Tami Fox

Declutter for 15 minutes – Getting Organized

Posted on July 15, 2016 by Tami

Getting Organized:

In your home and homeschool

Do you enjoy your early morning quiet time? It is a time of the day that I treasure. One thing that helps me enjoy this time is by having my home clean and decluttered. I know you want this, too. If you spend just 15 minutes a day decluttering, you will bring peace to your home. By blessing your home with less clutter, you are blessing yourself and your family. Pick one area in your home today to declutter. Spend just 15 minutes doing this. Don’t start a big project. On Friday, we take off our trash, so I do a quick paper declutter on Fridays. I do my best to declutter paper as it comes into the house, but we all have paper that is already in our homes. For the rest of the month, really work at getting rid of as much paper clutter as you can. This will help you get ready for the start of the school year.

Have a great week-end!

If you have any questions or tips, please email me. I enjoy hearing from my readers.

Zone Mission: Declutter anywhere in the house for 15 minutes.

Menu Mission: My menu plan for today is Rotisserie Chicken because it’s grocery shopping day. I will serve it with a salad and fresh veggies.

DOWNLOAD the PDF Calendar JULY 2016

Routines:

Home:

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:

Sort through your school materials from this year if you haven’t already done that. Record information that needs to be recorded. If you have a high school student, add information to the high school transcript.

Afternoon Routine:

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

Room Rescue – Getting Organized

Posted on July 14, 2016 by Tami

Getting Organized:

In your home and homeschool

While you are sitting here reading this, I want you to think of one area in your home that is weighing you down. It could be clutter in a room. It could be your filing (or lack thereof). It could be your garage or basement. It might even be your school room. Whatever is weighing you down, I want you to spend 15 minutes making it better. Declutter. Throw things away.Give things away. Put things away. Do some filing. Don’t spend a lot of time thinking on this. Instead, spend the 15 minutes doing something about it. After you are done, tell me what you did. Enjoy your day!

Zone Mission – Declutter 1 area in your home.

Routines:

Home:

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:

Start setting up your new files for the new school year.

Afternoon Routine:

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

Linen Closet – Getting Organized

Posted on July 13, 2016 by Tami

Getting Organized:

In your home and homeschool

Most of us have a linen closet, and it is full of different things. In many cases, there are things in here that we have no idea are in there. Sometimes, we have sheets in there for bed sizes we no longer have in our homes. I learned a great tip from The FlyLady on bed linens. Have two sets of sheets per bed. One set is on the bed, and the other set can be folded and put between the mattress and box springs of the bed that it fits. When it is time to change the bed, you take off the first set and immediately put on the second set. You wash and fold the first set and fold it to put back between the mattress and box springs. This will immediately free up space in your linen closet. Spend 15 minutes today decluttering the linen closet. If you have sheets in there that you have not used in years, donate them. Bless someone else with them.

Zone Mission: Declutter the linen closet

Home:

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.
Clean out your refrigerator. Toss the science experiments.

School: Work on your list and ideas for the new school year.

Errand Day: Do your errands and grocery shopping this afternoon.

Afternoon Routine:

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
Write up a menu plan for the next 7 days. Check your pantry and freezer and make a grocery list. This habit will save you time and money. Try out some new recipes with the slow cooker. It will save you time once you start back to your school schedule.

Family Fun: Take your children for a walk.

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 the Launch Pad that you will need first thing in the morning
Shine Your Sink
Clean Off a Hot Spot
Go to Bed at Decent Hour

Clean the Bathroom Cabinet – Getting Organized

Posted on July 12, 2016 by Tami

Getting Organized:

In your home and homeschool

Most of us have a cabinet in our bathroom. Sometimes it is below the sink, and sometimes it is above the sink on the wall. Today, I want you to spend 15 minutes decluttering your bathroom cabinet. If you don’t have a cabinet, pick something to declutter. No free passes on decluttering today. I periodically declutter in my medicine cabinet. There are safe ways to dispose of out of date medications. Look in your area for one, and clean out your over the counter and prescription medications in a safe manner. Don’t flush them or put them in the trash. Some medications can be disposed of with kitty litter and water. I have used that method for small amounts of expired medications. Check your collection of shower gels and shampoos. Use the ones you don’t like in your water bucket for swish and swipe. I usually add a few teaspoons of shampoo and fresh water to my crock each month. Keeping my toilet swisher in water beside of my toilet has made swish and swipe very easy to do each morning.

