Assalamo Alaikum
See that beautiful footprint? Yes. That is a freshly mopped floor. While I love a spotless house, it’s usually (actually never) possible with little kids…unless I spend the whole day cleaning. Which would mean there wouldn’t be any time left to do anything else in the day. The opposite of productive. Not only that, I would be half crazy by the end of the day.
I would much rather spend the day playing with the kids, going on outings, reading Quran, gardening…basically anything but cleaning constantly. My usual routine in the day is doing a quick cleanup of the floor (hopefully) before the kids wake up – picking up toys, vacuuming and mopping. That takes about half an hour. Then it would be time to pray Fajr, Quran and breakfast for everyone. After that, I spend an hour maximum cleaning the kitchen while food is cooking on the stove, and then any other house chores needing to be done. That’s pretty much all the cleaning I do in the day.
So, by about 10am, I’m free to spend the day as I please. Just 1 and a half hours of cleaning/chores. Of course, this routine is flexible. Sometimes I spend a little more time, sometimes less. And if I need to go somewhere early in the morning, I’ll keep the cleaning for later. It’s more important for me to get out on time, rather than have a spotless house. If I were to be stuck on cleaning up and making everything perfect, there wouldn’t be enough time to enjoy going out with the kids.
One big factor in not having to clean constantly is having an understanding and helpful husband. I know that in some cultures, husbands have pretty high expectations of what the house should be like. If that is you, then make lots of du’a. You will find a way to get around it InShaAllah!
So, let’s get our priorities straight! The dishes can wait. Those cute little kids waiting to play with you won’t wait for long. Soon enough they will be grown up and busy in their own lives. Use this time to really bond with your kids and get to know them.
Happy not cleaning
Wassalam
Sadia H