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Archive through January 11, 2007

The TVClubHouse: General Discussions ARCHIVES: Jan. 2007 ~ Mar. 2007: Home and Garden: TVCH's Home & Life Organization (ARCHIVES): Archive through January 11, 2007 users admin

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Wargod
Moderator

07-16-2001

Saturday, January 06, 2007 - 11:53 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Wargod a private message Print Post    
Ok, I am embarrassed to admit that I do have holiday leftovers in the fridge, lol. Because Darren and the kids were home this time when I shopped I didn't do the usual pulling everything out, throwing stuff away and washing that I normally do before I go grocery shopping.

We still have the lights outside. Darren was supposed to take them down tomorrow but he found out yesterday that he has to work 13 days in a row (12 during the week, 8 on the weekend) so I'm not going to bug him to much about it. If he doesn't get it done tomorrow, I'll pay the neighbor teen to do it during the week when he has a chance.

Vee
Member

02-23-2004

Sunday, January 07, 2007 - 7:29 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Vee a private message Print Post    
Yay for holiday goodies and double yay when they are gone! I don't know about the rest of you, but I am feeling ever so much better now that I am back to my regular eating plan. Now if I can just set an intention for the next holiday season well in advance...I think this is where the Household *Control Journal* comes in.

Okay, this is the final mission and it is ongoing even if it takes several days...Take down the decorations and that tree in 15 minute sessions. Put all those boxed decorations where they are stored and not on the stairs for the next month. When you are done, put up your feet and enjoy!

How did your day go yesterday, Grace? Let us know how you are doing. (I don't like this part of the holidays, but things are well underway here.)

ETA: Wargod, I meant to say that your idea about hiring a neighborhood teen is terrific on so many levels. What a thoughtful wife to take some of the pressure off your dh, and the neighborhood teen gets blessed with a little extra cash and responsibility...great!

Wargod
Moderator

07-16-2001

Sunday, January 07, 2007 - 12:24 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Wargod a private message Print Post    
Vee, this is the neighbor teen I always go to if I need something done. He's babysat my kids, he takes care of the dog, collects mail and waters the lawn if we're out of town, and summers when Darren's working a lot he will do yard work. It is great!

When Darrens working like this he has so little family time that chores are the last thing he needs to be worrying about. He's been getting home this week with just enough time to spend with the kids, eat dinner, and a little time with me before he's out cold. Yesterday he got home at 2, but after a week of 12 hour days and having to go back today, he's just not up for all that much house work.

Dipo
Member

04-23-2002

Sunday, January 07, 2007 - 3:11 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Dipo a private message Print Post    
well, I have put away my holiday decorations!! Now I just need to vaccum up a few pine needles and put the furniture back into place!

Plus, amazingly, it is beautiful outside, warm and sunny!!

Vacanick
Member

07-12-2004

Sunday, January 07, 2007 - 3:19 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Vacanick a private message Print Post    
My tree is down as well. I guess the holidays really are over.

Citruscitygal
Member

08-07-2003

Sunday, January 07, 2007 - 4:08 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Citruscitygal a private message Print Post    
Lk Update
I happened to see her on AIM a few weeks ago. She has moved to the mobile home, I think it's in Maine???. She sounded good and seems happy. She has different doctors that seem to be listening better and helping more. I wish I could remember the status of her disability claim. Sorry about that.

I encouraged her to pop in to the Clubhouse and say hello. She indicated she might, so we shall see.

Happy cleaning and organizing ladies. And Happy New Year.

Vee
Member

02-23-2004

Sunday, January 07, 2007 - 4:59 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Vee a private message Print Post    
Maine? Wow! I do hope that she pops in and lets us all know how things are going. Thanks for the update, CCG!

Good work, ladies! So you've already put your feet up! I have several times myself...what an exhausting day. LOL!

Dipo, talk about weird weather! It was 67 degrees here (Maine) yesterday and 55 today. Somebody pinch me, is it really January?

