Now...the Kitchen

Yesterday we reviewed some basic cleaning, tidying, dusting and vacuuming.
But we left off at the kitchen.

The kitchen is a room that can take the hardest beating throughout the day. After 3 meals and snacks, the kitchen can look like a FEMA training site. So obviously, without staying on top of the kitchen, things can get out of hand very quickly.

I actually knew someone who left dirty dishes (with the food still on the plates) for DAYS, stacked up on top of the counter. Talk about gross!

So what do we need to do in the kitchen?

Start by running a sink of hot soapy water.
Scrape the dirty plates into the trash and let them soak in the sink.
If you have a dishwasher, rinse the plates and load the in the dishwasher.

Next, it's much like what we did in the rest of the house. Clear the clutter and tidy up. Throw out other garbage, put the tins and plastics in the recycling bins and put things away. Somehow, things end up in the kitchen that don't belong there. Cell phones on the counter, wallets on the table, whatever. Put them in their place too. A clutter free working space is key to tackling the kitchen.

Take a dish cloth and wipe down the counter top, stove and other appliances.

Sweep or vacuum the floor to pick up loose dirt, etc. Then hit it with a wet mop, steam cleaner or Swiffer to finish it off.

Finally, take out the trash and recycling.

The result is a clean, clutter free kitchen!

Stay in touch -

Mark

You Suck...I Hope

Guys, it is important that we do our fair share around the house. That means understanding how your partner likes things done, and doing them to the best of your ability. We need to help put things away, dust and (here comes the "sucking" part) vacuuming. So really, I do hope you suck...up things out of your carpet.

This simply shouldn't fall 100% on your partner. You live there too. And besides, a vacuum cleaner IS a power tool, so how bad can it be?

Here's a basic overview of what needs to be done at a minimum when you clean.

Start by putting things away. Getting the clutter out of the way makes the rest of the stuff a lot easier. Oh - and "out of the way" means "AWAY", not just moved to another room.

Dust. Get a dust cloth and some Pledge. Spray a little Pledge on the cloth, move stuff off of what you're dusting and wipe it down. Tables, TV stand, TV, lamps, pictures. Anything with a smooth surface should be dusted. If it has a glass surface, use some glass cleaner with a paper towel (or the glass cleaner wipes).

Vacuum. Suck it up. Don't just do the main walking areas - vacuum the room.

The blog is starting to get a little long, so we'll talk about cleaning in the kitchen tomorrow. I'm just keeping it real...we gotta help keep it clean. Your partner will appreciate it. I've heard it said that a man doing housework is a real turn on with the ladies. Try it, you won't be sorry.

Stay in touch -

Mark