We are in a cleaning frenzy. Partly because my mother and her sisters are coming to Arizona to visit in four weeks, and partly because it needed it.
For the first time in the nearly two years that I've lived with Drew... all of my clothes are put away.
Okay, in fairness, the washer and dryer are still going and there are about five garments hanging in the laundry room that aren't actually in my closet yet, but! Seriously. The clothes are all put away.
We filled six garbage bags with clothes to donate. I, myself, am parting with three bags of clothes. Leaving me with just one closet (that I'm not sure could hold another stitch of clothes), one Rubbermaid for sweaters and scarves, and two dressers full of clothes.
I discarded anything that I could remember feeling uncomfortable about wearing. Pants that I think are an inch too short or just not black enough. Shirts that I don't find as flattering as they could possibly be. Skirts that are slightly misshapen and are leftover from high school. Plus anything that I hadn't worn in since moving to Arizona simply because it needed a button. Clearly, I don't need it and I am not going to sew on the button.
I also scrubbed the kitchen floor. I swept and swept until I suspected that if I kept going I might look like a crazy person. Then I took a Mr Clean Magic Eraser to the tiles that had tape or paint on them from when we moved in. Then I mopped twice and gave it a good once on my hands and knees over with a washcloth and some warm water. Having touched every part of the floor, I am now prepared to declare our kitchen enormous.
I also took down the Christmas lights and threw them away! Not one of the four strands I hung was fully functional. So, into the trash with them.
The house still is sort of a disaster, but we're making real progess. My aunts haven't ever seen where I've lived independently of my mother, so I am considering this a sort of once-in-a-decade event. Four more weeks like this and the place will totally be clean.