Things look so dull with all the decorations gone that I lit all the candles for some cheer. :>

Vee
Member

02-23-2004

Monday, January 08, 2007 - 12:08 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Vee a private message Print Post    
Still enjoying my little kitchen tree. It miraculously changes from a Christmas tree to a "winter" tree on December 7. I keep it up until spring when the days are longer and brighter. Nothing like a little point of cheer in the room.

Today is the weekly home blessing hour. (Of course, you may adapt this to your needs.)
C


The Weekly Home Blessing hour is the time FlyLady spends slipshod cleaning her home. No detailed cleaning required; vacuum the middle of the floors only!

FlyLady sets her timer for 10 minutes to work on each of 7 tasks:
Vacuum
Dust
Mop
Polish Mirrors and Doors
Purge magazines
Change Sheets
Empty all trash

This takes approximately one hour; some tasks take less than 10 minutes.

"Don't obsess, set your timer for 10 minutes for each task, then QUIT!" ~ Kelly


Vee
Member

02-23-2004

Tuesday, January 09, 2007 - 5:12 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Vee a private message Print Post    
New Missions for the week are set in the kitchen and revolve around decluttering. How perfect!

Mission 1:
Your mission for today is to de-clutter your silverware drawer, get rid of those leftover plastic spoons, wet wipes, sippee cup lids that
don't have bottoms anymore, etc. We all have the stuff that just seems to pile up in that drawer!! Set your timer (15 mins) and fling, fling,fling!!!
*Source*

I am getting rid of any lids that don't have a bottom and vice versa. Acckkk, those things multiply faster than rabbits. And what's with those little packets of salt and pepper?!

Don't forget to report back...

Dipo
Member

04-23-2002

Tuesday, January 09, 2007 - 6:04 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Dipo a private message Print Post    
LOL, I have a problem with those packets of red pepper flakes that come with pizza and packets of soy that come with chinese food! I finally got rid of all that stuff.

Urgrace
Member

08-19-2000

Tuesday, January 09, 2007 - 8:33 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Urgrace a private message Print Post    
It only takes Flylady 10 minutes to change sheets? Wow. I guess I'm too fussy about that.

Well Vee, I'm a little like Wargod. I don't do well in fifteen minute increments. I work until I don't feel like it any more. I managed to take down all the decorations and the tree, organize, box and store it all. I even weeded out three varying from medium to large size boxes of ornaments to give away. The closet where I store the Christmas things also got a complete cleaning and reorganization leaving me room to once again put the vacuum cleaner in there! Yay!

Today was spent removing all the pots and pans, lids and other cooking utensils from the lower cupboards, washing them all by hand and washed the cabinet shelves, too. I now have room to store the crock pot, 3 crock warmer pots, apple slicer/corer and extra blender, since I filled a 14x14x28 box to also give away, and will return the keepers to the cabinets tomorrow. One drawer with measuring tools, frosting decor, funnels, straws, etc. also got a makeover. Got rid of a few pepper packets as well. <shrug>

Oh, I did the lid cupboard, too! Be careful about throwing away your lids. I threw away one of my crock warmer lids thinking it was for something else I no longer had, before I realized it was for the warmer.

All day I kept looking out the window thinking I'd rather be out there than in the kitchen. It was chilly but so nice.

Vee
Member

02-23-2004

Wednesday, January 10, 2007 - 6:39 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Vee a private message Print Post    
Dipo, those packets of soy are going to go in the next refrigerator boogie...not sure why we keep tossing them in there.

Hi, Urgrace! Another wargodder, eh? FlyLady always says that you can adapt the program to fit your needs. If that's working for you, why change it? It wasn't working for me.

The only way I do that anymore is if I need to crisis clean or if I am offered help. For example, the garage needs cleaning and my sister has a free Saturday to help me with it. I'll definitely take her up on it. Now I am always going to pay...always...some sort of arthritic flare will follow, but I consider it worth it.

Your opening question about how long it takes to make a bed has me wondering, too. I'll have to time myself the next time I make up a bed completely from scratch.

