I am not sure about you, but every week seems to be cleaning week at my house. I try to do the bedding, the spot behind the toilet, the oven and the outside deck; but things happen, life intervenes and the cleaning jobs get pushed and pushed to the following week.

I am not sure who it was that decided the end of March, first of April was designated as spring cleaning, but ladies.. .heads up, cause here it is. Spring cleaning is upon us and I for one still have Christmas cards up by the phone, the son’s Halloween art project on the mantel and winter quilts on all the beds. Where do I begin?

Go to iVillage.com for a complete check list of spring cleaning.

Visit about.com for the 5 steps to cleaning.

Find out at zenhabits.com how you can develop clean house-habits, one at a time.

Standing on my soapbox,

JB

According to the good folks at www.gone-ta-pott.com, spring cleaning is for getting your environment clean so you can feel good about yourself and your home. It’s about making the surroundings where you spend most of your time feel clean, as well as look organized and clutter free. They think that anywhere you spend most of your time (home, at work, your shop, or basement), deserves a good cleaning so you can feel good inside and out.

Here’s what they like to do.

Cleaning Outside
We pull out the grill that’s been stored in the shed through winter and we start cleaning up the grills and adding new parts while replacing the old tank (if its not charcoal). We start organizing the potting shed and dragging out the rakes, shovels, hose and potting soils. We pull out the flower pots and get them all cleaned up because we know they are soon to be the new home of a beautiful flowering plant. We get all the old junk that has collected up on the back porch over winter and put it all away to make room for the hanging baskets and planter pots. We sweep the leaves off the bannisters that have collected from the winter winds. We pull all the matching chair cushions out of storage and put them back on the oak swing and porch rockers. Ahhhh…. knowing that once it’s all done, a nice soothing swing in the swing will be a nice reward.

Cleaning Inside
Not only do we work on cleaning up the outside but we work on cleaning up the inside as well. For some reason when we spring clean it makes us feel really good. It feels like were getting rid of the old and gloomy winter days and welcoming the new birth of spring and a new blessed season. At least that’s how I look at it.  We put away all the winter clothes and happily bring out the spring clothes. We wash and pack away the winter flannel sheets and replace them with cool sheets. We open all the closet doors in each room, we open all the windows and doors of the house and we start letting the house air out. We spray fabreeze on all the cloth furniture and turn the ceiling fans on low. We welcome all the smells and new spring breezes that blow through all the windows into our house to freshen up every single corner of the house.

What do we do next? We clean, clean, clean! We wash the walls, we mop the floors, we swipe the cobwebs out of the corners of the ceiling and we clean all the air conditioner vents. Yep we sure do! We even have fun making our own homemade cleaners that we found in the Old Farmers Almanacs that we saved over the years. Click below to see homemade cleaning recipes.

Make Your Own Cleaners
WARNING: Never mix cleaning products containing bleach and ammonia as dangerous fumes will result.

OVEN CLEANER
2 tablespoons dishwashing liquid
2 teaspoons borax
1/4 cup ammonia
1-1/2 cups warm water
Mix the ingredients together, apply to oven spills, and let sit for 20 to 30 minutes. Scrub with an abrasive nylon-backed sponge and rinse well.

Scrubbing Hand General Purpose Cleaner
1 teaspoon borax
1/2 teaspoon washing soda
2 teaspoons vinegar
1/4 teaspoon dishwashing liquid
2 cups hot water
Combine all the ingredients. If you don’t have washing soda (generally found in the laundry section of supermarkets), use 1 teaspoon baking soda instead. For a more pleasant smell, use lemon juice instead of vinegar. Be sure to label the bottle accordingly.

Easy Scrub
3/4 cup baking soda
1/4 cup borax
dishwashing liquid
Combine the baking soda and borax. Mix in enough dishwashing liquid to make a smooth paste. If you prefer a pleasant smell, add 1/4 teaspoon lemon juice to the paste.

