Skip to main content

Monday Motivation: Clean out your car



Is the inside of your car looking pretty bad?  Mine is.  After a whole season of running quickly from house to car - car to work - work to car - car to home to escape the cold and rain, my car interior has tak'n a beat'n. 

Having worked in preschools for many years, I can tell you that most families with small children have major gunk in their cars.  I can remember kneeling in a mini van, putting a child into a carseat, and standing back up with goldfish crackers stuck to my knees.  Yuck! 

I've got some work to do this week in my car and I thought you might like to get my perspective on what I plan on doing.

1.  First, I'll grab a plastic shopping bag and empty all ash trays and trash containers.  Then I'll search around for any gum wrappers, water bottle caps, or abandoned church bulletins.  Check the trunk too.

2.  Then I'll remove the floor mats.  If I had child car seats I would remove them too.

3.  Then I'll vacuum the seats, making sure to get down into the crevices.  I like to use a shop vac.  That way, if I suck up something important, I can easily retrieve it from the canister. 

4.  Next, I'll vacuum the floors, making sure to clean under the seats and also the trunk.

5.  I like to clean/dust the dashboard and all hard surfaces with my sparkle cleaner and follow up with a vinyl/leather protector. 

6.  If the floor mats are really gunky, I'll scrub them with a scrub brush and hose them down with the garden hose; leaving them outside in the sun to dry.

7.  Since I love clean windows, I'll clean them with sparkle cleaner and a microfiber cloth. 

8.  Going through my glove compartment, I'll throw away any expired coupons, mangled fast food napkins, and the melted chapstick from several months ago. 

9.  If I find any change, I'll throw it in my change bucket and count myself 36 cents richer . 

10.  Finally, I'll stand back and enjoy my clean and organized car. 

Because I'm frequently in my car, far away from home, I like to have several items in my car for emergencies:

1. alcohol hand sanitizer
2. umbrella
3. kleenex
4. napkins
5. feminine hygeine products
6. B,B,&Beyond coupons
7. blanket
8. shopping bags
9. jumper cables
10.first aide kit
11. pen, pencil, and notepad
12. change
13. extra set of clothes and shoes
14. insulated bags for hot/cold foods
15. peanut butter crackers
16. bottled water

Did I forget anything?  Let me know.
Labels:

Comments

  1. TiffanyApril 20, 2010 at 10:30 AM

    Are you sure you are motivating yourself to clean your car, or to get Ash motivated to clean her car? ;) hehe

    ReplyDelete
  2. ErinMay 18, 2010 at 9:48 PM

    I just found your blog and am loving it! I have to add a few things to this list...(I am a home health nurse so I spend almost all of my days driving around)
    Pens/small notebook

    baby wipes for sticky messes

    tide stain stick (eating lunch while driving is really not a good way to keep clothes clean)

    toothbrush, toothpaste, floss

    bandaids, ibuprofen, ice pack (kind you squeeze and then gets cold)

    suntan lotion

    if kids: extra diapers, sippy cups and bottle and pacifiers

    I also keep a magic eraser and static dust cloth in my glove box for when stuck in traffic...remove scuff marks, pen marks and dust from dashboard and arm rests

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

I'd love to know what you're thinking. Please feel free to leave ideas and comments.

Popular posts from this blog

How To Make Your Own Exercise Bike For Next To Nothing

Remember back in April when I had a kidney transplant?  Well, the kidney is doing great (thanks, Cathy , for taking such good care of it when you owned it).  There was one little glitch, however.  During surgery, the retractors they used caused some nerve damage in my right leg.  When I woke up from surgery, I couldn't move or feel my leg.  The docs felt like the feeling would come back but the paralysis had them stumped.  A visit to a neurologist ruled out a stroke and a CT scan showed some fluid which was pressing on L4 and L5 (medical talk which means I couldn't feel or move part of my leg).  The prognosis is good and I'm recovering pretty quickly.  In fact, I've left my cane behind and I'm walking freestyle without falling.  My next goal is to be able to drive. I've been itching to get back to exercising (physical therapy doesn't count) because my medication causes me to gain weight and I need to burn some calories.  Running? - nope.  Walking? - can&
45 comments
Read more

A Designer's Secret For A Taller Bed

  Several years ago Hubs and I spent almost a year looking for a bedroom set that we both loved.  He wanted clean lines and dark wood.  I wanted curves and a "tall" bed.  Of course, there was no perfect bedroom set but we were able to compromise on a set that we both liked.  My main wish was for a bed that I could "climb up into".  The problem with that wish was that most of the "tall" beds were four poster beds and Hubs was not in the mood for that.  We found a Thomasville bed on display at a local furniture store and it fit the clean lines that Hubs wanted and it was "tall"  enough to suit me.  The problem was that once we received the bed we ordered in our home, it wasn't as tall as I had remembered it being.  My heart sunk!  I went back to the furniture store to look at the display.  Their bed was much taller than our bed.  Hmmm. . . what was different? I got nosey and lifted up the comforter on the bed.  It revealed their secret
10 comments
Read more

Plans For A DIY Exercise Bike Stand

  Thank you to so many of you who emailed me about plans for the DIY Exercise Bike Stand .  I apologize that it has taken me so long to get the measurements to you, but they are finally here!   The wood was purchased at Home Depot and the bike pegs were purchased at Walmart in the bike section.    The bike we used for this project is a 24" 12 speed bike (I'm a shorty).  I used the hardest gear while riding, but this set-up does not allow you to really get much resistance (for building muscle).  It was great for getting my legs moving after some nerve damage.  I also wanted to burn calories and get my heart rate up and this did the trick.    If you have any questions, just shoot me an email.
40 comments
Read more