5 Organising Tips and Tricks For a Happier Home – and You

Today I welcome Katrina Springer from The Organised Housewife with 5 fabulous suggestions for getting your home (and life!) organised.

5 Organising Tips and Tricks For a Happier Home

Having my twins all those years ago I struggled to keep my home clean and organised. Being that I had two little babies to care for there came a point that I knew something had to change, for my own sanity I had to gain back control and change my mindset (you can read more of my story here). Today I want to share with you some of the organising tips and tricks that have helped me to create a happier, more organised home.  I hope these tips will help you organise your home so that you and your family can enjoy the space around you.

The Organised Housewife’s Top 5 Organising Tips & Tricks For a Happier Home

1. Create Routines
Many mums experience a feeling of groundhog day. I find this especially on school mornings – making school lunches, getting kids dressed, doing hair, packing bags, cleaning kitchen, putting washing on the line, getting yourself dressed… and everything else!!  Creating a routine for yourself and the kids will help ensure that all the tasks you want done get done.  Having a routine will take the stress out of a hectic morning, as you already know what you need to do. Mostly I love giving the kids their own morning routine as it prevents me from yelling at them to hurry up, have you brushed your teeth, put your shoes on, etc.  Read more about my morning routine here.

5 Tips for Organising Your Home

2. Meal Plan
I create a meal plan each week either the night before or morning I go grocery shopping.  It is one of the key elements that keeps me sane in the evening.  There are many benefits of meal planning, here are my favourite two:

  • It saves my sanity – 5pm on a busy weekday evening I don’t have to wonder what to cook the family,  I have it already planned, with groceries stocked in the fridge and all I need to do is make it.  Also, if I happen to be out late with the kids, hubby can look on the planner and make dinner… no excuses why he can’t!!
  • It saves time – Planning meals and doing one big grocery shop for the week eliminates the need to have to drop into the grocery store every day or two to pick up food for dinner, which then usually results in buying other food which you may not need.

Christie has many great family friendly recipes which can be found here that will help with your weekly meal planning.

3. Cleaning
A clean house isn’t just nice to have, it is essential for your health. Cleaning away dirt, germs and dusts will help reduce allergies and kill bacteria.  Every household is different when it come to creating a cleaning schedule, here are two approaches that you might take:

  • A little bit of cleaning each day – working through the house one room at a time.  I used to do this when the kids were younger, I spent one day a week organising and cleaning each room and then once a week ran the vacuum through the house.
  • A weekly routine – I prefer this way now as I don’t have time each day to do a little bit here and there, so I take an hour or two each week, go through the house with a plastic bag and remove all rubbish, pick up any clutter and put it away, then wipe over all surface, clean bathrooms, toilets etc and finish with the floors.  After you have done this for awhile you will get into a rhythm

There are also those little things we forget to clean and you can follow along here for some great cleaning tips for those areas.

4. Go to bed with a clean kitchen
Waking to a messy kitchen sets the mood for my day (grumpy).  Waking to a clean kitchen makes the hectic mornings easier. Take some time after dinner to do the following so you can then relax for the evening and wake it happier spirits:

  • Clear dining table
  • Pack the dishwasher/do the dishes
  • Clear away clutter from kitchen bench
  • Wipe over kitchen bench
  • Wipe over sink

I don’t dry my dishes after I wash them up, I allow them to drip dry (because I don’t want to dry them, I have other things to do and because it’s more hygienic). When in the kitchen in the morning waiting for the kettle to boil I put away the dishes in the dish rack and the kids unpack the dishwasher.

{The Organised Housewife} Tips for Organising Your Home

5. Don’t put too much pressure on yourself
All families and households are different and comparing yourself to others is not healthy.  It is common for women compare themselves, wondering how that other mum has a perfectly clean home and is always looking happy and on top of everything.   You don’t know how they managed to get to their current point, they could have possibly have had struggles you know nothing about and are triumphing through it in their own way.

Create your own standards for your home and parenting and stop comparing yourself to others, I think the only person you should compare yourself to is the person you were yesterday.

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ROUND 2 OF THE 20 DAYS TO ORGANISE AND CLEAN YOUR HOME CHALLENGE STARTS SOON

If your struggling to get your house under control you may enjoy the 20 Days to Organise & Clean Your Home Challenge. Through the challenge I guide you on organising and decluttering one area a day to reduce the overwhelm.  Taking your time helps make the process easier and gives you the opportunity to really consider if you need all the excess you have collected over the years. I will share daily routines to help start every day in better spirits, and your family will notice the warmth in your smile and overall calmness.  Read more details about the challenge here.

What areas in your home do you struggle with?

KS-12Katrina Springer has a passion for organising and baking.  She shows how she manages her home, family and more via her blog The Organised Housewife, one of Australia’s most popular parenting blogs.  Kat inspires and helps her readers to create systems and routines from organisation to cleaning. She is currently running a 20 Days to Organise and Clean Your Home Challenge, to help her readers gain back control in their homes.  Her online shop offers readers beautifully designed printables, planners, kids charts, calendars and other products to help make life more organised. Follow her on facebook and instagram.

3 Comments

  1. Very good points! Having a system helps a lot to manage a household well! I plan everything from some time now and everything is going well! Thanks for the post! I will definitely share it! Greets, Isle Of Dogs Carpet Cleaners Ltd.

  2. sneha unnikrishnan says:

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  3. sneha unnikrishnan says:

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