Week 4 - The Fridge, Freezer, and Floor!

I will honestly say I was not sure I was going to have anything to report on this week's cleaning and decluttering journey. This week life was full, a field trip, an afternoon event with an author, an overnight job assignment, and an annual meeting to attend. I was beginning to think I was never going to get around to tackling Michele's challenge of cleaning the rest of the kitchen. Guess what? I didn't. Thanks to the girls though, I have good news to report. 

Earlier in the week Emily scrubbed the kitchen floor, the trash can, and the wall behind the trash can. Is anyone else ever amazed at how much stuff misses the can and sticks to the wall? The problem was, I didn't have any time to devote to the rest of the assigned tasks - you know, the fridge or the freezer?! So Thursday morning before I left for work, I asked the girls to take some time after lunch and clean the fridge for me. I knew Kurt would be sleeping almost all day since he works nights, so they wouldn't be bothering anyone. This is where I LOVE having home educated teenagers! They did a great job on the fridge, and I can even see through the glass shelves... they sparkle! 

Alas, they did not clean the freezer. I guess that means I need to get myself in gear and clean it myself tonight while they're out with their friends and Kurt is at work. Still 2 out of 3 things cleaned by the girls (and not me) isn't bad right? I'm here to encourage you that even if you don't get everything on this week's list done - keep going! Each part of your home that gets deep cleaned and decluttered will bring you a little closer to your goal. I know our home will not look like a Better Homes and Garden cover, but that's ok, because we really DO live here. Feel free to adapt the list as it fits your life for that week, just keep moving forward towards your goal!

I know I'm going to cringe one of these weeks when Michele suggests we organize our book shelves - since we have at least 12 of them here in our house. Yikes - maybe I should start doing one each weekend... Eventually I want to get them organized so we can actually find a book the first time we look for it. Right now that's not a highly likely outcome. We have a lot of lovely books, some of which we probably will never read again, so I need to find them and then they need to find new homes. I think I'll sell some of them in our Molly Green shop... but you'll have to come back next month to learn more about that. I digress.

Back to cleaning. I am finding the same thing true in each area we've cleaned: small steps make huge differences! Whether it is your junk drawer, your inbox, or the fridge, if you take small steps to keep it decluttered each time you use it, you'll find it easier to keep organized. (And no, your email inbox was NOT one of the assigned tasks - but I bet it needs some TLC too!) Put the veggies in their drawer, make sure everyone can see the open gallon of milk, put the extra tools away when you're finished, small steps to a big change. If I keep being intentional about cleaning up after myself, the girls will have a better example to follow. I'm hoping that means by the time Spring comes our home will be much cleaner and we can spend most of our free time outdoors instead in indoors sorting and cleaning.




So how did you do this week? Leave a comment and let me know what you found when you cleaned out your refrigerator!