polkadotglasses

2009 is off to a great start and I’m amazed. One of the main sources of happiness for me is that our house is staying clean and picked up. The thing that has helped in this area is the suggestions from flylady.com. I have been following their program and tips and it has been extremely beneficial. Tim and the kids are pitching in a lot more too and they are also enjoying having a clean and neat home.

I had tried following the Flylady program before, but got overwhelmed by the numerous emails they sent out each day. This time I signed up to receive the emails in a digest format - so I just get one big email a day. She has the cutest little mantras and ideas for helping. She tries to help Moms eliminate C.H.A.O.S. (Can’t Have Anyone Over Syndrome) I used to live in C.H.A.O.S. - petrified someone would just pop by and ring the doorbell. Now, I don’t worry about it at all. (Granted, there are still times each day when Ian and his siblings have created a mess of toys in the living room - but the munchkins are learning how to pick up their own messes, make their own beds, help with the dishes and laundry too.)

One part of the program features zones of your house. Each week there is a special “zone” that you concentrate on - this week is the bathroom. Each day you get a special assignment for that zone - yesterday was to clean the bathroom light fixtures and today I will be scrubbing the light switches, door knobs and door facings in my two bathrooms. Those assignments will only take a few minutes, but will make a huge difference.

The Flylady also encourages everyone to have an empty and clean kitchen sink everynight before going to bed. This has helped me so much. It’s fabulous to walk in to my kitchen each morning without facing a pile of dirty dishes.

I have been amazed at how much bigger the house feels and how everyone seems more cheerful now that our house is staying clean and picked up.