Real Life Monica from "Friends"

If you have never watched the show "Friends", Monica was the obsessive compulsive clean freak of the bunch. She once showed up at a stranger's apartment because she had heard tales of its slovenly state, and couldn't sleep until she had cleaned it. True story: I once cleaned someone's toilet at a party. I needed to. I had to. And it felt so good to do it.

I love cleaning so much that I clean our apartment a little bit every day. I just feel like if I do that, I won't be overwhelmed by the huge task of heavily cleaning everything all at once. I gather that this is why people hate cleaning so much. 20 minutes a day usually does it, and while that sounds like a lot, it really isn't.

My main cleaning philosophy is to clean as you go and pick up after yourself immediately. If you can save yourself the hassle of putting away things that don't belong there, you're already ahead of the game.

Cleaning 20 Minutes a Day:

Monday: Dust all the surfaces and knickknacks in the house. Clean glass and mirrored surfaces in bedrooms and living room. Wash beddings, change towels.

Tuesday: Vacuum the whole house. (we have carpet throughout) Spray down kitchen surfaces and mop kitchen floor. One load of laundry. I actually vacuum when the baby's awake, but stick him in the jumper for a few minutes when I want him away from the area being cleaned, cause he's fast and grabby.

Wednesday:  Squirt cleaner in both toilets, spray down the counters, mirrors and sinks. Scrub toilets and also spray down and wipe off. Mop bathroom floors.

Thursday: Clean out the rabbits' kennels. Wipe down stroller and high chair. One load of laundry.

Friday: Vacuum whole house and couch. Spray down kitchen surfaces and mop floor.

Saturday: We never clean on Saturdays!

Sunday: Sometimes laundry. Depends on Noah's moistness factor.

Every night I pick up Noah's toys and put them away. Every two weeks, I clean the bathtub, and once a month, I dust the blinds, and throw the shower curtain and rugs in the wash. The garbage and recycling is an as you go thing. If you are wondering why I spread the laundry out through the week, it's only because we have a really small washing machine. :)

Not bad right? 20 minutes a day max, and I never have to stress out about cleaning when people come over. We use Honest and Method cleaning products, to minimize the chemical yuckyness.

The Honest Co.