When do you clean?

[mamasaurus]

Do you have a particular time each day when you do housecleaning?

I'm trying to figure out the best time of day to put in about 30 minutes of hard-core cleaning. I WAH, and so does my DH. We have a 5yo and 7yo who go to school. I also volunteer at the school.

The way my schedule will go this fall is something like this:

6:30am - Wake up, shower, get dressed, get breakfast, get girls up and dressed for school
7:30am - Leave for school
7:45am to 9am - Volunteer at school
9:15am - Home to work
1:45pm - Leave to pick up girls
Afternoon - play with girls, take them on outings, to after-school classes, play dates, hang out at home, spend time with DH, pack lunches for next day, etc.
5pm - start dinner
6pm - dinner, family cleans up kitchen afterward
7pm - bath time for girls, throw in a load of laundry, hang with girls
8pm - girls in bed, finish laundry
8:15pm - Work for another hour or two, then unwind and get ready for bed
10:30pm - Asleep

It seems like afternoons are going to be the best time for me to get 30 minutes of cleaning in.

What works for you? And thanks for sharing!

[Passport Kids]

Your family sounds a lot like mine! 5yo & 8yo go to school and dh & I work from home and at our business nearby. I usually like to get any big cleaning jobs done right after I take them to school. Unless I have to stop at the business first. My days are always different so I just clean in order of first priority through out the day (I keep an ongoing list of projects). I can usually fit something in after they come home and eat a snack. I wish I could have a set schedule, would make things easier!

[Katie T]

Life for me is different as I have a 2yo and a 3yo home with me all day and dd1 in school and dh at work. I am also a night owl so most of my cleaning is at night after the kids go to bed. I go to sleep at about 12:30 and get up between 6:30 and 7:30. Kids are fussy in the am, then we have groups to attend, play time, naps, dinner, homework baths and bed so night works for us.

I agree that afternoon looks like the best time in your schedule to get stuff done. Also you could include your children in helping. It is a way to spend time together and really important IMO for children to help.

All of mine have "chores" that we do together before bed.

[ilovermybabies]

i work at my kids school from 8:30-5:30 so when i get home i start dinner, make lunches for the following day, feed everyone, bathe the kids, get the kids ready for bed, read stories..all the nightly stuff, then i clean the kitchen, throw in a load of laundry, take out clothes for the following day, wipe down the bathroom and the coffee table and tv and then i get to sit at about 8 30-9 lol. saturday morning i usually to the deep clean b4 i shower and start the day so i can sunday to relax

[zoebird]

i do mine first thing in the morning, but i don't have to be anywhere until 9:30 on those days when i have to be anywhere. our rhythm is like this:

7 am wake, make the bed, go to the toilet
7:30 am make breakfast
8:00 am breakfast is finished, clean dishes, do morning chore
8:30 am get cleaned up (clean clothes for me and DS)
9:00 am to 12:00 pm--either going out or playing indoors
12-2 pm lunch time, get baby down for a nap, tidy up if we played indoors
2-6:30 pm go to work
7:00 pm dinner
8:00 pm tidy up, PJs, story time
8:30 pm DS in bed
8:30-10:30 DH and I hang out.