balancing act
 

how do you balance getting daily chores done (laundry, dishes, cooking, tidying up) with bigger projects like decluttering?

it's so hard for me to get anything done when my kids are so demanding, but if iwant a peaceful home, i really need it to be decluttered. any tips?

Re: balancing act
 

Small pieces. Rather than "Declutter the Closet!", think about "Every time I wander into this room I will take 2 things out of the closet that shouldn't be there."

Re: balancing act
 

Bigger projects and decluttering just wait untill I have a chunk of time I can dedicate to the task.. :shrug3
I need to do our bedroom for example we've piled a lot of thigs I need to go through in corners and such.. It is going to wait untill our Christmas break and sometime I'll have DH take the kids out and let me work uninterputed so I can get it done... :shrug3

Daily- we do general house work and tidying up one big clean then 1-2 smaller quick tidy ups.

Dishes- done as we go catch up during big clean time

Laundry gets done through out the week as needed with big catch up times on Fridays..

Depending on age of kids and season of live "clean and tidy" looks different. :giggle

Re: balancing act
 

This has been the way I approach it recently and it really works. We got star stickers and aimed for one item gone every day and we out a sticker on th calendar when we did it. It ended up being easier than I though my and now our house is much less cluttered, though of course there's still plenty to do!

Re: balancing act
 

i need to use an app my friend suggest. "unfilth your habitat" [for iOS, the Android version has profanity in the title]. she says its helped her cut out so many things, but its in bite size pieces that are timed for either 5, 10 or 20 minutes.

Re: balancing act
 

I've used this. They have a website and all that. It makes things easier I think

Re: balancing act
 

I will generally increase the daily chores and then have a large chuck of time for a project. For example, make it my goal to have all the laundry done, kitchen clean and something easy planned for dinner the next day by Friday night so that I can focus my time on Saturday. When I declutter, sometimes I make a bit of a mess as part of the process and I don't want it left at the end of the day. Also planning it for a time when dad can take the littles somewhere for a bit helps a lot.

Re: balancing act
 

I have fallen off the wagon and need to get back into the cleaning and decluttering routine again.
But what I did was do five minutes at a time all day. You would be amazed at what can be done in five minutes. When the kids undo it, you only had five minutes instead of two hours and it is not a big deal. As I did my cleaning, I would toss something to go away into the laundry basket, bag, box or other container that I brought with me for that purpose. Once I fill up a bag, I load it into my van and take it to goodwill or whatever is nearest to me. When I was seriously paring down things, I would schedule a pick up a week or so ahead of time and then leave bags and bags outside for the pick up men. It was such a good feeling.
If I had a specific thing to be done like cleaning out the closet, I would plan on it taking a week and do five minutes at a time all week. I usually had it done in less than a week, but having that buffer is really helpful.

Re: balancing act
 

For decluttering, I set a timer for 10 minutes and go in there with a huge garbage bag and a box. The box is for things to donate, the bag is for things to throw away. I'm ruthless for 10 minutes and can easily fill a garbage bag.

For cleaning, efficiency is my secret weapon. I have a spray bottle of my homemade all-purpose cleaner in every bathroom and one in the kitchen. I keep microfiber rags in every spot, too. I have several brooms and dust pans in strategic locations. I'm saving up to have an extra vacuum, one for each floor. This way, if I'm in a room and notice it needs sweeping, I have what I need and can do it in a minute or two. I do a quick wipe of the bathroom mirrors and sink a few times a week and a thorough cleaning about once a week. Since everything is right there, I don't have to plan, I can just do it when I happen to go in there. I use disposable Swiffer dusters because they work, they work fast, and it's one less thing to think about. Plus my kids love to dust if I hand them one of those.

I do not allow food out of the kitchen. Shoes and boots get taken off as soon as they come in. Coat racks and Command hooks at kid-friendly heights keep things off the floor and easy to find.

It's horribly shameful :giggle but I'm not crafty and I'm allergic to scrapbooking. I toss 99% of my kids papers. If they create something that they love, I pin it up on their wall. I stopped feeling guilty long about for not saving their things. My mom saved my things in a big box and I never looked at it.

A huge cause of modern stress is our over accumulation of STUFF. You are giving yourself a gift of peace by reducing your possessions. :yes

Re: balancing act
 

I'm like Lisa.....I set a timer for a certain amount of time and then work until it goes off. If I'm not done :shrug I just stop anyway.

Small and steady I say :smile