Weekly Apartment Cleaning Routine

We're talking about a super exciting topic today you guys... cleaning!

As much as I whine and complain about cleaning once a week I absolutely love having a clean house. Since we are in an apartment currently the cleaning isn't too overwhelming but it does take me a good chunk of time every weekend.  Today I'm going to talk about the process I use to clean each week and the products I use to get my home squeaky clean. 

I always start in the back of our apartment and work my way towards the front. I've found that staying in one room and completing it before moving to the next keeps me focused. I try to move quickly and not get distracted by things that need to be organized. If I allow myself to go crazy I will keep finding new things to organized and tidy, this is just about cleaning. 

So lets get started in our bedroom!

The first thing I do every weekend is bring my laundry to the laundromat and recycling to the recycling center.  I like to get all my laundry done first so I can fold and put away all clothes and know that it is completely out of the way before I start scrubbing.

Once all the laundry is put away I make sure our bed is made with fresh sheets. Then I dust all of the furniture and vacuum the floors. Our bedroom is pretty easy to maintain and requires minimal cleaning each week because we keep it pretty simple. Remember that if you have less stuff out on your surfaces that will mean you will have less stuff to dust. 

Our second bedroom is pretty simple to clean as well, just a quick dusting of the nightstand and dresser and a vacuum of the floor and this room is clean. We mostly store paper goods in here and keep our laundry baskets in here. I won't show you the closet though because right now I think of it as my Monica closet. (Any Friends lovers out there?)

Our bathroom is pretty small so I can clean it pretty quickly. The first thing I do is spray down the entire toilet in my bathroom spray and then use toilet bowl cleaner to clean up the inside of the bowl. 

I then move onto the sink and wipe everything down with a bathroom spray and sponge. Once my sink area is complete I go back back to the toilet and finish wiping everything down. I always use paper towels for the toilet since I feel it's a little cleaner. 

I move on to the shower next and use a shower spray and sponge to wipe everything down. Once everything has been wiped down I pull everything the rug, trash can and scale out so I can vacuum and mop the floor. Once everything is dry I put everything back in and it stays clean for approximately five minutes... ;)

I do try to tidy a bit in this area in addition to cleaning. My desk area tends to collect piles pretty easily and my makeup area turns into quite a mess quickly. I try to put things away while I'm cleaning so not too much is out on the surface. I don't like to look at clutter and prefer my surfaces to be clear. After I put things away where they belong I use my multi-purpose spray and a rag to wipe down everything on both sides. Then I vacuum and mop the area so it looks squeaky clean.

Cleaning the kitchen always starts off with taking out the trash and washing the dishes. Once that's complete I clean the sink and wipe down all the counters and the stove top. At least once a week I make sure I wipe down all the burners as well. I wipe out the microwave and make sure I clean the top of it as well as underneath. I move the rug and trash can out so I can vacuum and mop the area. I make sure to include the entry way as well when I'm doing this.

My last room is my favorite room, our living room. I clear off all surfaces and then wipe everything down. Once I'm done dusting I vacuum everything, including the couch and fluff the pillows so everything is picture perfect.

Here are the tools I like to use when I clean...

Dyson Ball Multifloor Canister Vacuum

This may have been one of the best purchases I've ever made. I absolutely love my Dyson! It's lightweight, easy to move around and comes with a ton of attachments. It's also extremely easy to clean which is great because who doesn't want their cleaning tools to be clean?

Libman Mop

This is a mop I picked up in Target and it's worked wonders! I use this every week and it keeps our floors looking shiny!

Method All Purpose Spray

I love my Method All Purpose spray and lately I've been loving this Ocean Waves scent which is a limited edition. I also like the cucumber but I think I need to stock up on this Ocean Waves scent while it's out!

Dawn Dish Soap

I'm not picky with my dish soap but I do love Dawn, particularly their New Zealand scent!

Tide Pods

These make doing laundry super easy!

Bounce Dryer Sheets

These are always musts when I do our laundry.

