Weekly Flylady Thread 3rd May 2021

Natty68

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.

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!
Please do remember we have to abide by MSE rules; each post should, ideally, include some mention of flying.
Thank you Valli 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 content! (i.e. it should be on-topic)

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 –

 

Hotspotsare 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'
WUDUPA ~ Washed up, dried up, put away
WUALTD ~ Washed up and left to dry
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!

Some of our abbreviations: DH- dear husband, OH- other half, KH/CF- affectionate term for ex husband or partner  DS/DD- dear son/daughter, DGC- dear grandchild, WM- washing machine, DW- dishwasher, LR/DR- living/dining room, RoD- room of doom, Mr S/A/T/M/L/Al- supermarkets Sainsburys, Asda, Tesco, Morrisons, Lidl, Aldi. You get the picture!

Any more questions I bet are answered in the wonderful welcome guide which was produced by our much loved Toots

Here goes this week:

Killer Kitchen - Bank Holiday Monday - May Day
Level One
Clear and wipe work surfaces
Get that radio on super-blast...
Open the windows and let in the summer!
Level Two
Sweep and Mop the floor
Clean the icky filters and drawers from DW's, WM's etc
Wipe the cupboard fronts, all the appliances and all those manky corners!!
Level Three
Wipe the table, replace cloth if needed
Empty and clean out the fridge.. including the drain hole bit at the back..
Clean oven/hob
Pick a cupboard and empty and clean it out and replace only what you wish to keep!
Extras

• Binbag dance!
• HHI ..
• Clean windows and sills
• Clean the oven shelves.. 

Mad Tuesday - Living room, Hallway, Stairs
Level One
Remove clutter from floors, chairs and fireplace
Open the windows and let in some fresh air
Level Two
Vacuum floors and sofas
Wipe and water neglected plants
Dust those flat fluffy surfaces
Level Three
Vacuum under the furniture you can move
Clean windows, pictures, mirrors etc.
Sort out the shoes and boots and fling the dead ones and the out grown ones
Vacuum hall, landing and stairs.. all the way up to the top!!!!!
Extras

• Wipe woodwork in the hall and stairs & wipe front door.. inside and out!
• Wash any nets/curtains that need cleaning.. put up fresh ones!
• Wash those winter coats and put them away/fling the manky old ones.. including the one you have worn for about 10 years!! It is dead.. get rid!
• 15 minutes filing

Study or other reception room & bathrooms - Wednesday
Level One
Clear the clutter from all these rooms!!
Ring someone you love just to tell them so.. we never do this enough!
Wash any curtains/blinds/mats etc that need doing
Level Two
Vacuum the floors
Clean bath, toilets, shower and sinks
Wipe down the tiles and defragment the pc while doing this.
Level Three
Declutter and dust the pc desk
Wipe away cup rings and sticky things
wipe the keyboard, mouse, cables and sockets and suchlike.
Clean the windows.
Extras

• HHI..
• Clear a hotspot
• Degunge around the bottoms of the taps!
• Wipe cupboards and polish mirrors!

Master bedroom & landing -Thursday
Level 1
Check fire alarms are working
Remove and wash bed linen and duvet covers.
Fling open the window and let in the spring!
Level 2
Dust surfaces & make sure no cobwebs..
Vacuum & turn mattress before replacing with fresh linen..
Clean lightshade. And remove dead insects
15 minutes floordrobe clearance
Level 3
Vacuum floors in bedroom and on landing
Sort 10 things from your wardrobe (or someone elses) that you can get rid of.. you WILL have nothing left lol!!
Clear a hotspot.. or spend 15 minutes clearing one.
Extras

• 37 fling boogie time, go on grab a bag and clear that clutter
• Clean windows in these rooms
• Clear a box of clutter from the landing
• Make any necessary phone calls

ionafan

Thank you Natty.  I shall try to fly at least at level 1 each day this week, as it's not looking to be quite as hectic as the last couple of weeks have been.

DH redeemed himself by apologising for upsetting me earlier.  I think tbh he has overdone it today (he went out this morning as well as walking 150 yards x2 this afternoon).  Ah well, another week closer to his op...

Jazee

I'm in but having the day off from flying tomorrow.  Thanks for the list.

Honey_Bear

Thank you for the listies, Natty and Valli.

Glad to hear you received an apology Ionafan.

I will be flying with avengence but probably not from the lists.  I have a very long listie of my own that has stretched across two pages of my A5 diary because while the cat's away, the mice will ....

