Simplify, Simplify, Simplify! #6

It is month 6th of my walk through the year to Simplify our lives.  This past month I really worked on trying to wrap up some long outstanding projects on those lists.  I took time to print them all out in order and than went back to the very first one that was not completed and worked through the list that way.  You can view all of my simplify posts by clicking HERE - the posts include lists that I do try to update as well as posts on the progress I've made which also include pictures (and we all love pictures!)

When I started this process, I wasn't really sure how much of an impact this would have on our family life.  I just figured, that if nothing else, I'd be a little more organized.  Instead, I've seen good changes.  As I've simplified everything from the way I plan meals to how I plan my day, I've found more time for building family time.  I've been able to set up a lose schedule to work and play with the kids as well as figuring out what family activities we should and should not try to fit into our week.  I've pinched pennies, cut corners, and created fun things for next to nothing in order to simplify the "stress" of money in our lives.  Some of the items are easy - like putting together a gift wrapping area; some are more difficult - like all of that pinching penny stuff.  Yet each step brings us closer to being able to just live day to day and have fun! 

I usually start thinking about the next months project as soon as I post a Simplify Post.  The #5 post had to do with putting everything in its place.  I wanted to take that one step further this month.  One of the things I truly hate is how I can keep the house perfectly in shape - everything put away and neat - 6 days out of 7.  BUT you can guarantee that on that one day things are a mess, someone stops by for a visit and I am SOOOO not happy LOL  I still remember one day last spring when I got up, had both boys up and dressed and decided that we would run some errands first thing while everyone was happy - leaving beds unmade, the kitchen in disarray and toys everywhere.  Well, we got back home and a vehicle pulled in the driveway.  Out comes a friend and our former babysitter.  We talked while the kids played and than she wanted to see the house . .. SERIOUSLY???  Now, to make it worse, her house is spotless . .. every day.  I know because I dropped my child off there every day.  She is a minimalist when it comes to decorating so not only is her house clean, it is totally clutter free.  And. she. wanted. to . see . my. house.  The grand dirty tour.  I kept saying "Oh, it is laundry day so I don't make the bed until I put clean sheets on" and things that sounded dumb even in my ears HA!  So where is all this leading?  My next endeavor of simplification (is that even a word?)

Ready for anyone at anytime

This is more of a discipline than anything else but these are some areas that I want to work on in order to have my home always ready for that unexpected guest.  Now, I must clarify, during the day, there will be toys out and sometimes a load of laundry waiting to put away in basket on the table depending on who is napping where but, I want the over all appearance to be clean and organized.

1. The Kitchen - how I wish that my kitchen was not the entrance to my home.  This has come up in challenges I've done before too.  But it is so I have to learn to accept it, right?  I want to end the day with a "spotless" kitchen.  All dishes need to be in the dishwasher; anything that can't go in the dishwasher needs to be washed and put away.  The counters cleaned off and organized and all stray items taken back to their "homes". The floor needs a quick sweep too.   Along that line, shoes need to be organized, coats and jackets that are needed hung in the closet.  Finally, (and I used to be good at this) I need to clean the patio door at least once a week - it gets grimy with hand prints and dog nose prints.  We also need to get our screen fixed - this is a normal summer item - I just need to get it done!

2. The bedrooms - the boys still live sleep in cribs so "making" their beds doesn't really include a lot. I do want to make sure that their rooms are picked up though and that all stray things are taken care of as well.  Our room - making sure the bed is neatly made (it is most days), and just general pick up.  The bedrooms in our house are all very visual due to the layout so it is important to keep those rooms clean.

3. The floors - when there are toys being played with all day, it is hard to keep up with the floors.  It seems I either have kids sleeping or kids playing - not a good time to vacuum.  So, I want to figure out how to be able to run the vacuum over the middles at least every other day.  I'm thinking that possibly while one of us is giving the boys their bath, the other one can quickly run the vacuum OR while we are cleaning up, that can become part of that process.

5. Deep Cleaning Zone Lists - finally, a way to keep this up and keep the house clean is the Deep Cleaning Zone lists.  I've slowly been working on this over the past few months but first, I had to come to this deep realization . . .are you ready . . I really don't like to clean.  There. The truth is out ha!  As I've worked on creating some of the lists, I've tried to keep the projects simple (imagine that) and things that I can get done working 15 minutes at a time 2-3 days a week to have them done or an hour on the weekend.  I've also included projects that are only done a few times a year and labeled them as such - otherwise I found that I felt like it was a list I could never accomplish.  My main goal this month is to actually do all 5 of the deep cleaning lists that I have - one each week based on Flylady Zones - and tweek them enough that I can keep up the process.  I am starting my Deep Cleaning 101 posts and you can check those out HERE if you are interested in what I'm doing.  Why I'm starting this in the middle of the hot summer, I will never know HA!