Mums who work full time long hours. When do you clean?

[Gymmum82]

I’m about to start a full time role I’ll be leaving the house around 5.30-6am returning home around 5.30pm.
I’ll then need to transport the kids to clubs 4 nights a week. Make dinner, make lunches for the next day, eat dinner, do kids homework/reading etc.
So when do I clean?
What tasks should I be doing every day? Do I just leave the mess to build up and do a big clean at weekends? Then where does that leave family time?
Help. What do you do?

Every second of the day, it feels like. I go into the bathroom for a shower and realise the mirror could do with a clean, so give it a quick wipe. Go into the kitchen to get a glass of water and realise the floor could do with a sweep, so quickly do that. It goes on.

DH and DDs do the “big clean” on the weekend.

Lone parent working full time since DC were 4 and 2. I regularly tidy and small scale clean but have had a cleaner for many years. I work long hours and was fortunate enough to be able to afford a cleaner. It meant that I didn't spend my weekend cleaning rather than spending time with the kids.

Single mum working full time . I try and do a big clean on a Saturday and where possible do little bits in the week.

I really feel you with the mortgage payment issue.

I'd suggest you get a cleaner once a month to do a blitz on your kitchen, bathroom(s) and other communal areas.
Get your food shopping delivered, literally it saves hours of your life. Get a kitchen blackboard to write stuff on during the week if someone notices it needs to go on the list.
Get the kids to take responsibility for their own rooms, so making/changing their beds and vacuuming every other week, making sure their washing is in the washing bin and no glasses/cutlery etc building up. They'll need to put their clean washing away too. You may need to nag them to do it but at least you won't spend time doing it yourself.
Sounds like your husband does the dishwasher and bins which is good.
Other jobs unfortunately evenings and weekends or between calls if you WFH.
One the jobs are doled out, be firm and don't cave if the kids PE kit isn't in the wash or the bins are full or whatever. Its everyone's responsibility to make a home run smoothly.

I’m a lone parent and work Full-Time plus over time. We are out the house 0730 - 1830 ish.

I tend to do cleaning on my day off as by the time I’ve cooked dinner, got packed lunch’s and clothes ready for the next day and supported with homework I’m tired and ready for bed.

I would get a cleaner if I could afford one!

I spend a few hours each night if I can. Our kids are into various sports and that takes up a few evening per week. They have sports of a Saturday. I usually spend my weekends playing catch up. It’s quite sad but I couldn’t have a cleaner. I’m a firm believer in if you make a mess you clean it up and I’m a grown adult so I don’t have or want a cleaner in my home. I’m really particular which doesn’t help and things have to be my standard of clean and tidy. I don’t do myself any favours but I tackle a few rooms each night then blitz the bigger jobs over the weekend. Washer is on daily to keep on top of it and I make sure the kitchen is cleaned down when used. I’m really lucky that DH helps out an awful lot. He’s a football coach and works full time himself. Between us we get it done but it’s a busy life and we are constantly tired and short on time but who isn’t these days? When we do have free time we make the most of it and get out on long walks and pop up the Lakes for the day. Storm Bert hits tomorrow and we are both so glad we don’t have to leave the house for sports as they’ve been cancelled. We have done enough to allow us to chill tomorrow.

WFH 3 days so blitz at lunchbreaks, slow cooker for and batch cooking for easy evening meals. Been a busy week at work so not managed anything this week, just done 30 mins and having a break with carry on later and then blitz a few hours tomorrow. Need a cleaner but it's one more thing to try to organise...

I normally had a cleaner for half a day when I worked full-time.

When I lived with STBXH we had a cleaner for a couple of hours a week. Absolutely saved my sanity. He did the dishes and took the bins out.
Now, once I've sorted a house I plan to deep clean on the weekends DD is with him and just top up with cordless vac/spray mop in between. Perhaps optimistically I'm hoping the 2 of us won't make so much mess

I have a cleaner who comes once a week for two hours to clean the bathrooms, vacuum and mop the floors, dust, and do any other bits such as cleaning the oven. I make sure the kitchen and living room are clean and tidy before I go to bed. If I didn't have a cleaner I'd be lost!

I was a single parent and was out of the house 7:30 - 18:30 when my DD was little. I did the things in the house bit by bit. A quick dust around one day, hoovering/sweeping another day (usually at the weekend), bathroom another day and kept the kitchen clean as I used it. I used to get a cleaning company to come and do a full clean every six weeks or so. Everything only got done once a week on alternating days.

