Playing Games to Clean Your Kitchen

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Getting Organized:
In your Home and Homeschool 
 

Dear Friends,
Happy Friday! As we end the week, how did you do with your missions in your kitchen? This is the heart of your home where you nourish your family. You deserve a decluttered area to prepare your meals. Email a picture to me at homeschool@flylady.net.
One day this week, I played a 30 minute game with the FlyLady Premium members. We did quick 5 minute missions in the kitchen, and it made a big impact. We kept it short and fun, and before they knew it, they had handled the Hot Spots, decluttered the counters, wiped the counters, shined their sinks, and emptied the dishwasher.
If you did not get all of the missions this week completed, I want you to get out no more than 5 pieces of paper. Write down 5 things you would like to do in the kitchen today. Fold the papers and put them in a bowl or basket. Set your timer for 5 minutes and turn on some music. Draw a number and get started.
I have heard from ladies this week who had to run more than a load of dishes through the dishwasher to catch up. I heard from ladies who had a lot of pots and pans to hand wash. These ladies used their timers and got caught up with their dishes.
Some of the ladies sent me before and after pictures of their kitchen counters this week. I know first-hand how quickly kitchen counters can get out of control. That is why I do a Hot Spot Fire Drill mission daily with my kitchen counters.
Kitchen cabinets and kitchen drawers are sometimes overlooked when you are cleaning in the kitchen. If your children help you with the dishes, your kitchen cabinets likely need a little straightening every month. Since the kitchen renovation last year, the boys have not adjusted to some of the changed locations for items. Sometimes I find things in places that are different than where I would put them.
One of your 5 minute missions might be to just check your cabinets and drawers for things that need to be put where you want them to be.
Friday is the day I do my grocery shopping, so I will be looking in my pantry as I make a menu plan. I will use the items I have on hand, and I will use that as a spring board for my menu plan.
Finish up your missions and enjoy your weekend.
What are you doing for family fun day this weekend?
Today’s Zone Mission is to sweep and mop the kitchen.
Your Home Blessing for today is to empty the trash, sweep, and mop.
My menu plan for Friday is take out.
Have a wonderful weekend!

Start your school supply shopping at home.

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Getting Organized:
In your Home and Homeschool 
 

Dear Friends,
It’s that time of year. Back to school supplies are on sale and calling your name. The past few weeks, I have reminded you to make your lists and to be prepared for the start of your homeschool year. Now, we are going to use this list.
Take a look at your list, and then I want you to check the supplies you already have on hand. Shop your supply closet before you shop the back to school sales. Homeschoolers like to buy school supplies, especially when they are a great deal. But they are not a great deal if they are not used, and you likely have some supplies left from previous years’ supplies.
Over the past 18 years of homeschooling, I have purchased my fair share of school supplies, and I know what products we like and what we don’t like. I have given away extra supplies the past couple of years in order to have more room in my cabinet.
When I look at my needs for the new school year, I check our pens, pencils, and paper supplies. When my children were younger, I also checked the status of my supplies of crayons, markers, glue, and construction paper. I also kept paint and scissors on hand, but I kept those items locked up in a cabinet.
After you have checked off the items you already have on hand, then take your list and check the sales. When you go shopping, stick to your list. If you impulse buy when you are out shopping, you will have more stuff to store, and you may be purchasing things you won’t be using all in the name of getting a good deal. If you can shop the sales online, that is even better. It will prevent you from impulse shopping.
We should be wise purchasers and save money when we can. I do not want to deter you from going out and getting good deals on your school supplies. The goal is to save money and only buy what you need.
Tell me what you found in your school supply collection that you forgot about.
Your Zone Mission today is to declutter and wipe down your kitchen counter tops.
Your Home Blessing for today is to toss papers and magazines.
My menu plan for Thursday is chicken and a salad.

Have a great day!

