20 Day Challenge - Pre-season wrap up

So I told you to pop back after my last post... but then I got busy as usual and decided to do a wrap up of pre-season before starting the challenge tomorrow! I'll hopefully do a wrap up every five days or so throughout the challenge, because you don't really need me boring you with my cleaning achievements every day do you?

My first post and first pre-season task can be found here.

Pre-season ~ Task Two ~ Set up your clean kit

I would love a pretty carry-all like Katrina's, but I'm all for repurposing instead of buying new if possible. Instead I found a sturdy tub that's been a lego box, a craft container and was stacked up in the shed awaiting it's next adventure.

 

 Bright yellow, can't miss it! My clean kit is made up of the following:

Rags (old tea towels, cotton tshirts etc) for wiping
Old stockings for behind taps etc
Microfibre cloth for dusting
Window/mirror polishing cloth
Thick soft cloth for drying surfaces after I wipe them

Scrubbing brush (for the shower floor tiles)
Chux Magic Erasers - general purpose (blue) and bathroom/shower (yellow)
Toothbrush (for grout, joins etc)

Disinfectant  - for everything. I know we should use bicarb/vinegar - but it always seems to leave a residue, and being time poor I need fast and effective!
Window cleaner
Carpet spot remover - rental homes + cream carpets + kids = essential!
Carpet deoderiser
Velvet soap bar - for gentle cleaning when I don't want to use disinfectant

Label maker - the most essential item in my kit. If I spend half a day cleaning and organising the pantry, I'm not going to be impressed when everyone just starts throwing everything in willy nilly again. I will get cross and anxious. My label maker means organisation and peace will reign supreme, and I won't need to declutter and organise the same areas over and over.

Broom
Dustpan and brush
Vacuum cleaner
Mop and bucket

I like that I can grab the tub and move around the house doing all the things I need without going back and forth to different cupboards, or realising we've run out of something.

The next step was Routines.

Routines are the backbone of the whole deal, and I made sure to talk to WonderMan and prepare family routines that suit all of us, and make us all responsible for the day to day tidiness and organisation of our home. We really need these routines to stick, so that when I'm working full time I'm not also shouldering the load at home and being the matyr of the year.

We wrote morning and evening routines for the grown ups, and the kids. The kids' I printed out in pretty rainbow colours for each step, and stuck them on their bedroom doors. The steps are fairly similar, because Frog follows Tiger's lead and they brush their teeth etc together most mornings. Our mornings have been slowly improving so I think these will work fine.

I just have to stop subscribing to the "five minutes more" theory when it comes time to get out of bed.

The last step was to set up my de-cluttering tubs. One each for "Keep" "Donate" "Sell" and "Rubbish".

Katrina has lovely little printable labels you can stick on so you don't forget which is which.

I need to pick up a couple more baskets, which I will do on the way back from school drop off tomorrow and I'll be all set.

Oops! I almost forgot my goals!

Katrina set the following questions which we answered with our own words (mine in BLUE)

I want to feel less anxious, more clear headed while I'm at home.

I want to spend more time experiencing new things with our family. 

I want an area of the home where I can have guests to stay in comfort.  

I want to organise my jewellery and accessories.

I always lose my work name tag.

Something I don't need any more but have trouble parting with: Some sewing patterns.

These are the reasons behind jumping into this challenge, and I'm going to print them out and stick them up where they will remind and motivate me each day.

 
It's not too late to join the 20 Day Challenge, just go here!