Baby Marin: Week Ten

We are slowly getting into the swing of things around these parts. Last week marked my first few days back at work. We are learning how to do all of this one day at a time whether it be trying to get me to work on time, getting Marin to Grammy and Grandpa's house for daycare, finding time to hang out and be a couple, and spending time as a family. Every minute seems so precious nowadays. I feel the need to be organized but also be willing to throw all of that out the window and spend an afternoon watching Netflix and cuddling with our baby.

Marin has slept through the night all week. I feel very lucky to say those words. She usually is down for the night around 9:30pm and doesn't wake up until 6am lately. I don't know how we got here, but I am embracing it and going with the flow. The fact that we have a child that SLEEPS right now is a gift from heaven and I don't take that lightly for a second. Can it stay this way all of the time? Please? Probably not a realistic goal but I'll bask in the sleep honeymoon while I have it. I imagine teething will bring its own fair share of fun. 

With my return to work, I have had to start pumping while I am there. I really am not enjoying that whole process and wish I could just be at home breastfeeding my child, but that isn't where we find ourselves. It is frustrating to be mid-meeting and have to excuse myself to go pump in my office for 20 minutes at a time. I already feel so far behind because I've been on maternity leave, I don't want to miss anything and feeling like a cow isn't exactly high up on my list of things I'd like to do with my time. It feels really good to be back at work and escaping to my little cave every few hours isn't really something I am liking at the moment, but I shall endure. Breastfeeding and pumping as much as possible is what is best for Marin and I will tell myself that for as long as I can. We have started supplementing about one feeding a day when I am working. At first, this drove me crazy and I didn't want to head in that direction because it has been drilled into my brain about how "breast is best."  I know plenty of people have plenty of opinions about that subject in general, but this is what is best for our little family right now and that is where we will remain. End rant. 

Marin constantly lights up our lives and I am thankful that we are learning and growing up as a little family with each passing day. I am not as exhausted as I once was. We are landing on something that almost resembles a routine. We are both back at work and I know that Marin is in good hands when we can't be with her. It's all happening and we are so blessed by all of the people that help make that possible. This is a grand season we find ourselves in. 

Week Ten. 

Doterra Essential Oils 101 Class

This Friday, May 2nd, I will be having my first Doterra Oils Class at my house at 7pm. If you are at all curious about Doterra Oils and how they can benefit you and your family's health, please attend! Attendees will receive a Wild Orange oil and the newest edition of Living Magazine.

Are you interested? These oils have helped my family so much and I want to share them with you!

Since I don't feel the need to post my personal address out on my blog for all of the world to see, to RSVP or to find out what my address is, please leave a comment on this blog and I will contact you. Or, feel free to email me at bailyhollendoterra@gmail.com.

Easter 2014

My husband and I are very lucky. Both of our families like to hang out with each other. This makes holidays a lot easier. Everybody wins. This Easter we spent the afternoon at my parent's home with my sister, my grandparents, my parents, my aunt and uncle, his parents, and our brother and sister-in-law. Too much food was consumed and Marin was so exhausted by the end of the day because she was passed around into a different set of arms every so often. I love my family. I am very thankful for them and I am very thankful for Easter, for what Christ did for us. I know our lives would not be the same without that amazing, undeserved sacrifice. It is good to get together and live in remembrance, to look forward into what God is doing in each one of our lives, and to sit there and soak in the fact that this big, crazy, growing group of people are family.

Weekly Links: Currently Clicking #7

(Source) 

Here are all of the places I have been clicking around the internet this week.....

1. Another small home in a movement of tiny living. This would make a great little retreat. 
2. Some new blogs I've added to my reading list: one, two, three.
3. This 30 Day Cleanse is killer. I already ordered the e-book and can't wait to try it at some point. Eating whole food is where it's at. This isn't just a juice cleanse. 
4. I love this post: How To Have A Great Life Without Spending A Lot Of Money 
5. We are starting the process of potentially selling our home and buying another. Here is a list regarding home inspections, 10 Things to Do Before Selling a House,  a quick-clean checklist to use before showings. 

Baby Marin: Week Nine

Last friday Marin went in for her 2 month well check. She is growing very well and is just below 10lbs now and has grown about an inch. She was such a champ, especially when it came to the shots. I think they were more of a shock to her than anything else, but our kid is one tough cookie. I think stuff like that a lot of times is harder on the parent than it is on the child. 

