Cleanliness is next to…

Yesterday, I invited a couple of friends over for coffee after we dropped our kids off at school. One of the Moms said she would rather go to Starbucks “because her house is so clean it intimidates me.” I am not sure if I should be complimented or insulted! We keep a tidy house, (although I am not sure you could even call the boys’ rooms tidy!) but I don’t consider it to be pristine by any means.

I will admit that our kitchen is uncluttered by most people’s standards. The only items on our kitchen counter are a coffee maker, olive oil and red wine vinegar, a salt/pepper well and a container with wooden utensils. This leaves plenty of counter space for chopping, pounding, slicing, dicing, etc. I wash out the sink and wipe down the counters with an ammonia mup after each meal, and sweep/vacuum the floors daily. I wash down the floors a few times a week too. Apparently my cleaning habits are on the level of Mrs. Dursley of Harry Potter fame (which is to say excessive) according to my girlfriends.

To this, my response is “Huh?” How can anyone cook with 21 appliances on the counter? I like knowing that my family is eating food prepared in a clean kitchen, if that is excessive then just call me Petunia!