Heavy-Duty Disinfectant Cleaner
1/4 cup powdered laundry detergent
1 tablespoon borax
3/4 cup hot water
1/4 cup pine oil, or pine-based cleaner
Slowly stir the detergent and borax into the water to dissolve. Add the pine oil (available at hardware stores and supermarkets) and mix well. For bathroom cleaning, use the mixture full strength. In the kitchen, dilute it with water.

Wood Floor Polish
1/2 cup vinegar
1/2 cup vegetable oil
Mix the ingredients well, rub on the floor, and buff with a clean, dry cloth.

Rug Cleaner
1/4 teaspoon dishwashing liquid
1 cup lukewarm water
Combine the ingredients. Use a spray bottle to apply the solution over a large area, or use the solution to spot-clean nongreasy stains. (Don’t use laundry detergent or dishwasher detergent in place of dishwashing liquid, as they may contain additives that can affect the rug’s color.)

Toilet Cleaner
1 cup borax
1/4 cup vinegar or lemon juice
Combine the ingredients to make a paste. Apply it to the inside of the toilet bowl, let sit for 1 to 2 hours, and scrub.

Mildew Remover
1 tablespoon powdered laundry detergent
1 quart chlorine bleach
2 quarts water
Combine all the ingredients in a pail. Wearing rubber gloves, wash off the mildew.

Floor Wax Remover
1 cup laundry detergent
3/4 cup ammonia
1 gallon warm water
Mix all the ingredients together and apply to a small area of the floor. Let the solution sit long enough for it to loosen the old wax, at least 5 to 10 minutes. Mop up the old wax (or scrape it up, if there’s a lot of it, using a squeegee and a dustpan). Rinse thoroughly with 1 cup vinegar in 1 gallon water and let dry before applying a new finish.

Furniture Polish
1 tablespoon vinegar or lemon juice
1 tablespoon boiled linseed oil
1 tablespoon turpentine
Combine the ingredients in a glass jar with a tight-fitting lid and shake until blended. Dampen a cloth with cold water and wring it out until it’s as dry as you can get it. Saturate the cloth with the mixture and apply sparingly to a small area at a time. Let dry for about 30 minutes, then polish with a soft cloth. Note that this mixture gets gummy as it sits, so make just enough for one day’s work.

Glass Cleaner
2 tablespoons ammonia
1/2 cup alcohol
1/4 teaspoon dishwashing liquid
a few drops blue food coloring
water
Combine the ammonia, alcohol, dishwashing liquid, and food coloring, then add enough water to make 1 quart. If you prefer a nonammoniated cleaner, substitute 3 tablespoons vinegar or lemon juice for the ammonia.

Carpet Freshener
1 cup crushed dried herbs (such as rosemary, southernwood, or lavender)
1 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons baking soda
Combine all the ingredients in a large jar or other container with a tight-fitting lid. Shake well to blend. Sprinkle some of the mixture on your carpet, let it sit for an hour or so, and then vacuum it up. It will give the room a pleasant smell and neutralize carpet odors.

How can I Celebrate National Cleaning Week?

Have a Cleaning Party! -  Find a great project that you can work together on and have a cleaning party. It could be a childrens park somewhere that is in need of attention. Maybe a few hands to pick up the trash would be great. After the work is over a nice picnick in the park you just cleaned up would be great.  Or- Maybe you have a room in your house that you really need help with. Plan a cleaning party to get others to help you and you pay them back by feeding them a nice homemade lunch. Or- Maybe you have a friend at school or church that has been sick for a while who could use some help in doing a few little chores in the house. Have a cleaning party for that person and make them feel better. A nice clean house always brightens the spirit of those who don’t feel good.

Make your own homemade cleaners! – It’s fun to make your own homemade cleaners and it’s even more fun to make them up as gifts in a jar. Wrap the jars up with pretty bows and instructions about your homemade cleaner. They make great housewarming gifts.