Spring Clean Challenge update--Project #25

Spring Clean Update & Insta Friday!

Welcome to Friday! 

It has already been a wonderful morning, and despite the rain we are supposed to get today, I am excited for what this day will hold for us! 

Let's start the day off with an update on yesterday's cleaning project

Clean out your refrigerator 

 Although this is not my favorite chore, it was pretty quick and easy. 

Basically, I took out all the food, disposed of things that were moldy and just gross, wiped the shelves, and washed out the drawers. There wasn't as much gunk and nasty stuff as I expected--which was pleasantly surprising! 

Before

Sorry this one's a little dark...the lighting in my kitchen is awful!

After! 

I feel really good about having this project behind me! Maybe I will stay on top of it this time and it won't get so out of control?? Maybe...we'll see! 

Today's plan is to clean out the car (which definitely needs it). I am looking forward to doing an "outside" chore this morning before the rain hits! Updates to come tomorrow! 

Now...let's get to the fun stuff! 

Insta-Friday!

(I'll be linking up with Jeanette from LifeRearranged)

Went to Hobby Lobby yesterday with my good friend and her little one.

Picked this cute fabric up for Baby Boy! Not sure what I'm going to do with it yet, but 

isn't it adorable?!? Swoon!

I had found a remnant of the gray chevron last trip to Hobby Lobby...this time I found yellow! Hooray! The frames are PERFECT too and I plan to put a bicycle iron-on on one piece of fabric and Baby Boy's initial on the other!
I'm totally ready to get baby's room put together but there's only one issue--we won't be living here and I don't know where we'll be living so baby doesn't have a room yet...and neither do the rest of us :)

These lovelies were in my mom's garden

Mama robin outside our bedroom window. Little E LOVES looking at her every day! I'm thinking we'll have babies to gaze as pretty soon!!

View of the sunrise from our bedroom window on Sunday---overlooking the river.

Doesn't get much better.

Baby Boy's bedding is coming along! I have the two small bumpers made and the crib blanket. Next step is the two large bumpers. Still have the sheet and bedskirt, but we're getting there!

Lunch outside on a beautiful sunny day!

During my RunForBoston memorial run. 

This week I did two runs in memory of those who were victims of the bombing in Boston on Monday.

28 weeks and 3(ish) days.

Ready to watch her Cisa (my mom) run her first ever 5k! She did amazing! 

Playing with Aunt B and celebrating her birthday last weekend! It was a gorgeous day!

Well folks, that about sums up my week! 

I'm definitely ready for this weekend and some down time! 

Actually, this is the first Saturday that The Hubs hasn't had a meeting (or some other obligation) in over a month! He's giving me the morning to do whatever I please...here's the issue--I can't decide what I want to do! 

Go to a coffee shop and read? 

Stay home and sew?

Go sit and chat with a friend?

Decisions, decisions! 

Hope you have a great weekend!

Spring Clean Challenge--Update #17

Today's project was

Wipe door knobs and light switch plates.

I was so thankful for an easy task today! 

This literally took less than 10 minutes! 

I simply took my bottle of "homemade 409" and a wash cloth around the house and sprayed and wiped every door knob and light switch plate I could find! It was quick and painless :) 

Then, me and Little E took the rest of the day and had a blast!

We picked up my sister's dog from the groomer, mailed something at the post office, stopped by the library (where I got some books on fun activities for 2-year-old that I can't wait to browse through), stopped in a local thrift store we hadn't ever been to before (no luck with treasures this time, but we'll try it again in a few weeks) and then dropped by my parents house for a little snack and Doc McStuffins while we waited for Papa to get off work! It was definitely a much needed fun afternoon! 

Now its on to dinner (breakfast for dinner here tonight) and *hopefully* some sewing this evening! 

Tomorrow's project will probably take me a little bit longer than today's, but it definitely needs to happen!

What is it you ask? 

Cleaning out the refrigerator!

Yep.

Just a warning--the photos that are coming for tomorrow may be a little gruesome. Probably not for the faint of heart (or stomach). 

