I'm still here....Project Cleanup 2020

Don't worry friends! I am still here cleaning away, just behind now that we are at the end of the school year. Can you believe that even with homeschooling due to the pandemic, school has still thrown me off course! Locker clean out and pick ups, getting final projects done, gathering up school items to get ready to turn in...don't fret though. I am loyal in keeping you up to date with my "Project Cleanup 2020" and how I get my rooms organized and after this virus/children invasion, livable! I will get back on course soon.

Right now, I am currently behind by about 2 weeks. I was due to clean our Game Room, Matlyn/Wynslet's Room and Reiner/Brandis Room a few weeks ago. Why I lined 3 of the hardest rooms with a greater clean out in a row is beyond me. That is a great way to learn for next year though.

I am working on the Game Room which is 2 rooms in itself. See, when we moved in, there was a mother-in-law suite in the lower level. There is a bathroom, 2 bedrooms (Kaplyn's and Cameron/Genin) which are not part of the Game Room clean out, however, there was a kitchen and living room. So, when I say Game Room, it does cover 2 rooms; the Living Room area which serves the same purpose for us, but adding arcade games and a pinball machine. The old Kitchen area is now our Billiards and sport's collectibles area. Tons of dusting and cleaning in this 2-in-1 area so it actually should have been split into 2 weeks and I didn't even think about that at the time. With that said, heading down now to do some more work. Did I mention that the Game Room living area also has the majority of our game consoles and a huge toy box.....yikes!!!

If you don't hear from me soon...send The National Guard!

Project Clean Up 2020...Week 18: Upper Level Bathroom

Woo-Hoo!!!! Upper Level Bath is done and during the middle of the Week 19 "Project Cleanup". How I could not get into focus on this one is just beyond me, but I am happy to say it is finally done!! One thing I learned about this bath, which most of the kids use, is that I am already well aware that I have 5 sons in my mix of 8 kids, but this bathroom really proved it (more than I wanted to know!) Boys pee on everything...yuck!!!! I have always known this as I have to clean 4 bathrooms, but when you are doing the deep cleaning, you notice where else that pee goes....

Needless to say...it is done! Excuse the few Easter decor pieces that are still up. I usually keep decor up a few weeks past the holiday. Here is how I did it:

Going into the bathroom...wasn't sure if I really wanted to do this...

__ Open windows

__ Empty all cabinets Wash inside, replace items neatly. Fill cotton swab and cotton ball jars. Combine bath bombs into one container, discard empty containers. 

__ Clean toilet, inside and out. Remove seat and clean around seat bolts.

__ Wash switch plates. Wash walls and trim. Wash doors and door knobs.

__ Wash floor registers and other vent covers.

__ Sweep and wash floors.

__ Reseal grout lines if necessary.

__ Wash toilet cover and rug, if applicable.

__ Scrub toddler potty chair, if applicable.

On the way out of the bathroom...

__ Touch up scratched wood on back of door with wood marker.

__ Clean "show" towels.

__ Scrub down the tub. Walls and bed. 

__ Wash down shower supplies hanger and throw out any almost empty bottles of shampoo or body wash. Throw out small slivers of soap.

__  Replace body scrubbies.

__ Clean liner and shower curtain. 

__ Open drain and clean out, replace drain cover. 

This curtain was so gross! Since it is next to the toilet, my "boys" lovingly peed or let pee splash onto it. All washed and hung back up! 

__ Remove curtain and wash, wipe down curtain rod, replace. 

__ Wipe down each piece of the mini blind. 

__ Wipe down all wood, sills. 

__ Take out screen and clean. 

__ Windex the window. 

__ Remove any cobwebs from corners of inner window.

__ Remove all items in towel cabinet.

__ Examine towels and washcloths. Throw out any with holes. 

__ Throw out old duplicate tooth brushes. Corral together in a cup.

__ Wash outside of cabinets and vanities.

__ Remove all items from inside of tub toy cabinet. Wash baskets. Clean all tub toys. Discard any that are bad. 

__ Clean sink and drain.

__ Shine faucets and knobs.

__ Clean mirrors and frames.

__ Dust down wall decor and shelf.

__ Scrub trash can or purchase new one.

__ Add new bottles of hand soap per sink. 

These specific light fixtures were terrible to clean! Frosted design makes it hard to see what is dirty. There are also little crevices that have to be cleaned out. 

__ Clean and dust down light fixture. 

Added my own items as well...

__ Replace toilet scrub brush.

__ Purchase fresh hand towels.

Onto this week, Week 19: Game Room! 

See you soon! 

Project Clean Up 2020...Week 17: Carport

Kill me now friends! I still have yet to get the upper level bath finished for Week 17. It was too nice of a day to pass up doing the carport which was supposed to be Week 18 so I went ahead and did that first. So, with that said, Week 18 will now be the upper level bath, however, I am still one week behind! If I can get the bathroom finished by tonight, I will be right on track again....come on Dede, you got this girl!

The story behind the carport's current condition....

When we first moved in 15 years ago, they had fresh gravel brought in for the ground. This is where we store our tractor, lawn mowers, weed eaters, etc... and also, the kids' bikes, scooters and sport's balls bin. There are trees just outside that come the fall season, all of the leaves blow in. When the carport gets its cleaning, we rake out all of the leaves. So, this many years later of pulling out any and everything with wheels along with raking the leaves (along with some rock) has finally depleted the gravel....and now it is a muddy mess!!!! Gravel got delivered today and when we have a free day, everything will be removed from the carport and fresh rock put down. We did everything else though, down to throwing out 2 garbage bags of old sport's balls, a few bikes, a table and a push mower.

Here is how we did it...

__ Remove all items from the carport

__ Rake leaves from entire ground area.

__ Pick up any stray garbage that may have made its way in.

__ Rehang all tools; Weed Eaters, Leaf Blowers, Loppers, Hedge Trimmers, etc...

__ Hang bubble mowers and check condition of hockey sticks. Keep those still in good shape, toss any that are warped.

__ Empty out old bin, throwing away flat balls, old baseballs, etc...Toss old bin.

__ Bring in a new bin. Use bin for basketballs, soccer balls, frisbees, etc...Be sure to keep lid on.

__ Bring in a smaller bin for baseball bats and balls. 

__ Remove all tools from holder.

__ Toss any rakes missing prongs or broken.

__ Add a plastic shoe box bin to hold weed eater string, etc...

__ Toss bikes that are in bad shape. 

__ Line up bikes in an outward position to avoid tangles.

___ Throw out any cracked sleds. 

__ Move bikes in need of fixing to the back. 

You can see in the final photo what I mean about the ground. Gravel coming soon and I can't wait! Hoping to get that bathroom finished today and to put up another blog and then I will be right back on track. Lets see hands for those who think I do it....hmm....

See you soon!