You can always tell that it is Monday at my house because of the visible chaos that is spread throughout the house, especially on the first floor. Toys, books, jackets, dishes, you name it, collects in odd places, as the family runs in and out of the house on various errands. Home projects, such as organizing a closet or de-cluttering books or toys don’t always get completed, since there is a yard sale or the farmer’s market or a softball game to go see instead.
Sometimes when life gets in the way, it isn’t just the weekend that has caused the chaos but maybe even a whole week. When there is only 30 minutes before bedtime, it is usually better to send a child up to get a shower rather than nag him or her to put the clean clothes in the drawers.
Either way, we are still left with all of that chaos to solve. The best thing that I have found is to have a plan and start with the most glaring or annoying things first and work your way backward until you wind up with your home back in order, just in time for the next weekend!
I usually start with my front hall. This is because items left on the floor or spilling out of the closet are obvious, the first thing that visitors see and the most likely to trip over. our living room is right off of the hall, and items can wind up wandering into that room, too. A couple of armfuls of items and fifteen minutes, and everything can be put back into place.
Stray items in other places can be picked up on the way from one room to the next, mail can be sorted through while on the phone or while waiting for coffee to brew, etc. Just five or ten spare minutes can make a huge difference.
The kids are instructed to gather their dirty clothes in their rooms and put away any clean clothes. They also have to strip their beds. This is so I can get laundry started before it has a week to build up.
After that, it is a matter of doing the normal weekly chores, such as vacuuming, cleaning bathrooms, etc.
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