Guest Post- Life Chasers

 I am on vacation this week camping with my little group and also my side of the family!

I have some great Guest Posts going on this week for y'all to enjoy!

Kaylee of Life Chasers has become one of my dearest friends.

This girl is as sweet as it gets.
She loves the Lord and her family.
She has great recipes that she shares.
And her photography is amazing!
Just love her!

Enjoy!

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Hello dear Vanilla Tulip readers!

I am so grateful that Ashley has invited me back here again.

Don't you just love her?!

For those of you who are new here, I am Kaylee and I blog over at Life Chasers.

I love everything that being a homemaker entails including all the little bumps along the way.

That's what I write about.

I'm married to a handsome, rugged man and a mom to our 2 vivacious little girls.

We recently moved to North Dakota, my home state, to start a business in agriculture.

It's been a wild ride!

>>> <<<

I have been a wife for almost 4 years and a mom for almost 3.

There are days I feel like I have it all together and others that I feel like such an amateur. 

But whether you are a novice or a seasoned pro, I think we are all looking for ways to simplify our day.

A clean house is important to both my husband and I. 

Here are a few tips I use to make that possible:

Prepare the night before.

After baths at night and we are getting the girls ready for bed, I lay out their clothes for the next day on top of their dresser.

Ashlynn likes to dress herself so in the morning she grabs them and does just that.

(without going through her clothes and making a mess.)

Lay out my gym clothes/shoes so getting out the door is quick and painless.

Figure out what I am doing for dinner the next night so that if there is meat I can take it out of the freezer first thing in the morning.

Straighten up. I usually just make sure that the toys are downstairs and the pillows in the living room are put away. It makes it feel like I'm not waking up to chaos in the morning.

Jump right in.

As soon as I get back from the gym I take a shower, put makeup on and start my day.

If not, the sweats will stay on and it is SO hard for me to not just sit and have a second cup of coffee.

After I get ready I do a sweep through each room and straighten up.

Make the bed, put the dirty clothes in the hallway, make the girls bed, throw any toys in the bin, pick up the bottles and pacifiers and bam. The rooms are clean.

Once I do that I have all of the laundry in one place to take to the laundry room and separate it and start a load.

If I don't start one then, I just won't later.

Find cleaning products you like.

I'm serious, if you like the way it looks/smells, you will use it more.

I love using this lavender spray for my kitchen counters.

Maintain throughout the day.

Our room stays clean but the girls room/living room/kitchen/playroom all get a lot of traffic. 

If I go through a room and there are toys I consolidate them into a pile until I go to the girls room/play room to put them away.

During nap time after lunch I do a quick pick up, right before dinner (moments before Ryan gets home), and right before bed again.

This has proved to be the BEST way to keep house for me.

It literally takes 1-2minutes a room and you don't feel like you are living in a pigsty.

It's not so overwhelming then when you have to do it all at once.

Teach your kids to help.

Ok so Ashlynn isn't a huge help (at 2 1/2) but I have started her with making her bed, putting garbage away, putting her toys away etc.

It may be faster to do it yourself but in the long run, this will save your hind end.

Make lists!

I LOVE making lists.

It keeps you organized and feels so good to cross something off.

Take time.

If you get a moment, take time to sit and breathe.

It will fuel you up to keep going.

Plus, if your house is picked up, you won't feel guilty while enjoying your iced coffee. :)

These are all simple things but have changed my days.

It frees me up to do other things and feel like my home is being maintained at the same time.

We are called to steward our homes, it is not something to be taken lightly!