Spring Cleaning and Homemaking

While a bit of spring cleaning can possibly be found in the traditional practices of many cultures worldwide. What we know as spring cleaning today derives from the late 19th and early 20th century North American and Northern European custom of clearing out the dust from coal used to heat homes during the cold winter. It was finally the time of year when doors and windows could be opened and the winter dust removed.

"In some families there is no general house-cleaning at stated periods, but the rooms are scrubbed, white-washed, etc., one
at a time, as may be most convenient. But the usual custom in America is to have the house completely cleaned from top
bottom twice a year ; late in the spring and early in the autumn.
~ Miss Leslie's Lady's House Book"

With the longer warmer days, growing flowers and returning birds many of us get the urge to throw open wide our doors and scrub everything sparkling clean.

But before you dive in formulate a plan so you don't wear yourself out before the job is done.

There are three basic steps to spring cleaning: Deep Cleaning, Organizing, and Upkeep.

Deep cleaning consists of tasks such as scrubbing out cupboards, wiping down walls, and cleaning blinds. This is the messy part of spring cleaning that we ignore the rest of the year. But taking care of it will rid your house of the dirt, grime, and germs that you have collected over the winter.

Organizing means clearing out those same cupboards, some drawers, and cabinets. It's the time to go through your belongs and get rid of excess clothing, trinkets, books, and toys. Throw away unusable broken items. Find permanent homes for all that is left. Having a place for everything and everything in it's place make for a clean and organized abode.

UpkeepThe upkeep of your home is what takes place after the deep cleaning and organizing are finished. This is the regular, smaller scale, cleaning tasks that you do year round.

When it comes to spring cleaning taking your time has it's virtues. There really is no deadline for cleaning. Work within your schedule and at a pace that won't wear you out. Use the following steps to get started Spring Cleaning your home.

1. Evaluate each room. Use a notebook and write down everything that needs to be addressed in each room before starting. For example if your child's closet is a jumble of toys and clothes make note into looking for a toy bin and clothes closet organizers.

2. Next take inventory of your cleaning supplies that you already have on hand and what you will need to buy or make to complete all your jobs. Also add to the list any organizational tools that you need for each of your rooms. Having your supplies at the ready before you start cleaning is only smart. This will keep you from having to suspend your work efforts to run out and pick up a needed item.

3. Reward yourself for tasks completed and use motivators such as upbeat music to keep your energy and spirits up.

4.Neaten up each room before starting your deep cleaning. It's much easier to clean cleared spaces.

Make a list of all the tasks to be done in each room. Check them off as they are completed.

Have fun Spring Cleaning

You don't hear much talk about dusting these days. With vacuums and sealed in homes you would think there is no need to dust anymore.
But the opposite is true. We still need to dust. To ward off allergies and just for healthy living in general.

I won't go into the particulars of shed skin, the dirt we bring in from the outdoors, the fibers from clothing and carpeting, and other unmentionable dust sources but chances are if you haven't dusted in a while you need to. Just trust me on this.

I use fans. I love fans. The white noise, the cool air. But Oh the dust they attract! Ick! They are an amazing proof of the amount of dust swirling in the air around us.

So how often should you dust?

Well each room that you use regularly should get a regular dusting of surfaces at least once a week.

Use a duster get upper corners and the tops of windows and doors.

Use a duster to knock the bunnies off of walls.

Use a dust rag to wipe dust off off furniture, lamps and such.

Use a duster to get around knick knacks and books on shelves.

Vacuum after you dust.

Once a month remove the knick knacks, dust them and the the shelf fully to keep dust bunnies at bay.

I also use a furniture cream about once a month. It adds a nice scent to the home and conditions the wood (or so it says).

Frugal dusting tip: Reuse an old fabric dryer sheet by damping it slightly and using it to pick up that bathroom dust such as hair and towel fibers.

Dusting is not passe. So keep it up. It does make a difference.

There is no doubt when it comes to planning meals and putting together your grocery list a pantry list helps a lot! It's nice to know what you already have on hand so you don't repeat yourself at the checkout line. How many times have you purchased some pasta, a bottle of ketchup or even a box of salt only to find you had already purchased some the last time there was a sale and put them ever so safely high on the shelf where you promptly forgot they existed?

I love keeping a pantry list not only for the ultra organization factor but also because I can know at a glance how much I have on hand and when I need to stock up again.

The problem can be where to keep such a list. By habit we tend to keep our pantry lists inside of our homemaking planners. That is a good is a good idea because it contains all of our homemaking details. But when you set about to cooking you're in the kitchen and your homemaking planner isn't necessarily there too. You might have cloth covered planner that you don't want to get splatter with the day's meals. Or maybe your launch pad (to be discussed later) can be found even in another room and that is where you keep your homemaking planner.

I have found that behind the door of said pantry turns out to be the best place to put a kitchen pantry list. I paste a page protector to the back of the door using using one of those 3M removable poster tabs. If you keep kitchen staples in more than one place then a page protector on the back of each door where food items are stored works well. Organize your staples before hand so that each area is a designated spot for certain kinds of foods.

Then I edit my pantry list to show the items I carry on hand at all time. Add what I actually do have on hand in pencil and place it behind the page protector.

When I go to meal plan or make a grocery list I can see at a glance what I have on hand. And know when I see a sale for an item I keep in my kitchen I know whether I need to restock or whether buying more would be too much and a waste of money.

Tools Needed

Pantry List
Page Protector the size of your pantry list
Some sort of tape for poster or light object. 3M makes a good one.