The Clean House

The Clean House

Cleaning the house. Pffft… they should rename it cleaning yesterday’s mess. No, too long. But so true. No matter how clean it is any day, by the end of the day it’s a mess. I’m sure the two kids under five are the reason. It’s not that I’m busy all day with them. It’s that unless I have them in my clutches, they create messes. It’s their super power.

I tried once cleaning right after they went to bed. I thought that way I could get up the next day to a clean house! I forgot that I have a life too… supper, dishes, tired, TV shows, family time...cuddles. By the time we got them to bed, through story time, and six suddenly needed drinks of water, I didn’t have the inclination to clean up just so I could drink my morning coffee in a clean kitchen.

Well, today I have moved the mountain of left behind toys off the floor and back to where they belong, picked up all the clothes and dishes, carrying them to the kitchen as well. Vacuumed the cookie crumbs off the carpet in the living room. Removed the wet towels and put back the tooth paste and brushes, lying in the sink. And then I actually put the breakfast dishes in the dish washer instead of piling them in the sink! Why didn’t I think of that before?

All the while the kids were running, and playing with the cat, chasing each other in some kind of race, and still checking in with Bumble Jones on TV in the background.

Eventually I sat down to my second cup of coffee, and guess what, I was still smiling. I’d finally given in; happy kids are more important to me right now than a clean house.