Everything You Need To Know To Make Your Own Stay At Home Mom Cleaning Schedule!

What is the most cumbersome and hated task that moms have to tackle? Most moms I know, including moi, will blurt out the word “CLEANING” without a second’s thought. And, why not??

Moms have their plates not just full but overflowing. And in the midst of that, who has the time and the energy for the mammoth weekly cleaning sessions and the nagging daily clean-ups.

Plus, don’t get me wrong here, my children are my pride and joy; they complete me, but I have to be fair and say that regardless of their age, kids are mess-makers and clutter-makers extraordinaire!

And clutter just adds to the burden and the difficulty of keeping the homestead sparking clean.

As if all of that is not enough to stress moms out, the fact is that a messy environment contributes significantly to your stress and depression levels, and it leads to a general sense of helplessness and hopelessness.

But, here is the biggest problem- The thing with dirt and clutter is that they are an avalanche in the making. If you don’t get a grip on this early on, it can quickly turn into an overwhelming situation.

So, continue reading to know how a stay at home mom cleaning schedule can help you to keep things firmly in control and how to plan a cleaning schedule that will work for you. But, first the all-important question.

My home is in disarray – have I failed?

I know that an unkempt home is an energy sapper and de-motivator. But, despite all that, the mess around you is no more than just a mess. It does not reflect at all on your mommy skills.

Yes, I have endured the berating inner monologue that calls you lazy and hopeless when you see that everybody else seems to have a grip on the stay at home mom situation, except for you.

But, the fact is that working the homestead like a well-oiled machine is simply about getting the right plan in place and then following it.

It’s a habit that you have yet to inculcate, is all. So, whatever you do, don’t read too much into it because that will only hamper your progress. Having said that, let’s talk about why some mommies simply cannot keep up with their cleaning plan.

Not every stay at home mom cleaning schedule is right for you!

From a home cleaning perspective, there are two kinds of people- Those who like to go for “magazine” clean and those who want it to be “acceptably” clean.

The first kind derive personal gratification from a spotless home and hence don’t mind investing 2 to 3 hours a day to achieve those results. Then, there is the second kind that wants to do the bare minimum and don’t mind if the results are far from perfect.

Before you choose a cleaning schedule, ask yourself, which one are you? Think back to your pre-stay at home mom days or even to your teen years. Once you figure this out, it will be easier to create a stay at home mom schedule that suits your specific requirements.

Believe me when I say this – Just like all other aspects of life and home-keeping, there are no cookie cutter solutions to this one either. If you are not a type 1 person, let alone the actual work, but even the schedule that includes all those chores will overwhelm and tire you.

If you are not a type 2 person, the “clean only as much as required” approach will leave you with the feeling that you haven’t done your job as well as you could have and should have. So, it is crucial to understand your cleanliness temperament before you get down to scheduling.

The Must-Do vs. The Should-Do vs. The Want-To-Do Cleaning Chores! 

The must-do tasks

Regardless of your inner-cleanliness quotient, there are some cleaning tasks that are absolutely non-negotiable.

And, I promise, you won’t have trouble telling them apart from chores that are negotiable. Yes, I am talking about tasks that are more than just an eyesore; these also quickly turn into a health sore.

Now, some may argue that any cleaning task left undone for too long can turn into a health hazard. I agree with that statement, but some of these chores have to be handled daily or at least very frequently and are crucial to your very ability to live a normal, comfortable and healthy life.

Some of these are common to all homes such as:

1. Dishes
2. Kitchen
3. Laundry
4. The bed
5. Unhygienic mess (poo, pee, mud, pet dander/hair, etc.) (maybe)

Of course, these may change based on the inhabitants of a home. For instance, I have 4 boys in my home, including my husband and 3 of them share a bathroom and well they are boys, need I say more?

So, in my house along with 1-3 above, the bathroom is also a high priority area.