See ya tomorrow, friends!

Spring Clean Challenge--Day #16 Update

Deep Cleaning the Bathroom(s)

didn't exactly sound like fun to me. Actually, it sounded like a HUGE chore that I would never accomplish. I'm happy to announce that I was  wrong. I did get it done, and it didn't take near as long as I thought! 

I followed my own definition of "deep clean" for this project. Since I had already cleaned tubs, toilets, and sinks the other day, I decided to do something else. 

Basically, I organized the master bathroom. 

I picked up the dirty clothes and towels out of the floor (come on...you know you have those piles that accumulate too!) and put them where they belong. 

Then, I cleared everything off of the surface space.

Clearly, things are out of place here! 

I went through the "catch-all" on the back of the toilet...

as well as through all the drawers and the medicine cabinet. 

I pulled everything out, sorted it, threw some stuff away, vacuumed out the drawers (all the dust, hair etc), and put everything back in a more organized fashion. Some items got put in the linen closet in the hallway which is where they should have gone in the first place. 

Here are a couple of AFTER photos of the drawer and the "catch-all".

It feel good to have a more organized bathroom and it only took me about 30 minutes during naptime to get it done. I also took the time to sweep the hair off the bathroom floor. I had just washed, dried, and fixed my hair yesterday morning and that always makes for a nice little mess to clean. The sink got wiped out as well, but the shower/tub and toilet were still pretty clean from last week's cleaning. They'll get a good scrubbing in the next few days, I'm sure!

Spring Clean Challenge--Weekend Update

For this weekend, you could choose between three different projects. I chose

Clean Out a Closet.

Technically, I didn't clean out a closet, it is more like a large cabinet, but it really needed cleaned out and I felt like it fit the description closely enough that it would work. 

BEFORE

This cabinet is in our living room, and holds...well basically anything. The bottom is specifically designated for board games, but the top is kind of a "catch-all" which is why it desperately needed attention. 

I tried to organize our DVD and CD collection. Honestly, we have WAY too many CDs, but I can't get rid of them until I am certain they are saved to our computer...and make sure its ok with The Hubs. 

See that big pile of cords? I went through all of those as well. Figured out what they go with, and put them with their mate! The camera (video, point and shoot, and our nice camera) all got put with their chargers and in their case/box. 

See my candle collection? I LOVE candles--especially Yankee Candles. I've decided I need to try to finish as many of those as I can before we move in a couple months. They are nicely arranged in the cabinet awaiting their burning :) 

Our wedding photos and other family photos stayed in the cabinet, but are now more organized and just nicer to look at. 

AFTER

Much better! I feel like I can actually tell what is in the cabinet now! 

Some things got put in the yard sale pile, while others got placed where they really belong. 

Oh...and this little cutie seems to think that everytime I am taking photos for this challenge, she needs to  be in one. I willingly oblige. :)

In case you are wondering, I did catch up on the cleaning bathrooms part of the challenge that I missed last week. I cleaned downstairs bathrooms (2) on Thursday and the upstairs ones (2) on Friday! 

So, I am caught up! Hooray!

Today's part of the challenge is 

Surface Clean Living Room and Kitchen.

Good thing, because mine needs it again! 

Check back this evening for an update on how today goes! Its Monday which means its a busy day! Hopefully I can get motivated and get some energy--hitting the third trimester last week seems to have drained me a little more than I expected. 

Insta-Friday + Spring Clean Update!

Welcome Friday!

I don't know exactly what it is about Fridays that I love so much because the truth is, my job (a wife and mother) doesn't take Saturdays and Sundays off. I think it is just the fact that everyone else around me is off work so it gives us a nice change of pace! Having The Hubs home is one perk I particularly adore :) 

Please forgive me for being so horrible at my House Cleaning Challenge Updates this week! Here's a little catch-up for you:

Challenge #10

Deep Clean the Living Room

I did this yesterday morning and it honestly didn't take as long as I thought it would. My tasks were as follows: 

-Clean windows

-Dust furniture

-Wipe baseboards

-Put away "out-of-place" items

-Run Vacuum

I managed to finish all of it within a few hours. I kind of put off running the vacuum until Little E went down for nap. Sorry there are no pictures--by the time I got around to taking some, I had begun sorting baby clothes in the living room and it was a mess! Kind of defeated the purpose of the pictures :) 

Challenge #11

Clean your Bathroom(s)

Since I was already behind a day, I was playing catch-up yesterday. I went ahead and cleaned both of the downstairs bathrooms which are half baths. I plan to finish this project today by cleaning the upstairs bathrooms along with project #12 which is Cleaning Out a Closet...not too excited about that one! 

