The actual best cleaning trick has four legs and fur

The headline caught my eye: “The Only Cleaning Trick You Need to Know if You Have Children.”

I clicked on it gleefully. Because I

know The Only Cleaning Trick You Need to Know if You Have Children.

The article began, “There’s a Magnatile between your couch cushions, a rubber ducky under your pillow, a Spa- ghettiO stained rash guard on your bathroom floor.”

Oh, I remember those days. These days, now that my son is 19, it’s empty water bottles between the couch cushions, a plate under his pillow and a Tshirt on the bathroom floor, but the concept is the same.

The article continued, “What you need: A colored tote bag for every room in your house.”

Wait, what?

“Walk around with all the bags and pick up items and drop them into their relevant tote — one for the playroom, bathroom, each kid, etc. — and then take that bag to the right room and put everything away.”

I mean, you can try it. I give it a week. By then, the tote bags will be stuffed between the couch cushions.

Based on my experience, The Real Only Cleaning Trick You Need to Know if You Have Children is this: Get a dog.

Sawyer was 9 when we got Widdle. Not only did Widdle sit underneath Sawyer’s chair at mealtimes, scarfing up any food that hit the floor, the dog motivated him to pick up his toys.

“Widdle ate Luke Skywalker’s light- saber!” he’d protest. Don’t leave it on the floor, I’d say and smile at the dog.

Suddenly action figures were put in their spaceships and on shelves. Balls went into the toy box and Legos back in their bins.

Even now, Widdle trots into the living room with an empty water bottle in his mouth, my son on his tail to wrestle it from him.

Tote bags. Please.