• Involving the whole family in cleaning can make things easier.Woman cleaning the house. image by maron from Fotolia.com
  
  For many families, especially those with busy schedules, finding ways to keep the house clean and things running smoothly is a constant struggle. When it comes to maintaining a household and keeping up with chores, division of labor and organization are key.
  
  

Develop a Family Chore Schedule

• Depending on the number of people in your household, chores can be divided into several smaller tasks to lessen the load. For instance, a good cleaning schedule would include daily and weekly chores. Daily chores could consist of things such as taking out trash, washing dishes, and tidying the living room and bathrooms. Weekly chores could include things such as laundry, dusting, mopping, vacuuming, sinks and toilets and yard work.
  
  Decide on a fixed weekly schedule, such as Monday laundry day and Tuesday yard work day. Assign each member of your household a particular daily and weekly chore. Some families prefer to keep the same schedule, while others enjoy rotating the responsibilities every week. Keep the list in a prominent place with pen and paper nearby in case you need to add one-time chores such as repairing the leaky faucet or changing a light bulb.
  
  

Combine Chores

• A lot of energy can be saved by simply combining chores. Large households can especially benefit from combining. For example, once you establish your family laundry day, make sure everyone gets his or her laundry into the wash instead of wasting time and energy by washing individual loads. Likewise, if your family doesn't eat every meal together, don't waste water washing several small loads of dishes. Wait until the final meal of the day to wash everything at once, or if the last dishes are used late at night, wash in the morning.
  
  

Keep Cleaning Supplies on Hand

• Ensuring your house is well stocked with cleaning supplies and that the supplies are handy for each particular job can really be beneficial. Keep bathroom cleaning supplies in the bathroom and kitchen supplies in the kitchen. You can place things such as dusting spray and dust cloths in a cabinet in the living room or bedroom and keep your vacuum in a central place if possible. This saves you the hassle of running back and forth for your supplies.
  
  

Stay Ahead

• One of the greatest pitfalls for would-be clean households is falling behind in housework. This can happen at any time but is greatest during busy seasons such as holidays or upcoming vacations. If you know ahead of time that your schedule will be less than flexible, try to get bigger chores such as floor cleaning and laundry done ahead of time. Of course, things aren't always in our control, so if you find yourself drowning in housework, schedule a full day of family cleaning to get back on track. If this isn't an option, don't hesitate to hire a cleaning company for a day to help get back on your feet.