This week I’ve been incredibly busy preparing kids for camp, taking them to the swimming pool and getting ready for the RWA Nationals next week (!!!). Sorry, I just can’t think of the RWA Nationals (!!!) without exclamation points. It’s my first time at a national writing conference. The closest thing I’ve ever done to this was Horrorfest several years ago, but that was just fun stuff. I signed a few copies of Horror Library Volume 1, which I helped copy edit and had a story in. I also hung out with some of my horror buddies and went through the haunted house. Mostly it was just fun watching the people in extreme makeup and costumes wander past.

But, I digress. The RWA Nationals will be so much more for me. Workshops and editor meetings and pitching my novels (I have TWO to pitch!)… oh my. So much to do. Keeping up with my blog has been low on my list this week. Not as low, however, as housekeeping chores. So, here are my top five ways to keep up with keeping up my house.

1. Have somebody else do it for you. Of course, right! Maid services are awesome, but they do cost money. Plus, the maids don’t move in, so they’re only there once or twice a week, and let’s face it, if you’ve got kids, there’s more housecleaning to do than can be done in one or two days. So, see the rest of my list.
2. Invest in convenience cleaning supplies. I have a bunch of these. Wipes come with all sorts of cleaning solutions already in them these days. There are wipes for cleaning windows, wipes for cleaning baths, wipes for cleaning electronics. If you read the labels closely, you won’t even have to buy every one of them. The wipes for electronics are also great for glass. Clorox wipes clean just as well in the kitchen as the bath (just make sure you throw away the one you used in the bath before you start on the kitchen — yech!).
3. Steam mop! Steam mops eliminate the need to lug about a big bucket of water that, after mopping the kitchen, is mostly dirty anyway. I’m sure you end up using less water and that’s good for the environment!
4. Stick vac. Like the steam mop, the stick vac is just plain easier to deal with than a big canister vac. Light, easily transportable, usually versatile enough to use on the stairs.
5. Don’t be afraid to let your kids do the fun stuff! Seriously, if it has a switch, my kids love it. Like the stick vac. I know eventually they will get to the point where the vacuum stops being a magical dragon swooping down to devour cities of crumbs, but until then I plan to enjoy this. (Do make sure the kids don’t vacuum up their younger sibling’s toys on purpose, however. I’ve learned from sad experience that this can be quite traumatic for everyone concerned!) My kids will also steam mop for me, but this has to be closely supervised or I won’t be able to tell they’ve done anything.

Watch for more regular updates next week, probably starting on Tuesday. I’ll keep you up-to-date on everything a first-timer sees at the RWA Nationals! (!!!)