We have this crazy rule in our house that everything needs to be spic and span before we go on vacation. Without a doubt, I’m completely neurotic in the hours leading up to our walking out the door and transitioning in to vacation mode. Pre departure always starts out with the feeling of plenty of time to change the sheets, vacuum the floors, take out the trash, clean the refrigerator, rotate the laundry, empty the dishwasher, fluff the pillows, water the plants, and deodorize the toilets.
Ha! So much easier said than done.
On departure day we always wake up early, skip the coffee in bed, strip off the sheets and start a load of laundry. Those first 20 minutes we feel like we could conquer the world. We are so productive! We are cleaning and organizing machines! We are making great time! Somewhere after this initial 20 minutes of brilliance and 2 hours later we are at each others throats wondering why in the world we waited up NOW to clean the entire house. It’s not even like our house is dirty, but I have this uncontrollable need to make sure EVERYTHING is done before we go. I become obsessed with thinking we have time to do more – should we quickly clean the windows? Touch up the paint? Re-grout the tile?
The kids have learned to stay out of the way the final 20 minutes before we lock up and shove off. They know absolutely NO using the bathroom if the toilet is sparkly clean with blue-tinted water and no final snack that might leave a crumb on the counter.
You may think I’m crazy to go through such extremes when the goal is to chill out and slip in to vacation bliss as quickly as possible – and I completely understand that. But for me, after a fun-filled vacation I find returning home, walking in to a clean house and climbing in to my own bed with crisp clean sheets is the best way to top off time away from home.
Kari On and Keep Traveling
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