeps.
Doing daily sweeps makes a big difference!
We clean up after playtime and I do a major sweep after the children are in bed. That’s it…
Those two things means that almost every evening (unless it is a particularly busy evening) the house looks neat and tidy before bed. It really only takes around 10 minutes max each time to do it.
I put things back where they came from and that’s it. Two or three days of messes make cleaning and tidying longer… so I try to do it every single day. This prevents build up and makes the house easier to maintain.
(5) Organize well.
If things don’t have a place they end up on the kitchen counter…or so it is at our house. Furthermore, if toys don’t have a place they end up hiding where my foot finds them in the dark! Not good for anyones sanity!
I have baskets and places for everything. I’m not saying they’re beautiful. I’m not saying everything is labeled – although I love my label maker – but simply everything has a place.
Baskets and places for everyting make tidying easy because each evening you can put up a pile of things quickly when you know where each belong. Remember to do your daily sweep!
Sometimes the house looks fabulous. Sometimes the house looks awful. I have been known to see spider webs and ignore. Sometimes I have all the kids wiping down surfaces with me. It comes and goes. I don’t feel like a failure if it looks “lived in”, but I do think that teaching our children to clean after themselves and living tidy isn’t some form of child abuse.
It won’t kill them to clean up. It won’t kill me to clean up.
While a perfectly tidy house won’t make all our dreams come true, I think it will help us not get too down in the dumps when we are nursing the “I’m-so-frumpy-all-I-do-is-the-dishes” syndrome.
Get Your Tidy Routines Printable Checklist
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You are NOT lazy, disorganized, or unmotivated. The fact is, if your home feels chaotic,it’s your systems. With easy efficient systems, habits, and routines you can start to have the home (and home atmosphere) you crave without working yourself into a frenzy.
Take this quiz to see how well your home systems work then get free and easy hacks to help make your home more tidy, peaceful, and organized.
Rachel
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Pipi says
An interesting blog. It’s important for children to use natural cleaning products without harmful chemicals. Since I use http://bit.ly/1f5ATC3 especially bit.ly/1fbDWsu house smells great and my kids are safe. I recommend to everyone, great clean and do not contain harmful chemicals.
Rachel Norman says
Definitely agree chemical free is the way to go. I make most of mine with natural ingredients, but when the kids help they are usually doing something that doesn’t involve either. Thanks for the input :)
seychellesmama says
Good post!! Some nice tips there :)
Rachel Norman says
I think I need to re-read it today ;)
Eva Russell says
Good article. It is a difficult job to keep a house clean if there are small kids. I teach my kids to do small cleaning jobs so that they will know the importance of cleaning when they grow up. Also if the kids are a big and know enough to do the basics like making the bed , it will be a good help for us mothers. As you said daily cleaning is a must when kids are there. Even when me or my husband are not well to do the cleaning jobs, we call for home cleaning services to keep the home clean.
Megan says
My son is 2 and have trouble keeping it clean and it’s so hard
Ali N says
Oh I sympathise with you. I have two girls, 6 and 3, and I work full time as a teacher. It is so hard focusing on work, children and then looking at the house getting untidy. Although there are so many more important things to worry about, when you see the mess it is so disheartening.
Rachel Norman says
What a great way to say it. There ARE far more important things to worry about it, but it IS discouraging!
Regina says
Pop up was quite annoying. Got off site because it wouldn’t go away.
Rachel Norman says
YES I JUST SAW THIS. I’m turning it off, some type of technical error. Sorry :(
George Garcia says
Thanks for this article – it is very helpful especially for those who are just starting a family. The guidelines are easy to follow and not only will make your house tidy but also can make your child responsible.
Rachel Norman says
Thank you, and yes!! It’s so nice to have a tidy home.
Hollie says
Need all the help I can get . Im in bad health with 4 kids, ages 1 to 15
Julia says
Thanks for this nice, down to earth article. Makes me feel like I don’t have to give up on tidy just because a baby’s on the way!
