Spring is Here!

      I'm so happy spring is here. The warmer weather is amazing and I'm finally able to open the doors and windows.
 
      Spring also means cleaning. Yes, lots of cleaning. This woman has been busy.

      Remember how I mentioned Gary and I were taking Saturdays to tackle specific rooms and areas? Well, we managed to clean out the walk-in closet in the bedroom, the deck, and the storage closet on the deck. After that, we stopped doing the deep Saturday cleanings- just kind of forgot, really. Well, I've had some spare time on my hands since I've reduced my work hours, so I've been getting busy myself!

     Friday, I decided to start in the bedroom itself. I really should have taken before pictures, but whatever. The biggest project was the bookshelf- which was cluttered. It's become a habit to toss other things on there. But I cleared it out, alphabetized the books by author and also separated them by subject. I cleaned out all the junk in the bedroom and made it look fresh and brand new. This included a lot of garbage bags- it's amazing how much junk can pile up. 

Now you can see my books- some are really old! And some I plan to get rid of and add to the Goodwill bag soon.

     From there, I moved my way down the hall and stopped at the bathroom. I deep cleaned the floor, walls, shower, medicine cabinet, toilet (though I clean that almost daily) and cleared out and organized any storage areas. Spotless! My next big task was the hallway closet. Oh, boy. That's where we really put junk. This task took the longest of all, filling up 4-5 garbage bags and 2 piles of boxes. It was crazy. But, in the end, it was done and organized. Phew! I moved on to the living room and clean/organized it as well. I decided to stop from there since the entire cleaning process took 5 hours. 

Cleaner living area

Cleaned up the video game area- though he keeps his games really organized and clean, so there wasn't much to be done here- just cleaning up some cords and such.

     Saturday, I discovered a family I work for needed me to help them out for several hours- starting pretty darn early in the day. So, I went. I came home around 2, and Gary was waiting at home with a bunch of purple tulips for me as a thank you for all my cleaning. I freshened up, and he took me to The Cheesecake Factory in Woodland Hills. Oh, so nice of him!! I needed that. And yes, I enjoyed a slice of cheesecake.

Love!! My orchids are next to them. I love the tulips, though! They were doing their "leaning" thing (when they drink too much), but they've been going back up today since I fixed it last night (cold water).

     Yesterday, it was the kitchen's turn. We had so many old appliances, cookware, etc- it needed serious cleaning. I first went to Target where I bought organizers for the junk drawer, new cookware, and a few other things (including new bathroom decorations). The kitchen cleaning? 3 hours and 6 garbage bags. This is because I tossed out so many pots, pans, bake-ware, etc. Oh, but it looks marvelous. We made a goal to make sure nothing sits on the kitchen island or the fridge (or on top of the cabinets).  The cabinets were wiped down, the fridge was wiped down and cleaned- you've cleaned a kitchen before, you know what I mean. But- it's done.

That looks a little better!

       The apartment is done! Woo hoo! This will make moving much easier now. I can't believe there was so much stuff just for one apartment! Geesh. Because yes, this is our last year here. Then we'll be moving out of Santa Clarita to be closer to Gary's job. Where? Not sure yet. Pasadena and the San Gabriel Valley is one huge consideration though. Gary also likes Studio City, and a few friends have recommended Burbank and some of the areas around there. But I'm really liking Pasadena (so is Gary). So, we'll see. More research is to be done. But it may be our permanent residence and where we raise kids, so we want to be picky- we're looking forward to buying! We're also ready to leave this place and move up! It hasn't been bad though. We do love it in this quiet neighborhood. Rent is insanely high, but we've been staying here because there's been no reason to move- plus, we've been able to save money, which is nice. And now with the new job, we can really start saving!

     Gary starts his new job on Monday! This is his final week at his current job. Is he sad? Yes. But he's excited to be moving forward. His company was really sad to hear he's leaving- but he's gotta do what he's gotta do- and this new job will be great for him! This is definitely a big step in a new direction.

     Anyway, time to do things for the day before work. To end, I want to say how much I LOVED conference and all the many talks! It definitely brought the spirit into our home and Gary and I really bonded during the talk on marriage. Super love!! It was just fantastic. I love my family!! And my husband!! And I really enjoyed spending time with all of them during Easter, which we spent in Bakersfield. So, here are photos from Easter.

Me and Sammy (I really tried to put Gary's picture first, but Blogger decided mine should come first). 

My awesome hot husband with that beard! I can't believe it's so big! FYI- his shirt was too big and it was quite funny. Luckily he was able to downsize after.