1 00:00:00,120 --> 00:00:03,320 There's just something about removing visual clutter in the 2 00:00:03,320 --> 00:00:06,240 kitchen that makes a job feel less overwhelming. 3 00:00:08,480 --> 00:00:12,560 I'm Ronnie and you're listening to Clean With Me, the podcast 4 00:00:12,560 --> 00:00:15,320 where I walk you through cleaning your house step by 5 00:00:15,320 --> 00:00:17,720 step. When you clean along with this 6 00:00:17,720 --> 00:00:21,960 show, you'll get more done in less time so you can spend the 7 00:00:21,960 --> 00:00:24,840 rest of your day doing what matters most to you. 8 00:00:25,480 --> 00:00:28,120 Thanks for joining me in today's episode. 9 00:00:28,160 --> 00:00:34,080 I am going to give you a little pep talk while you wash your 10 00:00:34,240 --> 00:00:36,400 dishes. Let's get right into the 11 00:00:36,400 --> 00:00:39,640 episode. Maybe you have a pile of dirty 12 00:00:39,640 --> 00:00:44,720 dishes in your sink, on your countertop, on the kitchen 13 00:00:44,720 --> 00:00:49,120 table, on the coffee table, on your night stands, lurking in a 14 00:00:49,120 --> 00:00:52,160 teenager's bedroom. I don't know. 15 00:00:52,160 --> 00:00:57,000 But it's time to gather all of your dishes to the sink area. 16 00:00:57,160 --> 00:01:00,760 I say the sink area because I don't like to put glasses and 17 00:01:00,760 --> 00:01:05,960 mugs inside of the sink, and you may need to clean out your sink 18 00:01:06,200 --> 00:01:08,520 before you begin if it's not already clean. 19 00:01:09,200 --> 00:01:14,320 So it's time to gather up all of your dishes from around the 20 00:01:14,320 --> 00:01:16,640 house. Or if you're not feeling 21 00:01:16,640 --> 00:01:20,200 presentable yet, that's important too. 22 00:01:20,200 --> 00:01:22,120 When you look good, you feel good. 23 00:01:22,240 --> 00:01:25,640 So maybe you need to get dressed for the day and do your 24 00:01:25,640 --> 00:01:27,560 minimums. Everybody's minimums are 25 00:01:27,560 --> 00:01:30,160 different. For some it could be putting 26 00:01:30,160 --> 00:01:33,680 their hair up, for others it could be styling their hair 27 00:01:33,680 --> 00:01:36,960 down. I like to use some type of 28 00:01:36,960 --> 00:01:42,560 product in a spray bottle on mornings when I took my shower 29 00:01:42,560 --> 00:01:46,720 the night before. That way I can fix my hair and 30 00:01:46,720 --> 00:01:49,840 not have bed head. I like to put on a little 31 00:01:49,840 --> 00:01:52,960 makeup. I like to wear something that's 32 00:01:52,960 --> 00:01:57,320 comfortable yet presentable, all before I start cleaning. 33 00:01:57,320 --> 00:01:59,920 But I don't know what time of day you're listening to this. 34 00:02:00,440 --> 00:02:03,200 You could be listening to this in the afternoon or evening 35 00:02:03,440 --> 00:02:07,720 while you're either gathering up dishes or freshening up for the 36 00:02:07,720 --> 00:02:10,400 day. I just wanted to say that I 37 00:02:10,400 --> 00:02:14,320 realized doing dishes is not usually on the top of anyone's 38 00:02:14,320 --> 00:02:18,680 list of favorite chores. A few of you might find it 39 00:02:18,680 --> 00:02:26,400 therapeutic, and I do find it therapeutic, but I never feel 40 00:02:26,400 --> 00:02:30,320 excited about starting on it. But sometimes once I'm doing 41 00:02:30,320 --> 00:02:35,720 dishes, I get into the flow of it and kind of enjoy the 42 00:02:35,720 --> 00:02:38,560 process. I like to do it in kind of a 43 00:02:38,560 --> 00:02:44,800 systematic organized way where I get the difficult items soaking 44 00:02:44,800 --> 00:02:51,920 first, make sure my sink is cleaned out, and then I start 45 00:02:51,920 --> 00:02:55,160 pre rinsing and washing the easiest items. 46 00:02:55,160 --> 00:02:59,120 If I come across something that has dried on food, that item's 47 00:02:59,120 --> 00:03:03,920 going to soak until I've washed all the easy items 1st. 48 00:03:04,440 --> 00:03:08,120 And this is true whether I'm using a dishwasher or not. 49 00:03:08,240 --> 00:03:12,840 I realize some of you are exclusively hand washing but 50 00:03:12,840 --> 00:03:18,480 what I do is I get any difficult items soaking and then I pre 51 00:03:18,480 --> 00:03:24,560 rinse the easy small items meaning cups, glasses, mugs, 52 00:03:24,560 --> 00:03:29,200 silverware, cooking spatulas which I strategically place in 53 00:03:29,200 --> 00:03:33,800 the top rack along with the cups and bowls. 