When Eric and I moved into our first apartment together after college, I realized I had no idea how to create a homemaking routine or manage a home at all. How often should you vacuum? Clean the shower? Wipe down the counters? #clueless
Keep in mind I was coming straight from four years in the Carleton dorms, including my senior year spent in a suite with four boys where no one but me ever lifted a finger to clean it. And I cleaned maybe once a month.
But as an independent adult, my standards were much higher whilst my skills and knowledge were seriously lacking. Especially once we bought our first home and started adding children, there was a very steep learning curve to avoid a gross living space and keep people clothed and fed.
So today I’m sharing my sustainable-for-me homemaking routine with three babies/toddlers in our 3-bed/2-bath apartment, along with my favorite cleaning products. Is our home always spotless? No, but everything gets cleaned on a regular basis, bills get paid and things generally run smoothly–so right now, I’m counting that as success.
Daily Tasks
- Make the beds
- Run the dishwasher/hand wash dishes as necessary (2 loads per day)
- Kitchen cleanup: wiping down counters/dining room table, cleaning the stovetop, sweeping the floor, taking out the trash/recycling
- Wash & fold clothing (1-2 loads per day, excluding cloth diapers which get washed every 2-3 days)
- General tidying, including picking up toys and books in the kids’ room before bed
My Weekly Homemaking Routine
- Monday: Admin day – opening & filing mail, paying bills, balancing the budget
- Tuesday: Usually any free time is spent on blogging and writing work!
- Wednesday: Vacuum office, hallway, and laundry room; wash kids’ bedding every other week
- Thursday: Vacuum bedrooms & walk-in closet, plan meals and make grocery lists; wash our bedding every other week
- Friday: Vacuum living & dining rooms; change & wash towels
- Saturday: Clean the bathroom (ideally this would happen during the week but it usually doesn’t), grocery/Target shopping
- Sunday: Rest day – the only thing I do besides daily tasks is bake a healthy snack for the coming week
Less Frequent Jobs As Necessary
- Kitchen tasks: shining the sink, wiping down inside cabinets and the fridge, cleaning the microwave
- General cleaning: dusting, cleaning windows, mopping the three small spaces that have hard floors
- Decorating: planning and purchasing furniture and other decor, decorating for the holidays
- Clothing: swapping out clothing seasonally, buying bigger sizes for little e (feels like that happens weekly at the moment!)
Favorite Products
These are products I absolutely couldn’t live without! Obviously I use many more than this, but I don’t feel as passionately about them 😛
- General: Our Dyson vacuum, You Need a Budget subscription and microfibre cleaning clothes (seriously so much better than paper towels)
- For the kitchen: Method Daily Granite for the counters and the Angry Mama for cleaning the microwave
- For the bedroom: Our AlenAir Breathsmart 45i–couldn’t live without it! Baby K’s congestion went way down when we started using it, and in the future I’m going to buy the larger model for our big living space
So there’s a little peek into my homemaking routine! Hopefully it can provide some inspiration for you. And I’d love to know, what’s your favorite cleaning task? Mine is definitely vacuuming… so satisfying!
xx Claire
