This is the ninth day of my 31 Days of Living Well & Spending Zero challenge. To read all the posts in order, start with Day One or visit the Overview Page.
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Are you ready for this?
It’s CLEANING DAY! I know you’re excited. Can I get a little woot woot?
The older I get, the more of a clean freak I become. But I wasn’t always that way, and even now, keeping things neat and tidy certainly does NOT come naturally to me. It is still something I have to work at every single day. It is still something I have to gear up to do. It is still work.
To me, it is worth the effort. I spend a lot of time at home, probably more than most people. I am more productive, more peaceful, more creative, more engaged, more fun when my house is clean. I enjoy my life and space so much more when it is tidy. So I clean. And today, so do you.
For those of you who are worried about trying to deep clean your whole house in one day, stop! We are going to tackle a big chunk of it today, but not quite all of it. There will be selective areas that we ignore until later. But our bathrooms will sparkle, our countertops will shine, & our main living areas will be CLEAN.
So let’s get started!
My personal strategy is to start with the room I dread cleaning the most: in my case, the bathroom. I then do the kitchen, since that is my next least favorite, and from there work my way through the rest of the house. After I’ve cleaned the bathroom & the kitchen, made the beds, & picked up any clutter (I throw it all in a basket for the kids to help put away), I find it more efficient to do things like dusting, windexing,vacuuming, & mopping throughout the whole house all at once, not room by room.
I’ve prepared another checklist for you to use while you clean today. You’ll notice that there are a few things conspicuously missing, such as the home office, the closets, & the kids’ room. This is intentional. We will get there! For today, just focus on the main living areas, the bathrooms, and your own bedroom.
{Get your Cleaning Day Checklist here}
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What’s your least favorite area to clean? Are you a neat freak or do you struggle to keep things tidy? Are you excited to clean today or dreading this task?
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The main areas are so not a one day project.. if I start at 6am I might be able to get the bathroom and kitchen done.. major obstacle I'm trying to overcome new baby. My first. And a husband who tosses his coat over a chair and never puts anything back where it goes. Yesterday morning when baby and I got up we found the milk , juice, and the olive oil (open) on the counter and all the cabinets open.....
Its Sunday and I'm sitting on my porch reading through this 31 day challenge in an attempt to avoid cleaning lol!!! I'm so glad I found this because it has arrived at the perfect time. On Tuesday it will be October which is conveniently 31 days! We are in Serious need of a no spend month and my house is in serious need of a scrub down to get ready for winter. closing up the wonderful breezes that bring tons of dust from our windows before we are stuck breathing stale air all winter with 3 asthmatic kiddos always comes with a full house cleaning. Usually I do this in August before school starts but since we had a big move to another state in June I haven't gotten that far yet. I can't wait to get started and I know what dinners topic with the hubs will be tonight! Thanks for the inspiration!!!!
I FINALLY have the next couple of days "off" after some crazy projects for work over the past week (well, ok it won't be while not entirely work free, it will be a little lighter!) and can tackle the "deep clean" and other projects on my 31 Days list! Ruth, you are always the great motivator!!
xo
Claire
I will shout Woot Woot also! Cleaning is totally my favorite thing to do. With my husband and two children its sometimes difficult. My goal is to get a whole lot more organized. The checklist are very helpful, so thank you! God Bless:)
I am really appreciating this series! I am a little behind tho....I just sorted my pantry last night :). I struggle to keep on top of all the housework....I'm looking forward to getting started on this one! Your printables and checklists are very helpful. Thanks for all the effort you are putting into this!
I'm looking forward to this challenge. Or rather...I'm looking forward to the end of the day when the challenge is completed! :-)
I am a neat freak who struggles to keep things tidy! But I have two toddlers, so I've made my peace with it for now. ;) Gotta go...time to clean!
I am a clean freak, but it is hard to keep the house clean every day with four kids in a very small house ( I also homeschool them). I have a cleaning schedule that helps out a lot otherwise, I'd go nuts!!!