54 00:03:34,680 --> 00:03:39,000 Silverware goes in the little compartments in the bottom and 55 00:03:39,000 --> 00:03:45,280 then larger containers. Maybe a small skillet or my 56 00:03:45,280 --> 00:03:48,280 glass, a small glass casserole dish. 57 00:03:48,920 --> 00:03:50,720 Those are the types of things I put in the bottom. 58 00:03:50,720 --> 00:03:55,120 And of course plates. Larger items like a large 59 00:03:55,120 --> 00:04:02,120 skillet or a pasta pot. Those are items that I typically 60 00:04:02,120 --> 00:04:05,440 hand wash. Oh, I do put my small sauce pans 61 00:04:05,440 --> 00:04:07,880 into the dishwasher after pre rinsing them. 62 00:04:08,440 --> 00:04:11,600 And when I talk about pre rinsing, I like to use a brush 63 00:04:11,600 --> 00:04:15,480 on a handle. Sometimes I also grab a sponge 64 00:04:15,480 --> 00:04:18,240 with an abrasive side, like a scrub daddy. 65 00:04:18,959 --> 00:04:22,480 But if you look at the process as something that's going to be 66 00:04:22,480 --> 00:04:28,120 therapeutic and something that you're going to do efficiently 67 00:04:28,800 --> 00:04:32,720 in a certain order, that can make it feel a little bit less 68 00:04:32,720 --> 00:04:35,800 daunting. Another thing I often do before 69 00:04:35,800 --> 00:04:40,520 I start dishes is clear off my kitchen island and my kitchen 70 00:04:40,520 --> 00:04:43,560 countertops. Because sometimes when I see a 71 00:04:43,560 --> 00:04:47,360 lot of clutter in the kitchen, I feel like I have more dishes to 72 00:04:47,360 --> 00:04:51,520 do than I actually do. I might only have a few dishes 73 00:04:51,520 --> 00:04:55,720 to wash, but if I was gone for the evening last night, 74 00:04:55,960 --> 00:05:01,360 hypothetically, and there's tons of clutter all over the island, 75 00:05:01,880 --> 00:05:05,000 that can make me feel overwhelmed and make me feel 76 00:05:05,000 --> 00:05:08,360 like I'm facing some kind of disaster even though I'm not. 77 00:05:09,000 --> 00:05:14,320 Hopefully by now you're feeling presentable and you've gathered 78 00:05:14,320 --> 00:05:17,720 up all of your dishes. Maybe you're already doing some 79 00:05:17,720 --> 00:05:20,760 of the things I'm talking about, like getting the difficult items 80 00:05:20,760 --> 00:05:24,320 soaking. Or maybe you need to put away 81 00:05:24,320 --> 00:05:28,200 some clean dishes first. I know you might be tempted to 82 00:05:28,200 --> 00:05:33,120 stack things on top of the already dry dishes in the drying 83 00:05:33,120 --> 00:05:35,200 rack. Resist the urge. 84 00:05:35,320 --> 00:05:37,640 Get those put away. I promise it's going to make the 85 00:05:37,640 --> 00:05:41,240 process of hand washing a little easier. 86 00:05:41,240 --> 00:05:45,240 Because if you're like me, even if you're using a dishwasher, 87 00:05:45,240 --> 00:05:48,800 you're going to be hand washing some items either because they 88 00:05:48,800 --> 00:05:52,840 don't fit in the dishwasher or it's more efficient to put 89 00:05:52,840 --> 00:05:55,600 different things in the dishwasher and hand wash others. 90 00:05:56,040 --> 00:06:00,880 In addition to emptying your drying rack, you might also need 91 00:06:00,880 --> 00:06:04,560 to empty your dishwasher because maybe you're doing an empty 92 00:06:04,560 --> 00:06:07,360 reload and run of the dishwasher. 93 00:06:07,760 --> 00:06:11,920 I will confess that on some days when I'm working from home where 94 00:06:11,920 --> 00:06:18,760 I've got podcasts to record and college work to do, I will just 95 00:06:18,760 --> 00:06:23,800 quickly do an empty reload and run and then let someone else 96 00:06:23,880 --> 00:06:27,040 clean the rest of the kitchen. Because a lot of times, getting 97 00:06:27,040 --> 00:06:32,000 that dishwasher loaded is a major part of cleaning the 98 00:06:32,000 --> 00:06:36,560 kitchen and that lightens the load for the next person. 