New Year, Fresh Start with Flylady

[HazelNotHungryLC]

Are you looking to finally getting into a new routine with housework? Something simple to start that can be easy to add to over time? Flylady may be the answer for you!

This is a long running thread, but we are a friendly bunch and all are welcome to join in.

Do NOT sign up for the Flylady emails - it's an excessive amount sent every day.

There are Baby Steps for starting out, add one thing at a time to start good habits and routines.

There are 5 zones that we will rotate through, don't worry about finishing it all this month, it'll come around again next month! Flylady is NOT about perfectionism!

Daily missions: each day of the week has a different mission.

• Monday: Home Blessing (or as we call it, home bleugh)
• Tuesday: plan & play
• Wednesday: anti-procrastination
• Thursday: errand day
• Friday: clean car & purse out. It's also date night (with your significant other, or friends, or yourself!)
• Saturday: family fun day
• Sunday: renew your spirit

Common acronyms we use:

• LOL: load of laundry (washing is certainly NOT funny!)
• DW: dishwasher, we are not rotating wives by any means, although an extra pair of hands could come in handy sometimes 😆
• LMS: lose/lost my shit
• DNLMS: did not lose my shit

There are more, feel free to ask us to explain something. I'll try to update links every day, although if you can, it's worth downloading the app, you can even have it send you notifications (although I only have it for when the zones change). You can also modify the tick lists to suit your home & lifestyle.

Links are below 👇 if I happen to not add links in time, they do update at midnight for you. I am in the US, 7 hours behind the UK, so I'll do my best.

Launch Pad: https://www.flylady.net/d/new-links/
Zones: https://www.flylady.net/d/zones/
Baby Steps: https://www.flylady.net/d/getting-started/31-beginner-babysteps/

Really disturbed night sleep 😴 it's my busiest day of the week so it'll be one foot in front of the other kinda day.

Tada
✅Drank first bottle of water(aiming for 5 a day, works out around 2.5/3litres)

Off to see if a shower will wake me up ready for the day !

Aaargh I have typed out a long post twice now and both times been interrupted by a phone call and lost it 😭

Just posting my list now and will rewrite the rest later when I have more time.

Tadas
🥱morning routine
🥱school run
🥱work 2.5 hours
🥱lunch
🥱mop hard floors
🥱hang up lol
🥱fold and put away lol x2
🥱properly clean bathroom sink

todos
🥱clean main bathroom
🥱clean downstairs cloakroom-noticed the paintwork around light pull and towel hook is quite grubby
🥱school run
🥱cook dinner
🥱post dinner clear up

Angel that was quite a list! My DH will put stuff back when he wants to. Otherwise he finds a clear space and just sets stuff down. It's irritating!
searching disturbed sleep is the worst! One thing I don't miss about my 2 being little anymore.
character I hate losing long posts!

My poor Jeep really doesn't like this cold (-5°f right now 🥶). I struggle to start it, the key just refuses to turn. I tried for 7 minutes this morning before I gave up. Told DS he could try. He was able to get it of course, after a few tries 🤦‍♀️but he really needed me to take him to school this morning. I'm convinced we need to replace the ignition, DH doesn't seem to think so, but he hates my Jeep and hates working on it, so let's me struggle 😪

I'm currently drinking my hot coffee on the couch with a blanket, trying to warm my legs up, it's truly freezing out there!

@HazelNotHungryLC many thanks for signposting the app. I've found it very helpful today figuring out what to do!

@Searchingforsnow I hope you've had a better day than expected! I was up a lot in the night too so I'm with you in tired corner today.

@TheMainCharacter I hate losing a long post!

@HazelNotHungryLC I hope you've warmed up now.

✅ a couple of 5 minute room rescues
✅ meeting in the big city which felt very grown up having been a SAHM for the past 6 years.
✅ visited cousin and new baby
✅ 24 hour fast today! This ends in 5 mins and I'm pretty excited to eat!

Today's wins:

• scraped off the remaining timescale from family bathroom taps (not us, it was like that we we moved in!)
• washed family b'room bath, sink and even scrubbed the loo, disinfected the seat
• fitted snazzy new Oxo bath plug hair sieve (idk what it's called but it's a hair sieve to me)
• cleaned x2 bathroom mirrors
• dried 1 load of washing up (a "load" here is a draining board's worth)
• finally started getting quotes for window cleaners
• made a decision on what to do with our clapped out shed. Storms gave it a battering but also it was on its last legs anyway, so we weren't sure whether to repair or replace (the latter!)
• put away the now clean summer duvet (it dried beautifully!)
• restocked some of the herb jars and oil dispenser
• 5min tidy of coffee table (another official Dumping Ground)

@ProfessorplumBilliardroomCandlestick please do share plug hair sieve ! With 3 long haired girls in the house it sounds like something I need to invest!! Well done on a huge list !

