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By: Carrie Lauth

Congratulations on your new little bundle! This is a precious and wonderful season in your life. But if you find yourself knee deep in laundry and scared to walk around the house without your shoes on, read on for some tips on keeping up with the housework with a new baby.


First things first


You must take good care of yourself so you can care for your baby. Experts say it takes an entire year for your body to return to normal after having a baby. Even though you've recuperated from childbirth, you're probably not getting as much sleep as you did before and you're working new sets of muscles as you lift and carry baby around.

Housework is simply is not urgent in the grand scheme of things. Many midwives have the following advice for new Moms: spend the first few days in bed even if you feel great. If you feel good enough to putz around a little after the first week, go ahead and try some light housework, but don't do anything strenuous or anything that involves a lot of twisting or that might injure your back. Remember that your muscles are still stretched out (especially your tummy muscles) and your joints loose, and your hormones are still making you a little accident prone, just as when you were pregnant. You don't need to risk hurting your back so forget cleaning the shower or mopping floors for several more weeks.


Practical tips


If you didn't do so before, do a thorough de-cluttering now. Enlist the help of your husband or a friend. It's more fun and your friend will help you let go of your attachment to things. Cleaning experts say that around 50% of the total time spent in housework involves dealing with too much stuff: moving it around, picking it up off the floor, rearranging it, dusting it. You simply can't organize clutter!

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