99 00:06:36,560 --> 00:06:40,760 Even though it only takes a few minutes, it kind of gets it down 100 00:06:40,760 --> 00:06:46,080 to where there's maybe a pot in a pan soaking in the sink and 101 00:06:46,160 --> 00:06:49,480 some clutter on the countertops. There's just something about 102 00:06:49,480 --> 00:06:53,160 removing visual clutter in the kitchen that makes a job feel 103 00:06:53,160 --> 00:06:56,280 less overwhelming. Whether that means clearing your 104 00:06:56,280 --> 00:07:01,920 island and countertops, or doing that first empty reload and run 105 00:07:01,920 --> 00:07:05,680 of the dishwasher, or maybe getting that first sink load 106 00:07:05,680 --> 00:07:09,080 soaking. You've got to remove that visual 107 00:07:09,080 --> 00:07:14,640 clutter and you know, find a way to thin it down quickly before 108 00:07:14,640 --> 00:07:18,160 you start to feel discouraged. Or someone else does if if 109 00:07:18,160 --> 00:07:19,760 you're working along with someone else. 110 00:07:20,200 --> 00:07:24,320 Right now we have 4 adults living here, so that's why I'm 111 00:07:24,320 --> 00:07:27,880 saying I might just do an empty reload and run and then, you 112 00:07:27,880 --> 00:07:31,400 know, go work in my bedroom, office while someone else does 113 00:07:31,400 --> 00:07:34,600 the rest. And often once I get that 114 00:07:34,600 --> 00:07:38,440 dishwasher running, I get that other machine running, my 115 00:07:38,440 --> 00:07:42,080 washing machine. In a large family, you've got to 116 00:07:42,080 --> 00:07:46,240 have that washing machine and dryer working for you while 117 00:07:46,240 --> 00:07:48,360 you're working on the rest of the housework. 118 00:07:48,360 --> 00:07:52,000 If you know, you know. A lot of times I just need to 119 00:07:52,000 --> 00:07:54,960 get the machines running. There's lots of bedding to wash, 120 00:07:54,960 --> 00:07:59,080 towels to wash. My middle son is away at Marine 121 00:07:59,160 --> 00:08:01,800 Boot camp. Say a prayer for him. 122 00:08:02,160 --> 00:08:06,240 It's pretty grueling, but I do currently still have eight 123 00:08:06,240 --> 00:08:11,440 people living in my house. So there's lots of dishes, 124 00:08:11,640 --> 00:08:15,960 there's lots of laundry. And yes, each adult and each 125 00:08:15,960 --> 00:08:22,360 teenager does their own laundry theoretically, but I still end 126 00:08:22,360 --> 00:08:29,000 up washing a lot of the towels and bedding, especially because 127 00:08:29,000 --> 00:08:32,919 the adults work more hours outside the home than I do. 128 00:08:33,360 --> 00:08:36,000 Not my husband right now, but the adult kids. 129 00:08:36,600 --> 00:08:39,039 So my husband is a huge help right now. 130 00:08:39,120 --> 00:08:40,720 I wouldn't be able to do this without him. 131 00:08:40,760 --> 00:08:46,720 There's just a lot of housework, but I I want to remind you that 132 00:08:46,720 --> 00:08:50,760 your home is always going to look messy if you don't start 133 00:08:50,760 --> 00:08:53,280 keeping up on dishes. I'm not saying this to guilt 134 00:08:53,280 --> 00:08:55,000 you. I'm just saying that it's such 135 00:08:55,000 --> 00:08:59,520 an important springboard task because having that task of 136 00:08:59,520 --> 00:09:03,480 doing dishes looming can cause you to procrastinate. 137 00:09:04,440 --> 00:09:08,400 It can also cost you money. And you may be thinking, you 138 00:09:08,400 --> 00:09:10,600 know how so I cook everything from scratch. 