But, we don’t have pets and my boys are well beyond the diaper stage, so I don’t have to worry about biological soils, so to speak. I am sure by now you know what these tasks are in your home.

They have to be done, and they have to be done over and over again every other day or even every day. So, these definitely need to go in your daily cleaning list, even if you keep all else out.

The should-do tasks

Think of this as the last 20% of cleaning chores, the tip of the iceberg if you will. It takes a while to get theses done and completing these tasks contributes no more than 20% to the overall look of your home on a day to day basis.

In my home, that would be the rugs in the bedroom, the window sills, the upholstery, the floors, etc. Simply put, these are chores that can be done once a week, biweekly or on a daily rotating basis.

So, you can either devote 3-4 hours to these tasks every weekend or tackle one item on your weekly cleaning list every day, spending no more than 15- 20 minutes on it.

Personally, I like this approach because it leaves me with more free time over the weekend when the whole family is at home. But, how you do things is up to you.

The want-to-do tasks

And finally we are on the third category of chores- These are those that you tackle as and when the need arises. In this list, I have the oven, refrigerator, pantry and beddings. I will handle these areas/items/tasks either when they show signs of being in need of attention or once a month/two months.

I reserve these for the weekend and sometimes even divide the task over two weekends. Plus, I am very particular about getting as much help from the family as possible with these. After all, if a family that eats together stays together, so does a family that cleans together!

Now, I want you to make a list of the must-do and the should-do tasks and set it aside for the moment. Read the next two sections, and we’ll come back to this list.

Think Of How Much You Want To Clean And When!

Like all other aspects of your cleaning schedule, the when and how much should also be tailored for your individual needs and abilities.

For instance, I am at peak energy level in the morning, so I like to tackle my cleaning in the A.M hours. If I leave them off for later I know fatigue and boredom will compel me to push them to tomorrow

But, not everybody is a morning person. Some people like to reserve their morning for other tasks or are compelled to do so because they don’t want their schedule to conflict with that of the others in the household.

Also, let’s be real – cleaning is not exactly an enjoyable task no matter how much satisfaction you derive from a spick and span home. Plus, a lot of these chores are physically taxing.

So, instead of one laboriously long cleaning session, I like to spread my tasks over two sessions. This way I can do the heavy lifting in my peak-energy hours.

You will also have to consider your requirements when planning your cleaning schedule. For instance, most households need clean dishes in the morning. We are a family of 5 and we mostly start our breakfast with cereals and fruits. So, we don’t use a lot of dishes in the morning. Also, we are usually a twosome or threesome at lunch. Hence, I can wait till the end of the day to tackle the full load of dirty dishes. This way, I also have clean tableware at the start of the day.

But, say you are somebody who likes to start with a big breakfast, you may want to tackle the dishes, one half at a time. So, something like half a load in the first half of the day and another at the end of the day may work better for you.

So, you see how such things have to be tailored to meet your specific requirements? All things considered, generally, your cleaning slot/slots would be placed something like this:

Twice daily

I have already told you that this is the option that I prefer. It works well for those who don’t want to spend more than 30-45 minutes at a time on cleaning tasks. As discussed above, reserve the labor-intensive chores when you have the most energy and patience.

Every day

This is a once a day routine that works well for small households and for ladies who are working from home and want to get the cleaning done before they get down to work or want to keep it till they are done putting in their work hours.

Every alternate day

As the term suggests, with this option, the hard stuff is dealt with every alternate day. But, you will still have to spend about 30 minutes tackling your required daily cleaning chores.

Twice a week

I know many of you must be wondering, how can “twice a week” cleaning possibly work in a home with kids. Simple, this one works when the other members of the family do their bit to keep the homestead all shiny.

Weekend only

As above, this is an option that works when you don’t have much to do or don’t want to invest more than 0 minutes each day but don’t mind spending a good 4-5 hours scrubbing and washing over the weekend.

