I Have 2 Days To Get Organised....

gillypkk

and dont know where to start!!!

my parents are taking my kids for 2 nights to give me a break (single mum of 2, no fathers involvement and one is 2 the other has problems so its been very difficult of late and i suffer depression) and i know my house is a mess and part of the conditions of my parents taking my boys is that i use the time to sort out my house.

what needs doing
1)my floordrobe needs to be hung up after i sort out what does and doesnt fit now ive lost almost 2 dress sizes
2)my 2 basket loads of ironing needs done and put away
3)kids room needs sorted out, old toys put in the loft, their clothes sorted through and DS2 bed needs sorted out for the transition from cot into bed (2nd attempt at this 1st attempt ended in no sleep for anyone for 2 days so i gave up)
4)major deep clean in the bedrooms moving the beds etc hoovering behind and window vents need cleaned
5)dining room unit needs sorted out, old paperwork shreaded and rest filed away
6)sofas need scrubbed (leather ones so not that bad a job) and bird cage needs a thorough going over (its clean but since im gutting everything else its only right his cage gets the treatment too though catching him into the spare cage wont be easy!

WHERE DO I START?!?

i think ill start in my room with my floordrobe but then ive got the ironing to do so i think ill start there but some of that needs thrown out/sold/donated/turned into cleaning cloths.

then i think ill start on the boys room but same with their clothes, outgrown or worn through knees so need put in the loft (i cannot throw away or sell my kids clothes. 90%of DS2 clothes are like brand new and they were DS1 clothes) same with their toys. i cannot throw them away too many memories and not emotionally strong enough just now.

where would you all advice me to start?
after the summer holidays DS1 starts school and DS2 will be in nursery 2 mornings a week so i can hopefully keep on top of the housework i just need to get it all sorted and its so daunting i dont know where to start so ive just left it.

on the verge of tears here thinking about it but as a reward for it i am going round to a friends on one of the nights for a few drinks and maybe a cheeky takeaway. i never go out after tea time!! gonna be a change!

GeorgieFTB

I would take it room by room... after each room give yourself a break and do something you normally can't...

I love the floordrobe, I have the same problem, I'm so nicking that word...

Give yourself treats, like a long bath with no interuptions...

My first job job would be to get everything in the right room, this will make the house look much better quite quickly!

Gx

CH27

Start with the boys bedrooms. Get everything done there so the boys come home to a sorted space.

kit77

Thats a lot to do but just think when you've done it you will feel much better.

I've spent a few days sorting our house and I worked from the top down. I ended up with 5 black bin bags full of things from just 2 bedrooms and I was ruthless.

I'mprobably not the best person to give you advice on where to start but I would probably start with the one job you least want to do.

Another idea is set a time limit, maybe 15mins do what you can then reward yourself with a cup of tea or time to surf on here then get back to it, you will be amazed at what you can do in 15mins.

Let us know how you are getting on.

ragz_2

I would say first you need to prioritize, in case you can't get it all done. So whatever needs doing most do that first. Like clearing the floors. Sort the clothes out and put them away, don't bother with ironing until everything else is done, you can always get stuff out and iron it when you have time.

Small steps... if you aren't used to major sort outs you need to do it in small manageable chunks. Set a timer for half an hour, sort/clean like mad then go have a cuppa!

Get your bags/boxes ready before you starts, ditto with cleaning equipment so you aren't stopping to go and get things.

One bag/box for keep, one for chuck, one for store, one for charity...

Cot to bed... if you are going to do it then do it all the way. Put the cot away and prepare yourself for up to a week of trouble. However if you are feeling delicate at the moment there'sno harm in leaving this another month!

Good luck and well done for doing something about your house, you'll feel so much better come Monday! Don't forget to get some treats in (wine, ice cream, film) for when you are tired out at then end of the day! (If you can rope some mates into helping they can stay and enjoy them with you!)

hex2

Some good advice for a crisis clean here:

http://www.flylady.net/pages/FLYingLessons_CrisisCleaning.asp

I do the 15 minutes per room on a timer approach. Never get out more than you can put away in the time you have available. Don't get obsessed with detail - do you want one room perfect or the whole house started? Make sure you have enough black bags at the start, and eat something for breakfast that is slow release carbs.

Do your bedroom first, clean sheets and so on then when you collapse into bed at the end of the first day it isnt into a grim, depressing mess.

HTH

seafarers_wife

I would echo what Hex said about doing your room first, then I would look at giving the bathroom a good clean when you havent got 2 boys about to mess it up straight away and that means you could go have a nice relaxing bath before going to bed in your nice sorted out room.

Then I would be tempted to clean the living room so there is somewhere nice to sit and relax after a hard day running round after the kids that doesnt take much upkeep, forget the bits in drawers and stuff, just get the clutter and stuff delegated to the correct rooms.

then make a start on the boys room on day 2. black binbags at the ready, chuck broken toys and rubbish, sort out the toys to go into the loft in storage boxes, then sort out their clothes, and leave the beds till last. forget about the deep cleaning of the rooms and the ironing for now, concentrate on the sorting out and then join us on the flylady thread for upkeep and maintenance

Biggles

By the sound of it, what you really need is a couple of relaxing nights away in a nice hotel somewhere.

And you can spend a small part of your time devising a plan for gradually sorting the house out when you get bach.

Rainy-Days

Start at the top of the house and work your way down. Anything that is downstairs and needs to be taken up, get that done as a priority and then black bag everything that you no longer need to sort out later.

After that, when everything is up off the floor, it should be easier to shift the beds, clean underneath and around. As you complete one room, shut the door behind you, but keep the room well ventilated as fresh air does wonders for changing a rooms ambience. Keep making sure you empty your vacuum container/bag as it will pick up better without too much debris whirling round.

Then when you come downstairs, you are into the final straights. If you are ironing towels, underwear and socks you should pack it in - you are just creating work for yourself. Allot of things you bring in from the washing line don't need to be ironed if you have hung them out and folded them right!

AlwaysAllie

Make a list - try and sort it into rooms/priorities then enjoy crossing off each small thing as you do it!!

AA

poet123

One thing- I spent 3 hours shredding last weekend,( a frustrating experience as the shredder kept jamming!) then my DH said I will burn all that shredded stuff. Made me think, why bother shredding? just burn it.

So that is my advice, borrow a bin (metal) or a chimenea and burn it, it will save hours.