Weekly Flylady Thread 4th December 2017

Natty68 · 3 December 2017 at 9:19PM

WOOHOO IT IS :xmastree:.....DECEMBER..... :xmastree:

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.

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

So here goes this week:
Monday ~ Grotty Kitchen and Gloomy Dining Room
Level One...
Declutter and mop/vacuum the floors
Find and wipe the worksurfaces
Level Two...
Wipe the big appliances and units.. don't forget kickboards!
Wipe small appliances and replace.. do one thoroughly.. descale or decrumb or degunge!Clear and wipe a shelf or window sill
Level Three...
Wipe the table and replace the cloth if necessary.
Sort through and clean out one cupboard
Clean the oven and hob.. or if you really can’t face it how about getting someone in to clean it for you.. I am!!!!
MAD half hour – Sort out gifts for teachers or friends. Do you need to give Christmas Boxes to milkmen, window cleaners etc?I know I need to sort out a Christmas Box for my lovely postman, who is very good and even knows when I am up and about now so he can deliver any parcels

Extras

Don't forget any cards and presents posted!
Check through Christmas ornaments, do any need throwing away or replacing. Last thing you want when you decorate your tree is to find broken ornaments!!!
Clean out the fridge.. make use of anything almost past its best
Wash the windows
Clean the top of the kitchen wall units.. if you can reach.. no accidents please!!
Dust and Deweb
How are you doing with your Nov/Dec pledges? Are we all nearing the finish line?

Christmas Extras

Finalise those last minute presents you have to buy..
Wrap all the presents for family/friends
Finalise shopping orders/lists for your christmas food shop.. remember shops are only closed for one day!!!!

Tuesday ~ Luscious Living Room, hallway, stairs
Level One...
Clear the floor of clutter
Tidy the baubles and lights on the tree.. OR PUT UP YOUR TREE
Level Two...
Vacuum the stairs and hallway and living room
Wipe and water plants
Wash the windows
Level Three...
Wipe the sofas and wash any skanky soft furnishings
Sort coats, shoes and bags
Wipe the paintwork in the hallway and up the stairs.

Extras

Check the smoke alarms
Fill a binbag for charity shop
Finalise your christmas menu and shopping list
Defluff and deweb these rooms

Christmas Extras

Stick any cards up..
Christmas wrapping, try and get at least a few done
Replace the batteries in your annoying singing things, if you have any. Or haven't done what I did last year - threw them in the bin!!!!!
Make a receipts envelope for all the receipts from Christmas presents, just incase anything needs to go back

Thursday ~ Master messroom! and landing
Level One...
Strip the bedding and get it washed!
Level Two...
30 minutes floordrobe/junk clearing!
Vacuum and turn the mattress, vacuum the landing and floor
Remake the bed
Clean the windows
Level Three...
Wash any curtains/etc that are in need
Wipe down all the furry paintwork
Fill a binbag for charity shop or the bin!

Extras

HHI
Update remaining present lists
Collect all the dirty laundry from upstairs
Clean out any pets/wash pet bedding
Wash some light shades

Christmas Extras

Make a timetable for christmas prepartions.. turkey in.. turkey out.. etc
Spend 30 minutes just having time for yourself, whatever it is doing, because we probably won't have time next week
Chase up any deliveries you are waiting for that have not arrived
Update remaining present lists

Friday - Let's play catchy-up
Level One...
S&S the kitchen and bathroom
Spend 30 minute pampering yourself!!
Level Two...
Catch up the the window washing
Catch up on the floor mopping/vacuuming
Catch up on the dewebbing and dusting!
Level Three...
Collect ALL the dirty laundry from about the house inc and bedding that needs changing..
Spend 15 minutes on your filing
Clean ALL the filters and drawers etc on the kitchen appliances

Extras

Wipe down ALL the paintwork you keep putting off
Choose a manky kitchen cupboard and make it shine.. the inside.. NOT the outside!
Clean out any pets/wash pet bedding
Clean the pantry or airing cupboard or understairs cupboard or shed..

Christmas Extras

Post all the cards you need to post. Last posting dates are drawing very close.
Wipe out the freezer.. defrost if needed!!
Straighten the baubles and lights on the christmas tree.. and if you haven't done it.. get it up stop being such a humbug!
Write and send christmas cards!!
Update remaining present lists!!!
Wrap some more presents..
Make a timetable for christmas prepartions.. turkey in.. turkey out.. etc!!!

Natty68 · 3 December 2017 at 9:20PM

:santa2::santa2::santa2: November/December Challenge

Who's up for a month of decluttering, ebaying, donating and general making space (and hopefully some spare cash) before those presents arrive?

Pledge now how much space you will have cleared before 2nd week of December starts......

