How to keep a house clean with kids?

HEY MAMAS, what’s your secret to a clean house with kids?? I have a 5 year old, 4 year old and 2 year old, all girls and a 2 month old boy i’m breastfeeding Things are overwhelming between the breastfeeding, and potty training my 2 year old, and trying to keep up with the house and breaking up all the girls little fights. I give the girls outside play time, it seems like every time i blink another toy is out, or another cup is spilled or more clothes are pulled off there hangers. Whats your secret to a clean house and organization? Limiting down on everything?

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Have them pick up after themselves.

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My mom said we could only have one toy out at a time. It didn’t always work, since there were 5 of us, but on the rare occasion we followed that rule, we’d get a cookie or something.

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Let them help with house work. If they mess it up they should clean it up.

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They have to learn to pick up after playing . It’s the only way !

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I let my kids have a sweet after dinner if thay won’t it thay have to make sure the lounge is tidy before thay get it .

nothing your pretty much screwed :wink:
seriously though age appropriate chores and reward charts are amazing at those ages.
also, don’t underestimate them when it comes to helping praise always goes much further than yelling and punishment. they will want to help more and more for praise and maybe a small reward every now and then

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We have a cube organizer for toys, only one cube is allowed out at a time. And we pickup the house before bed every night so it doesn’t all pile up.

Lol well for starters make them pick up their messes!!! Then do what you can when you can. You can’t have a clean house and live in it too. And I don’t mean nasty by that either. Mines always messy and mine are 19/15&14 :woman_shrugging:t2: I gave up on a clean house 19 years ago lol

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Make them help they aren’t too young. I can’t remember when I wasn’t made CLEAN

No secret, messy house always equals happy kids. It’s impossible with that many under 5…

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Wait 18 years itll get better…

I clean up all day… I deep clean on Saturdays but i sometimes have a house keeper to come help

Clean all day every day. Lol if I don’t clean or do laundry for one day it’s like it all goes down hill.

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I have a 7yr old boy 6&4 yr old girls and 2&1 yr old boys we make them clean up after themselves and help with daily cleaning if its theirs they help with it laundry dishes toys they help with all and my house is completely clean every night before bed its really not to bad if u get them to help and in a daily routine of cleaning after themselves

I have a clean house when they go to bed.

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Give em a clean wet wipe while you’re trying to clean and tell them the dirtiest one is the winner. They love that, I did it in my preschool class, LOL

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I have 7 year old, 6 year old and a 1 year old boys and we clean up twice a day. Once in the afternoon and once around bedtime. Give them chores to help!

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Give toys away, see if you can get someone even hired help to clean, lower your standards for right now

I have a 7yo, 6yo, and a 4 month old and I breastfeed the baby. I only let them do one activity/toy at a time and when they finish, they clean it up themselves. I make breakfast and lunch in advance for the next day when they go to bed at night so all I have to do is put it on PAPER plates (early bedtime is key: 7:30pm). I also used to set out their clothes the night before too but now they’re old enough to pick them out themselves. Just try to teach them to do as many things themselves independently as possible. And sometimes your house is just gonna be messy and that’s okay!

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I clean all day while they are at school in about 5min being home it don’t look like I did anything I honestly gave up

Chores.
Pink basket, blue basket, white basket - to separate laundry.
Have a dishwasher, the 4yo can rinse and the 5yo can load.
Dusting - give the 2yo some wipeys.
Make it a game.

Give them each a dollar, make them hold it on the wall with their nose, whoever doesn’t drop it gets to keep all the money - at least buy you some time to get things done in the meantime :woman_shrugging:

Limiting accessible items can be helpful. If they pull clothes off hangers, perhaps only put them in a dresser until they are a little older. My youngest is now 3 and we are just now getting out of the toddler tornado stage. Meals are easier to clean up after. No more sippy cups. Potty training is almost complete :raised_hands:t2: There is an end to the madness. Then it starts up again around 10 or 11 years old. At least it has for us - dirty clothes and toiletries all over :rofl:

Mine were taught to help clean around the house… We make it fun… Blare some music, and start picking up… Toys go into toy boxes, clothes in hamper, so on… And we always started early too! My 2 yr old cleans up after herself after eating at the table even! When kids are really young, they follow their mommas (or daddys) around… Include them when your cleaning… So say your loading the washer , let the kids help! They can throw clothes in it and if you measure out the detergent you can show them how to add it… And so on…

Minimize all items. Really only keep what you need. Not 5 of one thing you need each.