Yesterday was my first full day back to work. Granted, I only work two days this week and two days next week before my grand return to the work world, but I was able to get a glimpse of what all of this will look like. Goodness gracious, I missed my kid. She was always in the back of mind even as I as was diving head first back into the workforce again. Since I've been on leave, I have so much to catch up on. I feel so behind yet strangely ready for the challenge of becoming caught up once again. But, yesterday was like no day I've experienced before. I felt so much like a mother and my thoughts were so consumed by a little girl that back at home with her daddy all day. This all will take some getting used to, that's for sure. 

This is all hard, but I know it will get better. Leaving her is pretty dang tough. I just don't want to miss a moment. 

Sane Mama: 10 Ideas for Keeping Mom Healthy

Over my maternity leave, I wanted to make a point to really take good care of myself. Becoming a parent causes you to shift your focus completely to caring for child, which is how it needs to be. But, if we aren't careful, we can become completely frazzled and not healthy. I think keeping a mama sane is important. My family is still my number one focus all day, everyday, but making sure I'm not going to come apart at the seams due to lack of sleep and lack of showers, is still important. It's the little things that help too. One day at a time. One workout at a time. One relaxing bath at a time. When I feel good about myself and I feel healthy, I am at the top of my game and can better support my family. 

These are just a few of things I've done over the past few weeks to keep me sane. They are simple. They don't take a ton of time but have great returns in the end. A lot of these are probably predictable, but when they aren't in my life, I am a mess. 

1. Drinking tea. This tea has been a favorite since I am nursing. I tend to want to drink buckets of coffee and this keeps me grounded and far less caffeinated. 

2. Exercise. I try to squeeze in any workout I can get, whether it be a DVD (which I seem to collect far too many of), a workout off Hulu, or putting my sneakers on and taking the baby for a walk. I need to work my muscles. I need to get out into the fresh air and out of my pajama pants. Sometimes I am only able to fit in 15 minutes, but the fact that I did anything is an accomplishment. Some of my current workout DVD faves are: this, this, and this.

3. Healthy eating. Nourishing my body. I try to make one salad a day. I've been loosely following Weight Watchers again, which has a calculation for breast feeding mamas, which is nice. I can tell when I'm not eating enough or if I'm eating too much crap. I need energy. I feed our little baby a lot. Same with water. I always have a water bottle somewhere near me because hydration is super important. I currently add some Doterra oils to my water too, like Grapefruit, Wild Orange, or Lemon. I seem to drink a lot more water that way.

My favorite salad currently has 50/50 Spinach and Arugula, 1/2 of an avocado, feta cheese, strawberries, cucumbers, lemon pepper chicken, and a little bit of red wine vinaigrette. So good!

4. Relaxing at night. I usually try to cram so much into my day and my day usually starts pretty dang early nowadays. Once the husband gets home, we usually feed the little one and put her to bed for the night. We've been watching Game of Thrones lately and I love to have a glass of wine when we do. (Don't worry, I don't breastfeed for a good amount of time after drinking alcohol.) It's nice to just slow down even for an hour before bed. 

5. Detox Baths. I am a bath person. Lately, I'm lucky if I shower before 2 pm, but sometimes in the evenings, the husband watches the baby monitor and I get to take a bath. Recently, I've been doing detox baths when I can. This includes some epsom salt and my lovely Doterra oils. I feel so wonderful afterwards and I feel like I just soak out all of the crap from my body. I love detox baths so much. I also seem to sleep much better after taking one.

6. Coconut Oil. I'm kind of shocked that it took me so long to embrace this amazing stuff. It has so many uses and so many benefits. To name a few....

• Make-up Remover
• Body lotion 
• Helps lessen the appearance of stretch marks
• Cooking (I cook eggs, veggies, chicken, you name it with this stuff!)
• Cradle Cap

I could go on and on. Here's a pretty good list of coconut oil uses.

7. Diffusing Oils. I know you're probably reading this saying, "Oh no, here we go again. She's talking about essential oils." Sorry, but I love them. I like diffusing citrusy scents during the day when I'm working. Sometimes I add peppermint to the mix. It lifts my moods and increases my focus on the task at hand.

8. Dry Shampoo. My hair secret. Let's be honest here, I do shower everyday but I don't always have the time to wash my hair, blow-dry it, straighten or curl it, etc, etc, etc.... So, this is where dry shampoo comes in. This stuff has been a saving grace over maternity leave. My baby needs me a lot. My hair doesn't get washed everyday. Truth. This allows me to go 2 days between washing. Total life saver. I've used a lot of different brands, but this one is my current choice.

