Spring Cleaning

A new week. New plans. All weekend I have been looking ahead to today—the day that I will begin Spring Cleaning.

Never in my life have I done this thing called "Spring Cleaning." My mother used to do Spring Cleaning, but I was not involved, so it was an enigma...just a hazy vision of curtains coming down and going back up, scrub buckets filled with soapy water, new shelf paper, and a fresh, clean feeling of house-y well-being. But until now, Spring Cleaning has not been in my real world.

What has me suddenly ready to embark on this new venture? I'm not sure. Maybe it's the multitude of days we have spent this winter being snowed in, being inspired to do projects and to cook, but not to clean. Maybe it's the feeling of too much icy water and slush on boots being tracked in the back door. Or maybe it's the fact that last week I was captured by this post and its photo of the teal scrub brush at my favorite homemaking blog Pleasant View Schoolhouse... and then for some reason I clicked the "Cleaning" category in the sidebar and read every single post. (Think that sounds mundane? You click it and see if you don't come away thinking about microfiber dust cloths and lavender-scented ironing spray.) I am also at a season of my life in which I don't have a baby or a toddler, and I have a teenage daughter who not only is a willing helper, but also gets excited about my projects! (How great is that?)

So today we begin Spring Cleaning. We are beginning with my smallest room, the bathroom, because it seems attainable and I want to get off to a good start. (Although I am inspired by Anna at Pleasant View, I am not Anna. I. Am. Slow. And it makes my head spin to read of all that Anna does in the same 24 hours that I have!) I have compiled a list of all the things I want to accomplish over the week, and we will dig in right after our school time.

I am anticipating our home having that fresh, clean feeling of house-y well-being.