139 00:09:10,600 --> 00:09:14,120 That's why I have all these dirty dishes, I feel. 140 00:09:14,120 --> 00:09:18,520 Yeah, but sometimes you end up eating out because you don't 141 00:09:18,520 --> 00:09:21,960 want to do the dishes and you know, you over spend, spend on 142 00:09:21,960 --> 00:09:26,600 restaurants and take out. That having been said, I am all 143 00:09:26,600 --> 00:09:33,480 for doing take out or restaurant if you're behind on dishes, 144 00:09:34,360 --> 00:09:38,080 because if you don't have the energy to get down to dish 0 145 00:09:38,080 --> 00:09:41,920 before you eat your meal, I would say before you start your 146 00:09:41,920 --> 00:09:44,880 meal. But sometimes it's OK to, to, to 147 00:09:44,880 --> 00:09:48,200 wipe down all of your surfaces and have some dishes, you know, 148 00:09:48,240 --> 00:09:51,720 soaking in the sink. Obviously you've got to have a, 149 00:09:51,720 --> 00:09:55,800 a sanitary surface for, you know, cutting up and doing your 150 00:09:55,800 --> 00:09:59,760 prep work and your stove top needs to be sanitary and you've 151 00:09:59,760 --> 00:10:03,120 got to have pots and pans and knives and tools to work with. 152 00:10:03,840 --> 00:10:06,880 But sometimes you, you know, you leave some things to soak or you 153 00:10:06,880 --> 00:10:12,160 have an overflowing drying rack. And by cooking dinner, you add 154 00:10:12,160 --> 00:10:14,760 to those dishes that you already have sitting in the sink. 155 00:10:15,000 --> 00:10:18,120 I'm definitely in favor of doing take out. 156 00:10:18,280 --> 00:10:23,600 The other day, my husband was kind of looking confused when I 157 00:10:23,600 --> 00:10:27,920 mentioned going to Wendy's. And I'm like, I need to get 158 00:10:27,920 --> 00:10:31,280 caught up on dishes. Like I just didn't feel like 159 00:10:31,360 --> 00:10:33,760 doing dishes and then cooking dinner. 160 00:10:33,920 --> 00:10:39,360 We had a lot going on that day and our teenagers were at camp, 161 00:10:39,360 --> 00:10:42,360 so we weren't really responsible to feed anyone. 162 00:10:42,560 --> 00:10:47,040 And sometimes ordering pizzas is is a great ketchup too, because 163 00:10:47,520 --> 00:10:51,000 people can just eat their slice of pizza either on a paper plate 164 00:10:51,000 --> 00:10:54,280 or a paper towel and not dirty anything else. 165 00:10:55,040 --> 00:10:58,440 I'm not telling you not to do dishes, but definitely getting 166 00:10:58,440 --> 00:11:02,720 paper plates can help you if you're in a season of life where 167 00:11:02,720 --> 00:11:04,920 you're overwhelmed. You've just got a lot going on. 168 00:11:05,600 --> 00:11:07,200 Let me give you a perfect example. 169 00:11:07,240 --> 00:11:13,920 I am in my last year of college, which sounds crazy because I'm 170 00:11:14,120 --> 00:11:19,400 no spring chicken, but I I just really want this degree and I 171 00:11:19,400 --> 00:11:21,680 didn't really think this through. 172 00:11:22,080 --> 00:11:27,360 But during the summer semester, it's broken up into too many 173 00:11:27,360 --> 00:11:30,920 semesters. So even though you're taking 174 00:11:31,040 --> 00:11:35,240 like two classes at a time, it's a full load because they're 175 00:11:35,240 --> 00:11:38,920 eight week semesters instead of 16 week, if that makes sense. 176 00:11:39,400 --> 00:11:42,840 So here here's what got me though. 177 00:11:43,600 --> 00:11:49,120 Week seven and eight of the first mini semester is week 1 178 00:11:49,120 --> 00:11:51,600 and two of the second mini semester. 179 00:11:52,080 --> 00:11:58,120 So right now I'm in what they call the overlap, meaning I'm 180 00:11:58,120 --> 00:12:04,760 taking AA full college load. So yeah, maybe that'll help 181 00:12:04,760 --> 00:12:09,880 explain why I had a sink full of dishes and wanted to go to 182 00:12:09,880 --> 00:12:12,560 Wendy's with my husband the other night. 183 00:12:13,240 --> 00:12:16,360 And if you do struggle with dishes and if you can afford it, 184 00:12:16,840 --> 00:12:20,080 you know, having one take out night a week or whatever can 185 00:12:20,280 --> 00:12:22,760 kind of help serve as a catch up time. 186 00:12:23,080 --> 00:12:27,040 But I encourage you to work on getting down to Dish 0 every 187 00:12:27,040 --> 00:12:29,640 day. By the way, I got some comments 188 00:12:29,640 --> 00:12:35,400 on YouTube where this listener was saying that, you know, she's 189 00:12:35,400 --> 00:12:39,280 already got the basics down. She's not overwhelmed, you know 190 00:12:39,280 --> 00:12:44,880 she does XYZ every day to maintain her home and she wanted 191 00:12:44,880 --> 00:12:52,160 more deep cleaning episodes. Well, my recent bonus episode is 192 00:12:52,160 --> 00:12:57,040 a deep cleaning episode. So be sure to subscribe to bonus 193 00:12:57,040 --> 00:13:01,320 content if you want to go deeper with your cleaning. 