Let’s start small, let’s go slow.

If I allowed myself, I could easily stand in the middle of my house and feel completely overwhelmed by the tasks ahead. Right now I have a strong, pregnancy-induced desire to get everything organised and clean and yet my exhaustion is standing firmly in the way. To combat this frustrating situation I’ve been taking it slow – half an hour here, half an hour there – reminding myself daily that I’ve got an entire season to complete the task. Keeping up with day-to-day household duties are quite enough right now but I am finding that if I set aside the time and am completely focused on what I’m doing, it’s actually quite possible to tick things off the list.

So what have I achieved so far?

I started with the front doorstep. I felt like the entry to the house was the best place to start. I literally (and figuratively) cleared the cobwebs, swept the stairs, packed away the umbrellas and gumboots and planted a small herb garden to grow in the afternoon sun. Poet and I made a trip to the nursery where we decided on flat leaf parsley, chives, society garlic, mint and rosemary and on the first day of spring we created a “welcome to our home” garden – still a work in progress. A fresh start and the best way to begin my 12-week spruce up of the house.

Next I thought about the drawers in the kitchen that get the most use. The cutlery drawer and utensil drawer came to the top of the list so I literally spent half-an-hour sorting and cleaning. A big bag of utensils (that I had completely forgotten about) made their way to the op-shop hence I’m left with my favourites; the ones that get used almost daily.

Over the next few days I plan to tackle the random kitchen drawer/tupperware drawer which is basically a breeding ground of mismatched lids and containers. I’ve been stocking up on pyrex when I can so I’m slowly phasing out the nasty plastic (if you were wondering, the kids use these lunch boxes for school/pre-school which we love).

If past cleaning experiences are anything to go by, I know that leaping right in and going a million miles an hour only leads to exhaustion and, subsequently, disinterest. Start small, go slow and apply complete mindfulness to the task at hand (that means no phone within reach).

Next week I’ll post on Monday so you have the entire week to get through the list (don’t worry, it’s not daunting).

Happy spring cleaning!