Daily Cleaning Routine

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A clean house just makes me a happier person! I am able to think more clearly, be more patient and I love being at home more. A daily cleaning routine will not only keep your house looking beautiful, it will save you time if you stick with it! Doing a little bit everyday, keeps your house more clean,  making it easier to stay caught up!

Today I’m sharing my daily cleaning routine in hopes to help you save time and feel great about your home everyday! I have been doing this routine for 20+ years! It works! Spending 30 minutes each morning and 10 minutes each night, keeps my house in order and looking pretty good without having to slave for hours!

If you work outside the home, you can still do this same routine! Just find 30 minutes somewhere in your day to make it happen. The key is to not do it alone! If you have a spouse, roommate or children, get them to pitch in and help! Set the timer and try to beat the clock!

If you haven’t been using a cleaning routine, the first few days may take you longer than 30 min. but, it will get faster everyday the more you stick with it! The more you do your routine, the more it will become a part of your life! It will feel like second nature. Your house will be less dirty so it will take you less time to get it whipped back into shape.

Daily Cleaning Routine – Morning

Laundry

• Time saver tip – Toss in a load of laundry before you get started on your daily routine! This allows you do to two things at once! Get your laundry going while you work on something else.
• Come up with a schedule that works for you. I do the bulk of my laundry Mondays and Thursdays. We have laundry baskets in my closet, the laundry room and upstairs. I focus on the downstairs laundry on Mondays and the upstairs on Thursdays. Every other day, I toss in a load to keep the bulk of  it down. Basically, I do a little laundry daily. I do the sheets and towels on Saturdays.
• Wash sheets. My sheet’s get washed weekly. The kid’s sheets get washed every other week. This is not part of my daily 30 minute routine. I do this on the weekends.

For tips on how to keep your whites looking amazing, read my best tips here.

Sunburst Pendant Light | Rolling Laundry Basket | Gray White Vase | Faux Blue Hydrangea | Mother of Pearl Lamp | Pin Board | Framed Geodes  | Glass Jar for Laundry Soap

Bedroom

• Make your bed – do this right when you wake up! If not, chances are you won’t make it back to do it! Having the bed made makes me feel amazing! It is so nice to climb into a made up bed at night and so fabulous to walk into the room to a made bed throughout the day. When my kids were little and toys and messes seemed to take over every inch of the house, my bedroom with a made bed was my sanity!
• Pick up any clothes off the floor
• Tidy anything else that is laying around

Bathrooms

I do this for my bathroom (room tour) and the kid’s bathroom (room tour)

• Rinse out the sink – keep a few rags under the sink with your cleaning supplies
• Shine the faucet – use your microfiber rag and some Pledge to shine it up
• Wipe down the countertop – we have marble in our bathrooms so I use soapy water to clean our countertops or this marble cleaner.
• Spot clean the mirror – I use paper towels and Pledge Multi Surface
• Wipe down the toilet – my favorite way to clean them is with Chlorox wipes
• Clean the toilet bowl – (once a week or as needed – I love the Chlorox Gel Cleaner)
• Cleaning the shower and mopping the floors are not part of my 30 minute routine. I do those when I do my deep cleaning every other week.  I love this shower cleaner! It’s not cheap but there is no scrubbing required and it works like nothing I’ve used! It is safe on marble and you only have to use it about once a month.

I keep my cleaning supplies under each bathroom sink in a bucket. I have noticed that if my supplies are close at hand, it is so much quicker to clean up!

Here’s what I use to clean my bathrooms…

Mirror – Pledge Multi Surface

Counter – Rag with soapy water or this marble cleaner 

Sink – Bartender’s Mate

Faucets – Pledge Multi Surface

Shower – This cleaner

Toilet – Clorox wipes and Clorox Gel

Floor – Bona Mop and cleaner

Living Room

• Tidy up – pick up anything that doesn’t belong in the room and put it away. I like to make piles for my kids. I place them in their bedrooms. Then they put their own things away when they get home.
• Fluff the pillows
• Dust if needed (once a week)
• Vacuum furniture (quick vacuum once every two weeks). This will SAVE your furniture!
• Vacuum Rugs and or carpet (I try to vacuum everyday) – This is the vacuum I use for my carpets and rugs. I’ve had it for years and love it!