I am sure you must have noticed that with last 3 options, you will spend some time every day handling the required cleanings tasks. In terms of areas of your home to be cleaned, you can opt for one of these two approaches:

1. Piecemeal: Deal with each area, one task at a time/day. With this method, you can deal with more than one room of your home but it can take a week or more, depending on the amount of cleaning required, before you can see results.For instance, let’s say you want to deal with the bedrooms, the living area and the kitchen one chore at a time. So, you would probably start by changing the bed and pillow covers in the bedrooms, then move to vacuuming the carpets in the living area and then go to mopping the kitchen floor and so on.

2. Rotating: As the name suggests, with this approach you rotate your cleaning schedule, devoting a day or two to each room in the house. For example, you dedicate the first two days of the week to the bedrooms, then on Wednesday and Thursday you handle the living area, the porch, the entry way and you set aside Friday for deep cleaning the kitchen.

Now, the thing to remember here is that you should not let anything increase your cleaning time per day/weekday to more than 90-120 minutes.

Remember, you also have to devote some time to those “handle as they come your way” tasks, which will demand your attention every month, if not more frequently. Finally, let’s not forget the seasonal cleaning and decor which will also add to the amount of time you spend in the upkeep of your home.

So, it is imperative to keep things in perspective when it comes to the amount of total time invested in cleaning your home. If you ask me, I’d say follow the “let’s keep it realistically clean” rule.

Because at the end of the day, the time that you spend scrubbing is time that you could have spent with your kids/family. But this is just my take on the matter; you may feel differently about this, and that is quite alright!

A Few Things To Remember Before You Make Your Daily Cleaning Schedule 

1. Start on a clean slate

A mountain of dirty laundry and soiled dishes that threaten to overwhelm; dust soaked carpets, pet hair rolling off the upholstery like tumbleweed and more.

If this is the scene that awaits you as you chalk out your cleaning schedule, let me warn you that even the most meticulous planning won’t take you far.

The problem here is this – Cleaning is labor-intensive work. Plus, each task requires a certain amount of time to complete, and scrimping on this is simply not an option.

So, there is only so much that you can do in a day. Moreover, we only have a limited number of hours in a day that we can realistically dedicate to cleaning because there is just so much else to do.

This means, no matter how well planned your cleaning schedule, if you already have a mess on your hands, it will be a while before you’ll actually be able to follow your cleaning schedule. And the more you drift away from your plan, the higher will be the likelihood of you giving up on it completely.

To cut a long story short, get paid help; call in the cavalry of friends/other moms; enlist the support of your cousins, siblings or mom, do whatever it takes, but get the house at its cleanest before putting your cleaning plan into action.

Believe me when I say this – This is an absolute requirement to ensure that you get to implement and follow your cleaning schedule.

2. Do away with the clutter

This is the second most important thing to do and just as essential as the first one to ensure the success of your cleaning plan.

The problem with clutter is that it’s a true energy-sapper; not to mention that the more things you have lying about your home, the more space you offer for the accumulation of dust and dirt.

So, before you put your cleaning plan into force and even afterwards, make sure that you don’t have clutter impeding your progress. I like to deal with the clutter at the end of the day, so that in the morning I can start cleaning without wasting time on putting things back where they belong.

3. Follow through with your routine

This is vital to keep yourself motivated to follow through with your cleaning schedule each day and day after day.

Now, there is a very simple yet effective trick to ensure that you finish everything on your list. Don’t include more than 3-4 tasks to complete in one cleaning slot. If you follow this little piece of advice, you won’t tire yourself out.

4. Get into the habit of completing the cycle

This is a nifty hack to make sure that you don’t inadvertently add to your basket of chores and fall off your plan. When you start something see it to its very end.

For instance, if you wash a load of laundry each day, make sure that you have the clothes out of the drier and folded before day end.

Along the same lines, as soon as you are back from grocery shopping or any kind of retail outing, make sure your purchases are stacked as and where they should be immediately upon arrival. No matter how tired or bored you are, complete the cycle to ensure that the vestiges of chores left half-done don’t come to haunt you the next day.

