CLEANLINESS IS NEXT TO GODLINESS

Don’t worry, I’m not getting into religion here but cleaning is pretty close to a spiritual moment for me.  I’m not kidding.  It’s a rare time of quiet and calm, one of the few times of the week where I can zone out and be alone with my thoughts.  OK, so maybe I need another means of spirituality, but it’s zen.  Can I at least get that?

Most people I meet don’t like to clean but I think it’s because they’re going about it all wrong.  I have a schedule that makes it more manageable and truthfully enjoyable.  Yes, a schedule.  The first time I said I  had a cleaning schedule out loud the utter dorkdom of it all became abundantly clear, but the planning behind the schedule was necessary so hear me out.  First, the schedule was born when I stopped working fulltime and being a mom was my new job.  I needed more regimented days because that’s how I feel most productive.  Second, I found that doing a whole or even a half day’s worth of cleaning was daunting and definitely not something to look forward to.  I find that my friends who have “cleaning days” dread them and typically only follow through on them once, maybe twice a month.  And maybe their houses aren’t as clean as they’d like.  Or they end up using a cleaning service (hey, more power to you if you don’t mind spending the cash), but if you don’t mind doing a little work then you don’t have to spend your money that way.  I actually like me some cleaning – sometimes I think I was a really well-kept maid in a previous life. 

So the way my super dorky schedule works is as follows: I split up the big jobs throughout the week and deal with the even bigger jobs every other week.  Here’s a peek (I keep it saved in the calendar on my phone and delete each chore once it's done...if you were wondering): 

Every other Sunday: scrub & mop kitchen floor. 

Other Sundays: clean oven      

Tuesdays: dust & vacuum, clean mirrors

Fridays: dust & vacuum, clean bathroom

Last Saturday of the month: clean fridge

Broken down in this way the jobs go by quickly and next thing you know, you're settling in for a Real Housewives marathon or hopping into bed.  Of course, I constantly tidy as I go about my week so "cleaning" is never super strenuous but, alas, that's a compulsive story for another day.