The Clean House Conundrum

So I have a child who does not like to play independently.  My almost four year old is not the type to go off into a room and play with a toy by herself.  She likes company, and if you ask her why she does not like to play alone, she will tell you that she does not like to be lonely.  How can I argue with that? There are personalities in this world that are more social, and enjoy the presence of others.

In truth I should feel good that my child wants to play with me, she likes me!  Yay, I am doing something right!  Not to mention the fact that this too is just a stage that will come to an end, and won't I feel like an ass if I let this phase pass by and then it is too late?  She will not want to play "Princess" with me forever.

As much as I love playing with my daughter, the reality of the situation is that we do own a house that requires some attention.  Cooking, cleaning, laundry, organizing...blah, blah, blah.  So after much deliberation I have come up with some ideas on how to solve this dilemma.  Main idea here is that I do not want to hurt my daughter's feelings, I hate saying, "No, I do not want to play with you."  I feel like that is offending.

Here is my list, ways I get things done without using the words, "No, I do not want to play with you:"

1.  I pretend I am "Cinderella of the Castle" and the evils make me do all of these chores all by myself :(  My daughter then saves the day by helping me do the work.  We pretend to be princesses who need to finish their work before they can play.  Worked every time so far!

 *This scenario can be changed to fit the like of your own child.  You can be superheroes that have to save the land from the mess monsters, or house doctors who have to make the sick house feel better.*

2.  I compromise.  I tell her I can play for some amount of time, then I need that same amount of time to do "Mommy Work."  This is a great way to teach the balance of relationships, you are after all how your children learn to create their own accords.

3.  I do housework during her quiet time.  This can be challenging if you have more than one at home, you have to bank on them both being quiet at the same time...YIKES!

4.  My daughter has a chore chart.  This in detail is a new blog post on its own, but in short, she has to do two chores a day and gets paid for her work.  I conveniently make her chores convenient for me :)

5.  We make dinner together, she loves helping in the kitchen.  There are so many kitchen tasks for little hands, and she is learning so much.  And of course, the quality time is invaluable <3

I am not claiming to have this whole clean house, totally organized thing down to a science.  There are plenty of times when I should have mopped the floor yesterday.  We also have eggs for dinner a lot.  However, I can say that most of the time we have things (slightly) under control :) 

Keeping Toys (semi) Organized!

I love the abundance of toys my daughter has, and I personally feel lucky that she can enjoy so many play things.  Knowing that not every child is as fortunate assists in my appreciation for her games, dolls, puzzles, books, blocks, and all the other toys she collects.  Rather than wish my house was bigger, or her playthings would evaporate, I do my best to keep them organized.  I do believe that some amount of toy clutter stimulates and develops a child's imagination, so I do not go overboard.  I like to think of my home as "pleasantly plump!"  I am not embarrassed to have unexpected guests, however, there is a cozy and lived in feeling when you come in to my house.

First, I completely accept  that having little ones means that there will be toys in just about every room.  I keep 1-2 pretty baskets or bins in the master bedroom, a toy chest and a bin in my daughters room, some shelves in the living room, and an empty drawer in the kitchen.  My daughter also has a playroom where most of her toys are kept.

Next, my husband and I decided on a few house rules concerning which toys are kept in which places.  For example, in my daughters's room we keep stuffed animals and some of her books, since her room should be associated with sleeping.  In addition, we decided to only have the amount of toys that fit on the shelves in the living room.  We do not want two playrooms in our house!

The playroom is probably the most challenging to keep organized, but my system seems to be working well for clean up time.  Besides the large floor toys which are always out, I have a toy organizer and four bins.  Each bin has a "general" theme.  Next to my daughter's play kitchen, I have one bin to store all of her kitchen/home accessories.  One bin contains arts and crafts, like crayons, construction paper, sticker, and stamps.The other two bins are larger toys like trucks, shape sorters,and instruments.  My little one's toy organizer is on the small side, so I use those small bins for the little knickknacks she collects that would otherwise have no home :)

I should also mention that all of my bins, except for arts and crafts, do not have lids.  This makes it easier for everyone to take out toys, or put them away.  Furthermore, at the end of every day, my husband and I spend about ten minutes clearing the floors of each room, and putting my daughter's playthings in a bin.

With general rules for where toys are kept, and having containers in many locations,  cleaning up is a breeze.  In fact, my toddler understands where some things go, and can help put things away as well.  Rather than keeping everything in one area, spread it out, and keep storage simple!

Cheap Tricks That Work

So, I took the weekend off from blogging; and came back with a great topic! I made a list of tricks, that is, little strategies I use around the house that help get things done easily and cheaply.

1.  This "trick" was passed down by my husband's grandma, and it is one of my favorites.  If you have ants, put a dryer sheet where you see the little critters.  The ants take the substance and bring it to their nest.  I want to add here that we recently had an ant issue in our bathroom, and this trick worked within two days of the dryer sheet placement.

2.  If you have glass shower doors, keep used dryer sheets near the shower.  When you are done showering, use the sheets to quickly wipe the glass to prevent soap scum.

3.  Add two dry wash clothes to your dryer right before starting a cycle.  Some of the moisture gets absorbed, and it cuts about 20 minutes from the drying time.

4.  Kitchen sponges are notorious for collecting bacteria, and the main cause is leaving them wet.  After using your sponge, put it in the microwave for two minutes.  It quickly dries the sponge, and you prevent the smelly mold and bacteria from forming.  You will not need to replace your sponge as often, and it is also much more sanitary.

5.  Use baking soda to clean your garbage disposal.  Just run cold water from the faucet, and turn on your disposal. Pour about a tablespoon of baking soda down the drain while the water  and disposal are on, and you have a clean, odor free garbage disposal.

7.  Use empty tissue boxes to store plastic grocery bags in your closet.  I also have an empty box in my bathroom to store used dryer sheets  for the shower door (trick #2).

If you have tips and tricks, leave them in a comment!  The more the merrier :)

HOW TO CLEAN A BATHTUB WITH MINIMAL EFFORT

This is one of my favorite easy cleaning tips.  It requires little active time, is super easy, and inexpensive.

1.  Plug the tub drain so that the water can fill up.

2.  Pour about two cups of bleach into the tub.

3.  Fill the rest of the tub with water.

4.  Let the bleach and water soak the tub for a couple of hours.  I usually do about two hours.

5.  Drain the tub.

6.  Rinse well with water.

7.  Any soap scum, grime, or dirt should wipe away easily with a towel.

8.  Rinse well again. 

I use my shower head to rinse the tub.