Anyone us the Flylady's techniques?

I checked her out some time ago and it was just too much. Well, now that I'm working from home I need fast cleaning solutions and more oganization in my life.

Any suggestions?

~Sandy
Medical Transcriptionist
SAHM WAHM
Teach AHM

By Melanie on Thursday, August 19, 2004 - 12:29 pm:

I am a flybaby and I just love her!! I do fall off here and there but when I come back I always wonder why in the world I left. I have learned to take babysteps and that every little thing I do around the house benefits my family, even if I didn't do it all at once or as complete as I had wanted to. I find that things don't take nearly as long as I think they will. I have established my morning routine such that I get up, make my bed, shower and shine the bathroom (squeegie the shower, spray the tile down with a shower spray, do make-up and hair, wipe down the counter and sink, swish the toilet and wipe it down. Then I gather laundry and throw it in and head to the kitchen to shine my sink since the kids have already been in there to eat. All that extra has only added 10-15 minutes on my old routine yet it makes such a difference around the house!!

One other tip is to check out the website of the woman who does the "Food For Thought" section of flylady. She has her own website now called savingdinner.com. Every week (for a small fee) she sends you 6 menus for the week along with the shopping list. What a time saver!!!

I have also started my kids on their own routines. They have a morning routine posted in the bathroom (dressed, teeth brushed and shine the sink, make bed, clear hot spots, pj's in laundry room), an afternoon routine posted in the coat closet (snack, hot spots, check chore list, 10 minute room rescue, homework), and a bedtime routine posted in their room (clothes in laundry room, pick up toys, hot spots, lay out clothes for next day, brush teeth and wipe sink, take some time to read a book). I am finding that by having them establish routines also helps keep the house tidy.

HTH!

By Kay on Thursday, August 19, 2004 - 12:55 pm:

I live by FlyLady...on my own terms, of course. I use the reminders, but I don't let them overwhelm me. Taking control means that this is okay, and I came to terms with that. It has been a tremendous relief to me, because I can get so much accomplished in 15 minute increments than I ever imagined.

By Happynerdmom on Thursday, August 19, 2004 - 01:24 pm:

I love FlyLady, too. You just have to start with baby steps. For a while I only got dressed everyday, made my bed, and kept my sink shiny. It's amazing how far just that will take you! Slowly I added zone work, etc. I still don't have a control journal, but I do have some basic routines. It has changed my life! I've discovered that I actually get a lot more done by doing a little at a time, and letting it be "not perfect." I don't really feel like I do that much, (especially compared to my cleaning marathons that would take hours) yet my house is clean (enough), and I wouldn't be embarrased if someone would pop in unannounced. I would suggest giving it a try again, but allow yourself to go slowly. And, like Kay said, you can make your own adaptations as you go along. Good luck!

By Emily7 on Thursday, August 19, 2004 - 03:19 pm:

I also do my own version of Flylady...
my bed gets made everyday, I get dressed but no shoes, I have an empty sink at the end of the day. On certain days I deep clean certain rooms & just pick up those rooms during the week. I used it to get me started.

By Tink on Friday, August 20, 2004 - 01:15 am:

Flybaby here for about 6 months! I have a little bit of a morning routine but I have done that for the last couple of years. The big differences for me were the night time routine and the fact that doing a little bit at a time makes a BIG difference in the way my house looks. I make my dks lunches in the evening, wipe down the kitchen table, pick out the whole family's clothes for the nest day and do about 10 minutes of picking up. It takes less than 30 minutes and somehow saves me an hour in the morning! Oh the other big change is a bedtime routine for my dks that they are responsible for. I wrote out each step on a 4x6 index card and attached a small icon of the activity and put them in a small photo album. They just turn each page when that step is complete. I just tell them to follow their bedtime book while I am doing my nightly routine and the evening is so calm. I need to make them a similar one for their morning routine. Good luck! It can make a huge difference.

By Pamt on Friday, August 20, 2004 - 12:04 pm:

Love Flylady!! I tried her a few years ago and got sick of the emails. Started again about a year ago and having been flying (with occasional turbulence--*g*) ever since. I agree with the others, definitely start with baby steps or you will get too easily overwhelmed. Start with just shining your sink, then add a morning routine, then an evening routine. Allow yourself to get one thing consistent before adding another. Also, look into your local Flylady group. You can find that on a search through her website. I have really enjoyed getting to meet other Flybabies in my area. We get together about once a month and share ideas, recipes, etc. It is a lot of fun! Good luck!!

Tink, I have mini-control journal for my kids, but I LOVE your idea!! Thanks!

By Tink on Saturday, August 21, 2004 - 01:39 am:

I'm also involved with my local Flybabies. We also meet once a month and we e-mail support and brag about our accomplishments!
Pam, I can't claim credit (well...I might take a little *eg*) for the bedtime book. My son's therapists have a "photographic schedule" for downtime. They use it for different toys and activities but now my dks can't "lose their place" or have an excuse for "missing" the steps they don't like (room rescues )!

By Mtingmom on Tuesday, August 24, 2004 - 07:01 pm:

One other tip is to check out the website of the woman who does the "Food For Thought" section of flylady. She has her own website now called savingdinner.com. Every week (for a small fee) she sends you 6 menus for the week along with the shopping list. What a time saver!!!

Thank you Melanie!

I am going to check out that site. I don't know about others, but I waste so much money eating out and it's not b/c I don't have food in the house, it's b/c I don't get the meals ready in time. Can anyone say "Loser" LOL!

You all are inspiring me to do what I know I need to do ....... head to flylady.net.

Thank you!

By Teresajoy on Friday, September 24, 2004 - 11:22 pm:

Personally, I really don't like Flylady. I know a few Flybabies personally, and they are always trying to tell me what I should do to clean up my house. I find that extremely annoying. When I was signed up for the newsletter, I found the volume of emails to be so overwhelming that I didn't do any of them. I have since found another group that I really like. It is along the same principals as the flylady, but there are only two emails a day, which is so much easier to handle! Here is her site: http://www.messies.com/howto.htm and to sign up for the newsletter: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/The-Organizer-Lady/ If the Flylady was too much, this might really help, it has me.

By Kay on Saturday, September 25, 2004 - 12:55 pm:

I think with any organization program, you need to pick and choose what is right for you. My favorite part of FlyLady is the zone concept, which I also use in my office at work. I also like the daily missions. As for the daily reminders and testimonials, I go through my mail and automatically delete those - leaving the missions to read. Works for me! All I know is, my home is less cluttered and cleaner than it has ever been.

Thanks for posting the messies.com link - I may check that out too.