We don't, we pay for a cleaner.

This just sounds like a recipe for burn out.

I used to have a cleaner and miss her deeply but can’t afford her right now. I have two under two in nursery (twins) and both my husband and I work full time.

Every morning before we leave between the two of us we put a wash in the machine, get the kids ready and take anything downstairs that needs to go down (drinks glasses etc), morning dishes get done before we leave.

when we get home from work one sorts the washing and puts away and the other deals with the twins

every evening after bedtime routine we spend 30 mins tidying toys, doing dishes, general small tidy up, quick sweep and swiffer mop of floors (have two crawlers)

every Thursday eve do fresh bedding and all mirrors and litter boxes

every friday we do proper hoover and mop of all floors

then on the weekend we do bathroom/ mirrors/ general surfaces that don’t get done during the evening sweep

So basically, small bits every day, and we tackle it together. It’s the only way for us that works! As soon as I can afford my cleaner again, I’ll have her back immediately 😂

Get a cleaner once a fortnight to keep costs down. Do the minimum in the in-between week. I would hoover, clean kitchen work/hob tops and clean the loo and WHB only. Be prepared to shop around until you get a cleaner who does it properly. I changed mine every 3 months until I found a fantastic company. Am retired now, so no cleaner - I miss her!

Something slightly counter intuitive I do is to make sure I have downtime. I’m a nightmare for constantly being on the go which then results in me getting in a big strop on a Sunday afternoon when everyone else is chilling out. Now, no matter what happens from 3pm on Sunday I chill. It might be a walk, a bit of time in the garden, a sleep or a tv session. But I ignore anything that’s not done by then.

I do have to be extremely organised on Saturdays to make that happen though!

I was in the position where I was not cleaning very much at all. Just doing the bear minimum….kitchen and toilets so it was hygienic. Dust was disgusting but I couldn’t keep on top of it. Luckily I got a payrise so I spent the extra on a 4 hour clean every month. It is £64 and worth every penny. The weeks inbetween I put the vacuum round and make sure the house is hygienic as possible but you have to let go of being house proud. I am hardly at home to keep on top of it. The washing alone takes up most of my weekend. Good luck - you’ll get into a rhythm xx

Single mum working full time here. 7 rooms in my house. 7 days in a week. 30 min blast of a different room every day, usually after DS watches tele after tea. 15 min tidy up every night. Proper tidy up and bit of a clean on Sundays. Quick clean of toilet whenever I use it. Laundry every morning before school when DS has breakfast. Gardens when son is playing out in the summer (ignore in winter!). House is never spotless, but have lowered my expectations.

Me and DH work full time, he's lucky and wfh so can do some of it during the day. It was easier however when he went out to work though as there was no mess during the day and cost a lot less with bills! Dc out at school so no mess there. We used to have a blitz Saturday morning and try to keep in check on an evening. X

We have a cleaner. So do most of our friends. Previously our house was grotty. I can keep on top of laundry and tidying up, but there literally isn't time to clean the bathroom regularly.

On Saturday mornings we cleaned before we did anything else. The weekend didn't start until we'd done it. That was an incentive to get it done as quickly as possible. But I had a husband who was an equal in that regard.

After a few years, when we could afford it, wet got a cleaner.

Have a cleaner. It cannot be your job to keep the house clean when you are doing all that other stuff. What on earth makes you think it's your responsibility?

Everyday:
AM
Put dishes on in the morning. Put laundry on before work. Wipe kitchen surfaces.
PM
empty dish washer when I get home. Put laundry to dry or fold yesterdays dry clothes.
sweep floor.
make sure all surfaces are clear. Dishes in the sink, wrappers or whatever is lying around in the bin, toys in the toy basket

Saturday:
hoover
clean bathroom
Wash school uniform (minimum)
Shopping
change sheets
empty bins
recycling

once a month cleaner for 4 hours

I work FT with 3 kids. Husband is lazy and wont help with housework, evan though he is home 5 hours before me (I have had plwnty of arguments with him over this). My days off are literally cleaning the house. Sometimes if I go out with friends, family or the kids, the house work dosent get done. I just dont beat myself up over it anymore.

We have a cleaner once a week