Have you met the FlyLady yet?

A few weeks ago, I discovered a wonderful website that I simply must share.  It is www.flylady.net.  I found her through a blog, of course, and since my discovery, I have become a little obsessed.  She has such great ideas regarding housekeeping, organization, daily and weekly routines, and decluttering.  I struggle a bit in each of these areas, and so finding FlyLady was a true blessing for me and our home! 

I am going to provide a brief  overview of what I have learned so far, but my descriptions should only be a starting point.... hope on over to visit FlyLady for yourself!

The very first thing I learned was I needed to start with my kitchen sink.  FlyLady describes exactly how a messy sink can equal a messy home and a messy head.  She's right!  Think about it: your sink is full of dirty dishes, so you put more dirty ones on the counter next to the sink, and then after dinner, it looks like you need to clean up after Thanksgiving.  She encourages her "flybabies" to start a simply routine of keeping their sinks clean and shiny every day before bed, in order to start the next day clean and fresh.  Good idea, right?

Some of you expert housekeepers out there might be thinking, "Duh!  Who wouldn't clean their sink before going off to bed?!"  Well, I, for one, never thought about it.  These things don't come naturally to everyone, and just like learning to read, ride a bike, or cook, good housekeeping habits need to be taught and practiced before they become second nature.

Some of my favorite tips developed so far....

• A load a day keeps the chaos away.  Why didn't I think of that?!  I have spent days doing laundry and I always waited until there was a huge pile before sorting through it.  We had three hampers in three different rooms, plus the rags hamper in the kitchen.  In an effort to streamline the laundry process, we now have a few hampers right next to each other, and they are pre-sorted hampers.  FlyLady says to take a load down with you in the morning before you even start your day.  This is a huge help to get laundry done from start-to-finish without the ridiculous piles and "living out of the laundry basket syndrome."

•  Declutter for 15 minutes each day.  The FlyLady says we can do anything for 15 minutes.  I have tried this, and she's right.  I tend to look at a messy room as completely overwhelming.  I want to clean all of it.  The FlyLady says do just 15 minutes and no more.  It's amazing what 15 minutes can do to a room, closet, attic, etc.  And the best part is you will get started on something that has been bothering you because you only have to work for 15 minutes.... if she said do it all, we'd never bother!

I am going to sign off with that today.  I will update the blog on my FlyLady progress periodically.  Please don't forget to check her out at www.flylady.net. 

Image courtesy of www.flylady.net