Breaking it Down: Cleaning 365

After 9 months of living in our home, it is not feeling as new as it did the day we moved in.  I don't know when it happened exactly, but I am a little devastated about the reality.  Things stopped looking as shiny.  Stuff started building up in the corners. BOO!!!!


So.  Since I had Rusty trapped we were blessed with a snow day (3 so far), we divided up what we thought the big maintenance cleaning jobs were into the 12 months of the year.  We are hoping that we can check these items off each month and keep our home feeling move-in-day new.

January

• Change air filter
• Dust ceiling fans
• Run self-cleaning oven
• Scrub outlet plates/light switch plates

February

• Clean air vent covers
• Dust ceiling fans
• Magic eraser doors

March

• Change air filter
• Dust ceiling fans
• Clean front of cabinets

April

• Clean out light fixtures
• Dust ceiling fans
• Have carpets cleaned
• Dust baseboards

May

• Dust ceiling fans
• Dust plantation blinds
• Clean inside of windows and sills

June

• Change air filter
• Dust ceiling fans
• Pressure wash the house, porches/desks and fence
• Run self-cleaning oven

July

• Wash Pottery Barn Slip Covers
• Dust ceiling fans
• Magic Eraser doors
• Touch up all trim with paint

August

• Clean air vent covers
• Dust ceiling fans
• Scrub outlet plates/light switch plates

September

• Change air filter
• Clean out light fixtures
• Dust ceiling fans

October 

• Dust ceiling fans
• Dust plantation blinds

November

• Dust ceiling fans
• Dust baseboards
• Clean front of cabinets

December

• Wash Pottery Barn Slip Covers
• Dust ceiling fans
• Clean inside of window and sills

My mother would be so proud!


Now - the list might look like a random mess, but hear me out.  I run my whole life on a school calendar.  My doctor appointments are always June and December when I am on breaks.  My motto: never take a day when the sun isn't shining, you aren't feeling well or for a doctor's appointment.  Now that I have a house, that list MUST be extended to include cleaning and home projects.  Sick days are made for shopping or going out of town!


So, you can see I am loaded up on tasks during summer, spring break, Thanksgiving break and Christmas break.  I also put things on either a monthly (fans), 4 x a year (air filter), 2x a year (washing slipcovers, etc) or 1x a year (pressure wash, touch up all trim) rotation.  Then I built my schedule around weather (you want clean windows when it gets to be great weather, and you can't pressure wash in the winter) and what fits together (if I am painting trim, I probably want to Magic Eraser the doors to make them all look good together).

So, you veteran homeowners, what all am I leaving out?  Do you have a master plan to keep your house looking new?  Or maybe you just spend a week or two in the spring and summer doing my whole list at once?  I just have to break things down!

These cute calendars can be found here.  Etsy, of course!