One Stressy Weekend

This upcoming weekend my mom is coming to town. It's just for two nights. She won't even be in the house for a full 48 hours. But the anxiety I feel in making sure that our home is immaculately clean is more overwhelming than the thought of being in a car with no brakes.
There is some dust, smudges on the bathroom mirror, and the odd tumbleweed of cat-hair, but we keep our home clean. Relatively clean. And by we, I mean mostly me. Husband helps with chores, but I do 87% of the vacuuming, dusting, dishes, Swiffering, scrubbing of the bathroom facilities, cleaning of the cat shitter-box, etc etc. Husband helps tidy when we have company over. He is really good at getting rid of clutter. I am really good at creating clutter. But that's another story for another day.
However, when my mom comes to visit, I feel this need to make sure our home is ridiculously clean - like Danny Tanner clean. My need to live up to my mom's standards has been an 'all-my-life' thing, and cleanliness is something that I never want her to judge me on. In the rational part of my brain, I know she doesn't really care, but in that tiny maniacal sector at the back, I am a crazy nut with a high-speed dustbuster chasing the cats when they leave a trail of litter coming from their shit-box. I am a Swiffer addict - dusting EVERY surface in our home, Swiffer-sweeping & Swiffer-mopping the floors. Oh Swiffer - I love thee so...
Where was I?
And then there is the gardening... we've been neglecting. A lot. I mean, we have been watering our flowers, but as for the empty flower pots - they have just become a catch-all for cigarette butts, firework leftovers, & other miscellaneous garbage. Classy, I know. Just glad our neighbours are far enough away that they can't see in the pots. We don't want to be those neighbours....

Seriously.... have a little pride in your home much?

So Thursday will be sent madly cleaning, gardening, tidying, & ensuring that our home smells like clean laundry & possibly some home-made pie.