Motivation for You and Your Children

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Getting Organized:
In your Home and Homeschool 
 

Dear Friends,
August is the month that many of us start back to homeschool with our children. Some days it’s hard to find our motivation to motivate our kids. They hear us, and they see our body language. They know our moods. So let’s purpose this year to find JOY in our days.
When our days start out with whining children and a tired mama, it’s hard to find joy. It’s hard to get motivated. When you are getting ready for bed at night that is the time to start thinking and praying for the next day. We need energy, enthusiasm, creativity, flexibility, joy, and more.
Take care of your evening routine. That is the one thing that will help you start your day off on the right foot, and it will save you time right off the bat when your kitchen sink is clean and your clothes are laid out and ready to go.
Set your coffee pot up the night before, and you will have coffee as soon as you get up. This is my next favorite thing after waking up and seeing my shiny sink.
If your summer schedule has been loose, you can expect some resistance to begin with as you transition into your school schedule. Make sure everyone is getting to bed at a decent hour the night before. Establish boundaries for games and electronics.
Encourage routines and school schedule adherence through rewards and fun activities. What do your children enjoy doing? Use this as the carrot at the end of the stick to motivate them to do their morning routine and school work without dawdling or whining.
Keep doing your basic routines. Don’t stop decluttering or doing laundry. You might have to find different places in your day to do these things, but these two routines help you keep chaos at bay, and that makes your homeschool day go better.
If you have little ones and struggle with everything, involve them in your routines as much as possible. Give them something to do near you as you fold laundry or do the dishes. Have play areas set up for them during your school day.
All summer, I have given you tips and strategies to take care of yourself and your home. It’s time to use these tips as you start your school year.
Your Zone Mission today is to declutter leftovers from the fridge and wipe the shelves.
Your Home Blessing for today is to wipe windows and mirrors.
My menu plan for Wednesday is soup and sandwiches with a salad.
Have a great day!

Are you taking care of your health?

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Dear Friends,
You are a busy lady. Most of you reading this are homeschool moms. You have a lot on your plate. Are you taking time to take care of your health?
We need to be aware of our health – the good and the not so good. The way to determine if we have a health issue usually means we need to make an appointment with a care provider and have some blood work done.
What are some important appointments? A well visit annually and blood work. This is how I originally found out that I had an issue with my thyroid. During this time, I also found out that I had low vitamin D levels and low potassium. These conditions are important to treat, and my care provider keeps and eye on these numbers regularly.
Even if you feel good, a blood panel can help pinpoint issues before they become bigger issues.
Regular dental care can also help you pinpoint other issues with your overall health and your dental health. Many people do not see a dentist regularly for a variety of reasons from money or lack of insurance to fear of seeing the dentist.
I encourage you to look for a dentist you like and have your regular visits. If you are having an issue, don’t keep putting off an appointment.
As we age, certain screenings are recommended. This is between you and your care provider. Research and read about these procedures and make an informed decision on whether or not you want to have the screenings.
As an infant I was adopted, and I have no medical history. I use a proactive approach to my health care. I also do what I can to take care of myself through eating healthy, drinking water, exercising, and resting. I also do certain screenings at different points in my life to give myself and the doctor more information about my health.
Are you taking care of your health and making needed appointments?
Your Home Blessing for today is to dust and vacuum.
Your Zone Mission for today is to wipe down the fronts of your kitchen cabinets.
My menu plan for Tuesday is spaghetti. Veggies and salad for me.
Have a blessed day!

Are Mondays Hard for You?

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Getting Organized:
In your Home and Homeschool 
 