9. Reading a good book. This is the other way I wind down at the end of my day. I sleep way better if I read before bed instead of watching too many episodes of something on Netflix. 

My current reads (I always have too many books going at one time and clearly I need to add a novel or two to this list.)

• Bread & Wine, A Love Letter to Life Around the Table with Recipes
• Daring Greatly
• Operation Instructions, A Journal of My Son's First Year 
• The Happiness Project
• Bringing up Bebe

10. And finally sleep. I know, you moms out there are probably laughing at this one. Sleep? What is this sleep you speak of? When you have baby, everyone tells you to sleep when the baby sleeps. I feel this isn't the most realistic of goals, but I do make a point to try and go to bed at a decent time. I could spend hours on the computer, pinning stuff on Pinterest, but instead I try to get a decent amount of sleep. I know that I will be waking up at some point to feed the baby, so I take what I can get. Naps are also moments in time sent from heaven. I probably nap maybe once a week but sometimes that's all I need to hit the refresh button.

A Mountain to Climb & Conquer

I had trouble falling back asleep on Thursday night. I guess it technically would have been Friday morning due to a 4am feeding with our little gal. My mind just wouldn’t shut off the moment my head hit my wonderful pillow. Usually I have no problem drifting off into dream land again for a few hours before the next feeding, but that wasn’t the case this time around. 

I couldn’t shut it off. I wanted to. I fought it. I didn’t win. 

Monday will mark the day I kind of return to work. We set up my maternity leave so that during the last two weeks, I would go in for two days each week to kind of get my feet wet again and then after that, I would return like normal. I’ve been working from home for a good chunk of my leave and have tried to stay on top of everything that I could while being so far away from my place of employment all while caring for a fussy newborn. I have worn many, many, many hats in the last 12 weeks. I’ve learned each and everyday about being a mom, caring for another. I’ve taken online photography courses. I’ve written consistently on my blog and hope to continue to do so. I’ve started another side business with my mother which will be revealed at some point. I’ve embarked into the world of Doterra and have tried to learn as much as I can. 

I have been busy. I will only get busier. 

As I was thinking of all of these things, panic began to set in. On Monday, I will also not be doing my normal job but working at someone else’s desk as coverage. I’m fine with doing so, it’s good for me to do that every once in a while so I don’t get rusty and so I can support the wonderful team that I get to work with. But, then I started thinking about how I needed to pump. How many times I needed to pump. Whether or not I would be able to get away to pump. What if I didn’t pump enough? What if my milk dries up? And so the cycle begins. Over and over and over again. 

I know it will all work itself out and I know that legally my place of employment has to let me pump and provide for my baby. For some reason though, early in the morning, it seemed like the biggest mountain to climb, a hurdle that I couldn’t conquer. 

I need to refocus my mind set. I have a great job, especially one that has allowed me to spend so much time with our child. I can breastfeed. I know that some women don’t have that. I struggled in the beginning, it hasn’t been perfect, but I am so thankful that we have come so far in that area. My child is healthy and is growing every day. We have a roof over our heads. We have food on our table. I have been able to work on the creative areas of my life whether it be writing a blog or taking a photo. I have allowed my mind to breathe and grow in all things entrepreneurial, which is where I really love to be. 

We are embarking into a season of our lives that is like no other we have experienced. Having a kid really does change everything. Even though I feel like some of my dreams have currently been set aside (that’s a whole other blog post and music, I miss you dearly), we have gained so many other dreams as well. 

I just need to remind myself that it will all work out in the end and that no dream is too big. 

Weekly Links: Currently Clicking #6

(Source) 

Here are all of the places I have been clicking around the internet this week. 

1. Eating Whole: 7 Day Meal Plan. This all looks delicious, doable, and good for you. 
2. Now not as healthy, but still delicious...Baked Spring Donuts.  I will always have a thing for sprinkled donuts. Let's not even talk about how many my husband might have brought me home when I was pregnant. The bakery lady knew him by name. Oops. 
3. I've recently been reading her book and it makes me want to have people over for dinner all of the time. Here is a post of hers about Vulnerability and Cats. 
4. I don't know if I could do this. My phone is also my alarm clock but it would probably be very good for me to not spend so much time on Pinterest right before I fall asleep. 
5. I know this is all over the internet, but I love it. The World's Toughest Job....

Happy Friday!