@cosypompoms todays been ok thanks , just kept going but I am feeling the tiredness now . How did your meeting go? Also congratulations to your cousin ! Enjoy those new baby snuggles ! I bow down to you for completing a 24 hour fast !! Wowzer that takes some commitment!

Thanks @HazelNotHungryLC - everything just feels so much harder when sleep deprived doesn't it ! Oh no for your jeep !! I've got my fingers crossed that it is just the cold and not the ignition 🤞hope you warmed through quickly !

Happy you got your list posted eventually
@TheMainCharacter.! It looks a good list to say you've been working too!

Luckily for me, ds football training has been cancelled so oh is picking dd2 up from gymnastics so I'm now in my snuggly warm clothes , I'm going to finish my tada list , have a wash and read my book , I'll be in bed before 9 I think ! I'm really hoping I sleep tonight .

Tada
✅ showered , dressed , hair & makeup
✅ breakfasts
✅ breakfast pot
✅ dd2 ready for school
✅ lunches made
✅ school run
✅ work (extra hours again today)
✅ school run
✅ made tea (spag Bol)
✅ caught up on messages and emails
✅ dd2 ready for gymnastics and dropped off
✅ quick tidy of living room

@Searchingforsnow here it is: https://www.lakeland.co.uk/24262/oxo-good-grips-small-sink-plug-hole-strainer-guard it just sits there in the tiny plug recess. Time will tell how effective it is......

professor I'm glad the app is helpful! Isn't it great to remove stubborn limescale! I find it therapeutic 😌

pompoms a 24 hour fast is impressive.

searching did you get caught up on sleep like you hoped?

Ta Das:
🦷 LOLs x6, including 2 lots of sheets, towels, blankets
🦷 bleached both bathrooms
🦷 descaled coffee machine (Keurig) it actually wasn't as bad as I thought it would be!
🦷 rotated DW x2
🦷 wiped countertops & sink
🦷 removed limescale from both sinks in bathrooms
🦷 vacuumed main floor
🦷 checked behind washer & dryer for socks and dust bunnies, didn't see either (but cleaned behind them recently)
🦷 dentist - I have a cavity 😫 it's my first ever cavity (I'm almost 40!), I get my filling in a couple of weeks and I'm a little nervous!
🦷 watched a couple episodes of Hoarders and reheated leftovers for dinner, so an easy night

Wednesday is anti-procrastination day.

Wednesday's mission in the bathroom is to declutter out of date and old cosmetics.
In the laundry room it's to sort and pair up socks (I do ours as I'm pulling them out the dryer).

Zones: https://www.flylady.net/d/zones/

Baby step #17: https://www.flylady.net/d/getting-started/31-beginner-babysteps/day-17/
Set a bedtime! Make sure you get enough rest every night and plan your bedtime routine around it.
I'm actually working on this. It's a lot easier during the week than the weekend, of course, but it makes it hard come Sunday night if I was up late on Saturday. By Friday evening I'm usually ready for bed by 9:30pm, which is early for me!

I skipped ahead a little to next week because my WFH office needed some love. I know I work so much better in a tidy, clear room. So in the spirit of anti-procrastination... straightening out this room made a lot of sense to me.

So this morning's tadahs:

• Roomba'd carpets
• Refilled printer paper
• Dusted furniture
• Cleaned PC screens, keyboard, mouse
• Cleared desk of misc. crap (mostly binned/recycled!)
• "Tidied" the remaining Toblerone from xmas
• Paid a couple of household invoices
• Registered the toaster we bought in September!
• Tried and failed to revive x2 fountain pens
• Emptied kitchen bins x3
• Watered houseplants
• Browsed label-makers for a good hour
• BHF collected previous washing machine

To do:

• Collect parcels from corner shop
• Fit new countertop in utility
• Check house for any stray recycling
• Take out bins
• Washing up

Yes thanks @HazelNotHungryLC , I went up to read around 9pm and turned my light off about 930 - I didn't hear the older 2 kids go to bed or oh getting into bed so I must of dropped off straight away ! I didn't even hear the alarm clock going off this morning 😂 I feel so much better for it ! Well done to you for getting to nearly 40 without a filling ! You'll be ok , your dentist will look after you , the treatment of a simple filling doesn't take too long . I have a mouth full of them unfortunately so I'm talking from experience. Please don't worry yourself too much ❤️❤️

@ProfessorplumBilliardroomCandlestick brilliant thank you !! Your tada list is impressive !

