Ok, its January. I realize that is not spring where I live. My mom always called this process spring cleaning so that's what I call it. The last thing I want to do when spring finally comes is clean my house. I want to be outside in the sun, the mud, and the fresh air. So most years right after the Christmas tree comes down, spring cleaning begins.
It's not really fun in the classic sense of the word but I do enjoy it. I am REALLY bored this time of year so this seems like a better thing to do than watch videos or eat chips. Which is otherwise what I would most likely be doing. And feeling down and wondering why my house isnt clean.
Anyways, I am really good at keeping my house tidy, washing dishes every day, doing laundry, mopping floors and vacuuming often. You know, every day stuff. Dusting, cleaning ceiling fans, organizing closets, tackling piles of clutter.....not so good. I prefer to leave that sit for a long time and then when I am really disgusted, tackle it all at once. Well kinda.
When I do a spring clean, my goal is one room a week. Starting with one wall per day. I know a room has only 4 walls but that gives you a few days off if you have to do things like go to work or care for a family or things like that. Kids and husbands really expect to be fed day after day. Like every day. Even if cobwebs are hanging from the corners and you cant close your closet doors. Really? Where are their priorities?
I start at the top of a wall. Every thing comes off the wall. If you have a lot of cobwebs you might need to sweep them off so you dont have a rain of wet dust falling on you. Ick. Then I wipe the wall top to bottom and scrub the base board. After all wall hangings get inspected to see if I want to put them back up or not, the winners get a wipe and polish and hung back up. Sometimes it's easier to donate things than hang them back up so I do just that. Minimalism at its finest!!
If the wall you are working on contains a closet or cabinet, everything comes out. Everything. If I havent used it in a year it gets tossed or donated. Be ruthless. Shoving it back in the closet will not make you use it more. It just makes a mess. A mess or clutter is visual noise and we all need more peace in our lives, not more noise.
While you work wall by wall and room by room make a list of things that need repair or replacing. Such as chipped paint, dents in walls from teenage boys, banisters that have duct tape on the end because someone broke it and that was my no splinters quick fix. Seriously. I have duct tape on my banister. Classy.
My cleaning solution is simple, hot water, a squirt of dish soap, 10ish drops of essential oil and if it's a greasy area like a kitchen, 1 cup of vinegar. I like to use some bleach if I am doing a bathroom but dont tell my natural friends that. I hope to do a clothing closet post soon to give some tips on keeping your wardrobe happy. Spring is coming, it really is.
See you next time -joy
