Bathroom Cleaning Routine

Friday is bathroom cleaning day in the Claiborne household.

The following tasks are typically done before leaving for work:

1. Clean the inside of all toilets with toilet bowl cleaner
2. Use sanitizing wipes to wipe down the handles, lids, seat, exterior bowls, tanks and lastly the toilet base. NOTE:  Discard dirty wipes frequently when cleaning bathrooms. 
3. Wipe off and/or dust the toilet paper roll hanger and any bathroom towel hangers

The following tasks are completed Friday evenings:

1. Remove non-essential items from counter tops and return them to their designated place
2. Wipe down counter tops, faucets and sinks with multi surface cleaner
3. Clean bathroom mirrors with glass cleaner
4. Clean tubs and showers with an appropriate cleanser for your tub/shower

Cleaning tips:

• I like to keep a minimalist counter top - only the essentials and a couple of decorative items. Non-essentials kept on counters require extra time and effort to clean around.  
• If you don't have enough drawer space to store items, consider a pretty glass or mirrored tray, which will keep items together and allow for easy removal during cleaning.

• Our shower is fiberglass and very hard to clean.  I've tried various cleaning products over the years (if any of you have a good tip let me know).  So far, the best solution I've found (via a Pinterest post) is to use fume free Easy Off Oven Cleaner. You spray it on, let it sit 10 minutes and then wipe clean

Favorite bathroom cleaning products:

• Bar Keepers friend
• Windex
• Home and Planet Multi Surface Cleaner - rose scented
• Lysol toilet bowl cleaner
• Lysol wipes

When the above tasks are completed on Friday, the only thing left to do is sweep/vacuum and mop the bathrooms.  In our household, vacuuming and mopping are done on Saturday morning.

I hope these tips help you to keep your bathroom cleaning routine under control.  What suggestions do you have for keeping your bathrooms clean and organized?  Share your ideas in the comments!

Laundry Routine

Laundry is one of those tasks that can get overwhelming if you don't stay on top of it. This simple method is a combination of my Mom and my Mother-in law's routine.


Disclaimer: I'm sure the clothing manufacturers would be "horrified" at my simplistic method! However, I haven't turned our tighty-whities pink in several years, so what I'm doing seems to be working.

LOADS:

The basic laundry at the Claiborne household consists of 3 different types of loads:

1. Darks/Colors - jeans, dark colored shirts, any dark colored underwear, socks or Pj's (could include bed sheets, based on color)
2. Whites/lights - socks, underwear or any other white or light colored clothing  (could include bed sheets as well, based on color)
3. Towels - towels, wash cloths, dust rags, small bathroom and kitchen rugs, etc.  NOTE: I also throw the more rugged flannel sheets into the towel category.

Exceptions: A new silky/delicate blouse or new jeans that  might "bleed" at the first wash should be washed  separately as well as clothing for babies.  Our washer has a cycle called "hand wash" that works well for those items. When in doubt, follow the manufacturer's recommendations.

PRE-SORTING:

Laundry is pre-sorted in our household.  A basket in the closet contains darks/colors and a basket in the linen closet contains whites.  Towels are kept on hooks or in a separate basket until ready to wash.

WASH SCHEDULE:

EVERY day...at least one load of laundry is done - dependent on which basket (from the pre-sorted items above) is the most full.

• Work days -  if the whites or towels basket is the most full,  the load is started when I first get up.  These items are then dried before leaving for work.  The darks/colors will require more attention in the hanging and drying process, so always do them at  night when you have more time.

• Saturdays - We change the sheets on our beds and immediately wash them - this load is in addition to the daily load.

DRYING:

• Towels - Folded and put away - our washer and dryer tops are kept clear so they can be used as a folding station.  Everything is folded there and put away.  
  
• Whites - Dried, folded and put away straight out of the dryer - again fold them in the utility room and put them away.
• Sheets -  Dried and immediately removed while warm to decrease wrinkling - fold and put them away.  NOTE:  To fold sheets, I put the fitted sheet, top sheet and 1 pillow case inside the second pillow case - this keeps every set together nicely. (see photo below).
  
• Dark/colors - These are the items that require more care - some items  don't even need to be put in the dryer, such as silky blouses, jeans that you don't want to shrink, dress pants etc. - take those out of the washer and immediately hang them up to dry (our utility room has a closet type rod below the cabinets adjacent to the washer/dryer - we store empty hangers there and hang items that need to drip dry).  Everything else goes in the dryer.  ALERT:  This is where you must pay attention and get these items out of the dryer a few items at a time, hanging  immediately.  This is key to prevent wrinkling.  For example: Take out a couple of items, close dryer door and let remaining items spin on de-wrinkle cycle while you hang up the 2 items and repeat until dryer is empty and everything has been hung up or folded.

