Weekly Flylady Thread 27th June 2022

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.

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!

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 (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!

Mysterious Monday ~ Bathroom, Hall, Stairs and Study/PC Area
Level One...
DRINK PLENTY OF FLUIDS
Open windows to let in air
Wash and replace towels/flannels/bath mats with clean ones
Clean cobwebs
Level Two..
Clean bath/shower/sink and toilet - Don't forget to give those taps an extra shine!
Throw away any empty bottles
Straighten computer desk
Delete 50 emails - do you really need that sale email from Dotty P's?
Level Three...
Wash/vacuum floor
Clean window
Clean the windowsills
Clean medicine cabinet - throw away out of date medicines.
Put away any stray items in the hall and stairs - do you really need all that stuff cluttering up the stairs and hall/landing!!!
Extras..

• Wipe skirting boards up the stairs
• Check supplies of paper/printer cartridges/stamps and envelopes
• Throw away any pens that don't work
• Clean fingerprints off light switches and doors.

Twinkling Tuesday ~ Master bedroom and Landing
Level One..
Fling open windows to let air in especially as it's been hot and the room will be stuffy.
DRINK PLENTY OF FLUIDS
Clean Cobwebs
Check firealarms are working, change battery if necessary.
Remove and wash bed linen and duvet covers
Level Two..
Vacuum & turn mattress before replacing with fresh linen..
Clean under the bed
Polish furniture
Level Three...
Straighten/sort through make up
Throw away any empty/out of date bottles
Clean glass and mirrors - make them twinkle 
15 minutes floordrobe clearance
Clear a hotspot ~ or spend 15 minutes clearing one.
Add a personal touch - flowers in a vase on a dresser, pretty bowl etc..
Extras:

• 36 fling boogie, go on grab a bag and clear that clutter
• HHI
• Clean windows in these rooms
• Clean light switch of hand prints or smudges
• Clean main light and any lampshades
• Clear the top of a bedside cupboard/chest of drawers or shelf

Wacky Wednesday ~ Those frightening kids rooms and spare rooms
Level One..
Open windows to air room
DRINK PLENTY OF FLUIDS
Clean cobwebs
Clear away anything that isn't in it's place, clothes, toys, books etc
Straighten toy shelves
Level Two..
Polish furniture
Vacuum the floor
Dusting.. all those shelves and flat fluffy surfaces!! Don’t forget the light shade and curtain pole!!!
Strip beds, turn and vacuum mattresses!! and replace with fresh linen .. check if duvets need freshening up too!! Wash the curtains!
Level Three...
Sort out outgrown clothes and give to charity/neighbours/younger children.
Put away stray items
Clean fingerprints off light switches/doors/walls
Clean under the bed - I know it's scary but it does have to be done. You could even delegate to a little one if you don't fancy doing it yourself.
Extras

• Clean windows
• Clean/scrub bath toys
• Wipe the radiators, skirtings and window & door frames!
• HHI
• Rearrange videos/games/books

Tantalising Thursday ~ Dining Room and Entance/Porch
Level One..
Open windows and let air in
Clean cobwebs
Dust windowsills and front door
Throw away any newspapers/magazines that aren't needed.
Level Two..
Put plants in shower & give them a good rinse. Remember to put them back before everyone has a shower in the morning - it might be a bit unnerving having to shower with a plant!!!
Clean and dust shiny things/mirror and glass
Clean lightswitches of hand prints or smudges
Level Three...
Move furniture, if safe to do so, and hoover underdeath
Clean and straighten any drawer
Add a personal touch to the table - pretty tablecloth, vase of summer flowers!!
Clean TV, other electricals and cabinets
Clean under sofa/chair cushions - lets see if you can find any money or even anything that you have lost recently 
Wipe down light fixtures - make those bulbs shine at night!
Extras

• Refill bird feeders
• Throw away any dead plants
• HHI
• Binbag dance - Get a binbag... fill it and bin it!!
• Wash any cushions, throws etc that need it..

Flying Friday ~ Kitchen
Level One..
Open windows, let the air and blow those cobwebs away..
Wash knick-knacks/canisters
Mop/brush floor
Level Two..
Clean sink and draining board
Clean microwave inside and out
Empty fridge, clean shelves and doors and move any nearly out of date stuff to front to use up next.
Empty and clean rubbish bin
Level Three...
Clean under sink - throw away any manky looking bottles/rags etc..
Straighten drawers/cupboards
Clean fan/vent/hood filters
Clean pet dishes
Clean cupboard door fronts and fronts of appliances .. don't forget those kick boards..(only a few at a time!)
Extras

• Check the smoke alarm - when was the last time you replaced the battery?
• Clean the hob
• Wipe down any tiles and shine those taps - make them twinkle!!
• 29 fling boogie - GO!!
• Buy yourself some flowers from the shop.. your reward for making the kitchen shine!

pigpen

TY for Fred.. I am doing my thing this week.. my bedroom is going to be under attack. I have done a fair bit in the girls room today.. there is actually visible floor in there!!!

