{ Welcome Spring, I've missed you }

The weather has finally switched to Spring and I have been taking full advantage of it.

There is something very renewing about this time of year, it's almost like shedding the negative stuff and starting over.  I get all this energy and my mind is filled with ideas and plans and projects.  It's like I can't wait to get out there in the yards and start cleaning, pruning, planting, getting things ready for the summer and barbecues.

On Sunday afternoon we had a family movie day, we ate popcorn, and snacked on random things, enjoyed bacon sandwiches for dinner and just hung out in the living room.  It was so nice to do, especially now that the kids are older and prefer to be in their bedrooms doing their own things.

It had been a while since I had woken up to a bit of a messy living room, which actually made me smile, can you believe that?

I got straight to work tidying up, folded up the blankets, took dishes to the kitchen and quickly dusted and vacuumed.

The next thing on the list was moving the curtain rod up a few inches.  I had been wanting to do it for a while but never got around to it.  My sheer curtains are super long and they pool on floor.  It doesn't bother me too much, but I would rather they didn't pool that much, so I removed the curtains, unscrewed the supports and then re-screwed them about 4 inches higher on the wall.

I tripped my bed and got the linens in the wash, and did a load of whites as well.  Best part was being able to hang everything out to dry and watching the clothes flap in the breeze.   

It feels so good placing new sheets and bedding on.  I gave them a quick spray with my homemade deodorizer.  I use the same mixture for my couches, carpets, curtains and even when ironing.  It smells amazing and is much cheaper to make than buy.

I am currently using an old Spic and Span bottle.  I gave it a very good wash with hot soapy water, then made the mixture in.  I just need to remove the labels and put on one of mine saying what it is.

If you're interested in making this for yourself, what I do is mix:

1 cup of rubbing alcohol
1 cup of water
1/4 cup of your favorite laundry softener (I use Suavitel)

Add it all to your bottle, give it a good shake and just spray away.  That's it.  Everytime I am going to use it I give it a good shake.

While I was still in the bedroom, I moved a few things around.  My little desk area was on the right wall and I moved it across to the wall near the bathroom door.  It just looks better on this side.

I also opened all the curtains and blinds, and then when I went to open the windows realized that they were filled with dirt and sand.  I quickly decided to give them a good cleaning, so grabbed some hot water and bleach, and literally pour it into the window sill which drains into the outer side of the window.  I gave everything a good scrub and now have super clean windows.

I guess my Spring Cleaning has begun?

I moved into the bathroom next and literally, and I mean literally pulled up all the rugs and anything that was on the floor.  I soaked my toilet brush and holder, and the plunger into a bucket of hot water with bleach and let them sit for a couple hours.

Next I took another bucket with hot water and bleach, opened the toilet lid and seat, and just dumped that water all over the toilet.  I know you're probably thinking I've lost my mind, but honestly, I find this to be the easiest way to give the toilet a really good cleaning.

Once I got the toilet clean, the bathtub and sink etc., I pulled out my new 360 Spin Mop and gave it a go.  This was the perfect time to put it to the test, seeing as I had a lot of water on the floor.  (well, when I say a lot it may sound like a flooded floor, but nothing like that...just more water than usual, I mean).

The verdict on the mop?  I love it, I really really and I mean really love it.  I now enjoy mopping, something I didn't much care for in the past and mostly due to the crappy mops I always had which didn't seem to last, didn't seem to clean properly and so on.

I vacuumed and dusted the bedroom and the living room as well.  Opened the curtains and the back screen door and the kitchen window.  Watered plants and basically pottered around throughout the day.

While in the kitchen cleaning, I quickly got all my lettuce out, placed it in the sink filled with cold water and left it to soak for about 30 minutes.

When I got back to it, all the dirt and sand had been removed and sunk to the bottom, I removed the water, gave them a quick rinse under cold water and dried them on some paper towels.  I like to then place them in a Tupperware placing a couple of leaves between paper towels and layering them like that to the top, then I pop on the lid and leave in the fridge for salads during the week. 

It keeps the lettuce nice and crisp and it's clean and ready to go which means saving time.

And you know how I'm all about using everything up and not wasting.  So I placed the bottoms of the lettuce heads in water so they can start regrowing.

I wanted to quickly show you this as well.  I think I may have mentioned in a while ago in one of my posts, but I am not sure whether I did or not.

I keep this crock ware tub near my sink, with a plastic bag inside and I use it during the day when I'm cooking or doing dishes.  It's basically my little trash can, sometimes compost bin.  At the end of the day I remove the bag, tie it and throw it out.  I don't know about you all but I find that when I'm in the kitchen, I'm constantly moving between the counters and the trash can across the room to throw out random little things.  This also saves me time, and it's a nice way to get rid of food scraps too.

By the time I sat down on Monday afternoon, I was so tired and my lower back was achy, but I felt accomplished, the house smelled amazing, you know that scent of clean and fresh that comes with Spring.

I'm itching to get planting and get the patio cleaned out and ready. 

In the meantime, I am on day 5 of meds for the fluid in the ear and the ringing, but so far nothing has happened yet.  Doctor wants me to wait until Friday because it takes at least 7 days with the meds for this all to clear.  I'm really hoping things start clearing up soon because I'm at my wits end and looking forward to some relief.

Speaking of that, I need to go take my meds and climb into bed. 

Have a wonderful night friends and thank you for coming by :)