My Clean Home

Long Time...

2010-05-13T16:33:00.000-07:00

Well, it's been a long time since I last posted, over 9 months. I have made great strides in that time, though. Lots of changes have been made. I have gotten rid of MOST everything we own. I have gone back to school, too. I have now completed two semesters. Monday starts the new semester (Summer). I am not currently at home, the kids and I have been staying at my mom's. Starting maybe Tuesday, the kids and I are going to be living back at the house, while dh lives elsewhere. It's a long story, but it's what's gonna have to be for now.

So, I have the house MOSTLY emptied, other than furniture. I need to get rid of even more though. I am not going to live in clutter anymore....not physical, mental, emotional, verbal, etc.

I will not rest until our home is completely uncluttered. In addition to this, I will have 18 hours of classes (in onlly 10 weeks, rather than the normal 16). The kids are almost out of school...so it will be an interesting, BUSY summer. Wish me luck, and I hope to get back here starting Tuesday.

Friday Five

2009-08-01T06:15:00.000-07:00

Friday Five--July 31, 2009

1. How often do you clean your home?
Daily. I have a list of chores for each room (and how often they are to be done). This week with VBS, though, I haven't kept up like I should. Today (8/1) starts a new month, and back to school at that, so I will get back to it in full force :)

2. What domestic chore do you hate?
Putting laundry away, and washing dishes. But, sadly, they both must be done.

3. What domestic chore do you enjoy?
Washing/drying the laundry and decluttering. I enjoy hanging laundry out on the clothesline, too.

4. Do you own a washing machine or go to the laundrette?
In my house, I'd be in a padded cell if we didn't have our own washer, lol. I got my first washer in 97 & have not been without one since!

5. Do you iron underpants and/or bed sheets?
I don't iron ANYthing!

Musical Bedrooms pt. 3

2009-07-24T05:43:00.000-07:00

Here are some "During" photos of the new man cave.....and yes, it needs to be painted, too.....my dh's idea of painting is painting "around" furniture, and I can only do a little at a time.

This is the bunkbeds & his chest of drawers, tv/sat/wii. The bottom bunk is awaiting his new mattress that he is on the way NOW to pick up. So, all the things just waiting there on the bed need to be moved & put away.

This is his closet/cubby area. Those are the "other" deer heads (YUCK), his cabinet, on the shelf for now is the pieces to my new desk to be put together and his bows, in the closet are his uniforms & casual clothes & jacob's clothes. The closet floor is full of bags of winter clothes (which eventually will be put in bins and moved to the shed). The closet shelf has to be cleared of my stuff. Prob most of it will be freecycled.

This is dh's lounging area. It's his nightstand (with lamp & wax burner & charging dock) and the couch....yes and the dreaded deer head above.

This is the bunk bed & my cookbook bookshelf, this bookshelf is going to be moved back into the living room shortly. I need to reorganize it once I move it.

The bedroom is much too small to get better photos, or pictures of the floor.

As you can see I bothered my children a whole bunch by taking pics. What they don't know is I now have blackmail, lol.....only Jacob is supposed to be in there....haha.

Living Room redo pt. 1

2009-07-24T03:51:00.000-07:00

Ok, the Bedroom Switcheroo ended up involving the whole house.

I ended up freecycling my large entertainment armoire, my dh's bed, the kids' corner armoire (that was holding nothing but their tv), and a trundle bed that we no longer use. So far, the entertainment armoire and dh's bed have been picked up. If the other 2 are not picked up today, tomorrow they go to goodwill.

The armoire that was no longer being used in the kitchen has been moved to the living room as an entertainment center. My small buffet (pending new pantry parts arriving) will be moved into the living room as a sewing center (but is not in here yet). I made room for my new sewing/scrapbook center by moving the loveseat into the man cave :) A comfy tv lounging area for dh was really the reason for that move....honestly!!! Ok, so you aren't even buying it, lol. Oh well, I do love that I will have ME space now :)

Ok, I am going to post some pics of my Living Room now that it is in total disarray. Brace yourselves...a lot of stuff is in bins waiting to be put back up, and my desk, well, yeah, well, ummmm, there's just no excuse for that. The whole reason for having an armoire, was to keep the doors shut, so no one would use it as a dumping ground, but as you see, they (dh & kids) have broke one of the doors, and the stuff they dumped has bred and well, you get the idea.

Oh, and I do have to rescue my cookbook bookshelf from the man cave. It was moved in there temporarily just to be able to get a few pieces of furniture through the doorway. And, I do need to finally finish painting my living room, so the whole thing will finally be balsam beige, rather than pepto bismol pink. I just have to do it a little at a time, since I am allergic to latex, and it is hard for me to breathe when I am painting, and a few days later.

Ok, this is the back wall leading into the man cave. There is my "bed" (the couch), some clothes needing to be put away, and several bins of stuff to be put away, my hope chest buried in stuff to be put away...yes that is a pot on the hope chest. I used it to pour water in the dogs' bowl outside and have not put it back away yet. At least my floor is mainly clean. That trash bag is a bag of clothes, and my chair is in front of my desk. That white shelf is going on top of the homeschool cubbies.

This is the wall leading to the front yard. That is my desk and my homeschool cubby, and yes BOTH are in MAJOR need of decluttering/organizing. I have no excuses!

alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5361981442650849170" />

This is the wall leading into the kitchen. It has the backpack station (white bin on top is the out the door bin for library books, dvd's to return, small freecycle items), then is my dvd/vcr and satellite, the red bin is supposed to be only for kids' school folders, but it has a little bit of overflow from the living room being torn apart and still in transition. the white laundry basket in the bottom is for shoes.....yes, I need to weed some out. It is only supposed to be for one pair for each of us, but the kids have taken advantage of my hospitality, lol. The armoire holds the tv & printer up top, the cabinet has hangers waiting to be used, the drawers hold the dvd collection.....hoping the drawers will prove tougher for Chey. She was opening the cabinets on the old entertainment armoire and dumping them, several times daily in the floor....much to Caity's frustration.

The last wall is sort of empty for now. That is my scrapbook stuff to the left and it needs to be reorganized. But once everything is put away, and I am able to liberate my small buffet from the kitchen, this is going to be my craft wall (scrapbook & sewing center). Yes that curtain rod is bent. This is where the loveseat was, and despite my best efforts, the kids kept taking the curtain from behind the loveseat and sitting on it, thus pulling on the rod.

Musical Bedrooms pt. 2 (today)

2009-07-23T15:20:00.000-07:00

It has been decided that the bottom bunk (at least) of the white bunk beds will stay in dh's/jacob's new room. If there is enough room in the girls' room, the top bunk will move in there. I moved the loveseat into the "man cave" for dh to sleep on if the other bed fits in the girls' room, if it doesn't, he has the bottom bunk & jacob has the top bunk, but knowing him, he will fall asleep every night on the loveseat watching tv anyways.

**Footnote** dh is happier about the move now that we have:
1. found the remote to that bedroom's satellite
2. moved the loveseat in there in front of the tv
3. moved all his dead animals in there (deer heads)
4. named the room the "man cave"

The cabinet was moved into "the man cave".

Still have left to move:

* red bunk beds into girls' room
* crib to girls' room
* bins to the shed

Musical Bedrooms (did this last night)

2009-07-23T15:12:00.000-07:00

Sooooooooooo..........as soon as I hit send yesterday, I made the decision (drumroll please.................)

I moved dh into the girls' small bedroom, and them into the Master Bedroom.

So far, I have:
* moved dh's mattress (kids' broke his frame), nightstand, tv, wii & chest of drawers in dh's new room
* moved girls' dressers (the 9 cube organizers), mattresses in master bedroom
* hooked up dh's tv, satellite & wii
* hooked up girls' tv & satellite
* moved kitchen armoire (not being used in there anymore once i get the parts to my kitchen pantry) to the living room to be used as an entertainment center
* moved dvd's from entertainment armoire to the new armoire (chey was able to get them all out every day from the old cabinet, hoping the drawers prove harder for her)
* moved old entertainment armoire to front yard & listed on freecycle
* listed trundle bed on freecycle

Still have left to move:
* bunk beds into girls' room
* crib to girls' room
* cabinet into dh's room
* bins to the shed

PS...DH was not crazy about the move...especially since I could not find the remote to the satellite in that bedroom

My Kitchen......an interruption in service.........changing to my Girls' Bedroom

2009-07-22T05:07:00.000-07:00

Ok, my husband went to put the pantry together and had the wrong pieces (pt. 2). Well, since then, we have just been waiting around for the new pieces to arrive. So, until that magic moment when they arrive, I am going to (cringe) start work on my daughters' bedroom instead.

Recently I took everything out of my girls' room (ages 8, 5 1/2, 3 1/2) except their beds. They were not putting anything away.....despite the numerous different setups I had tried in getting their rooms decluttered, rearranged & reorganized. Every single week (Thursdays usually), I would get so frustrated by the mess, I would do another purge. Their toys got banished to the playhouse outside, they lost their tv privledges, their art supplies got taken to my small, already overcrowded office space. Their clothes got moved to the living room (and yes it drove me bonkers).

I recently put their clothes back in their room, but am beginning to have the same problem of them just throwing the clothes in the floor....even after "I" put them away. So, to solve this problem, I have taken their 9drawer cubby system (target with the fabric drawers) out of their dark closet, and moved it out into the bedroom, where they can see it again. AND, I have made it Caity's responsibility to put the clothes away. I have tried everyone putting their own clothes away, but Brea & Rory just did not care. They would take their clothes and toss them in the floor. I think Caity will be better at enforcing keeping the clothes put away than me, since she is now responsible for putting them away. She likes to do as little work as possible, lol, so she's not gonna want to keep putting the same clothes away over & over.

They have a bunk bed and I put the 3rd mattress under the bunk bed & it is pulled out every night (I am going to buy a trundle box for her bed). So, right now, the room is fairly empty. But I want to get their toys & art stuff back in there just not sure how to go about it yet.

So, I have a very small 13'X8' room for these 3 girls.....emptied it out of everything except their clothes.........and now..........I want to do the unthinkable..........and add a fourth girl to this room.....In a crib!!!