Purex Crystals

These are a new favorite of mine and our laundry smells amazing when I use them!

Clorox Toilet Bowl Cleaner

I have yet to find any toilet bowl cleaner that works as well as this does. 

Method Bathroom Cleaner

This cleaner is natural and still works great!

Method Every Day Shower Spray

I use this after every shower without fail!

I'm sure I've left something out, but you guys get the idea! 

What does your cleaning routine look like? What are some of your favorite products?

Tim's Basket

Recently I purchased something small that has made a huge difference in our living room. Tim likes to leave his stuff all over the coffee table and it drives me crazy. So I went to Target and picked up a basket to hold all of his "important items"

This way all his stuff is easily accessible but it's out of my line of sight. I love the dark color of this basket as well I think it's so pretty.

Tim was excited to have his own basket too because now there is a place he can store all his stuff. I don't like to have a ton of stuff out on the table so when he leaves out papers or anything else I can just toss it in this basket and he knows where he can find it.

Simplicity is a million times better then clutter. Look how peaceful it is without clutter :)

April Empties and Declutter

I finished up a few products this month and decluttered a bunch as well so I figured it was time for a monthly update!

Here are all my empties:

I finished up quite a few products for just one month. I seemed to be at the tail end of quite a few things.

For laundry products I finished a bag of Tide Pods with Downy, a container of Purex laundry detergent, and a container of Purex Crystals. I have been using the Tide Pods and Purex Crystals with every wash and the Purex was my backup.

I finished one candle this month which was Birthday Cake which I picked up in Home Goods last summer. I did like it, but it definitely smelt better in the container then it did while it was burning. I will not be repurchasing it in the future. I finished a small bottle of Dawn dish soap. I'm not picky about which one I use but I kept picking up the green one because Tim loves the color green and that's the one he picks. I will keep getting it because I love Dawn, it works great. I finished two hand soaps from Bath and Body Works. The first is Fresh Sparkling Snow which is my new favorite winter scent. I loved this soap and I will 100% be repurchasing it next winter. Vanilla Bean Noel is a good staple but I don't love it like I love Fresh Sparkling Snow. Tim really loved the scent though so it will be something I repurchase in the future for him :)

I thought the CHI Iron Guard was okay. It definitely got the job done but isn't my favorite hair protectant. I may buy it again in the future but I am trying different ones to find one that I love. I finished a mini Careone nail polish remover which was nothing special, I'm not picky about my nail polish remover. I also finished a body spray from Victorias Secret which was in the scent Vanilla Lace. This was a nice spray that I received in a gift set but is not something I will repurchase in the future. The scent was light and sweet and definitely up my ally but I much prefer a perfume to a body spray.

I love all Skintimate shave gels. This scent raspberry rain is great and works really well. I will keep repurchasing Skintimate shave gels especially when I get them from couponing. The Bath and Body Works Ultra Shea cream I finished is in the scent Fresh Sparkling Snow. I am so glad I have a backup of this because I literally squeezed out every last bit I loved it so much! I am a huge fan of this scent and will be stocking up like crazy next year. (I pray they bring it back!) Another Bath and Body Works product I finished up is a shower gel in the scent in Be Enchanted. I really liked this scent as well it's a really sweet scent but smells great and is something I would definitely repurchase in the future. I also love to get these small bottles when I have a freebie coupon because shower gel is something I like to change up often and having these small bottles allows me to finish one entirely before moving onto another scent.

I used up two mascaras; the first is Loreal Telescopic which is an old favorite. The wand on this was actually super annoying and kind of broken when I first pulled it out so I did the best I could but it was super annoying. I do love how thin and tiny the wand is and how dry the mascara is so it doesn't make my lashes super wet and clumpy. I also finished an Arrow Endure Mascara which I believe came from a Birchbox. I found this wand to be too big and the formula was too wet, not something I would purchase in the future. I also used up two Cake Batter Chapsticks which I will keep repurchasing because it is my number one most used product!

And here are all the products I decluttered...

