How to have your house stay CLEAN for your family!

(weddingbycolor.com)

I have one word of advice:  Throw/give things away.  Each Saturday just take one drawer, closet, or room, and go through things to de-junk.  This is the SINGLE most helpful thing you can do to have a clean house with minimum effort.  You need to de-junk until everything in your house has a place to be put away.  I learned this from my Japanese sister-in-law.  Her house is always clean, and that's because she has very little junk.  She only keeps what she uses.  Here are some tips for de-junking your house.  I promise it won't take very long, or be overwhelming, especially if you do just one drawer/cupboard/shelf at a time.  Take it at your own pace.  Most people get endorphin rushes from getting rid of things.  It will really make you happy and your work load will decrease!

1. Give away all things that you haven't used in 1 year.  Exception:  Something expensive that you know you'll need again such as a laminator or an interview suit.

2. Give away most books and CD's/Videos.  You can get almost all books at the library through inter-library loan.  You can also get things through kindle.  You can get videos and music online as well.

3. Put all stuffed animals in a stuffed animal hammock or something to keep them corralled (get rid of ones that your kids don't care about).

4. Put all toys in sets.  Throw/give away things that don't fit in the sets.

5. Only keep 2 weeks worth of clothes.  Most people will wash clothes again before two weeks is up.

6. Toss/shred all paper documents over 7 years old.  When you get your mail, immediately recycle what you don't need.  Don't let it touch your counter or you will start to have piles.

7. Use reason.  I promise you really don't need 35 dish towels (that's how many I found in my drawer when I started to de-junk!  Ha ha!)  Only keep what you need, like maybe four.

8.  Get rid of baby toys if you don't have a baby.

9. Make sure everything has a home, or get rid of it.  Make each room/cupboard as bare as you can...only keeping essentials.  Get rid of things you can borrow from others when you need to every once in awhile.

10. Use a rake to clean toys out from under beds.  Saves lots of time and your back.  Use a broom and dustpan to pick up all the last odds and ends.  The broom and dustpan are also a GREAT way to pick up piles of legos!

Hope these tips help!  Don't stress about de-junking. Just do a little bit each week and you'll find your house easier to keep clean in no time!