And, I am debating making my dh trade rooms with the girls, since his room is bigger.

LOL....I never can make things easy, can I???

Ok, so no pictures to post yet, I am going to think over the possibilities in my head about what I want to do. If anyone has any ideas, PLEASE, feel free to share them with me!

My Kitchen......reorganize pt. 3

2009-07-16T04:08:00.000-07:00

Ok, so as to not freak anyone out....I am only posting ONE picture today.....but be forewarned. It's not for the weak of heart. It is a doozy!!! It's the top of my large buffet.

Just to say in advance, in my defense, the contents of my armoire are also on here, as well as anything my dh & kids decide to just drop & run (as in they drop something and run like heck before mama catches them doing so). And, yes, that is a pair of my oldest dd's nikes....she needs them relaced, so what better spot than on the buffet in the kitchen???

There is a little something for everyone up here. You can most noticeably see all the linens on top of everything (they are from the armoire). Then there's Caity's shoes, some canisters that haven't been put away (at this point, what was the use), then there's bread that hadn't made it to the freezer yet (I'm happy to say it has now). Underneath all the clutter (junk), there is actually some pretty pottery crocks holding my (some of my) utensils. And, of course, the overflowing can cabinet (which can hopefully be retired after my new pantry gets put together). And if you look on top of that, is the white board paint I bought months ago, and still haven't painted.

Geez, this is even overwhelming me, lol....Well, here it is.....don't run away, please!!

My Kitchen......reorganize pt. 2

2009-07-16T03:42:00.000-07:00

Ok, you know how when you have this great plan, this terribly well thought out plan, that is just perfect....nothing can go wrong. Wellllllllll, let me tell you it CAN. And usually, ok, sometimes due to no idiocy of your own.

I bought this pantry, you see, and I was gonna put it together myself. Well, my dh decided he wanted to put it together himself....BIG MISTAKE!!

First of all, he is not a WOOD man....he is a METAL man. You give that boy something to weld and you will love it when it's done. Welllll, he once built me a bookshelf.....I had this ingenious idea to use the wooden rails from a twin bed frame and the slats to make a bookshelf. Oh, it would have been a great little bookshelf....Well, he got to work, and about an hour brought it in to me.........The shelves were at a diagonal.....you'd put a book on, and it would fall right back off!

Ok, so it's been like 13 years, so I decided he had earned the right to try again (I mean I did put together all the cribs & baby furniture so my kids wouldn't just fall out).

So, he gets to work, and he's about 1/2way through with the pantry.....and calls me, b/c he can't figure out how in the world this board is supposed to fit on there....

Bless his heart, he didn't check the materials off on the little checklist before he started putting things together. Now he must have watched me put together at least 100 different pieces of furniture....and that is always my first step.

Hey, at least he did do the steps in the order they call for....lol, guess he was trying to do a good job, and not be banned another 13 years. WELL, they had given us two "A" boards, but no "B" board. And since A is the left side of the pantry, and B is the right side, there's just no dadgum way it's gonna work. Like having 2 left feet....no matter how hard ya try, all ya gonna do is dance in circles.

Soooooooooooooo, we had to take it back apart (because our house is too small to just have it standing somewhere in limbo without my destroyers (umm, i mean little creative people...sure, yeah, ok, that's not even convincing to me), doing what they do best......destroying. So, it is now unassembled (and glue spilt), and blocking my microwave cart (with the microwave & dishes). So, today, I get to call the company, and request a part B :) Now I just have to decide what my Plan B is...because I already took my armoire out the kitchen thinking my pantry was to be put together, and the contents are all over my large buffet.

Aaaaaaargh....lol. You think stuff like this only happens in the movies....WRONG..............it happens to me, lol.

My Kitchen......reorganize pt. 1

2009-07-15T12:27:00.000-07:00

Ok, I am having a BIG organization problem in my kitchen......I get it organized how it makes sense to me, and I am "technically" the only one who uses it.....well for it's intended purposes anyways. My kitchen is WAY TOO small to be using it as a catch-all, but that is the purpose my family uses it for. In order to NOT scare you away, I am not going to post all of my before pics at one time.

The first thing I am going to show you is my small buffet, which is the perfect height for me considering I have absolutely NO counter space....and by this I don't mean cluttered counter space or unutilized space, I mean NO space. I have 2 very small counters (1'x1') and one is in the corner between my front door and my stove....so I can't even get to it easily (it has my dish strainer on it, that's all I can put there...anything else I can't reach to use. The 2nd small counter is reachable, but still too small to really use (and with me being so short, it is too tall for me to use even if it were big enough).

HOWEVER....will all that being said.....I am taking this piece out of my kitchen :( It is not able to effectively do the job I want it to do in my kitchen. The problems are: 1. everytime I get the top cleared off, dh & kids clutter it back up (major hotspot), 2. the cabinet is too narrow, but too tall to hold really much of anything. it should have a shelf to utilize the height (so I don't have dead space at the top) and it should be wider to hold my extra appliances....oh, and the drawer really doesn't hold anything well (you have to open the cabinet to open the drawer).........

So, although it's the perfect height, it has these other problems. So......I am going to repurpose it as a sewing cabinet :) my sewing machine will fit on top, i am going to put a bin of fabric in the cabinet, a basket to hold patterns (if i keep any), and the drawer can hold some small baskets to hold things like bobbins, thread, etc.

Only problem....where to put the miscellaneous stuff that is thrown in it?? (it's a hodgepodge of stuff)

BEFORE pics (will be a while before I am able to post AFTER pics, because I have to find somewhere for all this stuff to go rather than just dump it in my already ON FIRE kitchen:
Top of buffet: (blender that hasn't been put away since being used over a month ago, my new mixer that i bought over 2 weeks ago and haven't put away, my crockpot that is actually being used...see my yummy dinner inside, coffee maker that doesn't get used during summer, top of trifle bowl that hasn't been used since mom's day, a casserole dish, the pledge, my brisket recipe cards from last week, and the sticks to the koolaid pops)

Inside buffet drawer (inside cabinet): (various pampered chef gadgets, popcorn, almond bark & bottle parts)

Inside buffet cabinet: (various other pc items, chillzanne, caddies, muffin stone, and for some reason a hamburger helper (free with coupon, lol) and a cake mix)

Tackle It Tuesday

2009-07-07T11:38:00.000-07:00

5 Minutes for Mom hosts something called Tackle it Tuesday, which from what I get is to basically tackle something you have been putting off.

So, I decided to "tackle" the top of my desk. It is an absolute mess (things just piled on it randomly).

BEFORE:

AFTER:

I took everything down. I dusted & put back the things that did belong (with a little rearranging).

So sorry!

2009-07-05T07:51:00.000-07:00

I am so sorry I have been MIA!! Things have been so crazy with the kids, decluttering, etc, that I have not had the time for blogging. I hope to be able to make time again, though.

I did get through my 31 days of babysteps, and could probably stand to do them again, but not going to bite off too much right now.....or I will get overwhelmed and quit.

I have been decluttering EVERY day. I got the shed finished!!! Over 100 boxes down to 8!!! I have been doing at least 15 minutes every day, just not posting my results :( I hope to get back to that, though!

I have also been reading Organizing Junkie's blog (from start to....well, I'm only about 1/2way through), and have been getting inspired :)

Hopefully I will post more often. With all 5 kids home for the summer, and Caity homeschooling, I will not promise a daily post, though.

Babysteps, Day 23--3/23/09 WORKING ON

2009-03-23T08:37:00.000-07:00

FlyLady:
Check Your Control Journal Every Morning and Evening

Today we are going to add another routine to our day. I like to call this our get home from work routine or get home from school. Whatever you name it; it is your afternoon routine.

Make a new page in your Control Journal for your Afternoon Routine. As with any of your routines; you will have to adapt to fit your family. Your Control Journal is your guide for BabyStepping your way through you day.

Cherylann:
Make Afternoon Routine:
AM:
Make couch: DONE
dressed to shoes: DONE
Check CJ: DONE
2 minutes reminders: DONE
posted reminders: DONE
negative voices: NONE
hotspots:
5 minute room rescue:
Decluttering 15 mins:
Kelly's mission:
Zone 4: Mission # 1 Monday
Dear Friends:
Your mission for today is to grab
a trash bag, set the timer and start tossing anything that is trash.
Just toss toss toss. Sometimes we have hidden trash in our bedrooms,
things that are disguising themselves as necessary items but really
they are trash. Toss those magazines, the junk mail that has been
tossed in a pile, the old perfumes that are never worn but still have
a place on your dresser, the old clothes that are on the chair that
need to be donated or tossed but are still there, empty tissue boxes
etc. Toss toss toss!
Look around your bedroom and ask yourself if there is anything laying
around that you would consider trash if it was in a hotel room. Your
bedroom should be your very favorite retreat!
Kelly
Laundry:
PM:
Check CJ:
shiny sink:
pick out clothes:
Hot spots:
Bed by 11pm:

Babysteps, Day 22--3/22/09 DONE

2009-03-23T08:32:00.000-07:00

FlyLady:
Check Your Control Journal Every Morning and Evening

Have you been procrastinating about building your Control Journal? I know that perfectionism can rear its ugly head and keep us stuck. If you just can’t seem to get yours together; I have made one for you. It is in our FLY Shop

All the BabyStep directions are on the website too. Just click on the link underneath FlyLadys feet.

Control Journal

Cherylann:
AM:
Make couch: DONE
dressed to shoes: DONE
Check CJ: DONE
2 minutes reminders: DONE
posted reminders: DONE
negative voices: NONE
hotspots: DONE
5 minute room rescue: DONE
Decluttering 15 mins: DONE
Kelly's mission: NONE
Laundry: DONE
PM:
Check CJ: DONE
shiny sink: DONE
pick out clothes: DONE
Hot spots: DONE
Bed by 11pm: DONE....my new meds knocked my butt out

Babysteps, Day 21--3/21/09 DONE

2009-03-23T08:23:00.000-07:00

FlyLady:
Check Your Control Journal Every Morning and Evening

Today I am going to show you something else on our website. Each day(Monday-Friday) our WebDude Lee puts up an Ask FlyLady Question and I answer it.