I'm sick to death of hayfever.  I'm dosed up to the eyeballs with a non-drowsy type of stuff, but my eyes are streaming and have been for a couple of weeks, particularly my left one.  It's really irritating.

pigpen

Ty for Fred xx 

iona.. the mirrored bits would be like fairground funny mirrors with our walls but also have a bookcase in front so would be safe! Lol I’m glad he apologised but yes he is probably tired or in pain or both.. says the tired, in pain grumpy puss here! 

I will do pics of the room tomorrow I hurt so much I can barely stand this evening and I am stiff as a board! 

Round.. so pleased Papa Round is home safe and sound. I hope he will be looked after.. and be careful! How is your peeper doing? 

I’m grabbing a cuppa and going to bed... I have girls to bath in the morning and Lionels party in the afternoon.. just us and DD1’s brood but that’s enough for a party!! 

pigpen

HB.. hayfever is really bad here this year too.. not yet as bad as it was last year when it nearly landed me in hospital! I’m on double doses of loratidine, nasal spray, eye drops and my head is full of glue and my sinuses thick.. It is nasty. It’s all these people planting wild flowers for the bees! 

Save the bees... kill the people! Lol 

Mademoiselle

Morning everyone, I will try and be in this week.  Or at least today.  Tuesday and Thursday are full work days, Wednesday I am taking all the cushions and bedding etc to the boat so will be flying there and Friday I am heading to the other house to see DD2.  We are allowed to travel outside the region now so we can go to the other house and see DD2.  It will be a weekend of chores as we haven't been for over a month so the garden will be (doesn't bear thinking about).

Weekend was quite productive.  A bag of rubbish and a bag of old clothes to go to recycling from sorting through part of my wardrobe.  Also made a cutlery roll holder for DD1 out of old sail cloth to keep her cutlery in when she take her lunch to the library.  

Nice not too long walk on Sunday afternoon (DD1 and OH had cycled 30 km in the morning)  

WM already on (thank you DD1)
DW unloaded
HHI done for DD1 to take home with her
Kitchen tidied and wiped down
WULTD

YORKSHIRELASS

Morning all

Not too happy about the weather forecast, it is supposed to rain from 11am for 24 hours, then turn to showers.  The thought of a precious day off work spent cooped up in the house is not very appealing.  Question is, can I be bothered to get myself moving and go for a walk before it rains.

Glad Papa Round is home, hope the eye is getting better too.

I do have some paperwork to do for the voluntary job and some paperwork for DH so will make sure that gets done today.  My office could do with a good tidy up too.

Valli

Morning all

DW x 1
Pile of ironing to do.
Raining here too 

Mademoiselle

WM on again
Cats trays cleaned
Bins out
Recycling out
Rent paid for DDs
I know what's for lunch

It's beautiful and sunny here although was well below freezing when we got up, but sadly it's not a bank holiday weekend, it was Saturday here and if they fall at the weekend we just lose out, next Saturday is the case too but not complaining to much as there is then Ascension
which is a 4 day weekend followed by a weeks holiday through to Whit Monday so we have 12 days off for taking 5 days holiday.   

pigpen

Oh I hurt.. everything hurts!!!

I have a papercut on my finger from dragging the ancient 70's paper from behind the radiator.. it was like cardboard and sliced my finger.. waiting for the infection to set in and have to have my finger amputated.. that'll interfere with my typing!! .. Always the optimist I am! lol

OH hoofed out of bed..

Twinkle has now chewed the skin off 1 toe and 3 fingers in the last 24 hours.. and is wailing everything is sore and keeps bleeding.. well.. there is a solution to that!!

OH has cat cleaning up to do.. and girl washing.. and a DW with his name on it.. I changed his name to Bosch just for the purpose!

I have a radiator to paint and a wicker basket to paint.. I want to paint the door but it hasn't been fixed yet.. we are going to be having sneaky trips to the orange shop to raid the offcuts from their freebie bin.. I haven't spent a penny decorating this room so far.. it is all stuff I already had for various projects or we had donated. Even the bed was a freebie!

i need to measure Squeak to see how close we are to using just the adult seat belt, she was 146cm last time I measured her. DD1 needs Twinkles car seat for Lionel so Twinkle needs to move up one.

I have washing to go on the line.. I might not care if it gets rained on there is so much.

We need a Tesc0 or a Lidl dash for pack up stuff..

Cuppa first and I will probably find 1000 more things I need to do today too.