April, May, and June are come and gone, and you still haven’t cleaned out the garage, re-organized your closets, or washed the outside windows. You might be tempted to skip spring cleaning this year and try again next April, but don’t give into the temptation.
Let’s be real: unless you happen to be one of those amazing super moms who gets everything finished on schedule and in the correct season, chances are likely that your spring cleaning is more of a summer cleaning or even a fall cleaning. That’s how things work around this household!
Spring cleaning isn’t just for the early spring months. It has its benefits all year round, and so there is no time like the present to put those cleaning skills to good use.
Here are a few reasons you should set aside an upcoming Saturday now and buckle down and get to cleaning – even if it is the middle of summer.
Reason 1: Allows You to Take More Time
When you actually do your spring cleaning in the spring, you have to set aside a weekend or two to get everything done. During summer, school is out, the kids will be home to help, and you can scrub your windows and tidy the garage in the middle of the week if that’s when you have time. If you work, your boss will be understanding if you want to take a “summer break” to clean out the garage.
You might feel pressure during the spring to get everything done as quickly as possible, but you can take your time during the summer. Sure, the kids will have summer sports or swim lessons, and you’ll still have to run errands and put dinner on the table. Without school to worry about, however, you’ll have extra helping hands and long months of good weather to get it all done.
Reason 2: Reduces Summer Allergens
Spring might be the beginning of allergy season, but summer can be even worse. Dust and mold that has collected from the winter months can wreak havoc with your allergies no matter what season it is. Once you’ve swept out the garage, cleaned out the attic, and reorganized the closets, your allergies will be relieved significantly. So even if you did your spring cleaning in April or May, feel free to clean again when summer hits if your allergies start acting up again.
Reason 3: Relieves Stress
Clutter is one of the leading causes of stress in our culture today. Spring cleaning isn’t just putting things away and scrubbing surfaces down—it’s getting rid of all of your unnecessary and unwanted possessions that have accumulated all year.
Work through one room at a time. Have the kids go through their own rooms and collect clothes, toys, and old school projects they no longer want and put them in a big pile out in the garage or spare room. Then go through and sort it into separate piles for the dump, thrift store donations, or a storage unit. Finding a self-storage unit that can hold all the “stuff” you’re not quite ready to get rid of can be a huge stress reliever.
Reason 4: Accommodates Yard Sales
Why not make a little money while you clean and reorganize? Summer is the perfect time for a yard sale—people will be out enjoying the weather, and you’ll be less likely to get rained out than if you held one in spring.
Kids will love helping out with a yard sale, too; you won’t have to do all the work alone. Consider having lemonade or cold water in your garage or under an awning for your customers to enjoy, and be sure to advertise it around the neighborhood during the week leading up to the sale. Whatever you don’t sell can be donated to Goodwill or thrown away.
Set aside the money you made for a summer day-trip with the kids or a household project you’ve been wanting to do and congratulate yourself on summer cleaning well done.
Reason 5: Allows For Organization
Summer cleaning is all about reorganizing. Enjoy this part! Reorganizing closets and cabinets that are free of junk and unusable items is stimulating, rewarding, and even addicting. Seeing a clean, organized closet that used to be full of winter odds and ends will give you the energy and motivation to get the same result in the rest of your home.
Reorganizing isn’t just for closets and cupboards. Try rearranging your living room furniture or your kids’ bedrooms just to liven things up. Summer is all about new beginnings—reorganizing adds a “new home” to your new garden, new exercise program, and all of your kids’ new summer activities.
Spring cleaning isn’t just for spring. It’s never too late to start, and you might even enjoy yourself more if you wait until the lazier summer weeks to get it all done.