Ask FlyLady:

Cherylann:
Check out Ask FlyLady: DONE
AM:
Make couch: DONE
dressed to shoes: DONE
Check CJ: DONE
2 minutes reminders: DONE
posted reminders: DONE
negative voices: NONE
hotspots: DONE
5 minute room rescue: DONE
Decluttering 15 mins: DONE
Kelly's mission: NONE
Laundry: DONE
PM:
Check CJ: DONE
shiny sink: DONE
pick out clothes: DONE
Hot spots: DONE
Bed by 11pm: DONE....my new meds knocked my butt out

Babysteps, Day 20--3/20/09 DONE

2009-03-23T08:18:00.000-07:00

FlyLady:
Check Your Control Journal Every Morning and Evening

One of the many reminders that we send out has to do with our laundry; when you include laundry in your morning and evening routine this makes getting up and getting dressed much easier. Laundry doesn’t take long to do when we don’t procrastinate about one of the five steps: Sort, wash, dry, fold and put away. It only takes a few short minutes. When you include laundry in your routines everyone is blessed. Nothing says I love you more than clean underwear!

Cherylann:
AM:
Make couch: DONE
dressed to shoes: DONE
Check CJ: DONE
2 minutes reminders: DONE
posted reminders: DONE
negative voices: NONE
hotspots: DONE
5 minute room rescue: DONE
Decluttering 15 mins: DONE
Kelly's mission: DONE
Zone 3: Mission #5 Friday
Dear Friends:
You have scrubbed, shined, swished, swiped and washed this week, now
it is time to enjoy the fruits of your labor! Your mission for
today is to take time out for you. Take a bath or shower and enjoy
it! Take your time when washing your hair, scrubbing your body,
shaving the forest off your legs and just enjoy the moment of being
alone in your fresh, sparkly bathroom.
Your laundry room mission for today is to place a picture of your
family or favorite pet or a picture of something that is special to
you in your laundry room. This allows you to see something pleasant
when you are blessing the laundry.
Love to you all!
Kelly
Laundry: DONE
PM:
Check CJ: DONE
shiny sink: DONE
pick out clothes: DONE
Hot spots: DONE
Bed by 11pm: NOT DONE....stayed up late with Jenny

Babysteps, Day 19---3/19/09 DONE

2009-03-23T08:09:00.000-07:00

FlyLady:
Check Your Control Journal Every Morning and Evening

Here is another inspirational testimonial that is the first page of my book, Sink Reflections. Your home can be this too. You are taking the BabySteps to get you there.

Testimonial

Cherylann:
read testimonial: DONE
AM:
Make couch: DONE
dressed to shoes: DONE
Check CJ: DONE
2 minutes reminders: DONE
posted reminders: DONE
negative voices: NONE
hotspots: DONE
5 minute room rescue: DONE
Decluttering 15 mins: DONE
Kelly's mission: DONE
Zone 3: Mission #4 Thursday
Dear Friends,
Your next mission is to clean out your bathtub. If you don't do it
everyday, the bathtub ring takes on a life of its own. Let's wipe
down our tubs and get rid of that ring. If you haven't done it
in a while you may need to use a little cleanser. Most of the time a
little soap on a rag will take care of it.
Your Laundry Room mission for today is to empty the trash can
that always seems to get forgotten! You will get bonus points if
you remember to replace the bag once you take out the used one!
Kelly
PM:
Check CJ: DONE
shiny sink: DONE
pick out clothes: DONE
Hot spots: DONE
Bed by 11pm: DONE

Babysteps, Day 18--3/18/09 DONE

2009-03-23T07:54:00.000-07:00

Check Your Control Journal Every Morning and Evening

Did you know that we have Eleven Commandments? You may want to print these out or write them in your Control Journal.

11 commandments

Cherylann:
read 11 commandments: DONE
AM:
Make couch: DONE
dressed to shoes: DONE
Check CJ: DONE
2 minutes reminders: DONE
posted reminders: DONE
negative voices: NONE
hotspots: DONE
5 minute room rescue: DONE
Decluttering 15 mins: DONE
Kelly's mission: DONE
Zone 3: Mission #3 Wednesday
Dear Friends,
When you go in your bathroom each morning do you have trouble seeing
yourself in the mirror. Is your beautiful image blurred from the
toothpaste splatters and water marks?
Grab your favorite window cleaner and let's bring a shine to the
glass. This will only take a few short minutes and while you are at
it, shine that sink too.
Your Laundry Room Mission is to clean out your lint filter and double
check your vent hose. Lint build up in the filter and in the vent
hose is a leading cause of house fires. Something so easy for us to
check but something that we just don't remember to do. Also look
underneath your dryer as well, lint has a tendency to fly around and
then get caught up under the dryer.
Kelly
PM:
Check CJ: DONE
shiny sink: DONE
pick out clothes: DONE
Hot spots: DONE
Bed by 11pm: DONE

Babysteps, Day 17 (3/17/09) DONE

2009-03-23T07:40:00.000-07:00

FlyLady:
Check Your Control Journal Every Morning and Evening

Today I want you to think about what time you are going to bed each night. Set a specific bed time and stick to it. You need your rest. Put this on your Before Bed Routine.

Cherylann:
New Bedtime: 11pm....I usually don't go to bed until between 12-2am, and I get up at 4am most days.
AM:
Make couch: DONE
dressed to shoes: DONE
Check CJ: DONE
2 minutes reminders: DONE
posted reminders: DONE
negative voices: NONE
hotspots: DONE
5 minute room rescue: DONE
Decluttering 15 mins: DONE
Kelly's mission: DONE
Zone 3: Mission #2 Tuesday
Dear Friends,
This week we are in the main bathroom and the laundry room. Your
mission for today combines both of those rooms!
Have you noticed that your bathroom begins to smell bad and you
can't find the stinky culprit. We are going after these yucky odors.
Take your rugs, all the fuzzy stuff on your toilet, and the towels
that are just for show and we are going to wash them. While you
are in the laundry room grab an old rag or washcloth and wipe down
the lid of the washing machine and dryer. I am always shocked at the
dust and stuff that seems to just accumulate here. Shine those
babies up!
With the rugs in the washer: Sweep the bathroom floor and take a
dirty towel and wet it and just mop the floor. When the Rugs are
finished put them back in your wonderful smelling bathroom!
Kelly
PM:
Check CJ: DONE
shiny sink: DONE
pick out clothes: DONE
hot spots: DONE

Decluttering, Days 78-81 (3/19-3/22)

2009-03-23T07:29:00.000-07:00

3/19 (thursday)....I decluttered paper from my desk...tossed about 1 wal-mart bag full
3/20 (friday)...decluttered 1 bag clothes and 1 bag of things my mom left here (over the past few months) returned back to her
3/21 (saturday)...decluttered bottles. condensed cleaners together and tossed extra bottles
3/22 (sunday)...decluttered clothes...got rid of 3 trash bags full

Decluttering Day 77 (3/18/09) Round 4

2009-03-18T08:35:00.000-07:00

Top of computer armoire, homeschool cubbies...

Top of computer armoire BEFORE:

Top of computer armoire AFTER:

Top of cubbies BEFORE:

Top of cubbies AFTER:

1st Row BEFORE:

2nd Row BEFORE:

3rd Row BEFORE:

Cubbies AFTER (yes that is 4 cubbies empty)

Decluttering Day 77 (3/18/09) Round 3

2009-03-18T07:34:00.000-07:00

I decluttered, wiped, organized the back counter, did a massive load of dishes that I'd found from other "tops" (most were dusty, not dirty), decluttered & wiped front counter.

Dishes BEFORE:

Dishes washed this round:

Dishes in Sink AFTER:

Right counter BEFORE:

Right counter AFTER:

Left counter BEFORE:

Left counter AFTER:

Decluttering Day 77 (3/18/09) Round 2

2009-03-18T06:55:00.000-07:00

2nd round:
I decluttered, wiped, decorated the top of the armoire; decluttered, wiped & organized top of the small buffet; decluttered, wiped top of stove; washed breakfast dishes.

Armoire BEFORE:

Armoire AFTER:

Small Buffet BEFORE:

Small Buffet AFTER:

Stovetop BEFORE:

Stovetop AFTER:

Breakfast dishes:

Decluttering Day 77 (3/18/09) Round 1

2009-03-18T06:24:00.000-07:00

I cleaned my buffet & can pantry. It was a horrible mess (cluttered top). This is a major hotspot for me, so I am hoping I can keep it this way. I decorated it to help motivate me to keep it this way. I know everyone else will just come dump everything there, but hopefully I can keep it clean.

Buffet & Can Cabinet BEFORE:

Can Cabinet Inside AFTER:

Can Cabinet, Buffet AFTER:

Decluttering Day 76 (3/17/09)

2009-03-18T06:22:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I decluttered 2 bags of misc. stuff from around the house. I went from room to room just tossing things that either had no home or that I didn't feel like putting away (they must not have been that important, huh?)

Babysteps, Day 16-3/16/09 DONE

2009-03-16T06:16:00.000-07:00

FlyLady:
Check Your Control Journal Every Morning and Evening

Today I want you to look in your inbox for an email from me. It can be a Morning Musing, a testimonial or an essay. Just take a few minutes and read over it. You never know what I am going to discuss.

