Organize Your Life at Home

When I come home from a long day, or even a short day I want to come where things are not only familiar but the atmosphere is relaxing, comfortable, and welcoming. Getting on top of your home clutter and to-do list.

Do you feel overwhelmed at home? Drowning in things like children's toys, paperwork , to-do lists, and just the everyday chores it takes to keep your home looking presentable?  Maybe you're so overwhelmed that you find yourself shoving things in closets and under the bed. Out of sight out of mind. Eh?

Well take a deep breath and think about how much more at peace you could be if just some of this stuff was taken care of.

How about if your laundry was caught up?

Your office desk cleared off and neat as a pin?

Your bedroom closet organized and arranged by item type with the out of season clothing safely stored in the attic? Or the basement.

Okay I don't mean to scare you but it is possible.  The key is not to try and do it all overnight and to tackle it all in bit sized moments.

If you only took 15 minutes a day and focused on organizing one area of your life or home just think where you could be in 3 months. If you did nothing and let it go on as it has just think where you'll be in 3 months. Quite a difference and it shows you can get done in the small space of 15 minutes.

You may have heard about using 15 minute slots to clean your home before I personally enjoy the way Emilie Barnes details how they (15 minute slots)can help you organize your entire home in the books Survival for Busy Women and More Hours in My Day. I know some may see these books as old fashioned but the tips in them are timeless. You may be able to use digital tools and new technology but the tips about what to prioritize and how to find time for what's important still stands.

Let's put these little chunks of time to use. Listed below are what I think of as the ultimate BASICS in my home when I'm just uninspired or have no energy to do more.

These BASICS are just taking care of the most visible surfaces of the home.  Keeping up with these areas of your home is the very base to keeping your home clean an organized.  Once you have the surfaces of your home clean and sparkling then you can start scheduling in slots of time to attack the clutter and deep down dirt you've been ignoring (yes you have, who hasn't?)

I've listed a basic daily cleaning list as a guideline to daily home care.

Use this list to establish a daily routine to keeping up your home.

Basic Daily Upkeep

1. Keep the Kitchen Sink Clean.  Dishes can quickly make a kitchen dirty. I live with 3 other adults and that is no guarantee for clean dishes. To help remind everyone first thing in the morning it's household policy for the first person in the kitchen to empty the dishwasher. Then throughout the day dishes used are either put in the dishwasher or cleaned by hand. And then the last person in the kitchen at night runs the dishwasher before going to bed. It's not foolproof but it works.  

2. Do a load of laundry. I try and do at least one load of laundry a day. This is clothing, towels, bedding, kitchen cloths, and cleaning cloths. Remember I share my home with 3 other adults and we share the washing machine so this means being quite organized about when it's used. We don't have a schedule (not a bad idea) but we make it work. A larger family might try for two loads a day. And then putting away those clothes/cloths at the end of the day so there isn't a big pileup.

3. Clear off dining table.  Remember we're going for an Organized Home. The dining table seems to be a magnet for all items far and wide.  Do your best to clean it off at regular intervals during the day. Send the message that you like it cleaned off. If you work outside the home try to have it clean as you leave the house. If you work at home try making sure it's cleared off first thing in the morning, in the afternoon ,and again before you go to bed.

4. Make all beds. Make them as soon as you get up. Period. Makes a whole room look neat. (Okay I personally wait until after breakfast so the beds have a chance to air out but if you struggle in this area make them as soon as you get up.)

5. Touch up the bathrooms: Bathrooms get a lot of use so keep them up before your weekly clean. A daily tidy once you're done getting ready for the day works well. Put things away, wipe counters, change towels and wipe down toilet.