Housecleaning

I just finished housecleaning my kitchen. I know a lot of people don't houseclean anymore but I still like the feeling of having everything in the room spotless. The kitchen is the big one and it has taken me all week to do the job. I started on Monday with the stove and refrigerator, went on to do another segment every day (cupboards, walls & windows, furniture), and finished with the floor today. We put a no-wax floor in but it still has to be stripped and polished occasionally. I've been putting it off the last couple years but decided to bite the bullet and do it this year.

My housecleaning has changed over the years as the family changed. When we had six children in the house, I housecleaned the whole place twice a year and, believe me!, it needed it. By the time the children started leaving my back could no longer take cleaning the entire house in six weeks. It wasn't getting as dirty anymore either so I changed the rules. I set up a cleaning schedule that began the end of August with the porch and patio. Then I cleaned one room per month until I finished in April or May. My back liked that better and getting over the place once in a year was enough.

Less dirt or not, it has always taken me at least a week to clean the kitchen. When I had three preschoolers underfoot it took me two weeks to get the job done. Now I have the place to myself but I move slower and it still takes me a week to do it. Next year, after more than 40 years of parenting, we'll become empty nesters. Then the whole upstairs will be guest rooms and won't need housecleaning anymore. I won't be complaining! I like the look and smell of an all-clean room but I don't mind cutting back some more. I'm not getting any younger.