The Abundant Wife

Thank you for joining me for the 30-Day House Cleaning Challenge!  After completing Project #2, I later realized that I had neglected the cabinets and drawers in our bathroom.  I also noted that others were washing their shower curtains (with a cup of white vinegar) and thought that looked like a worthwhile endeavor.

So for Project #11 I started with the cabinets next to our bathtub.  These cabinets are hard for me to reach at 5’5″, so things tend to get tossed in any which way.  We also tend to collect bottles of lotion…does anyone else have this problem?  Anyhow, I took everything out and put it back in neatly (using a chair to reach the highest cabinet), or moved things to other locations.  I also washed the shower curtain and all the towels hanging on the back of the door, and Windexed the fronts of the cabinets.  Then I cleaned the bathroom as usual.

When I was a kid, my weekly chore was cleaning the “kids’ bathroom.”  I was always amazed at how dirty our bathroom could get in one week, and what a difference it made when it was clean!

What chores were assigned to you as a kid?

We’re 1/3 of our way through the 30-Day House Cleaning Challenge!  Yeah!  Today’s assignment was to deep clean the living room, but when I looked over the list of things to do, I realized I had done most of them Sunday night.  However, Brad was in Sacramento for training today, so I decided to surface clean our “office” today.  Our office is our middle bedroom, and currently it also doubles as Evelyn’s bedroom (note the bassinet on the right).

In the past I spent more time in our office, but on December 1 my husband moved his office from its other location to our home.  I was excited to get a new desk (I’d been using a small dresser) but not so excited to gain two old computers, and two old filing cabinets full of paperwork to be sorted.  Eventually it became so crowded that I had stopped using it altogether, and preferred to work in the living room.

Today I reclaimed my desk!  I moved the big desktop computer to our dining room table so that I can photograph it and try to sell it.  I moved the unhung curtains and rods to the floor by my desk, and moved all the things that were plugged into my power strip.  Finally I Windexed, feather dusted, and swept the whole room.  I didn’t bother Brad’s side of the room (I’ll leave that for him to do), but my side looks much better!

Do you actually use your desk, or is it just a place to collect clutter?

Today I am exhausted, even with two cups of coffee to start my day.  Last night we had 40 people in our living room for Club.  They played a game called “Bigger-N-Better.”  Everyone divides into teams and then drives around town in their cars.  The idea is to start with something small and keep trading up until your group returns with the biggest or best item of all the teams.  This morning there were golf clubs, a knee-board, a chili-pepper rug, a scooter, a bicycle helmet, and an ironing board in the middle of my living room.  We had a great time, but I stayed up way too late working on a fundraiser after everyone had gone home.

The 30-Day House Cleaning Challenge Project for today was to surface-clean your bedroom(s).  However, all three of our rooms were occupied.  The baby was napping in the master bedroom, the kids were sleeping in their room, and Brad was working in the office.  So I decided to surface-clean the kitchen since I hadn’t really gotten around to it last week.

I washed and dried the dishes, dusted the shelves and pottery and top of the refrigerator, dusted the cobwebs around the ceiling, wiped down the countertops, and Windexed the windows, fixtures, stove, and microwave.  I did not wipe down the cabinets and the sides of the refrigerator, or wash the curtains or mop the floors.  Maybe I’ll get around to them another day.

I tend to have over-productive Mondays, and then have to pay for it on Tuesdays.  How about you?  What is your most productive day of the week?

Today’s project was to sweep and vacuum all the floors in your house.  Our house is a one-story house, with only 3 bedrooms and 1 bathroom.  So I decided to go ahead and do all of it.  (However, I did NOT mop!) Since I did this challenge all last week, there really wasn’t a lot of dust and dirt accumulation.  What you see above is from the entire house.  There are a few crayons and felt numbers/letters mixed in there.  Most of the dirt and dust came from the living room, kitchen, and office floors which did not get swept last week.

The vacuuming went faster this week too, especially since I had it on the right setting this time!  Finally, here’s another photo of the painting I just finished last week.  It will probably be out of our living room sometime tomorrow.

How is your Monday going?  Are you having a productive day?

My husband is back from Mexico, so that means I have a camera again!  For Friday through Sunday (Projects #5-#7), I could choose one of the three projects.  I chose to surface-clean our living room late Sunday night.  The surfaces in our living room were a lot dirtier than I thought.  I feather-dusted the mantel, shelves, end tables, dining room table, coffee table, lamps, pottery, and picture frames.  I Windexed the windows and mirrors.  Finally I took all the books that were stacked horizontally on the kids’ bookshelf, and put them back on vertically.  They won’t stay that way for long!

For the last couple weeks, our living room has been occupied by the gigantic painting I’ve been working on.  What you see on the mantel is the support piece that will allow it to sit upright at our church.

What did you do for your weekend cleaning project?

