Operation Clean-Out Kid's Edition

My children looked at me like I was nuts when I eagerly told them about our weekend plans of clearing out the drawers in the kitchen.  One went so far as to say to me that I was ruining a perfectly beautiful day and God would be mad.  I told them that we are setting the timer and no one will work longer than thirty minutes.  "If we hustle we can get it done," was my battle cry.  They weren't buying it (not even Luke who lives to organize).

I assigned the drawers and told them that they could start theirs whenever they wanted but it had to be done before 7 p.m. Sunday night.  I knew that the procrastinators would run for the hills and the two that hate to have things on their to do list would jump right in.  Annelise went with the youth group to Alexandria for the day.  Her drawers (the worst) would have to wait until the deadline anyway.

A wonderful thing happened when those drawers started getting clean out.  We became super heroes of the cleaning world.  The procrastinators started cleaning up in other areas of the house just to avoid the drawers. Trust me, I was not complaining.  The organizers got excited about the job ahead.  The first two drawers took two minutes and that was with Sam's help!  Those two drawers are always neat.  They house Ziploc bags and aluminum foil.  We took everything out then let Sam vacuum them.  He was satisfied with his job and decided to watch TV instead of help (Hallelujah).  The rest of drawers took a little more time and we ended up working together to get them done.  We didn't even need Annelise and I am sure she is happy about that.

Now that the kitchen is clean, I feel lighter and more energized.  All that stuff has a way of weighing a person down without them even knowing it.  I am looking forward to completing the rest of the projects.  Next week I am focusing on the bathrooms (Monday-Wednesday), dining and foyer (Thursday), and the living room (Friday).  The week after will be the dreaded toys!

Oh, if anyone is interested in cabinet pulls from 1978 or expired coupons dating back to 2002, let me know.  I can hook you up.