Tuesday 26 February 2013

10 unusual ways to have fun cleaning.


Picture by holliesanders

Okay we all know that most of us don’t like doing our chores. They are repetitive and boring, there are always other we’d rather be doing. So in an effort to make the drudgery a bit more palatable, here are a few unusual ideas on how to have a little fun while you work.
  1. Dance while you work. Make up your own dance moves in the privacy of your own home.Most of like dancing but we have no time to practice. Warning: This can be highly addictive; don’t be surprised if you find yourself dancing in the stores to the overhead music.
  2. Read. If you never have time to read, try listening to an audio book each night as you make dinner, wash dishes or pick up.
  3. Race yourself. Time yourself to see how fast you can complete your chores. Try to set a goal that’s faster than usual but not so fast you don’t do the job properly. Reward yourself if you can do it faster for a week by purchasing a small gift for yourself.
  4. Talk to friends and family. If you never have time to call people you want to talk to, try to do it while you do your weekly cleaning. Put on the headset that came with your cell phone and get two things done at once.
  5. Watch a movie. Do you have a few favorite movies that you know almost every line word for word? Put one of them on while you exercise or dust. Even if you miss a few moments you’ll know exactly what’s going on.
  6. Make faces at yourself. I’ve done this one as well. Sometimes you just don’t want to do those chores. Maybe you’re tired, or had a frustrating day. Whatever the reason, look in the mirror and make the grumpiest, grouchiest face you can think of. Do this every time you pass a mirror. You’ll find yourself giggling and chuckling at your own silliness and soon your bad mood will be gone.
  7. Pretend. Imagine you are a fairy princess being kept as a slave by an evil sorcerer. You must get everything spotless or he will destroy your family and the man you love. Sure it’s silly, but sometimes a little imagination goes a long way. (You could also imagine the look on your mother-in-law’s face when she can’t find a hair out of place on her next visit.)
  8. Music. Put on some of your favorite CD’s or a favorite radio station. I did this just the other day with my MP3 player and was amazed at how fast I finished everything. I didn’t get to all the songs I wanted to.
  9. Aroma therapy. I have noticed that when I use products with a citrus smell such as orange or lemon I like the smell and enjoy using it more. I used to have a Rainbow vacuum that used water and you could put in different scents to fill the air as you vacuumed. Using more natural products or at least ones that smell good can make your cleaning chore more pleasant.
  10. Bless your things. This is a great gratitude exercise. As you wash your favorite glass, put your favorite sheets on the bed, or mop your new tile floor, notice what you are doing. Give thanks for the wonderful things you have and the beauty and joy they give you daily.
While not every idea will work for every person, I hope this will give you something to work with. If you have an idea you’d like to share, please feel free to leave a comment. Thanks for stopping by!
SOURCE: http://funspirit.blogspot.com/2007/11/10-unusual-ways-to-have-fun-cleaning.html

10 Awesome Ways to Make Cleaning FUN for Kids


It’s time for some Spring cleaning, so why not make it fun?? I asked some of the most creative moms in the blogosphere to share their best tips for keeping the kiddos motivated to help out around the house. These mamas make cleaning time seem like a blast!
Pretend Play –
1. “Dress up like proper maids and butlers, and pretend you are cleaning up after the messy children who live at this house.  ’Can you believe they left their crayons all over the floor?  Tut, tut!’  I really think it would be fun to keep aprons, maids’ caps, and bow ties in a special place for this purpose.” — Katey from Having Fun at Home
2. “I can always get my son (now 6) motivated to help out if I tell him that I’m going to give him a challenge, or sometimes I call it a ‘mission’. For example, ‘For the first part of this challenge you need to find all your shoes and put them away. The second part you need to make sure all your clothes are in the hamper. And the final part of the challenge you need to wipe down the kitchen table. Let’s see how quickly you can complete your challenge.’ Then I sing some of “mission impossible” to get him going!” — Laura from PlayDrMom
3. “I get my girls to play ‘Cinderella’ with me, we wear hankies on our heads and scrub the hardwood on our hands and knees (with vinegar water in little buckets and rags)” — MaryLea from Pink and Green Mama
4. “My girls love to pretend they are filming cleaning commercials. It always makes me smile when they talk about the other leading brands!” — Valerie from Inner Child Fun
Use Kid-Sized Cleaning Tools –
5. “My kids love our Swiffer with the middle sections pulled out so that it is just their height!” — MaryAnne from MamaSmiles
6. “I made a little cleaning caddy for ‘C’ to carry around the house. Her favorite part is her “dust bunny” (an old gym sock with a bunny drawn on it with Sharpie!)” MaryLea from Pink and Green Mama
7. “Kids can start using a dust buster vacuum as early as 3.5 – this makes moms happy – the kids love it too – it’s just their size!” — Kristen from Busy Kids Happy Mom
Make it a Game –
8. “To get them to help tidy their toys, we make it a game – either a ‘Let’s see how fast we can clean this up’ style game, a friendly competition to see how many toys they can each put away in a certain amount of time” — Bernadette from Mom to 2 Posh Lil Divas
9. “We sometimes make cleaning up a game (especially when we’re faced with a huge mess in their bedroom or playroom). I might issue a challenge like ‘Pick up as many blue things as you can before the timer beeps’ and give each kid a color.” — Laura from Come Together Kids
10. “We have a kitchen that’s open to the living room so one thing that works well for us is that I turn on a timer and ‘race’ the kids for 10 minutes of cleaning. I try to get my kitchen clean while they pick up the living room. They’re still young so I’m sort of shouting directions as I wash dishes like, ‘Oh no! I hope they don’t get all those blocks picked up! EEk! Eek! They’re going to win! All they have to do is get those couch cushions back on the couch!!’ Getting goofy and trying to work quickly gives us all a little energy boost.” — Alissa from Creative With Kids
SOURCE:http://innerchildfun.com/2012/03/10-awesome-ways-to-make-cleaning-fun-for-kids.html