The Busy Mom's Guide to a Healthy Home

Since I was only days old I have had breathing problems. When I was a baby I had countless allergy tests and my pediatrician found that I was allergic to around 200 different allergens. Thankfully, I have grown out of most of those throughout the years.

I am now 26 and have a baby of my own, so far he is only allergic to milk and I do everything I can to make sure that our house is a safe, clean place for all of us. But, this doesn't have to mean cleaning around the clock or getting rid of the pets.

Here are some great ways to keep your family healthier and asthma symptoms at bay, while still enjoy the seasons and furry family members in our lives. I am now going to take you room by room for a tour through my healthy home.

We are going to start with the living room, it is the hub of our home life and, aside from the kitchen, the most used room in our houses. Come with me through the list of chores and how I get them done as a busy work at home mom.

Vacuuming: I have a dirty little secret...I hate to vacuum! It is time consuming and if you are doing it right, you have to move all the furniture and get sweaty. But, like sitting in line at the gas station, it must be done. Most doctors and cleaning specialists will recommened that we vacuum all carpeted areas daily, but it's just not realistic. I vacuum twice a week, on Mondays and Fridays. Why so far apart? Because the most traffic is during the weekend, so I want less time between cleaning there, instead of during the week when my husband is at work. I use pet odor carpet fresheners and I move everything that's on the floor, even the couch. And, don't forget to vacuum the furniture, especially if you have pets.

Dusting: This is another one that I hate doing. I don't like to be near the dust or in its cloud as I clean. It also feels like it takes forever, but it takes even longer if you let it go for too long. I generally dust once a week, the electronic items you should probably dust more often. For these items, I use the electronic wipes because they are specially designed not to have static in them, which can be harmful to your electronic items. I use Windex on all the framed items, furniture polish on the wood, Swiffer dusters on light fixtures and I wash knick knacks in the kitchen sink with mild soap.

General Upkeep: The best way to shorten the amount of time you have to spend cleaning is to have little rules that help you contain the clutter and mess. Have a little basket or designated throw all area. Clean that out every couple of days. Put important papers on a bulletin board. We have a bill basket that hangs on the wall underneath our bulletin board and when bills come in the house, they go there until they are paid and filed.

The next area we are going to venture into is the bedrooms. We spend so much of our time sleeping here that we don't really think about it being a room that needs a lot of cleaning. I make our bed every morning and we don't do anything else in our room except sleep and sometimes read books to the baby on our bed. But, that is probably where most of the allergens you come into contact our. A couple of quick things that can instantly cut down your exposure are mattress and pillow allergy covers.

Bedding: I was my sheets once a week and my blankets once every two weeks. If you have a mattress pad, wash that every two weeks too. If you are asthmatic, get rid of any down comforters you have. They trap tons more dust mites and dander than an ordinary blankets. I am lucky, my mother-in-law quilts and we have plenty of quilts to keep us warm. They are ideal for asthmatics because they are thin, not to much stuffing, easy to wash and lightweight. All of which can provide the optimal sleep environment for someone with breathing problems.

General Upkeep: The same basic rules apply to the bedroom as the rest of the house. Vacuum twice a week and dust often. Anything else is self-explanatory.

The bathroom needs a good scrubbing once a week, but spritzing the shower with a daily shower cleaner can help prevent mold and mildew from building up.

The kitchen is the hub of most of our house and probably the messiest as well. Here are a few of the little things that I do to keep it clean: if you use sponges, replace it once a week; for any messes that don't require scrubbing, use a paper towel and I am completely addicted to the Clorox Anywhere Hard Surfaces spray. I call it the "safe spray". I use it on the highchair, baby's toys, countertops, cutting boards and any where else that you are going to be touching or putting food on. You can even use it in your refrigerator crisper around produce.

I hope that these tips and tricks help to make your cleaning tasks a little less cumbersome. As busy mom's, we never have enough time do everything we need to in a day, but that doesn't mean that you have to compromise on a clean, fresh and inviting house.

Put together a little schedule for getting your chores down throughout the week in a timely manner and learn to enjoy your weekends with your family, before you know it the once impossible household tasks you used to avoid with flow into your day seamlessly.