Cherylann:
Sorry, I got behind on my blogging, so I didn't have time to post pics. I will try to start that again today.
Read FL email: DONE (read the If Mama Ain't Happy Essay)
AM:
Make couch: DONE
dressed to shoes: DONE
Check CJ: DONE
2 minutes reminders: DONE
posted reminders: DONE
negative voices: NONE
hotspots: DONE
5 minute room rescue: DONE
Decluttering 15 mins: DONE
Kelly's mission: DONE
Zone 3: Mission #1 Monday
Dear Friends,
We are in the Zone 3 which is the main bathroom and another room
in the house. This week that other room will be the Laundry Room.
The bathroom: Clean around the backside and
the sides of our toilets. The wipe down all the surfaces.
The Laundry Room: Today we are going to declutter all of the
laundry supplies that we have hanging around. This means to
toss whatever you have that you do not use or do not like. This
also means to toss all of those empty boxes and bottles that seem
to pile up. Those soap boxes, dryer sheet boxes, fabric softener
bottles - you all know just what I am talking about! LOL!
I think I have a few of these myself that need to be tossed!
Have Fun!
Kelly
PM:
Check CJ: DONE
shiny sink: DONE
pick out clothes: DONE
hot spots: DONE

Babysteps, Day 15-3/15/09 DONE

2009-03-16T06:07:00.000-07:00

FlyLady:
Check Your Control Journal Every Morning and Evening

You are starting on our third week of FLYing. Each day you are going to your Control Journal and using your sticky notes to remind you along with the reminders that you are getting in our inbox. Our habits are coming along nicely and we are seeing changes in our attitudes and our homes.

On our new week of FLYing you are going to add Making your bed to your morning routine. If you will do this as soon as your feet hit the floor you are less likely to forget it.

Cherylann:
AM:
Make couch: DONE (I sleep on the couch for my back...I fold the blankets & put away blanket/pillow daily anyways)
dressed to shoes: DONE
2 minutes reminders: DONE
posted reminders: DONE
negative voices: NONE
hotspots: DONE
5 minute room rescue: DONE
Decluttering 15 mins:
Kelly's mission: DONE
Zone 2: Mission #3 Wednesday
Dear Friends:
What a fun and exciting mission that I have for you today? LOL!
Let's take a close look at the gadgets and small appliances. The
toaster, can opener, coffee maker, microwave etc. The small
appliances that you use on a regular basis. When was the last time
you cleaned out your toaster; opened up the bottom and dumped the
crumbs? How dingy or dusty is your coffee maker? Do we even want to
talk about the blades on the electric can openers? How about the
outside of the microwave?
Wipe them down and make them shine. I am not telling you to drag out
every small kitchen appliance you own and to scrub them. Just wipe
down the fingerprints, dust, drips, dried food particles on the most
used items. Make sure you unplug these items before you clean them!
Don't obsess, set your timer for 15 minutes and have fun!
Kelly
PM:
shiny sink: DONE
pick out clothes: DONE
hot spots: DONE

Babysteps, Day 14-3/14/09 DONE

2009-03-16T05:56:00.001-07:00

FlyLady:
Check your Morning Routine in your Control Journal

Check your Before Bed Routine in your Control Journal

There is tons of information on our website. I do not want you to get confused. Today I want you to go read an essay that Kelly wrote. Most of us are calendar challenged. Kelly has a way of making it so easy for us to understand.

Kelly's Calendar Essay

Cherylann:
Read Kelly's Essay: DONE
AM:
dressed to shoes: DONE
2 minutes reminders: DONE
posted reminders: DONE
negative voices: NONE
hotspots: DONE
5 minute room rescue: DONE
Decluttering 15 mins:
Kelly's mission: DONE
Zone 2: Mission #4 Thursday
Dear Friends:
We are still tackling the kitchen this week!!! What do you think I
have in store for you today? LOL!
This involves old toothbrushes and elbow grease! Yes you guessed
it! Grab those toothbrushes and some general purpose cleaner and
scrub those faucets on your kitchen sink. It is amazing how much
gunk can build up around the seals and edges.
Have fun, this is a quick mission that shows instant results!
Kelly
PM:
shiny sink: DONE
pick out clothes: DONE
hot spots: DONE

Babysteps, Day 13-3/13/09 DONE

2009-03-16T05:48:00.000-07:00

FlyLady:
Check your Morning Routine in your Control Journal

Check your Before Bed Routine in your Control Journal

Today I want you to find one of Kelly’s Missions and go and do it. They are fast and easy! This is going to introduce you to how we break our home into zones so that we never have to spring clean again.

http://flylady.net/pages/FlightPlan_Missions.asp

Here is what we are doing so far. We are practicing our Morning Routines, decluttering for 15 minutes a day and doing our Before Bed Routines.

Cherylann:
AM:
dressed to shoes: DONE
2 minutes reminders: DONE
posted reminders: DONE
negative voices: NONE
hotspots: DONE
5 minute room rescue: DONE
Decluttering 15 mins:
Kelly's mission: DONE
Zone 2: Mission #5 Friday
Dear Friends:
We are in the last day of the kitchen zone!
Let's take a look at the cabinets! Take a few minutes to check them
out, I bet you will see that they need a little sprucing up! Just
wipe down the outside surfaces. You will be so surprised at what a
difference shining those cabinets will make!
There is no "right" way to do this. Depending on what your cabinets
are made out of is what you will use to wipe the cabinets down. A
wood soap, a general purpose cleaner, or just soap and water. A
slightly damp cloth will work as well.
Don't obsess and have fun with this! Look around and see how your
kitchen shines!!!
Kelly
PM:
shiny sink: DONE
pick out clothes: DONE
hot spots: DONE

Babysteps, Day 11-3/11/09 DONE

2009-03-16T05:44:00.000-07:00

FlyLady:
Check your Morning Routine in your Control Journal

Check your Before Bed Routine in your Control Journal

Keep the sticky notes up to help remind you to look at your Control Journal. Can you believe that you have been FLYing for 12 days? I am so proud of you! BabySteps will get you there.

You have your basic routine started and these are what you do for now. Do not try to do too much too fast; you will just crash and burn. Continue to take BabySteps to build your Control Journals. Do not allow your perfectionism to take over. We are building our routines and our Control Journals one habit at a time.

Today I want you to delete from your inbox all the emails from FlyLady. Now don’t cringe. They will all come back around and I write something new every day.

Cherylann:
Delete FL emails: DONE...I've been doing this daily :)
AM:
dressed to shoes: DONE
2 minutes reminders: DONE
posted reminders: DONE
negative voices: NONE
hotspots: DONE
5 minute room rescue: DONE
Decluttering 15 mins: DONE (been doing this since 1/1/09...whoo!!!)
PM:
shiny sink: DONE
pick out clothes: DONE
hot spots: DONE

Babysteps, Day 10-3/10/09

2009-03-16T05:41:00.001-07:00

FlyLady:
Morning Routine

- Get up and get dressed to lace up shoes; fixing your hair and face
- Looking at your posted reminders in the kitchen and bathroom
- Reading 2 minutes of reminders
- Recognizing the negative voices and changing them; YOU ARE FLYing NOW!
- Put out your Hot Spots for 2 minutes
- 5 Minute Room Rescue (pick any room in the house) set your timer and go!

Before Bed Routine

- Keep your sink shining
- Lay out your clothes for tomorrow
- Put out your Hot Spot (I have to do this twice a day) It makes me smile in the morning!

We have already been using our timers for 2 minutes and now 5 minutes. Today we are going to learn the power of just 15 minutes. You can do anything for 15 minutes. This is all about getting started and giving ourselves permission to stop when the timer goes off. You cannot restart the timer either. This is not a race to finish in 15 minutes either! The timer helps to keep us focused on what we are doing.

Now set your timer for 15 minutes and go gather up all the trash you can find to throw away and put it in the garbage can outside. Then set your timer for another 15 minutes and sit down and put your feet up and read a favorite magazine till the timer goes off.

Cherylann:
AM:
dressed to shoes: DONE
2 minutes reminders: DONE
posted reminders: DONE
negative voices: NONE
hotspots: DONE
5 minute room rescue: DONE
Decluttering 15 mins: DONE (been doing this since 1/1/09...whoo!!!)
PM:
shiny sink: DONE
pick out clothes: DONE
hot spots: DONE

Babysteps, Day 9-3/9/09 DONE

2009-03-16T05:37:00.000-07:00

Here is what we are already doing; Look in your Control Journal; leave the sticky notes up to help remind you. It takes us 28 days to develop a new habit. These are just BabySteps on our way to a new way of living.

Morning Routine

- Get up and get dressed to lace up shoes; fixing your hair and face
- Looking at your posted reminders in the kitchen and bathroom
- Reading 2 minutes of reminders
- Recognizing the negative voices and changing them; YOU ARE FLYing NOW!
- Put out your Hot Spots for 2 minutes

Before Bed Routine

- Keep your sink shining
- Lay out your clothes for tomorrow
- Put out your Hot Spot (I have to do this twice a day) It makes me smile in the morning!

Today we are going to learn how to declutter our homes a few minutes at a time with some fun tools that I know you have been wondering about from the reminders you have been reading in our emails. Making it fun will get the job done!

FlyLady Declutter

Add a 5 minute room rescue to your Morning Routine.

Cherylann:
AM:
dressed to shoes: DONE
2 minutes reminders: DONE
posted reminders: DONE
negative voices: NONE
hotspots: DONE
5 minute room rescue: DONE
PM:
shiny sink: DONE
pick out clothes: DONE
hot spots: DONE

Babysteps, Day 8-3/8/09 DONE

2009-03-16T05:34:00.000-07:00

FlyLady:
Here you are; you have been FLYing for a whole week. I am so proud of you. Lets review your new habits. I am going to break them down into what you do each morning and what you do each evening.

Morning Routine

- Get up and get dressed to lace up shoes; fixing your hair and face
- Looking at your posted reminders in the kitchen and bathroom
- Reading 2 minutes of reminders
- Recognizing the negative voices and changing them; YOU ARE FLYing NOW!
- Put out your Hot Spots for 2 minutes

Before Bed Routine

- Keep your sink shining
- Lay out your clothes for tomorrow
- Put out your Hot Spot (I have to do this twice a day) It makes me smile in the morning!

Over the last week we have introduced you to our reminders and the basis of our routines. As you establish these habits it will become easy to add another habit for you to practice.

Today I want you to find an old three ring binder and just put some paper in it. Then at the top of one page write Morning Routine and on the top of another page write Before Bed Routine all in pencil. This is a working document; do not allow your perfectionism to interfere with the process. Now you can write your simple routines on each page.

