Spring cleaning

27 hours of cleaning the mansion
9 loads of laundry
6 hours of car booting
3 skip journeys
2 donation bags
1 bike ride
1 bunch of flowers from a best friend
no alcohol for 9 days (excluding Saturday!)

The bain of my existence now lives under the stairs, it’s the clutter in my mind, the confusion in my heart and the physical proof of all my imperfections...... and it’s going to stay that way!

I’ve been thinking a little more about the tidy house, tidy mind mindset and after hosting a dinner party with the family on Friday evening (bearing in mind I had already spent 12 hours on the kitchen arrrrr). I came to another conclusion... these studies that state that the human mind believe ever so strongly that a clean house represents a clean mind.... might just have it wrong.

Studies show that Saturday mornings are when most women organise the papers next to the table, clear the countertops of breadcrumbs, windex their perfect small glass table and hoover up the dirt. Saturday mornings are therapy, a habit, their consistency. But are they trying to do too much, trying to show themselves and the world just how okay and clean everything is. They must envy people like me that can let go a little. So next time try to remind yourself that the places that aren’t perfectly clean often smell of laughter and love, not bleach. They are places that show the tracks of friends and families not of a vacuum. A clear mind is just empty. But a home with a blanket on the sofa, dishes in the sink and papers strewn to the side represents an energetic and cheerful mind, and a happy heart.

Don’t get me wrong, this first action was extremely rewarding and worth well, but I won’t be beating myself up over it again.

On Sunday morning my partner and I did a car boot sale in a local village, the car was full and our house was officially de-cluttered. We took the deck chairs, a radio, a leather bum bag with change and a picnic.

The recession may be biting but the British love affair with shopping continues - just in a slightly different form! Bargain-hunting is where it's at and our car boot sale in particular was booming.

So, if you're looking to buy or sell there's never been a more exciting, lucrative time to try out the car boot experience!

If you'd like to try your hand at selling here are some tips to help you enjoy your booting experience...

Think about your display. You'll need a pasting table and perhaps a cover (an old tablecloth or similar) on which to display your goods. If you've got lots of items you'll need additional 'merchandising' space - some boxes for displaying books or DVDs in, a clean picnic blanket to lay on the floor in front of your table, a rail with hangers for clothes...Make sure everything can be seen so passing trade can clearly see all you've got on offer!

Go with plenty of change and a bum bag or fanny pack as the yanks say - you'll be selling items at relatively small prices so be sure to have plenty of coinage.

Keep an eye on your pricing - remember it's a car boot sale so there's no point expecting shop prices for your items; everything on my stall was under £3! At the end of the day if you don’t want to take it home, then get rid. We made £97 for 6 hours work.... not bad really.

After the car boot my partner and I took my niece for a country bike ride, it was so refreshing and the world became a nice place again. It helped that the sun was shining; it’s funny how it can do that to you.... I did a little research and just 15 minutes in the sun can do more than just boost your mood.

It can also increase levels of natural antidepressants in the brain. A new study shows that the brain produces more of the mood-lifting chemical serotonin on sunny days than on darker days. So if the sun is shining when you get up try giving yourself just 15 mins in the rays, it could make a whole days difference.

Okay stay tuned for my next blog update, now we have cleansed the mind we are going to focus on how to relax in your own space... after that the real work begins.