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Post by manygoatsnmore on Oct 1, 2015 14:08:45 GMT
Welcome to a brand new month. I love a new month - it feels like a fresh start. No matter what you did or didn't get done last month, pat yourself on the back or forgive yourself, and start anew. We have our Flylady lists (I'll repost this week's list from September's Thread) or you might be a list maker yourself. Sometimes I find it helpful to make a to-do list for the big cleaning and organizing jobs I want to get done in a given week or month. Sometimes I prefer to just post what I did on a good day. The point is that you should do whatever works for you! Join us here to talk about your cleaning and organizing tips, tell what you did to make your home more inviting and more functional, and cheer each other on. Organization doesn't come naturally to many of us, and we can use all the encouragement we can get!
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Post by manygoatsnmore on Oct 1, 2015 14:09:08 GMT
Copied from September's thread:
Flylady Weekly tasks Sept 28:
Monday:Detailed vacuuming in the living room/den/family room including baseboards and under furniture.
Tuesday:Get rid of things that don't belong in the room.
Wednesday:Dust the tops of door jams, tops of pictures, molding, windows,corners of the ceiling and the tops of your curtains..
Thursday:Today you are to sweep your front porch area around your front door. Shake out your welcome mats and wipe down your front door.
Friday:Get rid of any clutter near the front door.
Living Room/Family Room/Den Detailed Cleaning List Clean cobwebs Clean windows Straighten bookcases Wash ornaments and knick-knacks Clean out end table Straighten closets/ drawers Wipe fingerprints from walls Polish furniture Clean out magazine racks Clean phone Clean under cushions Clean out fireplace Move furniture and vacuum Shampoo carpet
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Post by susannah on Oct 2, 2015 0:55:52 GMT
Okay, let me back up to Wednesday, since I missed that. Open and I mean WIDE OPEN concept house has no door jams to dust in the living room- yippee! No curtains, either - living room faces onto the lakeside and while the patio doors do have blinds, they're inside the glass so they stay clean. Or so I say anyway. Now that the sun has moved to a more southerly position, the blinds won't be closed again till next summer. Very few people out on the lake anymore. Corners of the ceiling will need to wait until tomorrow to be dusted because that will require a ladder - cathedral ceiling means even with the duster on maximum extension I need some extra help from a ladder to reach those corners. But I WILL put that on my to-do list for tomorrow. Then I'll only be one day behind. Edited to say oh no, I just saw the detailed cleaning list. Let me get back to you on that...
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Post by manygoatsnmore on Oct 2, 2015 4:46:23 GMT
Most of my organization today was in my hen house. I cleaned the coop and started getting it ready for winter. I did do a little more picking up around the back patio area, and a bit more in the house, plus watered tomatoes and basil in the house. Every little bit counts.
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Post by susannah on Oct 2, 2015 14:25:52 GMT
Moving on to Thursday...um, WHAT front porch? It's a very short tiny stoop. But it's time to change out the doormat, so I'll be doing that today. My summer doormat is made from river rocks glued to mesh. Not sure how the glue would hold up when it's -30F, so that mat comes inside and a more traditional one takes its place. Detailed cleaning list: Windows definitely need a washing. Western exposure reveals a lot of streaks and grime. I'll do that today. Only knick-knacks I have are wooden fish and duck decoys (I'll dust those rather than get them wet) and a few pretty rocks I've picked up over the years. Dusting those as well. The beauty of natural cedar walls is, if there are fingerprints I'll never see them. I do dust the walls well several times a year, so maybe now is the time. The rest of the list...I'll save for when I need some fun tomorrow.
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Post by manygoatsnmore on Oct 4, 2015 4:51:30 GMT
Today I worked on the kitchen nook (which really only holds 2 of the freezers, overflow kitchen stuff, and now tomato plants). Swept down the cobwebs, spanked spiders, swept the floor, repainted the register cover, took down the curtains to be washed, etc. Not on the flylady list, but it needed done.
