Quick Cleaning My House In 25 Minute Increments

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The past couple of weeks have been outrageously busy and the house has taken the brunt of the storm. So today I was determined to get some things done and tidy things up but I didn't want to spend the entire day cleaning house.

So I decided to set a 25 minute timer for myself several times throughout the day. That was I was working against the clock trying to get done as much as possible before I "had" to stop and do something else when the timer went off.

In my first increment I quick cleaned my bedroom and bathroom. Got most of the way done and boy did it feel a lot better in there. When I had a few spare minutes in a following 25 minute set I jumped in and finished up the bathroom countertop and mirror. I also gave my ring a good cleaning and washed my make up brushes. Something I don't do nearly often enough.

In my second 25 minutes, a couple of hours later, I cleaned the kitchen from top to bottom. I have always hated to clean the kitchen, surely something I developed when I was a kid. But I have learned in recent years, as I am cleaning the kitchen many more times a day than I ever have before, that it only takes a couple of minutes to do most things in the kitchen. Speeding through them with a good attitude surely makes it a more positive experience. It also helps to not have parents looking over your shoulder the entire time, ha-ha.

In the early evening I tackled the living room. Straightened everything, vacuumed and put things away. Another pretty easy chain of small tasks that can happen quickly and easily. And you see quick results when you straighten and fix up pillows on the sofa, clear off the coffee table and clean the floor. Looking good there now.

I got most of the house cleaned today but didn't feel like I spent the entire day cleaning. In fact I even had time for a nap and to watch a little TV and still got lots of things accomplished throughout the day. Sometimes breaking big tasks down into little tasks makes doing big chores much more pleasant and things get done more quickly. It would've been a miserable day if I'd consigned myself to cleaning all day and I likely wouldn't have gotten any more done than I did.

Do you have a system to make housecleaning a more positive experience? I love learning new ideas. Please share in the comments!

Recipes For The Summer Berry Season

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We have a good supply of berries in stores here in California for most of the year. In January and February the strawberry quality goes way down hill for a few weeks but we are so lucky to have easy access to beautiful, locally grown produce all year round. I have been enjoying summer meals which to me becomes very simple.

Lately we've been eating meals like chicken with strawberries, blueberries and grapes, or with a simple salad or fresh corn. Summer meals remind me so much of my childhood eating the bounty of the farm garden - MINUS the mountains of zucchini and yellow squash.

We had way too much squash when I was a kid and that fact that it grew cheap and easy and my Dad loved squash only made the appearance of it on the family dinner table more prevalent, it was almost nightly. Sigh. But I still remember happily waiting each summer for the fresh peas, green beans and corn to ripen and make their first appearances at dinner.

After making blueberry sauce for pancakes and waffles last week and fresh strawberry shortcake for dinner dessert recently, I have my eye on berry recipes and they seem to be everywhere right now. Here are a few favorites I thought I would share with you.

• Summer Berry Cake by Liz at Decor8

• 16 Summer Pie Recipes by Bon Appetit

• Puff Pancakes With Blueberries by Kadie at Barefoot and Baking

• Red, White and Blue Desserts by Martha Stewart from Delish (I like the trifle recipe)

Do you have a favorite berry recipe or dish you crave every summer? Hope you find something here that will be fun to make for your next gathering or to feed your next craving.