Flyladies keeping on top of the household in August, it’s going to be a hot one.

[ExtremeDecluttering]

Well, at the start of July it was hot, at the end of July it was still hot (for most of us anyway) and here we are in August with no change in sight, but hopefully we are acclimatising a bit. And now we have holidays, children at home, all the changes of routine.

Whether you're starting to build a new routine, stuck in a rut, or been around for years, join us on the Flylady thread. I'll try to keep us on track for the month, with baby steps, daily missions and weekly zones.
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. I have taken one for the team but use a junk email address I will check them periodically and report anything interesting / useful
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:
☀️Entryway, porch and dining room
☀️Bathroom & one other room
☀️Kitchen
☀️Master bedroom & master bathroom
☀️Living room
Don't worry about finishing it all this month, it'll come around again next month! Flylady is NOT about perfectionism!
Daily focus: each day of the week has a different focus.
Monday: Home Blessing (or as we call it, home bleugh)
Tuesday: plan & play
Wednesday: anti-procrastination
Thursday: errand day
Friday: clean car & purse out day. 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 😆
S&S: Swish & Swipe (wipe the bathroom sink & toilet)
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, it's a new website! 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. There is a paid version and a free version. I use the free version. The missions haven't been updating on the app.
Links are below 👇
Daily missions (for the zone we are in):
https://www.flylady.net/daily-mission
Baby steps (on a different website, since the link isn't working on the new site yet): https://mymerrymessylife.com/flylady-31-baby-steps/
Feel free to ask any questions you may have, some of us have been doing Flylady for a very long time, as well as others just starting out. We may have other things to add that we have found works for us that could help you too!

Most of this is copied and pasted from previous months but is all correct, I do get the emails and do use the free version of the app, plus the new look but somewhat sparse website. There may be odd days I don’t post but the links do update overnight so click back to the previous ones.

The app seems to be all up the spout as well as the website.

Is the app worth having? I looked at it last week but found it really confusing. Website not much better either.

I like the app it’s useful for me

I think it's useful for ticklists and routines, but it seems to get stuck in the wrong zone a lot! And while there are "musings" it doesn't explain the system very well. The old website which closed a year or so back was full of information but it was ancient. And cluttered (ironically). The new one is very sparse. Decluttered! The emails do have everything you need to know for the day but you get about three a day and they are VERY long, you have to scroll through adverts etc.

Thank you - what a pity. I'm not a huge fan of apps at the best of times - and I am trying to limit time on my phone. Why that's any different from typing on a laptop, I'm not entirely sure lol!

yeah the app had been a bit hit and miss for me. I am considering getting a notebook with my list of jobs on it, as I quite like a physical list.

just not quite sure how I will lay it all out!

That's what I did, listed out each zone then each area within each zone. I like a pen and paper list. The notebook sounds like a great idea - I love papercrafting so will make a fancy journal and get some stash used up at the same time :)

Oh I did think the App jumped from Zones quicker than I’d anticipated but I thought it was just me not being on the ball.

I have multiple different to do list apps. 😭 Finch, rosebud which is nice as it's a morning intention and evening reflection with ai that suggests goals after a discussion, but the actual to do list isn't that functional. Then finch, flylady, and sticky notes. It's not great. I need to pick my favourite and ditch the rest. I haven't opened the flylady app in a long time, neither have I been following her plan. Opps

ED I took most of my 4th of July decor down over the weekend! I've left a couple of things up for now.

Ta das:
☀️ LOLs x4, so far - including 2 loads of sheets and 2 loads of towels
☀️ S&S both bathrooms
☀️ remade master bed
☀️ vacuumed main floor & stairs
☀️ mopped main floor
☀️ wiped down some marks off the walls going down the stairs thanks DS 🤬
☀️ aired out the house this morning - it's a little bit cooler here today
☀️ meal planned, just need to finish the list & go grocery shopping
☀️ took a short nap!

After grocery shopping today, I really need to go outside and pull some weeds. Even just 30 minutes will be enough to make a difference. It's still hot in the sun today, but cooler in the shade with the breeze. I need to take advantage of it!

It was cooler and breezier here today too. I have just ordered myself a secondhand copy of the Sink Reflections book, I foolishly lent mine to a friend with a messier house than me about 10 years ago and guess what, never seen it again.

Well it seems we have come full circle. When I first started doing Flylady 15+ years ago there were no smartphones or apps, so the focus was very much on making a hard copy control journal (ring binder with template pages) for running your household. Some of the babysteps still refer to this but nowhere on her site gives you the full picture any more. If you can track down the Sink Reflections book it is very good. Alternatively there are other content creators who describe the system Or, going modern again, I just asked ChatGPT to create a Flylady control journal for me and it did it straight away.

I am going to post for tomorrow now as I have a very early start in the morning and will forget.

Babystep 5 is to replace negative thoughts with the truth - you are doing well, even just by posting here (or lurking) that shows intent and care for your home and family. https://mymerrymessylife.com/flylady-31-baby-steps/5/

Our mission for Weds is to go after the fingerprints and smudges in your dining room and hall, on walls, windows etc, clean them off. Someone mentioned the melamine sponges the other day, they are superb at getting marks off paintwork but go carefully on walls. A damp microfibre cloth is good too. Our windows are filthy, our window cleaner went AWOL last year, I have tasked DH with finding us a new one but not holding my breath.

