Kitchen Wrap-Up

I am exhausted.

I had no idea how physically hard deep cleaning could be. I'm not sure I ever want to do this again.

So, what did I do? Let's check the list:

Cleaning Checklist:

Scrub floor. CHECK!

Clean and organize cabinets, shelves and drawers.

I scrubbed the lower cabinets and laid shelf paper.

For the uppers,



I took everything out



painted the shelves and put everything back.

There was one bag of hard dried up fruit I had to toss. And as soon as the oven is operable, I will make granola bars to use up some more stuff.

The little cupboard right by the fridge holds my baking pans.



It is 6 1/2 inches (16.5 cm) wide. You are looking at three cookie sheets, two plastic cutting boards, two cooling racks, and three muffin tins.

I found some lovely vintage shelf paper (called Tye Tack). It had this illustration on the back as part of the instructions:



This is what it looks like on the front:



I took everything out of the bank of drawers to the left of the sink, wiped them down and put everything back. Actually, a pleasant little job.

One of the prettier moments this week.

Scrub counters CHECK



The Fridge: CHECK!
--Pull fridge from the wall and clean floor underneath Vacuum fridge coils CHECK!
--Clean fridge and freezer with mild detergent. CHECK!
--Defrost fridge freezer (it self-defrosts, I forgot)

The Oven:

Clean inside of oven CHECK.



Clean stove burners CHECK.

I knew it was past time when I started a fire in one of the burners making tea this week. I took everything apart and washed them the next day. Unfortunately, the large burner doesn't seem to be working properly any more.



I mix dish soap and baking soda into a paste, smear it on everything and wait--usually 12+ hours. Scrub, if necessary. Rinse and wipe clean. It is still hard work but at least everyone can still breathe.



Clean exterior of small appliances CHECK!

Clean coffee maker w/vinegar --Check.

Have knives professionally sharpened. Soon, I hope.

Clean trash can: I wiped down the outside. The inside will wait for warmer weather when I can use the hose outside.

Wax floor. No. Instead, I worked very hard to get old wax up off the floor.

Wash windows. No, I'll do this when we change out the windows.

Wash and install screens --still a wee bit cold for this.

Wash curtains. I'll do this with the whole window cleaning and switcheroo thing later next month.

Clean dog food container --Wiped it down. Good enough.

Wash walls and baseboards --I painted the baseboards!

Before:



After:

(Please pardon the wet spots on the floor--still drying after I washed it!)

Touch up paint on window and door trim. CHECK!



I really didn't toss much. We are down to the bare minimum on just about everything we need.

Last night, I was driving through a neighbourhood that has been built up in the last ten or so years at the far reaches of our city. The houses are enormous and they are tightly packed together. My son kept saying he wanted to live in such a house. "My bedroom would be really big." he said. I replied, I like our small house. It means that we have to learn to get along as a family and that we can't have too much stuff.

I really meant it, too.