Spring Project Cleaning

It's supposed to be 70 this weekend and that means Spring. 

Birds chirping, tulips coming up, trees budding and grass growing. It also means we can send the kids outside. A LOT. Good stuff.

It also means allergies. Bad stuff.

Good & bad? Spring Cleaning.

I hate cleaning. Really. HATE. But it's time. And I LOVE when it's done.

I have two modes of cleaning:

1. Blitz cleaning. This is the cleaning you do really quickly to make it all look presentable when you are having company. My husband and I can do this for about an hour before company and everything looks spic & span - just don't look at the tops of the bookshelves, or under the sofa. 

When our boys catch us cleaning they say, "who's coming over?" I then point out to them that SOMETIMES we clean things for other purposes - like if something is so disgustingly filthy I can't stand the sight of it anymore. (This excludes the normal, day-to-day (that I also hate) like doing dishes, laundry, wiping counters, etc).

2. Project cleaning. PITA Spring Cleaning. This is when you take on a big project that requires cleaning out certain areas of the house in order to complete the project. I do this because it FORCES me to deep clean and it provides a new, fresh look to the room. Often this involves moving furniture, taking down decor, cleaning it and putting it back up, cleaning windows, window coverings, etc. 

(Side note: I used to move the living room furniture every few months whenever I got a wild hair and needed a change. Then we got a gigantic freaking sectional and that was that. The hubby is quite pleased about it as he is change-avoidant).

I just bought the cutest butterfly thingies I want to put up on the walls in my home office. But first I need to clean a corner of that room so I can get to the wall I want to put the butterflies on - which is buried behind a sofa covered with blankets, jackets, and even some Christmas wrap. (Yep, Christmas wrap I got AFTER I put Christmas away so it needs to find a home until next year because I'm not going up to the attic again).

See? Butterflies. They will look nice on my green office wall.

Or, another example, I hate dusting my bedroom, especially the areas I don't easily hit like the ceiling fans or the tops of the curtains or the blinds that have been mostly closed all winter. This bedroom re-do project I'm currently working on will now force me to clean every.stinkin'.corner. of that room. It will feel so fresh and new when it's done. I cannot wait. Plus, hello, PAINT. What better way to deep clean?

Now that Spring Cleaning (capitalized because it is a formal thing, no?) is starting to happen I will be undertaking many small projects. Sunlight is coming into our rooms from different angles now and I can totally see where I need to take some shades down and give them a thorough cleaning and I can see the cobwebs gathering in the dark, vaulted corners of the room. 

Incidentally, I wish I had a good method for cleaning those tall corners other than me, a rickety ladder & a broom. One of these days I AM going to fall on my ass and it's going to hurt. You all will have a good laugh when I tell you about it. 

So - as your weather warms up just turn the music on, open the windows, and get to work. Put the kids to work too. Bribe 'em if you have to.

Happy cleaning, peeps. It will be SO worth it.

Anatomy of a snap-happy Sunday

Bless him, the hubby let me sleep in. Then, when he was so hungry he couldn't wait anymore, he crawled into bed with me and said he had already cooked the potatoes and could I please get my lazy arse out of bed and make him a scramble? Fine, fine! 

I got up and staggered my bones to the kitchen and began cooking. In the same pan as the cut up and sauteed potatoes, I added diced ham, aromatics (onion & garlic), and let it all combine on medium low heat. Then whisked 5 eggs, a diced scallion, and salt & pepper in a separate bowl. I added the egg mixture in and stirred a few times to scramble all together. Then turned the burner off, put some cheese on top and put the lid on to let the cheese melt. It was YUM. Plus I had enough leftover to make 6 breakfast burritos for us next week. Total score.

We sat down to eat breakfast and decided to flip on the Netflix and watch the 1st episode of Doctor Who (since it was restarted in 2005). It's been highly recommended from our friend, Britt. But I think the jury is still out with me and the hubs. We'll have to watch a few more before we decide. 

Then we started our day in earnest. I sent the kids to take out the recycling and play. Lo and behold they decided to do work:

Took out the recycling

Swept out the laundry room . . .

. . . and continued in the garage

The hubby continued working on my oldest's invention for his Invention Convention - due this week at school:

the Pull & Dress - more on this later

Bob was doing his thing:

Russian Tortoise. Bob.

So I lit some candles:

A gift for Valentine's Day from the hubby

and began snapping some pics of a few of my favorite things:

My fancy Jane Austen books - a gift many, many years ago

Willow Tree people - gifts from my family

My grandmother-in-law gave this egg cup to me from her collection. I love it dearly!

I'm thinking of making something now. Something a little sweet and possibly a little savory as well. Hmmm . . .