Oops! I can. No excuses are necessary. We make choices about how we are going to spend our time and energy. Sometimes, the house suffers: well, actually--the house doesn't care, but we do. Therefore, I am sending out a dusting challenge this week. Let's dust and vacuum at least one room a day. Here are some choices of how to do that. Dust with a throw away Swiffer duster or a Microfiber Dust Rag. My mother always used the vacuum cleaner brush and sucked up that dirt and hair.
- We are dusting, not polishing, unless you just prefer to spray and wipe.
- Choices of how to do this job are:
- Dust and vacuum one room a day. Or
- Dust all your rooms in one day--perfection is not the objective here.
- Vacuum the centers of the rooms, not every little corner, or under everything. Break this job into increments of time you are able to accomplish or let someone else do it for you.
- Option for mothers and fathers with children at home: hand each child a dust rag and set the timer. Give them specific areas to dust and turn on some music. You can make this a family affair, working in one room at a time or let them do their own rooms. If your child needs hands on attention for this job: stick to doing one room together. Make it fun with a treat at the end, such as reading a book or watching a DVD.
Do the children want to do something later, such as going to a friend's house, swimming, or playing in the sprinkler? Tell them that none of these things are going to happen, until together you dust a certain number of rooms. STICK TO YOUR GUNS! This is training time that will benefit them the rest of their lives.
We did it! Image Courtesy of [Ambro] /FreeDigitalPhotos.net |
Back to Vacuuming
When you dust, you should vacuum if you can. These two jobs go hand in hand. However, use your best judgement. You can only do what you can do, and you may have to find creative ways to get the job done. However, I would not wait more than one day to vacuum each room you dust. What is on the floor will eventually manage to find it's way to the furniture. Moreover, if you have not vacuumed and dusted for a while, you might want to change your filter for your air conditioner. A clean filter will help keep your house clean longer.
Note: If you are going to have to declutter tabletops, because you have let things accumulate on them, you will want to do that a different day than the day you dust; unless, you are so impressed with clean tabletops, you cannot help yourself. If you just have to dust after you pick up and put away what is on the tables, the one room a day method is best
Have a great week, and remember: when you can write in the dust, your house looks dirty, even when it is decluttered.
Love,
Deborah