Today’s project was Surface Cleaning An Extra Room in the House.  I chose our kids’ bedroom.  It’s raining outside, and we’ve all got colds so we’re all staying inside today.  As soon as I had the baby down for a nap in the Master Bedroom, I dumped out a giant pile of legos, turned on “Toy Story” and got to work.

I found mold again, this time on one of the kids’ windows.  It’s usually so dry and sunny here in California, that I’m surprised the mold had time to grow!  I also found a missing pair of underwear and pants under the dresser, and a candy necklace under the crib.  I didn’t vacuum today since I just vacuumed on Tuesday.  I’ve put off mopping so far, but since our house has wood floors throughout, that should probably be included in “surface cleaning.”  I’ll get around to mopping eventually.  🙂

I didn’t have much trouble finding 7 items to get rid of in my kids’ room.  There are always old, broken, or unused items to dispose of scattered around their room.

What’s the weather like in your area?  Has your family come down with any colds recently?

Today I tackled Surface Cleaning our Master Bedroom.  I’ve got to say, the idea of cleaning a room in only 20 minutes is hard for me.  Of course my family knows that I can make any project take longer than it should.  Today’s project took me exactly one hour.  Thankfully the kids were busy with a big box of legos on the (newly vacuumed!) living room carpet, and the baby was napping.

I made a lot of discoveries while cleaning.  I found my missing socks under the bed, and some ancient cheerios too!  I also discovered that our room is a bit damp.  There was mold on the wall behind my husband’s laundry basket and around the windows.  I’m not sure where the concept of “dust-bunnies” came from, but the dust under our bed and end tables could have clothed a small cat.  Finally, my small dust pan and brush have disappeared…probably absconded for one of the many Young Life Clubs, Committee Meetings, or Leaders Meetings that happen in our home.

Otherwise, I don’t think our room LOOKS significantly different after all that, but I did get rid of my 7 items and I folded and put away all the clothes on my husband’s side of the bed.  (And Brad, if you’re reading this, I did not get rid of any of YOUR items!)

How about you?  Which bedroom did you choose?  How did it go?

So, it’s time to make a confession.  I do not clean my house very often.  I am very organized and everything has a place, but I am not good about cleaning.  I could use the excuse that I have three kids ages 3 and under, but I’ve never been good about cleaning so that excuse is out.  My lack of commitment to cleaning is one of the reasons why I took on this challenge in the first place.  So I was stunned to realize today that I’ll be cleaning my one bathroom SIX TIMES in one month.  I know, I know…it’s only one bathroom, but SIX TIMES!  Egads!

Once I got over my disbelief, I cleaned the bathroom while Naomi and Oliver took their evening bath.  Evelyn was napping in our office, so I was temporarily hands-free.  I wiped down all the surfaces in the bathroom, cleaned the toilet, and sprayed the shower after the kids were out.  I may have received mild chemical burns from the Kaboom spray I used on the tile.  (My mom bought it for me in January, a subtle hint that her daughter ought to be cleaning her bathroom more often.)  Note to self: Wear gloves next time.

Then I had to get caught up on yesterday’s project, so I vacuumed the living room rug, the front door mat, the hallway runner, and the kids’ room rug.  I figured if I was vacuuming one, I might as well vacuum them all.  I have always hated vacuuming.  Vacuums are so heavy, and so loud.  I’m glad we only have one floor here so I don’t have to carry our beast up and down the stairs.  I think it weighs as much as I do!  I had to vacuum everything twice tonight because I didn’t realize I had it set on “hose” instead of “floor.”  Oops!  I was scared of the vacuum as I child, but my kids love it when I vacuum.  They sit (or jump) on the furniture, shrieking as I get close to their toes.  They are fearless!

How about you?  How did cleaning the bathroom go?

Happy April Fools’ Day!

Yes, I’m back at the computer, albeit rather reluctantly.  I’ve had a wonderful blogging sabbatical these last 4 months, (and a Facebook sabbatical for the last 6 1/2 weeks) and I have really been wrestling with whether or not I should continue blogging.  There are so many factors, but one of the biggest issues is TIME.  Yet I have so much on my heart that I want to write, and my mind is constantly composing my next correspondence.  So here I am, cautiously dipping my toes into the realm of blogging once more…

During the month of April I’ll be linking up with Money Saving Mom (Crystal Paine) for a 30-Day House Cleaning Challenge.  If you’d like to join me, I’ll be following this Fresh & Organized Printable.  Unfortunately I won’t be taking any pictures this week because Brad has our camera in Mexico!  He’s there for a mission trip, but he’ll be back soon.

So, today I did not get around to vacuuming the living room, but I DID straighten up the living room and kitchen which have gotten pretty messy since I started doing a painting on the dining room table a week ago.  We’ve been eating on the coffee table, so the carpet could definitely use the vacuuming!  Otherwise, I surface clean the kitchen and wash the dishes daily, so there wasn’t much new to do there.  Tomorrow is trash day, so I did get rid of at least 7 items during today’s clean up efforts.

How about you?  Did you get around to surface cleaning your living room and kitchen today?