These past few days I have tried to write about areas that I know homeschool moms have a hard time dealing with on a large scale. The beauty of what I have learned from The FlyLady is that you can deal with these cluttered bigger areas one thing at a time. You do not have to spend all day cleaning out a big area. You can break it down into smaller steps, and if you work at it consistently over a period of time, you will get it done. Some areas we tend to have pile up are the basement, garage, and/or the “man” cave or family room. I am not advocating that you go in to declutter your husband’s stuff in these areas, but you can take care of decluttering your stuff and your children’s stuff in these areas. Take a look around. Decide which big area needs to be decluttered. Spend 15 minutes a day dealing with it. This is a great afternoon project. Just start with one thing in one area. Don’t dump lots of things out at one time. Only deal with what you can declutter in 15 minutes. Keep a box in the area for things to donate. Have a trash can for items not worth donating. Keep a very small amount of what you are going through. If you are holding onto stuff for your children, make sure it is something they will want later. Use plastic bins to help you sort the things you are keeping and label them. When your box of items to donate gets full, put it in the car and start a new one. You can tackle these projects! Just do it one baby step at a time.
Routines:
- Make Your Bed (Do this as soon as you get up.)
- Get Dressed Down to Your Shoes
- Swish and Swipe
- Start Your Laundry
- Decide on Dinner
- Check Your Calendar
- Start the Day off with a Shiny Sink. Don’t leave the breakfast dishes sitting.
School:
- Look at back to school sales for needed school supplies.
- Eat Lunch
- Clear off One Hot Spot
- Reboot the Laundry
- Declutter for 15 Minutes (Be sure to have your children declutter, too.)
- Drink Your Water
Before Bed: (This starts right after dinner.)
- Check the Calendar for Tomorrow
- Lay out Your Clothes for Tomorrow (Have your children lay their clothes out, too.)
- Put things at your launch pad
- Shine Your Sink
- Clean Off a Hot Spot
- Go to Bed at Decent Hour