"It's a SNAP!"

Once upon a time I was a messy cooker. You know the kind that in 10 seconds flat can make a beautiful kitchen look like a tornado hit. I would sit eating my dinner with my back to the kitchen dreading and moaning and complaining (and did I say dreading?) to turn around and face the monster mess I created. I think I expended so much energy thinking about cleaning the kitchen that by the time I actually started cleaning I was exhausted!

Never fear! I've turned over a new leaf...

An extremely kind and tidy friend allowed me to follow her around and I got some great cleaning tips and motivation. Also very helpful was a tip a friend shared at church that I LOVE!

My friend said when raising her children she had a friend that always had a clean house, dinner in the oven and seemed on top of everything. She asked her friend, "How do you do it?! Your house is always clean and mine is always a mess!" Her friend replied, "Oh, it's just a snap!"

I realized the trick is in my attitude. If I moan and groan then cleaning will seem like a chore. But when I clean up as I go (another tip from another friend: fill your sink with soapy water right before you start to cook) and then tell myself, "It's a snap!", with literally no extra effort I can keep my kitchen spotless around the clock (insert real life here: during research paper and finals I did NOT have a clean kitchen). And with a toddler that likes to do interesting things with his food...

...and anything else he can get his hands on, it really helps to tell myself "It's a snap!" and clean it up before I get mad ; )

Once you believe it and do it, you can share this great tip with your kids. I asked my son to clean something up for me the other day and I met with moaning and groaning and complaining (where did he learn that?!). I explained the whole deal about how "It's a snap!" He believed me and boy was he a fast cleaner-upper! Any more cleaning tips--especially involving kids? Please share!!