Today I’m encouraging my teenager to Spring Clean her room. I probably won’t have much luck getting her to sort anything, organize anything, part with anything or even clear a space in the carpet. But I can try. See what you can get your kids to do to improve their own rooms today, too!
QUICK THINGS TO DO TODAY:
- Still the rainy or snowy season where you live? Check to be sure you have Kleenex packets in your car, purse, and coat pockets. Same goes for your family members.
- Need to schedule a gutter cleaning appointment? Is it time to have moss scraped off your roof?
- Should you do any mopping of floors, laundry, or vacuuming?
- Have you pampered yourself in a bubbly hot bathtub lately? Taken the time to light candles, fix yourself lemon ice-water, and set out a magazine with pretty pics to enjoy while you bathe?
TODAY’S PROJECT: Cleaning Kids’ Rooms
I no longer have a nursery in my house. I turned it into a home office the weekend my teenager came to live with me. This is the room I would clean today if I were spring cleaning my kids’ rooms. I’ll be cleaning my home office this afternoon and desperately trying to encourage (without forcing or fighting about it) my teenager to clean her room too. (Wish me luck!)
Your kids should be cleaning their own rooms if they’re old enough, but Spring Cleaning is a more advanced task that Mom needs to do a lot of. Have your kids pick up their rooms and leave their beds made on the day you are doing your Spring Cleaning. It should take just two hours per room if you and your kids keep their rooms maintained. This is easily something you can get done after dinner and before bedtime.
Here’s my checklist:
- Move furniture and vacuum room thoroughly. Sprinkle carpet freshener if needed.
- Wash down walls.
- Wipe baseboards (a great job for kids – they’re closer to the ground!)
- Dust furniture and return it to its place.
- Clean out closet. Remove everything, sort and inspect, return things that fit and will be worn. Donate, throw away or recycle the remainder depending on condition of the clothes and shoes.
- Dust light fixtures, check for damaged cords, replace any burned out light bulbs.
- Wipe wall switches and electric switch plates.
- Dust ceiling fan, if any.
- Strip beds and launder everything including mattress pads. Evaluate if it’s time to buy new fresh sheets or bedding.
- Test fire/smoke alarm and replace batteries.
- Flip mattresses.
- Dust and declutter nightstands and bookshelves.
- Sort dresser drawers and dust the top.
- Empty trash can – put trash can on shopping list if there isn’t one in the room.
- Wash windows.
- Launder any floor rugs and curtains as needed.
- Sort toys – is there anything you can donate or should throw out?
- Put everything away and neaten the room back up.
If your child has helped you eagerly with their room cleaning, reward them with an extra story or longer book at bedtime tonight.
LOVELY BABY: Cherry-Themed Shoes for Spring
Each season I try to sneak a little room in my budget to gift a friend’s baby or toddler a seasonal pair of shoes. Right now as I’m looking out at the blossoming cherry tree out my window, I’m in the mood for cherry-bedecked shoes for little ones!
LOVELY BEVERAGES: Twinings’ New Herbal Teas
I really need to add some more herbal teas to my tea cupboard. I am lucky enough I can get away with drinking caffeinated tea until about 8pm (one and a half hours before my bedtime). Not everyone can do that, so I do need to stock more decaf teas to offer guests after dinner. I’m excited to try the new herbal teas from my favorite tea company, Twinings. They just introduced a bedtime blend, a Wild Berries blend, plus a summery Pomegranate and Raspberry and an enticing sounding Camomile, Vanilla & Honey. I think I’ll pick up the assortment box so I can try all the flavors without overfilling my small cupboard I keep teas in.
LOVELY BLOGS: Stephmodo
“Where practical meets pretty.” This is a nice lifestyle blog with a good balance of decor, design, and recipe posts. Recent posts include Styling Ideas for Family Photos, a recipe for sour cherry oatmeal cookies with pistachio, and snippets of decor inspiration.
LOVELY LINKS FOR TODAY:
Chocolate-Cherry Cookies (One Perfect Bite)
Cinnamon Cream Cheese Coffee Cake (Bake or Break)
Coconut Cream Marshmallow Eggs (A Farm Girl’s Dabbles)
Creamy Orange Spiked Wheatberry Pudding (Running to the Kitchen)
Mocha Rum Bundt Cake (Baker Street)
Peanut Butter & Jelly Bars (Crumbs and Cookies)
