Recently, on separate occations, I had two of my friends come to me, asking for cleaning and organization tips. If you don't know me that well, I have a *touch* of OCD and firmly believe that "everything has a place." So, you either walk into my house astonished, or annoyed. Haha!
When I replied to her email, I really took my time racking my brain - How do you describe what you do naturally? But because I know my craziness may help someone else, I decided I should post my response on my blog. So, here you go: First of all, I have the type of personality that I cannot go to bed without fluffing the pillows on the couch. For real. So, it kinda goes without saying that I make sure there are no dirty dishes in the sink or toys on the floor before I can really relax. This not only applies to when I head upstairs to bed, but even with both kids are napping - I can't really grab the laptop and relax until the house is tidy. It's a disease, I know, haha. In my head, it would be worse for me to walk downstairs, starting my day to an already messy house. That would cause stress and anxiety in me. So, it makes more sense for everything to be put away before starting over the next day. That way, instead of cleaning first thing, I can start the more important tasks like preparing breakfast, having a quiet time, etc. That being said, I very rarely take a day to deep clean my house. It's absolutely more of a constant state of cleaning sort of thing. While I'm in the kitchen making breakfast, I wipe up the crumbs off the counter when I'm done. After I brush my teeth in the morning, I wipe down the sink. I keep wipes in the downstairs bath and use them to dust the living room surfaces and wipe down the kitchen and dining room table. I do this all the time. Not just one day a week or one day a month. To me, it's an easy, FAST way to make the house pretty spotless when someone is on their way over. I don't get out lysol and a bucket, no way. Just grab a few wipes and go. This is obviously easy to do when the surfaces aren't cluttered to begin with... As far as organization goes, I am a firm believer in "everything has a place." Even junk mail. I used to be so OCD that every toy had a place, but now that I've got two kids to clean up after, toys just have to go away, not necessarily in a certain spot. My greatest investment was the toy bin container we got at Target. It wasn't cheap, so I waited until it went on sale. Then, when Zoe came along and there were even more toys, that just required more baskets. But, I'm also someone who goes through the toys often and puts away stuff that Joel has outgrown, throw away stuff that's broken, etc. This goes for clothes, too. The smaller the kid, the more often I am organizing clothes. There's a constant sorting: Good Will donation bag, outgrown clothes put in giant tupperware containers in the basement, new clothes moved into other drawers, etc. Basically, because our house isn't huge, I've got to maximize the space that we live in. So, even in the kitchen - if I don't use it often, it gets donated. This only-keeping-things-we-use-on-hand project has helped remove any clutter. Joel absolutely helps me keep this house clean. I've kind of had a rule since he was a baby that we only get out one thing to play with at a time. So, the house only really looks destroyed, with all the toys out, when other friends come over and I don't instill this main rule. So, before he has to head upstairs to a nap, everything must be off the floor. Before he can start a new puzzle, the first puzzle has to go away. If he's really into playing with something at night, and doesn't want to fully put it away, I just need/want it off the floor. So, like last night he had built some things with the Legos with Daddy. Instead of tearing them apart, we just sat them on the bench seat... I also have a rule about only eating at the table, because I don't want to deal with crumbs on the couch. He's a pretty neat eater, but if he did make a mess, that would be something that I cleaned up as soon as he was done. Wipe up the table quickly with a wipe or the kitchen sponge, and if there's a mess on the floor - immediately grab the dust buster to get it up. In my head, if I would leave that, it would just create an even bigger mess at a later time. I'd rather stay "on top of it." Laundry is the ONLY thing that I do in one day. Cause I hate it. So, instead of doing a load a day - which most of my friends do - I take one day a week and do four loads that day. I try to wash, dry, and put away this laundry in this one day. Cause I hate it, haha. Because I like change, and because I love organization, I am constantly improving where things go. Making it make the most sense, making it easiest on everyone. I hope this helps!!
6 Comments
Crystal Winebrenner
4/11/2012 06:21:39 am
Megan,
Reply
Megan
4/11/2012 06:57:01 am
OH, I wish I was this way! I try but our house seems to always be messy. I think I might instill some of these rules though - like put the toy away after you are done with it b/c our playroom often looks like a disaster area! Thanks for sharing and I'd love to hear more. I might need an intervention some day.. :)
Reply
Jennifer
4/11/2012 06:58:53 am
that is awesome, so when can you come over and do my kitchen, craft and office space??????
Reply
4/11/2012 08:15:16 am
I think we might be OCD organization twins =) I do most everything you stated, although I have to break laundry into 2 days a week...otherwise I'd be doing 8 loads in one day, bleh.
Reply
Brittany
4/11/2012 09:31:44 am
This makes me laugh! Great post!
Reply
Heather South
4/11/2012 11:51:38 am
Yep! Chris gets mad at me all the time because I'm the "clean police", but it's seriously my OCD tendancy too, and I'm glad to see I'm not alone. I find that when I'm busy, the worst thing for me is to have a messy house. If I go to bed with a clean one ( or relatively so), I wake up to a much happier and healthier mindset. I find that developing these good habits are a challenge, but come naturally once I've disciplined myself to do them for a period of time. Great post!
Reply
Leave a Reply. |
Meghan
Archives
April 2012
|