Spring is in the air...

About eight years ago I started to downsize. I lived in a two bedroom townhouse by myself. It had lots of storage space and was split level. I liked it but then I had to move. I decided I had too much to move, so it was there I started my downsizing out of necessity.

When I moved, I had gotten rid of my bed which was old, a lazy boy chair, my microwave and stand (I don't really like microwaves - it was a gift) and many other smaller items. I had wanted to buy a new bed so reasoned that I could get rid of the old one and buy a new one in my new place. I never did buy that new bed, but instead used my former futon couch for my bed. The mattress was comfortable, it was lighter to move and it was about the size of a double bed (perfect).

After I moved into a new small house, I was able to fit what I wanted in there even though it was much smaller. I traded out my big desk for another desk that was built up rather than across. While I lived in that little house, I became interested in tiny houses and decided I needed to downsize even more. I immediately went to work going through boxes in the back to determine their fates.

Ever since moving to a small house I seemed to be forever spring cleaning again due to necessity. I think I've gotten good at it, but there's always room for improvement, so I look forward to reading other Vocal writers' tips.

Each spring, I always started in the back room where I kept client files and other paperwork. Basically I'd go through the files and pick out the years I did not need to keep anymore. For tax purposes anything that is over six years can be shredded and along with that anything with personal information as well. Information that wasn't personal could just be put in the recycle bin. I always tried to keep important information together ie insurance policies for the home, vehicle, life, and critical illness. Nowadays with scanners readily available everything now can be kept digitally and reduce the files kept on hand. I've done this more recently so now don't have as many paper files to go through.

One of my next steps is clothing. Since we're doing spring cleaning, I find it easy to go through winter clothing and see what will be packed away, used as cleaning cloths or donated. I usually do this twice a year as well. I use the practice of separating any goods, not just clothing, into donations or discarding if I am no longer using.

All the winter bedding too gets washed and put away for the next year or else donated to the Humane Society. I'm sure many animal shelters accept bedding and old towels although I use my old towels as cleaning rags as well.

Generally I also wash walls, wash windows, clean blinds, clean the stove, clean the fridge (although that gets done more regularly than just spring cleaning) and clean out any parts of the house that maybe I normally would not get to on a regular weekly basis such as closets, inside the kitchen cabinets or other storage areas. I like to use extra hands for these chores and those extra hands in my case are my grandkids. Even if their job is not how you would do it, it's still better than nothing and mostly I just have to touch up. I usually treat them to some ice cream or polar pops or give them some money.

I prefer to use natural cleaners if I can and also make some of my own. There's an abundance of how to make your own cleaners on the internet. I like using tea tree oil plus I had bought a mixture from a farmer's market with lavender that I love. So whichever you prefer you can find them online or at a market or make your own. I like trying my own out. I use tea tree oil topically as well so it serves multiple purposes.

I like to also smudge my home to clear out any negative energies that may have hung around. I know many people probably would not do this step, but for me it adds the spiritual level of cleanliness for me. I always sleep well after a good smudge.

Next I move onto my deck as we live in a townhouse so no real yard to clean out, but I clean out my planters and get them ready for the season's flowers or herbs. I always liked gardening so being able to plant herbs and use them in cooking still gives me satisfaction. This year I will try to plant lettuce or spinach I think as well. When I do this in the fall, I like to plant some nice fall flowers outside until winter hits.

Finally I clean out my car and move out some of the winter gear and my winter blanket into the house. I always carry winter gear as well as a small candle, matches and snacks as our winters can be harsh. The blanket is my "always be prepared blanket" in case of an emergency but in the summer I find an extra jacket, a change of clothes and an old poncho are usually more appropriate. I do a lot of hiking in the summertime, so I still need something.

My timing on getting all this done depends on how long I can work on it per day and how much help I can get, but I start while it still has snow on the ground. Then after all this work, I think a nice outing to the mountains is a great reward!