Weekly Flylady Thread 30th October 2017

Valli

What is FLYLADY? Well, it's our version of the US flylady idea - but we work on the principle that housework is not fun, it's boring, can be time-consuming, is often thankless but, unfortunately, necessary. It's here on Old Style to provide the support we all need and to make the whole task easier and quicker. We also accept that, sometimes, life just gets on top of us and we can't keep up, maybe because we're time-poor, not in the best of health and/or we have littlies who need us. We are definitely NOT control freaks aiming for perfection and utterly spotless show-homes.

Welcome to the weekly Flylady Thread. You're more than welcome to join us in the everlasting battle against dust, grime and gibble. The aim of our thread is to make those onerous tasks less daunting, and to support each other - and to make time for the finer things in life!

Right now the thread is looking very quiet...but please do remember we have to abide by MSE rules; each post should, ideally, include some mention of flying.

[/B] Thank you Natty for last week's thread.

Please follow the forum rules on this thread as Flylady has been here a LONG time and is a fabulous support and resource for lots of us. All posts should have some Flylady-related (ooh a compound adjective) content!

The idea is that even if you are really busy you don't need to fall off the wagon!

Every room comes back around next week so please don’t stress about catching up

These lists are only suggestions and not a must do list; you are more than welcome to post and follow your own lists.

Also adding a declutter mission each day will help to gradually clear the clutter and make flying easier.

A few of the basics before we start the week

Hotspots are areas where if one thing gets put there, loads of other things follow!

Daily routines are anything you need to do on a daily basis like washing, swish and swipe kitchen and bathroom, ironing, making beds, vacuuming high traffic areas, making meals etc.

Night-time routines are all things which make getting ready in the morning easier, preparing clothes for the next day, making lunches, swish & swipes of the kitchen and tidying the living room before you go to bed plus personals like shower/brush teeth etc.

Fling Boogie - stick on some loud music, grab a bin bag and whiz around the house finding items that can go out with the rubbish, recycling, for charity shop, basically anything that will stop it cluttering your home.

Swish and swipe/S&S means have a quick wipe over an area such as a sink or toilet to prevent the build up of dirt. This is usually done on a daily basis

HHE/HHC/HHI Half Hour exercise/challenge/ironing ... run around for 30 minutes to the Benny Hill music frantically cleaning exercising or ironing.. other music may be used if you prefer!
WM ~ Washing machine
TD ~ Tumble dryer
SC ~ Slowcooker
BM ~ Breadmaker
DW ~ Dishwasher
SOAADFA ~ Sit on 'bottom' and do 'nothing'
KH/XH/FW ~ Ex-husband and other not so polite versions
DH/DD/DS/DW/DP ~ Dear husband/daughter/son/wife/partner/whatever
OH/SO ~ Other half/significant other
NN ~ nice neighbour
Toxic (friend/mother/sister/whoever) ~ person in your life that seems to exist to make your life miserable
AF ~ Aunt Flo 'time of the month'.. nothing to do with flying but it comes up often.
ETA ~ Edited to add
Gibble ~ miscellaneous crap that appears forever homeless
Dot-to-dot ~ pick a small area (not a whole room) like a chair/coffee/table/shelf/worktop or wherever- thats your first 'dot' - totally clear it - clean it - and only put back what should be there - deal with what you have removed (not just move it somewhere else) then if you have time move on and do the same to another 'dot' -the idea is just like a dot to dot puzzle, you aim to join up all the dots and have a tidy room. The trick is to keep each dot tidy until you get them all joined up! All credit to AnW's Mum for this one
RoD ~ Room of Doom, the one room that feels like it is a permanent pit and cannot be used to its potential!
MAD half hour
- Mad is the abbreviation for Make A Difference.
The idea is that you have a Forth bridge (ie never-ending - or just huge) task but that you work on it in half-hour bursts. This way you know you ARE stooping, and that you won't get it finished but you will make a difference - so it might be clearing out - the garage or shed, or clothes sorting, or weeding - you get the picture - but rather than keep going until you've lost the will to live you do half an hour...but, eventually those half hours will get the job done!

Mr S/A/T/M/L/Al - supermarkets Sainsburys, Asda, Tesco, Morrisons, Lidl, Aldi. You get the picture!!

Click here to read Toots wonderful welcome guide

ok Here goes this Week...


