Do you struggle with keeping the kitchen clean? With multiple meals, food prep, food storage, grocery shopping, and general hanging out, the kitchen is the hardest working room in the home. This requires a lot of daily cleaning and upkeep. I’ve found that the easiest way to keep the kitchen clean is to clean as I go. As tempting as it may be to ignore the dishes, leave the messy stove, pile the pans in the sink, getting in the habit of just cleaning and putting things away is the always the easiest way to keep the kitchen clean. 

What does it mean to clean as you go?

A question I receive at least weekly is, “How do you clean the kitchen ? I don’t see ‘kitchen’ on the calendar?”  Or when do you take out the garbage and wash dishes?  Why don’t I have those things on the calendar? I created my Routine as a flexible place to start – every home and family has different needs. I don’t include things like taking out the garbage or emptying the dishwasher or hand washing dishes because these are things that are different from home to home. Here’s how I clean the kitchen . I Start with the Daily Tasks and add a little bit every day – you’ll love how great it feels to have a clean kitchen every day!

My routine is a proactive approach to cleaning, not reactive. By doing a little bit daily, weekly, and monthly, your home stays mostly clean all the time.

In my routine there are 5 Daily Tasks. Chances are, these are things that you are already doing or try to do. Take time to do them consistently and you’ll see a change in your home instantly!

Daily:  I/we do these things every day – wipe counters (I use cleaning spray, wipe kitchen table, check floors (sweep or vacuum if necessary), scrub sink (this is my Nightly Sink Scrub routine).

5 -daily tasks every day a little something

• Make beds 
• Check floors 
• Wipe counters 
• Clutter
• Laundry 

These tasks sprinkled through the day and during meal time/prep/clean up keep the kitchen pretty clean.

What about dishes and the dishwasher? This is a Daily Task (most days, it’s multiple times a day). The kids help load/unload, we hand wash large pots and pans but I do try to put most pots and pans in the dishwasher or quickly wash them after meals. It can be discouraging to make a delicious meal and want to sit down and relax but still have dishes to wash and/or load in the dishwasher. To help us get started off on the right foot I unload the dishwasher when I’m brewing my morning coffee to get in the habit of putting their dishes in the dishwasher right away after each meal. This helps out a lot! Every once in a while if I’m feeling burned out on dishes or in an extra busy season, I’ll grab a pack of eco-friendly disposable plates and use them for a couple days while we get back on track.
In addition to the 5 Daily Tasks, there are Weekly Tasks – these are tasks that are associated with the days of the week. If this feels like a lot, start with the Daily Tasks, add one a week. Don’t worry about perfection, you’re adding a new routine to your days and it will take time. Once you get those down, the Weekly Tasks just become part of your routine and make things so much easier because you no longer need to decide what the worst part of your house is to clean, you just do the Tasks for the day. It’s proactive, not reactive – the busier you are, the better it works.

Weekly tasks 

• Sunday just the dailies 
• Monday’s bathrooms 
• Tuesday dusting 
• Wednesday vacuum 
• Thursday wash floors 
• Friday catch -all
• Saturday sheets & towels