Pay it forward

Just a year ago, Leslie Boley came out to DC and "paid it forward" with her service to me. On her hands and knees scrubbing my baseboards, showing me how to shark-mop my hardwood floor, and cooking me dinners as I was recovering from giving birth.

I have been "paying it forward" from her dear service to me. Today was especially difficult for me because of the depth of filth I cleaned. It's hard for me to understand how people can live in places so unsanitary. There's got to be some way that I can not only help clean out the stains and splatters, but TEACH how to run a more organized environment. How do people live in such messes? Is it because they have not been educated? Laziness? Feeling overwhelmed?

It makes me remember back to my own upbringing where my house was spic 'n span. Dishes were to be done. Bathrooms scrubbed. Garbage disposed before it smelled up the kitchen. I didn't care growing up about these small tasks, but looking back, it is what shaped me into the homemaker that I am now. These little things are so important to me now as I run my own ship.

I think the most important thing to having a clean home is MAINTAINING it. As I was venting to my dad about the disgusting bathrooms today he said, "doing it in small measures prevents the need for large, unmanageable projects." I feel like my house is usually clean (NEVER is it ALWAYS clean because that is not realistic!). My daily basics: dishes are always out of the sink, beds are made, countertops are wiped clean, and I vacuum underneath the kitchen table. I have learned to do these things throughout the years. With those small tasks completed, I feel like my home is presentable. The rest of the things get done throughout the weeks as needed.

Another key is to get your kids involved. Wesley and Austin help out now by unloading the dishes, making beds, hanging up clothes, windexing Wrangler's slobber off the door, taking out garbage's and wiping down chairs. By the time Wesley is 7, he will be scrubbing his own bathroom clean (to my standards with softscrub, clorox wipes and windex). I know it is a ton of work keeping a clean home, and everyone has different standards of cleanliness, but what I experienced today was not healthy for anyone.

So, the point of this posting is to remind myself how satisfying it feels to live in a sanitary home, how rewarding it is to provide service for someone out of love vs. duty, the importance of teaching my boys how to clean, and how grateful I am for my instincts to provide a tidy and well- kept home.