It made me

very happy

How I did it: Generally, I clean out my car pretty regularly in the warmer months, but it's harder during Minnesota's long winter. Here's what I usually do to clean it out:

1) Grab a grocery bag and put all the garbage from the car into it (fast food wrappers, etc.).

2) Grab a box or other container for all the items in the car that need to be redistributed back to their rightful place (CDs, books, etc.). This step especially goes for the TRUNK. Really, all that should be in your trunk are jumper cables and emergency supplies in case of a break down. An empty trunk makes your car feel BRAND NEW!

3) Pull out the floor mats and vacuum the entire car, using the attachments to get into all the cracks. Basically detail the car. Vacuum the trunk, too!

4) I keep a container of Armor All citrus scented wipes under the passenger seat of my car, so I pull those out and wipe down all of the hard surfaces (steering wheel, around the CD player, around the shifter, dashboard, door locks, seriously anything that isn't upholstery). Armor All is amazing and worth it vs. other cleaning products not specifically designed for cars. It makes everything shiny and new-looking.

5) Clean the glass, inside and out, with streak-free glass cleaner.

6) At least twice a year, clean the upholstery with the upholstery attachment of a home carpet cleaner. Seriously, a home carpet cleaner is one of the best investments, ever--clean your own couch, rugs, carpet, car, etc. and you'll be amazed at how disgusting things are even if you are a tidy/neat person.

7) Bask in the glow of a clean vehicle. Read how I did it… 22 months ago

It made me

THRILLED!!

How I did it: Set a small goal - once every 6 months, then every 3 months, then every month.  Now every 2 weeks.  I just LOVE my car clean!

Reward yourself when you reach your goals!

I also made it a point to carry something OUT of my car every time I got out of it.  That really helped too! Read how I did it… 23 months ago