We have one of those?

This was Noah's excited question when I mentioned I needed to mop the floor today. And he quickly followed up with "I've always wanted to try doing that". Hearing his words brought forth a flood of feelings and thoughts...first thought was "how sad that my son has never seen me mopping".In my defense it isn't because I never do, but because I usually mop the floors at night while the kids are sleeping (and I admit I should do it more often than I do). The next thought was "wow,here's another opportunity for child labor" I am more than happy for him to try his hand at mopping. He's become pretty good at sweeping and great at vacuuming so mopping would the next step, right?

Since returning from our trip and dealing with several weeks of illnesses, I have to admit that our house has become a pretty big mess. At the library yesterday I picked up a book that I hoped would motivate me to get back on track (ie clear more than a pathway through the room formerly known as our living room but currently used as a dumping grounds for laundry, legos, and crumbs). The book seemed to be yelling to me from the shelf...how could I ignore the title "For Busy Moms, How to Clean Your Home Fast" ?

I quickly browsed through the book last night and I have to give the author credit. She has been able to market a technique for cleaning that I ( and surely other moms, too!) are very familiar with...the frantically run through the house stashing all clutter into closets, laundry baskets, and under beds (ok she doesn't advocate the under bed part, but it has been known to happen here). She calls it the "8 minute Emergency Cleaning Plan" which is put into place when someone calls to say they'd like to drop by. And she even has a 5 minute plan for "extreme emergencies" (like when the doorbell rings unexpectedly. She recommends three important steps (these made me laugh):

1) Drag out the vacuum cleaner and place in
middle of the living room
2) Squirt furniture polish into the
air
3) Put the can of furniture polish and a
semi-clean rag in the middle of the coffee table

When guests arrive, act happy to see them. Then
say "I apologize for my messy house, but I was just getting ready to clean".
(p.148)

I am committed to getting our house back in shape (beyond the emergency cleaning plans discussed above). Headed right now to show Noah what a mop looks like!