I probably could have finished cleaning all four bathrooms if it hand't been for our craziness! Little E had two potty accidents (VERY rare...she's been potty trained for almost a year now!) and our dog, Zoe, also peed in the floor twice, ate an entire box of raisins (I'm talking the large box, not the snack packs), and threw up three times. I was constantly cleaning the floors! 

Needless to say, when I vacuumed the living room, I also vacuumed the entire downstairs because of all the messes we had! Ahh--life with a toddler and a dog....

Now, on to typical FRIDAY fun!

Insta-Friday! 

linking up @ LifeRearranged

I didn't take too many photos on my phone this week, so just have a few to share with you! 

The weather here has been PERFECT! 

Here's out picnic lunch the other day--complete with a vase of daffodils! (Thanks, Hubs!)

We took advantage of a warm evening and roasted marshmallows in the back yard! 

Little E loves marshmallows.

Okay, so she wore this dress on Sunday. It got washed on Monday and she wore it again on Tuesday. My daughter has obsessive tendencies (like wearing her Cinderella "glass slippers" every day and night for over a week...yeah...that's another story). She apparently LOVES this dress! And its cute, so I'm cool with her wearing it whenever. The kicked for Tuesday was the cat ears. She insisted on wearing them. 

I guess when you're two you can pull it off. 

So, there you have it! Our week in a nut shell--cleaning and enjoying the warm weather. That's basically what we've done! 

Hope you enjoy your weekend! 

Spring is definitely here and we plan to enjoy it to the fullest, while also celebrating my sister's birthday!

Happy Weekend-ing!

Spring Clean Challenge--Project #8!

We're on the second week of the 

30-Day House Cleaning Challenge! 

Yesterday's project was 

Sweep or Vacuum all your floors!

Let me be 100% honest here--

I did not sweep/vacuum all of my floors. Because we were having people over on Saturday (for the gender reveal party...check out yesterday's post!), I had already swept and mopped the kitchen and living room which are my two biggest rooms. So, yesterday I ran the vacuum upstairs in all the bedrooms, both bathrooms, the stairs, and on the first floor in the dining room. The only rooms I did not do were the playroom (which also got done on Friday) and the kitchen and living room. 

It actually worked out kind of well because usually Monday is my day to vacuum upstairs and Tuesday is the day I do the downstairs. So, it didn't make an extra chore for me yesterday and I don't have to do my typical Tuesday chore today! Hooray! 

Sorry, no photos of this project! How boring are floors? Would you really want an up-close of my carpet? Probably not, so I didn't bother with photos today. 

Are you working along with this challenge? 

The project on the list for today is 

Surface Clean Bedrooms. 

That really shouldn't be a big deal since I did that last week. I may tackle one of the bedrooms that I didn't do last week though--that'd be very needed!

I'm also linking up with TimeWarpWife for Titus 2sday!
A link up for posts on parenting, marriage, homemaking, cooking, etc.

Spring Cleaning Challenge--Day #4

Welcome to day #4 of the 

30-Day House Cleaning Challenge! 

Today's task--

Surface Clean Extra Room(s)

I chose to clean my extra rooms downstairs. There are three. It really didn't take as long as I thought, but I wasn't quite a thorough as I could have been. 

First off was the laundry room, then the dining room, and the play room/office. 

My plan was:

*Clear off clutter from surfaces

*Wipe down surfaces/Dust surface

*Vacuum carpeted areas (I did the hard floors on Tuesday so they don't need done again)

*Put "clutter" where it goes.