Marvellous Monday - Living Room

Level 1

Empty bin and any ashtrays.
Clear coffee table of all gibble and wipe and polish
Get a just-damp cloth and wipe remotes, switches and places where sticky fingers linger
Chuck out candles ends.
Deal with cut flowers
Plump cushions

Level 2

Dust sills and shelves
Wipe dusty firplaces
Polish anything that needs polishing

Level 3

Wipe windows
Dust lightshades
Check dark corners for cobwebs
Dust skirtings
Vacuum soft furnishings
Vacuum/sweep/mop floors

extras

S&S kitchen
S&S bathroom
List of cards needed for November and December.
Check all outside pipes and taps are protected against frost
Month end looms - read your meters!
Put something warming in the slow cooker. Or learn how to use your oven timer so you can come home to hot Jacket potatoes in the oven!
Lay a fire ready for lighting! (assuming you can - I can't)
Re-read instructions to a complicated gadget to make sure you're getting the most from your appliances.
Make sure central heating timer is set to GMT
Plan some MAD half hours for this week

Twinkly Tuesday bathroom

step by step...

flush loo and glug loo cleaner therein
empty bin
remove any empty bottles and loo rolls
fill sink with hot water, add cleaning liquid or get a bucket
scrub loo bowl including under rim
get a cloth, squeeze out in sink and wipe ALL THE OUTSIDE of the loo, cistern, handle, seat, lid. Rinse cloth. put cloth in washing machine
empty sink.
Get a new cloth.
Spray bath and wipe/wipe shower
scrub sink
scrub taps
dust sides and sills
put towels in wash
polish towel rail
put out clean towels
sweep/vacuum/mop floor - with clean water not the same water you washed the loo with

Extras - s&S kitchen - this means WUDUPA, wipe sides, empty bins, deal with anything really grim eg sticky handles.
MAD half hour

(especially for JJTF's resident moron;))

Wonderful Wednesday - klean the kitchen

level 1

Empty bins and recycling containers
clear surfaces
wipe tiles
wipe worktops and put back ONLY what lives there
clear sink/drainer and clean the sink and taps

Level 2
Wipe cupboard fronts
wipe sockets and switches
wipe sills

level 3
sweep ans mop floor
clean the oven
wipe tables and chairs

extras
run DW and WM on a clean cycle
S&S bathroom
MAD half hour
make sure diary is up to date with children's school performances/events and anything else!



clear and wipe

Thursday Thrills

Tine to shine in the boudoir

Level 1

Open the window
clear out any rubbish - FERRRLINNNG
Strip the bed
Let the bed air before remaking it with fresh, crisp linen

Level 2

Clean the window
Wipe the sill
Clear all surfaces and dust
Polish mirrors
Put back what needs to be out - put away what doesn't

Level 3
Vacuum the headboard
Dist skirtings
Wipe sockets and switches
Vacuum the floor

Extras

Go MAD for half an hour
S&S bathroom
S&S kitchen
HHI
Make a plan for some me time - nails, hair, or even just a l-o-o-n-g bubbly bath.






Friday Flourish - Hall, stairs, landing, lobby, porch...whatever gunky passageway needs some TLC

Level 1

Clean windows - this includes wiping frames and sills
Bang mats outside
Take a feather dusty to all those nooks and crannies and tickle out those eight legged fiends
Put as much as you can away out of sight - if necessary fling old coats
Polish any wooden balustrades or bannisters
Wipe sticky door plates and handles
Dust everywhere
Clean light shades
Check outside lights are working
Dust skirtings
Vacuum, sweep or mop floors as appropriate
Wash down doors - inside and out
Polish door furniture
Clean icky cat flaps

Extras

Bin bag dance...you know you want to
S&S kitchen
S&S bathroom
HHI
Spend that me time on you!

Jazee

Thanks for the list.

I’m in this week as I have mostly late starts at the paid stuff.

See you all in the morning.

x_raphael_xx

I missed last week, so Ineed to be in this week.
I've got far too much going on in my life - work, keeping fit, music practice, dog walking. I need to keep on top of the cleaning too!

kazwookie

I'm in thank you for all the lists etc.

Work done
Eaten dinner
Cuddled cat who is now asleep next to me
Kitchen sorted

froddington

I'm in - thanks Valli :A

Italy was amazing and emotional - I came back physically and mentally exhausted and haven't done much at all this weekend

I am so not ready for work tomorrow but am trying to focus on the fact that I only have 7 weeks and 4 days to go - a very long half term!!

Marvellous Monday - Living Room

Level 1
Clear coffee table of all gibble and wipe and polish
Get a just-damp cloth and wipe remotes, switches
Chuck out candles ends

Level 2
Dust sills and shelves

Level 3
Wipe windows
Dust lightshades
Check dark corners for cobwebs
Dust skirtings
Vacuum soft furnishings
Vacuum floors

extras
Plan some MAD half hours for this week

Fayolle

I'm in. Thank you Valli, and Natty for last week.

