Day #2 ~ The Kitchen Sink

Today I started tackling the kitchen sink zone. My kitchen is made up of 3 basic areas... the sink zone, the oven zone, and then the office zone. In today's modern world housekeeping advice is taken from Martha Stewart. Martha's cleaning techniques are still a bit advanced for me at the moment, so I like to follow the casual musings of Marla (aka The FlyLady) The FlyLady always recommends starting any cleaning routine by shining your sink. It's a fairly easy task, especially with her step-by-step instructions. So my sink is shining. I did use bleach which would have been common place in the 1950's era, but I'm hoping maybe I can find an equally good green product that has the same disinfecting & cleaning power. Honestly my eyes really have been irritated since using it, and if I can avoid that in the future I'll try different options.

Here's a great photo image from the past! Notice the dishpan with her cleaners in it? I tell you, it truly is an invaluable tool! I need a new cleaning pail too, and now that I've seen this one, I've got to have it! In fact, at one of my recent trips to my favorite antique mall in Kennesaw, I saw a pail just like this with red trim (I love red!)... it was with a bunch of enamelware dishes and I was wondering what it was used for.... *duh!* now I know. Maybe I can convince my loving hubby to take me there to get it! 

One thing I am learning is that I'm going to have to take time to make up a schedule. America's Housekeeping Book has an entire chapter devoted to how to organize your time to make sure you can indeed get it all done. I'm going to have to pay close attention reading that and coming up with a schedule that will fit our family. I thought I was doing well... I had gotten my first kitchen zone clean and was working on dinner (my first recipe using my old cookbook) when my oldest son reminds me I have to take him to a "technology" meeting. (Talk about modern living... pretty sure 50s mom's didn't have to carry their kids to computer tech meetings!) So *yikes* I had to do a very un-50's thing, and have hubby finish up dinner. I know, shameful right? I hang my head. As far as dinner goes tho, it was ok... pretty bland as far as seasonings go, but I've read that is fairly common in 50's recipes. Don't get me wrong, it's not necessarily a bad thing because I have 4 picky eaters and they all ate this and loved it. 

As far as fashion goes, I got my shower, tossed up my ponytail and went bare-faced. I seriously need to tap into my past fashionista because I didn't feel 'put together' at all.... and I blame that on the fact it was a cold and rainy blah kinda day. I wonder if housewives in the 50's ever felt blah on cold rainy days.... did they just put themselves together anyway?! I need to find my inner 50's woman. War time advertisements and magazine articles of that era constantly reminded women they need to help 'carry on', pick up the pieces if you will. Think Rosie Riveter!

It was such a different time for women back then. Some of us may see the 50's woman as weak and timid, I think she was a strong and influential. Some may say that women didn't have much of a voice back then, but I disagree. I think she knew what she wanted and knew exactly how to get it. Women have that keen sense about them, which is why I think men think we are so complicated. Nevertheless, there has always been an inner strength in women that I think many of us don't find until we are pushed to limits we never thought we'd face. For me personally, one of the things I would like to get out of this project is simply that.... to carry on, even when I don't want to, or don't "feel" like it....

I was reading my favorite blog, My 50s Year, when I came across a post where she found that women in 1955 wore jeans or pedal pushers (capris) while housekeeping as well as gardening.

This puts the June Cleaver image of a dress, pearls and heals while cooking and cleaning into some perspective! It makes so much more sense to wear flats and be able to get down and dirty while cleaning. I do admit tho, I would love to find (or make!) some vintage style day dresses to wear. I simply feel more feminine wearing a nicely cut dress. I think the fact that I've been wearing jeans virtually everyday for my whole life has gotten, well, simply annoying not to mention boring! I'm ready to make changes.... maybe I'm growing up after all! ;) I also would like to make some aprons from vintage patterns, so I'll be searching the net to find something wonderful! 

I'll have more pictures of the house tomorrow, but as it is getting dark earlier and I had to take my son to his techie meeting, I ran out of time to take decent shots.

Til tomorrow~

~ Angela ~