Not a whole lot, but it got the rooms looking better!

Before photos of laundry room and dining room.

Forgot to take photos of the playroom/office before I started! 

After! 

I cleaned out the utility sink in the laundry room and wiped down the washer and dryer. Those were the two biggest tasks in that room. 

The dining room didn't take long at all--just moved the books, dusted shelf and table, wiped down chairs, and ran the vacuum. 

Honestly, the playroom/office could have used a much more thorough cleaning. I cleared off the desks and dusted them. Also dusted the toy shelf and put the toys in some kind of order. You can tell that the book shelf still needs work. I really didn't do much to it at all. The Hubs is pretty particular about his books and since he is not home, it is probably best that I let him finish off this room later. For what we use it for, its clean enough! I plan to go through the books with Hubs soon and determine which ones we will keep and which ones get removed from our house. For now, I'm satisfied with it! At least the vacuum got run in there--first time in a loonnngggg time! 

Whew! All this extra cleaning is wearing me out, but once I am finished it is SO worth it! 

See you tomorrow! 

Happy Thursday, folks!

Spring Cleaning Challenge--Day #3

Today's project was to 

Surface Clean Bedroom(s)!

You could either choose a bedroom to do, or do them all. 

Since we only have two rooms that are technically being used as bedrooms,

I went ahead and did both of them. 

The other two bedrooms are being used as a sewing room and a storage room at this point, so I will tackle those later in the challenge. 

I didn't follow the challenge to a "T" because it just didnt' fit my definition of "surface clean".

Here is what I did:

Cleared all clutter from surfaces

Wiped/Dusted tables and dressers

Washed windows and wiped down the ledges around them

Cleaned/dusted ceiling fans

Put clutter back where it belongs

Finished product! 

Top two photos are E's bedroom.

Bottom four are of the master bedroom 

(you can see our little pup Zoe snuck into one of them).

It took a little longer than 20 minutes because of the ceiling fan cleaning/dusting. 

We've lived in this house for about 10 months and I have never dusted the ceiling fans. You can tell where this is going can't you? They were disgusting! No wonder my dust-allergic husband starts sneezing every night when he gets into bed (Sorry Babe!)! The fan in E's room was replaced since we've lived here, so it wasn't bad. There was quite a bit of dust on her furniture though--we still haven't moved her crib out, so she has 4 large pieces of furniture in her room which I rarely get around to cleaning. 

Overall, it was a fairly simple task that didn't take long to complete. 

I managed to do the Master bedroom before E woke up. Obviously, I waited until she was awake to do hers.

Tomorrow's task= 

Surface Clean Extra Rooms!

I have lots of extra rooms right now, which isn't something I particularly care for--especially not since I am going to be cleaning them all tomorrow! Oh well...that's why its called a challenge right?!?

Spring Cleaning Challenge--Project #2

Today was Day #2 in the 30-Day House Cleaning Challenge!

The task for today was 

Clean your Bathrooms

my least favorite chore of them all! 

I have to say, once it is done I am thrilled, but actually making myself do it is extremely difficult. The fact that I have 4 bathrooms to clean doesn't help either (okay, so 2 of them are only "half baths" but they still need cleaned)! 

I didn't know if I would make it to getting all the bathrooms cleaned today.

It was a busy one...complete with midwife appointment (for Baby #2 who is due in just 13 weeks...wow!), my "every-other-Tuesday" grocery shopping trip, and my regular Tuesday chore of vacuuming the downstairs (check out yesterday's pics of the large living room...takes FOREVER to vacuum. I'll be happy when we move in a few months to a small place that will take less time to clean). I put it on the list though, and it got done! Woohoo!

I didn't get around to taking "before" photos today.

Well...let's just be honest. I wasn't about to let any of you see what my bathrooms looked like before they were clean! Yuck! If there is anything I can't stand it is bathroom dirt...just nasty!

So, I'll spare you the dirty details....

The two downstairs half baths. 

The one on top rarely gets cleaned because it rarely gets used. 