Rachel Norman says
Nah you can keep it under control, don’t worry :)
Maria says
Your blog is great, I’ve learned lots of ideas. Thanks for sharing. :-)
John says
I’m a Single Older Dad, I had to search how to keep my apartment clean. I Feel so bad. But your Blog Has help me to do things I didn’t think would ever happen.
I can see the floor again and I don’t trip on toys going to the restroom at night.
Thanks’
Rachel Norman says
ha, non tripping!
Ben says
I am a stay at home dad, my wife works full time and I am not a good house keeper. You have some great ideas, I am more than guilty of letting the mess “pile up” and the thought of only taking 10mins to clean sounds great to me, I am definitely going to use most of your ideas.
Rachel Norman says
Hi Ben, it’s SO TEMPTING to let the mess pile up. Good luck!
Rebecca says
So, so encouraging! Great tips, and best of all the advice to remember it’s a process… 🙂
amol joshi says
Cleaning house is something that we do when we decide to thoroughly clean every little portion of our house. It is absolutely necessary for us to deep clean home at least three times in an year to make it as beautiful and clean as we want it to be. It is more than just the normal dusting and sweeping of the house that we do every day; home deep cleaning involves many little things. It is easy to get confused and to miss out on one of those little things while we tackle the big problem. So, to help you tackle these things in a more organized way here are few steps that we should follow while deep cleaning house.Target this main area like kitchen, bathroom, sofa and carpet electrical appliances and furniture.
Nielsen Rosella says
Good article. It is a hard job to keep a house clean if there are small kids. I instruct my kids to do small cleaning jobs so that they will know the importance & valve of cleaning when they mature. Also if the kids are big and know as much as necessary to do the basics like making the bed, it will be a great help for us mothers.
Julie says
Great tips! It took me two year to realize I just needed to get rid of Knick knacks or just out then away for five years. When I took this off surfaces it helped. It also helps to frequently toss things including toys they aren’t that interested in
Mark William says
Rachel,
Thanks for the nice tips on – Keep a House Tidy With Kids.
Would you have any plan to give a detailed post on bathroom cleaning with time management? Bathroom cleaning very difficult for me.
Ari says
This was nice. I truly appreciate the ” you are not lazy, disorganized or unmotivated” part. Organization and positivity are key in these situations.
Sabrina Addams says
It’s so smart to do a cleanup once the kids are done playing and again after they go to bed instead of letting it build up and having to spend a lot more time than that cleaning. My husband and I went on vacation for a couple of days for our 15th wedding anniversary. Our house has now accumulated toys, leftover pizza, and other messes since we’ve been busy unpacking. I think that I will hire a home cleaning service to help clean this up and then start this habit of us and our kids picking up each day to make it easier for the future.
Rachel Norman says
Excellent idea!
Febé Meyer says
This was food for my soul! Thank you… my house is driving me nuts and I spend all day walking around picking up just to keep it at the same level of tidiness it was in the morning… somehow, the bottom line I got out of this was “keep trying, but its okay!”
Rachel Norman says
Yes, keep trying and you’re doing great!
Boris says
This is a good post to read about how to keep a clean house anhave definitely learnt alot of things
Rachel Norman says
So glad to hear it :)
Amy Lee says
Our world totally gets a makeover once we have kids, I can relate so much! OCD feels like a prison, but what can you do when the culprit are your kids! heh. I have the same rule of making them clean up their own messes, sometimes it works, sometimes they throw a tantrum! ha
Stephen Claus says
Its really hard to maintain the cleanliness of the house if you have little kids, and you can’t blame them for that. Thanks for sharing this.
Rachel Norman says
It’s super hard, for sure!
Natasha Smith says
Indeed, these are useful tips to keep the house clean even with little kids. I do have kids too, and it takes a lot of effort to keep the house clean and tidy when kids have literally unlimited energy to run around the house all day long. Thank you Rachel for the helpful hints.
Miriam says
Thanks for the tips. I am feeling less overwhelmed. Trying to tidy up my home as I would when I didn’t have my little one is impossible.