1. The big key in keeping your home tidy is to start off with an organized home. When everything you own has its own proper place (and your spouse and children know where that place is) they will be much more likely to both put things away, as well to find those things without asking you.



The road to an organized home can be long (and, granted, you never completely arrive.) It takes time as well as weekly or monthly maintenance, but it's worth it in the end. Plan to tackle one small part of your home each day until you feel your home is organized, whether it's the junk drawer in the kitchen or the floor of your daughter's closet. Make sure to enlist help from all family members, too. When they invest time in organizing the house, they will be more invested in keeping things organized.

2. Don't let papers and messages consume you. Staying organized with your important papers will go a long way in keeping you sane as a mom. It seems like the children are forever thrusting a pile of important school papers at me. Designate an "inbox" for those items and try to go through them on a daily basis with your calendar in hand. Right away, write down on the calendar all of the appointments as well as all of those little things that moms are expected to remember. It's also very helpful for me to keep a single calendar for all of my important dates, instead of separate ones for school and work.

Designate a particular day of the week to go through your bills and unopened mail, as well as to attend to any leftover school notes and announcements in your inbox. File the papers that you have processed directly after dealing with them.

3. Make it easy to recycle. Set up a system that makes it easy to dispose of such items as old newspapers and magazines as well as glass bottles, aluminum cans and cardboard. When each of these items has a home, you'll be less likely to let those items stack up on the counter or under the sink. If you don't have curbside recycling pickup, make a plan to go to the recycling center at least twice a month so that you don't become overburdened with your recyclables.

4. Have a Morning Tidy Time and an Evening Tidy Time. Every morning, after your spouse or your kids leave the house for work and school, buzz through and do a quick clean up. Straighten things up, wipe off the counters, and sweep the kitchen floor. You may even need to start a load of laundry and clean the windows or vacuum the floor. Do these small tasks each day and they'll be less likely to overwhelm you. In the evening, just before bed, do another quick once over. (If your home is already organized, it shouldn't take more than 5 or 10 minutes). Put things back in their place so you can wake up to a peaceful home.