Ready, Set...Go!

Years ago, out of a desperation to maintain some semblance of sanity in my life while my husband was deployed for a year, the concept of 34 Weeks of Clean was birthed.  While it has gone through a few changes over the years, the basic concept is still the same- clean, declutter, and organize your house, one week at a time for 34 weeks.  Simple!

This year is going to look a bit different for our family.  Our house goes on the market this week and we anticipate moving two hours north of here, hopefully by summer.  I am ever so grateful we have done the 34 Weeks of Clean program for several years now, as getting ready for the sale of the house has proved fairly easy.  There has been little to weed out and not much to do.  A little staging here and there and our regular cleaning is all it has taken.

Read this NOT as a brag on our part, but a personal testimony that 34 Weeks of Clean can and does work!  It is NOT a fix quick, it does take some time and energy- but it is most definitely worth it.  I promise!

While I will not be blogging on the system much this year, I think our time will be taken over with move and building a house posts, we will be following along as best we can and are always here to answer questions and cheer you on!

Grab a friend and work together, or at least spur each other on.  Accountability goes a long way for motivation!

We always start with Christmas decorations, but if you have already taken those down you can jump right in to week two, or consider yourself ahead and enjoy one more week off.

Remember- slow and steady wins the race.

One. Week. At. A. Time!

Trust me on this one.  If you work ahead you will wear yourself out and never finish.  Our homes did not get in their current shape in a week...you will most certainly not fix the problem in a few short days!


One more piece of advice- make it your goal to simplify your life- you will not regret it.  Stuff all over our homes clutters our heads and our hearts.  I have written a short series called Clearing Out the Clutter on that note that I encourage you to read if this is a struggle for you.


Good luck and Happy New Year!  May this year be full of love and joy- and a house that reflects the peace of God, inside and out!

Start here with reading the INTRO post that will help explain the process and answer some FAQs!

Your 34 Weeks of Clean schedule-

Intro Week
Week 1- Holiday Decorations
Week 2-The Pantry
Week 3-Kitchen Cabinets and Drawers   

Week 4- Fridge, Freezer and Floors
Week 5- Recipes 
Week 6- The Stove and Loose Ends 
Week 7- The Dining Room 
Week 8- The Living Room 
Week 9- Books 
Week 10- Bathrooms  
Week 11- The Foyer
Week 12- The Family Room and DVDs 
Week 13- Pictures and Scrapbooks
Week 14- Arts, Crafts and Hobbies 
Week 15- The Master Bedroom  
Week 16- The Master Closet 

Week 17- The Master Bathroom

Week 18- Halftime

Week 19- Bedrooms 1 &2

Week 20- Bedrooms 3+

Week 21- The Hall Closet 

Week 22- The Laundry/Mudroom 

Week 23- The Linen Closet

Week 24- Porches and Decks 

Week 25- The Yard

Week 26- Storage Areas and Attics 

Week 27- Clothes Storage 

Week 28- The School Room 

Week 29- The Garage

Week 30- The Cars 

Week 31- The Office 

Week 32- The Computer

Week 33- The Address Book 

Blessings,

Start off the New Year with my friends at Timberdoodle Blog!


My friends at Timberdoodle are back at it- this time some Spring Cleaning is happening!

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

34 Weeks of Clean 2019! The Finale

When we started 34 Weeks of Clean 2019! 34 weeks ago, it was truly not a challenge just for you.  It was was for me as well.  I knew that the timing was perfect for cleaning and organizing after just moving and settling in to our "forever" home.   It also gave me a chance to connect with new friends along the way, locally and on the web.  And while the clean and organized house makes me want to cheer, it is the community of friends I have made along the way that have blessed me the most!  You all have made this journey fun and have encouraged me along the way and I THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart!

In addition to the simple art of cleaning and organizing, I hope these are some takeaways you also got from this journey-

•     Our stuff does not make us who we are!
•     Memories are best held in our hearts, not in our things!
•     Everything has a home!  If not, get rid of it!
•     Before you buy something, ask yourself, is it useful and do I really need it?
•     If you love it, use it, and would buy it again, keep it.  If not, out it goes!
•     One person's trash is another person's treasure!  Be willing to share!
•     Five minutes of pick up a day will keep your house cleaner than you think!
•     The less you have, the easier it is to be organized.  Declutter!
•     Buying more containers does not amount to less stuff!
•     Cleaning, and life, is just more fun when you have friends to cheer you on!