194 00:13:01,760 --> 00:13:06,880 But these episodes, these free episodes that are available to 195 00:13:06,920 --> 00:13:13,000 everyone are oftentimes designed to just get you started and get 196 00:13:13,000 --> 00:13:16,120 you motivated and help you do your minimums. 197 00:13:16,440 --> 00:13:20,160 Because often when you get those minimums taken care of, like 198 00:13:20,160 --> 00:13:24,240 your dishes, your countertops, your stove top, sweeping the 199 00:13:24,240 --> 00:13:28,680 floor, you know, picking up your living room, Yeah, those are the 200 00:13:28,680 --> 00:13:31,680 basics. Those are kind of surface level 201 00:13:31,880 --> 00:13:35,280 chores. But getting those done and 202 00:13:35,280 --> 00:13:40,760 creating habits where you're, you know, doing them regularly, 203 00:13:40,760 --> 00:13:44,800 having some kind of a morning routine or afternoon routine or 204 00:13:44,800 --> 00:13:47,120 evening routine or all of the the above. 205 00:13:47,440 --> 00:13:51,160 When you change your habits and routines so that you're doing 206 00:13:51,160 --> 00:13:56,880 these daily tasks regularly and not letting things like dishes 207 00:13:56,880 --> 00:14:01,360 and laundry pile up, especially not dishes, you'll start to do 208 00:14:01,360 --> 00:14:04,160 those deeper cleaning chores. You just will. 209 00:14:04,160 --> 00:14:08,120 And when you listen to these episodes where I'm having you do 210 00:14:08,480 --> 00:14:13,800 these very basic tasks like your dishes and, you know, 211 00:14:13,880 --> 00:14:17,840 straightening up the countertop, wiping it down, you're going to 212 00:14:17,840 --> 00:14:23,080 go deeper with your cleaning when you listen because you're 213 00:14:23,080 --> 00:14:25,600 going to just stay in the kitchen while I talk. 214 00:14:25,920 --> 00:14:28,360 You're going to finish the dishes while I'm still talking 215 00:14:28,360 --> 00:14:31,000 about dishes. That's going to give you a sense 216 00:14:31,000 --> 00:14:33,560 of accomplishment because you're going to realize you're ahead of 217 00:14:33,560 --> 00:14:37,600 the game and you're going to start looking for more to do. 218 00:14:37,760 --> 00:14:39,680 You're going to scrub those baseboards. 219 00:14:39,680 --> 00:14:42,160 You're going to organize your cabinets and wipe down those 220 00:14:42,160 --> 00:14:45,640 pantry shelves. You're going to finally clean 221 00:14:45,680 --> 00:14:49,960 the hood above your oven or the inside of your oven. 222 00:14:50,120 --> 00:14:53,600 But right now, you might be like me and kind of in a state of 223 00:14:53,600 --> 00:14:56,480 overwhelm. By next Monday night at 10:00 224 00:14:56,480 --> 00:15:01,160 PM, the overlap will be over and I'll be back to just taking two 225 00:15:01,160 --> 00:15:05,080 classes at a time at an accelerated pace, but still only 226 00:15:05,080 --> 00:15:07,960 two classes. Way easier to keep track of the 227 00:15:07,960 --> 00:15:10,200 assignment. I mean, obviously on top of 228 00:15:10,200 --> 00:15:15,520 that, I've got to keep track of things like soccer practice and 229 00:15:15,520 --> 00:15:18,680 paying bills. It's just a huge mental load 230 00:15:18,680 --> 00:15:22,240 right now. And unfortunately, sometimes the 231 00:15:22,240 --> 00:15:25,960 busiest times are in our lives are times where we need to be 232 00:15:25,960 --> 00:15:29,760 more frugal. And that can definitely be a 233 00:15:29,760 --> 00:15:35,360 struggle because those are times where maybe we don't want to 234 00:15:35,360 --> 00:15:39,080 order takeout or buy all disposable dishes. 