Its in the laundry room and is honestly more like a closet than a bathroom!

The two full baths upstairs. 

The top on if Little E's bathroom--and since she's just 2 years old,

that means it is the one where she occasionally uses potty and takes her baths. 

The one on the bottom is the master bath. I don't know why, but it seems to be the most

difficult room in the house to get/keep clean! Dust is just attracted there for some reason and it

gets all gunked up! But it's clean now!

I must admit that it took me much longer than the 20 minutes that were set forth for the challenge. Probably because I had 4 rooms to clean, they hadn't been cleaned since my last bathroom cleaning day (almost 2 weeks ago! yikes!), and I had a busy 2-year-old who kept needing/wanting (sometimes its hard to tell the difference) my attention. It probably took closer to 45 minutes, but it got done!

And that is what counts! 

Four clean bathrooms at our house! 

Whew! 

So, what's next on the list? 

I'm up for the challenge! 

Are you up for the challenge? It's not too late to join in on the work fun! 

Head over here to see join us!

Another one of my favorite blogs is hosting Project Simplify if you'd rather just focus on 4 "problem areas" in your home! I'd really like to do this one too, but we'll see if I'm up for it. Taking on these Spring Cleaning tasks is already filling up my daily schedule :)

April Challenge!

Welcome April! 

Welcome Spring! 

Welcome, Spring House Cleaning Challenge!

(and no, this it not an April Fool's joke.)

I am planning to participate in the 30-Day House Cleaning Challenge with MoneySavingMom! 

She'll be using this guide for the challenge this month.

With only about 13 weeks until Baby #2 comes, I figure its as good of a time as any to get started cleaning...especially considering we will most likely be moving right before or right after Baby #2 is born! Yikes! 

I'll be posting photos of my progress along with MoneySavingMom and linking up with her on her site!

You can also Follow me on Twitter or Instagram for updates!
#Cleanin30

Feel free join us! 

Happy Monday! 

Happy April!

Happy Spring!


Oh! Don't forget to visit The Cozy Cottage to get in on the Spring Cleaning Sale!
Just use code SPRINGCLEAN at check out to receive 50% off your purchase!

Simply Clean

Spring is almost upon us...and with Spring comes

flowers, warm days, sunshine, and cleaning! 

At least, that's what I think of. 

Spring Cleaning.

Those two words can conjure up fear, dread, excitement, or maybe all of those! 

I don't know that I really do specific Spring Cleaning. I don't follow a schedule or anything. I do, however, enjoy getting my house all sparkly with the sun shining and a few windows open letting in a cool breeze. I guess that's kind of the beauty of Spring Cleaning. 

With that in mind, I wanted to share some of my favorite natural/homemade cleaning recipes! 

Not only are these recipes safer if you have children because you don't have harsh chemicals in your home, they are SO much less expensive than purchasing pre-made products. You really only need a few staple ingredients to get you started:

baking soda

vinegar

Original Dawn dish liquid (the blue kind)

essential oils (lemon, orange, peppermint are my favorites)

There are other ingredients, but those are the basics. 

Over the next few weeks I will be posting my favorite cleaning solutions, tips, and tricks. 

Most of the recipes I use have come from a little book called 

The Naturally Clean Home

My mom picked this up for me one day (as one of her little "prizes") and I love it! 

It has everything from floor cleaning solutions, to getting rid of pests, to dishwashing liquid! It is wonderful! 

So, here's to Spring Cleaning...the natural way! Are you up for the challenge? 

Here's an easy bathroom cleaning recipe to get you started:

(tip: the two ingredients in this one are basically staples for making your own cleaning products, so stock up!)

Bathroom Cleaner

Ingredients

1 part white vinegar

1 part Dawn dish liquid (Original Blue Dawn only!)

Lemon essential oil (optional)

Warm the vinegar a little bit. Pour it into a spray bottle. Add the Dawn and essential oil. Get to work on cleaning that bathroom! That's it! It is simple and it WORKS! This stuff cuts soap scum and mildew better than most other things I have tried.