September's Habit

Yes, I know I missed last month.  Things were just hectic and exhausting.  Sorry. 

Our new habit this month though is: 15 Minutes.  As FlyLady says you can do anything for 15 minutes except whining.  It can be anything really.  Set a timer, watch, or have someone tell you when time is up but 15 minutes is it.  Once time is up on what you are doing, it is up.  No continuing on because this is what gets us overwhelmed.  How many times do you start to clean out a closet, toy box, desk, etc and an hour later have a bigger mess than you started with? 

During your 15 minutes make piles of keep, trash, or donate.  When the time is up put the things you are keeping away, throw out the trash, and take the donations to the car so they are ready for drop off.  I use this method when cleaning the stove.  It can become a hated task if I try to clean it all at one time.  SO I start at the range, wash the grills, wipe/scrub the burners, etc.  When time is up even if I only have half done I put it back together and walk away until later. 

This really is a great habit.  You will be amazed at what you can do in these 15 minute intervals and still have time for things you like.  If you starting out cleaning and really hate it this is perfect for you.  Do 15 minutes of cleaning, stop and do 15 minutes of what you like (read part of a book, write a letter, play a game or just relax) then go back to working.  You will be able to get your home in order over time with this method and not feel like all you ever get to do is clean. 

So lace up those shoes and set your timers.  Good luck!

Aprils Habit

Almost forgot to post this month.  Well for those of you still working with FlyLady, April is Making the Bed.  Yep all month you need to make your bed. 

First off, face it.  The bed is the main focal point in the BEDroom.  So making your bed instantly "lifts up" the room.  After doing so you may be motivated to work on decluttering and straightening the rest of the room.  It can also help you see where things may be amiss in the room. 

Since I am 2 weeks behind in posting this you really get a break.  : ) 

If you haven't already make your bed now.  Let the kids make theirs and fight the urge to "fix" it for them. 

February means a new habit

So we kept our sinks shining last month and it is now habit right everyone?  Yeah, I didn't reshine it every night either but we have kept the dishes cleaned instead of letting them pile up.  Even when we let them go at night we get to them the next day - this is progress.  Right now I have some things from a dip I made for last nights MomsNext meeting, there are a few plates from the hoagies we ate last night, and the spoons and bowls from breakfast this morning.  I will get them all cleaned after I blog and the world will be right again.  : ) 

This month we will be decluttering for 15 minutes everyday.  As I look around this room I can say, "Yep.  I need this habit". 

What does it entail?  Well for 15 minutes you work on one spot (doing a whole room can get distracting and so nothing seems to get done).  In that time what ever you touch you decide to keep, throw out, or donate/ give away.  No second guessing yourself - go with your gut on this.  A great guideline FlyLady sets is think do you love this item?  If not get rid of it. 

Now I come from a place of "what if I need it"?  Well, honestly I tend to forget we have it because we aren't using it or I can not find it.  Hard to find that one thing when you keep everything.  I have been working on this and it is hard. Read past blogs and you will see I mention the difficulty I have in getting rid of items, especially my girls stuff. 

So this month I will continue this habit.  Of course that means my fellow MOPS moms may be getting more clutter for their homes.   : ) 

Oh and when your 15 minutes are done, throw away the trash pile and also take the giveaway pile out to the car.  This will help you fight the second guessing.  Also keeps it out of sight if your kids come home and see you are getting rid of old toys.  Amazing how they haven't played with an item in months but it is suddenly their favorite toy ever. 

Clearing clutter really does make you feel better.  I know when I was doing really well on the FlyLady program before I was happier.  The stuff everywhere really does cause stress.  The stress then has negative influence on the family and also ourselves. 

Happy cleaning! 

Starting FlyLady

Today starts a new year but also a new month.  I guess since it is the first month FlyLady starts at step one.  That's right Shining your sink.  Go to her site FlyLady.net, I believe, to see all her stuff.    Every month has something to work on the entire month.  Shining your sink is also Baby Step one.  So no matter when you start sink shining will be your first challenge?    I have copied straight from her site on how to do it.  I will be shining my sink tonight after the kids are in bed and I know there will be no more dishes. 
I posted about this before I believe.  Tons of people get a rush of some sort from shining their sink.  That never happened to me and I could not understand how they got so happy about it.  That is until I did a detailed clean of my stove/oven one day.  The thing shined like new and I was so happy every time I saw it.  So I understand.
Have fun and join me! 

Shiny Sink 101

Dear Friends,
I want you to smile from ear to ear when you gaze upon your shiny sink. I have heard every excuse in the world. Even old sinks can look new again with a little elbow grease. Here is how you do it:
Note: Be sure to rinse well between each step!