235 00:15:39,880 --> 00:15:43,320 And even if you have lots of paper plates, you you've got 236 00:15:43,320 --> 00:15:46,560 things to wash in your kitchen. I promise you do if you cook at 237 00:15:46,560 --> 00:15:48,840 all. But I also wanted to say that 238 00:15:48,840 --> 00:15:53,680 procrastinating on dishes causes you to waste time, energy and 239 00:15:53,680 --> 00:15:57,920 money because it's harder to wash dishes when you let stuff 240 00:15:57,920 --> 00:16:00,680 dry on. No judgement here. 241 00:16:00,960 --> 00:16:03,600 If you've got some dried on items and you're you're pre 242 00:16:03,600 --> 00:16:06,560 soaking those while you wash the easy stuff. 243 00:16:06,720 --> 00:16:12,040 And also with procrastination, often the task weighs on you 244 00:16:12,040 --> 00:16:16,440 more mentally than you know, just taking care of it already. 245 00:16:17,120 --> 00:16:21,160 We spend so much time, and this is human nature, but we spend so 246 00:16:21,160 --> 00:16:26,720 much time worrying about things when it would actually be easier 247 00:16:26,720 --> 00:16:32,520 to just do the thing, something that teenagers often do. 248 00:16:32,880 --> 00:16:35,400 They'll say, I'm not going to have time to get this homework 249 00:16:35,400 --> 00:16:38,240 done, and they'll keep saying that and I'm like, you could 250 00:16:38,240 --> 00:16:41,080 have started on it by now. Instead of just talking about 251 00:16:41,080 --> 00:16:44,240 it, why don't you just dive right in and see how much you 252 00:16:44,240 --> 00:16:46,960 can get done? Instead, they want to worry 253 00:16:46,960 --> 00:16:50,080 about it for a while. But as adults, we're often 254 00:16:50,080 --> 00:16:53,120 guilty of the same thing, especially when it comes to 255 00:16:53,120 --> 00:16:56,320 housework. We we don't have the piece that 256 00:16:56,320 --> 00:17:00,040 a clean house brings. We sit around thinking about 257 00:17:00,040 --> 00:17:04,280 what a mess our house is. Right now, I'm doing a lot of 258 00:17:04,280 --> 00:17:07,800 delegating. Earlier I had to run to the 259 00:17:07,800 --> 00:17:13,720 store to get an adapter that I needed to record my bonus 260 00:17:13,720 --> 00:17:17,800 episode later because I'm going to do an episode where I'm 261 00:17:17,800 --> 00:17:22,000 moving around while I record. So I basically gave everybody a 262 00:17:22,000 --> 00:17:25,560 job to do and said I want this house cleaned by the time I get 263 00:17:25,560 --> 00:17:27,760 back and I'm not going to be gone very long. 264 00:17:28,800 --> 00:17:32,920 Definitely give your teenagers chores to do and start earlier 265 00:17:32,920 --> 00:17:36,520 than that, but they they have time to do a lot, especially 266 00:17:36,520 --> 00:17:39,920 during the summer. OK, I know not all of you are 267 00:17:39,920 --> 00:17:45,280 moms of teenagers or you may be listening to this episode during 268 00:17:45,280 --> 00:17:49,280 a different season, but if you've got teenagers and it's 269 00:17:49,280 --> 00:17:52,040 summertime, you need to put them to work. 270 00:17:52,240 --> 00:17:53,960 It's good for them. It's going to help them out 271 00:17:53,960 --> 00:17:57,560 later in life anyway, and it's going to help your sanity. 272 00:17:58,440 --> 00:18:01,120 Sometimes there's something about just leaving to where they 273 00:18:01,120 --> 00:18:03,160 have the deadline of you getting back. 274 00:18:03,400 --> 00:18:07,400 They might even be tracking you. You know, if, if, if you've got 275 00:18:07,400 --> 00:18:12,720 like Life 360 or the find my app and maybe they're going to rush 276 00:18:12,720 --> 00:18:15,320 and clean at the last minute, doesn't matter as long as they 277 00:18:15,320 --> 00:18:17,920 get it done. I apologize if you hear my dog 278 00:18:17,920 --> 00:18:21,560 barking in the background. I probably don't have time to 279 00:18:21,640 --> 00:18:25,040 rerecord this or edit that out, so I'm keeping it. 280 00:18:25,240 --> 00:18:28,560 But I encourage you when you're done eating or drinking, take 281 00:18:28,560 --> 00:18:33,160 every dish to the sink and always rinse them thoroughly. 