The housekeepers came today, and that meant that I needed to put things away. Honestly that is the only reason I pay someone to clean half my house. I still need to get the other rooms to the point where the housekeepers can vacuum and dust. I stayed outside on the patio while they were cleaning. A couple of the cats decided to stay in the house, which was a bit surprising.

So the rooms they cleaned look nice. I need to get rid of boxes of junk and extra clothes to call this goal complete. 4 months ago

I now have a cleaning team come to the house once a month and clean. They tackle the bathroom, kitchen and living room. So those areas are fairly clean. The dining room is the office, so it’s cluttered with papers and items. And the family room is now storage. I really need to get in there and get rid of 50% of the stuff I have in the house. Just give it to the Goodwill or whomever. I don’t need it. I really don’t want it. I hang on to it because it could be useful some day.

This goal is already overdue however I don’t want to give up on it. I need to get my house clean and therefore I will continue to work on this goal! 5 months ago

My niece is working locally and asked if she could stay with me. Of course I agreed. however I need to clean up a bedroom for her. In the past decade living alone, I have managed to fill all the rooms with “stuff”. I love stuff, or perhaps I should say I love to hang on to “stuff”. (Actually I am being sarcastic however I do have a hard time getting rid of things.)

I cleaned out one dresser for her clothes. I moved clothes out of the closet so she can hang up clothes. But there is now a pile of clothes in the living room that need to be sorted out and given away. 8 months ago

I found a local house cleaning service that will come monthly. This fits into my schedule better since I want to be home when they arrive because of the cats. Once a month they do the heavy cleaning – bathtub, toilets, floors, etc. This means that I have to keep the house picked up and do the weekly vacuuming, dusting, etc.

I have to clean out the living room – it’s full of stuff from the bedroom that I was clearing out. (Do you see a pattern here?) Mainly I just have too many things and I need to reduce the amount.
Time to get rid of some clothes, books and paper. 8 months ago

80% of this goal is getting rid of things I no longer use, or putting them away. 20% is the actual cleaning. Since the housekeepers were here the living room, kitchen, bathroom and Master bedroom are neat and clean. I am working on the family room (lots of empty boxes) and the pink bedroom (needs a good vacuuming and stuff put away).

If it weren’t so hot this would be a great goal to work on today. I’ll set the timer for 15 minutes and do what I can. I can at least vacuum.

The housekeepers arrive on September 11. The rooms should all be clean by then. 9 months ago

Now I remember why I do not like having someone else clean my house. They have been working for nearly 3 hours, and have cleaned the kitchen, bathroom and are now vacuuming the living room. The kitchen was fairly clean since I cleaned it last weekend. Same with the bathroom. When I went outside to work in the yard, and came back in, one of the ladies was cleaning the coffee pot. :( That was not anything important, IMO. I had asked that they wipe down the cabinets, and clean the counters and floor.

Anyway, while they were working I cleaned in the family room (full of boxes so I didn’t expect them to work in there), and worked in the front yard. I need to make it clear that for me cleaning is dusting, vacuuming and cleaning the floors.

Smile, it’s one step closer to your goal. Now if you will keep the house tidy, then life will be easier.

I did clean the laundry room as well, which needed it!!! 9 months ago

They will show up on Tuesday. This means I need to get more items put away before they arrive. This also means that I will have someone to do the heavy cleaning once a month. :) And once I get the house cleaned, it is much easier to keep it picked up.

So, while I certainly missed January’s deadline, I may get this goal completed soon.

Happy dance! 9 months ago

Instead of stressing out about it, I worked on getting things cleaned yesterday. I started with a small area by the sink and cleaned it up. Then I just picked a task and worked on it until it was done. When I finished that area, I picked another area. This way I can stop when I complete a small task and have a sense of accomplishment. The kitchen was in good shape once I finished cleaning each section of the counter top. The bathroom is nice and clean. The bedroom is clean. The living room is in good shape, and the dining room is better. I focused on each small task and ignored the other areas that needed cleaning. This way I didn’t get discouraged or overwhelmed.

If I can get a couple more hours in putting things away, I should be in good shape to hire a housekeeper. That would be nice. 9 months ago

Flylady talks about having too many clothes. I do the laundry and then clothes are folded and sitting on the chair, the dresser, everywhere except put where they belong. I need to purge my clothes. For now I bought 40 hangers and hung up all the clothes in my room. And put the extra t-shirts away in the spare bedroom.

So my room is tidy now. I still have things to put away in the living room – a good task for the remainder of the day. I have made progress on this goal. Then work overwhelms me and progress stops. Then I go shopping and buy “stuff”. The house definitely needs a purging of things. 15 months ago

I haven’t quite completed this goal however I have made great progress. I am going to keep this on my list to remind me to finish and get a housekeeper. 16 months ago

I have made significant progress on this goal. I can’t say the house is totally clean, however the rooms have had a going through and things have been put away. The first realization is I have too many possessions. There are items I never use that have been taking up space, and I need to get rid of them. Next everything needs to be put in its place. Items need a home. And finally I need to clean the remaining areas (family room, living room and dining room).