Cherylann:
binder with paper and routines: DONE

AM:
dressed to shoes: DONE
2 minutes reminders: DONE
posted reminders: DONE
negative voices: NONE
hotspots: DONE

PM:
shiny sink: DONE
pick out clothes: DONE
hot spots: DONE

Babysteps, Day 7--3/7/09 DONE

2009-03-16T05:28:00.000-07:00

- Getting Dressed to lace up shoes
- Keeping our sink shining
- Reading 2 minutes of Reminders
- Looking at our posted reminders in the kitchen and bathroom
- Recognizing the negative voices; change them and FLY!
- Put out your Hot Spot for 2 minutes; just pick one.

Today we are going to add a new habit to our before bed routine. Tonight before you hop in bed; I want you to pick out what clothes you are going to wear tomorrow. You can lay them on a chair, on a shelf or hook in the bathroom or on a hanger on your closet door knob.

Cherylann:
dressed to shoes: DONE
shiny sink: DONE
2 minutes reminders: DONE
posted reminders: DONE
negative voices: NONE
pick out clothes: DONE
hotspots: DONE

Decluttering Days 69-75 (3/10-3/16)

2009-03-16T05:21:00.000-07:00

Sorry I am behind on my posting again :( But, in my defense, I have been working hard. I have been decluttering kids' clothes (as I bring out the spring clothes and slowly put away the winter clothes).

I have freecycled about 20 bags of clothes, and tossed about 10 bags of clothes.

I have also been getting rid of toys that aren't played with anymore. Probably about 10 bags of those gone. I have also been scanning my pics, so that I have them in case something happens to the actual picture.

Decluttering Days 65-68 (3/6-3/9)

2009-03-09T14:17:00.001-07:00

I have been decluttering my shed for the past 4 days. I have filled 4 truckloads full of trash (my dh really loves me for making him go to the dump daily, lol). The truck is full again, just waiting for him to get off work...

I honestly have not even really been sorting things....I've mainly been just tossing. I think I may have save 4 bins worth of stuff out of maybe 50 or so, so far.

MPB Assignment 4-Annual and Seasonal Chores

2009-03-06T00:24:00.000-08:00

Winter:
Entrance:
o Wash exterior windows & screens
o Clean exterior doors
Whole House:
o Polish furniture
o Clean out heat vents
Living Room:
o Steam clean rug, couch & loveseat
Laundry Room:
o Change air filter-Last changed:
Girls’ Bedroom:
o Steam clean rug & beds
Master Bedroom:
o Steam clean carpet & beds
Truck:
o Change oil-Last changed:
o Rotate tires-Last rotated:

Spring:
Entrance:
o Wash exterior windows & screens
o Clean exterior doors
o Clean grill
o Clean patio furniture
o Stain deck & porch
o Inspect & clean AC units
o Pressure wash house
o Clean gutters
Whole House:
o Polish furniture
o Clean out heat vents
o Touch up paint
Living Room:
o Steam clean rug, couch & loveseat
Kitchen:
o Clean fridge & freezer coils/vent
Laundry Room:
o Change air filter-Last changed: 2/9/9
o Deep clean dryer vent
Girls’ Bedroom:
o Steam clean rug & beds
Master Bedroom:
o Steam clean carpet & beds
Truck:
o Change oil-Last changed:
o Rotate tires-Last rotated:
Other:
o Switch wardrobes
o Clean out & organize closets & drawers
o Set time forward
o Replace smoke detector batteries
o Pay property taxes

Summer:
Entrance:
o Wash exterior windows & screens
o Clean exterior doors
Whole House:
o Polish furniture
o Clean out heat vents
Living Room:
o Steam clean rug, couch & loveseat
Laundry Room:
o Change air filter-Last changed:
Girls’ Bedroom:
o Steam clean rug & beds
Master Bedroom:
o Steam clean carpet & beds
Truck:
o Change oil-Last changed:
o Rotate tires-Last rotated:

Fall:
Entrance:
o Wash exterior windows & screens
o Clean exterior doors
o Clean grill
o Clean patio furniture
o Inspect & clean heat pump & furnace
Whole House:
o Polish furniture
o Clean out heat vents
Living Room:
o Steam clean rug, couch & loveseat
Kitchen:
o Clean fridge & freezer coils/vent
Laundry Room:
o Change air filter-Last changed:
Girls’ Bedroom:
o Steam clean rug & beds
Master Bedroom:
o Steam clean carpet & beds
Truck:
o Change oil-Last changed:
o Rotate tires-Last rotated:
Other:
o Switch wardrobes
o Clean out & organize closets & drawers
o Set time back
o Replace smoke detector batteries

January:
Office:
o Redo MPB
Other:
o Update property tax listing

February:
Entrance:
o Plant Garden indoors
Other:
o File income taxes

March & September:
Entrance:
o Till garden

April:
Entrance:
o Transplant garden
Other:
o Property taxes

August:
Truck:
o Registration
Other:
o School shopping

September:
Entrance:
o Till garden
Suburban:
o Taxes

MPB Assignment 3-Monthlies

2009-03-06T00:23:00.000-08:00

Monthly Chores:

Entrance/Outside:
o Sort 4 bins
o Get bins off deck
o Rearrange bins in shed
o Clean outside of doors
o Pet meds
o Pet baths

Living Room:
o Toss unmatched socks
o Dust
o Test smoke detector
o Clean electronics
o Clean light fixture & switches
o Clean windows & sill
o Clean walls & door
o Scrub floor
o Vacuum floor, under furniture & baseboards
o Wash curtains & rehang
o Clean out trash can
o sdac

Kitchen:
o Dust
o Clean appliances-oven, hood, coffee maker, fry daddy (change oil)
o Clean light fixture & switches
o Clean walls & door
o Clean windows
o Clean fronts-appliances, furniture, cabinets
o Clean top of fridge
o Clean cabinets
o Clean shelf
o Clean beside fridge
o Clean out trash cubby
o Clean furniture-small buffet, large buffet, microwave cart, armoire
o Clean out freezers
o Defrost freezer (by the 7th)
o Scrub floor
o Vacuum floor, under furniture & baseboards
o Wash curtains & rehang
o Clean out trash can
o Sdac
o Update inventories-fridge, small freezer, large freezer, pantry, can pantry
o Update grocery list (check inventories, meal plans & calendar)
o Plan menu & grocery list
o OAMC

Bathroom:
o Dust
o Clean light fixture & switches
o Clean walls & door
o Clean medicine cabinet (toss expired)
o Clean fronts- furniture, cabinet
o Clean cabinet
o Clean furniture-towel organizer, magazine rack
o Clean toilet base
o Scrub floor
o Vacuum floor, under furniture & baseboards
o Wash shower curtain & rehang
o Bleach plunger trash can
o Clean out trash can
o Sdac

Laundry Room:
o Dust
o Test smoke detector
o Clean light fixture & switches
o Clean walls
o Clean front & top of freezer
o Clean top of dryer
o Clean dryer vent
o Clean washer hoses
o Run bleach cycle in washer
o Scrub floor
o Vacuum floor, under furniture & baseboards
o Clean out trash can
o Sdac

Girls’ Bedroom:
o Dust
o Clean shelf
o Clean light fixture & switches
o Clean walls
o Clean window & sill
o Clean furniture
o Clean electronics
o Toss old underclothes
o Scrub floor
o Vacuum floor, under furniture & baseboards
o Wash curtains & rehang
o Clean out trash can
o Sdac

Girls’ Bedroom Closet:
o Dust
o Clean walls
o Clean shelf (toss/donate)
o Clear clothes rods (store/donate)
o Clean floor
o Vacuum
o Hang cedar freshener
o Sdac
Master Bedroom:
o Dust
o Clean electronics
o Clean lamp & switches
o Clean walls
o Clean window & sill
o Clean furniture
o Toss old underclothes
o Give books to mom
o Sort 1 bin
o Vacuum under furniture & baseboards
o Wash curtains & rehang
o Clean out trash can
o Sdac

Master Bedroom Closet:
o Dust
o Clean walls
o Clean shelf (toss/donate)
o Clear clothes rods (store/donate)
o Clean floor
o Vacuum
o Hang cedar freshener
o Sdac

Office:
o Dust
o Clean phone, mouse, keyboard, monitor, modem
o Go through files
o Clean scrapbook organizer
o Purge last month’s magazines & catalogs
o Organize & declutter desk
o Clean out trash can

Truck:
o Get detailed

MPB Assignment 2-Weeklies

2009-03-06T00:22:00.000-08:00

Weekly Chores:

Entrance/Outside:
o Empty 1 bin
o Surface Clutter
o Shake Rugs

Living Room:
o Match socks
o Clean entertainment armoire
o Clean shelf
o Wash blankets
o Clean under & behind furniture
o Clean under cushions-couch & loveseat
o Vacuum-couch, loveseat, rug
o Febreeze-couch, loveseat, curtains, rug

Kitchen:
o Clean out fridge
o Wipe down inside fridge & seals
o Clean can opener
o Febreeze curtain & rugs

Bathroom:
o Clean tub & shower
o Scrub floor
o Febreeze shower curtain

Laundry Room:
o Wipe down washer & dryer

Girls’ Bedroom:
o Closet
o Clean under beds
o Strip beds
o Vacuum beds
o Febreeze beds & curtain
o Put on new bedding
o Deep clean

Master Bedroom:
o Closet
o Clean under beds
o Strip beds
o Vacuum beds
o Febreeze beds, curtain & floor
o Put on new bedding
o Deep clean

Office:
o File bills, important mail & papers
o Surface clutter

Truck:
o Wash truck
o Vacuum interior
o Wash interior windows & mirror
o Febreeze interior

Other:
o Clean out purse
o Purge last week’s newspaper
o Clean kids’ nails/ears
o Clean hairbrushes

Sunday:
o Church
o Awanas
Monday:
o Coupons
o Girl Scouts
Tuesday:
o Plan errands
Wednesday:
o Meal Planning
Thursday:
o Errands
o Grocery shopping
o Boy scouts
Friday:
o Pay bills
o Balance checkbook
Saturday:
o Family Day

MPB Assignment I-Dailies

2009-03-06T00:16:00.000-08:00

The first order of business each day is to pray, and believe me it works. It may seem silly to ask God to help you with your housework, but believe me, with 5 kids, I need it.

