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Having kids and having a clean house can sometimes seem like an oxymoron. You can’t ship them off to the grandparents every time you need to vacuum, however, so it’s best to figure out how to keep the kids happy and clean at the same time. Here are some tips:
Get them involved
Kids are like worker bees — they’ll work and work and work at stacking blocks, building a sand castle and raking a pile of leaves over and over again, just to jump in it. It’s time to put that energy to good use! Involve your kids in cleaning parts of the house from a young age. You can give them a sponge or baby wipe to do some dusting while you tackle the dirt and grime with steam cleaners. They’ll be occupied and you can buzz around them to get the spots they can’t reach. You’ll all enjoy the feeling of accomplishment when the task is done!
Crank up the tunes
Make the cleaning process fun. Blast some of your favorite songs throughout the house and you can dance while you work. It’s amazing how some upbeat music can get those little feet moving. An added bonus? You can consider it a workout, too!
Wear a costume
Another way to keep the smiles on your kids’ faces while you tidy up is for all of you (yes, that includes the moms and dads!) to clean in costume. Put on the white coat that came with your daughter’s doctor’s kit or your son’s firefighter’s hat and join the young’uns to make the cleaning hour fun for all.
Make it a game
Utilize your children’s creative minds and have them make up a cleaning game. It could be as simple as setting a timer and seeing how fast you can all clean a room. Or, play “hide and seek” with the toys — so long as hiding them means putting them back in their boxes!
Do a toy purge
Finally, it’s hard to keep a house clean when there are millions of toys lying about. If you feel like your house is exploding with toys, do a “toy purge” every few months. Go through the toys — with your kids, so they aren’t surprised to find something missing! — and only keep items that they really play with a lot. Give the toys away to those less fortunate and your kids will learn an important lesson about sharing as well. So, start ‘em young and keep it fun. You’ll have a clean(er) house and your kids will feel great about helping out!