Make cleaning fun! Now he gets mad if I don’t let him help!

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I cleaned my house all the time… was very adamant that it be clean. Then realized my kids would only be little once and started worrying about kitchen and bathroom only so that we could play more together. Had toy boxes throughout the house to store played with toys. Now it is just my husband and I and I do miss the messes the kids would leave while playing.

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sell the kids lol…
nah mine was really good, but more kids, came more stuff… i have 5 kids and way too much stuff…i need to down size big time. less is more…
luckily only 4 kids home, but still i swear i have enough for 10 kids

My secret is evict everyone!

Find a new dream girl

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What’s this clean house you talk of?

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Homestly, I got rid of SO MUCH STUFF in this house. Toys, clothes, everything that isnt being used either donated or thrown away… My kids are 5, 2, 1 & newborn. They have a small container of toys that they can play with during the day. I force them to clean up after themselves and its not easy but things have gotten easier…

Mom of 5. My 2 biggest things. A: I don’t go to bed with dirty dishes in the sink because looking at it overwhelms you and B: I do a complete load of laundry every day (wash, dry, fold, put away). It’s only 15 minutes and keeps you from getting backed up because that again, naturally overwhelms you.

Girl we in the same boat!!! I send the big kids outside while the baby naps shes 3 months. I do a big clean then. And then all the way until bedtime I’m picking up as I go. And right before bed I finish the kitche make my coffee pot ready for the morning. Sleep and repeat.
Cleaning out clutter in my 3rd trimester helped with this alot.

Start putting together chore charts and schedules and play outside as much as you can start a chart for good behavior with prizes or a special trip at the end of the week

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Lol there us no secret. There is no clean house. Lol. If u clean when they sleep u will have at least 3 seconds b4 they smell the cleanliness wake up and destroy it all over again. It is a never ending battle

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Same goes for the clean house

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I clean up things right away that baby (7months) could possibly swallow or hurt herself with but other stuff I’ll just wait till they go to bed :woman_shrugging::joy:

I have it a little easier 16 13 5 2 and my 7 yr old nephew my teens help out a lot they take the little kids to the park ect while I clean hmm hmm nap :sleeping: I clean most of the time though my little ones help with their chores

There is no clean house. Only children leaving destruction in their wake. Throw it away if it’s broken or useless or has more than 5 pieces. Otherwise just embrace the chaos or it will drive you mad if you try to clean every second of every day.
The people who have spotless houses are magicians who must not own any belongings. I don’t know …

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Have them help like cleaning up their own toys and what not. My two year old helps with dusting and cleaning up his toys. Meal prep helps with the kitchen mess. Have veggies/fruits pre cut and washed in baggies that they can grab and serve themselves. As much as it sucks try and get as much of that kind of thing done after they go to bed as you can.

Your kids are happy. Your house is lived in and that’s how it should be❤️

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I have a 5 year old little girl and 2 year old little girl. I’m also a SAHM and a SOLO parent (daddy is military). We keep a schedule I do certain tasks on certain days. Monday- bathrooms Tuesday- clean out fridge, meal prep, de clutter for trash day Wednesday- trash day, run errands and laundry Thursday- clean bedrooms Friday- clean living areas and laundry. I take Saturday and Sunday off and make sure the dishwasher is always full and the sink is empty. I keep none seasonal clothing in totes. I keep their toys sorted and in totes and if they want something different to play with they have to clean up what they currently have. My chores usually take me 30-45 minutes a day so I try to tackle them during nap time or give the girls a craft or play doh to do while I do them.

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What is this clean house you speak of?? Ive never heard of such a thing​:joy::joy:

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Hiring a cleaning service was THE BEST DECISION I ever made… EVER!!! Two hours, once a week, worth every penny.

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Yes, limit down on everything and don’t allow toys outside of their bedrooms. Keep the baby in a moby wrap, put a kids potty in the room your cleaning with the 2 year old close by.

I clean up pretty much all day. When kids are in bed then I pick up toys for the last time and I sweep and mop.

