Obsessed with Martha Stewart

Cleaning Products 101

I’m making an effort this month to start delving into my Martha Stewart’s Homekeeping Handbook. It’s an enormous book that will likely take me the entire year to get through, but I think it’s well worth trying to read it. This week I read the section on Cleaning Products 101. The basic information that I got from this section is that you need to read each cleaning product you buy carefully. You should take into account the type of cleaning product {all-purpose or specialty}, the specific directions for use, ingredients, safety information, storage guidelines, disposal guidelines. FYI, most cleaning products don’t have to list their ingredients – they’re only required to list ingredients if it’s a disinfectant.

 

In this section Martha also covers what chemicals you should stay away from, how to make your own cleaning solutions and the materials that you must have as your cleaning basics. Here are the basics to keep in your cleaning caddy: all purpose cleaner, mildly abrasive cleaner, glass cleaner, rubber gloves, lint-free white cloths, medium-bristled scrub brush.

 

From reading this small section, I’ve already learned a lot about what to stay away from and what’s important when looking at a label of a cleaning product.

Weekly Cleaning Checklist

 

Image from Martha Stewart 

Every week I've been putting together a weekly checklist for my husband and I to complete during the week. I base the cleaning checklist off of Martha's weekly cleaning list that can be found on her website and in Martha Stewart's Homekeeping Handbook. Usually, I also include items from the monthly, seasonal and spring cleaning checklists. Cleaning has become overwhelming; however, my husband and I decided we would do as much as we could from the list and deal with the fact that there aren't enough hours in the day to finish it every week. 

Since we began, this week was the first week we finished the ENTIRE list. I can't take much of the credit. I helped clean on Saturday, and we got most of the kitchen cleaning and living room cleaning complete. Yesterday, I was too sick to help out. I have tonsilitis {don't worry, mom and mother-in-law, I'm going to the doctor today} which means I was sitting on the couch reading while my husband finished the cleaning list all by himself. Caution: Family members who read this blog - skip the rest of this paragraph. I told him that it was too bad I was so sick - he'd never been sexier. I don't know what it is, but when he helps out around the house it seems I'm less stressed and more in the mood to do other things.

Some of the things on the weekly checklist we do every other week, because we can't do it all. Some areas in our house get dirtier than others and seriously need weekly cleaning. Here's the list we completed this past week:

kitchen: wipe surfaces including sink, countertops, refrigerator, top of refrigerator, cupboard doors, exterior of appliances, and furniture; wipe inside of microwave; flush drain with boiling water; discard food and beverages past prime; dust light fixtures, wipe inside and outside of trash can; mop floor; launder kitchen towels; clean table with glass cleaner

bathrooms (we have 2): clean toilets; wipe mirrors; dust light fixtures; empty trash cans; clean shower; launder bath towels, launder bath mats; sweep and mop

craft room/office: sort and pay bills; dust; vacuum

living room: dust; organize; sweep and mop; clean television with glass cleaner; vacuum upholstery; launder throws

entryways/stairs/hallways: sweep and mop hallway; sweep entryway/porches; sweep stairs

sunroom and back porch: sweep and mop; power wash porch; clean for 1 hour {we're still trying to clean this room after raising 7 puppies in it - it's going to take a good 15 hours}

dogs: bath for each dog {we have 3}; clean crates

throughout house: vacuum vents

We were both excited to have a clean house and clean dogs at the end of the day yesterday. Our two puppies were so soft and cuddly after their baths - that all ended this morning. When I got home from dropping my husband off at work, so I could have the car to go to the doctor, I let the puppies outside to use the bathroom. They promptly started play fighting and rolling around. When Max came inside he was covered in dog crap, and I almost had a meltdown. These are the times when I could really use anti-anxiety medication. Dubbya wasn't clean, but at least he didn't have clumps of poop in his coat. I wiped them both off while cursing under my breath and tried to remind myself that they're just puppies. 

Readers, do you clean this much every week? How do you keep up with it? Do you set aside time to clean each day? Do you fall behind sometimes? 

Martha Stewart's Homekeeping Handbook

As many of you know, I received Martha Stewart's Homekeeping Handbook for Valentine's Day. Since my wedding back in October, my husband and I have been trying to get our house clean and organized. There is still one room in the house that is a complete mess, but most of the other rooms are finally organized. I'm the type of person who would love to have a clean home, especially since I work from home. But it's soooo hard to keep your home clean when you have one dog and two puppies - it's almost impossible. I'm not trying to whine, just trying to be realistic. 

My husband and I are trying to figure out a way that we can keep our house clean and not spend our entire weekend cleaning which makes us both grouchy. The only way we can see this happening is by cleaning more during the week. I went through Martha's cleaning lists - daily, weekly, monthly, seasonal, and spring cleaning and have devised a plan. We have a page and a half cleaning list to get through this week, so we're cleaning for 30 to 60 minutes after dinner each night. Also, I've been trying to do one or two tasks during the day. Yesterday, I scrubbed the grout in our kitchen to check it off the list and reduce my stress - it worked.

I'll let you know how much we get done before this weekend and how much time we have to spend on Saturday and Sunday finishing up our list.