Welcome to Part 3 of my 15-Minute Cleanup guides. Last time we learned how to make a bedroom a haven when you have limited time, and today we will learn how to follow this same technique with your kitchen.
As a mother of four, I’m not going to lie. Sometimes I feel like I live in my kitchen. Breakfast, lunch, dinner, water breaks, snacks and everything in between can make it a pig sty in no time at all.
Unfortunately, if your life is like mine, you probably will not be able to get every single bit of your kitchen clean in 15 minutes. This guide is mostly one to get you organized, to help you set up piles and bring the chaos down to a manageable level.
As with the last two guides, comes this disclaimer: these guides are not for the perfectionist. This is an extremely basic, cursory clean, designed to help the busy stay-at-home mom, working mother, or working woman or man. It doesn’t mean you sacrifice cleanliness though, it just means special projects and deep, thorough, or “spring” cleaning are not the goal now and need to be set aside for another time. The goal is to re-gain control and re-gain the hospitality aspect of your social life!
Each 15-Minute Cleanup guide has these five simple steps.
1. Gather all the products you will need.
2. Trash.
3. Laundry.
4. Clean up.
5. You’re done!
Let’s go through this guide for your kitchen;
1. New liner for your trash can, dishwasher detergent, dish-washing liquid, counter-top/stove- top/microwave spray as well as a de-greaser for pots and pans with caked-on food, broom and dust pan, clean dish cloth and scrubber, an empty bucket for misplaced items, an empty laundry basket.
2. Pick up any and all trash you see in the kitchen, place it in the current trash can liner, tie it up, throw it on the porch to take to the dumpster later. Place the new liner in.
3. Gather any and all dirty laundry that needs to be washed. Place in your empty laundry basket, and set outside the kitchen to take to the wash room later.
4. Get your bucket for misplaced items. Quickly pick up items from the floor or surface tops that do not belong in the kitchen and place in the bucket to put away at another time. Make a sink of hot, soapy water with your dish-washing liquid. Do a quick sweep of the floor. Do a quick wipe down of table and chairs and make sure they are properly arranged where they belong. Do not move everything off and clean, but spray the counter-top cleaner of your choice on all the counter-tops. Use your favorite stove cleaner and spray it on the stove-top to soak. Use your favorite microwave cleaner and spray it on to soak. Stack all plates in one pile, bowls in another pile, etc., according to type.
Spray your favorite de-greaser on any pots and pans that need it. Place any and all dirty silverware in the new sink of hot soapy water. Silverware and other utensils can often require more soaking than just plates or bowls. If you use a dishwasher and it is ready to be loaded and able to cut through any food, start loading. If you wash by hand, wipe down the microwave and stove top, and then begin scrubbing those utensils that have been soaking. If you are like me, and you have a dishwasher but it only works when the dishes are already virtually clean, then use a scrubber to get off excess food and start loading the utensils in. Now wipe down the counter-tops, and use any remaining time to load/unload your dishwasher, wash plates, bowls or other dishes and give your faucet and surroundings areas a good wipe-down. Though you may walk away with many dishes needing to be done, keep them stacked nicely and neatly on one small section of the counter. You can tackle them throughout the day, and your microwave, stove, counters, and table are clean and ready for you to cook another meal, or have a guest over for tea!
5. Make a toast to you and your clean kitchen! Invite someone over to show off your clean kitchen, and let them know how you did it in just 15 minutes!
For Sources, See;
http://www.flylady.net/
http://www.goodhousekeeping.com/home/cleaning-organizing/make-do-makeover-1107 http://www.clorox.com/products/clorox-clean-up-cleaner/?gclid=CI_YnsqhqqwCFcleTAodjld7aQ