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Anyone? (I noticed someone else mentioned her.) I have half-heartedly tried her method more than once. I do now keep my sink pretty shiny, my dishes wind up in the dishwasher sooner than later, and I almost always have on clothes, makeup and shoes before too much of the day slips by me.
And I *like* my house better when I keep it picked up and tidy. But with three kids who truly believe in the laundry fairy and the cleaning fairy, it's a struggle to keep up. And it's not just them - my desk is a pit, and it's no one's fault but mine. (If I don't go online and schedule a bill for payment as soon as I pull it out of the mailbox, it might end up swallowed on my desk and never seen again - eek!)
Anyone else find a similar-but-better alternative to Flylady? Something that automatically infuses you with the overwhelming urge to rise from your chair and go clean out a closet? (*grin*)
ROFLMBO Terry when you find that magic, please let me know :) I have tried alot of stuff, and FLY Lady was the best. My main thing is I need someone to keep me motivated, like a FLYBuddy LOL.
I have 4 kids who think that there is a cleaning and a laundry fairy, and probably a cooking fairy too.
Yahoo has flylady groups for most areas if you need a buddy. We have one here in SE TX just for the flybabies who live in the Golden Triangle. We post, chat, meet in real life etc.
I belong to 2 groups, but since I am so rural, there aren't any close to me. I can't drive 2 hours to meet with someone :( I have had good luck in the past with an IM buddy.
I signed up for her emails once but then soon cancelled. All those emails coming in everyday telling me what to do freaked me out.
Our children are grown and gone and we are at the place where we need to "get rid of". We say things like, "sheesh, the kids would flip if we died tomorrow and they had to clean this up". Our attic is ridiculous. It's on the "list". Oh yeah, I'm the queen of listmakers. I make a list every morning with coffee. I don't always get it done all accomplished but it does keep me focused.
Cleaning, decluttering, etc. is sort of like dieting and eating healthy. It works fine as long as you do it :-)
Terry, clean out a closet??????? up until a year and a half ago I only had one closet in the whole house!! Now clean out an extra bedroom that is a different story...HELP!
One of the best things I ever did was to make the journal that flylady talks about. I did this back in 2002 and in early 2003 my brother in law from Florida passed away suddenly. My DH father lived 5 hours from us and we didn't want to tell him by phone and because of the journal I knew where most things were (and our laundry was caught up and in the drawers where it belonged) I had all the important phone numbers in one place and was able to be picked up and ready to go in just a couple of hours. Mind you we got the call at 5 a.m. and had to get DS on the bus before we could leave.
I still have the journal and take it with me on most trips. It does need some up dating but I pull it out a couple of times a month for a special phone number or address. I also up until this year have used it to remind me where I have put my Christmas items, Christmas card list and things like that.
Now I keep things like that on my DG diary, what a wonderful thing that is. I have made list for different events our church does at Christmas time, what boxes different ornaments are in and who knows what the next list might be. Since I can't remember anything any more this is the best way to keep track of items. A couple of clicks here at DG and I can find things! Getting old is the pits!
I like many of her ideas like getting dressed to the shoes and laying things out the night before but I sometimes (more often that not) slip on these things especially on these long dark mornings.
Terry great post you make me want to check out flylady again but then I would never get away from the computer.
Well, I LOVED Flylady when I was actually flying. My house was clean and I could have company drop in unannouced and not feel bad about it. I don't want all the emails coming in any more though. I still use the More Time Moms calendar and I love it. I used the FlyLady stickers to mark which zones I was to be cleaning in, but I haven't done that for awhile. I do plan on doing it again, now that I have a new calendar...just need to take the time to do it.
I like the idea of a FlyBuddy. It would be nice to do it through emails though. I got together a couple of times with the Fly group in my area, but haven't done that for awhile...don't really have the time to now either.
DG has been my second home ever since I joined in 2004. I don't want to get involved in another website, cuz then I would NEVER get anything done!
Joyous, I'm gonna have to check out the DG diary more...never really looked at it before. Sounds like you are getting good use out of it.
Ok, I must be the only person on the planet who doesn't know who/what y'all are talking about. Don't laugh but... flylady? I thought it was an insecticide or fly trap or something.
I'm off to google flylady while y'all pick yurselves off the floor- LOL!
I couldn't handle the e-mails, either, it felt like just another thing overwhelming me.
What do I find that infuses me with... etc? Sometimes when I accidentally drink a Frapuccino too late in the day, I get practically psychotic in the evening and start bouncing off the walls. Sometimes I accidentally bounce something back where it belongs. Otherwise, I think I would need that FlyBuddy standing over me, yelling, "Hurry up! Company's coming! You don't want them to know how you really live, do you!?"
Besides, I can't commit to something that will cut into my DG time!
