Exhibit C: On our bedroom dresser 

OUR CLEANING SCHEDULE

• Make our bed 
• Load dishwasher (we unload every 2-3 days) 
• Wipe down kitchen counters - this is usually done right after I'm finished putting our dinner and the dishes away. I know the kitchen likely won't be touched for the rest of the night so I wipe everything down! 
• Pick up clothes and place in the laundry (my husband has this habit of just taking his clothes off when he gets home and leaving them around the house! He is getting better at putting it in the hamper though haha) 
• Tidy up living room - this is as simple as folding our throw blankets and rearranging the pillows, literally takes 30 seconds! 

• Laundry - I do the laundry when the hamper is full so you can see me really doing laundry at any day of the week! 
• Take out recycling - our recycling fills up pretty quickly. I don't like seeing trash overflow EVER so when it's full, I immediately take it out when I'm about to use the car and just make a stop by the recycling bins 
• Wipe bathroom counters - I leave Clorox wipes in the cabinets of each bathroom so that it's easy to wipe the counters when needed. If I see any kind of toothpaste or watermarks, I'll wipe the counters. 
• Wipe kitchen and bathroom floors - if I can see my hair on the floor I usually pick it up ASAP 
• Car wash / Vacuum 
• Wipe dining room table/coffee table 

• Take out the trash (in all bathrooms/rooms/kitchen) - Joe usually has more time on the weekends to help with chores, so this is when the trash is taken out :) 
• Vacuum - this is usually done Wednesday right before we meet for Bible study in our home! Sometimes, if we've had guests in our home I'll vacuum the day after they've left just to keep the home clean for the rest of the week. 
• Wash sheets 
• Clean mirrors (sometimes I see toothpaste on the mirrors and just clean them if they're dirty so this can technically file under "when needed") 
• Wipe toilet seats and toilet bowl 
• If applicable, air changes. We open the windows and let some fresh air into the apartment. 

• Wipe baseboards
• Deep clean fridge / pantry 
• Organize closet / purge 

MY CLEANING TRICKS

• Each major space has Clorox wipes tucked away. - all of our bathrooms, the living room, and the kitchen have their own Clorox wipes tucked away. Even my car has a stash of wipes. This way, I can easily access it and wipe a space clean in 10 seconds.
   
• Each bathroom has mirror cleaner and paper towels in the drawer - this way it's easy for me to keep my mirrors clean
   
• Air filter changes are scheduled in my calendar - We change our air filters every 3 months. It's scheduled in my calendar and since we live at an apartment complex, I can just schedule a maintenance request for it to be changed when it's time!
   
• I keep a stash of trash bags at the bottom of each trash bin - this is most applicable in our bathroom. We use the plastic bags from Walmart or Food Lion and use them as trash bags for our bathrooms. Keeping 4-5 bags at the bottom of the bin make it easy for me to change out the trash and very quickly replace it with a new trash bag!
   
• All cooking utensils are immediately washed - I don't even start cooking until the kitchen is clean so it's a rule that dishes are never left in the sink. I also organize my cooking so that I can periodically clean the pots and pans as they are used, this way the only thing to take care of after I eat is putting my dish away in the dishwasher. Sometimes, this doesn't happen when friends are over or when we're both too hungry.
   
• Fragrance Warmers - It's on my "to-do" list to change all our fragrance warmers into diffusers. But for the time being, we have fragrance warmers placed in various parts of our home. When it's time for a refresh or we are getting ready to entertain, I change all of the wax in these to keep our home smelling good!
   
• Minimalistic approach - The best way to keep your home clean is to simplify your spaces. For this reason, unless I am entertaining seriously my dining room table is bare and does not have any accessories or a tablescape on it. My coffee table is also completely bare (except for the occasional flowers!) There are no extra pillows on our bed, etc. We keep spaces simple, and it's easy to clean them! The same concept goes for our kitchen - only the items we use daily are left on the counters such as our coffee press, the toaster, etc. Everything else has a set place to be stored in!
   
• NO trash is left in the car EVER - Joe will attest to this, I don't care how tired we are but if there is trash in the car, it will be out by the end of the day. Either we will bring it in and place in our trash can or I will even drive to the trash bin before the end of the night to take all the trash out.
   

OCTOBER GOALS 

• Get plans together for my hubby’s birthday!
• Read two books 
• Make eye appointment 
• Complete decorating my office space at work 
• Reorganize linen closet 
• Visit a pumpkin patch 
• Bake something pumpkin themed 
• Work out 3-5x a week 

September sure has been a whirlwind! Joe got settled back into school and I got settled into working from home and getting used to being inside to avoid the heat of NC. September was filled with job interviews, getting back into the swing of bible study and small groups, etc. I did end up accepting a job offer (thank you for your prayers!) and for the final bang, Hurricane Florence decided to forecast as a Category 4 coming our way (Eastern NC).

Thankfully, the storm did not cause as much damage as we expected in our part of town but there are many towns near the coast that are suffering from massive flooding and damage. Now more than ever I am so grateful for the first responders and volunteers that are risking their lives to help others. Hopefully, this is the worst to come but I'm told that flooding could be another serious issue. Please keep praying for all the places hit by the Hurricane, they will surely be needed!


There's a little less than half of the month left, but I do like to try to keep my goals posted consistently on the blog so even if it is late, it's here! There's something powerful about having your goals written down, so I try to do this monthly.


EVENTS THIS MONTH:

-- No major planned events this month!


I’VE GOT MY EYES ON:

-- I have been watching "The 100" on Netflix while I cook, it is such a great show! If I were to give a summary, it would be about people in space coming down to earth to deal with different kinds of problems such as radiation, humans already inhabiting the earth, etc.

-- This Whole 30 Creamy Sun-Dried Tomato Baked Chicken. If you're new around here, you know that I love to cook. You can follow along with my cooking adventures here and see the recipes I'm trying out on my Jadore Food Pinterest board here!

-- I'm keeping my eyes peeled on the 2018 Fall Foliage report to plan a trip to the mountains with our friends.


WHAT I READ IN AUGUST:

-- The First 90 Days - it was a bit of a hard read for me to follow along with because the book caters to those trying to transition into a managerial position. But, I read this to prepare myself to transition to a new job this season! Definitely a book to keep in rotation for a "re-read".


AUGUST GOALS RECAP:

-- Somehow managed to completely skip posting my August Goals. I'll do better next time!


SEPTEMBER GOALS:

-- Get our home Fall ready! (see last year's Fall Tablescape here)

-- Start new job with a plan and goals set in place!

-- Bake something pumpkin themed

-- Go apple picking

-- Have dinner with a new couple

-- Get a new phone!

-- Finish Mastery Business System

-- Read two books

-- Work out at least 3x a week

-- Get back into Powersheets

-- Clean out my closet and start putting in Fall clothes (Pick out clothes to donate!)

-- Set up an office space (for me!)
Fall is right around the corner and I want to take advantage of the new season well! What are the goals that you've set for yourself this month? I'd love to hear what they are in the comments!