I think a lot of our housekeeping problems could be solved if we just learned to pick up after ourselves. Of course, that also means teaching your family to do the same. You have probably heard the phrase, “Everything has a place.” It really is true. The key is finding that place and then maintaining it. Maintenance in a home is done by the simple act of picking up and putting away. Think about the little ways this can be done, which could really add up. Or perhaps it would help to consider how not picking up the little things … Continue reading →

Guess what the first week of August is? It is “National Simplify Your Life Week.” How many of us could use some of that? Although this could apply to a variety of areas in our lives, I can’t help but think of how we could simplify things in our home. Everything from the clutter we collect to the chores that overwhelm us. I think sometimes we make things in life, including the keeping of our home, to be so much more complicated than is necessary. We can’t find things yet we do nothing about the fact that our closets are … Continue reading →

Fellow blogger Carol Paxman recently wrote about the refrigerator oftentimes being “Command Central.” This is the spot in the house where pictures and other information is oftentimes collected. I believe that everyone should have what I call a command center in their home. This is the main spot to go to if you need to know something. It is the central location for vital family information. Years ago the refrigerator used to be my main command center. It was filled with papers held in place by homemade and store-bought magnets. At times it was difficult to tell that there was … Continue reading →

I have only watched a couple episodes of “Hoarders” but it was enough to bring a sickening feeling to my stomach. To me it is so sad that a person can live in a home that is so dirty or cluttered it is unsafe. While most of us probably wouldn’t call ourselves a hoarder, there are some who could be classified as a “mini” version of one, a pack rat. A pack rat tends to save things that could just as well be given away or thrown away. What you learn through this show on hoarding is that the person … Continue reading →

When it comes to housekeeping, having no plan is what usually causes disarray, disorder and uncleanness. Too many of us rely on what we “hope” to get to, what we would “like” to accomplish. But this doesn’t really get us anywhere. I have talked in the past about this but I want to remind you that when it comes to setting goals, they have to be measurable. General goals such as, “I want a clean house” won’t work. You can’t really measure a clean house because your idea of clean and my idea of clean could be completely different. So … Continue reading →

We are finally at the end of my blog series on cleaning in 30 minutes or less. What better way to wrap it up than talking about the weekend. I don’t know about you, but I like to keep my weekends as free as possible. That means I don’t want to spend hours cleaning. I would rather enjoy activities or just a day of relaxing. Despite working full-time during the week, because of my routine, I am still able to tackle important areas of my home and leave my weekends relatively free of chores. That is always my number one … Continue reading →

In my last blog I kicked off a sort of series on housekeeping that I will be doing. I laid the foundation by providing a definition of what the word housekeeping means. One of the definitions was, “the management of a house and home affairs.” A manager’s job—in any facet—is to plan, coordinate and organize. Whether you are managing a multi-million dollar business or your home, these three components are vital. So as we are looking ahead to a New Year, this is your chance to develop a plan on how you will tackle your home. This will depend on … Continue reading →

When it comes to letting go, we all have our unique difficulties. One of mine is the letting go of my house. I find it nearly impossible to allow myself the chance to rest when I truly need it. Instead, all I see are the things that need to be done. The past week has been a little stressful. Not only have I been sick, but I was also the host for Thanksgiving this year. Then there are the expectations that the weekend after Thanksgiving, I put up the Christmas tree and decorations. I had a lot on my plate … Continue reading →