1. Take all the dishes out of the sink.
2. Run some very hot water into the sink and fill it to the rim. If you have a two-sided sink, only do one side at a time. Then, pour a cup of household bleach into the hot water. Let it sit for one hour. Now, pull the plug with a pair of tongs. If you don’t have tongs, then scoop some of the water out of the sink into the other sink and use your hand to pull the plug. Make sure you wear gloves so the bleach doesn’t irritate your skin, and don’t get the bleach water on your clothes.
3. Rinse your sink well.
4. Use some powdered cleanser (Comet, Ajax, or baking soda) and scrub your sink. Be sure to rinse ALL of the cleanser from the sink.
5. Take a sharp edge, such as a butter knife, and clean around the rim of the sink, just like you would clean dirt out from under your fingernails.
6. Clean around the faucets. You may need an old toothbrush or dental floss.
7. Now, get out your window cleaner; I use Windex. Give it a good shine.
8. If you still don’t like the way it looks, then you can try some car wax. Just know in your heart that you have cleaned it very well now, and it doesn’t have to be perfect. Our perfectionism is what got us in this situation in the first place!
9. Every time you run water in your sink, take your clean dishtowel and dry it out (I lay out a clean one every night as part of my before-bed routine). Before you know it, you will be doing this everytime you leave your kitchen! The rest of the family will, too. No more water spots. You will have a clean and shiny sink.
10. Don’t have a fit if someone doesn’t take as much pride in your sink as you do. It is very easy to fix. You have already done the hard part; you will never have to go through this process again. Daily maintenance will keep it looking this way all the time. Nasty, hurtful words are not as easy to repair. Just be sure and tell your family what you are trying to do. They will think you have gone crazy.
11. If you don’t have a dishwasher, don’t worry. A dishwasher is just a dirty dish disposal. Clean out a place under your sink and put a dishpan in there. Teach your family that instead of putting their dirty dishes and glasses in the sink, place them into the dish pan. Get into the habit of putting your dishes away as soon as they have been washed and are dry. No more leaving the dish-drying rack on the counter or in the sink. Put it away under the sink when you have finished. If your old one is nasty, you may want to soak it in the sink full of bleach water at the same time you soak the sink, or go buy a new set.
12. To insure that your family remembers this, put a note in the sink. It will get their attention and remind them where to put the dishes. Be patient! They have never been taught, either. It is going to take some practice.

Now if you have a stainless steel sink, I recommend all of the above directions with one extra instruction added: after you soak your sink, rinse well, and use SOS pads to scrub it. This will buff the finish. It will look like new.
If you still can’t get it to shine after the Windex, put a light coat of lemon oil or olive oil on it. I mean just a tiny bit on a cloth and rub it. This will make you smile. Some people have had very good results from Bar Keepers Friend.
Go Shine Your Sink!
FlyLady
Last note: Be sure you don’t mix cleansers like Comet with Windex (or other ammonia based cleaners); you can create dangerous gases! It is worth repeating: rinse well between each step!

I will FLY!

I feel trapped by all the things around me.  I try to clean and get easily discouraged because I ultimately clean one area by cluttering up another area of my home.  Then the phrase I heard a couple years ago came to mind - "You can't organize clutter".  Aha moment!  This wake up statement came from a woman known as FlyLady.  A wonderful guru of cleaning, organizing, and enjoying your home.  You can find her plan on how to achieve the home you want by going to her website http://www.flylady.net/ .  She works by baby steps so you don't get overwhelmed.
I did great on her plan 2 years ago but somewhere along the line I dropped the ball.  Okay, more like I dropped the ball, kicked it under the couch and never felt like retrieving it.  I have been just boxing things up and putting them in the basement.  Well, the basement is now full and I see that I am having a hard time letting go of things.  This has no doubt something to do with the fact that our finances are bleak right now and I want my daughters to want for nothing.  So I am grateful to the show Hoarders for showing me this is a red flag that could go to an extreme place if I don't do something now.  So I will trust in God to provide for us (something I have been working on) and pass these things along to bless someone else.
The first baby step in FlyLady's plan is shining your sink.  I have never felt the joy that others seem to have by having a shiny sink.  In fact, I kind of thought this was a pointless step.  That is until I cleaned down our stove a month or so ago.  It had burned on everything and grease splatters but one day I looked over and thought, "I'll try to wipe it down so it doesn't look so bad".  I didn't believe it would really come clean like it once was because I had tried wiping it before and nothing much resulted.  Something just came over me that day and I went into scrub and soak mode.  When it was finished it looked like it had when we first bought it.  It really did gleam.  Every time I walked into the kitchen and saw the stove all shiny and new looking I found myself smiling and realized THIS is what people are feeling with their shiny sinks!
So today after I post this I will be in the kitchen doing dishes so that by the end of the day I will have a shiny sink.  Feel free to join me in Flying or share your Flying stories.  I will be posting about the Flying journey and hoping that helps me stick with it this time.