HOUSE WORK IS LIKE FREEZ TAG by House Work for Mortals

1. 
   House Work Is Like Freeze Tag
   
   I am always looking for a shortcut when it comes to cleaning my house.
   I teach children at a gymnastics studio nearby. One night we decided to play the game “freeze tag”. If you are familiar with this game you know that it is almost imposable to freeze everyone. Once you freeze one person and diligently strive to chase down the rest of the players, you quickly notice that the once frozen players that you worked so hard to stop in their tracks has indeed been unfrozen by the one player you just didn’t get to earlier. During that game of freeze tag I felt tired and hopeless of ever freezing the whole class. Then it came to me…this is how I feel about housework. I never seem to get the cleaning done before the messing starts up again. Some like to call this the “shoveling while it’s still snowing syndrome”.
   I have a husband and 4 children. I know that trying to clean up after a family takes a lot of time and energy. Now that I have stated the obvious, what can help to make cleaning quicker and easier? I have tried many cleaning techniques from cleaning the whole house on one day a week, to doing a few cleaning jobs a day for the entire week.
   Here are some ideas that have worked for me in the past:
   Start with piles – If the mess is overwhelming start putting like items in piles. Example: Bedroom pile, basement toy pile.
   1. Get the family to pitch in – Make chore charts for your children that include household responsibilities.
   2. Have a Cleaning tote in every bathroom- For a quick clean, have all your bathroom cleaning supplies tucked under the sink. (if you have small children put tote up high)
   3. Cleaning tote for every job: For a quick “grab and go” clean. Handy wipes work great for quick jobs.
   Example: dusting tote, bathroom tote, wiping walls tote and so on.
   4. Keeping up with it. Sweeping up at the end of the day or making sure your children have done what was on their chore chart.
   5. Laundry Have a basket with each Childs name. If your child is old enough they can do their own laundry or at least put their own basket of clothes away.
   6. Keep the mess in rooms that are for the purpose of the activity- Example: Kitchen for food, toy room for toys, and sitting room for sitting or reading.
   Remember; don’t be too hard on yourself if you don’t get your house clean. If your house is messy, it’s not the end of the world. Believe me, if it was the end of the world a clean house won’t save the day!
   
   If you have any house cleaning ideas that have worked for you, please share them with us!