Tomorrow is the last day of half term, but I'm planning to stay on track. Famous last words, I know.

7 weeks, Frodders, you can do this. X

atypicalblonde

Morning all, I am well and truly in thanks for the lists ladies

DD on inset day today, DS back to pre school. Will get a wash on shortly, unload DW then take it from there. Have fab days all xx

donnajt

Thank you Valli, I'm in, had a busy half term week and still unwell, fainted at a family funeral on Thursday, not a pleasant experience!!!

Kids after lots of heated discussion helped me get house back into shape so I am definitely in this week

welcome home froddington

Started this morning with a bit of me time .... guided meditation

Mademoiselle

My plans for this week are to not let the house go backwards, but I don't think there will be much progress. I have both DDs home so want to enjoy them. DD2 has brought me 4 (yes four) weeks worth of washing, she has worn every single t shirt or shirt she owns! So I guess there will be a lot of WM, TD & HHI here. DD1 did say she might use the time to sort her room as she recently moved into a flat with her BF so not much left here and a sort through would mean I can use the room if we have visitors rather than opening up the big spare room area (barn other side ot garden converted into party room and dormitory).
Public holiday here on Wednesday so that will break the week up nicely for OH, I am only working Tuesday morning, hooray!
Got off to a good start as living room tidies, fire cleaned and ready to light later, going to get girls to bring wood in later once they get up. TD on as WM on overnight and WM back on again.

Here's to a good week for everyone, hugs and spoons as required.

roundtuit

Good morning all :wave:

I'm taking Annual Leave this week - which is a good thing as things are slipping here after 4 weeks back at full time paid stuff. But I am NOT beating myself up as, after a phased return, I have worked full time for four weeks, which seemed an impossibility 4 months ago.

I'm feeling a tad overwhelmed at how much I want to get done this week :eek:: as well as the housework, I want to get the bulk of my Christmas shopping done and catch up with several friends. Time to start writing a few lists methinks. Everything always looks more manageable when it's written down, prioritised and scheduled ... as long as I don't get too rigid and :eek: at anything unexpected derailing the schedule. Oh the joys of being a Roundtuit

During down time at work last week I used one of my lifetime's supply of notebooks (Fayolle ) and started writing my Toots' list room by room plus outside sheds and garden. It's probably exactly the same as the one I wrote in 2015 but I don't know where that one is and anyway that one was typed and didn't work for me; I am very much an old-fashioned pen and paper gal and I've arranged it so that there's plenty of space for additions :T

Priorities for today are: order repeat prescription and go over to friend's house at 1pm to show her how to do an on-line shop as promised.

I'm going to get organised :rotfl: Have a lovely day ladies

Rx

ionafan

Morning all :wave: Back to "normal" (whatever that is!) today after a weekend looking after DGS3+4 which included going 20 miles out of our way to the wrong place to meet DS2 and family (my fault entirely: I texted him on his works phone rather than his new days-off number, and he didn't pick up the message); a flat tyre on my car (spotted by my neighbour as it [STRIKE]sat[/STRIKE] sank on the drive: we called the AA out to deal with it, and a lovely young man turned up within 15 minutes, thanking us for relieving the boredom of his Sunday afternoon); and a very late night yesterday (driving home along country roads around midnight and then cooking myself boiled eggs with lashings of real buttered toast to counteract the cold and hunger that had set in through a long evening of babysitting). I shall regret the last when I step on the SW scales tomorrow, but at least when I finally got to bed I dropped off quickly and managed 5.5 hours' uninterrupted sleep

Froddy, glad you enjoyed your Italian trip. We're all counting down your last 7 weeks with you.

Well done roundtuit - what an achievement!

Look after yourself, donnajt x

Thank you Valli for the new thread and Natty for last week's lists.

Things I absolutely must do today:
- check finances (pension day today, thank goodness!)
- order a book for DS2 via DH's @m@20n account
- pay DH back
- WMx2
- phone round about the cost of a new tyre (there's just one screw in the flat one, but the tyre walls have probably been damaged) and then go out and get one
- read 50 pages of a college library book which has to be returned tomorrow and make notes
- take Rosie out for 2 walks and to her training class
- cut back and clear overgrown shrubs in the front garden in readiness for tomorrow's last green bin collection until March
- S&S kitchen
- S&S bathroom
- hoover and dust in study bedroom
- get DH to hoover downstairs

The rest of the house is clean and tidy and will be staying that way this week :rotfl: I hope to settle down to lots of college work, apart from Thursday when we have to drive to South Wales for a family funeral.

(((Hugs))) spoons and sticks to all who need them. Hope everyone has a good week x