My dailies are:
ROUTINE:
AM ROUTINE:
o Prayers
o Check calendar, to-do list and budget
o Shower, wash face, brush hair, brush teeth, deodorant, get dressed,
make up, shoes
o nurse/fed/change chey
o Meds (metformin, vitamins)
o Wake kids by 4:45 am!
o Fix breakfast; pray; eat
o Wash face/hands/brush teeth
o walk dogs
o Help kids with Morning Routine
o Leave house to take kids to bus by 6:30am!
o Feed animals (Pongo, dogs)
o Check computer-15 minutes
o read 2 minutes reminders
o Water plants
o 27-fling boogie
o tae bo

LUNCH ROUTINE:
o nurse/fed/change chey
o Fix lunch; Pray; eat Lunch
o wash face & hands, brush teeth
o girls’ nap
o walk dogs
o tae bo
o Phone calls, set appointments; Work (CJS, PC), Projects/hobbies, CJ
o Wake up girls
o Leave house to pick kids up by 2:15 pm!

AFTERSCHOOL ROUTINE:
o Check backpacks & folders
o walk dogs
o Homework
o nurse/fed/change chey
o Help kids with after school routine
o Check tomorrow's calendar
o Make tomorrow's to-do list
o Lay out tomorrow's clothes
o Hot spots

DINNER ROUTINE:
o nurse/fed/change chey
o Help kids with Dinner Routine
o Fix dinner; Pray; eat dinner
o kids' showers; brush teeth
o Check kids' chore lists & Riley Chore
o walk dogs

BEFORE BED ROUTINE:
o Help kids with Before Bed Routine
o 5 minute room rescue in zone
o Kids in bed by 7:30 pm!
o walk dogs
o nurse/fed/change chey
o Wash face, lotion feet, brush teeth & floss, pajamas
o Meds: (metformin)
o Personal time
o Check alarm clock
o walk dogs
o nurse/fed/change chey
o Devotional, Read Bible
o Prayers & bed by 10pm!

CHORES:
Daily Chores:

Entrance/Outside:
o 5 minute rescue
o Sweep front steps & deck
o Make sure path is unobstructed
o Put all trash bags in truck

Living Room:
o 5 minute room rescue
o Fold & put away blankets
o Couch
o Loveseat
o Trash
o Sweep/mop
o Rugs
o Put away all clean laundry

Kitchen:
o dishes until done (breakfast, lunch & dinner)
o 5 minute room rescue
o Thaw food or prep crockpot for tomorrow
o Trash
o Sweep/mop
o Rugs
o Make Scott’s lunch for tomorrow
o Wipe stove top & microwave
o Shine sink
o Put out new towel

Bathroom:
o 5 minute room rescue
o Wipe counter & sink
o Wipe mirror
o Swish/swipe toilet
o Spray shower
o Trash
o Sweep/mop
o Rugs

Laundry Room:
o 5 minute room rescue
o Trash
o Sweep/mop
o Rugs

Girls’ Bedroom:
o Make beds
o 5 minute room rescue
o Trash
o Sweep/mop
o Rugs

Master Bedroom:
o Make beds
o 5 minute room rescue
o Trash
o Vacuum

Office:
o Straighten desktop
o 5 minute rescue
o Toss junk mail

Truck:
o 5 minute rescue
o Trash

Focuses/Missions/Challenges

2 minutes Hot Spots

15 minutes decluttering

Master Plan Book

2009-03-06T00:13:00.001-08:00

I belong to a group that is just WONDERFUL in figuring out what you need to do to keep your house clean to your standards, and how often to do it. Master Plan Book is a 3week "class" with assignments Monday-Friday. The next class will start the first Monday in April, but you can go ahead and join now.

After mine is updated (I first did the class Feb 2008, and am now reworking mine), I will include some other stuff from FlyLady's Control Journal and other things I want to include. But right now, the cleaning stuff comes first, and this is the easiest system I have come across.

Babysteps, Day 6--3/6/09 DONE

2009-03-06T00:04:00.000-08:00

FlyLady:
- Getting Dressed to lace up shoes
- Keeping our sink shining
- Reading 2 minutes of Reminders
- Looking at our posted reminders in the kitchen and bathroom
- Recognizing the negative voices when you hear them and changing the words to be nice to you. That is what FLYing (Finally Loving Yourself) is all about.

Today we are going to learn about Hot Spots. We all have them. Here is a link on our website to read the definition of a Hot Spot.

http://flylady.net/pages/FLYFaq.asp#hotspot

Now I want you to set your timer for 2 minutes and lets practice putting out your Hot Spot. You don’t have to work till you have finished; just do what you can in 2 minutes. Put your bills in one place. This will keep you from having to search for them.

Cherylann:
dressed to shoes: DONE
shiny sink: DONE
2 minutes reminders: DONE
posted reminders: DONE
negative voices: NONE
Hot spots: DONE

Decluttering Day 64, 3/5/09

2009-03-06T00:00:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I decluttered a shelf on my homeschool cubby. It was full of stuff just waiting to be put away (yes, a hotspot). So I took a few minutes to do that.

Babysteps, Day 5--3/5 DONE

2009-03-05T05:38:00.000-08:00

FlyLady:
- Getting Dressed to lace up shoes
- Keeping our sink shining
- Reading 2 minutes of Reminders
- Looking at our posted reminders in the kitchen and bathroom

Are you hearing any of those nagging negative voices popping into your head? I want you to take a piece of paper and write down what you hear then I want you to turn those ugly words around and say something nice to yourself to negate the ugly words that they said.

Cherylann:
Dressed to skechers :) May even put on some makeup today.
Read 2 minutes of reminders.
I did shine my sink & wash the dishes, but dh wasn't home and it was just me against the kids....oops I mean me and the kids, so I didn't remember to take pics.

No ugly voices :)

I did do a lot of baking (see my loving home blog): brownies, strawberry cake and cherry cupcakes (recipe to be posted later)

LR Painting Project part 1

2009-03-04T08:26:00.000-08:00

Ok, so far I have washed, spackled, sanded & painted (1st coat only) of 1/2 of 1 wall in the LR.

Here is the wall before moving the furniture. I had already actually painted it a few months ago, but it turned out to be a different shade than I wanted (olive green). So we are trying again. Don't mind Bailey and the few stray shoes, broom and message board:

Here is the wall cleared away, as you can see it needs a good washing:

Here is the damage the dogs caused scratching to get out (hence the reason there is now a piece of furniture by the door). As you can tell, the door needs to be washed, too:

I washed, spackled and sanded the wall:

The door washed (cept a place towards the bottom that wouldn't come off with magic eraser....I will paint over it):

The first coat painted, will need at least one more coat:

Babysteps, Day 4--3/4 DONE

2009-03-04T08:23:00.000-08:00

FlyLady:
So far we are:
- Getting Dressed to lace up shoes
- Keeping our sink shining
- Reading 2 minutes of Reminders

Your next thing is to write these things down on a sticky note and post them on your bathroom mirror and above your kitchen sink. This is the beginning of your Control Journal. The little notes help us to remember the habits we are trying to establish.

Cherylann:
Dressed to skechers, makeup, so far. Kids are on early dismissal, so we'll see how far I get with all 5 of them home :)

Reminders:

Shiny Sink:

Clean Dishes:

Babysteps, Day 3--3/3 DONE

2009-03-04T08:16:00.000-08:00

Babysteps, Day 2--3/2 DONE

2009-03-04T08:08:00.001-08:00

FlyLady:
Today I want you get up and get dressed to lace up shoes when you first get up in the morning. This means fix your hair and face too.

In order for us to change ourselves we need to remind ourselves of what we are doing. I did this with yellow sticky notes throughout my home to guide me through my day. This was the beginning of my home control journal. I had little notes on my bathroom mirror to remind me to get dressed to shoes. When you see the many reminders in your inbox from Yahoo; just think of them as yellow sticky notes. You don’t have to do them yet; they are just there as a little reminder. Read the subject line and you will be absorbing the flow of them. Do not allow those voices in your head to say this can’t possibly work with so many emails. Then when you hear those voices say I don’t have time, Set a timer for 2 minutes and just read a little and then delete at will.

Shine your sink before you go to bed.

Cherylann:
I got dressed to my lace up skechers as soon as I got up (showered last night before bed). I even did makeup :) My sink is shined and my dishes are done.

Decluttering Days 53-63 (2/22-3/4)

2009-03-04T08:02:00.000-08:00

I need to start at least posting every 2-3 days so I don't get this far behind again. I have been working on my Living Room and Shed the past 2 weeks. I have completely decluttered my Living Room (except my cookbook shelves...don't know that I am ready to do that yet), and I have made a small dent in my shed. I did fill 6 truck loads to be carried to the dump (but a lot of that was BIG items such as furniture). I also freecycled a ton of kids' clothes.

I have also been working on painting the living room, and I started my seeds, too. The seeds were supposed to take weeks (like 6) to germinate, and in only 10 days, there are some that are about 8" tall already. So, hoping it will warm up soon & stay that way, so I am not gardening in my living room. At this rate, we will have vegetables in about another 10 days, lol. Won't it be fun to go no further than my living room to harvest a pumpkin????

Babysteps, Day 1--3/1 DONE

2009-03-04T04:37:00.000-08:00

FlyLady:
I know that you have become overwhelmed by your home and the chaos that you have been living in. We are here to help you and it doesn’t cost you a dime. Keep in mind that your home did not get this way overnight and it is not going to get clean in a day. We are going to teach you how to take BabySteps and establish little routines for getting rid of your clutter and maintaining your home. This system will work for anyone; it doesn’t matter if you work outside of your home, stay home with children, retired or work at home. You can do this, you have just needed someone to pat you on the back and give you a great big hug to get you started.

The voices that you hear in your head keep telling you that you are behind and you have to get it all done now! We are going to quiet those negative voices that are beating you up constantly and replace them with a loving gentle voice that tells you that you are not behind and you can do this one BabyStep at a time!

Please do not get impatient with the process. Everything we do is going to help you replace those voices that put you down. We are here to lift you up and celebrate every little accomplishment.