Honey their aint no use in shoveling a drive way when its still snowing outside!

Just try to teach good habits and make “pick up time” a fun, team effort!

One day you’ll miss picking up the messes you stress about!

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I also don’t allow toys in my living room. They have a play room where their toys go

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I have a 2 & 1 yr old. I’ve baby proofed && there’s decorations they know not to touch, I let them play w their toys and get as messy w them as they want (so it’s just toys all around my house), before nap time, we collectively clean && I’ll vacuum/sweep, then nap time. During nap time, I’ll catch up on dishes from that morning/afternoon && laundry. Once they wake up it’s pretty much repeat until bedtime.

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I live by “2 minute task”
If I can do it in 2 minutes or less I do it right then.
So nothing ever really builds up

Lower you expectations lol.

Lock their closets. I limit the amount of toys my oldest has. To like at the most maybe 20. As far as the fights go,I’d tell them if they can’t get along…they can go to their rooms. I breastfeed my 10 month old. It is a struggle…so exhausting. But I don’t wanna quit till she is ready to do so. I also limit the amount of sugar my oldest gets. She gets 1 cup a tea a day I’d she is good. Otherwise she gets water from the brita. No junk food unless she is good. I rarely give her candy. Like maybe once a week.

We have 2 time outs a day where we stop and put on the cleanup song… make it a dance party.

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It’s all very normal my kids are a little older and the house still us messy I’m convinced I wont have a clean house til they move out lol

The joy of motherhood and young children

No clean house with kids…

Toys stay in their rooms, we (6yr, 3yr and myself) all do daily chores(they have chores chart, 6each) and we do them together. They do not get screen time or fun activities tell choirs are done. They get rewards for full week of chores compleated. My daughter earns extra rewards by doing extra chores. We turn up the radio and spend about 30 mins cleaning each day.

I have 9 kids and they all do chores to help keep the house clean. I try 2 stay organized and keep up on stuff the best i can.

I just pick up all day and make my older ones help. At nightime i spend 10 quick mins cleaning so i can relax. Its hetic but will get better. Teach them to clean young!

Clean house? I think that’s once the kids move out. :rofl: I have 7 kids, ages 3-14. For one, realizing that your old ideas of clean (you know, the pinterest worthy house) won’t exist. Two, give the older ones responsibility. An hour before bed is when I have my kids do their chores (some days they even get them done!) As for the arguments, pick which you get involved in. You won’t always be there to intervene in their disputes. Let them learn to work things out. If it turns physical, get involved. If the arguing lasts longer than 15 minutes, after a warning half way through, then either time out/sent to rooms (if separate rooms), or whatever toy they are fighting over gets taken from both for the rest of the day.

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Oh honey…a clean house with small children is just an old wives tale! There’s really no such thing…:blush:

I have teenagers and still have to work at it. Teach them good habits and clean while they nap if it’s that much of a must…enjoy them over cleaning because one day you’ll miss the messes and fights… my son is 19 and I so wish he was 2 again…my step daughter will be 18 in 5 months…enjoy it momma…

If you can afford 4 children get a maid.

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Girl I’d be impressed that you put pants on! I have a 3 year old and 2 month old and the house stays relatively clean but I in no way worry about it being clean and organized, if it happens it happens :woman_shrugging:t3:

I clean after they are all in bed

Lower your standards of “clean” lol

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I have 4 and the stepson. Clean house is a joke the older kids have chores. It’s not to bad but before any play time, screen time, or taking off to hang out with friends chores first. It normally leaves me with maybe 20 minutes of work maybe. Baby bottles, pacifier, and toys are normally all that’s left at night. The longer it takes to do your chore the less time you have to play. After a few weeks my stepson learned quickly that if he dragged doing dishes or didn’t do the dishes right the first time you can’t do what you enjoy. So if everyone else is outside playing with your dad than you are stuck doing dishes. They spend maybe an hour doing it now

They can help pick their own stuff up. The older ones can sweep or vacuum,clean off table.

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I have a 10,6,5,4 and a 1 year old. They all have jobs and responsibilities. Our home is pretty clean for the most part

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It’s a great dream to have

My sister used to tell me, “Today, while I was finding one room, I was losing another"

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Dedicated toy/play room.
When my girls were younger we we’re lucky enough to have an extra room that they both shared as strictly a play area and toys weren’t allowed out. Every evening after bed I’d clean it up alittle then once they were alittle older they had to clean it up before bed.
Now w our son we have zero extra space so I try to make dedicated play “zones” but i try to keep it liveable but not go crazy then clean before bed.

