Gains, and a big loss

So . . . I cleaned out my kitchen cabinets and lost my son's puppy.

There is no direct correlation but the lack of dear sweet Sally has put a damper on the house in general and my de-cluttering efforts in particular. What would have been a prime time to finish up the big stuff on Saturday became instead a fruitless search by Domino up and and down Dan'l Boone.
On Sunday despair sat in and I mostly just stared aimlessly at all the places she used to lay, and all the stuff she chewed on. There have been no reported sightings and I have checked all the roads for carnage (so depressing) and so all we can conclude is that she was picked up. Hopefully it was by someone well meaning who mistook her for a homeless needy animal. Though I am still hopeful every time I open the door . . .

There is also the depressing reality that more sometimes looks like less. I came home this evening and went straight to it. I handed the missing puppy flyer the mailman, did 2 loads of laundry, switched put the dishwasher, cleaned up cat poop, cooked dinner, served it, and cleaned up afterward, bathed myself and Walt, finished cleaning out the plastic ware drawer, and fed the animals. Some how the house looks worse than it did yesterday.
The reason is fairly obvious to any regular visitor to my house. My son is a animated tornado who leaves a trail of stickers, drawings, and socks in his wake. My husband is the human embodiment of inertia and my dog has a thing about trash. I can't keep up, there aren't enough hours in the day.

Still, I am determined, even if notably shaken in my resolve. This must be done. No one said it would be easy, just nobody said it would be this hard.

Photographic evidence

Sometimes there just aren't words. So I have decided to post some pictures to prompt the whole before and after process. Perhaps unveiling my madness to the world will help speed up this whole endeavor, though it just seems to be a steeper and steeper climb. (Not sure if I will ever be one to vacuum under beds or sweep inside closets)

Most of these are before pictures, though they may more closely resemble after the apocalypse to clean freaks. In my defense, and I don't have a leg to stand on really, the counter top is a bit messier than usual. I took this after I started cleaning out the top.

I would like to note that when I scrubbed down the first of the white cabinets I secretly hoped it would not be noticeable (meaning that I hadn't been deficient and that further scrubbing would be unnecessary) I was wrong. I think even the dog noticed. And so the journey continues . . .