COMPLETE THE JOB:

Laundry isn't DONE until everything is put away.

Key points for the laundry routine are:

1. Pre-sort
2. Wash a load every day
3. Take action as soon as the dry cycle is done and "complete" the job by delivering the items to their appropriate location.

I hope this is helpful - if you have any specific questions about our laundry routine, please let me know. 

Special thanks to my "proofreader" - Taylor Claiborne-Calderon.

Household Routines

Reflecting on our 41st wedding anniversary, many memories have come to mind.  There were things we planned for, such as: our wedding day, the birth of Casey after we had been married 5 years, then Taylor's birth almost 6 years later.  There were also many unexpected turns in our journey and things that did NOT go according to plan.

Married at 18, I naively expected to work until we had our first child, then be a stay at home Mom. However, that wasn't in Gods plan for me and I've worked outside the home our entire marriage with only a few weeks off after the birth of each child.

Running our household, as a full time career woman, wife and mother of two relied heavily on organizational skills and performing certain household chores/activities on a set schedule.  The  past year via reading blogs, posts, books etc - I see that many people identify these scheduled activities as  "routines" and that evidently they don't come easily to everyone.

Thinking through the routines relied upon throughout my marriage and the ones adapted over the past 3 years when our empty nest needed to be shared with our 92 year old mother in law -I wondered if sharing what has worked in our home might be helpful to someone for whom those routines haven't yet been learned or established.

As these routines are shared via a series of posts, please feel free to chime in with your tips and ideas.   We all need to help each other throughout this time.  I'm a firm believer that if you make your home as orderly as possible, it helps add an element of peace and calm that we all need right now!

Stay tuned for the first post...  Laundry Routine.



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Day Two - Dallas Home Care Conference

Day Two

April 23, 2014

As a Home Health Administrator, I get the opportunity once per year to attend the Texas Association of Home Care conference.  We are required to get “educational hours” and this conference fulfills that requirement for me. 

The past two years, since Robbie has worked at Campbell Custom Homes, I’ve had to attend by myself so that he doesn’t’ have to waste his vacation days sitting in a hotel room waiting for me.  I look forward to this trip by myself, thinking about how I’m going to shop alone, eat whatever I want, lie around and read or watch movies with no responsibility for anything else, except some “me time”.

It never seems to work out quit that way!  First of all, if it’s a work day for our staff, there are problems that have to be addressed, so I get texts or emails that interrupt my solitude and remind me that I have very real responsibilities.  Secondly it seems like one or both of my children always have some type of a crisis I need to validate.  This time it’s Taylor – she is 2.5 weeks from college graduation and she is overwhelmed with the projects she is trying to finish up and the fact that her student loan money has just about run out…I think she has about $ 60 left to last for 3 more weeks.  Secondly, it’s lonely!  I don’t really like driving by myself, eating by myself, even being in the hotel room alone is lonely.  After 35 years of marriage, I’m used to having Robbie around – he usually let’s me do my own thing, while he does his and spends just the right amount of time with me so that we enjoy each others company without getting on each others nerves.

Also….there never seems to be anything good on the hotel television.  Robbie always finds Sports to watch and I gripe because I don’t get to watch anything….but really there is nothing but Sports and News on this TV!  I thought I would watch a movie….not at these prices….. $ 14.00 to watch a movie in my room – my goodness….I could go to a local theater and have popcorn and a drink for that price!

On a positive note - I have learned a lot and met some interesting people who share my concerns and victories about our healthcare careers.  Being away from home always makes me grateful for what I have.  I have a wonderful husband to go home to tomorrow, two dogs that love me, a nice home, a job that is stressful, but rewarding and most importantly, hometowns in which I don’t get lost and don’t’ have to deal with traffic!

Day One

I’ve always wanted to be a writer.  While watching one of my idols, “Pioneer Woman”, this morning, I decided writing a blog might be a great way for me to get started and see if I have what it takes to write something that would actually be interesting to others.  I hope what I write can be of support or inspiration to you.

This is Easter weekend.  Our office was closed on Friday, but for a Home Health Administrator it doesn’t end there.  Friday began with phone calls from the DON, correspondence with my alternate Administrator and overall worry throughout the weekend about the various problems that come with the day to day operations of running an agency.  But today is a big day for my husband of 35 years, Robbie, and I’ve got to try and put that behind me and get on with our plans.

