5 Weeks To A Clean and Organized Home wk4

I have seriously fallen behind in posting the challenges! We are finishing up the last week of our school year, planning curriculum and extra activities, getting ready for rabbit shows and home school convention, trying to get settled into routine with Hubby's new school and getting ready for a road trip up north. We didn't plan for all this to happen in a few week time period and so we are a bit rushed!

Instead of posting daily I will just do a once a week post and put the "what to do" in it with a recap at some point in the week.

Day 1 of Week 4 ~ Entryway, Hallways or Other Room Of Choice

Sylvia says---
We’re nearing the end of our 5 weeks. This week is sort of a bonus week where you can clean one of three areas.  Have a hallway, entry way or some other room that needs attention? Perhaps even a mudroom or back porch area?
The basics of cleaning and organizing are what you can use to clean these areas of your home. First declutter; get everything out of the area that doesn’t belong there. Next, consider getting rid of things that you simply don’t need but are storing in that area. Finally, dust, clean and straighten, touch up paint or make other repairs.
Don’t forget to clean the ceiling or at least dust it. And don’t forget to make yourself a cleaning solution of some kind and clean the base boards and floors. Move pictures off the wall, clean them, clean the wall and then replace pictures.


I have a small hallway  that will take all of 5 minutes to do a proper clean in. The only other room that could use work that might fit this challenge is the rabbits' room. I have the kids clean it nearly daily and the bunnies have it messed up seconds later. I can't wait to get the outside cages built and reclaim that room!



Creating Routine (this is wk 4 day 2)

We all have a routine even if it is not written down. I had a routine I posted in January but it quickly failed as I am not a morning person and the stress and grief of pregnancy followed by surgery knocked me on my butt a few months. I did love having everything done by noon but hated the 5 am wake up call! During the "kitchen challenge" I found the paper I had everything planned out on and felt guilty for dropping the ball. 

I really should sit down and make up a new schedule based on a more realistic wake up time of 7am. This is on my to-do list for when we get back from our trip in a few weeks.

Day 3 Week 4 ~ Continuing On and Some Great Links

Oh what GREAT links Sylvia posted! I am a sucker for links, lists, and how-to's so this makes my day! I have a few natural cleaning recipes of my own I need to type up add to my blog and the blog needs a good cleaning as well! All the things on my to-do list is sure piling up and the few weeks of summer break aren't looking like such a "break" anymore!


Preliminaries:
Spring Cleaning Printables
Suggested Cleaning List For You To Build On
Natural Cleaners and Disinfectants That You Can Make At Home
Spring Cleaning Lists For The Chronically Ill or Disabled with links to the series
Spring Cleaning Instructions:
Spring Cleaning in The dining Room/Eating Area
De-Cluttering In The Kitchen
Spring Cleaning In The Kitchen
De-Cluttering and Organizing the Bathroom
Spring Cleaning The Bathroom
De-Cluttering the Master Bedroom
Spring Cleaning The Master Bedroom
De-Cluttering The Living Room
Spring Cleaning In The Living Room

5 Weeks To A Clean and Organized Home wk3

Day 1 – Week 3 ~ The Bathroom

 
Sylvia says---
 
Are you ready to tackle the bathroom and get it nice a sparkly clean? Today is the day we start cleaning in that room and we will begin with decluttering. Whether you have a one-holer or something a bit bigger, the bathroom can be the most difficult room in the house to keep clean, simply because it has so much traffic!  Things tend to fall apart and need repair in the bathroom quite a bit too, especially if you have a large family.
We will start today with getting the bathroom free of clutter and junk.
Here are some tips for decluttering the bathroom:
Go through all the bottles of lotions and potions and throw away old, unusable items. Combine bottles of stuff when you can. Get rid of all the old razors, toothbrushes ( though a few could go to use in the cleaning bucket), hairbrushes, small appliances past their usefulness, etc, etc.
Next, pull all the linens out of the closet. Go through them and sort. You don’t really need 6 sets of sheets for each bed, now do you? 

Back to decluttering ….. Get the closet cleaned out, then wash it down. Maybe this would be a good time to paint or paper your linen closet.  When you get it like you want it, add things back. Remember you’ve pared your stuff and junk down so you should have as much to put back as you took out.
Now clean out all the other cabinets, drawers, shelves and storage areas. Get rid of stuff you don’t use, wipe down bottles and packages, wash out the storage areas themselves, then put your things back.
This might not seem like a lot to do today …. but in most bathrooms, this is the main thing that needs to be tackled. It will take most people a few hours.
______________

I say "Oy!"
We have two bathrooms in our home and both are terribly messy. I own enough sheets sets to run a B&B. There is only one storage/linen closet in this house and it is stuffed with camping gear and leftover remodeling material after all everyone knows that "completes" the bathroom! Three ladies in the house means product overload on the counters. I fear for those that come calling unannounced and need to make use of the guest bath as Bub is still working on his "aiming skills" and he is no longer interested in being a "sitter".  The master bath... well, it stays "reasonable" as Hubby calls it. I don't think "reasonable" counts in this challenge especially if the man in the house is used to port-a-potties on construction sites!

