Maintaining a clean home when you have children doesn’t have to be a hard chore. Our children are our pride and joy, but they come with clutter. There are a few steps you can take to keep your home clean.
Designate A Play Area
If you have the space, try to designate a play area for your children to play and keep their toys. The area can be their bedroom, game room , or even a large closet. The key is to teach them to have a spot for themselves. It will also teach them how to be responsible with their items. By having a designated play area, they can also learn to put their things in that space after playing with them, instead of keeping them all over the house.
Limit The Toys You Bring Into Your Home
It’s actually easy to limit the toys you bring into you home. If your home is like mine, it has more toys than really needed. Therefore, I do not allow my children to bring toys and crayons from restaurants or fast food places. Unless my children want a very specific item, I typically don’t buy them toys for Christmas or their birthdays. They always receive so many toys from family and friends that its actually pretty overwhelming. I also make sure my children don’t bring home toys from family member’s home. They can play with the toys while we are visiting, but when it’s time for us to go home, those toys will stay right there.
Get Kids Involved
It’s never too early to get your children involved with helping to keep a clean home. Everyone in your home should be held accountable for something. There are chores your children can do from ages 2 to 22. Feel free to make it fun and interesting. Turn clean up into a game. Give your children an incentive for doing their share. It can be something simple like ten minutes of screen time after a bath or a dollar. Kids can benefit from having the sense of accomplishment after cleaning up.
RELATED POST: 10 Easy Chores For Kids 10 and Under
Play With One Toy at A Time
This tip can be difficult. Kids love to look at all their toys at one time. This leads to having a mountain of toys out at once. I tell my children that they can’t do a puzzle, play in the play kitchen, comb the doll’s hair, and build a lego castle all at the same time. Constantly encouraging (and forcing) them to only play with one thing at a time is a priority. I do not allow them to stop playing with one thing and jump to the next activity without putting the first thing away.
Use Baskets
Baskets are a great way to keep toys contained and organized. I keep a short wide basket under my coffee table in living room. The kids are only allowed to play in the living room with enough toys that fit in the basket. I also try to have a basket or two in each room. These baskets can be used to transport toys from one room back to the designated toy spot. Laundry baskets are great for transporting toys from room to room.
10 Minutes To a Clean Home
Implementing the 10 minute rule is an easy step. The 10 minute rule is a way to reset your home. Take 10 minutes at the end of the day to pick up things. The baskets really come in handy during this step. If you spend 10 minutes each day resetting your home, this is help to avoid having an overwhelming amount of clutter in your home. This will help avoid having tons of toys in the living room, kitchen, or other area.
Address These Items Immediately
The main items which cause issues and should be addressed immediately are clothes, trash, and dishes. Clean clothes and dirty clothes can both be issues. Clean clothes need to be properly put away. They should be in a drawer, hung up, or a hamper. Try to avoid dumping clean clothes in a chair or on the bed. Dirty clothes need to be put in the dirty clothes hamper or washing machine. Get your kids in the habit of putting their clothes in the dirty clothes hamper when they take them off. Pick up dirty socks from off the floor. Put shoes in the closet or designated place.
Put a trash can in all rooms of your home. Encourage your child to put trash in the can instead of just putting it elsewhere. As hard as it is, try to wash dishes more often. If you can’t wash them immediately, put them in the sink or dishwasher. Teach your children how to put their dishes in the dishwasher after each use. When they are young, encourage them to put items into the sink to help keep a clean home.
I hope these tips on how to keep your home clean with small kids is useful information. What are some of the things you do in your home to keep your home clean. Please leave any questions or suggestions in the comment section below. I would love to hear about your experiences.
As always, if you need help getting your home and life organized, register for my free “5 Days to an Organized Home & Life” email course. Each day you will receive strategies for keeping your home & life organized and having a “company ready” home at all time. You can register for the free course at www.decoratorsvoice.com/free5daycourse.
For information about my Full Home & Life Organizational Strategies course, please visit www.decoratorsvoice.com/homestrategiescourse. In this course, you’ll receive tons of useful information, a one on one private consultation, access to my private Facebook group, and a physical organizational kit.
Thanks for stopping by. If you have any organizational or decorating questions, please do not hesitate to ask. I would love to hear from you. For information concerning our decorating services and products, please visit www.divineelementsofdesign.net
Less is always more when it comes to toys. Teaching kids to be happy with less is an important life lesson and also encourages them to be more creative in how they entertain themselves. Whether that’s inventing a new game or playing a good old fashioned game of tag in the outdoors, less toys can have many great benefits for children.