Are you looking for a small change that will start your days off more peacefully? Start the night before with an at-home closing shift!
We all lead busy, chaotic lives. Our days are packed with work, kids’ activities, social obligations, and the never-ending list of things you need to do to run a household. It’s a lot. I know the last thing you want to do at the end of your jam-packed days is housework, but I’m telling you a little housework might be just the ticket.
Confused yet? Stick with me. Just a little work (15-30 minutes’ worth) at the end of the day – an at-home closing shift – can set you up for success and really change your life. I’m not exaggerating. It feels so good to start the day in a house that isn’t a disaster and you can ride that wave to make your days feel more peaceful. More peace? Sign me up!
Before we get into what an at-home closing shift can look like, I first want to be clear that I don’t want you to think your house needs to be spotless every night before you go to bed. That’s a pipe dream. Your at-home closing shift should include only those tasks that will have the biggest impact on your morning mental health. Interested in learning more? Here’s what I do for my at-home closing shift every night that makes me sleep better and experience more peace in my home.
At-Home Closing Shift
Dishes
If you’re not clearing your sink at night before you go to bed, I highly recommend adding dealing with the dishes as part of your at-home closing shift. It sounds like such a silly thing, but I have found that making sure the dishes are sorted is the most impactful thing I do at night. I do three distinct, dishes-related tasks every night.
Dishwasher
Everything that can go in the dishwasher should go in the dishwasher. Once you’ve loaded everything into the dishwasher for the day, run it. Even if it’s not 100% full. This has been a daily habit that I’ve adopted to great success!
Hand washing
The dishes that can’t go in the dishwasher need to be hand washed. Wash the pots and pans you used to fix dinner, the water bottles that aren’t dishwasher safe, and any other dishes you may have used throughout the day. I like to wash the smallest dishes first and work my way to the biggest ones. It just helps to avoid the dish drainer looking like the Leaning Tower of Pizza by the time you’re finished.
Dish drainer
Speaking of the dish drainer, if you really want to be a dishes rock star, clear out the dish drainer as part of your at-home closing shift when you have an extra few minutes. Your morning self will really thank you when all the dishes are put away and easy to access.
Counters
After the dishes are washed, my next at-home closing shift task is the kitchen counters. It’s truly amazing just how much stuff accumulates on the counters throughout the course of the day. Mail, random kids’ toys, half-eaten fruit – you name it, it’s probably on the kitchen counter at the end of the day. All this crap on the counter is unsettling at any time of the day, but when you wake up to it, it’s maddening. Do yourself a favor and just clear everything off at night so you can wake up to a clean surface. I’ve found that a simply basket/tray on the end of the counter works well to corral the clutter during the day and can then be taken room to room to return the clutter to where it belongs.
Wipe surfaces
After you’ve cleared off your counters, it’s time to wipe the resulting surfaces. Of course, you should spray and wipe down your kitchen counters, but you should also wipe any other surfaces that have accumulated grime throughout the day. The stovetop, the kitchen table, or the highchair (if you have a baby or toddler) come to mind.
For the wiping step of my at-home closing shift, I like to use an all-purpose cleaning spray (the Method grapefruit scent is a favorite) and a dishcloth. You don’t really have to scrub too much for this surface wipe, so don’t be afraid that this step will take any considerable amount of time.
Vacuum
The next step in your at-home closing shift should be a quick vacuum. If you have kids and/or pets, you’re probably used to running the vacuum every day, so this shouldn’t be a surprise. I don’t think you need to do a thorough clean of your floors every night, but a quick pass of the vacuum is essential to get the crumbs, pet hair, and errant dog food off the floor. If you hate to vacuum, make this a quicker chore every night with a stick vacuum. You don’t need to buy a crazy expensive Dyson, my Eureka RapidClean Pro works just fine.
Lock up
This might be a bit of a “duh,” but you should lock up your house as part of your at-home closing shift. If you’re like me, you lock the door as soon as you come in the door. Even still, I like to just do a double check before I turn in for the night. It takes all of 3 seconds, so it’s a worthwhile use of your evening time.
Tidy
Many of you have probably been with me so far, but I might lose a few of you here. I really believe you should try to tidy up a bit at the end of the night as part of your at-home closing shift. Now, I’m not saying you need to do a full clean-up of your whole house every night before bed. Absolutely not. The playroom and the basement are often disaster zones when I crawl into bed at night.
Our main living areas (kitchen, family room), on the other hand, are almost always tidied at the end of the day. I make sure books aren’t spilling off the bookshelf, the play kitchen items are safely stowed in the play kitchen, and random toys that make their way out of the playroom and onto the kitchen floor aren’t tripping hazards when I come down the steps in the morning.
You don’t have to devote a ton of time to tidying at the end of your day. Just five minutes can make a world of difference!
Sofa
Does anyone else’s sofa look like it’s been through the wars by the end of the day? Mine sure does! The pillows are typically all over the place, the blankets have been made into a nest, and the detritus of life is strewn all over the cushions. Before you sit down and enjoy your evening entertainment, just straighten up your sofa a bit. Fluff the pillows, fold the blankets, put the dog bones back in the dog toy bin.
Laundry
I have a goal of doing at least one load of laundry from start to finish every day, so laundry is absolutely on my list of at-home closing shift duties. I take time at the end of the day to put away any lingering clean laundry and prepare a load to go in the washing machine first thing the next morning. If you have a delay option on your washing machine, go ahead and load the clothes in and set the cycle to start in the morning so you can pop it in the dryer when you wake up and start your day.
Kid prep
If you have young kids, you know that getting them up and out the door to school in the mornings can be darn near impossible. Streamline that hectic time by doing some kid prep as part of your at-home closing shift. Pack lunches, get backpacks ready, pack up extra-curricular activity gear, sign forms, choose clothes – whatever you can get done the night before will help make your mornings go more smoothly.
Other posts
Are you interested in more tips to streamline your homemaking responsibilities? You might find these posts helpful:
How does my at-home closing shift differ from yours? Let me know down in the comments or over on Instagram @sarainseason.
Thanks for the tips