Tuesday at Home...

During this school year, Tuesdays have been the day most likely to find me at home with no outside commitments. So, Tuesday is cleaning day, laundry and ironing day, and my one real chance for "down time" all rolled into one. I manage that by cleaning in 45 minute sessions, then giving myself a break with the computer, a novel, or a walk in the garden for 10 or 15 minutes before tackling the next cleaning task. Now that I am substituting for the paraprofessionals at our local school system, my Tuesdays at Home sometimes turn into Tuesday on the Run and the house looks a little worse for the wear until the weekend (if i have time to clean) or the following Tuesday.

This morning I brought order to a chaotic kitchen, sprinkled essential oil infused baking soda on the living room carpeting and vacuum-cleaned it, and washed a few windows and floors. I took time on one of my breaks to pick some flowers for the kitchen table. I put a lot of clutter away and did a few loads of laundry. In a few minutes, Tanka and I will eat lunch and then I will pull out the week's ironing. Before that though, I think I will squeeze in a few minutes of reading The Samurai's Garden. I'm very good to my cleaning lady, aren't I? Flowers, lots of breaks, and some reading time built right into the work day! *grin*

photos by Aisling, May 8, 2007: 1) Black Parrot Tulip 2) tidy kitchen and dining room, Tiggy at the window

The Fragrant Country House...

Above the laundry room sink is a little wooden cabinet that I found at a garage sale one summer afternoon several years ago. The cabinet is filled with amber and indigo-blue glass bottles, filled with essential oils for aroma-therapy and homemade cleaning remedies. As you can see from the photo, I have commercial cleaning products on hand (the laundry soap for example) but also the ingredients for more natural cleaning solutions (such as the big jug of white vinegar.) On the best days, my clean house smells like lavender and jasmine, cinnamon and sweet orange. If anyone in the house has been ill, we might catch a whiff of eucalyptus in the bathroom and tea tree around the doorknobs and light switches.

I have several books about using essential oils in the home. Mainly, I "wing it" using what I have on hand in the essential oil cabinet. But, I thought I'd share an air freshener recipe from one of my favorite little home keeping manuals, The Naturally Clean Home: 101 Safe and Easy Herbal Formulas for Nontoxic Cleansers by Karyn Siegel-Maier, published by Storey Books.

"To make your own herbal spray air freshener, first wash the container thoroughly. Then fill it with water (use distilled if it is also going to come in contact with human skin or foods; do not use the spray ion skin within 12 hours of exposure to sun) and add 5 to 7 drops of an essential oil or combination of oils per 8 ounces of water. Here are some suggested blends:

Country Spice - cinnamon, ginger, vanilla, bay

Romance - vanilla, sandalwood, ylang ylang, jasmine, neroli and rose

Far East - patchouli, cedar, sandalwood,lime and coriander

Calming - bergamot, geranium, clary sage, chamomile, and yarrow

There are other combinations listed in the book, which you can check out here: http://www.storey.com/books/book.php/y/7/p/0/isbn/1-58017-194-X Check out some of Storey's other offerings while you're there, if you have time. They call themselves "book publishers of country wisdom, do-it-yourself, and well-being. "

My little blue pump bottle of air freshener is currently scented with jasmine, patchouli and ylang ylang. It smells clean and fresh... and a little bit dreamy.

photo of the laundry room on a good day, by Aisling 2006