The Twenty Minute Tidy

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Picture this. You walk in the door from doing preschool drop-off and are immediately hit with the reality of your very ‘lived-in’ home. Dishes leftover from making the kids’ breakfast, a basket of half-folded laundry, baby toys strewn around the living room, throw pillows turned into a fort on the floor, a pile of mail on the kitchen counter, and unmade beds as far as the eye can see.

Welcome to real life, Mama!

At least this is what I tell myself as my insides cringe just a bit. You see, I am a tidy person. I enjoy order, routine, and everything having a place. While I have had to change my expectations in some areas of life just a bit as I’ve embraced the Wife and Mom roles, the tidiness is not something I’ve given up.

Let me introduce you to my best friend; The Twenty Minute Tidy. Trust me, you’re going to love her!

tidy

Start by setting a timer, put twenty minutes on the clock and get ready to go ‘full speed’ as I like to say. Plan to work in the room that needs the most attention first, or where you spend most of your time. For me, that is ALWAYS our kitchen. Let’s start the timer and GET TO WORK!

I will normally do whatever dishes need to be done, put away any pantry food that was left out, gather and throw away the trash from the morning, sort through the mail, push in all the dining chairs, give the counters a quick wipe down, and BOOM kitchen is done! I spend about 80% of my day in there, so when it looks like a bomb went off, it really gets to me.

Quickly check the timer and I have about 13 minutes left at this point. Time to power through the rest of the house! I like to move in order, so I typically just head to the next room over which is our living room. Pick up and fluff the throw pillows, fold blankets, pick up the baby toys, gather any snack cups, and put the remotes back on the TV stand. WOOHOO, 10 minutes left at this point!

Heading into our room next to make the bed, and gather any dirty laundry to add to the hamper. Then I will do the same for the kids’ rooms as well. This typically doesn’t take any more than about 5-7 minutes total. I’ll spend the last 3-5 minutes doing what I call the ‘full sweep.’ I walk around with a laundry basket and will gather anything that doesn’t belong in that specific room. It gets put in the basket and then back in its proper home.

DING! Time is up.

Remember, tidy does not mean clean. I SO wish there was a way to clean my whole house in twenty minutes, but I’m pretty sure that is something that only exists in my dreams. The whole purpose of tidying is to really just put things back in their places and ultimately allow your space to feel neat. A tidy home creates the perfect environment for a tidy mind and that equals happiness for this Mama!

Set your timer for twenty minutes and let me know how it goes!

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Rebecca
Hey there, I'm Rebecca! I am a believer, proud military wife, Mama of 4; 2 in Heaven and 2 here with us. I’m originally from Florida, but we moved to Ohio about three years ago and I honestly LOVE the change. Dayton was quick to feel like home to us, and we've definitely been enjoying the seasons! Being a Mom is the happiest full-time job, but I love making the time to keep up with my personal interests as well. I run a blog and Instagram @theivynest; where I share a bit of our story and everyday life, along with my love of home decor and keeping things simple. Life is definitely busy, but I truly believe that it is equally as beautiful when we choose to see it that way!

1 COMMENT

  1. This a golden!!! I have done this for years and it is a game changer. It is great to get the kids involved too. I used to tell my boys let’s do a twenty minute tidy and we can play the rest of the day- thanks for sharing!

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