Category Archives: Cleaning Time

Feb 26

Cleaning Days

I’m still working on a household cleaning schedule that fits my schedule. I’ve been taking notes on my phone, and journaling my chores too. So far I’ve noticed that Tuesday and Thursday are my deep cleaning/icky chores day. Monday, Wednesday, and Friday are usually light-cleaning days.

I’ve been shopping on Wednesdays, but I think I’m going to have to switch that back to Mondays. Monday seems to be the day of the week that I have the most energy.

When it comes to weekends, those are my busiest work-days. I try to leave Saturday open, and tend to errands, or whatever task needs accomplished. Sundays are filled with baking, and getting ready for the week ahead.

What about you… Do you have a list or schedule that keeps you on track with household chores?

Dec 30

Christmas Clean-Up

I think we have been cleaning every single day since Christmas day. I don’t know what it is about the holiday, but it always makes me want to deep clean the house, and get rid of clutter that has been creeping up on me.

I caught up the ten loads of Christmas laundry, and got the downstairs vacuumed, dusted, and swept. I would love to clean the boy’s room, but I think that task will have to wait until they are back at school.

As the new year is quickly approaching, I would like to tackle a few more cleaning tasks around the house. Here is what I have planned so far.

  • Clean out Agnes closet. Donate items, and purchase long term storage items
  • Clean out the boy’s room closet. Donate items, and purchase long term storage items. Dylan’s wardrobe has outgrown his dresser, so this needs to be addressed too. I either need to add another bar in the closet, or find another dresser to add to the boy’s room
  • Clean out the kitchen cabinets! Put unused items in storage for a yard sale when Spring finally rolls around
  • Clean out and organize my closet. The clothes are pared down and together, but the books are a mess. Time to tackle the built-ins, and tidy up the mess
  • Look for more storage for around the house… I would love to make a little “task/getting ready” area in the foyer, we could use more storage in all of the bedrooms too. Shelving in the kitchen would be much appreciated too
  • Clean out the Christmas decorations. As I am putting them away, it is time to get rid of some unused items. If they are in good shape, maybe I can store them to add to the yard sale items.

Of course there is the day to day cleaning to be kept up with. Since all of the kids are home, this task hasn’t been easy. The more I clean up, the more messes they seem to make. Oh goodness.

 

 

 

Oct 20

Cleaning Out My Closet

You’ll see the chore of cleaning out the kids closets/dressers often on my monthly to do list. I don’t always get the task done, and it gets bumped into the next month. While James was on vacation, I was catching up on the mountain of laundry from upstairs, when I looked at my own horrible cramped closet… Something needed done. Agnes was happily hanging out with Dad downstairs, and I decided to dig everything out of my closet and start from scratch.

It sounds silly, but here is what I tell myself when I’m doing a deep clean-out:

  • Do I love it? If I don’t, then it goes
  • Do I actually wear this? Again if I don’t, it goes
  • Just when did I wear this last? If I can’t remember, then it’s gone
  • Does it actually fit my body now? If it doesn’t, be it to big or a’hem way too small, then it is gone
  • Is it beyond repair? I have a slew of vintage goodies hiding away in my closet, if they are too far gone, then they go
  • Is is age appropriate for me right now? Again, this is one that I am coming to grips now that I am in my 30’s. I want to dress what is right for me now, not what was o.k. for me a decade ago
  • Does it fit in the space that I have? I have one (small) closet. It is home to my entire Summer/Winter wardrobe, a whole bunch of bags, and a library of books, and shoes too. I don’t have a lot of space, so I have to use it wisely. I also have an antique vanity in there. Seriously, cramped quarters in the closet.

Once everything has been sorted to either toss, or donate. I put the remaining clothing back up in order. Yes, OCD has a hold on me. My closet goes from left to right, and is in this order: Dresses, Skirts, Pants, Tops, Sweaters, and Jackets. All in R.O.Y.G.B.I.V. arrangement too, by section of clothing. It is a bit obsessive, but I can literally get dressed in the dark .

  • Another thing that helps me… I don’t have an emotional attachment to clothes… It is strange, but I just don’t. That really helps when cleaning out the goods.
  • Also, bag it up, and get it out of the house. I get everything that is going to be donated into my car. That way it is ready to go when I run next batch of errands. Anything that is in the trash bins gets taken out right away, no second chances.

This last clean out helped my space issue drastically. I cleaned out four grocery sized bags of clothing, and felt great when it was donated. I took the time to organize my handbags by season, and they neatly fit on the top shelf by the books. I ditched a lot of shoes too… I can no longer wear sky-high platforms, and that is o.k.

The closet still needs some work. The bookshelves need tended too, and reorganized badly. One step at a time though…

What about you… Do you love cleaning out the closet, or do you dread the task?

 

 

 

Jan 12

Around The House

This weekend we’ve been staying in and working on little projects here and there. The plumbing visit didn’t go too well on Friday, so we are still without hot water. I hope that we can get everything fixed and back up and working next week.

I’ve been cleaning out the upstairs bathroom, and I hope to get to the boys room next. Then it is on to Agnes’ closet and mine too. Maybe I can talk James into cleaning out his closet too.

Earlier this month we got a majority of the Christmas decorations put away. We also cleaned out the scary closet. We got rid of a bunch of unnecessary clutter. While we were working on the closet, we decided to rearrange the dining room.

We took out the old rug, and switched around the table. We also removed a leaf from the table, that helped create much needed space in the room. We brought in a white dresser from the foyer. The dining room is light and airy now.

We still have rooms to paint, but we are getting a great start on the house this year.

 

 

 

 

Dec 28

The After Christmas Clean-Up

The week really got away from me. After all of that holiday cooking and entertaining, all I wanted to do was slack off on Thursday and Friday. The house is a mess though, and something has to be done about it.

James is at work a bit today, and the kiddos and I are at home. I think I’ll start tackling some of this clutter, and maybe get to that neglected laundry pile too.

On the agenda for the weekend:

  • Put away eight loads of laundry
  • Wash another eight loads of laundry
  • Clean the litter-box
  • Tidy up downstairs messes
  • Start taking down Christmas decorations
  • Make a storage plan! I need a better way to organize Agnes’ room, the boy’s room, and all of the seasonal clutter that hangs out in the scary closet.
  • Empty all of the trash cans, upstairs and downstairs
  • Finish cleaning up all of the dishes from Christmas. I’m about 1/2 way done with this chore.
  • Clean my desk. There are piles of unsorted school-work, unopened mail, and lots of things that just end up on my desk making a cluttered mess.

I think that sounds like a pretty good start. Now I’m off for another cup of coffee, and to get started on this list.