Clean it again, Sam!

link up here

Another first for me in the Land of Blog:  linking up.  We'll see how it goes.

Emily has a wonderful post at Weak and Loved.  She shares, straight from her heart, the joys and heartaches of being a mom.  This week she is collecting photos and stories of the never ending messes we deal with as moms.  "Didn't I JUST put those crayons away?  And didn't you help me do it?  How come they are all over the floor again?!"  Sound familiar? 

Bud's biggest offense is the one of dirty socks.  They are left anywhere and everywhere. 

Athletic socks AND dress socks in the mudroom.  A room he passes through every day.  Several times a day.  Where he hangs his backpack.  Every day.  Did I mention he's in this room every day?

Here are a pair trying to hide under the chair.  Hahahaha!  You cannot hide from me, the Queen of my domain.  You will meet your doom in my washing machine soon enough.

The messes of the younger two, JoJo and Mouse, are a little more interesting.  Here's an example:

Church bulletins from Sunday (one rolled into a spyglass?  sword?), a Star Wars "dude", a cup, some gray plastic piece that look like so many other gray, plastic pieces, a notebook that I'm sure has someones story started in it.

This is when it gets difficult for me.  What's OK to toss?  How do I know they are "done" with it?  What is it's something they want to show dad when he gets home?  Generally, I go by this rule:  if it's been there for more than 2 days, I throw it out.  I told you I wasn't much of a housekeeper.  I'm better at making a home than keeping a house.

So I wonder what other messes will turn up during the week?  I'm really looking forward to hearing the stories behind the messes! 

Works for Me

I read somewhere that cleaning is the item on the To-Do list that most women would have someone else do, if they could.  I don't know.  I don't mind it.  I'm not very faithful about doing it, but I don't mind it.  Ironing is the To-Do I would gladly hand off to someone else!  (shudder)  I detest it.....

But cleaning I don't mind.  As I said, I'm not very faithful about it though.  That's a problem especially in the bathrooms, wouldn't you say?  Gross.  Three boys using said bathrooms.  Double gross.  So I decided to put together this:

My Bathroom Bucket!  Isnt' it pretty?  Feminine, flowery, spring colors.  Just what my home needs more of!   I used to keep the needed cleaning products in each bathroom thinking that would make it so easy for me to whip something out when needed.  And it did.  It worked, for a while.  Thing is, I always put off the scrubbing of the tub until "Later".  And I don't know why, but Later never came.  I waited and watched but, alas, Later never came and my tub was seldom scrubbed.  Time to change my strategy!  A set day on the cleaning routine for bathrooms and this neat Bathroom Bucket were just what I needed.

 Here's what's in my Bathroom Bucket:

The bucket and the cute gloves I picked up at Dollar General.  The scrubber, at the Dollar Tree.  I have glass cleaner, all purpose cleaner (I make myself) and disinfectant (just vinegar).  And the remains of a pumice stick to get out the hard water stains on toilet and tub.  That's it!  Sometimes I'll use baking soda in addition to the cleaners to scrub at the tub.  The brush really comes in handy.  I just spray the tub, dip the brush in a plastic container filled with soda and scrub away.  The fizzing makes me feel good!  Like I'm really attacking the scum and grime!  When I pull this bucket out of my broom closet I also toss in a couple of rags for cleaning and then toss them in the wash when I'm done.

Now, is my bathroom always spotless?  Oh, no.  Have the boyos learned better aim?  Um, no.  But I like my bucket and it makes my job a little less of a drudgery.  And I really love my pink gloves!