Friday, March 9, 2012

Keeping Schedules



I am still working on my financial debacle, but I'm currently waiting on some information so I've put that project on hold for today.  I wanted to take a moment to talk about house cleaning.  Now this is not something I'm good at.  I confess to be a total slob, and while I like things clean and cleanliness gives me peace of mind, I'm not naturally an organized or clean person.  I tend to get overwhelmed when it comes to cleaning and distracted very easy.

Spring is around the corner and I've seen a ton of posts about Spring Cleaning, checklist abound in Blog World.  I get exhausted just reading through the lists much less feel inspired to start using one.  That is until today.  I found one I could manage at My Simpler Life.  It isn't necessarily a Spring Cleaning list, but it does stretch out the whole deep cleaning process out over the length of a year.  That's about how long it would take me to clean anyway :) so I thought I would give it a try.




I printed up this Moth's calendar and put in my Home Journal.

It only lists 1 deep cleaning, decluttering project a day.  Now that is something I can live with.

While working with Modern Retro Woman in January I discovered another fabulous trick that has really helped me maintain my home.  I say "maintain" because it is just maintained in other words, far from spotless but no longer on the verge being being condemned.

She challenged me to find a way to keep focused.  I decided to use a timer.  At first it worked great. I set the time for 25 min and went to town.  But, it didn't take long for my ADD to kick in and it was harder and harder to maintain working for 25 minutes (that's kind of embarrassing to admit).  So, I shortened it to 5 min.  5 min doesn't seem very long, but you would be surprised at how much you can do when you're focused.  So with my timer, which really has become a second appendage (it goes with me everywhere), I have developed a schedule that seems to work for me, for now anyway.



Daily:
 - Make Beds
- 5 minute clean up in each bedroom (even the kids have spend 5 minutes straightening)
- 5 min kitchen clean up
- 5 min Hot Spot clean up (areas that breed clutter, like the entryway or top of the dryer)
- 5 min bathroom clean up
- 5 min major pick up
- 1 load of laundry (I don't always get this done, but Monday is laundry day so I can catch up if I miss it)

This schedule has actually improved my house considerably and it is so simple! Now, with the Declutter calender I think I see some really good things happening.

Do you have a schedule you'd like to share?


1 comment:

  1. I liked the 15min organizer. I too found 25 minutes too long. It is like a game of beat the clock. I like making one appliance a week (e.g., I have four major appliances that require cleaning: refridge, stove, microwave/dishwasher, and washing machine and drier). 1st wk of the month, refridge but every day I work on one shelf/drawer at a time. Nxt wk, the stove but every day one section burners, frnt, knobs, and oven. You get the picture. Works for me! 1hr before hubby is due home set the time and work on big clutter for three cycles. Take the last one to clean yourself and the kids face and hair. Throw something in crockpot in the morning on rough or busy days.

    ReplyDelete