Cleaned up the house a little, feels good :)

We don't keep things nasty/dirty but we certainly aren't tidy - especially when it comes to mail and miscellany. Today we tidied up the den (picking up all the little things like fall down to the sides/behind the loveseat), cleared the mail from the dining table, and dusted and vacuumed. It's nice to have our spaces neat again Of course my partner did dishes and I cleaned the litterbox, but those are daily chores so they weren't technically part of our spree.

Here's a shot of our cozy den that I am currently relaxing in! We're going to treat ourselves to Mexican in a few minutes as a reward

Any housekeeping tips from the cleaners and/or neat freaks among us? I'm in my 20's and can't seem to grow up when it comes to the "clean as you go" mentality - it's something I understand from a cognitive standpoint (so much easier to do if you do a little at a time instead of one big clean after it gets bad) but motivation-wise, not much happens, lol. Tips appreciated!



Edited to add this photo of the boys, who are pooped from chasing the wand toy!

I have come to the conclusion that the best way to keep my house clean is to have company over regularly!  The clutter is what gets me.  I vacuum and all that regularly; but things get set on the counter or the table and there is always something more interesting to do than sort.  DH just trashed a bunch of old magazines and things for me.  My rule for those is to keep only the last year's worth unless it has something really great.  Like one time Parents had a really fun long article full of birthday party ideas.  So I kept that one.  

For me it is the ease of living with less stuff.  Try to do paperless billing so it never comes in. Sort mail then and there adn dump any flyers/junk on spot.  If you have to have dumping ground limit it to one area.  I agree company is a great factor!  Especially when it is not family you feel comfortable with!

I went into apartment with not much and we have alot now compared. We also went from 1 bedroom with cats to 4 bedroom with converted garage and sunroom.  My husband has stuff.  He is neat about it but...yeah.  As long as it is in his rooms I do not care how it is set up.  He has learned cats bat anything and puppy will chew anything. 

I really think some are neater then others and as long as it is stuff and not dirt do not worry much.  We all have our strong points.  Just limit it best you can to make the big cleans go that much faster.

The room looks very nice!

For me, it's clutter, too. I hate it. I'll work all day on house-cleaning and then Rick comes home from work and sets everything down wherever. Never puts his coat away. I just hate it. I like things to be neat. I don't think I'm a neat-freak per se, but I do like things in their places.....most of that is because then I know where the stuff is at when I need it. Nothing is more frustrating to need the scissors, have to walk around the house looking for them, and finding them on Rick's desk. I've gotten to the point where, if I can't find something, I just go to his desk. 9 times out of 10, it's there.

We get a lot of junk mail. I separate it all, throw a pile into the shredder basket, throw a pile on Rick's desk, and put a pile into the recycling bin.

I'll have to make a habit of having people over... you know what they say! CHAOS = Can't Have Anyone Over Syndrome!!

I think my major problem has always been routines. How to form them so they stick, mostly. I admire people with a lot of self-discipline and I strive to be like them!! To me, my brain doesn't even think, "Go through the mail," when I get home. (Probably because I often get home between 10-11pm due to school or work.)

I was home today to get the mail and I left a Penney's catalog on the table... I'll go toss it in recycling now!

Today I did a little more cleaning just to make myself feel productive: picked up my nightstand area and made the bed. Only took me 5-6 minutes but was a payoff!

Cats: If you clean it, they will come!


Kitties enjoying the made bed. I think if they could make it themselves they would!

Oh no I told you we were going to have our pic taken AGAIN...Sigh.

They do look comfy though.