Last winter, due to various family affairs, we called in a house cleaner to come and clean for us every two weeks. She’s been a lovely addition, but as she is quite pregnant (don’t worry, she’s been bringing a helper the last few months) we will soon be without her for a while. She came yesterday and I have been trying to savor with every bit of my being these last couple of cleanings. The children have been put on strict notice that they are to keep the house looking exactly as is, for 24-hours. That’s all I ask, 24-hours of a spic and span house. Myself, though, I cannot be trusted. Left to my own devices I can create a royal mess, so I have formed a new plan which means I must stay out of the house. A tidy house with no one in it must continue to stay tidy, right?

So today I went outside and walked around and enjoyed the first light. I made a tiny mess on the stove for our breakfast, but then I packed up the kids and sent them to school and drove myself to the next town over for a very rare little in-take of knitting, reading, and growing inspiration. All in the name of a tidy house, I tell you.