Overall I have nearly achieved what I wanted. Getting things in order and getting to the point where I can hire a housekeeper to clean every two weeks. I am satisfied with the progress and shall leave this goal on my list until I get everything taken care of. 16 months ago

I did several loads of laundry to get caught up. The only drawback is I now need more hangers. :) I cleaned up in the spare bedroom and I can walk across the floor. What is happening is I am locating all sorts of items that I need to give away since I will not use them.

Still the house is looking cleaner. And I am getting close to the point where I can hire a housekeeper to help keep things in check. 16 months ago

to get this done. I need to step on it to make my deadline. More in the kitchen today.

Go through the cupboards.
Clean out the hall closet.
Get things off the floor in the spare bedroom.
Coordinate the pickup of items I don’t want.
Vacuum the master bedroom and living room. 16 months ago

This goal will pay off more than just having a clean house. I cleaned out a hallway cupboard today and found some items I forgot I had. Now the items I want to use need a new location, and the cupboard houses extra staples for the house.

I was also looking for some Xmas decorations in a spare room and I found my passport! It’s expired and I had a goal of renew my passport. I had been looking for it for a while and uncovered it today. I am finding all sorts of little treasures tucked away in closets and corners around the house. 17 months ago

This goal will pay off more than just having a clean house. I cleaned out a hallway cupboard today and found some items I forgot I had. Now the items I want to use need a new location, and the cupboard houses extra staples for the house.

I was also looking for some Xmas decorations in a spare room and I found my passport! It’s expired and I had a goal of renew my passport. I had been looking for it for a while and uncovered it today. I am finding all sorts of little treasures tucked away in closets and corners around the house. 17 months ago

I need to get a move on with this goal. I’ll clean up papers tonight. The room that really needs cleaning is the den – I just store things in there.

Funny thing is I am making progress. I cleaned up the kitchen and then started cooking more. 17 months ago

I can see that working on my goal to cook more is helping me clean my house. I need to find all those pans and utensils I used to use to cook. They are scattered all over the place.

I was in the garage looking for Xmas decorations and I found a large crockpot a friend had given me. Brought it in and cleaned it up. I am thinking that I will cook a chicken in it later this week. My little crockpot is great for chili, but too small for a chicken or pork shoulder (that I bought this week…) 17 months ago

This is a two-fold goal. I want to see what I have in my kitchen, and I need to get rid of things I no longer use. I have collected things over the years, and many of them I do not need. Time to clean out and rearrange what I want to have in my kitchen.

First drawer, the “plastic bag drawer”. I tend to use hard plastic storage containers now instead of plastic bags. This should be a quick drawer to clean out. 17 months ago

I was watching videos on Jaime Oliver’s site last night and he had one called “Reclaim your kitchen”. :) Seems I am not the only person who has stopped cooking a lot and allowed the kitchen to become everything BUT the kitchen.

So today I am reclaiming my kitchen! I cleaned out the fridge and tossed out some old veggies (compost actually). I also decided to make toasted cheese and onion sandwiches since I had cheese and onions in the fridge.

I need to purchase a new stove. I love my old O’Keefe and Merritt however it needs work. If I buy a 30 inch stove (standard size) I will have 38 inches where I can install a work area. Perfect!! 17 months ago

And since it is cleaner, I find that I want to cook more. Hmm. I also cleaned up the master bedroom and it looks good! I still need to sort through all the drawers and get rid of clothes. For now just having everything put away is fine.

Today’s goal will be the living room. Once I get the house cleaned, I want to hire a housekeeper. 17 months ago

When I get up in the morning, I turn on the computer and get some coffee. Then I typically spend hours at a time working, with hardly any breaks. Now I am trying to spend a few minutes – 15 typically, putting away papers or cleaning something. This allows people to respond to my emails, and let’s me take a break to think.

If I keep this up for the next month, I should have a nicely organized and CLEAN house. 17 months ago

I am going to go through the flylady routines for the past few days. Starting with today’s routines – clean out the car, and computer bag (done). As I finish one routine I will take 30 minutes to do something else. This way I don’t get burned out and I make progress.

I cleaned in the kitchen while I was listening to the Nebraska-Iowa game. :)

Then:
Master bedroom – done
A load of laundry
tackle a closet 17 months ago

I promise myself I will clean up my house by January 1, 2012! This gives me just over 5 weeks to go through the closets, drawers, and cupboards and get rid of items I no longer need. I will donate them or give them away. And I will wash and vacuum the closets and cupboards.

Then, to celebrate this goal, I will get a housekeeper so things stay clean and organized.

This is my Xmas gift to myself. 18 months ago