Wednesday, September 03, 2014

a spring cleaning guide : start small, go slow

Let's start small, let's go slow.

If I allowed myself, I could easily stand in the middle of my house and feel completely overwhelmed by the tasks ahead. Right now I have a strong, pregnancy-induced desire to get everything organised and clean and yet my exhaustion is standing firmly in the way. To combat this frustrating situation I've been taking it slow - half an hour here, half an hour there - reminding myself daily that I've got an entire season to complete the task. Keeping up with day-to-day household duties are quite enough right now but I am finding that if I set aside the time and am completely focused on what I'm doing, it's actually quite possible to tick things off the list.

So what have I achieved so far?

I started with the front doorstep. I felt like the entry to the house was the best place to start. I literally (and figuratively) cleared the cobwebs, swept the stairs, packed away the umbrellas and gumboots and planted a small herb garden to grow in the afternoon sun. Poet and I made a trip to the nursery where we decided on flat leaf parsley, chives, society garlic, mint and rosemary and on the first day of spring we created a "welcome to our home" garden - still a work in progress. A fresh start and the best way to begin my 12-week spruce up of the house.

Next I thought about the drawers in the kitchen that get the most use. The cutlery drawer and utensil drawer came to the top of the list so I literally spent half-an-hour sorting and cleaning. A big bag of utensils (that I had completely forgotten about) made their way to the op-shop hence I'm left with my favourites; the ones that get used almost daily.

Over the next few days I plan to tackle the random kitchen drawer/tupperware drawer which is basically a breeding ground of mismatched lids and containers. I've been stocking up on pyrex when I can so I'm slowly phasing out the nasty plastic (if you were wondering, the kids use these lunch boxes for school/pre-school which we love).

If past cleaning experiences are anything to go by, I know that leaping right in and going a million miles an hour only leads to exhaustion and, subsequently, disinterest. Start small, go slow and apply complete mindfulness to the task at hand (that means no phone within reach).

Next week I'll post on Monday so you have the entire week to get through the list (don't worry, it's not daunting).

Happy spring cleaning!


6 COMMENTS

  1. Oh my gosh - Poet's hair! That's the first time I've noticed she's loosing her wispy 'babyness' to her hair and has real 'little girl' looking hair! Goodness, I remember that happening for Chilli at 3 and then at 4 it just seemed to grow half way down her back almost overnight!

    This is my problem with 'simplifying'.... for example the utensil draw - we thankfully have those big, deep and very wide rectangular kitchen draws so they hold a lot of stuff.... but every utensil in there I actually use - maybe not every day, but I DO USE them. If I culled down to the essential daily use items, I'd just end up needing to replace those less frequently, but still used all the same items. I find this the case - house over. Everything is very neat and organised (I'm a bit obsessive in that department!) ;) but we do have a lot of stuff that in 'simplicity' terms would be culled out by minimalists. When we live, school and work in one place that just seems to come with needing stuff! I really think there isn't much hope for me at all in this department - cleaning I'm totally on board with - love that, it's just the culling... I guess maybe we did a big purge when we moved interstate. Oh I don't know - maybe I'm also just really good with justifying it all as well! ;) ahhhhh.....

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    1. Poet really has grown up so much lately and she's so tall!

      I think my ruthless decluttering might have a lot to do with the fact that our house is smallish and if I do the hard work of cleaning it now it will make life that bit easier come March. I'm just so conscious of the stuff that has accumulated - and it's stuff we don't use. And I'm also mindful of the things that accompany a new baby.....that deserves a post of its own! I have to practise simplicity out of necessity now - which is quite inspiring! x

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  2. Our kitchen utensil drawer is ridiculous!! It's on my to do list x

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  3. Beautiful photo, Jodi :)

    I'm going to join you on this challenge (and yes, it is a challenge. An overwhelming one!)

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  4. This is a timely post as we have to down size from a big old bush house to a smaller better condition house in town. We have lots of de-cluttering to do in 2 weeks! What a wonderfully uplifting entrance to the family home with a small herb garden. I like how you are breaking this up in to small projects especially as you are pregnant and also for those of us who have a lot of decluttering to do. Kind regards.

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  5. I am in! Fall is apparently approaching here in Pennsylvania and we could do with a methodical approach to getting us ready to winter!

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