Cleaning Day

 Since we moved, my whole cleaning schedule has changed.

You might be thinking---what is a cleaning schedule?  Do people actually do that?  

I clean in the kitchen daily.  Why?  Because it is where we eat...  (Insert rolling eyes here) and especially with the virus lingering around, we need to be healthy.  Plus it is the first room that anyone coming into the house will see.  That means trying to keep the dining room table cleaned off, moving the clutter off the island where we eat, and keeping the kitchen counter wiped off and clean. All three of those require several times a day tidying, just because.  Keeping the sink cleaned out is another chore and rinsing dishes to load them into the dishwasher happens after every meal.  Dry mop frequently, then mop occasionally.  Done.

Bathrooms?  Same way.  The downstairs bathroom is used often since it is handy for the kids to run in and out.  But when Owen is here in the afternoons his favorite has become the master bathroom.  He usually announces his intentions, then scrambles up the stairs to use the toilet, closes the door to the master bedroom, then leaves the toilet seat up and the light on when he is finished.  But he does flush!  

But the rest of the house is sporadic.  The cleaning schedule is determined by several things:

--how many kids have been in the house recently.  If they have been playing downstairs, then more cleaning is needed in the family room.

--if people are coming who haven't been here before.  Usually those people like to see the new house and I like for it to look good.  Who wouldn't?  

--a weekend....where friends and relatives may just 'stop by' to visit.  

--before we leave for a few days or for a longer trip.  I don't know why, but coming home to a clean house is important to me.  The last thing I want to do after being away from home for several days is come back to a house that is dirty along with all of the dirty laundry! What a way to spoil the relaxation by being faced with a house to clean!  Clean sheets on the bed is a plus too!

--sorting through clutter is essential.  

Yesterday was cleaning day for me.  I am not sure how many trips I made to the family room, but I found so much that belonged there and NOT in the kitchen or the dining room or the living room.  Pieces of games.  Toys.  Colored pencils.  All things dragged up by Owen, Tessa, and Lynnlee and not returned.  But that is ok.  All are back in their places now.

Sweeping and dusting.  Throwing away old newspapers, boxholders, and empty envelopes.  

Cleaning off the tv screen downstairs and the laptop screens.  Polishing handles on the fridge, the microwave, the stove.  Washing off the windows in the bathrooms and the backdoor.  Sweeping out the thresholds on the exterior doors. Changing the bulbs on the Bath and Body Works things (the name of those escapes me) and the wax in the Scentsy warmers.  Putting away the last of the red/white/blue decor until next May.  

And I am sitting here in the recliner, typing this, and smiling.  Because I like this house.  I like that it always (just about) looks nice and seems clean. And I think it is because we did move and sorted through so much that had accumulated in our old house and eliminated all of that unnecessary clutter and memorabilia that the house now looks cleaner and fresher than it used to. 

Does that make any sense?

Today..the master bedroom though.  I always put that one off until the end.  Why?  Clothes.  I dislike putting away clothes but I am irritated when they are NOT put away. I know..that makes no sense at all.   

Clothes are hard for me to part with.  But I know that I have too many. I know that there are some items I am just not going to wear anymore.  I don't teach now. I am not a professional working woman now.  I have no need for suits or dress pants.  I live in denim or stretch. Jeans or leggings.  If I need to go somewhere a little more dressed up than what I wear around the house, I have denim leggings that I wear with long sweaters and my boots and they look good.  Now if I need to go to a wedding or a funeral, then I might need to go shopping because let's face it, some of the clothing hanging in the closet is outdated and/or just doesn't fit anymore. Which is another reason to stick those things in the Goodwill bag.

So this morning's task is to work on summer clothes and stuff some bags for Goodwill with those things I didn't wear this summer.

Then sweep and dust the bedrooms.

Another cleaning session (since it became more than one day) done!

Think it will happen?  We shall see!