Here is a hug to get you started; We are with you every step of the way. Do not allow those voices to get you upset by the 15 -20 emails you get from us each day. We will help you to understand them over the next 31 days. Digital clutter is so easy to handle with your delete key. If only our household clutter was that easy to get rid of.

{{{HUGS}}}

FlyLady and the FLY Crew

Your very first BabyStep is to go shine your sink. Don’t listen to those voices that tell you that is not going to help your messy house. This is exactly where I started and this little habit has changed my life! Take this BabyStep in faith and go do it. Here are the directions for shining your kitchen sink.

Day 1

Fly Lessons

After you do this; you will keep it shiny by drying it out after each time you use it and making sure when you go to bed that it is shining so it will make you smile in the morning. This is how I get to hug you each day! That shiny sink is a reflection of the love that you have for yourself.

Our FlyLady system is all about establishing little habits that string together into simple routines to help your day run on automatic pilot. You can do this!

Now that you have completed that very important first step, here is a list of the rest of the Beginner BabySteps. Do not jump ahead and try to get them all done at once, simply go to the next step each day and complete it. You can do this!!

Cherylann:
Sorry guys, had to restart my babysteps, b/c I got behind on my blogging (and here I am behind again). I will try to post as least every 2-3 days, so I don't get so far behind again (I'm not behind, I know, I know...)

Here's my shiny sink :)

Here's my clean dishes:

Babysteps....

2009-02-21T09:45:00.000-08:00

I really have been doing my daily babysteps and even taking pics...BUT since I have not blogged about it in 11 days, you can imagine that I have no idea which pics go with which day, etc. So, I am going to start them over for blogging's sake. I will try my best to blog about it every day, so I don't get this behind again.

Decluttering, Days 41 (2/10)-52 (2/21)...My LR almost completed

2009-02-21T09:18:00.000-08:00

Here are pix of my LR...please don't mind the pink & green walls...that's why I am decluttering, so I can repaint (the Liv Room used to be my girls' bedroom...and my dh painted it pink. He paints "around" things, so you may even see some white in there. The little bit of like sage green you see is what I picked out and it ended up NOT being what I thought it would be...hence the reason I didn't keep painting. Sorry the pics are so dark, it was bright outside (and I need another curtain). I will try to take close ups later.

Ok, here's the wall my couch is on. Don't mind the clean clothes to be folded:

Cuz here's the couch after I folded & put the clothes away:

This is the wall for my loveseat & nursing chair. Yes the chair is facing the opposite way...towards my desk. But when not in use, it has to be slid back so the girls can get to their bedroom. The clothes on the rod are for all 4 girls....see drawer note below:

This is my entertainment center (I love that you can close the doors) and my girls' (minus Chey) "drawers"...they are in here, because if not, the girls toss clean clothes that I've put awy in the floor, don't ask why... You can see how close my kitchen is. I like the armoire here, though, so it puts kind of a barrier in between the two...

This is my office/homeschool area. I need to go through the books on the bookshelf (hence not being done decluttering). Mostly all of them are cookbooks, with most of the gooseberry patch books on the top 2 shelves...no, I do NOT have a problem...that's my story & I'm sticking to it. The shelves in the white cube organizer are mostly empty or full of stuff that will have to find homes elsewhere, b/c that is for my homeschool books, which I have not ordered yet.

Hope I have not scared you...this has been what I have been working on decluttering since my last decluttering post. That and the shed outside (for a later post). Wish I'd have taken before pics...I forgot. They weren't bad, just everything was arranged differently.

Babysteps, Day 10...2/10/09

2009-02-09T22:43:00.000-08:00

Morning Routine

- Get up and get dressed to lace up shoes; fixing your hair and face
- Looking at your posted reminders in the kitchen and bathroom
- Reading 2 minutes of reminders
- Recognizing the negative voices and changing them; YOU ARE FLYing NOW!
- Put out your Hot Spots for 2 minutes
- 5 Minute Room Rescue (pick any room in the house) set your timer and go!

Before Bed Routine

- Keep your sink shining
- Lay out your clothes for tomorrow
- Put out your Hot Spot (I have to do this twice a day) It makes me smile in the morning!

We have already been using our timers for 2 minutes and now 5 minutes. Today we are going to learn the power of just 15 minutes. You can do anything for 15 minutes. This is all about getting started and giving ourselves permission to stop when the timer goes off. You cannot restart the timer either. This is not a race to finish in 15 minutes either! The timer helps to keep us focused on what we are doing.

Now set your timer for 15 minutes and go gather up all the trash you can find to throw away and put it in the garbage can outside. Then set your timer for another 15 minutes and sit down and put your feet up and read a favorite magazine till the timer goes off.

Cherylann:

I'm dressed to the shoes, have read 2 mins. reminders, no stinkin thinkin yet. Getting to work on my hotspots, decluttering & room rescues :)

Decluttering, Day 40 2/9/09

2009-02-09T22:41:00.000-08:00

I decluttered 2 more bags of kids' clothes. I sorted through them as they came out of the dryer.

It's amazing, but I still can't see a difference in the amount of clothes my kids' have, so I am going to have to keep going ;)

MIA

2009-02-09T04:45:00.000-08:00

Sorry I have been MIA the past few days. I was gone most of Friday and this weekend. I am now up to date on my blog posts. Sorry, I didn't take as many pics, but I'll make up for it ;)

I am home all day and have a ton of work to do. The master bedroom & bathroom are done, so I just have to focus on: Laundry, dishes (as they are dirtied), kitchen (finish declutter/organize project), laundry room, living room, girls' bedroom for today.

Babysteps, Day 9....2/9/09 DONE

2009-02-09T04:42:00.000-08:00

Here is what we are already doing; Look in your Control Journal; leave the sticky notes up to help remind you. It takes us 28 days to develop a new habit. These are just BabySteps on our way to a new way of living.

Morning Routine

- Get up and get dressed to lace up shoes; fixing your hair and face
- Looking at your posted reminders in the kitchen and bathroom
- Reading 2 minutes of reminders
- Recognizing the negative voices and changing them; YOU ARE FLYing NOW!
- Put out your Hot Spots for 2 minutes

Before Bed Routine

- Keep your sink shining
- Lay out your clothes for tomorrow
- Put out your Hot Spot (I have to do this twice a day) It makes me smile in the morning!

Today we are going to learn how to declutter our homes a few minutes at a time with some fun tools that I know you have been wondering about from the reminders you have been reading in our emails. Making it fun will get the job done!

http://flylady.net/pages/FLYingLessons_Declutter.asp

Add a 5 minute room rescue to your Morning Routine.

Cherylann:
Today's is going to be easy :) I decided starting Jan. 1 that I was going to declutter at least one thing each day, even if I didn't get totally finished with it :)

I did a 5 minute room rescue in the master bedroom & bathroom so far today.

Decluttering, Days 37-39

2009-02-09T04:19:00.000-08:00

Friday 2/6 (day 37) I cleaned out my purse. Tossed all the receipts I didn't need to keep.

Saturday 2/7 (day 38) I cleaned out the truck again. All trash, clothes/coats/gloves, etc got put where they belong.

Sunday 2/8 (day 39) cleaned out a craft bin & freecycled most of what was in it.

Babysteps, Day 8....2/8/09 DONE

2009-02-09T04:17:00.000-08:00

Here you are; you have been FLYing for a whole week. I am so proud of you. Lets review your new habits. I am going to break them down into what you do each morning and what you do each evening.

Morning Routine

- Get up and get dressed to lace up shoes; fixing your hair and face
- Looking at your posted reminders in the kitchen and bathroom
- Reading 2 minutes of reminders
- Recognizing the negative voices and changing them; YOU ARE FLYing NOW!
- Put out your Hot Spots for 2 minutes

Before Bed Routine

- Keep your sink shining
- Lay out your clothes for tomorrow
- Put out your Hot Spot (I have to do this twice a day) It makes me smile in the morning!

Over the last week we have introduced you to our reminders and the basis of our routines. As you establish these habits it will become easy to add another habit for you to practice.

Today I want you to find an old three ring binder and just put some paper in it. Then at the top of one page write Morning Routine and on the top of another page write Before Bed Routine all in pencil. This is a working document; do not allow your perfectionism to interfere with the process. Now you can write your simple routines on each page.

Cherylann:
For my routines, I just put what FL has, what we've already been working on. If I add too much, too fast, I will make these long detailed lists, and I don't want to get bogged down in that again :)

Babysteps, Day 7....2/7/09 DONE

2009-02-09T04:16:00.000-08:00

- Getting Dressed to lace up shoes
- Keeping our sink shining
- Reading 2 minutes of Reminders
- Looking at our posted reminders in the kitchen and bathroom
- Recognizing the negative voices; change them and FLY!
- Put out your Hot Spot for 2 minutes; just pick one.

Today we are going to add a new habit to our before bed routine. Tonight before you hop in bed; I want you to pick out what clothes you are going to wear tomorrow. You can lay them on a chair, on a shelf or hook in the bathroom or on a hanger on your closet door knob..

Cherylann:
I've been keeping up with everything I've added so far.

We were gone most of today & yesterday, so I didn't clear an additional hotspot, but I did keep the top of the armoire clutter free. Imagine dh's surprise when he wasn't allowed to drop all his pocket clutter onto it.

I always lay out our clothes the night before, so this was an easy one :D

Babysteps, Day 6....2/6/09 DONE

2009-02-09T04:14:00.000-08:00

- Getting Dressed to lace up shoes
- Keeping our sink shining
- Reading 2 minutes of Reminders
- Looking at our posted reminders in the kitchen and bathroom
- Recognizing the negative voices when you hear them and changing the words to be nice to you. That is what FLYing (Finally Loving Yourself) is all about.

Today we are going to learn about Hot Spots. We all have them. Here is a link on our website to read the definition of a Hot Spot.

http://flylady.net/pages/FLYFaq.asp#hotspot

Now I want you to set your timer for 2 minutes and lets practice putting out your Hot Spot. You don’t have to work till you have finished; just do what you can in 2 minutes. Put your bills in one place. This will keep you from having to search for them.