If I don't post later tonight "day 2" then y'all will know to send in a search party because I have probably keeled over on the floor in one of those rooms! So say a prayer for me as I slip into my HAZMAT suit and respirator to boldly go where no one else in this family dares to clean!

5 Weeks To A Clean and Organized Home wk2

Day 5 Week 2 ~ Last Day In The Living Room

We will should be cleaning upholstered furniture, floors and baseboards to finish up "week 2". My children did this step on day 2. We get to skip cleaning baseboards since we don't have any! Woohoo! Who knew not have finished floors could save a cleaning step! LOL All I need to do is a good mopping but that will wait til the rain stops.

Since I have nothing to clean today we are headed out to a local antique fair. 20 miles of rummage, estate, antiquing, and garage sales! No fears on clutter coming back with me. We are JUST looking!

______

update. It took 5 hrs to drive that 20 miles plus coming home. All we bought were "Texas Cookies" from a Mennonite family. YUM! We will be making up a batch of those soon!

5 Weeks To A Clean and Organized Home wk2

Day 4 of Week 2 ~ Windows and Door Frames In The Living Room 

 

We will work on the windows, window frames and door frames. Make sure to get the tops of the door and window frames where the big dust bunnies live! I use vinegar to clean my windows. I won't say it smells as nice as store bought cleaners but there are no streaks or fingerprints left when I am finished and I trust my children to use to. We have had issues of "run by spraying" in the past and as least now I am sure that their clothes and eyes won't be damaged by toxins!

I recently painted my front door and I am so happy how clean and nice it looks! Why it took almost 4 yrs to get to...well...laziness. That buggar took 5 days and about as many coats of paint to look decent! It could still use another coat if I was in the least OCD... ahem. But it is windy here and not good painting weather and that is my story and I'm sticking to it!

The inside of the door needs painted but I am not ready for that project. I cleaned it with my favorite tool, MR Clean Magic Eraser, and it will do for now.

5 Weeks To A Clean and Organized Home wk2

Day 3 of Week 2 ~ Cleaning Up The Living Room

It is Wednesday and over at Christian HomeKeeper™ Network we are still working on cleaning and organizing the living room. Look around can you still find things to purge? What about a better more efficient way to arrange the furniture? Any storage needs lacking? Does your living room say, "Come in. Sit and stay awhile."?

My living room is about as bare bones as I can get it. I have 1 full size leather couch, 1 love seat, Hubby's recliner, 1 side table with lamp, 1 coffee table and the upright piano that is rarely used that currently hold the computer with the CPU sitting on a file cabinet next to it. There are 3 framed print of the names of Jesus, 2 decorative candle holders around a Kirkland's picture on the wall and 4 pictures of the family.

My living room is 13.6 by 23 ft so it sounds like a good size right? WRONG. It is fully open to the kitchen. Each wall has a doorway on it. There is a large low way off center picture window taking up the "long" wall so nothing can really go over there. The other "long wall" has a big door way to the hall and runs right into the kitchen. The only way to arrange it is the sofas are on the longer walls with the love seat squeezed between front door and picture window. Our piano is on the master bedroom wall again SQUEEZED in and Hubby's chair and the side table "float" at the other end of the couches depending on if I want to block the window. 

I wish I could turn either sofa sideways in the room and get one of them off the wall but it completely blocks traffic. That is the only drawback to over sized furniture: it limits arrangements, but it is the price I gladly pay for Hubby to have his 6'9 body comfy. 

Someday we hope to take out the improperly installed and leaky picture window and line that wall with 4 ft tall bookcases with a gas fireplace in the middle. We would put in a row of small square windows (3-4) over the top of the bookcases. By doing that we could move the leather sofa down the wall closer to the kitchen and place the recliner and buy a mate to it in front of the bookcases leaving the master bedroom wall as a piano area or maybe add a desk for an office. I could then get my love seat back in my room were it belongs. Only lack of funds and time to remodel stopping that dream. 

But then we are starting to think KNOW this is not our "forever house" and we are having to think resale value. This place is a money pit and there is only so much lipstick you can slap on a pig! Hubby and I are at the "finish the floors, paint the master bedroom, cheap remodel the master bath and call it done" stage. We are both desiring to find land and start homesteading and the way this nation is going we are thinking this is an urgent need.