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Post by midtnmama on Oct 5, 2015 12:51:26 GMT
Week of Oct 4, 2015: The Kitchen
Monday: Sweep and mop floor if needed (that would take me more than 10 min, but luckily its already washed) Tue:Declutter your kitchen focusing on paper clutter (this months habit) Wed.:Clean the range hood and vent (get out the orange cleaner for gunky oily stuff) Thurs.:Clean small appliances (maybe run vinegar through the coffee pot. I need to use magic erasers on the outside of my toaster oven) Fri:Clean the light fixtures.
Kitchen: Detailed Cleaning List
Empty refg/clean thoroughly Clean microwave inside and out Clean stove/oven Wash canister/knick-knacks Straighten drawers/cupboards Wipe fingerprints off walls Wash inside windows Clean fan/vent-a-hood filters and hood Scrub down cabinet fronts (only a few at a time) Clean light defusing bowls (glass globes over light bulbs) Clean under sink/throw away old rags Clean pet dishes
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Post by susannah on Oct 5, 2015 13:46:03 GMT
Oh, maybe I'm weird but I love it when the kitchen is the area to work on. I do love my kitchen now. I hated it when we bought the house, but it's gorgeous post-remodel and more importantly, FUNCTIONAL. It was anything but functional before.
Having hardwood floors and living in on a lake with sand at the shore and gravel soil near the house, daily - or more than daily - sweeping is just a fact of life. But the floor does need to be washed, so that will be on today's to-do list.
I did just clean the refrigerator (in my quest to avoid finding science experiments) but the microwave could use a good cleaning inside (I just cleaned the outside yesterday). Stove also was cleaned well on the outside, but the inside - not. While I try not to run the self-cleaning feature for the oven, it IS critical to spot clean little spills and things regularly. I'll be doing that along with the microwave interior cleanup today.
I'll save the rest of the list for other days...
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Post by manygoatsnmore on Oct 6, 2015 8:29:04 GMT
Today I got a burn pile going and eliminated some of the trash and garden debris outside...still have much more to do, but every little bit counts. I also scrubbed my tub - it's so stained that sometimes I wonder why I bother, but it's nice to know that even if it doesn't look it, it IS clean! Then I celebrated by soaking my achy self in some hot water. Aaahhh. Felt good.
Tomorrow, I need to tackle the pantry shelves, moving the older cans forward and putting the new case lots behind. I still plan to make one more stock up trip while the sale is on at WinCo, but at least I have a cartful purchased and brought home (Sunday night).
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Post by AD in WNC on Oct 7, 2015 0:28:44 GMT
Please forgive me for coming in late. How much time are the detailed cleaning lists supposed to take? Maybe I clean funny, but the last two weeks' detailed lists would take me many hours each. I must be missing something. Do you all spend two full days a week cleaning?
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Post by manygoatsnmore on Oct 7, 2015 6:34:52 GMT
You can spend as much or as little time on the detailed lists as you want. Get the basics done each day and just add what you want to them. As time goes by, you will find that your home is staying clean enough to allow you to do more of the stuff on the detailed lists without wearing your fingers to nubbins.
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Post by susannah on Oct 7, 2015 17:24:25 GMT
Tuesday's focus on paper clutter de-cluttering continues today and will probably continue the rest of the week. I have no idea how it builds up that quickly (does it reproduce in the dark?) I have to be careful not to solve the problem by moving paper clutter from the kitchen into the filing cabinet. It's tempting. But counterproductive.
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Post by susannah on Oct 8, 2015 15:33:34 GMT
It's been raining. How nice. I can stay inside and work on the paper clutter. Good grief, this is a never-ending job.
And why do I still have owners manuals for things I haven't owned in years?
My attack on paper clutter is snowballing. Not that it's a bad thing...
I'm going to work on cleaning the cabinet fronts. The shaker style cabinets on rustic cherry looked so good in the showroom - and they look good in my kitchen as well - but oh my gosh they are DUST MAGNETS!
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Post by midtnmama on Oct 13, 2015 0:23:54 GMT
Flylady 10/12/15 Bathroom and one extra room
Monday: Clear paper clutter in the bathroom and one other bedroom Tues: Clean the air vents Wed:Clean doorknobs, light switches and walls thurs:Clean off the surfaces of your bathroom Fri:Wash towels and any fuzzy stuff on your toilet.