Dear Friends,
Are you ready for another fantastic week? Several years ago, I did not enjoy Monday mornings, and I learned I had to change my attitude toward Monday morning. Monday morning can be challenging, but when you have your FlyLady Routines in place, you can fly through the morning and enjoy yourself, too.
This week we are going to declutter and detail clean in our kitchens. This is an important part of your home, and when you have it decluttered, it makes meal prep a breeze.
Here are you missions for the week:
Zone 2 Missions: The Kitchen
Monday – Dust along the ceiling and light fixtures
Tuesday – Wipe down the cabinet doors
Wednesday – Declutter leftovers from the fridge and wipe shelves
Thursday – Declutter and wipe counter tops
Friday – Sweep and Mop the kitchen
Set your timers and then take a break when it goes off!
If you are struggling this morning, sit down for a few minutes with a cup of coffee or a cup of hot tea. Just breathe, even if the kids are loud around you. I want you to close your eyes and let yourself relax from the top of your head down to your toes.
Now, get out your favorite pen and notebook. Write down no more than 10 things that you would like to accomplish this week. Keep them small or divide into steps. Each day, I want you to do 2 things from this list. You will feel accomplished as you are able to check things off daily.
This morning, do your Morning Routine fully as soon as you finish this list. If you are not dressed, I want you to do that first. If your kids are not dressed, tell them to get dressed, too. Set the timer and make it fun!
While you are in your bedroom, make your bed if it is not made unless you are washing your sheets today.
When you are in the bathroom, do a quick swish and swipe.
Go back to the kitchen and check your calendar for today. Is there anything on your calendar that you need to do today?
Start a load of laundry.
Check your menu plan and see what’s for dinner. If you do not have a menu plan, check the pantry and freezer and make a plan.
With that, you have completed your Morning Routine. Set an alarm to go back and switch the laundry later.
Here’s your recap of the Weekly Zone Missions.
On Monday, you are going to spend 15 minutes dusting along the ceiling and fixtures of your kitchen.
On Tuesday, your mission is to wipe the outside of your cabinet doors.
On Wednesday, declutter leftovers and science experiments from the refrigerator.
On Thursday, declutter the kitchen counters and wipe.
On Friday, your mission is to sweep and mop the kitchen.
Your Home Blessing for today is to wash the sheets.
Your Zone Mission for today is to dust along the ceiling and light fixtures.
My menu plan for Monday is beef roast. Salad for me.
Have a blessed day!

How do your zones look?

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Getting Organized:
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Dear Friends,
Today is the last day in our zones of the week. How are things looking? Email a picture to me. I want to celebrate your progress with you. Email a picture to me at homeschool@flylady.net.
This week we were in Zone 5 and Zone 1. How did your missions go?
We decluttered in the Living Room or Family Room. Often these rooms are left off as we tend to other areas of the house. Items get tossed into the corners of the room and forgotten. Flat surfaces accumulate clutter. It may help you to have a regular Hot Spot drill in the Living Room to help you tame the chaos.
As we moved over to Zone 1, we covered three important areas of the home. The front porch is the first thing people see when they come to our homes. Is your front porch decluttered, or is it an additional storage area for you?
The entryway to your home is the main area your family comes into and drops what is in their hands. Shoes, jackets, hats, bags, and more land in the entryway. Set up a place for the things your family needs close to the door, and remind them to put the other things away.
The dining room is often not used for nightly meals, but we do use it. How does your dining room look right now? Did you take care of the clutter that was in there?
Plan a nice meal for your family to serve in the dining room. You can even plan on using the pretty table settings. My family feels special when I set the table with the nice tablecloth and dishes.
Today, we are going to sweep or vacuum in Zone 1. Do this quickly and don’t get caught up in the details. If you still have some clutter in the areas, clean around it. You can declutter it a little at a time later. I want you to feel the success today of getting the sweeping or vacuuming done in this area.
Finish up your missions and enjoy your weekend.
What are you doing for family fun day this weekend?
Today’s Zone Mission is to sweep or vacuum in zone 1 – the front porch, entryway, and dining room.
Your Home Blessing for today is to empty the trash, sweep, and mop.
My menu plan for Friday is take out.
Have a wonderful weekend!