 

So where do we go from here?  Now that you should have a relatively clean and organized house, I am going to let you in on a little secret.

It will not stay that way without a little effort!

So what's a girl to do?  As a earlier participant once said- Rinse and repeat!

Maybe you do not need to start again tomorrow, but you will probably need to start again at some point, sooner than later.  I already know several areas in my own home that need some attention!

A clean and organized house does not just happen.  It takes commitment and a little effort.  You can do!

A BIG thank you to all who participated!  It has been so much fun to interact with you and to see your successes.  Thank you, thank you, thank you!

Blessings,

Intro Week
Week 1- Holiday Decorations
Week 2-The Pantry
Week 3-Kitchen Cabinets and Drawers   

Week 4- Fridge, Freezer and Floors
Week 5- Recipes 
Week 6- The Stove and Loose Ends 
Week 7- The Dining Room 
Week 8- The Living Room 
Week 9- Books 
Week 10- Bathrooms  
Week 11- The Foyer
Week 12- The Family Room and DVDs 
Week 13- Pictures and Scrapbooks
Week 14- Arts, Crafts and Hobbies 
Week 15- The Master Bedroom  
Week 16- The Master Closet 

Week 17- The Master Bathroom

Week 18- Halftime

Week 19- Bedrooms 1 &2

Week 20- Bedrooms 3+

Week 21- The Hall Closet 

Week 22- The Laundry/Mudroom 

Week 23- The Linen Closet

Week 24- Porches and Decks 

Week 25- The Yard

Week 26- Storage Areas and Attics 

Week 27- Clothes Storage 

Week 28- The School Room 

Week 29- The Garage

Week 30- The Cars 

Week 31- The Office 

Week 32- The Computer

Week 33- The Address Book 

34 Weeks of Clean 2019! Week 30- The Cars

OK, OK, I know your cars are not technically a part of your house, but let's face it, many of us spend enough time there to count them as such, right?  Between groceries and appointments, children and friends, we spend a lot of time in our cars.

And like anything else, time and lots of kids take their toll on our vehicles.  Honestly, it is not usually a big deal to me.  But, it is a big deal to my sweet husband, so I do try to keep a handle on the chaos. We used to keep a car organizer on the back of the seat for my youngest's books and such, but that went out recently.  We also try to enforce the stuff in, stuff out rule daily.  But past that, well, life happens!

Since our kids are getting older (12 and up) we do not usually have too big of a mess to deal with.  AND, because our kids are getting older, we can bribe pay them to do detailed car duty occasionally. Yay me!  But on the other hand, there are currently five cars in our driveway to keep clean and we are in the middle of monsoon season here.  That's a lot of sand and elbow grease.

So, here we go- CLEAN OUT THOSE CARS!

A quick checklist for you-

• Empty all trash bags or just get rid of all the trash you have on the floor and everywhere else!  We keep a grocery bag in our van at all times for trash.  I admit it is not lovely, but it does get the job done.

• Take out all car mats and wash down.  Again, I live in the desert, ya'll, there is a lot of sand.

•  Vacuum the floorboards.

•  Wipe down all surfaces.

•  Wipe down all windows inside.

•  Wash outside of car, including tires!

• Check tire pressure while you are there! ;)

 

• Clean out your trunk.

One of the things we have always kept in our cars is an emergency car kit.  It hold simple things like a first aid kit, jumper cables, and such.  Here in AZ, you also need to keep water in your car about 9 out of the 12 months.  You just never know when you will be stranded and our motto is better safe than sorry!  We also keep a few camp chairs in our trunk because of, well...KIDS!

That's it!  Pretty simple, huh?  And it will make the men in your life smile for some reason, go figure!

Well my friends, we have almost come to the end of the road with 34 Weeks of Clean!  I cannot even believe that the time is almost done.  Next week we are heading back inside to finish up for our last few weeks.  I hope you are starting to look around and see a difference. 

Remember it is never too late to start and you are never really finished.  But it does get easier!

Blessings,