Baby Marin: Week Eight

Week Eight. On Friday, our child will be 2 months old. This has probably been the most challenging two months of our entire lives but I don't doubt for a second that we were meant to live in this season of being new parents. Parenthood is changing me. I feel a reshaping of so many things, deep inside my tired bones. I will never be the same. This little girl has already taught us so much and this is only the beginning. 

I am a little nervous for our 2 month appointment with her on friday due to the vaccinations, but I am looking forward to finding out how much she weighs now and all of the other ways she is growing up far too quickly. 

Everyday brings new things. More fussy afternoons. More diaper blowouts. More smiles and giggles. More time spent awake then asleep. Marin is growing bit by bit by bit. 

Marin at 2 Months (Week 8) 

1. Smiles at us a lot with her big, gummy grin.
2. Calms herself by bringing her hands to her mouth and sucking on hands. 
3. Turns her head towards sounds
4. Pays attention to faces and can pick Ryan and I out of a group of people fairly quickly. 
5. Gets fussy if she is bored. Or hungry. Or wet. 
6. Holds head up and is beginning to push upward during tummy time. 
7. Smoother movement of legs and arms
8. Sleeps through the night every couple of nights or wakes up only once to nurse. (Hallelujah!) 

Mama at 2 Months

1. I've slowly started exercising again. It feels good to do something other than sitting and nursing a baby all of the time. (I'm still doing that though.) There is a long road ahead of me, destination: losing the baby weight and then some. It's a big process.
2. I've slept through the night a few times and always wake up surprised when Marin is waking up around 6 or 7 am, not 3 or 4 am. 
3.  I'm slowly coming to terms with the fact that maternity leave is ending soon. But, there is hope on the horizon: I am proposing that I go to part time at my place of work. I think it is a great step for my little family.  
4.  I finally am wearing normal pants again. Not the size I would like, but there's no maternity band and I am fine with that. 

Dad at 2 Months 

1. He still is the best diaper changer and baby-burper on the block. He gets up with me for one of the feedings at night if Marin is up at that point. 
2. This man can swaddle our baby better than I can any day. 
3.  He will spend his first day flying solo with the baby next week when I go back to work for a few days.  
4. I am amazed by his calmness and clarity towards our child (especially when mom is frazzled) and how he loves her. He's swell. He's a great dad and I am so glad I get to do all of this with him. 

Bath Time. A little blurry, but I don't care. 

Weekly Links: Currently Clicking #5

Here are all of the places I have been clicking this week and what has caught my eye out in the great world that is the internet. 

(Source) 

1. Ideas for decorating with houseplants. I'm drawn to homes with a lot of plants. My house has no plants and a cat that would probably eat them, but I still love how they look. 
2. 37 days of 150 Calorie Snacks
3. I'm ready to dive in this book, this book, and this book. 
4. This kitchen redo.  I love the kitchen chairs. 
5. American Blogger Film. This is something I must see.  

Highs and Lows

I was planning on posting a home design piece today, but something told me to just sit down and write instead. The few people that actually read this blog (thank you, by the way) usually end up reading my more intimate posts than the ones about my favorite cleaning product. So here you go. 

Yesterday was a bit of a challenge. It presented its highs and lows and I tried to take them on with ease and clarity. Motherhood really doesn't function that way, so I am learning, ever......so......slowly....... I caught myself yesterday trying to get through my to do list but then telling myself to sit down, chill out, and nurse your baby. Relish the moment. Be ALL there. Don't think about the laundry that needs to be folded or the fact that I've been trying to workout for the past week and have failed miserably. Don't think about the extra weight around my middle section or how I just don't feel too sexy at the moment. Don't think about the ice cream in the freezer that I don't need to be eating right now. Just don't think. Relish. Soak. 

Marin has been on a growth spurt, as mentioned in my previous post. She has been fussier than usual and seems to think I am ready and willing to nurse her every second of every day. I know this will pass at some point, but I feel fairly tied down at the moment. In these moments, I am forced to reevaluate my to do list and adjust accordingly. 

As far as the lows from yesterday go....

I had finally taken a shower, probably around 2pm. No shame. Once my hair was actually blow-dried and I had on something other than my pjs, I knew we needed to get out of the house, even for a little drive. The weather was INCREDIBLE. 70 degrees and lovely. I had one goal in my mind: an iced latte from the Starbucks drive thru. Driving always calms down baby and I didn't mind taking a little excursion. We went through the drive thru. I was stoked. The simple things are the things you have to reach out for every once in a while. My thing yesterday was an iced latte. 