A Soft Start to Your Homeschool Year

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Getting Organized:
In your Home and Homeschool 
 

Dear Friends,
Are you ready for your school year to start? We started our school last week, and we have had a great adjustment back into our homeschool routine. We started back with all of our subjects at once. That is unusual for us to do on the first day of school.
The boys are getting up earlier this week, and they are doing their morning routine and moving right into their schoolwork. It has taken years of doing our routines to be this solid for them to transition from a summer schedule to a school schedule.
Many school years we have had a “soft” start to the school year. If you have young children or many children, I recommend this way of starting your school year.
A soft start takes the pressure off of you as the teacher and off of your students. You introduce one subject a day over the course of the first week. This helps you and the student get a rhythm for each subject. You have more time to cover any questions and make any adjustments to your lesson plans.
If you are introducing a new textbook or curriculum, this gives you time to see the flow of the lessons or units. A soft start also allows for time to do any placement testing, if you are using a new curriculum that requires it.
Another thing I do during a soft start is look at the beginning lessons in math. Many times these are review lessons, and I will give my children the first test to see if they have retained those skills. I don’t want to push the through lessons of material they have already mastered.
Some grade levels also have more of a change in the way material is presented to the student, and a slower start the first week of school gives the student time to adjust to these changes.
During your second week of school, you can go to a fuller daily schedule of all of the subjects. I have found that it is a smoother transition after a week of exploring each subject over the course of the first week of school.
Have you picked a start date for school? Do you have all of your books?
Your Zone Mission today is to dust along the ceiling, light fixtures and fan in the Dining Room and Entryway.
Your Home Blessing for today is to toss papers and magazines.
My menu plan for Thursday is soup, sandwiches, and a salad.
Have a great day!

How’s Your Laundry Situation?

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In your Home and Homeschool 
 

 
Laundry In Process

 

Dear Friends,
Happy August 1! Today we start practicing a new Habit of the Month. The FlyLady tells us that a load of laundry a day keeps Mt. Washmore away. There are 5 distinct steps of doing the laundry, and some of the steps trip us up.
Today, as I was ready to sit down to write to you, the dryer buzzed. Ironic, huh? I asked my 12-year-old to come help me by handing me the clothes from the dryer as I folded or hung them up.
We had a nice chat while we worked together in the laundry room. I asked him what he thinks of laundry. His response was that we always have it. (LOL) Gotta love his honesty.
In a family of six, we DO have a lot of laundry. We divide it up by the day of the week. I have a load of dark clothes each day that includes my clothes, my husband’s clothes, and my two youngest son’s clothes. I have a load of towels a day. (When you live in the humid South, it is hard to hang them to dry and reuse.) I also have a load of someone’s bedding each day.
Two of my sons work during the week, so they have adopted the weekend as their time to wash their clothes and bedding. Occasionally, they will do it during the week one evening after work, but it’s hard for them to pick a specific day for this. They both work jobs that require you to stay until it is completed, so they never have a specific end time for each day of the week.
Since I am processing a lot of laundry, I enlist the boys to help me. They have learned to sort (Though they seem to forget that skill from time to time.) They know how to start a load and choose the appropriate setting to run a load of laundry.
They can also move the load from the washer to the dryer when the signal goes off. Many times I enlist the taller ones to switch the laundry for me because my washer is so big that I cannot touch the bottom of it. When I do switch it, I lean in so far that my feet are not on the floor. LOL
They have learned to check the lint filter on the dryer and set the timer for the type of load it is. The older ones also know how to clean the dryer vent for me. This needs to be done every three months or so. I put a reminder on my calendar.
When a load of laundry finishes, my dryer plays a pleasant little tune. Someone folds that load. It depends on what it is really. The youngest two fold towels and wash cloths. If someone’s bedding is washed, that person takes care of that load. If it is someone’s clothes, that person folds it. If it is a group load, we work on folding it together.
Once the laundry is folded or hung up, it is put away.
Now, I will say that our system is not always perfect. Sometimes, someone forgets a load in the washer or dryer. Sometimes, someone starts a load and heads off. That can mess up the system for everyone else, so I try to remind them to take care of it before they leave. In a pinch, I will finish it off.
If your child is a teenager, he or she needs to know how to do laundry from start to finish. If you have been doing it for them, it’s time to start including them.
How is the laundry in your house?
Your Zone Mission today is to toss trash from Zone 1 – The Front Porch, Entryway, and Dining Room.
Your Home Blessing for today is to wipe windows and mirrors.
My menu plan for Wednesday is lasagna with a salad.
Have a great day!

