Spring Cleaning

Well, it's about that time. Time for spring cleaning. I will admit up front that I am not a thorough spring cleaner. But I do clean in places that I don't normally clean.

1. Under/behind the couches and in the cushions. Okay, we do this more than once a year, but definitely in the spring. If you are one of the lucky ones who moves your couch and finds clean floor, wow, I am impressed. But, sadly I am not one of those lucky ones. There is everything from socks (maybe that's where they go...from the dryer to under the couch), to popsicle sticks, crumbs of many types, rubberbands, change, wrappers of many types, pencils, crayons, pens, paper clips, batteries, the battery cover for the remote and silverware.

2. Under the boys' bed. This is not fun. I have to wear gloves and a face mask. I have found some pretty interesting things under there. A block of cheese, for instance. With teeth marks in it. A knife. I am guessing they got the knife to cut the cheese, but decided that just biting into the cheese would be more efficient...as well as safer. I'm glad they've learned something! A jar of peanut butter with obvious finger dips. I have found very old used pull-ups. (This is why the face mask is a necessity.) Other non-identifiable food objects. BTW, I DO feed my children. Other objects I've found: the stapler (I've been looking for that), at least 2 pairs of scissors, a lot of paper with various drawings, pens, pencils, crayons, my mascara, (I've been looking for that too!), toothpaste, change, legos, socks, (another place they apparently hide), game pieces, game money, (no wonder we haven't been able to play a good game of Monopoly!), a lot of used tissue and books.

3. The car and the suburban. I keep a fairly clean house, (except for under furniture, apparently), but I'm not so good at keeping the car and the suburban clean. I don't give rides to friends because of this! Typically we have newspapers, baby toys, empty cups from fast food places and various other trash littering the floorboards.

4. Closets. I actually enjoy organizing closets. I'm more of an organizer than a cleaner. I might have a dirty stove top, but the game closet is organized. I might have soap scum in my shower, but my DVD's are in order.

5. Windows. I don't do windows. Any volunteers?

6. The carpet. In the past, we have both paid to have our carpet cleaned by a "professional" and John has cleaned it with a Rug Doctor that you can rent from the grocery store. The Rug Doctor does a better job. If the carpet in the tv room could talk...Wow! Anything you can imagine has been on that carpet, including: vomit, baby spit up, poop (baby and doggy), pee (baby and doggy), spilled drinks and spilled food.

7. Wiping down walls. This is what kids are for. They actually like doing this!

8. Cleaning out and organizing bathroom and kitchen cupboards. This isn't as fun as organizing a closet, but it is a close second. I recently got some new pots and pans for the kitchen, so I need to get rid of the old. For now, I just shove them all in the cupboard and slam the door closed. You always know when someone opens that cupboard, because you hear pots and pans clanking on the floor. As for the bathroom, I will gather all the hair accessories, go through my make up and throw out the old, organize the first-aid and clean out the closet. Why do I always find a book stashed there? Mark. We've made a rule for him only. NO pooping in the upstairs bathroom--poop and read downstairs!!!

9. Go through the kids' toys. This is an overwhelming task. How many McDonalds toys does a kid need? And why are there legos in the underwear drawer? I also take this opportunity to weed out the stuffed animals. They seem to multiply exponentially.

10. Clean the stroller. With warming weather, it is time to start going for walks. Winter time for me brings with it the winter blues. I am looking forward to being outside again! Hello spring! I love you!!

Cynthia