Zone Mission: Declutter in your bathroom.

If you need more help with organizing your home and homeschool, you can download The FlyLady’s Homeschool Teacher and Homeschool Student Control Journals for free.

Set your timer for 15 minutes for the Home Assignment and 15 minutes for the School Assignment

Home:

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.
Clean out your refrigerator. Toss the science experiments.

School: Start getting your materials ready for the new school year.

Afternoon Routine:

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
Write up a menu plan for the next 7 days. Check your pantry and freezer and make a grocery list. This habit will save you time and money. Try out some new recipes with the slow cooker. It will save you time once you start back to your school schedule.

Family Fun: Take your children for a walk.

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 the Launch Pad that you will need first thing in the morning
Shine Your Sink
Clean Off a Hot Spot
Go to Bed at Decent Hour

Back to Basics – Getting Organized

Posted on July 11, 2016 by Tami

Getting Organized:

In your home and homeschool

Hello! As I am writing this, I have just returned from vacation, and I have the sounds of my washer and dryer in the background. One of my sons just took out the trash without me asking, and then he loaded the few dishes that his younger brothers left in the sink. I am blessed. Before I left for vacation, I did a quick Weekly Home Blessing. It was raining lightly when we returned home and unloaded our van, so tomorrow, we will do a quick Home Blessing and get back to the basics around the house. Being on vacation, I took my routines with me. I cooked daily using the crock pot. I did laundry daily because I had access to a washer and dryer. I wiped counters and swished the toilet. I kept clutter to a minimum. If you have stayed in a hotel or rented a condo or house for vacation, you will notice the lack of clutter until you unpack. (smile) It makes me look around my house now and see what I can declutter further. So this week, I want you to look around your house and see where you need to declutter. Likely, you have an area or areas that you have been avoiding. Spend 15 minutes a day decluttering there. Take a look at this week’s Missions and purpose to get back to basics and Bless your home and family.

Zone Missions for the week:

Monday – Declutter Flat Surfaces in the Main Bathroom

Tuesday – Declutter the Bathroom Cabinet

Wednesday – Declutter the Linen Closet

Thursday – Declutter 1 Other Area in Your Home

Friday – Declutter in 1 Other Room in Your Home

Here are your Zone Missions for the month of July:

Download the PDF: JULY 2016

Daily Routines:

Home:

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: Stop by the library and pick up some books to read over the next week.

Afternoon Routine:

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

Family Fun: Take a nature walk today.

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 the Launch Pad that you will need first thing in the morning
Shine Your Sink
Clean Off a Hot Spot
Go to Bed at Decent Hour

Wipe down the microwave – Getting Organized

Posted on July 8, 2016 by Tami

Getting Organized:

In your home and homeschool

Happy Friday! It’s the last day in the kitchen as we detail clean. Today, let’s wipe out the microwave, and if it needs it, wipe down the vent over your stove top. I use a cup of hot lemon water and my FlyLady purple cloth to clean both of these. The lemon water cuts the grease, and the cloth wipes it away. It takes me less than 15 minutes to do this each month. I do try to wipe any spills in the microwave that happen during the month, and I remind the boys to wipe it as well. So it is not terrible when I do this detail cleaning. I hope you like the way your kitchen looks this week!

Have a great week-end!

If you have any questions or tips, please email me. I enjoy hearing from my readers.

Zone Mission: Wipe the microwave and vent over the stove top.

DOWNLOAD the PDF Calendar JULY 2016

Routines:

Home:

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:

Sort through your school materials from this year if you haven’t already done that. Record information that needs to be recorded. If you have a high school student, add information to the high school transcript.

Afternoon Routine:

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

Declutter 1 Kitchen Cabinet – Getting Organized

Posted on July 7, 2016 by Tami

Getting Organized:

In your home and homeschool

Today I want you to spend 15 minutes decluttering 1 kitchen cabinet. It can be any cabinet, but I want you to resist the urge to pull everything out. Just take things out for 5 minutes. Then spend the next 5 minutes looking at what you want to keep and what needs to go away. Wipe the exposed parts of the shelf and put the stuff back in the last 5 minutes. If you keep at this each month, you will work your way through all of the cabinets. If you choose your spice cabinet, through out the expired spices. If you pick your plastic container collection, donate or throw away the pieces that are missing their mates. If you pick the pots and pans cabinet, give away those pans or pots that have sat there for years and never been used. We all have things like that in our kitchen cabinets. Enjoy your day!

