I learned something this past week while I was recovering from surgery: I really dislike housecleaning.  I also learned that because of my business, I’m constantly cleaning.  I already knew that, but I didn’t realize the impact it had until I took 10 days off.

See, having a clean house is part of my job. Every morning the bathrooms are sparkling, because you never know when a daycare parent might need to use the bathroom before they head off to work.  (I’m talking about things like make-up residue, kids toothpaste residue in the sink, clean mirrors, clean counters, etc.)  And I clean both bathrooms.  During the day I have to clean the toilet seats and floors at least once. And at the end of the day I do another clean sweep of the toilet seats so that my family can sit without worry. No biggie. It’s just part of my daily routine, I don’t even think about it.

My floors are usually vacuumed every other day. The kitchen and dining area is swept twice a day, and mopped every other day. Spot cleaned daily due to spills, however.

Dusting once a week.  The whole house.

I clean the playroom constantly throughout the day, with a final cleaning every afternoon when the last kids leave, and a heavy duty cleaning every weekend.

The dining table is wiped after every meal and snack- so I’m cleaning that probably 3-4 times a day.  And the chairs (all 8 of them) are deep cleaned weekly, I wipe the seats daily.  The kitchen counters are always clean and ready for the next meal to be prepared.  Dishes directly into the dishwasher, the dishwasher run daily and unloaded promptly.

BUT, during my 10 days off:
I didn’t clean the bathroom once, until today.
I didn’t vacuum or mop, until today.
I didn’t dust.  I’ll do that tomorrow.
I didn’t have to pick up toys, or blankets or pillows.
I never set foot in our playroom, except as a shortcut from the bathroom to the family room!
I didn’t maintain a perfectly clean kitchen during my recovery.

And I loved it.

But it drove me nuts.

I loved having the break, not having to work so hard, so often, do so much cleaning.  But I could see the difference in my home.  I would have been embarrassed if someone came by unexpectedly, or if someone asked to use our bathrooms!  Eek!

So I want to take a moment to recognize that my childcare business really keeps this house in tip-top shape.  Because of the daycare, I don’t have to spend an hour cleaning my house before guests come over, because it’s already clean!  It’s simply part of my job.