surprise cleaning

This is another post that is more for me than you. I feel like if I put it out there, it's a real plan, not just an idea that will never happen.

I may have already posted this way back when I started this blog. Well a lot has happened since then and I need to get back on the cleaning wagon. Addie will be 6 months soon and I am ready to start making a real effort to keep the house clean(ish). Dan really loves a clean house and he has been so patient while I haven't really been able to clean much. He has been doing a lot of the cleaning lately. So this is for him mostly... but I am always up for a good challenge. 

I LOVE to clean out closets, clothes, cupboards etc. I LOVE to organize and put stuff in order. I HATE to deep clean. It's no fun. I wish I loved it. Mya loves it. I hope she still does when she's a mom.

Okay so usually, I try to do some laundry and dishes throughout the day, sweep and pick up the downstairs mess before I go to bed. Well, that leaves a whole rest of the house to be cleaned, like deep cleaned. Mya picks up her room and Winter's room pretty often so that's nice. A friend suggested this system a few years ago and I tried it and it is kind of fun and makes keeping the house clean pretty easy if you actually do it.

Choose 20 areas that you can break up into around 5-10 minute jobs. That way everything gets cleaned once a month. It would be great to get everything cleaned more often than that but I'm not Superwoman. Is there a Superwoman? Wonderwoman... anyway, I'm neither!

Then you write them down on 20 different pieces of paper (or one cut up into 20 pieces) and put them in a hat or jar or whatever. Monday through Friday, pick one each day in the morning and tackle it. I like it because it's a surprise and kind of a game. It's fun to do with the kids too. I used to let Mya pick them for me and she loved it. I totally put them back if I really don't like that job :) but eventually I'm going to have to do it right? 

Here are my 20 jobs:

vacuum upstairs hall and office
vacuum upstairs bedrooms
vacuum upstairs bathrooms
vacuum downstairs (rugs & bathroom)
vacuum stairs
vac under couches and hard to reach places
Windex upstairs 
Windex downstairs 
dust upstairs 
dust downstairs
master toilet etc.
master bathroom
master shower
kids' shower
kids' toilet & counters 
wash and change master bed sheets
wash and change kids bed sheets
wash dog beds & upstairs rugs
sweep & mop - this one is nearly impossible, but hey it could happen (ooooh maybe I can put the baby in the Bjorn while I mop?)

okay I can only think of 19 but I'm sure I will come up with 1 more later on :) Less work for me!

I'm also going to start marking the following on the calendar to do once or twice a month. If it's not on the calendar, I won't do it. 

File paperwork
Wash car
Take dry cleaning in
pick up dry cleaning

(Laundry is also A LOT easier if you do a load first thing in the morning each day. Going to start that tomorrow too.)

Well it's May 12. I'm starting late for May so I'll have to do two jobs a couple of days. Ugh. Wish me luck! This is exciting! Okay, here I go!

I will keep you updated each week to let you know how I'm doing and how it's working with the 3 kids... and 2 dogs.