Pigpen pledges to remove 20 bags of stuff before Christmas
Dizzy Imp pledges to fling all useless and unwanted gibble
Lynnejk pledges to sort out the last, rather large box of paper that came out of the big cupboard
Ionafan pledges to recycle/take to CS or resell items
donnajt pledges to clear space the size of youngests room
Honey Bear’s pledge is to turn out every single drawer and cupboard in the house (other than OH's personal ones) one at a time
Fayolle is pledging to clear the unwanted gibble from the drawers and wardrobe in the spare room
Yorkshirelass pledges to continure with decluttering any cupboards that need doing.
Mrs- moneypenny pledges to clear as much clutter as she can

Narco pledges tol clear her office so there are no loose unfilled pieces of paper. Also to go through all assessment resources and get rid of obsolete tests.
Lover of Lycra pledges to fling all useless and unwanted gibble from the RoD
Froddington pledges to clear the hallway of all gibble
ffp pledges to gather up all the stuff people have given me that I can't make use of and give it someone who can.
JoJo pledges to get bathrooms, kitchen, living room and bedroom all looking spick and span with not one thing out of place by the time Himself is back for Christmas.
Donna pledges to declutter every dark dingy corner of my house
Natty not ebaying or anything, but I pledge to clear my humungous ironing piles once and for all.

If I've missed anyone please yell, highlight yourself in red so I can see it

[Deleted User] · 3 December 2017 at 9:27PM

Hi Natty :santa2:

Is it weird that I’ve been looking forward to the new fly lady thread? After doing battle with my RoD this weekend I’m ready to get back on top of my other rooms.

I am now pleased to announce that my RoD is, at long last, a gibble free zone and that includes the wardrobe and under the bed. :snow_grin

I even managed to sell an old set of drawers for £10 on Gumtree. :j

Valli · 3 December 2017 at 9:49PM

I will be in though I doubt I will get anything done tomorrow.

My niece is doing a sponsored swim tomorrow in memory. A year.

Special thanks to all those wonderful hospice staff and volunteers.

LameWolf · 3 December 2017 at 10:14PM

Will be fluttering again this week, as Daisy is here til Wednesday.

Tomorrow we have to go and get 2 months supply of CHEESE (long and tangled tale, but it's a 22 mile round trip to a place we've not been before, and we don't have SatNav). I've G00gle Mapped it though - and it looks like I'm going along as navigator (heaven help us).

That in itself should constitute a MAD half hour!! :rotfl:

pigpen · 3 December 2017 at 10:29PM

lol LW.. we get through around 20-25kg of cheese a month.. we'd need a cheese trailer! We (as a result of this) are discussing getting one of the huge blocks of cheese from the wholesaler and how much the boy could eat in one sitting and we would come down in the morning to those 2 in a cheese coma and 12 mice the size of chinchillas laid about them and 2 stuffed cats (they also like cheese).. I really want to buy one now to see how short a time it lasts.

uniforms ready for tomorrow.. I'm getting this baby down for the night and OH and have wrapping to do.. 3 boxes tonight.. he can slice paper and I shall stick!

froddington · 3 December 2017 at 11:05PM

I'm here - thanks Natty :A

I have been reading the thread but not posting as all I'm doing is the basics and trying to make it to the end of term.

Valli - hugs and well done to your niece xx

LW - well done for today and don't get lost vibes for tomorrow xx

Brain is a bit all over the place at the moment so help yourselves to hugs if you want or need one.

I'll aim to do a couple of bits of each list so I feel I can post!:o

Monday ~ Grotty Kitchen

Level One...
Vacuum the floor
Find and wipe the worksurfaces

Fayolle · 3 December 2017 at 11:05PM

Lover_of_Lycra wrote: »

Is it weird that I’ve been looking forward to the new fly lady thread?j

Nope! It's what we all do!

I'm in please, although tomorrow will be low level flying. DH is out for 3 nights next week. This could be good, this could be bad news. We will see. Thank you, Natty, for the thread.

Just for the record - this house could survive on cheese alone!

((Hugs)) Valli, especially for tomorrow. X

lynnejk · 4 December 2017 at 12:39AM

Evening all

Thank you Natty for this week's lists

We're back from our hols in Valencia and the place's a tip already. Definitely in for the week - though obviously still waiting for windows.

Will try to catch up news tomorrow as didn't have any WIFI last week. Hope you're all okay

Hugs, sticks and spoons all round and gws vibes if needed
Lx

kazwookie · 4 December 2017 at 5:33AM

Morning

Waving like mad.

Dizzy_Imp · 4 December 2017 at 8:38AM

Hi girlies :wave:

I'm in again - a real push this week. Real progress made in the house. All the dining room furniture is now in the correct room. Just need to persuade some strong builder lads to lift my dresser top up into place. It's only 100kilos, so probs eh!?

Catch up later.

Massive, humongous, squeezy hugs for Valli today. The first anniversary is always difficult. XXXXXXXXX

PLEASE READ BEFORE POSTING

Weekly Flylady Thread 4th December 2017

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