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My mom gave me a little magnet with an inspirational quote. She suggested I could put it on my fridge. My mom and I are very open with each other without being offended, so I reminded her “I don’t put anything on my fridge … and you don’t either.” 😂 I put the magnet on my simple command center instead.
It’s important to create and keep your kitchen-cleaning-routines! The kitchen is the heart of the home, integral to daily family life. When the kitchen is kept clean, life flows more smoothly for everyone.
My kitchen often has a baked good on the counter, maybe a little pile of ingredients I start pulling out for dinner, a few handwash dishes drying next to the sink, and empty lunch boxes after school that end up in the fridge after dinner (full of tomorrow’s lunch). But underneath all of that day-to-day stuff, there’s a clean kitchen. A clean kitchen feels very different than kitchens that have all the normal stuff, plus random piles of crap surrounded by crumbs and grease.
Here are the 4 routines that will keep your kitchen clean enough to feel good in every day:
1. Declutter Regularly
A decluttered kitchen is easier to clean. If you do all the other habits but skip this one, it will get harder and harder to keep it clean because eventually the clutter will take over. Decluttering is the most important part of organizing. Without all the clutter, you’ll have room for everything to have a place. When everything has a place, cleanup is simpler because you don’t have to make decisions about where to shove something – you already know where it goes, so it’s just putting it there! If you don’t have room for everything to have a place, you’re not done decluttering. Try again.
2. Daily Cleaning
Begin and end each day with a clean kitchen. Start with these Daily Habits. The little things we do every day make the biggest differences over time.
Also, don’t leave the kitchen after dinner until it is clean, especially if you have kids. In our house, we have After Dinner Jobs. No one in our family leaves the kitchen until it is clean! Trust me, I get that you may be tired after you’ve just worked hard making dinner at the end of a long day. You may be tempted to think “I’ll come back later,” but I think you need to be honest with yourself – Have you been coming back to clean later, every night? You will not feel any more like doing the dishes later so you might as well just get it done! It may be tough at first because everyone has to figure it out how to help and work together, but they will figure it out. It’s worth it.
Empty garbages as soon as they are full so garbage doesn’t spill out!
3. Weekly Deep Cleaning
Weekly cleaning is not at the Spring Cleaning level of wiping down every cabinet and dusting light fixtures. What I mean by this weekly deep cleaning are these things:
- Tidy up – clear piles and put stuff away
- Clean dishes
- Tidy inside fridge
- Wipe down all appliances, stovetop, and inside microwave
- Scrub and disinfect sink
- Wipe counters (even behind the toaster, etc.)
- Touch-up drips and crumbs from fronts of cabinets
- Sweep (I actually vacuum most weeks)
- Mop
- Oil butcherblock
The whole ordeal takes me about 30 minutes because the kitchen is already tidied from the daily upkeep. During the school year, I do this while my kids are at school. During the summer, I split the jobs up and have my kids help. If you work outside the home, you may split the jobs up and do one each night, or do it on the weekend.
This weekly kitchen cleaning is part of my suggested weekly cleaning routine.
4. Spring Clean Type Deep Clean
I say Spring Clean, because that’s the traditional time to do this level of clean, but really I mean “an occasional super-duper clean.” I have a thorough checklist that I use, and I usually get my family to do it with me so it goes quickly. It is kind of a pain, but since we only do this a few times a year at most, it isn’t so bad!
That’s it, that’s the how it’s done.
If you’ve ever wondered how people keep a clean kitchen – it’s these 4 things!
You may or may not be surprised to know that the first two things – decluttering and daily cleaning – make the biggest difference. So, if you’re overwhelmed, start there and build up to the others, trying to do them as often and as best you can. Work on the decluttering and those daily habits first!
Cookie is always exhausted after I clean the kitchen. It is hard work trying to chase the mop. This picture is satisfying to me, because it reminds me how good a freshly clean kitchen feels!
PS – The story about my mom giving me a magnet is two years old when I originally started writing this post – that magnet has now been on my magnet board for 2 years. Ha!
Related: Free Grocery List & Menu
From my home to yours,
Mary
I didn’t get a chance to read this week. It’s expired? How can I still see it?
Pk
The new week (#4) is up now, so last week’s is down. If you’d like to see the whole program at one time, I suggest purchasing the printable. That isn’t necessary, though, just start with your laundry room this week!