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Last updated on April 8th, 2022 at 11:06 pm
You know as well, or maybe better than I do, that most families have two working parents. Somebody has to put bread on the table and pay for all those bills, extracurricular activities, etc, etc.
But somebody also has to make sure the house doesn’t become, well, crazy.
Although I am working mom, I work from home, so I am at a bit of an advantage when it comes to making sure the house doesn’t get out of control. But there are days when there is so much going on that I don’t have the time to put the dishes in the dishwasher or convince my daughter to pick up toys throughout the day.
And honestly, I’m not into this idea of doing a little bit of housework everyday …stuff like wiping the bathroom counters or running the vacuum every single day.
It feels like I’m a slave to housework. And, I ain’t got time for that.
(I do vacuum, clean counters, etc as needed. My mantra is, “If it’s messy, clean it.” That’s how things stay clean around here, but that’s another post.)
There are very few hours in the day, and for a lot of us, that time is spent getting ready to leave, doing the commute, working, doing the commute again, making meals, getting ready for bed, then doing it all over again.
Groundhog Day, anyone?
Instead of frantically trying to clean the bathroom every single day, here’s what I do: I batch my days.
A lot of entrepreneurs talk about this strategy of batching to get a bunch of stuff done at once. Why not do it at home?
So for all you working moms out there, and you stay-at-home-moms too, here’s a look at how I batch my chore days to keep home running smoother:
A simple batching schedule for working moms.
Monday night: Meal Prep Monday
Since my hubby works Tuesday through Saturday, Monday is the new Sunday around here. Tuesday is the start of our week, so I have to make sure food is ready.
I make a breakfast casserole that will last most of the week. Mornings run smoother when I don’t have to worry about making breakfast.
I also try to make a big batch of something for lunch too so that’s out of the way. I have a hard time feeding myself lunch, so this is a good exercise.
Tuesday night: Ironing
Yes, I iron my husband’s 20-something dress shirts he wears to work. This is something I put off because I don’t enjoy it (and I should probably outsource this, but, you know, money). I try to get enough done to last another week until I get around to it again.
Wednesday/Thursday: Cleaning Day
Depending on what’s happening during the week, I do ALL the housework in one evening, either on Wednesday or Thursday. Usually Thursday. Which means my daughter has to make sure all her toys are picked up or else the vacuum is going to eat them.
It sounds crazy, but here’s what I do:
Vacuum and mop
Clean the bathrooms (mirrors, counters, toilet, shower)
Dust furniture
Clean kitchen (wipe/clean appliances, counters)
Friday: Time for fun
To me, there’s nothing more relaxing to waking up on Friday, ready to roll into the weekend with a spankin’ clean house. It’s my favorite. It makes me feel free to go play and not have housework hanging over my head.
Saturday/Sunday: Meal planning
At some point over the weekend I come up with a meal plan and head to the grocery store. It’s not a complicated process, but you can find out details about how I got started and how I do it on a weekly basis.
Rotating batch day: Laundry
I do my best to get all the laundry done in one day. (Although I admit that I sometimes leave laundry in the dryer overnight because who likes folding laundry?) Laundry batch day usually comes every 2-3 days. For me, it’s easier to do it all at once than to do one load every single day.
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It doesn’t take much to get your home a little more tidy and organized. Batching, or making a theme, for my days helps me to keep things running smoothly throughout the week without wondering what I should do next. Having a system cuts down on the need to make decisions about what to and when.
As a working mom, the fewer decisions I have to make, the better.
Get started with batching by downloading the free 10-Minute Tidying Checklist.
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