OK, so this is how most of us usually feel about the task of spring cleaning. And I actually love Maxine - she's one of my favorite cartoon characters! But when it comes to spring or fall cleaning, I look forward to it. It's a great way to usher in the seasonal changes, shake off the dustiness, and go into the next phase of life prepared and refreshed. I really do enjoy it! So here we go; are you ready?
When undertaking a massive whole-house cleaning there are a few things to remember. It's best to clean from top to bottom, and from one side to the other in each room. If you have a multi level home, begin on the top floor and work your way down. Move from dry messes to wet messes. Shake out upholstery/linens/pillows, follow with dusting, and vacuum last. Beyond that, I'll talk you through it each day!
Today we will analyze the whole house as well as begin actual cleaning. Before we pick up even a dustrag, I want you to get out a piece of paper and a pen or pencil. At this point, it doesn't matter what room you begin in. The order of investigation doesn't matter, but I want you to go from room to room in your home and write down everything you see in each room that really jumps out to you that needs special attention. Write it down on this piece of paper under individual headings for that specific room. For example:
Master Bedroom
- cobwebs in ceiling corners
- dustbunnies underbed
- shoe scuffmarks on lower wall
First Floor Half-Bath
- dust inside light fixture
- dingy light switch plate
- general crud buildup in overflow outlet of sink
- dust/cobwebs on crown moulding
When you get to each room in our cleaning rotation you can look at your list and make sure to pay special attention to those items that are most conspicious to you.
Next, I want you to go back through each room and inspect your fabric window treatments. Look closely at them. Can they be cleaned well enough with your vacuum attachments? Are they machine washable? Or are they pretty dirty, and "dry clean only"? Anything that is labelled "dry clean only", take down and set aside right now. Anything that is machine washable, make a determination of whether it will fit in your washing machine or if it is too large. If it's too large, set it aside with the dry clean only pile. If it will fit in your washer, decide if you want to wash, dry and iron it yourself, or if you want to have some one else deal with the hassle! If you don't want to wash it yourself, put it on the pile too!
Now, let's think about dinner tonight. I am putting a roast into the crockpot. It's a beef chuck roast, nothing fancy. I'll put an envelope of Liption Onion Soup mix over it, and a 1/4 cup of water. I'll put it on high for the morning, and at lunch when I fix something for the kids to eat at around 12:00, I'll turn it down to low until dinner time. When it's time for dinner, I'll just heat frozen mixed vegetables in the microwave. Not gourmet, but it comes together in a moment without a lot of fuss. I'm not slaving in the kitchen this week. Too much work to be done, and I do have 4 kids to do this cleaning around. School schedules are staggered among my younguns, since they are only 1st grade down to 3 years old! But we'll make it work. It can be done!
With dinner in the crockpot, I'm now going to put my window treatments in the car and take them to the cleaners. Even though I know they will be ready by tomorrow or Wednesday, I'm not going to pick them up until Friday. It's free storage until I'm ready to rehang them! And why get them dirty again in the cleaning process? After I stop at the cleaners, I have two more stops to make: the first is at the store to pick up dinner rolls (because I forgot to bake some for dinner tonight!), and the second is Biggby's (our local version of Starbucks) for a Carmel Marvel Grande coffee drink. I usually don't get the coffee drinks, but I'm going to splurge and have a treat this morning. What better way to kick off my favorite spring ritual!
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Wearing my supportive tennis shoes, a spring scarf around my hair, my pedal pushers (of course!), and a cheerful smock to keep me clean, I am ready to go! Since we have a 2-story home, I will begin my week on the second floor. Today I'm going to clean all of the bedrooms, the hallway and the closets. I'll tackle the bathrooms tomorrow, and tie in the bathroom on the first floor as a transition down there. If your home is a single story, then begin in the bedrooms which are usually at one end of the home. Remember, you can always adapt any of these methods to other rooms, too.
In each room, this is the order I will follow:
- Sort and put away all clutter, throwing away or donating as appropriate. Don't forget to pull everything out from under beds and return to it's proper location!
- Using a microfiber cloth, a very slightly damp rag, or a dusting wand, wipe down the walls to remove dust and cobwebs. If necessary, you can wash any soiled areas with lukewarm water that has a drop of mild soap in it, followed by a rinse with a rag that has clear water rung out of it.
- Once the walls have all been dusted, dust any ceiling fans and light fixtures thoroughly.
- Using a soft dust brush or your vacuum cleaner attachments, dust lampshades and fixtures.
- Remove all bedding, linens, mattress pads, etc... wash the bedding. Vacuum, flip and rotate the mattress.
- Wash the windows, inside and out. Wipe down the trim work. Leave the windows open to air out the room from the long winter.
- Dust all furniture.
- Clean all glass surfaces with glass cleaner.
- Vacuum under the bed, and along all baseboards. Vacuum the entire room.
- Make up the bed with fresh linens, and even spray them with a lovely linen spray.
- Add a vase of fresh flowers, or a lavender scented candle to bring a calm and relaxed feel to the room. It's now brand new and ready for spring!
Do this in each bedroom. It is enough work for the first day! Tonight, take a long hot bubble bath before climbing into those wonderful fresh sheets. You'll have the best night's sleep you've had in months. And you'll need it; tomorrow is another big day.
Alright, ladies, here we go! Happy dusting!
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