I had a great Halloween. The look on my kids faces as they ran from house to house was pure joy… I have a new love for Halloween now that I’m a mother and I wish I could do it all over again tomorrow! What made this day even better was that it was shared with loved ones who had all come to see my little ones go trick or treating.

I gotta be honest though, I’m pooped. After making dinner and dessert, visiting with a house full of guests and taking my kids out to all our neighbours…I am exhausted. As my Mother-in-law was going home tonight, I sighed and complained about being tired and not wanting to do my nightly cleaning routine. Her response was “so don’t”.  To her, it probably seemed ridiculous to spend 20 minutes cleaning a house that already looked clean when all I really wanted to do was go to bed … I suppose that would seem crazy to any normal person, but to me, it is a critical part of my day.

Every single night, no matter how exhausted or even sick I am, I vacuum and spot mop my main living areas, windex the mirrors and tables, put everything away and wipe down the bathrooms.  There are hundreds of times I tell myself I would rather spend that half an hour watching television, working on a hobby or even sleeping. The truth is, by forcing myself to stay up that extra half an hour, I make sure my home never gets too dirty or messy or out of control. Would I enjoy an extra half an hour of sleep? Absolutely. Would I enjoy zoning out to some bad CSI rerun? Absolutely. Am I completely deranged and in need of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy? Absolutely.  But I gotta admit, there is nothing I enjoy more then waking up to a clean home every single morning….

Try it, just for a week. Set your timer and speed clean your main living areas for just 20 minutes each night before bed…by the end of the week, you’ll either be hooked, or convinced I’m insane!