We made it home, Marin sleeping peacefully in her carseat. I went to take a drink of my beverage and realized that they had given me a very wrong order. I ordered a iced, skinny, 1 pump hazelnut latte. So, in other words, I want a latte with a little, little, little bit of syrup. That's how I roll. Well, I went to take a sip and almost spit it out all over myself. I read the label and it stated that I had been given an iced, skinny, 13 pump hazelnut latte. First of all, who in their right mind orders 13 pumps of syrup (sorry if that's you, but ick)?!!? Major bummer. I can't believe I didn't notice it until then. So, after I managed to get myself and the baby out for a while, I came home with a completely undrinkable drink. I was so not winning. 

The rest of my afternoon was spent feeding my kid and cleaning my kitchen. Marin had calmed down quite a bit and was sleeping peacefully in her bouncer. I went to feed her again and unwrapped her from her swaddle. I was shocked to find the diaper blow out of the century. Instead of going up her backside, it had managed to travel all of the way up the front of her. She was unfazed. We hadn't had a good diaper in a while, if you know what I mean. She had clearly been saving it up for this blow out of epic proportions. I had to clean out her belly button. I bet that paints a nice picture. 

Overall, yesterday wasn't the best of days. It also wasn't the worst of days. So many things were challenging, but so many things were there to slowly continue to teach me about this thing called parenting. The one redeeming factor from yesterday was that Marin slept last night from around 10pm to almost 7am this morning. 7 am. 7 am!!!! I could hardly contain the excitement when I realized what time it was when I got up to feed her this morning. Praise the Lord! 

It's the little things. The baby that SLEEPS at night. The fact that my house is fairly clean. The weather outside has been great these past few days. The fact that I still am on maternity leave and get to spend this much time with our child. The fact that breastfeeding is still going very well. I count my blessings on that one. 

I just need to remember to soak in these moments. Soak. 

Baby Marin: Week Seven

We are facing a growth spurt, I believe. She is and I am as well. She wants to eat CONSTANTLY and spends most afternoons nicely awake and fussy. I am growing in the fact that I have to feed her CONSTANTLY and keep my sanity when I don't get anything else accomplished. I just keep telling myself that caring for her is the most important thing in my life right now (and it is!). There are days where I feel a bit stir crazy while on maternity leave, but Marin is surely giving me a run for my money as of late. She keeps me on my toes pretty consistently. 

She is slowly growing into who she will be and I am slowly growing into who I am as a mother. Every day is different and every day I feel like it will probably get harder before it gets easier, but there is a light at the end of the tunnel. These growth challenges are good, for both of us. She is growing up big and strong and I learn how to manage myself a lot better. It's a win-win! 

As much as I believe I would love to be a stay at home mom, I am also slowly getting more ready to return to work. Having a baby around is a fun challenge at times, but I am also excited to stretch my mind again at work and help run a growing dental business. I never thought I would say those words. I wouldn't have said those words a few weeks ago. I know my heart will ache to be close to my kid, for sure, but I am also ready to get a bit more of routine in our lives. (At least until the day comes where we could possibly live on one income. That day is VERY, VERY, VERY far away, unfortunately.) I am ready to get dressed and put make up on in the morning, to wear something other than pajama pants. It's almost time and I'm coming to terms with all of it. But, on the flip side, the other part of me doesn't want to miss out on every smile and every giggle from our little girl. I guess it's kind of the bend and sway of being parents and working full time. I'm strangely excited for the challenge ahead. I think they will be good for all of us. I'll keep repeating that to myself over and over again as I prepare for my return to the workforce. 

Today though, will be spent with our little girl. There is a stroll through the neighborhood in our future. I will feed her over and over and over again and still remain in awe that this child was brought into the world for us to care for. We will change her diapers over and over and over again. We will be aware of every little smile and every little cry.  This is where we currently find ourselves, in these moments, and I'm alright with that. 

Weekly Lovelies: Currently Clicking Week #4

Each and every week I try to gather up some of the places I've been clicking on out in the good ol' inter webs. There's so much out there, so much to weed through. But, this is where I've been clicking this week....