:-)
Just found this, and I have to say ... before DG I was fairly tidy, but now, I'm slipping. LOL I am organized, though. I drive the DH crazy. I'm one of those people who line up the soup cans and the beans ... match the towels and have the foils and sandwich bags on the shelf in order of size. I have my shoes grouped by color, etc. Doesn't everyone? ;)
I'm with you berrygirl, didn't know what in the world a 'flylady' was. I get it now. And I seem to recollect that my Mom was getting inundated with emails from someone she had me unsubscribe from her mailbox last year and it had to do with household hints. I'm thinking that it might have been the flylady. Guess I'll have to check out the link above, but will be sure not to subscribe. I don't have time to do any more cleaning than I do right now and sure don't want someone pricking my conscience everytime I open email. . .for crying out loud. ;>{ Janet
i have a friend who kept forwarding the emails to me. problem was, she only checked her email now and then, and suddenly i would get FIFTY flylady forwards. then she would call and want to talk about all of them. i didn't have time to read them, much less discuss them... it was cutting into my DG TIME lol
elaine, i am with you on keeping things IN closets and pantries extra organized! so what is wrong with me that every flat surface in line of sight piles up???
i once read Messies Anonymous, and the index card system was very helpful to me. especially when i moved to my mother's house, and neede to get things sorted BEFORE she died, since she wasn't gonna do it! i don't actively make new cards, but i have them taped to the outside of boxes, so i know what is in them... now remembering which boxes are where? i don't keep it THAT organized...
UN-ANNOUNCED COMPANY???? What planet are THEY from??? Totally unaccpetable, i might still be in my jammies cleaning my "hot spots"!
Every now and then I read the flylady site for the day (no way would I ever do emails!). A couple of years ago, I downloaded and printed off all of the flylady charts. They helped me, but I felt like it wasn't quite working for me. Probably a year after that, I found organizedhome.com, and downloaded/printed off their stuff. Also, I was on a homeschooling forum that had lots of good ideas from other ladies. So, you could say that my system is a little mix/matched.
We have a little bit of a challenge in our home. We homeschool, Dave works from home, and I sew a LOT. So, you can see, we have a lot of "stuff" that has to stay organized, plus there are a lot of people in the house 24/7...3 meals a day, and all of the mess that comes with it.
I have to stay organized. Things fall apart reall fast if I don't! Not to mention that the church group we belong to is very much a "daily living" group of people, which means that there is always someone here :)
Now, if I could just find my groove again after moving, I'd be in good shape!
*In reading this, I thought how different things are now since last time Terry saw my house (3 years ago!). I sure have had to make many changes and start really discipling myself if I ever wanted to get anything done*
Yep, it has been a while since I've seen Trish "in her element" but I have no doubt she's risen to the challenges presented by juggling motherhood, homeschooling and tending her home (along with her crafty nature) - she's a super mom in all senses of the term!
Off topic, but Trish, didja see my bedroom photos (I sent you the link, didn't I?) If you remember what it looked like "before" I figure you'll appreciate the "after" version. Its "minimalist" look has forced me to keep it tidy 90% of the time. (And putting in closet organizers helped a lot. WHY would anyone live in a home for 20-some years and never tear out the buiilder's "single bar and shelf" system???? There are so many organizer systems on the market, and even the $20 ones give you sooo much more hanging and shelf space. Sigh...)
I've recently had a bright idea for tearing out and rebuilding the closet in the bonus room/4th bedroom to create a walk-in pantry just off the kitchen, and a walk-in closet for the room. I think I've even halfway convinced DH it's a good idea ;o) Now to get him on board so we can start the tear-out and rebuild before spring gets here and we get the overwhelming urge to be outside all weekend!
Okay - enough sidebar conversation. I now return us to our "regularly scheduled programming."
Yep- I sure did see it! Honestly, I was too embarrassed to post to that thread... that would be admitting that I don't even visit "my" forums but once in a blue moon :) It looks great!~!!!! I just can't even believe that's the same room! You're right- just moving the bed really makes it bigger/more useable! You did a great job! Did you do the bath too?
You should get the pantry!!! I have one now for the first time ever, and I just can't fathom how I lived without it. No more digging around in those pull-outs :)
I try to do the 15 minute declutter and 15 minute hotspot each day. It really helps.
I really enjoy Oranized Home too.
I do the zones too but not as often as she would have me do them. I did at first but the house just wasn't dirty and I was like, why am I doing this. I still dust and vacuum each week but the deep cleaning I was doing too often.
I do have a walk-in pantry in my kitchen and I love it.
Well, I am a Flybaby... most of the time. You have to set up your email filters to keep from getting overwhelmed with the reminders. It is kind of corny to have some stranger tell me what to do every day but I have to admit that until I can do it MY way, really get it done, I keep trying to do it her way. Slowly but surely we are getting rid of the clutter instead of just moving it around. I have even started *gasp* going through all the boxes of loose pictures, putting things in frames and albums... about time - the "children" are 15 and 16 and the last time I did the albums they were 2 and 3. DH has even started helping!
Heres some help for Inspiration to Perspiration...
Go into the living room with a garbage bag or two...and imagine you
just got a call from The Secret Service, that the President and
his wife will be stopping by within an hour to meet you of all people!!!!
I tell you, I tried that once (Queen Elizabeth was coming to my home)
and wow, did my house and floors shine in half an hour. It was
truly amazing.
This is not such a great technique to use every day, as lots of stuff
gets put into non memorable spots...try shoes, toys, clothes etc,
into the inside of a grand piano. they hold a lot!!!
We put dishes into the piano seat too.
Regards,
sheri, who had 5+ kids under 5 years old and the house didn't
crawl away, so thats something!!!
Whew! Sheri, you really were busy! I always used to hide dishes in a hurry in the oven. I lost more Tupperware that way, lol. Each time I started to pre-heat the oven only to smell the melting plasticware, I swore I would never do that again. Until the next time.
