If I make it through the kitchen I think a good reward is a few new song downloads on itunes.. A new CD always makes cleaning a little easier!
Spring Cleaning the Living Room takes even more time than the kitchen but it sure is a little easier. A big part of Spring Cleaning for us is Purging… we collect so much stuff over the year, sometimes we end up with 2 of the same board game or movie. The closet where we keep all that stuff isn’t in the living room but it is where we use it all.. I started a couple weeks ago and went through most of it (so we could claim the donation on our taxes!) I think one extra step I might take this year is cutting down on how much SPACE the DVD’S and CD’S take up, there are a lot of option for storing them now, some are expensive and some are not. I need to find a solution that will take up less space AND not put a huge dent in the budget.. I found
THESE called Disc Sox, they seem like a pretty good idea.. Hoping to find something similar with a lower price tag! I actually took some of our DVD’s we weren’t going to be watching again and got just over $40 for them! I was amazed that the TV on DVD still gets a pretty good price. I used that money to buy some disc holders.. They are plain and each hold 80!
~Once I get done purging and am ready to move on to the real cleaning I start by throwing the toss pillows and throw blankets in the washer. When they are done most of the throws get put away until fall.
~Move the rug into another area and cover it lightly with baking soda, then rub it in, if you have kids I bet they can do a good job of rubbing it in with their feet and socks on! I will vacuum it later. If that’s not how you clean your rug you can do the old fashioned beating… also probably ok for kids to help with! I like to take it out first since dust will just settle on it once I start dusting!
~Dust top to bottom, behind and under. Behind our TV gets HORRIBLE.. The TV is a dust magnet and it gets so hot with all the dust back there. I have heard some people rub dryer sheets on them to help repel the dust, we don’t use dryer sheets so I haven’t tried it. Don’t forget to dust the books too!
~Is it time to update those pictures in the frames? If you are taking them down might as well clean them too! I try to change out our pictures every couple months.. The kids notice and enjoy talking about the new pictures!
~Take the cushions off the couches and collect all that change you didn’t know you had.. And at our house it comes with 3 Barbie shoes and a dozen random ponyville pieces. Vacuum underneath and all the cracks. While I have the cushions off I spray the homemade freshener spray under the cushions.
~Clean the furniture. We have micro fiber that shows EVERYTHING, but luckily I have had good luck getting all the spots off with baby wipes, when the wipes don’t work I get the portable steamer out!
~I use the portable steamer on all the furniture anyway.. Steam sanitizes and hopefully any stinky smells go away with it! After they are dried I use the freshener spray on them as well.
~Mirrors if you have them do they deserve a good cleaning? Mine do! I do mine the same time as the windows and fireplace glass.
~I tend to move the furniture around this time of year also.. Just so something is different (for a little while at least)
I feel like I am missing some major things this time… Any ideas?!
