Do you ever have times when you have fallen really far behind on your normal household chores? Life can be messy, and when it is, my house sometimes gets extra messy too. There are lots of reasons why you might get behind on housework. The daily house chores might have started to slide, but whatever the reason, it is important to give some time and attention to putting the house back into order when we are able.
Although the tips in this article are pretty simple and straightforward, when we are in the thick of a mess and behind on housework, it is tempting to give into feelings of overwhelm, and just not know where to begin. Household recovery can seem like a super daunting task, but there are a few tips that I have learned that help prioritize which tasks are most essential for the good of your family.
Pray about the situation
At times, there is very little we can do about the state of our homes. Maybe we are going through some sort of sickness, or we have recently had a big life changing circumstance such as the birth of a new baby. Be gentle with yourself. When this is the situation, it is more important to rest than to worry about the state of the house. Ask God to give you the grace to focus only on what is absolutely necessary (such as making sure everyone is safe and fed). Do what you are able to do, and trust God with the rest.
On the other hand, things may have started to slide for some other reason. You may have normal health, but have had a temporary and unavoidable disruption in your normal routine and the state of your home suffered. Don’t sweat it. Just ask God for his grace to help you with your work, and dig in.
Decide what you will have for your next meal
It is important to make sure that necessities are taken care of first. Our family needs to eat, and at any given point in a day, lunch or dinner are not far away. Before you dive into the dishes or the laundry or whatever else needs attention, take a few minutes to think about and decide what you will serve for dinner. This might be a pizza or a frozen meal, but if you need to take something out of the freezer, or put something in the slow cooker, do it first. This is probably not the time to cook a gourmet meal, so thinking of simple options is a good idea.
Focus on the cumulative tasks
If you’re behind on chores and everywhere you look something in your home needs attention, it can be hard to decide which thing to focus on first. you might find yourself scrolling through your phone just to avoid feeling overwhelmed. You can only do one, maybe two things at a time, and if things are really messy, deep cleaning your closet probably isn’t the most important.
When things start to get messier than normal around my house, I try to focus on tasks that accumulate the more they are left undone. This includes dishes and laundry, and incidentally these two things are often among the most essential to your family. This doesn’t mean that you have to tackle all of your laundry, but a load or two of frequently used clothes or towels will go a long way toward making things better. The laundry machines can run while you do dishes, so you can throw in a load and then head to the kitchen to load the dishwasher or wash by hand depending on your situation.
Tidy quickly
After you have spent some time tackling at least some of the dishes and laundry, another way to make a big difference in your home, is to quickly go through the main living areas of your home and tidy as much as you can as fast as you can. The point isn’t to get things perfect, but rather to just get the room looking a little more presentable even if you are not actually doing any kind of deep cleaning. Doing this will usually give you a big impact in a relatively short period of time.
Give the Bathrooms Some Attention
If you have any extra time, I recommend giving the bathrooms just a little attention. I don’t mean deep cleaning right now, but just wiping down one or two of the surfaces, and making sure there are not dirty clothes or towels covering the floor.
Conclusion
Life happens and we don’t have control over everything that happens. We are not God and sometimes extra mess is just unavoidable. We do, however, want to try to avoid repeating household chaos as much as we are able. The good news is that often, we can mitigate at least some of the extra mess before it occurs by using our time wisely, avoiding time wasters, thoughtfully choosing outside commitments, having a good attitude, and learning to enjoy the work itself.
One Comment
Thank you. just what I needed as I’m trying to encourage a friend. I would love to receive your emails and newsletters as I continue this journey. And this is also helpful to me as well. Blessings.
Tammy