5. Rally all the help you can get

Just because you are a stay at home mom does not mean that home-cleaning is exclusively your domain. Make sure that everybody in the family contributes towards maintaining a clean and tidy home.

When it comes to kids, cleanliness and tidiness are habits bests inculcated early on. So, start them young by getting your toddlers to stack their toys into boxes and having them help you with some of your cleaning chores.

As they grow older, hold them responsible for organizing their closets and book shelves and for picking up soiled clothes and taking them to the laundry room. Also, get them involved in the other cleaning chores.

I am warning you; this will not be easy but you have to be firm because this is not just about getting yourself a few extra set of hands but also about inculcating a life-transforming and life-impacting habits early on.

And while you are at it, don’t let the man of the house wiggle out of his share of the work either. For instance, in my house, changing the air filters, getting the appliances and car ready for winter/summer and the yard work is all left to my partner.

How much contribution you expect and get from your family members is up to you and the dynamics of your household. But the one thing that I do not recommend for stay at home moms is picking up after their loved ones. I know many of you will say – That’s what being a mom is all about!

But believe me when I say this – The whole endeavor can quickly turn into a thankless job and one that you will come to regret and detest. So, set the rules early on and stick to them.

6. Nobody can do everything at once

Here is another thing that you need to understand and remember clearly- It makes no sense to overload yourself with tasks that you know will take up all your time.

What you absolutely must not do is try to add this to your daily cleaning schedule. Instead leave it off for the weekend or better yet, divide it over two weekends.

A classic example of a particularly time consuming chore is cleaning up the pantry/the garage/the attic. Yes, you need to do this, but if you start your day with these tasks, I promise you won’t get anything else done.

In fact, chances are that even at the end of the day, you will still have more to work to do to complete these mammoth tasks. So, be realistic about what you can and cannot do in the half an hour or so that you have allotted to your daily cleaning sessions.

7. Finish your chores before day end

Last but not the least, try to get through your cleaning list for the day before sundown. If you have been slogging through the day, it is obvious that you won’t be able to get much done in the evening.

Plus, when your energy levels are low, it gets easy for your inner voice to convince you to leave the task for the next day, and that’s not what you want to do.

Even if your cleaning plan includes a PM slot for end of the day cleaning, reserve the absolute essentials and the simplest tasks for evening. 

Weekly Cleaning Schedule For Stay At Home Mom 

Monday AM (42 minutes)

• Make bed – 5 minutes (This I do immediately after I get up. Because my kids are old enough to make their own bed, I only have my own bed to worry about. So, I rarely spend more than 3 minutes on this task. But I like to give myself a slight margin because I change the pillow covers every alternate day.)

• After breakfast kitchen cleaning- 7-8 minutes (Only wiping the counter and loading the used dishes into the dishwasher. Because breakfast in my house is a simple affair, there aren’t a lot of dishes to tackle)

• Check the bathroom and wipe down the vanity area if required (5 minutes) (optional)

• Tackle one weekly cleaning chore: I use a rotational schedule and always start with the most used space in our home- the living area. So, on Monday, I spend 20-25 minutes vacuuming everything that I can get my eyes and hands on. Because my partner and I are big fans of minimalistic décor, we don’t have a lot of clutter that needs moving. So, it’s basically just the couch and the chairs, the curtains and the carpet.

 Monday PM (10 minutes) 

• After dinner kitchen cleaning- 10 minutes (as above) (once the dishes are clean, husband or kids handle drying and stacking the dishes. 