282 00:18:33,400 --> 00:18:35,600 Make sure nothing's sticking to it. 283 00:18:35,600 --> 00:18:38,360 And that's going to save you a lot of time at elbow grease 284 00:18:38,360 --> 00:18:42,600 later. For example, you have chocolate 285 00:18:42,600 --> 00:18:46,400 milk or a mocha, and you know there's just something about 286 00:18:46,400 --> 00:18:50,400 milk or chocolate in the bottom of a glass or it just sticks and 287 00:18:50,400 --> 00:18:53,400 dries on. But you could quickly rinse that 288 00:18:53,400 --> 00:18:57,680 out with water and place that cup in the sink or next to the 289 00:18:57,680 --> 00:19:01,600 sink, or better yet, directly into the dishwasher if that's 290 00:19:01,600 --> 00:19:04,080 your system. That's going to save you having 291 00:19:04,080 --> 00:19:09,960 to use extra dish soap and have to soak that item before you can 292 00:19:09,960 --> 00:19:12,920 wash it during your next dishwashing session. 293 00:19:13,600 --> 00:19:16,920 But anytime you're overwhelmed by something, if you break it 294 00:19:16,920 --> 00:19:21,560 down into smaller parts and keep up on it, it's going to be more 295 00:19:21,560 --> 00:19:24,400 manageable. And this is so true when it 296 00:19:24,400 --> 00:19:28,040 comes to dishes, It's easier to keep up than to catch up. 297 00:19:28,600 --> 00:19:32,520 But if you do have a dish with really stuck on food and maybe 298 00:19:32,520 --> 00:19:36,000 you didn't get it soaking at the beginning of the episode, run 299 00:19:36,000 --> 00:19:39,520 the water till it gets hot, put in a little dish soap and fill 300 00:19:39,520 --> 00:19:43,760 that item up with hot water to let it soak. 301 00:19:44,320 --> 00:19:48,800 And some people keep a glass or bowl of soapy water in the sink 302 00:19:48,800 --> 00:19:52,880 or next to the sink to let dirty utensils soak until they get 303 00:19:52,880 --> 00:19:58,400 around to washing them. If you dread scrubbing utensils 304 00:19:58,400 --> 00:20:02,960 that have dried on food, that could be a system that could 305 00:20:02,960 --> 00:20:05,920 help you. Basically, you can create small 306 00:20:05,920 --> 00:20:10,400 habits that allow you to effortlessly kind of do your 307 00:20:10,400 --> 00:20:14,280 dishes throughout the day without even thinking about it. 308 00:20:14,760 --> 00:20:19,840 And if you have someone that you call on a regular basis on the 309 00:20:19,840 --> 00:20:23,560 phone, definitely wash dishes while you're on the phone. 310 00:20:23,600 --> 00:20:28,440 That can work wonders. Because washing dishes is one of 311 00:20:28,440 --> 00:20:31,880 those mindless tasks, you don't have to put a lot of thought 312 00:20:31,880 --> 00:20:35,520 into it. I know that it's never a good 313 00:20:35,520 --> 00:20:38,800 idea for me to cook dinner while talking on the phone. 314 00:20:38,800 --> 00:20:46,640 I end up messing something up. I end up putting cumin and chili 315 00:20:46,640 --> 00:20:49,560 powder into meat that was for spaghetti. 316 00:20:49,760 --> 00:20:52,840 Like I go into autopilot or something like I'm making Taco 317 00:20:52,840 --> 00:20:56,240 meat for example, or I burn the bread or something like that. 318 00:20:56,760 --> 00:21:01,080 But what I can do while I'm yapping on the phone is wash 319 00:21:01,080 --> 00:21:05,120 dishes because it's something I can do just automatically. 320 00:21:05,320 --> 00:21:08,960 You just keep scrubbing until everything comes off of it, and 321 00:21:08,960 --> 00:21:11,720 then you rinse it. And if stuff's not coming off, 322 00:21:11,800 --> 00:21:15,080 you fill it up with hot water and dish soap and let it soak. 323 00:21:15,840 --> 00:21:20,440 And sometimes when I'm on a really interesting phone call, I 324 00:21:20,440 --> 00:21:23,040 won't even really remember washing the dishes. 325 00:21:23,040 --> 00:21:26,000 It's kind of like when you're driving, you pull into your 326 00:21:26,000 --> 00:21:29,440 driveway and you're like, I hope I was driving carefully because 327 00:21:29,440 --> 00:21:31,080 I don't even remember the trip home. 328 00:21:31,080 --> 00:21:34,600 And of course, you were paying attention, but it feels like you 329 00:21:34,600 --> 00:21:36,840 weren't. It feels like it just happened. 