1. I've been researching more about Doterra oils. I'm currently curious about daily routines with the oils. Here's one, another, and another. 
2. I'm dying over these kitchens. Someday. 
3. I'm still obsessed with how other people do weekly meal prep. Once I go back to work, this will be a must to incorporate into our lives. Here's an example, another, and another. 
4. I like learning new things. I like growing in the knowledge that I have about things as well. This website is doing just that. I think it's just so cool. Sometimes you don't need a college class, sometimes you do. 
5. This post would have been helpful when I moved 1200 miles away from all of my friends and family. Sometimes making new friends is hard! 
6. As a mom, I'm really not loving pumping breast milk for my kid. Sometimes though I have band practice or something for work and someone else is watching her. Thus, I must pump. Here are a few tips on pumping: one, two, three. Even though I really don't like it currently! One thing is certain: I need to drink way more water! 

Doterra Oils: My Current Obsession

I'm obsessed. I recently met with a Doterra Independent Product Consultant because I was super curious about essential oils. I have a number of friends back where I went to college in Washington that use them and I had to find out more for myself. 

A week or so later, these beauties (I purchased the Home Essentials Kit) arrived at my doorstep and I have already begun using these amazing oils. I have a lot to learn, but I truly believe this is a great step in a good, healthy direction for my family and I. It could also become another business venture for me if I decide to host classes and sell products myself. I see that in my future at some point. Right now, I am learning everything I can about the oils and using them on my family. 

My baby's cradle cap is already disappearing far quicker than any other thing we've tried. I am using a drop of Melaleuca and some coconut oil. 

My husband's muscles ache a lot due to his line of work and he is trying out the Deep Blue Rub. 

I am excited to try our diffuser in our home. I went with this one since it was cheaper. Not Doterra, so we will see if it works well or not. 

I used lavender (with a carrier oil) on Marin's feet last night and she seems to sleep better. I think at first she wasn't quite sure what to do with it. I might try diffusing lavender in her room as well at night. 

I'm sure I will write about these products again. I have just begun to skim the surface. 

Do you use essential oils in your daily life? What is your daily routine? 

A Busy, Working Mom's Cleaning Schedule

I feel the need to add a bit of disclaimer to this post....I am a new mom. I don't know what I'm doing. I am also a bit OCD by nature and like a good list. They keep me line. They help me know what the end goal is. I don't want to portray that I am perfect, especially as a mom. I mess up. A lot. I also don't want to portray that my house is perfect at all times of the day, no matter what. There's spit up in places I don't care to think about. There's a couch that probably has a small colony living underneath it by now. Our laundry piles might eventually be the death of me or our cat, Geoff. Most of my time is occupied by a newborn that sleeps, eats, and poops. This will all change at some point, as it should. 

There will be plenty of times that I don't complete this list every week. There will be times where I will choose to hang out with my family instead of scrubbing my kitchen. There are times where I know I will fall short. These are just guidelines. I work better when I have a list. I might go a week and only get my living room cleaned because we had some spare time on Monday. I am fine with that. I like knowing how other people manage their busy lives, this is just a peek at mine. It will bend and sway and change over and over again. 

I am not naive. I am not perfect. I mess up lots. I'm learning as I go in this thing called parenthood and I have only just begun.

Those are just my thoughts....Now continue on to the cleaning schedule...

I am a bit of a neat freak. Parenting has forced me to back off of that title a bit, but I still take some pride in having a nice, organized, clean house. When my house is messy, my brain lives in chaos. When I wake up to a semi-clean home, I feel like I have a better grasp on my sanity. 

We lead busy lives. With a newborn, I can't devout 3 hours on a Saturday to deep cleaning my house anymore. At this point in our lives, that just doesn't work for us. 

When I was pregnant, I created these two lists. I was too exhausted then to take a day to clean, so I split it up into daily tasks that were still obtainable. I have been using this system now that I'm on maternity leave as well. Once I go back to work, I think I can keep this up, but it might need to be altered here and there. One room only takes me about 20 minutes if I have been keeping up with my cleaning schedule. That is doable. I can do that. 

I have normal daily tasks that I already do. When I wake up or before I go to bed (or both), I just do a quick pick up and sweep of the house. This makes getting up the next day easier and my cleaning task for that day doesn't seem too cumbersome. 

I also have a deep cleaning list. On Sundays, I try to do one of these items. Sometimes I do, sometimes I don't. Sometimes my husband actually has a Sunday off and I won't clean then. That's family time. Sometimes it's good to rest and my oven can wait to be deep cleaned one more week. It's ok to rest, people. Remember that. 

There you have it. The secret to my sanity. I have also started using these cleaning products. Any glass cleaner that smells like mint works for me. (I am not getting paid to say that, I just love the product. But, hey, if they want to give me free goods, I wouldn't say no.) 

Happy Cleaning.