Squeaks bus ticket purchased and educated on use..

ionafan

Thank you Natty.  I am aiming to do as much flying as possible this week, between DH's horse piddle appointments and my work commitments, but I'm not sure how the week will go.

DS2 texted this afternoon to say he tested positive on Friday, after DDiL2 had done the same on Monday.  I had wondered why they had gone so quiet this week, and I'd been planning to ring them this evening.  They are moving house in less than 4 weeks, so I hope they recover quickly.

mumof3.12kindebt

Thankyou natty. 

I have a meeting in the morning before work regarding the final sign up for my level 4. Then work in the afternoon. Hoping to squeeze in a shower and some housework in between 


I was looking back on photos from 2 years ago and 3 years ago (3 years ago being we hadn't long moved in) and we had so much less stuff so I strive to be back to that point by the end of the year. 


Anyways off to bed now.  

Goodnight all 

Jazee

Morning all.  Thanks for the list Natty.
Rain forecast today so staying at home and hopefully will get grass cut before it rains.  First some cleaning of the living room.
Have a great day everyone.

YORKSHIRELASS

Morning all

I am in, thanks for thread, working to my own lists this week.  Lots to do at the paid stuff and I want to try and spend a bit of time with DS2, so it's going to be busy.  Late start today, have done some gentle exercise and had a shower.  Going to put a mince hotpot in the sc and want to try and do a bit of hoovering before the paid stuff.

Doggie blankets to go out on the line first before the rain starts.  Have a good Monday all x

Jazee

It's already raining so gardening is off.  Living room now dust free. Having breakfast then I'll wash dishes.

roundtuit

Morning all xx

Thank you for the thread Natty and Valli xx

I went to bed at 10, got up at 8, thought I'd slept reasonably well, but I'm tired, tired, tired. A severe case of yawnitis has not been relieved by breakfast and a brew. However I'm up and my bed is made. 

To Do Today List 

Get dressed 
Feed the birds 
Put out the recycling 
WUDUPA 
Fill a bag of books for cs
Take books to cs
Pay rent 
Pay C. Tax

P&S  calling for coffee a.m 

I hope everyone has a good day / week.

Love to all
Rxx

pigpen

M&S refund received so I can re-order.. underwear for Squeak so not frivolity.

Squeak got the bus to school by herself!!!!!!! She got on with OH at the end of the street and her friend got on 3 stops later and she went all the way to school by herself and into school.. coming home may be more eventful but she will be ok.. She has her phone and if she gets lost she can video call me and I will know where she is and can go get her.. it isn't that big a town and I know the entire bus route! She isn't brave enough to go to choir yet so is likely getting the bus back with a friend and I will meet her at the bus stop.. She is rightly, very proud of herself!!

I have 3 parcels to package and fling and OH who I need to lift boxes about has gone out playing pokemon.. it is fine.. I guess..

It looks a bit gloomy today I'm not sure about hanging out washing.. I will put it on the airer outside and bring them in if it starts rainign I think.. apart from towels and bedding which can stay out until it is dry! .. Actually.. with the girls at school I could put them in the summerhouse.. that might be an idea!

Bother.. OH could have taken Dots glasses.. she has a screw loose! She was an absolute prize winning turd at drop off today.. I had to drag her in and hand her over and she fought the teacher trying to get her in.. she took her to the library in the end but she was NOT happy.

Twinkle screamed all the way into school because she couldn't take Pig-pig

Pixie as always went in like a really good girl.. she is so sensible and grown up.. she is going to be a nightmare teen! She was really excited because they have a trip on Thursday.

What a lovely start to the week!

mumof3.12kindebt

Morning all. Kids have a teacher training day today. They have been fed washed and dressed..  I'm now just waiting for an email to complete my level 4 sign up. I've tidied the kitchen abit. And sprayed the sides ready to wipe down. I'm going to jump in the shower in a min. We need to do a food shop but I doubt we will have time before I need to leave for work so oh might have to go later with the kids. 

Ds1 weeded the front yesterday. Now he's asking me to buy plants.  He pulled out some nice stuff along with the weeds. But he tried his best so I haven't said anything 🤣

Off to have a shower. 

Jazee

Dog walked in the rain, dailies done, carpets hoovered, second wash load in machine, trousers taken up and ironing done.