Time to deep clean, or is it?
Is a deep cleaning overwhelming?
Do you expect to deep clean your home this year? Is it necessary? Is it overwhelming? Do you want to? Do you have time to? Can you physically do it? Does anyone really care if you deep clean? Unless you can say , “yes” to all these questions, NO. You don’t have to, and if you can’t, you can’t. Please don’t beat yourself up about it. If you can afford to, hire a cleaning service, or ask your local high school to recommend a student to come in a few hours a month, or a week.
I am most likely to want to deep clean when Christmas decorations are put away, and I used to do so. But is it necessary for me to do it? If I die tomorrow will anyone care whether or not it got done? I’m the only female, human or otherwise in my home. My guys don’t see most dirt, and when they do, they don’t care. So do I care enough? Will company think less of me? When I go to someone else’s home, I don’t care about their dirt or mess. It’s not my responsibility. It’s not my concern. It’s not why I am there. I am pretty sure other people feel the same, so I won’t feel horrible if company sees dirt and mess. No, I don’t care enough for a thorough deep clean and my back wouldn’t let me.
Do you want it cleaner, easier?
I love a super clean house. However I am older and slower now. I my back won’t let me work that hard. I do prefer clean, but. . . . Spending time and effort trying to organize thoughts to make a plan each day, is frustrating and wastes time. So I developed a chore calendar that spreads the work through the year AND gets to the chores that should be done, but often are not. Catch-up days are included for days when we can not stick to the schedule. Using this I get more done, but it feels like I am doing less work and, occasionally, there’s a day off because it’s all done already.
The first row of the calendar shows each day of the week. Each day lists the work to be done. The bottom of the boxes show events that usually occur for us on those days. The double row of boxes are the months, with chores that are done annually or semiannually. The bottom of the boxes list holidays and birthdays we celebrate in that month. The bottom row lists chores that should be done monthly, with a line for checking it off when it is completed .
I highly recommend laminating your calendar when you are done with the changes that fit your family. Use wet erase markers (they don’t rub off accidentally) to check off or line out chores that are completed. The checks and lines can be easily erased with a damp cloth or paper towel. (These are Amazon Affiliate links. If you make a purchase through a link, I receive a small commission and there’s no extra charge for you. This laminator I have had for ten years and have had no problems.)
To explain “crud patrol”: it’s usually done with disinfecting wipes, an eraser sponge and a duster. Wipes are used on surfaces people touch, railings, knobs, light switches, S&P, etc. Wipes or erasers are used to clean any crud we spot throughout the house. Weeds/stove depends on the season and the climate. If it is heating season, the pellet stove needs weekly and annual maintenance. If it’s growing season, weeds need to be pulled and produce needs to be harvested.
Get your free cleaning calendar by signing up for our newsletter. I hope this is a blessing in your home. I’d love to hear how you change it to fit your family; and how it works for you.