Kitchen – click here for room sources

• Empty the dishwasher (my kids do this everyday)
• Take out the trash (kids do this too)
• Put breakfast dishes in the dishwasher – my kids do this for dinner
• Rinse out the sink – once a week I use Bar Keeper’s Friend for a good scrub down and Mrs. Meyer’s spray for a daily clean.
• Go through piles and paperwork – for tips on where to keep your papers and how to organize them read this post. To organize my kid’s papers, I have a letter file. I put each child’s papers in their own section, then tuck it into my command center cabinet in the kitchen. When my kids bring home art projects and papers from school, I have them keep their favorite projects – toss the rest. The special ones go in a plastic tote in their closet. This is their keepsake box. I sometimes hang their favorite pieces on the pin board in our laundry room. Since I’m in there SO much I love looking at their special pieces!
• Wipe down the countertops – here is a detailed post on how I care for our marble countertops.
• Wipe off the stove – here is a full review of my stove if you’re interested in learning more about our’s.
• Spray the front of the microwave and fridge removing fingerprints
• A quick wipe down of the cabinets and handles (once a week)- I use a damp microfiber rag to clean my cabinets.
• Wipe finger prints off walls (once every 2 weeks) – use a damp microfiber rag with a little bit of Comet on it to scrub your wall. For tougher scuffs, use a Magic Eraser.
• Vacuum or sweep – this is my favorite vacuum for our hard surfaces! It is super quick and efficient! If you work outside the home, consider investing in a Roomba that will vacuum while you are gone.
• Mop – I only mop our wood once every 2 weeks! Vacuuming everyday and no shoes in the house keep it pretty clean. I use this steamer – I love it!!!

What I use to clean my kitchen…

Countertops – Mrs. Meyer’s, Marble & Travertine Cleaner or soapy water

Sink – Bar Keepers Friend

Fridge & Microwave – Pledge

Stove – Mrs. Meyer’s or Soft Scrub

Wood Floors – Steamer

Stairs

• Put shoes, clothes, miscellaneous things into piles for your kids to put away
• Wipe finger prints off walls and clean off scuff marks (once a month)
• Vacuum (once a week)

I have these baskets on my stairs to hold the kid’s backpacks. I love them!

Daily Routine – Nighttime

Once the kids are all in bed, I take about 5-10 minutes to get the house back in order before heading to bed. This helps me start my day ahead of the game!

• Toss a load of laundry in so it’s ready to switch in the morning.
• Start the dishwasher
• Wipe off kitchen counters
• Put pillows back on the couch
• Straighten family room

Deep Cleaning Routine

These are the things I do whenever I have time or see things pop up.

• Change burnt out light bulbs 
• Baseboards – I use a microfiber rag with a little Comet. This is a great job to give your kids!
• Moldings – For wainscoting, I wipe it down every few weeks with a damp rag. The crown molding, I use a feather duster and only clean it once a year, if that!
• Door tracks – Dampen a few paper towels and push them into the track to wipe away dirt. Use a wet Q – Tip to get the rest out. My 10 year old loves to do this job! This is a once a year job at our house.
• Windows – I love to use a squeegee and warm soapy water. I wash mine once a year – I don’t have time to do them more than that! Haha! I do wash my most used doors to the backyard and courtyard more frequently.
• Shutters – Once a month these get dusted with a Swiffer wand.
• Lamp shades – Wipe them down with a dust rag or vacuum them off once a month.
• Vacuum couches and chairs – Once a month or more if needed.

If you can afford it, have someone come a deep clean for you once or twice a month. I have had a lady come help me twice a month for almost ten years. At first I felt guilty and bad that I couldn’t keep up with it all by myself anymore. Then I realized that the time I saving was invaluable! I was now able to spend more time enjoying my children. If you can’t afford it, make sure that you aren’t doing the full routine alone!!! Get your family involved!!! Read my post here for more tips on how to involve your children in your cleaning routine.

Please don’t think that I am perfect with this routine! I do what I can. Somedays I’m doing good to just make my bed and load the dishwasher. Don’t beat yourself up if you can only get to some of the routine. This is just a goal to strive for! The more you can do each day, the cleaner your home will stay.You can do this! I am cheering you on!

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