Detailed Cleaning list:
Bathroom detailed cleaning list Wash area rugs Scrub/wax floor Straighten drawers/ cabinets Clean shower stall/ wax (not the floor!) Wash shower door Clean medicine cabinet Clean scale Throw away empty bottles
Extra bedroom detailed cleaning list Polish furniture Straighten drawers/closet Clean cobwebs Wash mattress pad/dust rug Flip mattress Wash curtains Wash windows Clean window Clean bath tub Clean top of sewing machine Straighten bookcase Straighten computer desk Clean out the closet Put away stray items Fertilize plants
Children’s bathroom detailed cleaning list Wash area rugs Sweep/scrub/wax floor Straighten drawers/cabinets Clean shower/tub stall Wash shower door Scrub bath toys Wash down outside of toilet Throw away empty bottles Children’s bedrooms detailed cleaning list Polish furniture Straighten drawers/closet Clean cobwebs Wash mattress pad/dust rug Flip mattresses Wash curtains Clean window Straighten toy shelves Clean under the bed Clean out the closet Put away stray items Sort out-grown clothes Vacuum under bed/closets Dust baseboards Clean fingerprints off door/walls Rearrange videos/games/books Office detailed cleaning list Clear off the surface of your desk Throw away pens that don’t work Sharpen pencils Throw out all the trash Put items to keep in a pending file for Wednesday (desk day) Do not stop to pay bills Straighten one drawer at a time Toss out old receipts from over 7 years Clean off the monitor screen Fill printer caddy with paper Establish a place for current bills Vacuum under desk and the whole room Dust furniture Clean windows Remove cobwebs Check supplies of paper and printer cartridges Stamps and envelopes Laundry room detailed cleaning list Wipe down the top of the washer and dryer Clean the gunk from under the washer lid Throw out empty bottles and boxes Empty the garbage can Check supplies of laundry detergent, softener, spot remover Sweep and mop the floor Remove the cobwebs Put away all clothes Look behind appliances for odd socks
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Post by Deleted on Oct 13, 2015 15:34:08 GMT
It's been raining. How nice. I can stay inside and work on the paper clutter. Good grief, this is a never-ending job. And why do I still have owners manuals for things I haven't owned in years? My attack on paper clutter is snowballing. Not that it's a bad thing... I'm going to work on cleaning the cabinet fronts. The shaker style cabinets on rustic cherry looked so good in the showroom - and they look good in my kitchen as well - but oh my gosh they are DUST MAGNETS! Paper, no escaping it. What I've had *pretty* good luck doing is when we get rid of an item, I go to the filing cabinet and pull manuals etc. When I did my paper purge a couple of summers ago, I also went through the manual/papers drawer in the filing cabinet. I'd say 85-90% of what is in the drawer is for items we still have. I do need to go through it again (good winter project). What I found helpful is keeping hanging files that contain the manuals etc. for similar items. Furnace/water heater/well/softener in one hanging folder. Large appliances in another (stove, frig, microwave, washer/dryer). You get the drift - you need to come up with a personalized, logical system that works for you. Plus having all the documentation helps when selling an item.
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Post by midtnmama on Oct 25, 2015 12:13:17 GMT
October 25 - 31, 2015
This week we are in Zone 5: The Living Room
This month's Habit is: Paper Clutter
Missions (Do it fast for 10 min each day. Thereafter, if you have time, dip into the detailed cleaning list)
Mon: 27 boogie fling (27 pieces of trash quickly thrown away)
Tues: Clean light fixtures, change lightbulbs, Check light bulb supply and update shopping list for bulbs
Wed: Declutter
Thurs: Clear hotspots, keeping in mind holiday decorations. I think I'll go ahead and store my non-Christmas things that I put up from the mantel and china cabinet so that it will be easier to decorate.