Robbie has a 55 Ford F100 that he purchased from his Grandfather in 1980.  The truck was all original, had very few miles on it, and still had a great paint job, even though paint color was the light turquoise popular with this model that Robbie detested!  He began work on the truck to bring it up to current standards and someday paint it and make it a show truck. We envisioned our weekends spent going to car shows and hanging out with the other antique car/truck lovers.   That was 34 years ago…..and we still aren’t there yet.  Granted, he did take about a 28 year break, while we raised our two children.  Casey, now 28, and Taylor, 23. 

The Truck has been in the shop for several months having some of the major underbody of the truck re-done, before he could finish the interior and have it painted.  New Electrical system, new brakes and brake lines, work on the carburetor, new steering column and all new dashboard controls and a lowering kit.  The work was complete and Good Friday was the day we were to try and pick it up in Van, Texas, appx 45 minutes away.  Robbie was nervous about driving the truck home from that distance.  As far as we know, his grandfather never drove it more than a 30 mile drive to Palestine from Jacksonville.

Upon arrival, the shop Owner, TJ, started the truck and began showing Robbie all the work that had been done.  They tinkered with some hoses and explained about things Robbie would need to do pretty soon, such as add a cover for the new fuel tank, now installed under the bed of the truck that had left a hole in the bed.  The truck seemed to run well and Robbie loved the stance of the truck, it was now so low, that Robbie’s head is above the cab when standing beside it….Just the way he wanted!  Although the motor was not part of what they actually worked on, there was concern and discussion that the old motor was not going to hold up and would have to be replaced soon.  Although TJ and his crew had given the truck a test drive around the shop, they didn’t’ get above 20 mph.  They were impressed that the engine seemed to be holding up so well, oil pressure seemed to be good etc.  During their hour long discussion, Robbie shared stories about the truck, such as the fact that his Grandfather used to use a touchup paintbrush to cover up any little scratches he got in the bed of the truck while hauling the famous Jacksonville Tomatoes he grew on his Antioch Farm to the Jacksonville market.

As Robbie shares stories with the shop staff, I’m having a nice visit with TJ’s wife, Emily, – we have conversed over the phone as payments were made over the past few months, but had never met in person.  We find out we’ve got something in common, she was a former marketer for a Home Health agency.  We discuss the current status of home health, regulations etc and then get on the subject of how TJ started his business and how she got involved.  Three years ago they built this new shop and built their home above the business.  Now they are adding on to the business by building a small café and game room.  They also hope to host birthday parties and events there.  She talks about how owning their own business can be stressful, but it’s a different kind of stress than working for someone else.  I share with her that Robbie and I have always longed to start our own business together, but could never agree on what kind of business to start.

It’s finally the moment of truth as we make our last payment and head down the road.  A quick stop at the corner convenience store for gas and we are on our way…..well…..we made it at least 1 block.  I’m driving behind Robbie and he whips the truck into a store driveway, gets out looking @ the truck and shaking his head.  Uh Oh….this does not look good.  I get out and cautiously walk up to the truck.  Robbie says that the oil pressure ceased to register when he got the truck up to 50 mph – after revving the engine and thinking for awhile we head back to TJ’s shop, I can see the disappointment on his face.   Diagnosis is that the truck needs a new engine.  TJ can order the engine, but cannot put it in.  Decisions need to be made as to how to handle this.  Robbie decides to leave the truck behind and head back home.  Always the optimist, I try to tell him that we should be thankful that the problem occurred within a block of the shop and not while we are out on Interstate 20.  He reluctantly agrees.

On the ride home, I broach the subject of our dream to start our own business.  Our daughter graduates from college in 3 weeks and we’ve discussed my desire to retire from Home Health and start a business.  Her graduation was a goal date I had in mind, since we won’t require as much income as we did while supporting her through school.  He is still open to the idea, he has a stressful job as well, working as a building superintendant for a local home builder.  As we discuss various ideas – I see that we are still not on the same page – Robbie wants a job where he can sit home in his underwear and do something over the internet and doesn’t have to see people.  I want a job where I do work with people, perhaps something providing a service.

I am a Christian and believe that God has a plan.  I believe he allowed Emily and I to share this conversation today, to inspire me to get busy on our dreams.  Tonight I will go to bed with a prayer on my lips that God will open my eyes and bring to the forefront of my mind an idea that could be the answer to the desires of our heart.   Stay Tuned!