Congratulations on your newly tidied room Professor

Definitely need to work on that babystep Hazel. Slept well last night but need to be better organized

I guess you needed that extra sleep Snow. I find it hits me like that sometimes too

Ta-da's:

🏔️Morning routine
🏔️Took a loaf of bread on my walk through the woods today, I figured the birds would be hungry, it's very cold at the moment. A little robin spied it and came over right away, flitting from branch to branch and cheeping at me while it tore some bread into chunks for it
🏔️Went through my jeans to find some that fit better than the ones I've been wearing
🏔️Searched out warmer pyjamas
🏔️Decluttered craft supplies

Only the evening routine left to do now

✅ toddler group
✅ meal plan for the week
✅ food shopping
✅ night class
✅ trying to write a piece for the local magazine now

✅ cleaned the sinks and toilets
✅ lol
✅ filled bird feeder

Good luck with your writing @cosypompoms ! Sounds exciting!

✅ morning self care
✅ made bed
✅ breakfast
✅ kids sports clothes out for the evening
✅ lunches made
✅ breakfast pots
✅ school run
✅ work (extra hours again)
✅ school run
✅ made kids snack (beans on toast)
✅ prepped chicken and popped in marinade
✅ dd2 ready for gymnastics
✅ gymnastics (read my book whilst there , shorter session today so isn't worth coming home )
✅ made wraps with marinated chicken
✅ dd2 homework

Now sat in my room waiting for dd2 to fall asleep ( she gets scared if I go downstairs before she falls to sleep ) then I'm going to have a wash , read and go to bed early again 😴💤

@ItsieDitzyBitsOfOnionInTheSoup you definitely need those warmer pjs it's absolutely freezing here this evening !

Professor well done on getting your office sorted. Even though it's in next week's zone, I don't think we spend much time in there.

searching thank you for the reassurance. The cavity was hard for them to find, so hopefully not hard for them to fill!
You must have needed that sleep! 😴

Ditzy I bet that Robin was glad to see you! Did you find better fitting jeans?

pompoms if it's not too outing, what will you be writing about? It sounds exciting 😀

Ta Das: (not much today)
🍓 went to the grocery store to pick up a few things (we have a potluck at work tomorrow)
🫐 made cheesecake dip for fruit (keeping some at home for DH & DS)
🍊 prepped fruit for work & home
🍓 made lunch
🫐 shovelled more snow (yes, it snowed again last night and this morning)
🍊 repainted my nails
🍓 made dinner

The final Christmas presents I ordered for DH (back on 8th Dec) finally showed up today! I had tried emailing them, calling them and finally got a response when I messaged them through Facebook. They were shipped the next day!
I have enjoyed my time off work. Ended up being 6 days! I go back for 2, then it's the weekend again.
I must get to bed early tonight. 😴 I'll drop links real quick and say goodnight!

Thursday is errand day.
Thursday's mission is to check your supplies in the bathroom and laundry room. Do you need toothpaste? Hand soap? Laundry detergent? Stain remover? If you're getting low, add it to your shopping list so you don't run out.

Zones: https://www.flylady.net/d/zones/

Baby step #18: https://www.flylady.net/d/getting-started/31-beginner-babysteps/day-18/
Check out the 11 commandments that flylady created.

@HazelNotHungryLC I can confirm without fear of outing myself that the piece I am writing will 100% not be exciting and is just about the local toddler group.

What was the pissing present? Unless you can't say of course!

✅cleaned whole house
✅ fed birds non stop
✅ lots of stories and games with youngest
✅ made a load of roasted fennel soup
✅ frozen soup
✅ tutored a pupil
✅ lol
✅ hula hoop and headstands

pompoms just t-shirts (5 of them), nothing too crazy, thankfully.
I think it's exciting that you get to write an article for the local magazine anyway!
I have to say, I'm impressed you are doing headstands! Even as a kid I couldn't do them!

Friday is clean your car and purse (handbag) day.
Friday's mission in the bathroom is to scrub and shine your bath and sink. In the laundry room, wipe down your washer & dryer (I did this the other day! 😇).

Zones: https://www.flylady.net/d/zones/

Baby step #19: https://www.flylady.net/d/getting-started/31-beginner-babysteps/day-19/
She has a reminder on there to do your morning routine, a testimonial email she shares and a tip to use your timer set for 15 minutes to stay focused.

Ta Das (Thursday):
🤯 work all day - this was actually really tough. Not only because it was my first day back after 6 days off, but between discovering a leak in a couple of offices, too many people in our office & too much noise overall, I thought I was going to explode!
🤯 met up with DH so he could do my oil change in my Jeep
🤯 reheated leftovers for dinner
🤯 handwashed dishes
🤯 wiped countertops & sink
🤯 wiped microwave
🤯 got my lunch ready for tomorrow
🤯 got my clothes out for tomorrow
🤯 took a shower

I'm currently laying in bed, about to fall asleep 😴 so on that note, goodnight!