I'm not going to review every product because I honestly didn't give any of them a really good chance. I am tossing the concealers because they are old and wrong colors for me and I will never use them. The face products are expired and I've had them so long that they aren't worth using any more. The highlight is the wrong color for my skin, the oil is something I would never put on my skin, the blush is wayyyyy too red. The insect repellant needs to be replaced since I purchased it over a year ago. Finally all the eyeliners I'm tossing because I prefer more of a crayon liner not a pencil and also I will never wear purple...I just won't.

So say goodbye to all those products! I can't believe how much I finished up and got rid of this month. I will be sharing more at the end of May I'm sure since I am working on finishing up as much as possible and am still working on my no buy!

Kai Bar and The Treehouse Tavern and Bistro

This past weekend we visited two local restaurants I wanted to share with you guys.

On Saturday night we met up with Tim's cousin Derek and his girlfriend Ally to get drinks at a bar on Main Street in East Greenwich. 

Kai Bar is in a little building on Main Street and has a beach vibe from the second you walk inside. I was completely in my element. We each had two drinks and both of mine were very different. The colada I had as my second drink had cream in it so I ended up not being able to finish it because it was so heavy compared to everything I've been used to drinking lately. Everyone kept saying that their drinks were super strong though which is always a good thing!

Image from here 

Then on Sunday morning we went to The Treehouse Tavern and Bistro in Warwick for brunch. 

This treehouse is located outside, but the inside was even cooler. It was very eclectic and if you are ever in the area you definitely need to check it out. There were so many decorations I found myself distracted and looking around constantly. The brunch was also delicious and I ate my bacon and cheddar omelette, rosemary potatoes, and toast quickly. Everyone else had a drink with breakfast while I enjoyed some tea. I would definitely go back to this restaurant in the future because it was so different!

What new restaurants or bars have you tried out lately?

Two Years

Today Tim and I have been together for TWO years!

Two years ago today we met at the Mews Tavern for dinner and drinks and stayed there talking for five hours. Then we never stopped talking...

Tim, I love you so much and am so lucky that I have someone as wonderful as you in my life. I can't wait to see what our future holds!

Easter Weekend and Crazy Times At Work

Oh my goodness! Long time no chat. Things have been a little crazy around here. We did a computer conversion at work which honestly was more like a down-grade so the past two weeks have been absolutely terrible at work. Since I've been bogged down at work and been working a lot of hours this blog has kind've fallen to the wayside. 

So lets start this off with Emma taking over my job so I can have some time to blog....

A couple weeks ago Tim and I walked in a 4 mile MS walk in support of one of my co-workers Carolyn.

It was a beautiful day for a walk especially down by the water!

We also had the chance to hang out with two of our favorite babies that same day.

Emma was a little crazier then Tilly- what a difference a year makes. It's so funny to watch them together and know they'll grow up being friends.

After a long week at work (including until 9pm on Friday night and most of the day on Saturday) we went to a couples night at Tim's sisters house.

And on Sunday celebrated Easter with my family and then with Tim's family.

Also, look what happened to my cabinet this week...

We heard a loud pop and this happened!

Hopefully we will be getting some replacement glass soon....it was so weird how it happened!

A long frustrating couple of weeks....but tomorrow is Friday...and at least it's spring!

March Empties and Declutter

Happy Monday! I decided to do a monthly empties post instead of holding onto my beauty trash any longer. I also went though my makeup and was able to declutter quite a bit so my bin was looking pretty full!

I went though 26 beauty and home products this month! I feel like that is quite a bit for just one month so maybe I was just lucky and was at the tail end of a lot of products. 

The first category is hair products...

I only had a little bit left of my Head and Shoulders 2 in 1 so I just finished it up. I didn't use this super often because it was just okay. I didn't feel like my hair was getting super moisturized but I always feel like this is great for my dry scalp. The Macadamia Hair Mask is my all-time favorite hair product and is always in my empties posts. It makes my hair so soft no matter I do to it and I will continue purchasing this. The No4 Shampoo and Conditioner samples were just okay. I thought they smelt like they were meant for guys which I didn't love and wasn't super moisturizing or great. I'm glad this sample is gone!

