Moms do you feel guilty cleaning the house? My family and I live in a two bedroom apartment. I do have a cleaning schedule. I have two small children so I take house cleaning very slow. I go room by room each day. One day I clean the kitchen, next day bathroom, and on the third day I do the one bedroom, dining room, and living room. Those last three rooms are very easy to clean that is why I can do them in such a short time period. I don’t clean the second bedroom because that is my husband’s computer room. He does it himself. Anyways, I always feel guilty while I’m cleaning. I usually clean while my 8 months old naps in the morning but that leaves my 20 month old awake and usually looking bored. He sits with me while I clean and I take a break and fix him his lunch but when I go back to cleaning he lays on the floor and stares at the ceiling. He has toys but is not interested and he does not watch t.v. I think I like Sesame Street more than he does. I like my house to be clean but why do I have to feel so guilty while I’m doing it? I even went from cleaning the house once a week to every other week because I figured my kids are more important than a clean house but I was so uncomfortable.
Me and my hubby just cleaned like crazy people in our kitchen (we have ants) =[
Cleaned for about 2 hours, but my son went to bed 
If im cleaning the kitchen like bottles or dishes I usually just put him in his highchair with toys and a sippy cup and he has fun watching me clean.
My daughter used to let my grandson help her at that age. He would hand her small items to put in the dishwasher like a spoon or fork, she would let him take a dust rag and run it over a table (even though she had to redo it later, ha!) but the whole idea was to make him a part of her routine. He loved doing this with her. Sigh…he is 15 now and needs a fire lit under him just to take out the trash! Get him involved and make it a game for him. Good luck!
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I do! Esp when he’s just watching me form his bouncer (he’s 5.5 months.) But it has to be done eventually! For a while it got nasty around here!
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The real question is why does your husband have his own computer room when all 4 of you share ONE bedroom?!
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I’m not a mother and not a woman but one thing I suggest is that when your baby begins to walk (if he is not already) try to get him involved, when my cousin had her baby he would cry all the time unless he was held. Her solution: She got him a toy vaccum (You know like the ones that bounce the little balls around when you move it) when he began to walk and she would say "Let mommy teach you how to clean
" and that really seemed to help her. Even if your son doesnt wanna get involved in the cleaning or he’s not old to walk, just check on him every few minutes and let him know your still interested him and he’ll keep happy 
Hope this helped!
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Watching and Learning
Of course. I think every mom feels guilty for not being able to spend enough time with their kids. The best advice I can offer is get your older son involved. Have him push the laundry in the dryer as you take it out of the washer, give him a washcloth and let him wipe the fronts of the cabinets while you clean the counters or wipe the walls in the bathroom when you are cleaning the bathroom. That may sound lame, but I do that with my older daughter, she is not bored, she loves being my "big helper" and spending time with me. I am extremely limited on time, as I have 8 months old triplets, so we take every chance we can get. Its hard to find an easy medium…
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I clean the house very often but it does not take that much to mee. However, since I can not afford a maid, I do not feel guilty that I do it. At the same time, when I do the cleaning I try to look funny to my 6 month son so I make funny faces and noises so my son does not get bored or so on.
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Dont panic. Just the fact that you’re concerned shows that you care!=] I too sometimes wonder if I am paying enough attention while I do housework, and since I’m cleaning a 3 bedroom house and doing laundry for 6 it takes a lot of my time. It is good for them to spend some time trying to entertain themselves. You could also try to get the older child involved a little, he’s old enough to "help" dust, separate laundry, or sweep with a kid size broom…even a small squirt bottle with water to clean the bathtub would be fun for him. Turn on music and dance together while you clean up. If worst comes to worst, do what you can during a time when both kids are sleeping and call it good enough….before you know it they will be grown!
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mama to 4
Part of taking care of your kids is providing a safe clean place to live. You cannot be with them every second of the day. You want to raise happy and independent adults! I have 3 kids and take a lot of pride in providing them a clean house to live in, clean clothes, and food to eat. It takes time to make sure they have all of this. There is nothing to feel guilty about. You are showing how much you love them by providing them the best life possible!