330 00:21:37,480 --> 00:21:40,560 That's how it is sometimes. If you're doing dishes while 331 00:21:40,560 --> 00:21:43,920 talking on the phone and hopefully listening to this show 332 00:21:43,920 --> 00:21:46,120 has the same effect on you, that's the goal. 333 00:21:46,240 --> 00:21:49,160 Leaving dirty dishes out overnight can attract pests. 334 00:21:49,160 --> 00:21:52,640 Obviously, we all drop the ball sometimes and, you know, we're, 335 00:21:53,000 --> 00:21:55,200 you know, leave the dishes overnight or whatever, it 336 00:21:55,200 --> 00:21:57,040 happens. But that should be the 337 00:21:57,040 --> 00:22:02,600 exception, not the rule. But if possible, put away your 338 00:22:02,600 --> 00:22:05,440 clean dishes first thing in the morning, maybe while you're 339 00:22:05,440 --> 00:22:09,200 making coffee or making breakfast, because that sets the 340 00:22:09,200 --> 00:22:12,400 stage for doing dishes throughout the day. 341 00:22:12,400 --> 00:22:16,080 Or if you're gone all day, doing them right after dinner. 342 00:22:16,360 --> 00:22:19,200 Or maybe there's somebody in your family who can put away 343 00:22:19,200 --> 00:22:22,520 clean dishes. I feel like people don't really 344 00:22:22,520 --> 00:22:25,000 mind that task much. It's something that's easy to 345 00:22:25,000 --> 00:22:28,440 delegate because they just don't want to wash the dishes. 346 00:22:29,040 --> 00:22:33,000 But to me, putting away the clean dishes is more tedious 347 00:22:33,000 --> 00:22:34,680 than actually washing the dishes. 348 00:22:34,680 --> 00:22:37,920 So I like to delegate that task and nobody seems to mind it. 349 00:22:38,360 --> 00:22:42,280 The only caveat is some people don't know where things go and 350 00:22:42,280 --> 00:22:45,320 put them away wrong. So you've got to train your kids 351 00:22:45,320 --> 00:22:48,760 on where things go. And the fewer dishes you dirty, 352 00:22:48,760 --> 00:22:53,200 the fewer you have to clean. So consider making one pot 353 00:22:53,200 --> 00:22:56,880 meals, cleaning as you go. You know the drill. 354 00:22:57,440 --> 00:23:02,400 If you use a slow cooker and you're always that's a crock pot 355 00:23:02,800 --> 00:23:06,440 and you're always, you know, having to perpetually soak it, 356 00:23:06,440 --> 00:23:09,040 consider using a slow cooker liner. 357 00:23:09,560 --> 00:23:11,280 If you don't know what that is, Google it. 358 00:23:11,960 --> 00:23:16,040 Another thing you can do is make one pot meals or sheet pan 359 00:23:16,040 --> 00:23:18,360 dinners. I have a giant cookie sheet that 360 00:23:18,360 --> 00:23:21,840 takes up almost the entire space of the oven. 361 00:23:23,120 --> 00:23:26,880 You know, I grease that up and put different things on it. 362 00:23:26,880 --> 00:23:32,000 For example, if I'm heating up frozen chicken tenders or 363 00:23:32,000 --> 00:23:35,480 whatever, half the cookie sheet can be those and then the other 364 00:23:35,480 --> 00:23:39,240 side can be tater tots or fries. That's obviously one of our 365 00:23:39,240 --> 00:23:42,760 easier dinners that we make, but there are other examples of 366 00:23:42,760 --> 00:23:45,920 sheet pan dinners that you can make completely from scratch. 367 00:23:46,440 --> 00:23:48,320 So that's another thing to look into. 368 00:23:48,680 --> 00:23:53,480 And if you put parchment paper on the cookie sheet, that can 369 00:23:53,480 --> 00:23:56,800 make it much easier to clean. Do it when you're baking 370 00:23:56,800 --> 00:24:00,320 cookies, too. I hope you got your dishes done 371 00:24:00,320 --> 00:24:04,280 during this episode. Special special thanks to my 372 00:24:04,280 --> 00:24:08,640 financial supporters who support the show either on Patreon, 373 00:24:08,640 --> 00:24:11,320 Apple Podcasts, or some other way. 374 00:24:11,840 --> 00:24:15,920 I'll be making another bonus episode soon, but even just 375 00:24:15,920 --> 00:24:18,400 listening to these free episodes helps me. 376 00:24:18,960 --> 00:24:22,360 Thank you so much for listening and as always, happy cleaning. 377 00:24:22,560 --> 00:24:23,960 I'll talk to you in the next episode.