A Dirty Lil' Secret

Mondays are one of my busiest days.

It's the designated day to clean bathrooms

and all the tile in the house.

Certain household tasks are assigned

certain days of the week.

It's just easier for me to remember that way.

With a focus on preparing our house

for the next person blessed enough to live here,

I am slowly working on cleaning, refreshing

and staging elements to bring wider appeal.

I know that one of the most important things

to perspective buyers is a clean house.

This ain't gonna cut it.

I've let it go too long and even though

the floors get mopped every week,

the grout in this light-colored tile

shows every speck of dirt.

Wow, it really got bad.

The responsibility lies mostly with me, 

as I rarely wear shoes

and bring in all kinds of dirt from outside.

Rather than pay someone to come in and clean the tile

with obnoxious harsh chemicals, I decided to try

an old favorite.  Vinegar and elbow grease.

I'm not one to advertise, but I've been using

Bon Ami for years.  My mom used it.

It's one of the few commercial products I buy,

as I make household cleansers

from baking soda, vinegar, and lemon juice.

Aside from being better for the environment,

my lil' guy is super sensitive to all kinds of things.

Using natural products just makes sense.

I always add some essential oil for a fresh, clean scent.

Spearmint is especially invigorating.

This is what happens from a sprinkling of limestone powder

and a bit of vinegar scrubbed with a toothbrush.

No, I'm not in the military, but it's the only thing

that can really get in there and do the job.

I think it'll be much easier to keep up now.

Pristine?  Far from it.

But it looks like it might be good enough

to get this house sold someday soon.

Mom would definitely approve.

Onto the hallway and laundryroom!