Cherylann:
dressed to shoes (shopping for a new pair today)
shiny sink (gotta love it)
reading reminders & post-its
no stinkin thinkin

cleared a MAJOR hotspot!!!

Armoire before: dh's favorite place to stash things and also a convenient spot to put grocery overflow ;)

After:

Babysteps, Day 5...2/5/09 DONE

2009-02-05T01:18:00.000-08:00

FlyLady:
- Getting Dressed to lace up shoes
- Keeping our sink shining
- Reading 2 minutes of Reminders
- Looking at our posted reminders in the kitchen and bathroom

Are you hearing any of those nagging negative voices popping into your head? I want you to take a piece of paper and write down what you hear then I want you to turn those ugly words around and say something nice to yourself to negate the ugly words that they said.

Cherylann:
Actually my outlook is getting more positive since doing the 365 days of clutter and also re-starting babysteps. I didn't have any stinkin thinkin....yay!

I have been getting dressed to the shoes, tomorrow I am going to buy a new pair, since mine are hurting my feet.

My sink is shiny, my dishes are done, i'm reading the reminders & looking at my post-it.

Decluttering, Day 36 Paper

2009-02-05T01:15:00.000-08:00

HAHA...It never ends does it? Well, I was awakened at 2am by 2 of my girls playing LOUDly, so now they are separated and one is back asleep. The other is reading quietly.

I couldn't go back to sleep, so I started tackling paper. I tossed a regular trash bag full of papers, catalogs. My desk still looks like a tornado went off on it, but I do have more room :)

Decluttering, Day 35 My Kitchen

2009-02-04T06:11:00.000-08:00

I know I just decluttered my tupperware cabinet last week. But it wasn't working (lids were in front, bowls behind). So, I re did it. I also did the microwave cabinet & my medicine/first aid cabinet.

Here's my tupperware cabinet before:

The "back" of the cabinet after (back row)

The "back" of the cabinet after (front row)

Microwave cabinet before:

Microwave cabinet after:

Medicine/First Aid cabinet before (it was already organized inside the basket...did it last week):

Medicine/First Aid cabinet after:

Babysteps, Day 4...2/4/09 DONE

2009-02-04T04:34:00.000-08:00

FlyLady:
So far we are;

- Getting Dressed to lace up shoes
- Keeping our sink shining
- Reading 2 minutes of Reminders

Your next thing is to write these things down on a sticky note and post them on your bathroom mirror and above your kitchen sink. This is the beginning of your Control Journal. The little notes help us to remember the habits we are trying to establish.

Cherylann:
I'm dressed to the shoes.

My sink is still shiny & will be tonight before bed. It's such a blessing to not ALWAYS have dishes waiting to be done and a clean, empty sink to wake up to. There were no dishes today...it was a busy day, so we ate out. I did make frozen pizza for dinner, but no dishes (used paper towels).

Read my reminders & a few testimonials.

I have written my post-it.

Day 34, decluttering...my inbox :)

2009-02-03T04:56:00.000-08:00

I went from over 1700 emails down to 259. I wish my household clutter would be able to be gone with just a delete button,lol.

Babysteps, Day 3...2/3/09 DONE

2009-02-03T02:26:00.000-08:00

FlyLady:
Today you are doing what we have already done.

-Getting up and dressing to lace up shoes
-Keeping your sink shining
-Reading your reminders for 2 minutes.

Then I want you to read something on our website. This will help you to understand more about what we are doing and how together with our reminders, essays and testimonials you are going to see changes in your home and attitude.

Cherylann:
Ok....I can NOT even describe what it feels like to wake up to a clean kitchen, no dishes to wash, no surface clutter, it's AWESOME.

This morning after getting ready (to my shoes), I had some time left over before having to leave for the school bus. So, I reorganized my can pantry (yes, again)....and I moved it to where it will be more accessible. It's on top of my large buffet. I know that's not the ideal place for it, but at least I don't have to pull it out of the corner to use it.
Can pantry:

Breakfast dishes are done :)

Read 2 minutes of FlyLady emails. I liked her Beach Essay today, and will be implementing it this weekend (packing a beach bag for when your kids get sick. Check it out here: A Day at the Beach. You must be a member of FlyLady Mentors to view it.

Lunch dishes are done:

There were no dinner dishes tonight. We went out to dinner tonight to Texas Roadhouse. So here's my shiny sink.

Day 33, Decluttering

2009-02-02T18:28:00.000-08:00

Today I tossed 2 bags of paper clutter :) I don't know HOW it all accumulates........oh wait, I do have 5 kids, right, lol.

Babysteps, Day 2...2/2/09 DONE

2009-02-02T04:38:00.000-08:00

LOL...I didn't even look at this last night, and this was the first thing I did today. I NEVER do this first thing!!! HMMM....What is going on here? I think I am being flywashed :)

FlyLady:
Today I want you get up and get dressed to lace up shoes when you first get up in the morning. This means fix your hair and face too.

In order for us to change ourselves we need to remind ourselves of what we are doing. I did this with yellow sticky notes throughout my home to guide me through my day. This was the beginning of my home control journal. I had little notes on my bathroom mirror to remind me to get dressed to shoes. When you see the many reminders in your inbox from Yahoo; just think of them as yellow sticky notes. You don’t have to do them yet; they are just there as a little reminder. Read the subject line and you will be absorbing the flow of them. Do not allow those voices in your head to say this can’t possibly work with so many emails. Then when you hear those voices say I don’t have time, Set a timer for 2 minutes and just read a little and then delete at will.

Shine your sink before you go to bed.

It's me again:

I have started the laundry, and have one load to fold/put away.

I have also cleared my counter & washed the breakfast dishes.

I have a ham in the oven for dinner.

I cleared and dusted my kitchen armoire, and was wanting to polish it, but couldn't find the pledge. So, I went online and found a homemade solution...mix the juice of one lemon + 2 teaspoons olive oil (if you don't have a lemon, use 4 T. of lemon juice). I polished my armoire. Next time I will have to make a bigger batch, but I only had one lemon. I hope to soon sand & restain this armoire, my kids have abused it :(

Ok, my son is moving into the MBR with dh, since it's the largest room, and dh is in there by himself. I stay in the LR, b/c I can only sleep on the couch (my back). I took all Chey's clothes out of the MBR to make room for Jacob's. I also put Jacob & dh's underclothes in the new nightstand. For the time being, I have Chey's clothes in the LR closet.

Lunch dishes:

Ok, I did 3 loads laundry today, but I did NOT fold any, so I need to get that done tomorrow.

Here's my shiny sink:

Dinner Dishes:

Baby Steps, Day 1...2/1/09 DONE

2009-02-01T06:30:00.000-08:00

After you do this; you will keep it shiny by drying it out after each time you use it and making sure when you go to bed that it is shining so it will make you smile in the morning. This is how I get to hug you each day! That shiny sink is a reflection of the love that you have for yourself.

Our FlyLady system is all about establishing little habits that string together into simple routines to help your day run on automatic pilot. You can do this!

Now that you have completed that very important first step, here is a list of the rest of the Beginner BabySteps. Do not jump ahead and try to get them all done at once, simply go to the next step each day and complete it. You can do this!!

Ok, Cherylann here....this is where I get bogged down. I think that I have to do it ALL right now!! I am going to go slowly this time. Help me please!

Here's the link to Shine Your Sink.

I kept up on the dishes, and did about 6 loads of laundry today. I spent 2 hours STRAIGHT folding clothes. I matched up about 50 or so of my kids' outfits & hung them up. I bet I folded up about 15 loads of clothes. I also have 1 bag of stuff that needs to be stored and about 1/2 a bag so far of stuff to freecycle.

Here are the 7 piles of folded clothes. Yes, they do look messy, but they really are folded, by person :)

Here are their hanging clothes, do you see they are color coordinated by hangers for each person? Cheyanna has white, Rory has red, Brea has purple, Jacob has blue & Caity has pink. Caity & Jacob are about to outgrow the little hangers ;) This was about 1/2way through :)

Here are their hanging clothes after I was done for the day, putting away ALL the clean laundry.

At the end of the day, all clean laundry was folded or hung & put away. And complete outfits for the kids were laid out :)

Here is my shiny sink:

Here are my clean dinner dishes:

Day 32, Decluttering....Magazines/Catalogs 2/1/09, the blogger clock is off...

2009-01-31T12:55:00.000-08:00

THEY ARE EVIL!!! Today, I cleaned out my WAY overflowing magazine basket........I tossed last year's phone book & 24 catalogs/magazines. Not all of them, but MOST :D

I'll see what else I can get rid of today :)

Update, Day 31, decluttering

2009-01-31T11:40:00.000-08:00

I have now freecycled 10 bags of clothes. Just waiting on them to be picked up ;) You'd think this would have made a dent in our clothes...haha, it hasn't YET.

Decluttering, Day 31

2009-01-31T05:11:00.000-08:00

This is part of my 365 days of decluttering, transferred from my other blog Loving Home.

Today I freecycled 6 large black trash bags of clothes :)

All the drawers/closets are full of clothes, about 8 loads to be put away, plus more laundry waiting to be washed. So, this will be an ongoing decluttering project :)

For anyone who doesn't know, we have 7 people (5 kids: Caity 7, Jacob 6, Brea 5, Rory 3 & Cheyanna 8mos). So, we have a lot of clothes, but I am hoping to scale it down over the next week or 2.

Hi All

2009-01-30T15:10:00.000-08:00

This is my new cleaning/decluttering blog. I got the inspiration to separate this from my regular blog when I ran across this blog: Angie is Flying

I have tried MANY times and failed at FlyLady's baby step program. Well, I know you know why....because "I", Ms. PERFECTIONIST...who moi, yes me, could do it ALL. ALL at once. RIGHT NOW!!! That's right, then crash, burn, quit. Sound familiar??? Do you do it too?

Well, come along on my journey to finally get it right!! I promise it will never be a dull moment on my long, rocky road :)

I am going to start on the Baby steps Sunday 2/1 :) But I am going to go ahead and transfer my other decluttering/cleaning stuff now.