Clean Before Spring #4

Happy Monday, All!

Don't you just love the fresh start of a new week?  I do.  Sometimes though, Mondays can be a little overwhelming.  At our house things can get pretty messy over the weekend.  We try not to do much work on Sundays so come Monday the house needs to be rescued.  It can be difficult to know where to start.  We're usually covered up with large laundry piles, dishes, newspaper, and toys.  If your Monday morning house is like ours then before starting on the Clean Before Spring assignment I suggest doing the following.

• Get dressed
• Make up all the beds
• Get the laundry cranked up
• Take out the trash
• Straighten up the main rooms
• Run the vacuum 
• Start dinner prep

This list isn't intended for a deep clean.  It will just make you feel better to get your ducks in a row at the start of the day.  (I feel more productive when the washer, dryer, and crock-pot are all going.)  Keep it to no more than an hour.  Don't get carried away and start cleaning the entire house.

Now, to assignment #4.  We will keep it light since it is Monday after all.  Plan on taking it up a notch the rest of the week!  Today, clean out and organize your Tupperware/Rubbermaid/plastic containers.  Find all the lids and match them to their containers.  Toss out any disposable containers that are no longer in good shape. Sometimes they can become terribly stained, or bent from lots of use in the microwave. Toss any orphaned lids too.  (Check about recycling in your area.)  When you put your containers back in the cabinet find a way to store them neatly and try to prevent having to take them all out to find the one you need.  You don't want them to come falling out every time you open the cabinet.  And really, how many plastic containers do you need?  Keep only what you will use.  If you have an abundance bless someone else with your extra.  Find someone (maybe a student in their first apartment) who could use them and give them away.

If you've been on board since last week then you now have two drawers cleaned out, a clean oven, and organized cabinets in your master bath.  You are well on your way to a clean, organized home.  If you are just climbing on, welcome aboard!  You're not late.  Just start where we are today.