Bite Sized Cleaning

I basically have not done any housework other than laundry and dishes since my cataract surgery a month ago! Eek! Yesterday was a scorcher, so anti-procrastination Tuesday was just another day to procrastinate, lol. Today's lovely and cool, so I'm resolved to get something going here.

I propose to spend 5 minutes tidying up the bedroom, 10 minutes cleaning the bathroom, and 20 minutes (or as long as it takes) in the kitchen.

If anyone out there cares to join in, or simply cheer me on, that would be awesome! :-)

Are you joining the kitchen challenge today? Would you like to cheer on your fellow comm members? Read and comment here!

Here's a good challenge. Take 5-10-20 minutes a day between now and January 1st, to clean and organize your fridge/freezer/pantry. Most boxed and canned products are perfectly safe to eat past the date that's stamped on them, but they're not getting any fresher. Let's try to use some things up that have been lurking on the back of a pantry shelf for...well, you can't remember how long! Google for guidelines if you have any doubts about whether you should be eating or tossing what you find, but most things are safe and will taste perfectly fine.

Produce that's gone limp can sometimes be revived with an ice bath, or will be perfectly fine cooked in a dish. Even limp lettuce can be made into soup. I've taken radishes that looked disgusting, washed them, trimmed off any icky parts, and what was left lasted for weeks more. Test eggs by seeing if they sink or float when you lower them into a large bowl of water. The freshest ones sink completely, others may stand on end. If they float entirely, they probably should be tossed, to be safe.

Look at your leftovers. You know what to do if they're turning blue! But they're all deteriorating and losing flavor the longer they sit, so plan a leftover night. You'll clear up shelf space and avoid having to throw food away later.

Got a freezer full of meat? Find the oldest expiration dates and plan some meals around them. There might be some loss of flavor after a very long time in the freezer, but spices and herbs can compensate for that.

Half-empty bottle of salad dressing that says 'Best If Used By' 14 months ago? Yeah, it's safe to use, but it's just taking up space if no one is using it. Feel free to toss it.

To make this even more about cleaning, of course you can wipe down shelves/wash out bins as you go along! You bet! :-D

When 2014 rolls around, you'll have fewer items with 2012 expiration dates still lurking around, more room to bring in fresh food, and a better idea of what you have on hand that you want to be using up.

Ready, set, GO! And let us know what you're finding!

Hey, shall we kick off the week with a kitchen challenge? Because this mod totally needs one...

I need to wash dishes. I need to clean off a disgusting refrigerator shelf. I need to scrub my sink.

And, of course, I need to keep it bitesized! It's Sunday evening by me, so I'm going to tackle dishes tonight, and wait to scrub the sink after I put away the clean, dry dishes tomorrow morning. Also, I can clean that shelf tomorrow before I go grocery shopping.

What does your kitchen need from you? You can declutter a cabinet or a drawer, you can wipe the top of the refrigerator off, you can wash a window, you can empty the dishwasher (or fill it), soak a pan, take out the recycling, toss moldy food...

What's your challenge look like? :-)

Who left this mess in my kitchen?

Oh, yeah - that was me. It just seemed like too much effort last night. I even stopped to ask myself, "Wouldn't it be better to deal with it now than in the morning?" And...then I turned out the light and went up to bed.

So now I've been up for an hour and fifteen minutes, and I haven't been into the kitchen yet. But I have to face it sometime!

So I thought I'd see if I could drag some you along with me for the ride. :-)

My challenge to you is to find one, two, or three things that need doing in your kitchen, and see if you can't get them done! Anything at all. Wipe up a spill, rinse some recyclables, organize your spices, put a skillet to soak. One small thing, two big things -- whatever you have the time and spoons to do.

Of course, if your kitchen is already organized and spotless, you can pick a different room for this challenge. *g*

Let me know how it goes...

I'd like to challenge everyone to join me in taking care of some of those small matters in the kitchen that tend to get overlooked/postponed/ignored.

Does your soap dispenser/soap dish need a good wash? When the light shines at a certain angle, do you realize how smudged the outside of the microwave looks? Can you not even remember the last time you emptied the crumbs from the toaster and gave it a shine? Is it high time you took a toothbrush to your can opener and scrubbed off accumulated gunk?

In my case I owe the interior of my microwave a good cleaning, since I only gave it a lick and a promise when melted butter exploded inside it...a long time ago. *blushes* I also spilled something sticky over the contents of my refrigerator door shelves recently, and I'm getting pretty tired of being surprised every time I have to tug to pry a jar or bottle free, so I guess I should take care of that. *g*

So, as your spoons allow, I invite you to set your timers for 5/10/15 minutes and see what you can get done!

Let us know what you found in your kitchen that needed doing. :-)