In honor of February being heart-health awareness month, we’d like to focus on the health and happiness of another well-loved heart: the heart of the home.

Keeping the kitchen clean every day can be a big undertaking. No other room sees so much function and use or has as much potential for mess (even when compared to the bathroom). The trick to staying on top of it is to tackle it every day with these easy tips.

Cook simpler meals.

Sometimes it’s not about how you clean, but how you make a mess. If your MO is to whip up a grand spread at every turn, then you probably have the kitchen chaos to prove it. Alternate with simpler meals, or make sure you have plenty of leftovers with each big cooking event, to be able to take advantage of a clean kitchen as long as possible.

Empty the dishwasher every morning.

Starting the day with an empty dishwasher is a great way to keep your kitchen sink and counters clear. Get in the habit of loading it throughout the day, and your kitchen will always be clean (or at least look that way for a bit).

Commit to a basic level of kitchen clean.

This means wiping down the counters after every meal, clearing dishes and sweeping the floor at the end of the day. Everyone deserves to wake up each morning to a clean kitchen, so make that vision your motivation. And a piece of chocolate at the end of the chores never hurt either.

Assign a special cleaning task for each day.

It’s unrealistic to think you can overhaul your kitchen like we do when we come. We have four people on our team, and we’re trained to know what to look for. While you are in-between cleanings, break down your above-and-beyond task list so that you do only one extra thing each day. This way, it’s easy to do and you know it will get done. Here’s an example list.

• Sunday: Check and tidy pantry (plan meals/grocery trip as necessary).
• Monday: Wipe down appliances.
• Tuesday: Wipe down cabinet fronts.
• Wednesday: Wipe down walls and backsplashes.
• Thursday: Pick a drawer to clean out and wipe down.
• Friday: Clean fridge, moving most-perishables to the front.
• Saturday: Mop or scrub floors.

Whether or not you use our cleaning services on a weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly basis, we hope you find these tips useful in keeping your kitchen clean and bright, so you can keep cooking up delicious meals for your family. Until we see you again (or for the first time), here’s to keeping hearts of all kinds clean and healthy!

– See more at: http://www.maids.com/blog/#sthash.F8KTlrZe.dpuf