5 Weeks To A Clean and Organized Home wk2

Day 2 Week 2 ~ Living Room – Books, Magazines, Papers, Games

 Well, it is Tuesday and I am all caught up with what I missed in the Monday challenge. Woohoo! I enlisted Princess in the clutter war and I think it took a max of 30 minutes. Why did I wait for a "challenge" to do this? *shaking head*

Princess took cleaning a step farther and washed down the leather couch and my coffee and side tables. I won't go into what was found in the cracks of the couch needless to say I will be checking those areas a bit more frequently. Uh yeah.  

 Anywho,  today's challenge is to purge papers, books, magazines and games including video games. Begin by sorting through the paperwork and making piles or placing them in baskets. Perhaps sort by "trash", "shred", "file" and "keep for now"... that last one for me is usually things I want to copy to the computer/blog like recipes, DIY ideas and the like and once copied to the trash it goes! If there are bookcases or shelves now is the time to clean them. Dust the top, back, and sweep underneath if you can. You will be surprised at what you may find!

 I have a ton of mail to go through and file thanks to my surgery and I am not looking forward to that. I love getting mail but not when it comes as bills and those $$$$$ owed are such a painful memory. Yep, my ectopic surgery bill is in the 5 figures... SIGH. God will provide!

With the living room cleaned out of everything that doesn't "go" all papers, books and magazines are hiding in my bedroom. I recently purged my magazine collection by donating them to the local library. There is a stack of books on the bookcase waiting to make the same trip. The Wii games are nicely tucked in the TV hutch from when I had Hubby move it from the living room to our room. I picked up the computer CD's that were loose, stuck them back in the CD case and they found a home in the file cabinet next to the CPU.

 Well, besides ANOTHER good sweep the living room is well on its way to being clean!

I hope everyone is enjoying my rambling posts. Would love to hear some feedback if you are doing the challenge with me.

5 Weeks To A Clean and Organized Home wk2

Day 1 of Week 2 ~ The Living Room!

 

Once again we are working on the 5 wk challenge going on over at  Christian HomeKeeper™ Network!

Today we are tackling living rooms..well SUPPOSED to be. I am not feeling well this afternoon so I will make up for it in the morning. My living room is small and seems to be the dumping ground of the house. Currently there are 2 trash bags ready to go to the dump, pile of clean clothes awaiting their owners, more winter coats than I can count on the hooks, piles of shoes, a carseat waiting to be cleaned and replaced in the car, several laptops left out from school, books, papers, and JUNK!!!

If I was doing the challenge today I would be collecting anything that does not go in the living room, purging as needed, and hauling the rest to the room(s) it belongs in.

Hope everyone had a restful weekend! Lord willing, I will see you tomorrow and feel good enough to wage war on clutter!

 ____________________

On a side note---

The kitchen is so much easier to use now that it is cleaned and organized! Hubby was able to unload our Costco trip's bounty with no help from me and it all fit! Nothing piled on the floor or in danger of falling off the pantry shelves. He is very impressed.
:)

5 Weeks To A Clean and Organized Home wk1

Day 5 of Week 1 ~ Just About Finished In The Kitchen!

 To finish out the week we will be working on the woodwork, windows and tiding up anything that was missed.  Wood work includes base molding, widow and door frames, crown moldings, bead-board and cabinets. I am also including washing the walls and getting any cobwebs from the ceiling corners.

Yesterday I scrubbed the pantry's walls, base molding, door and door casings with a Mr Clean Magic Eraser. I lurve those things! I didn't think it was *that* bad in there until the magic eraser turned BLACK and was falling apart when I was done! My pantry is also my laundry room so the washing machine and dryer got a sprucing up too. It looks so nice and bright in there now! Unfortunately now that things are clean and organized I can see "projects" that need done...like a coat of paint, patching some house settling cracks, new flooring to replace what the dog tore up, and more storage needs added so my bulk purchases at Costco are not just piled in like before.  Best talk to Hubby and make some budget adjustments... :)

We are taking today off from cleaning because my second daughter Princess is turning 9! Once everyone's school is finished we will figure out if it is buying a cake from the store or going for Marble Slab Creamery ice cream after her special birthday dinner at her favorite restaurant.  The Hubby and girls are also belt testing in karate tomorrow so planning and packing snacks, lunch and gear is on the to do list. As a special treat for earning their "orange belts" the girls are getting their nails done in a funky iridescent orange nail polish. Hubby and I will tackle the challenges I missed on Monday and Tuesday after church.

This will be a fun and busy weekend!

5 Weeks To A Clean and Organized Home wk1

Today's challenge from Christian HomeKeeper™ Network is the counter tops and small appliances.
Its time to clean the toaster oven, microwave, blender, food processor, and coffee maker. Did I miss anything? Once those are cleaned and OFF the counters it is time to give the counters a good scrubbing. Bleach out any stains (I use a Mr Clean magic eraser) and don't forget the junk that collects in the cracks and edges.
Now that the counters are clean put back the appliances in a nice neat way or see if they can move to another area to clear up counter clutter.