Wednesday is Anti-Procrastination day - do something you have been putting off.

Morning all.

Loving the baby step for today.

I have been having some good old 30 minute blitzes in an 'Autumn Clean' sort of way. It's been very cathartic. My pantry is looking at it's tidiest for years. I also have three charity bags filled. It helps that its raining (again) here today as I can focus on the house instead of the garden which is mostly ok. Going to have a mini blitz of the bathroom now after having a short burst in there last night.

I am slightly out of synch, but the main thing is I am here and I am doing something.

I don't think I have any fingerprints, but will check the hall for smudges. I tend to use a water wipe as it's good at removing marks from the walls without taking the paint off.

Have a good day, all.

I'm joining you (have lurked on and off for years).
I'm autistic and really struggle with maintaining my house and piles of mess everywhere:
Today I need to:

• do ironing and put away
• go to charity shop
• sort paperwork taking over chair
• clear stairs and put items away
• make bed
• put items in airing cupboard and organise
• hoover

Welcome @Minimoan . I have been on these threads for many years and I reckon in that time about half, if not more of the regular posters have either been ND themselves or living with ND family members (I include myself in the latter group).

Hello @Minimoan

I am also Autustic and have ADHD so I get the struggle. I used to manage relatively well, but since menopause and a long term health condition, I really struggle.

I have done the bathroom and DD changed the loo seat (the new one had been sitting there for a month waiting, and it only took 15 mins in the end)

So that's a good win for today

Bathroom door cleaned and yet another attempt to get rid of limescale stains on the tiles and around the bath and hot tap - a daily dose of Viakal should help. I'm cleaning the bath tiles with a dish scrubber every time I have a shower, and wishing I hadn't left it so long. Looking cleaner although I can still see the limescale marks (in a hard water area here).

Three lols, first done, second on line, third just finishing in the washer.

Control journal now set up, yay!

I'm tempted to move onto another zone but I'll resist, having started cleaning routines before and burning out before I've really got going. One bit at a time, no rush!

Hi, I am wondering whether to join you. I also have autistic children, I work full time and whilst I get the basics of dishwashing / hoovering / bathroom clean my house is full of clutter and I feel overwhelmed and swamped with life in general. Deep cleaning like skirting boards doesn't get done and very much needs it, and little jobs need sorting. How realistic is flylady on a busy schedule?

Hi @Frumpyunicorn it isn't a miracle, but if you build routines and keep checking the daily updates you find that gradually over time the habits start to stick, or you find yourself grabbing a cloth and just doing those skirting boards (mine need doing at the moment too). My house isn't perfect (DH and the DCs are chronically untidy and disorganised) but it is a lot better than it would be without Flylady and I do feel much more in control. Even just the things like reminders to do a daily load of laundry help. The other thing is Flyaldy's motto - You Are Never Behind. This is because the whole thing starts again each month so you just jump back in.

I’m swishing and swiping the bathroom sink daily now and the kitchen sink far more often than I had been before because of course they harbour bacteria. I’ve been slowly removing fingerprints from walls and doors that I’d become blinded to and now are screaming at me to be wiped off. I’m just pleased with anything I’m getting done that’s been neglected for too long. So in my book anything that’s being tackled no matter how small that hasn’t been for a while (or ever) is a win. Even if I just scrub the grout of 4 - 6 tiles with mould remover after a shower it’s better than none.

I am struggling with menopause also, and also managing MH conditions (in recovery from severe anorexia). I was hospitalised for contamination OCD four years ago,, so part of it is my fear of household tasks triggering obsessive behaviours once again, hence avoidance.
Clutter and disorganisation feature hugely, as keeping my mental health stable, getting enough sleep, managing eating, getting to work, and doing washing seems to be all I can manage, but this results in a very messy house!

This really interesting to learn!! I am not alone ...

hi @Frumpyunicorn 👋 just to add to what @ExtremeDecluttering said, another of the key things with this cleaning schedule is to never worry about perfection or completing tasks in full if you don’t have time. The main thing is doing a little bit or part of a task will always result in something being slightly cleaner than it was last time!!

I’ve been doing it a couple of months and my window frames were fairly grotty. But after a round or two of wiping them down (not necessarily getting all the grime off in one go) they are now gleaming and it’s a quick wipe that is needed to keep on top of it.

that’s just one example, and there might be one area of you home that you decide you want to tackle for 3-5mins each day or each week and it will improve over time!

Luckily I don’t crave perfection unlike my DM whose home is immaculate. She never taught me to clean though she just pushed me aside and did it herself because she knows best and now I know nothing re cleaning.

Anyway I just had a shower and after squeegee ing it down I used my electric cleaning brush from Lidl with the smallest brush after spraying on mould remover. I was only going to try it on a few grout around tiles but managed far more than planned so I’m just going to keep an eye on it and rinse once whiter.

Made more Sourdough, LOL, DW.

Nagged DC re their clutter both told me I nag too much (lies) and I pointed out why I do and that I’d stop once it was cleared away. Neither have moved a thing. So will chuck what I can in bin bags and onto their beds

I wouldn’t say the electric cleaning brush was fun per say but it was more fun than scrubbing by hand

Sending hugs to you, and sharing that I think, for me, tiny steps work best. Just 5 minutes removing / chucking / tidying away just three things makes it seem manageable without tipping into OCD or massive overwhelm.