Preventing the mess!!! During chagim and now too!

thegiver

Thu, Sep 26 2019, 5:24 pm

Without cleaning help how do u keep ur car and home presentable?

My car looks like a dump. Pretzels dumped out of the baggggggg by my 1 year old. Other snacks. Baby accessories. Toys extra clothing. Diapers. Prizes from school. All littered all over the car.

House floors and tables covered with food clothing toys arts and crafts clean diapers shoes clutter on counters. Dont know where the mess starts and ends. How do I stay on top of mess before it gets this bad. I am Already sleeping close to midnight. Maybe it is just because chagim are around the corner and it is more busy than before but I would love to prevent the tornado from letting loose. Especially with the kids home for chagim!!!!! Whoohoo! We can do this! Just tell me how...

The kids are all small btw.

SuperWify

Thu, Sep 26 2019, 6:50 pm

I have a vacuum in the car - not the strongest but ok- that someone recommended to buy here. It’s about $20 on amazon. Every two weeks I do a quick one over. I also keep shopping bags for garbage that I take out every week. Diapers and wipes go in a bag in trunk. Returns get returned do they don’t like in my car.

Still I understand. Kids tend to mess the car quite fast!!

amother

Tan

Thu, Sep 26 2019, 6:54 pm

For me, making sure that the "put away" place is as clear and convenient as possible is the key to keeping things relatively decent.

If you have laundry in the living room, then you need a laundry basket there. If you have garbage there, you need a trash can. If you have clean diapers there, you need a diaper bag. For example, we have a laundry basket on the landing of the steps, visible from the living room - because laundry accumulates and nobody is going to bring it all the way to the washing machine, but WILL toss it into the basket.

Even if it's not the "right" room, if it's convenient to put away, it will be much easier to do it, and everyone is more likely to do so.

Cars NEED a garbage can, or at least a bag. There is no hope for the pretzels, snacks and cereal... that's what Pesach is for. Unless you make a no-eating-in-car rule, which I cannot maintain.

Decluttering is also very helpful for this - the less STUFF you have, the less mess that stuff can make. Try to throw out or donate 10 things every day.

I also like to try a little exercise - "always leave the room a little better than you found it." So if I go from the kitchen to the living room, I will try to put a dish from the counter into the dishwasher, pick up a piece of cheese from the floor, or bring the couch pillow back in there with me.

Unfortunately, the only real way to have a consistently clean house is to wait until your kids grow up and leave the house...

amother

Bisque

Thu, Sep 26 2019, 8:39 pm

My little kids think it’s a treat to clean out the car.
They each get a shopping bag and have a contest to see whose is the fullest.
On lucky days I left them vacuum the crumbs too!

About the house—— yes, it’s a challenge and I struggle with it too. Let me tell you the few things that work for me.
1 - designate one side of the counter or one chair for kids papers and stuff. That means that the kitchen table and rest of the counters must be clutter free - always. Keep moving things to the designated spot because the things won’t get there by themselves.

2- there is s rule that I learned from a friend many years ago.
“Everything in your house has to have a home”. That means that if you own something, make sure you know where to put it. Leaving things out (because you are not sure where it should go) is not an option.
Examples—
cereal box - top shelf of pantry
Rain boots- front hall closet
Crayons and markers- arts and crafts bin in the toy closet
Give each child a ‘junk box ‘ and that’s where they should keep their tchachkas.
No place for something? Decide if you really need it

3- throw things out that no one will really miss. Just because Esther was so excited about getting something special from her morah, doesn’t mean she’ll really care or notice if it’s not around 4 days later. Keep throwing out! Investor in an oversized garbage can!!

4- each night before you go to sleep straighten up your home. Start at one corner and work until you get to the other side of the room.
Each night I tackle the side of the counter near the dining room entrance first. I slowly get from one end of the kitchen to the other. The last thing I do is the kitchen table and then I sweep.
If you make yourself a cleaning routine and do the same thing every night every night it’s much easier.