I did this yesterday while cleaning cabinets. I actually threw away so much STUFF that I could put my blenders (I have 3) and such in a cabinet. A good thing too as I have barely any counter space! I also put my knife racks in the cabinet over the microwave for more space and to keep Bub from having access to them. I hope one day to pare down the knives and get one of those magnets that holds them on the wall.


Now I am off to finish my cabinets and pantry!

UPDATE--

pantry just FILLED ANOTHER 50 gal trash can!

pantry shelves- clean, organized, cans and spices wiped clean

1st set of pantry cabinets- cleaned and organized. EWWWWW...

3 more sets of pantry cabinets to go. Then to clean the floor

kitchen cabinets are clean and mostly organized. mystery glob soaking.

can NOT walk in the kitchen area for all the extra junk we need to find homes for...or walk in the rabbit room for all the extra junk from pantry. man we are pack rats!!!!!

5 Weeks To A Clean and Organized Home wk1

The Christian HomeKeeper™ Network is having a 5 Weeks To A Clean and Organized Home event. She started her challenge on Monday. I started it today (Wednesday). Oops. I have some catching up to do!

Today is day 3- Cupboards and Storage Areas
The challenge...
Take everything out of the cabinet, repackage or throw away what needs to be thrown out.
Once everything is out of the cabinet, clean the shelves and any cans, jars, or containers that need it.
Once the cabinet prepared, its time to put things back.Nice and neat.

So far I have 2 cabinets done. I stopped to blog some recipes I found on paper that is nearly see through from age. My kitchen table is buried under a pile of stuff that shouldn't go in the plate cabinet and my counters are covered in cleaning products and paper towels. I have a 50 gallon trash can about 1/4 full of outdated medicines and herbs...how did I let that happen!?

I really don't like to clean but I do love the "after" so I will keep going...right after lunch.
I am going to enlist the ankle biters for the lower cabinets. I am sure I can find some way to link it to homeschooling hopefully not as a life science or biology project!


UPDATE-- got all the uppers done and FILLED that 50 gallon trash can! OY! Today (Thursday) I will finish the lower cabinets and drawers, quick tidy the pantry and do the current challenge!

5 Weeks To A Clean and Organized Home wk1

I missed doing the first 2 days of the challenge 

so I am just posting what SHOULD HAVE BEEN done.




Day 2 ~ Kitchen

The main task is to clean under the appliances and clean the floors, yes do this BEFORE the rest of the kitchen is cleaned so that at the end of the week a good sweep is all that is needed! Be sure to move the appliances out and get those nasty areas spotless also scrub the edges of the floors and any cracks

5 Weeks To A Clean and Organized Home wk1

5 Weeks To A Clean And Organized Home ~ Week 1 Begins Today!

I missed the first 2 days of the challenge.
This is just to have all the challenges in one place on my blog.

Let’s start today with the Refrigerator, Freezer and Oven.

Here are some tips for cleaning the frig:
Clean out and throw away unusable or outdated food.
Re-wrap and package food that isn’t wrapped well.
Take everything out of the frig.
Make up a cleaning solution of either your favorite store-bought cleaner or, use a warm water-mild detergent mixture.
Be sure NOT to use hot water on refrigerator shelves or drawers that are glass. The sudden change in temperature can cause the glass to break!
Wipe down the insides of the refrigerator, clean out all the drawers and shelves and then replace the shelves and drawers.
Place a box or canister of baking soda in your clean refrigerator to absorb odors and excess moisture.
Wipe down all the contents of the refrigerator and replace them.
Be sure to gently clean the gasket or plastic seal around the door.


Cleaning the Freezer:
Most freezers are self defrosting or no-frost today. If yours needs to be defrosted go ahead and start the process.
Pull everything out of the freezer. If the food is not labeled, check the contents to see if it is still good and if it is, re-wrap and label.
Once everything is out of the freezer, and all the food has been sorted and re-wrapped if needed, place it all back in the freezer. Organize it as it goes in. Meat together, veggies together, etc.
Be sure to clean the gaskets or seals on the door.

Cleaning the Oven and Stove:
Most newer ovens are self cleaning. Follow your oven’s manufacturer’s instructions and get the process going.
If you have a Textured Oven or a Continuous Cleaning Oven, all you need to do is to wipe down the inside of the oven when it is cool.

I usually try to do a deep clean of the fridge and freezer the day before my Costco trip. It is nice since by that time it is just about empty and I don't have to worry about food spoiling while it is sitting out waiting for me to be done. So in this house that means ONCE A MONTH the fridge and freezer need done. (Do you hear that my children?!) My gas oven is only cleaned when I can open windows to let out the smoke created and it is not summer because here in TX it is too HOT to turn that puppy on "clean" and have the windows open letting the bought air out!