Zone Mission – Declutter 1 kitchen cabinet.

Routines:

Home:

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:

Start setting up your new files for the new school year.

Afternoon Routine:

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

Declutter 1 Kitchen Drawer – Getting Organized

Posted on July 6, 2016 by Tami

Getting Organized:

In your home and homeschool

Today’s mission is to clean out one kitchen drawer. If you work your way through the kitchen one drawer at a time, you will keep them decluttered and organized. It does not need to be a long mission. This should be a quick mission for you. Open the drawer. Toss anything that needs to go in the trash. Put anything you don’t use in the box of things to donate. Organize what is left. If your drawer is still full, try to get rid of a few more things.

Zone Mission: Declutter 1 Kitchen Drawer

Home:

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.
Clean out your refrigerator. Toss the science experiments.

School: Work on your list and ideas for the new school year.

Errand Day: Do your errands and grocery shopping this afternoon.

Afternoon Routine:

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
Write up a menu plan for the next 7 days. Check your pantry and freezer and make a grocery list. This habit will save you time and money. Try out some new recipes with the slow cooker. It will save you time once you start back to your school schedule.

Family Fun: Take your children for a walk.

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 the Launch Pad that you will need first thing in the morning
Shine Your Sink
Clean Off a Hot Spot
Go to Bed at Decent Hour

Clear the Kitchen Counters – Getting Organized

Posted on July 5, 2016 by Tami

Getting Organized:

In your home and homeschool

Happy Tuesday! Many of us had cookouts last night, and our kitchen counters probably need some attention. Let’s spend 15 minutes clearing the kitchen counters, putting things away, and wiping them down. It is much easier for meal prep time if you have clean kitchen counters. I know I feel more peaceful when my kitchen counters are decluttered and cleaned off.

Zone Mission: Clear off the kitchen counters and wipe them down. .

If you need more help with organizing your home and homeschool, you can download The FlyLady’s Homeschool Teacher and Homeschool Student Control Journals for free.

Set your timer for 15 minutes for the Home Assignment and 15 minutes for the School Assignment

Home:

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.
Clean out your refrigerator. Toss the science experiments.

School: Check out your local library to get details for the summer reading program.

Afternoon Routine:

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
Write up a menu plan for the next 7 days. Check your pantry and freezer and make a grocery list. This habit will save you time and money. Try out some new recipes with the slow cooker. It will save you time once you start back to your school schedule.

Family Fun: Take your children for a walk.

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 the Launch Pad that you will need first thing in the morning
Shine Your Sink
Clean Off a Hot Spot
Go to Bed at Decent Hour

Happy Independence Day – Getting Organized

Posted on July 4, 2016 by Tami

Getting Organized:

In your home and homeschool

What does Independence Day mean to you? Since I was raised with a background of military service, I have high regard for what it took for our country to be a free country. I am thankful to live in the land of the free and the home of the brave. I love that I have the freedom to homeschool my children, and I am thankful for my religious freedom to worship God. I am thankful for all of those who gave their lives so that I might live in a free country. I am thankful for those who have risked their lives protecting my freedoms.

Another way I have found freedom is in how I care for my home and family. I look at it as a blessing.I am free from the chains of bondage to keeping my house perfect. I have learned that working in small, consistent steps helps keep my home clean.

Zone Missions for the week:

Monday – Wipe the Kitchen Counters

Tuesday – Declutter 1 Hot Spot or Flat Surface in the Kitchen

Wednesday – Declutter 1 Drawer in the Kitchen

Thursday – Declutter 1 Cabinet in the Kitchen

Friday – Wipe Down the Microwave

Here are your Zone Missions for the month of July:

Download the PDF: JULY 2016

Daily Routines:

Home:

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: Stop by the library and pick up some books to read over the next week.

Afternoon Routine:

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

Family Fun: Take a nature walk today.

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 the Launch Pad that you will need first thing in the morning
Shine Your Sink
Clean Off a Hot Spot
Go to Bed at Decent Hour