Tuesday AM (33 minutes) 

• Make bed – 5 minutes
• After breakfast kitchen cleaning – 7-8 minutes
• Laundry – 20 minutes (loading the washer and then transferring the clothes into the dryer)

 Tuesday PM (30 minutes) 

• Wipe down surfaces in the living area (tables, mantle, window sills) – 10 minutes (I tackle this early in the evening after my siesta.
• After dinner kitchen cleaning – 10 minutes (as above)
• Remove clothes from the dryer and fold (10 minutes)

Wednesday AM (28 minutes) 

• Make bed – 5 minutes
• After breakfast kitchen cleaning – 7-8 minutes
• Quick dusting of the porch and the wicker furniture in the backyard – 15 minutes

Wednesday PM (30 minutes) 

• Go through the boys bedrooms, assign cleaning chores, change sheets in all 3 bedrooms (I get my boys involved in this one) – 20 minutes
• After dinner kitchen cleaning – 10 minutes

Thursday AM (33 minutes)

• Make bed – 5 minutes
• After breakfast kitchen cleaning – 7-8 minutes
• Laundry – 20 minutes 

Thursday PM (27 minutes) 

• After dinner kitchen cleaning – 10 minutes
• Mop kitchen floor 7 minutes
• Remove clothes from the dryer and fold (10 minutes) 

Friday AM (33 minutes) 

• Make bed – 5 minutes
• After breakfast kitchen cleaning – 7-8 minutes
• Mop kitchen, living area and entryway floor – 20 minutes 

Friday PM (30 minutes) 

• Scrub bathroom (late afternoon) 20 minutes (We have 2 bathrooms and we have a rule that the one who uses the bathroom, wipes down the vanity area and leaves the bathtub and the bathing area suds and hair free.
• After dinner kitchen cleaning – 10 minutes

 Saturday AM (33 minutes) 

• Make bed – 5 minutes
• After breakfast kitchen cleaning – 7-8 minutes
• Laundry -20 minutes 

Saturday PM (20 minutes) 

• After dinner kitchen cleaning – 10 minutes
• Remove clothes from the dryer and fold (10 minutes)

Sunday AM (1 hour 45 minutes) 

• Make bed – 5 minutes
• After breakfast kitchen cleaning – 7-8 minutes
• Tending to my plants – 30-45 minutes (This is more a hobby than a chore)
• One monthly task/the want to do task/seasonal chore– 45 minutes to 1 hour 

Sunday PM (10 minutes) 

• After dinner kitchen cleaning – 10 minutes

Weekly Cleaning Chores

I divide my monthly chores across 4-5 weeks, tackling no more than one task per week. Typically, the list of monthly chores includes:

• De-cluttering closets, pantry, refrigerator, book shelves (one of these each month).
• Cleaning appliances (once every two months).
• Cleaning home décor items (once every two months).
• Wiping heavy furniture (once every two month).
• Cleaning the staircase (once a month).

When I have a weekend off from my monthly cleaning task, I devote the Sunday cleaning slot to my seasonal or quarterly chores. This list includes:

• Changing filters.

• Washing the heavy bedding items.
• Scrubbing the bathroom mats.
• Attic and basement cleaning (once a year).
• Seasonal décor additions (twice a year).
• Decor additions (remove, clean and store) (twice a year).
• Emergency upkeep (fix stuff that is broken or damaged or in need of some refurbishment).
• Change the drapes (3-4 times a year) (I have simple cotton drapes that are easy to remove, wash and put up)

I plan my weekly, quarterly and seasonal cleaning (the want to do stuff) at the beginning of the month. This helps me to keep track of the time spent on cleaning over the weekend.

In Conclusion….

Of course, I am not saying that the schedule above will work for you. But, I believe by now, you will have a clear idea of how to create your very own cleaning schedule; one that works for you, your family and your home.

 Having said that, remember that there will be a few hiccups and slip ups. But, try your hardest to stick to your schedule. If this means investing a couple of minutes more each day into your cleaning regimen, then so be it.

A cleaning plan is no different from any other routine; it does take a while to get the hang of it and to get it into your system. But, once you get used to the regimen, before you know, you will be done tackling the tasks.  And that is the level of optimization that you should be aiming for!