House Cleaning Tip #2

I have written in the past about how much I enjoy a clean house. Not just a house where things are picked up....but a CLEAN house. When floors are swept, vacuumed or mopped, I am happy. When countertops are wiped clean, when tubs and showers are scrubbed, when furniture is dusted, I am happy. When ceiling fans and window coverings are washed....I am ecstatic!
House Cleaning Tip #2: Hire a House Cleaner.
Ok, I am partly kidding. I know that most of us are unable to afford someone to clean our houses for us....but wouldn't it be nice?
Every once in a while, my mother-in-law gives me me money with the sole purpose of hiring someone to clean my house. I LOVE that she does not say, "Here is some money; do whatever you want with it." First of all, my husband would tell me that I should either put it in the bank or pay bills with it. Second, I would probably buy clothes or some other unnecessary item. Although, I enjoy shopping for clothes and other "unnecessary items," they do not provide me the pure joy that a clean house does. Friday afternoon, 3 wonderful ladies came to my house and cleaned it for 3 hours!!!
I do have a cleaning schedule. I am sure you have all either seen one or have one of your own. For example, Monday: Clean toilets and tubs; Tuesday: Dust, etc. When I follow this schedule my house is "technically" clean at the end of seven days. What I mean is that every inch of my house has been cleaned BUT (and this is a BIG BUT) IT IS NOT ALL CLEAN AT THE SAME TIME. By the time I am vacuuming floors on Friday, the dust has piled up again on the dressers and the toilets need some serious scrubbing. The best part about having a house cleaner (besides the fact that someone else is cleaning my house) is that my house is ALL CLEAN AT THE SAME TIME.
It is so much easier to do all the "picking up" that comes along with children, when underneath all the toys, clothes, snacks, and crayons, the house is truly clean! We had a very busy weekend. Our Saturday was full with an appointment to get our family pictures taken, a soccer game, a trip to Costco, and a potluck dinner at a friends' house. Since we were basically running from one event to another, our house looked....well, you can imagine what our house looked like. Clothes strewn throughout, the ironing board in the middle of the living room, brushes, combs and spray bottles everywhere, dishes in the sink, groceries on the counters, evidence of food preparation left out. You would think I would be stressed. Guess what? I was NOT stressed out over my crazy mess of a house! Why? Because my house was CLEAN...not dusty, not dirty. It was scrubbed to a shine! It even smelled clean!
I do know that my house will get dusty again. I can barely see the markings from the vacuum cleaner today. I know that I will step on cereal and it will scatter far and wide. The mildew in my shower will reappear. But for now, instead of trying to play catch up at the end of each day - I am ahead of the game. For now, I feel like I have a fresh start. For now, I am happy.