The secret is lowering your expectations lol. Waaaay down :joy:

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Make a game out of it with u three years old

I meant five yr old lol

Lowering my expectations :rofl:

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Drop your standards a little for now mum. Everything will fall into place. Give the girls chores to do😊

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The secret is. FuCK the MESS. Aslong as things are clean. Who cares about toys ect. Just relax ur doing a great job. I have 3 kids 4 and under. I get basics done and the relax and enjoy time with them.

I’m thinking getting a separate house in my yard just for me that no one is allowed in. That’ll be clean :woman_shrugging:

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You won’t remember the messes when they’re older. :green_heart:
Don’t keep all toys out at once. Clean up right after all are in bed.
And instill chore duties early on, with them.

Get them picking their clothes up to put in a clothes basket…Toys in toy box …Teach them early to pick up after them selves and it’s easier for u…make a game of it …Give them there own clothes box and they’ll love tryin to fill it…even if it’s card board box

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Me and my 2 year old clean up all toys before we go to bed and watch one of his movies. Doesnt matter how tired we all are, I refuse to get up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom and die because of the land mine.

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It’s never going to be perfect clean till they all move out but they kids can help put tops away and do little jobs but messes are a part of kids and it’s ok for the house to not be perfect but lived in.

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5&4 is old enough for them to pick up after themselves . If they take it out, have them put it back. Easy as that.
If they can’t listen, and can’t pick up after themselves (don’t expect it to be perfectly put away either lol) then no toys. Again, at that age, they are capable of putting stuff away.
Breastfeeding and potty training really are not preventatives for teaching kids responsibility .

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I clean all day every day lmao

I’m a dictator. Lol drinks go on the table on no where else. When I say pick up they pick up or I take it, I currently have a cupboreds with cars in it because my son tried being stubborn about it.
I make them clean their own rooms, occasionally I’ll help or just do it if it’s not bad and I’m cleaning. My son’s new thing is to ask if I’ll sit in his room with his while he cleans.

There’s no hope lol…just set a time for everyone to play the clean up game, maybe before dad gets home from work or right before bedtime. I have 7 children and I definitely had to lower my cleanliness standards :joy:

You don’t get to have 4 kids and a clean house.

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You’re not raising a clean house, you are raising children. The mess will NEVER be clean! Good luck

Please stop naming children as “kids”?

That’s alot of kids. Give up till they are old enough to help you. But its never too early to have them help with little things. Kids love to be helpful.

Unfortunately there is no easy answer… teach your older girls games to put their things away, other than that you can’t really control anything else! Children and babies are messy and will always be messy, you just gotta roll with it and clean what you can when you can

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You have to put something away in order to get another toy out and if I had to put it away the toy was taken away for a specified period of time. And seven minutes to heaven (translated into seven minutes of me doing absolutely nothing while they ran around trying to beat the clock that really didn’t exist. That seven minutes sometimes became an entire half hour. They just kept going until they heard that ding. The winner would change each night. The prize was something simple like an extra page of reading at bedtime.
And then they learned how to tell time…

I get the kids to pick up by threatening to throw the stuff away .
I battled with them for months before I one day got tired of it and chucked some of their stuff in the bin.
The kids now clean up every time I ask them to
I can understand it’s harsh but it’s the only method that worked :see_no_evil:

For the most part I just try to stay on top of the laundry and dishes everything can wait

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just do the best you can and dont expect it to be spotless and beat your self up over it with this many kids and an infant yoou have your hand full for sure so if you have to let some things go so what the world wont end because of it hang in there and good luck

Well for starters, you teach them to pick up after themselves from an early age & stick with it. Sure it’s “easier” to do it yourself, but then what are you left with? Kids who don’t pick up after themselves because they figure mom will just do it anyway so why should I bother. It’s about teaching responsibility! My son (age 2) took all his books off the shelf on purpose the other night, I made him stand there until he picked them up. You either clean up your mess or mommy gets the garbage bag it’s as simple as that.