Fri: Detailed vacuuming session getting under furniture and cleaning the baseboards
Living Room/Family Room/Den Detailed Cleaning List
Clean cobwebs Clean windows Straighten bookcases Wash ornaments and knick-knacks Clean out end table Straighten closets/ drawers Wipe fingerprints from walls Polish furniture Clean out magazine racks Clean phone Clean under cushions Clean out fireplace Move furniture and vacuum Shampoo carpet If you have a family room, game room, sun porch, or other room that is used by the family for living purposes, then concentrate on decluttering one room each month (or as you find more time). Do not push yourself. They did not get cluttered in one month and they will not get clean in one week. Remember: baby steps. If you are unable to do any task, just delete it and go to the next one. Do not save them up. We will repeat the same thing each week and each month. I am just your reminder. – FlyLady
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Post by midtnmama on Oct 25, 2015 12:26:14 GMT
Not to stress anyone, but it's less than 9 weeks to Christmas, I believe (that's a rough count). The last couple weeks have been very busy ones, so we are off the wagon, but catching up today. Luckily, having done flylady for a year, things are not impossible, so it does not depress me. By following Flylady's swish and swipe habit, my sinks, countertops and toilets are, if not totally clean, in a state that is uber easy to clean. - I plan to stick to the plan for the next nine weeks. Actually, I have less, because our family rolls in a week early.
I need to work on the freezer, frig and pantry, so there is room for the things we are storing for the large number of company!
Tidy up closets that will be used by said company!
Give a hairy eyeball to the sheets and towels used by guests.
Although I was away most of the weekend, I did, with dh help, to give the kitchen a good cleaning and floor washing. I still need to clean appliances. I need to do the vinegar mixture to get the grease off. I also got the laundry done (well, two loads left to put away) and the bed linens changed. Whew!
Today I plan to
1. Clean the rest of the house (maybe not deep clean, but company ready). 2. Give the dogs oral flea meds (bad year for it) 3. Order plastic hanging folders to help my paper clutter and filling.
What are you up to?
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Post by susannah on Oct 25, 2015 17:44:57 GMT
Paper clutter! I guess it's fortunate that I never really completed my mission to get the paper clutter under control. Cough. I WILL work on it this week. I've actually done pretty well with keeping the part of the house that I super deep cleaned (kitchen/living room/future mudroom/laundry room), well, CLEAN. It's a daily thing, the mainenance. But it takes less time to stay on top of it than it would to let it all go and start from scratch again. I looked at Flylady's website a few years ago but didn't get much further than the part about wearing shoes all the time. Living in an area where the yard is either sand or gravel depending on where you go; the driveway is little tiny chunks of red granite that WILL get in the soles of your shoes each and every day - and having hardwood floors just about everywhere in the house - I just kind of thought "nope, that will trash my floors in a heartbeat" and didn't look back. But reading the things that have been posted, I'm following the zones and it's helping. Just hope no one here minds that I do the stuff barefoot...
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Post by krisinmi on Oct 26, 2015 16:46:58 GMT
Paper clutter! You must have read my mind! That is on my list of indoor stuff to get to just as soon as I finish the garden clean-up and fall tilling, and all the outdoor stuff DH and I have been working on. Last week we hauled a load of stuff to the monthly consignment auction and a load of scrap metal (weighing over 2600 pounds!!) to the recycling place (where you get $$ for it!). Then we mowed where all that stuff has been sitting for several years, and also got rid of a bunch of junk wood that was masquerading as 'someday I could build something out of this (2-foot, 3-foot, 4-foot) piece of lumber'.
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Post by manygoatsnmore on Oct 30, 2015 5:32:27 GMT
I think we can all agree on paper clutter! I have such a mound of it, even though I work really hard at throwing out all the junk mail before I ever set it down.
Abby moved out some of my extra small appliances and other non-food items that have been stored in my pantry - put them in the shipping container. I can store things like that out in non-climate controlled storage, but food really needs to be in the house. I'd purchased a lot of case lots earlier this month, and they were starting to take over my home, especially the living room. While there is still a tower of cases of water to deal with, it's looking somewhat better.
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Post by manygoatsnmore on Nov 1, 2015 5:13:39 GMT
I just started the November thread - see you there!
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