August 1st... work to get done, changing the fall cleaning routine.

 There are several projects that hasn't gotten done that needs knocked out this month. 

We won't be redoing the broken hoop house this fall but if I can figure something out I might get another round of lettuce and radishes planted.

Deck railing isn't done, nor is fixing the patio table from the storm damage.

The basement ramp is not done.

The kitchen porch is not done.

The tower is not up.

The gravel is not leveled out.

I have peaches to finish, blackberries, tomatoes, kale, dried beans, onions, potatoes and herbs to deal with this week. I need to make noodles for the pantry also.

I need to take the propane contract in and get that paid.

I need to call the ortho vet  to schedule Rascal to have his ACL checked.

I need to call the dentist that the Amish use here and see if they are taking new patients.

There is 150 things still on the punch list of things to do on this home. The list is 2 yrs old at the end of this month. It started over 1000. 

It's August... time I start fall cleaning and getting things around for winter. Which means I change my routine...only I don't have a routine since we moved here. It's been more of fly by the seat of my pants kind of thing. Which is now bothering not only me but Hubby. 

I usually just clean one room at a time for fall cleaning after weekly cleaning.... since I only get the daily done and not the weekly I googled and checked out housekeeping routines and deep cleaning.

During the 1950's the average time a stay at home woman spent cleaning the home was 42 hrs. Followed by 20 hrs of deep cleaning on top of 18 hrs dealing with meals. 

I added a few things to my daily. Changed the weekly and then worked on the deep cleaning. I ended up with 10 weeks with the acknowledgement it might be closer to 12. I don't see daughter 4 coming up to help as she just changed jobs. 

I made a menu of bfast, lunch and supper... I need to decide on snacks and desserts for this week. Tomorrow bfast is oatmeal. I placed it on the table. I can see Hubby grabbing toast as he is taking Wilbur to the vet at 6 am for surgery to remove a growth from his eye lid. They were going to do it over a week ago but his allergies kicked up and he had a nasty cough. Four days on steroids and it was gone but I kept him on them until they are gone as I know if I don't he will get the cough right back. Always does until middle of August. 

Deep cleaning schedule with decluttering/organizing included.

Week 1

Checking each room for needed repairs...do those repairs if we have what it takes to do so or put on buy list of what is needed to fix it.

Make list of things needed replaced or remove things not needed 

Week 2 

ALL cabinets and shelves...granted most in the pantry have already been done

Week 3

Closets (we don't have any but have 2 racks and 3 wardrobes) and knick knacks which actually belong to Mother and Daddy. 

Week 4

Kitchen, all refrigerators, and check freezers to make sure none need defrosted (usually a spring thing)

Week 5

Pantry and the entrance to the basement from the ramp commonly referred to as either the washer room (wringer washer is there) or the bucket room as all the buckets of food sit there .

Week 6 

Lights, windows inside and out , winter curtains washed and hung, summer curtains washed and put away

Week 7

Walls... I have 19 areas of walls. I divided them up as four rooms a day ... and this is the week that might extend the amount of weeks. 

Week 8

Floors...I have door rugs that will need cleaned.I am hoping to talk Son 2 into bringing his rug cleaner up and cleaning the door rugs and the upholstery furniture at the same time for me instead of just lending me the cleaner. 

Week 9 

Give the furniture a good polish . Wash winter furniture covers and throws and put them out, clean the summer ones and put them in storage. 

Week 10 

Clean out the garden shed and set up for seed starting in Jan and planting next spring. 

Week 11 

Start cleaning the barn which will take a very long time to go through LOL But got to start sometime

That puts starting on the barn mid Oct. Probably a good times as it's freaking hot in there since it's ALL metal. 

Do you do seasonal cleaning? Do you have a routine of daily or weekly cleaning?

Blessed be everyone

Changes

Daddy retired at 60 and invested $30,000...that was what was left of his pension he took a cash payout of over 30 yrs of work  after he paid for a car in cash and paid off his and step mom's mortgage. Three years later he had to pay $20,000 for medical bills for experimental treatment that didn't save my step mom. So Brother and I thinking that even with Daddy living frugal etc and we knew he bought a storage unit company then sold it( or so we thought) we were thinking maybe a couple thousand left in his accounts. The man made his living as a gambler when him and Mother got married. His finance guy said he still was when he died, just did it with the stock market instead and he WON. He still had stock in the storage company sold it but kept stock in it, that has a dividend that pays around 4%. Oh yeah Brother and I kept that stock. 

With that inheritance and thinking of being respective of Daddy and having to close his IRA's within 10 yrs due to the current law... We are changing the finances. I talked it over with Daddy's finance guy who was his financial guy for over 30 yrs. He thought it was a good plan.Our guy was still against us filing for SS before 67.UNTIL I told him that Daddy's nursing home cost $9,000 a month, a friends mother in law's assistant living was $12,000 a month. Its suggested that you should have over $100,000 back for medical after you take medicare along with any medigap to cover medical expenses those ins do not cover.He changed his tune.

What is the same... we are filing for SS at age 62...Hubby as soon as he gets a copy of his birth certificate as he didn't want to mail the original (can't take it in as we planned due to pandemic) as his birthday is Oct. I will file afterwards on him as I turn in Jan. IF the cut happens in 2035 in SS like they forecast it to be, we would lose over $11,000 a year so better now than later is our thoughts. PLUS it's money not coming out of our IRA.

Also the same... Hubby's business pays for those expenses  and the truck. He can earn up to a bit over $18,000 NET profit before it affects his SS benefit...The hauler making the most money around here is working 6 days a week 12-14 hrs a day (hubby is more part time) and his net profit is $16,000. All of his equipment is paid off and Hubby still has 6 yrs to pay on the truck. Six and 1/2 months out of 7 he broke even. Some people think that is horrible and he should quit... as long as he breaks even he is paying off that truck and it's not coming out of the IRAs. To us that is a win.

Difference is I will be pulling from Daddy's IRA and that money will go towards 2 loans against our life ins (from 2008 that we have been paying the interest only on the loans) and then extra to the mortgage.  We will pull from our IRA to cover what is left. Our SS together is close to what covers the bills now.

As we were looking at how bad it could get and what we want to do... I looked at Hubby and told him 2008... when he went to 3 days a week  for over 2 yrs and we lost the house we had for us and the old homestead the Daughter 2 was living in and she wasn't making enough to even cover her utilities let alone the rent.

What lesson did we learn then??? To have the pantry stocked (Daughter 4 , Son 2 and a friend kept food on the table and TP in the bathroom) to have a savings of 3-6 months and to have cash in small bills on hand.To grow a large garden and preserve it. 

We figured what we would have to pay on the mortgage to have it paid off in 10 yrs. that cuts off 18 yrs off the loan. Even it we get it paid off in 15 yrs that is still saving us money.

So we went out and finished stocking what we could find, ordered some stuff and I updated the stock list. The only NEED is the OTC med I use during the winter/spring to keep from getting problems with bronchitis. I would like more Lysol aerosol spray... I use a can a month during regular flu season... but it's no where to be found right now. I have Clorox so I can make my own wipes. I stocked borax, washing soda, castile soap for general cleaning also. I do have Lysol and Mr Clean to clean with also. 

Our normal go to on stocking is 1 yr. But since I also bought dried beans (I can't grow enough)... I am going to focus on going 2 yrs.except for canning garden. We will see how this one rolls.