Kicking Off my Spring Cleaning in the Kitchen!

The spring market IS HERE, and I’m not going to lie, I’m craving the spring weather to come along with it. 

I know we have a bit until this snow will leave us for the season, but I can’t shake this desire for opening my windows, filling my home with fresh spring air, and getting a jump start on my spring cleaning!

My theory is, if I get in the cleaning mindset now… maybe, JUST MAYBE, the snow will melt away. Call me optimistic, but it’s worth a shot!

If you’re anything like me, I thrive with a list, but not a huge list of 250 things I need to clean all over my whole house. That is just WAY too overwhelming.

So I decided to start with one of the most used places in my home, makes sense right? The kitchen. 

As I made this list I was honestly surprised as to HOW MANY THINGS on this list seemed to be forgotten on a day to day basis.

Sink Area

Raw meat, raw fish, what’s left of dinner - the sink is a dumping ground full of bacteria. Give it a scrub with baking soda, then follow up with a white vinegar soak. Don’t forget to toss your old sponges and clean all around the edge of the sink too.

Coffee Maker

As an avid coffee drinker of tea, this is one item I don’t need to clean. But I do know that it’s important to change your filters, as well as run water through your coffee machine a few times. If you’re not a coffee pot drinker (like myself), it could be your teapot.

Utensil Holder

When’s the last time you took all of the utensils out and scrubbed the inside of the jar? Muck and residue can easily find a home inside of a utensil holder- just think about the last time a jar of pasta sauce exploded all over the kitchen. 

Garbage Can

Now I’m talking both the outside and the inside here. Grease, dirt, food, and who knows what else will find its way into your garbage can. Cleaning out the trash can should be something you do monthly, but at least a few times per year. 

Garbage Disposals

We use our sink and garbage disposal on a daily basis. I will slice up a few lemons and let them sit in the garbage disposal for a bit. Then, I turn on the disposal and let the lemons do the rest of the work. 

Behind The Stove

At least 1-2 times per year you should pull the stove (and fridge) out, and clean off the gathered dust. You may also find that missing lunch bag someone meant to toss on top of the refrigerator but missed. I’ve found important papers and a few trinkets the last time I pulled out the fridge.

Inside The Fridge

I’m great at staying on top of tossing out expired food, old left-overs, and vegetables that have not been used. But as far as taking everything out and cleaning the fridge, not so much. So I’ll be scrubbing and wiping down every nook and cranny of my fridge, down to the refrigerator seal.

Inside The Dishwasher

It’s one of those things you think will clean itself, which some fancy dishwashers may have this option. But, you should still do a manual sweep of the inside of your dishwasher. We use our dishwasher several times per week, which means food and grease can easily get stuck and create a build-up.

Toaster

With a few boys in this house, and they all love toast- our toaster works hard. Take out the trays at the bottom of the toaster and wipe them down. Don’t forget to turn the toaster over and shake out any remaining crumbs. ( I recommend doing this over the sink or the garbage can). 

Lastly, I’ll be tossing out things that no longer belong in my kitchen. Chipped plates, cups with no handles, rusty spoons, wok pans that are no longer healthy to use, are just a few of the many things you should toss out in your kitchen. As part of your spring cleaning routine, you should clean out the cabinets and get rid of unnecessary pots and pans, glassware, utensils, and dishes. I swear, mine MULTIPLY when I’m not looking. 

There are other things you should also think about cleaning in your kitchen- wiping down the counters, cleaning every single cabinet out, wiping down the walls, cleaning out the junk drawer, wiping down all of your appliances, including the small kitchen appliances, and the list can go on. However, I wanted to highlight these things that I’ll be tackling to kick off my spring cleaning.