Wonder Woman Wednesday- Kitchen Challenge...the last leg!

                 

I am combining two weeks into one post today!  Last week, with my kids on spring break, I didn't get as much as I should have done.  Surprise, surprise!!  If you remember, last week's challenge was supposed to be organizing the pantry.  Here's a few tips for tackling that area!

1.  Clean out!  Get rid of expired foods.  If you stocked up on canned veggies 6 months to 1 year ago in the hopes of healthier eating, donate some or all of it! Be honest with yourself about what you actually need in there.  

2.  Take note of your space!  If you have a shoebox size pantry, obviously you can't buy EVERYTHING in bulk.  Some people use their basements for storing bulk.  In Texas, we don't have basements.  So unless you have a larger extra space, keep the size of your pantry in mind.  Crammed pantries don't stay tidy for long!

3.  Categorize!!!  Group cans together, keeping each type together.  For example, I buy Rotel in bulk.  All my canned foods can go on one shelf but, the Rotel stays together on that shelf.  That way I know when I am out (which rarely happens!) by just glancing in the pantry.  

4.  Use baskets, bins, jars!  Keep them cheap though.  I love dollar store containers.  Make sure your containers fit on the shelves.  Nothing worse than buying great baskets that don't fit!!!  Keep your pasta in one, oatmeal in another, bags of rice,etc.  Make sure to label everything!!

Now that your pantry is tidy, let's get to cleaning!  Everyone has their preference on cleaning supplies.  I like to pull everything off my counters in sections to throughly clean the counters.  I bleach my sink and let my self-cleaning oven do it's thing.  Whatever your method is, get to it!  Then stand back and enjoy the smell of a clean kitchen!  Don't forget to mop the floor!

               

                      That's my clean kitchen!  Hoping it lasts through the week!

Hugs y'all,

Melissa

 

Wonder Woman Wednesday-Yea, my house smells that good!

Wonder Woman Wednesdays are all about being even more amazing than you are.  I tend to get in my own little routine, and begin to struggle with balance and think, "How does Sally make it look so easy?!!  Gosh, I hate her for that!;)  This is the place Wonder Woman Wednesday stims from!  We are all have our own little struggle with balance.  It's important to know we are not all alone on our little woman island!  House chores unfortunately fall in the struggle of balance.  Do I take advantage of going to bed at an early time or clean the fridge?  You sit down after a long day of work only to look up and see cobwebs have formed on the living room ceiling...do you get the vacuum out or not?

Today's blog is about getting on a deep cleaning schedule.  When I first started this blog in April, I wrote about our family weekly cleaning schedule.  So you may have looked at that schedule and said, "When does her fridge get cleaned?  EWWW!"  It's on  my deep cleaning schedule.  I put this into place back in January but with the kids' sports, I did not get to stay on top of it as well.  But it is perfect because you can pick a weekend each month and get it all done!!  This is where I should add a picture or the actual schedule...so cue the Pinterest meltdown and the computer issues!!  I can add a picture of what January and February look like... it is the same for July and August.  

Basically each month, a room gets a top to bottom cleaning!  Ceiling fans get dusted, blinds dusted, furniture moved and vacuumed, windows get washed (in the warm months), and whatever else can be cleaned!  This does not take as long IF the weekly schedule has been kept up with.  You sit down that Sunday evening WITHOUT seeing cobwebs on your ceiling!!

Hugs ya'll,
LSG

Wonderful Woman Wednesday: Clean House Edition

It is Wonderful Woman Wednesday again!  Congrats you made it to the middle of the week again!  Last week's blog was all about taking a break from being amazing.  This week is about getting the house clean during the week so that you can take it easy on the weekend.  We usually end up with multiple activities on Saturdays.  By the time Sunday rolls around, I am in no mood to clean my house top to bottom.  Half the time I am doing good to get off the couch!  About 18 months ago, we put a cleaning schedule into place.  Now it has changed and been tweaked over the past year but it works.  Each day has one big task (like vacuuming) and several small tasks (like someone's laundry, clean room, dishes, take out trash, etc).  The kids know when they come in from school, they can look at the fridge and tell what chores need to be done.  It's on the fridge because that is the easiest spot and the ONE place everyone looks!

This is what our weekly schedule looks like.  Yes, it's color coded by day (I tend to have a TAD BIT of OCD at times).   And yes, we vacuum 3x a week... we live in the country and tend to collect a lot of dirt!  The beautiful part is everyone has to pitch in!!  I am no longer the only one doing everything!!  Once you get a schedule going, it's a piece of cake.  Now don't get the idea that we stick to this every week of the year.  We have those weeks when we are never at home due to sporting events and school activities.  But we do our best to stick to it as much as possible.  By the time the weekend gets here, I only have sheets and a load of towels to watch.  It's awesome!!

Now put one into place so that come Sunday afternoon, you can sit in a bath listening only to your thoughts (since you will have locked the bathroom door to keep the little ones out!)  Take the earbuds too so that you can drown out their "MOM!!!" cries:)

Hugs ya'll,

LSG