My favorite cleaning tools: Dr Bronner's Sal Suds, Dr. Bronner's Castile Soap, Norwex Enviro Cloth, and Norwex Window Cloth. I also use a spray bottle full of water, mop bucket, mop, and toilet scrubber.
Clean the bathroom, sweep the floors, vacuum, mop, dishes, laundry, the list goes on and on. Are you looking for a simpler way to stay on top of your cleaning? This past weekend I was blessed to host the youth girls from our church. Not just a couple of them either we had 17 of them in our house! 🙂 As I suspected they slept in every square inch of our house except the kitchen floor! As I began preparing our home for them last week I was so thankful that we have developed a cleaning schedule that has greatly simplified keeping our house clean. For me the secret has been to stretch out my cleaning over a couple of days. I also have switched to a more natural approach.
Elijah helping me clean the other day by playing happily for a few minutes. Most of the time that I am cleaning I actually wear Elijah on my back in the Ergo.
For years I have had trouble with commercial household cleaners. I wasn’t too keen on cleaning with vinegar and we have purchased some “natural cleaners” in the past but they were a little pricey. Since then we have come across Norwex Cleaning Products. We purchased a set which included a window cloth, regular enviro cloth, and a dust mit from The Urban Homemaker. The price might seem a little pricey at first but it is worth it not to have a migraine after cleaning! They also come with a two-year guarantee. Along with the Norwex cloths I use Dr. Bronner’s Sal Suds and Dr. Bronner’s Castile Soap. That is it! My cleaning bucket has shrunk considerably and cleaning is simplified!
- Mondays: I clean downstairs: Living Room, Entry, Hall, Kitchen, Library, and Bathroom.
- Tuesdays: I clean upstairs: For the bedrooms: change sheets weekly, dust with Norwex dust mit, straighten up, vacuum. To clean the bathroom: 1) Squirt a little Dr. Bronner’s Castile Soap into the toilet. 2) Spray down mirror and sink with plain water. Yeap that’s right just water. Wipe with a Norwex Enviro Cloth, then wipe mirror with Window Cloth. 3) Spray down shower and wipe with Enviro Cloth. 4) Scrub toilet with toilet brush. Wipe down toilet. 5) Wipe down floor with enviro cloth. I can’t tell you what a relief it is to clean a bathroom now that the smell from the chemicals no longer make me sick. Amazingly the bathroom really does get clean with just water and a Norwex Enviro cloth. (I was quite a skeptic about these at first but they are awesome!)
- Wednesdays: Light downstairs cleaning. I might mop again. If I wasn’t able to finish Monday or Tuesdays cleaning on the day it is assigned I do it on Wednesday. For example this week I wrote a paper most of the day on Tuesday so I finished Tuesday’s cleaning jobs this morning. This assures that by the middle of the week all the major cleaning is done for the week.
- Thursdays: I try not to do heavy cleaning since this is Brandon’s day off. I do cook, wash dishes, pick up the living room, and maybe run the vacuum or sweep since Elijah is crawling.
- Fridays: Clean out refrigerator. Laundry. In the summer/fall I do laundry everyday and hang it to dry in the morning. In the afternoon I bring it in, fold it, and put it away. Once winter hits I like to do the majority of the laundry on one day (except diapers-I wash every couple of days). Prepare for the weekend.
Sometimes I don’t get absolutely everything in the house cleaned every single week but that’s okay. Elijah might have been having a needy week or I might have had 2 papers to write and a test that week. Cleaning your house doesn’t have to be complicated just find out what works best in your home. Before I had a baby it worked great for me to clean just one day per week. Now in my current season of life I find that it works better for my family if I spread my cleaning out over a couple of days. Remember the goal of cleaning a house is to make it an inviting place for your family and to welcome others into your home.
To check out Norwex cleaning cloths visit: http://urbanhomemaker.com/productcart/pc/viewCategories.asp?idCategory=376
Emerson Family 
how sweet hes very cute
So what do you use the sals suds on?
Hi Ally,
I use the sals suds with hot water to scrub floors, toilets, sinks, etc. I now write at http://www.lifeasmrsemerson.blogspot.com if you want to stop by!