I finished up one soap this month. Bath and Body Works Winter Candy Apple was great. The smell was awesome and I love Bath and Body Works soaps. I know it's no longer winter but I've been trying to finish up some of the Christmas soaps because I have so many soaps stockpiled right now.

For shower and bath products I have four empties to show you. The Body Shop scrub was decent. I liked the smell but didn't think the scrub was super great. This was something I picked up at Marshalls on a whim but I think I've satisfied my curiosity for The Body Shop scrubs with this product. I finished two Not Soap Radio shower gels; one in green and one in clear. I am officially all done with these mini samples! Lastly was a sample of bubble bath from Fortune Cookie Soap. I liked this but didn't love it. I am intrigued by other Fortune Cookie Soap products though!

I finished up two body lotions in March. The small hand lotion in Endless Weekend was awesome and I used it religiously at work. I love these small hand lotions for on the go or places like work where I don't want bulky packaging. I would repurchase this scent and the hand lotions in the future. Wild Madagascar Vanilla was also great but I don't think it will be one I repurchase in the future because there are scents that I like much better.

For personal care I used a Dove deodorant, Sensodyne toothpaste, and Origins Check and Balances Face Wash. The Dove deodorant is great and I would consider repurchasing although I am trying to stick with natural deodorants. I have already repurchased the toothpaste since Sensodyne is all I really use. The Origins face wash is something I was super intrigued in and I found that it worked really well. I don't know that I would purchase a full size of it because I am loving the product I am currently using but we shall see!

Two cleaning products and two dish soaps were finished up this month. The Method All Purpose Cleaner in Apple was amazing. I believe it was seasonal scent back in the fall but if I see it again this year I will definitely purchase it. I use Method All Purpose cleaner for everything from the kitchen counters to the bookshelves. It works well at dusting and cleaning and is natural which is a huge plus! I also finished up the Method Daily Shower Spray. I use this after I shower and spray it over all the walls and the shower curtain to keep things clean in between full shower scrubs. I have already repurchased it and will keep doing so! I used two dish soaps one by Dawn and one by Palmolive. I just use whatever I can get a deal on so I'm not too picky!

For makeup products I had a few empties as well. The Alba Botanica Makeup Wipes were great! This little pack was super cheap when I got it from Marshalls but I would definitely repurchase these again because they worked well and didn't hurt my skin or eyes. The Diorshow Mascara Primer is such an amazing product and I keep repurchasing it because it makes my lashes so long and full. I have yet to buy a new one but my next Sephora order will definitely include one. The Benefit Gimme Brow was just okay and seemed to be a little dark for my brows. I will not repurchase this in the future. I also used up four Cake Batter Chapsticks which you know I've already purchased more of!

Lastly a product I forgot to include in my original picture. I have been using Tide Pods for all my laundry and find them so easy and convenient. I will keep repurchasing them and hopefully stockpiling them for super cheap when possible. 

I also mentioned that I had decluttered quite a few items this month.

I sorted through my makeup and I was super picky about what I kept. I know I still have way too much but here is what I'm getting rid of. The Maybelline Full Bloom Mascara was super wet and wasn't something I liked. The three Reese Witherspoon perfumes I've had for ten years and the scents were starting to change. I honestly have so much perfume that I could never finish all that I have so it was time to part with some. The Beauty Rush spray was something I've held onto for a long time which also is true for the Vanilla Berry and Tropical Spray from CVS. Thats six less sprays that I have in my collection. I am tossing three BB creams which are old and I never were able to really use. There are six eyeshadow palettes that I have used a little bit of but never was able to finish. There are also four lipsticks that I have never touched but I am finally saying goodbye to. That is twenty products that are out of my collection from my declutter!

So the final count for products gone in March is 46! 26 products emptied and 20 decluttered! I am proud of myself for getting this many items out of my collection and can't wait to see what I use up in April!