Zipping Through Your Zone Missions

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In your Home and Homeschool 
 

    

Dear Friends,
It’s the last day of July! Each week this month, we have focused on a different zone. We have been zipping through our zone missions, and I hope you are seeing progress.
You live in your homes, and as a homeschooler, you tend to be at home more than the average family. That means that you are using the things in your house more. The zone missions help you stay in control of the amount of clutter in your home. Each week, you focus on a different area.
You use the principles of throw away, give away, and put away.
As the amount of clutter goes down, you will find it gets easier and easier to let things go. I think the reason for this is that you begin to see how much easier it is to care for your home when you have less stuff to manage.
I read a note from someone who was struggling with her Home Blessing time because of the clutter that was in the way. If you have this happen, do a 15 minute room rescue and involve your family. I find this especially helpful on Monday morning.
We enjoy our weekends and our rest on Sunday. Our children still play and get things out on the weekend, and many times those things are still out on Monday mornings. Most of you can relate to this, especially if you have young children.
Some of you are looking at the calendar, and you see that the summer will come to and end whether or not you have completed your summer wish list. Use your timer today to do that room rescue, and then do something fun with your kids!
Don’t get consumed with a To Do List and act like a General with the troops. Set reasonable goals for your list, and incorporate fun.
Our first day of school was Monday, and it was not a stressful day for us. We did some placement testing last week, and we started lessons today. We broke it up with some movement and fun. We folded a load of laundry in between lessons. Our routines did not fall apart because we started school.
We normally start school early because it is just too hot outside in August to play very much, and we have more flexibility with our breaks during the year when we start early. We also like to be finished with the year before the end of May.
What are your goals and dreams for August?
Your Home Blessing for today is to dust and vacuum.
Your Zone Mission for today is to look for trash and go sofa diving in the Living Room.
My menu plan for Tuesday is tacos. Veggies and salad for me.
Have a blessed day!

Your Missions for the End of the Month

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Dear Friends,
Thank you for the pictures that were sent on Friday of your progress in your bedrooms. I love seeing the progress, and I hope that it encourages you in your zone missions. Some of you have mentioned that you want to continue the missions as your schedule picks back up when school starts. You can do it. Find a place in your daily schedule when you are consistently at home, and that is the time to do your daily zone mission and your Home Blessing for that day.
Here are you missions for the week:
Zone 5 & 1 Missions: The Living Room, Front Porch, Entryway, and Dining Room
Monday – Declutter 15 mins in the Living Room
Tuesday – Toss Trash from Living Room (Sofa Diving)
Wednesday – Toss Trash from Front Porch, Entryway, and Dining Room
Thursday – Dust ceiling, lights, fans, etc. in Dining Room and Entryway
Friday – Sweep or Vacuum Zone 1 – Front Porch, Entryway, and Dining Room
Set your timers and then take a break when it goes off!
On Monday, you are going to spend 15 minutes decluttering in the Living Room or Family Room.
On Tuesday, your mission is to look for trash in the Living Room or Family Room. Go sofa diving.
On Wednesday, you are going to spend 5 minutes tossing trash from the front porch, entryway, and dining room. Just carry a trash bag with you and turn on some music. It will go by fast!
On Thursday, you are going to do a quick dust along the ceiling and upper parts of your walls in the Dining Room and Entryway.
On Friday, your mission is to sweep or vacuum in Zone 1, depending on your floor surface in those areas.
If your closet is unruly, switch out one of the missions above and get rid of some of the clothes you are not wearing.
Your Home Blessing for today is to wash the sheets.
Your Zone Mission for today is to spend 15 minutes decluttering in the Living Room.
My menu plan for Monday is hamburgers. Salad for me.
Have a blessed day!