Top 5 Tips For Staying On Top of Laundry In a Big Family


Laundry! It can be the bane of a big family mom's existence. As your family gets bigger, so do loads of laundry. I knew when I trusted God with my family size that I was also trusting Him to help me learn how to run a big family home with joy, simplicity, and smooth efficiency. I have a system that gets all the laundry done before the weekend, with minimum effort from me, and keeps my laundry clutter-free at all times. Knowing how many moms struggle with laundry, how could I keep this to myself?

Before I get into my five simple tips, I'll be honest with you. You may be struggling with mountains of laundry because your family just has too many clothes. Cutting down on the sheer amount of clothing you have will mathematically reduce how much gets washed every week, needs to be folded & put away, and how much you store for future hand-me-downs (a very common big family trick of the trade).

If you could use some help cutting down the clothing clutter I walk big family moms on how to do that quick and simple in my 5 Day Declutter Challenge.

Once you're happy with the amount of clothing in your home these tips will help make it so much easier to keep the laundry going and your sanity intact.

  1. Delegate laundry duty to other family members - laundry is not just a mom's job! My children start carrying laundry baskets and loading the machines as soon as they are safely able.
  2. Set up a laundry schedule - Get it all done in one or two days early in the week to just get it out of the way. Or do a load of laundry every day - even if it means doing laundry late at night or getting up early in the morning. At our house, Monday & Tuesday is the boys, Wednesday the girls & grownups. Done.
  3. Keep laundry baskets in each bedroom so that everyone can deposit their dirty clothes in one central location. Pro tip: mark or color code the baskets so everyone's laundry stays together and is easier for them (or a helper) to put away.
  4. Create a laundry buddy system - children who are successfully doing laundry on their own can be tasked with a younger child's laundry basket or even share their basket for a time.
  5. Choose what needs to be folded and what doesn't. This alone may save your sanity as well as hours of your life. Consider keeping a drawer or basket for single socks rather than spending hours finding that one sock for your children.

These five tips for big families and laundry keep the laundry from becoming this big, insurmountable task that feels never-ending and my laundry area from being filled with piles of laundry for days on end. Test them out for yourself one at a time as it makes sense for your large family right now to help you take control of your laundry and give you back some precious time with your family. Laundry doesn't have to be a big, scary never-ending chore - with a little bit of planning and delegation it can easily become a well-oiled machine.

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If this blog blessed you feel free to join my Big Family Moms community where I have lots more resources and encouragement for moms like you overcoming struggles and growing in grace. Here’s the link if you like.

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