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Mom of 3!
I don’t feel guilty at all. An hour of alone time for your children to entertain themselves is actually good for them. It helps build independence in them which is something they need so think of it that way every time you clean. In the long run you’re really doing them a favor. Plus by keeping the house clean you’re keeping them safe from germs and crumbs or other icky stuff that could be on the floor. So keep on cleaning and try not to feel bad about it.
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I don’t think thats bad at all. If your guilt gets to you try to make it fun for the 1 year old. sing and dance and have him help you. my baby is almost nine months old and when i clean my room she stands up in her crib and watches while I dance and sing along to all the stuff that i’m putting away. Laughing and completely enjoying it. She thinks I’m playing with her and I think it’s teaching her that it’s fun to clean and whatnot.
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Get your son involved now. Later on you won’t have a problem getting him to empty the trash.
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I think USA Lady read my mind!!
My kids were helping at that time too. A damp cloth to help dust, picking up toys or other pieces off the floor, passing linen, wiping up the plastics, if its a hot day washing them too.Passing pegs to hang laundry, matching socks, choosing whos pile will this shirt etc go into. We even made learning games like please pass a yellow peg or trying to match the peg to the coloured item being hung to dry.
Sure it takes a little longer & you will have to touch up discretely but toddlers love helping & imitating , if you can teach skills while youre at it all the better. It also helps when theyre older & want to play, they understand if they’ve left lots of toys out it is going to take longer to tidy up before Mummy can play.
I too have a 14yo & yeah helping wont last a lifetime so try to make the most of it while you can!
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My 3
Me and my hubby just cleaned like crazy people in our kitchen (we have ants) =[
Cleaned for about 2 hours, but my son went to bed
If im cleaning the kitchen like bottles or dishes I usually just put him in his highchair with toys and a sippy cup and he has fun watching me clean.
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well i have two small children myself and my house always seems to be wrecked so i no were your coming from cause i find myself cleaning my house more than i do my spending time with my kids.BUT i also no that i would feel just as bad if i let my kids live in a dirty and unsanitary envirnment.trust me u shouldnt feel bad but it is normal to.i tend to just take a day off every so often and make a very special day out at the park or something fun that we can enjoy together to make up for the time.
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"The real question is why does your husband have his own computer room when all 4 of you share ONE bedroom?!"
With all due respect, that’s really none of your business. If that works for them, then it works for them. Many families prefer to all sleep in the same room, and for all you know, her husband could operate an at-home business that requires an office, or something. You just never know, and you don’t need to. Period.
Now on to the actual question.
Have you tried getting your 20 month old "involved" in your housework? If he’s really bored, you might try giving him something small and age-appropriate to do that doesn’t involve harsh chemicals. He might even just enjoy watching you clean. Does he like music? Maybe you could play some upbeat music while you clean, and he can enjoy listening and watching you clean.
How long does it take you to complete your daily housecleaning? If it’s no more than an hour or so, I wouldn’t worry too much about it, especially if you have a lot of time during the rest of the day to spend with your child. If we’re talking several hours of cleaning and your child isn’t getting much attention from you at all, then you might consider lightening your workload a bit so you can have more time with them – you know, just doing the bare minimum.
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Don’t feel guilty. You can not entertain your children 24/7. They do need some alone time even though they may look bored. They do need a clean environment to grow up in. I take that back. As long as you are not OCD and really over doing the cleaning then you shouldn’t feel guilty. If you spend hours organizing dvds and books, then yes stop and pick up your child. Otherwise, I wouldn’t feel guilty.
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I don’t feel guilty at all. My son helps me clean. He will pick up his toys with me and put them in his room, he helps pick up the clothes that somehow make it out of the bathroom, he helps dust, he even helps me vacuum. Get your little one involved with the cleaning, it helps so much.
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Me
Not at all, for starters I am very organized so I never let things get too out of control. As far as vacuuming and cleaning the kitchen/bathrooms I do that in the morning when my daughter is playing and my son is napping. It doesn’t take long and I’m not neglecting my kids at all.
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