Cooking Dinner Series—Day 7

So far in the series we have talked about meal planning, having food on-hand, prepping ahead of time, more time-saving tips, the go-to meal, and remembering WHY we are cooking dinner in the first place.

Today’s topic isn’t exactly cooking, but it goes hand-in-hand with cooking in the kitchen.

We’re talking about cleaning in the kitchen. I know, I know, it’s not fun. But neither is cooking in a messy/dirty kitchen.

For the first 9 years or so of our marriage, I felt pretty indignant about “equity” in the kitchen. I was adamant that if I was cooking, my husband should be cleaning.

And then I heard FlyLady speak at a Mom Conference. And she reminded me why I am cleaning in my kitchen (or anywhere). It’s not about recognition or keeping score. It is about love. I love my family. FlyLady put a new spin on the drudgery of cleaning in the kitchen for me. Instead of talking about complicated cleaning routines, she challenged me to keep my sink clean each day. And she brought me to reality when she challenged me to set a timer before I unloaded the dishwasher. It takes me less than 10 minutes. If I’m trying hard, I can knock it out in 5. Why was I making such a big deal about something so trivial? With renewed perspective, I unloaded the dishwasher and reloaded it each day and life was instantly smoother.

But then my kids got a little older. And I remembered going to a friend’s house as a preteen and watching her family immediately get to work cleaning their kitchen as soon as they finished eating. It was mesmerizing! At my house we washed dishes and cleared the table, too, but we all complained and only worked after we were reminded about 15 times and possibly threatened. With this friend’s household in mind, my husband and I decided we wanted to teach our children from an early age to get up and start cleaning the kitchen right after dinner.

So now, during dinner each child shares his/her best and worst of the day, then they choose a kitchen job. Our three-year-old isn’t a part of the rotation yet, so we have four jobs: dishes, table, counter, and floor.

Because we rotate whose day it is, we let the child whose day it is choose his job first. It goes in order from there until the last child (who typically ends up sweeping the floor unless something else is more work than usual!). And then they get to work.

I won’t pretend for a minute that we are perfect or that every day magically happens without reminders or push back. But, it has become a regular part of our nightly routine. And those habits are pretty strong. Last night, the stars aligned and I didn’t even know what jobs my kids had chosen until I noticed that one son was cleaning the counter and another was already clearing the table!

I usually jump in and help the boys, and I think that working together makes all the difference. Some nights I am exhausted and I just collapse on the couch for the first time all day. And the kitchen still gets clean. And I think to myself, “Maybe I can do this again tomorrow…”

So whether you have kids old enough to help or you are going to focus on keeping your sink clean on your own, having a cleaning routine in place makes all the difference. Keep it simple. If you need a reality check like I did, time yourself unloading the dishwasher. If you need more cleaning motivation, I’ve shared a few ideas here, too. I hope a cleaner kitchen brings you joy!

Walking into a cleaner kitchen automatically makes cooking dinner feel more do-able.

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