Are we all trying to reorganize the kitchen space? It seems as if I have heard that from all directions and must have something to do with the new gifts we received.

Today's mission:

Fling your way through at least one shelf of your pantry. We all seem to have items in our pantry that we will not use, that we keep shoving to the back because one day we might use them. When I moved, I found I had over 15 muffin mixes that I had bought because they were on sale and I had bought them over three years ago!! Needless to say I tossed them! Take a bag
and toss into it anything that is in your pantry that you do not need and will not use. Donate these items to a homeless shelter, a soup
kitchen or church pantry. Toss the open boxes of crackers, open bags of chips and out of date items into the trash. Set your timer and
have fun with this! ~Kelly
*Source*

I have the same situation in my pantry with about a dozen cake mixes that I bought on sale for 88 cents. Time to toss!

Dipo
Member

04-23-2002

Wednesday, January 10, 2007 - 2:58 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Dipo a private message Print Post    
I like the 15 minute thing, I stop what I am doing and go play computer games for 15 minutes, then start up the project for another 15. It helps me not feel like all I do is clean and not have any fun.

Oh, but if I am in the middle of something, like mopping the floor and the timer goes off I do finish up that job before I stop.

Native_texan
Member

08-24-2004

Wednesday, January 10, 2007 - 3:06 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Native_texan a private message Print Post    
I'm a new Flybaby and I'm having a small problem with the 15 minutes. Last night it lasted 2 hours.

Vee
Member

02-23-2004

Wednesday, January 10, 2007 - 4:44 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Vee a private message Print Post    
A new Flybaby! Fantastic! Native_texan, are you receiving email alerts or the digest from FlyLady? They can be a tremendous help, especially in the beginning.

Also, do you have a timer? Mine has become a good friend. Like Dipo, if I am very close to finishing something when it goes off, I'll just finish up. Otherwise, I'll stop and take a break.

One last thing, in the decluttering stage, don't yank out more than can be put in the right places in an hour. It's not helpful to make a big mess trying to declutter. Take it a little more slowly even when you are seeing progress. As FlyLady says, "It didn't get this way overnight and it's not going to get straightened up overnight either."

Welcome to our happy little group!

Native_texan
Member

08-24-2004

Wednesday, January 10, 2007 - 8:28 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Native_texan a private message Print Post    
Vee, since the alerts seem to be more for domestic goddesses, I elected to receive the digest.

There was a time when I had a reputation for being the neat freak. However, after I married the ex and had my son, neither of who (or shoudl that be "whom") could care less about neatness, it became a question of losing my sanity or giving in. Since my divorce and much to the dismay of my now 12-year-old, I see myself slowly going back to my former self and am now really kicking into gear.

My next challenge happened to be the kitchen so it was a nice coincidence that it happened to be the Zone for this week. I did much better tonight with only 30 minutes.

Vee
Member

02-23-2004

Thursday, January 11, 2007 - 7:01 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Vee a private message Print Post    
Excellent progress, NT! In just one night! We're all Flybabies around here you know. No one ever gets to be a Flytoddler or a Flykid or a Flyteenager as far as I know. It's an ongoing learning process.

Today's mission:

Dear Friends,

Today is Anti-Procrastination Day and we are heading into the refrigerator!!! Your mission for today is to set your timer, grab a
trash bag and throw open the door to fling out the science projects, holiday leftovers and don't forget to check out the vegetable/fruit
drawer. I am usually guaranteed a piece of fruit with a little fuzz on it that needs to be tossed!! ~Kelly


Serenity
Member

06-28-2005

Thursday, January 11, 2007 - 7:59 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Serenity a private message Print Post    
I don't post much, but just wanted to add that I am also doing de-cluttering this month (new year's resolution! :-) ). So far, I have collected:

- 2 garbage bags of old clothes to donate to charity,
- one bag of outgrown kids clothes to give to nephew,
- tossed 5 bags of junk and garbage,
- given 3 LARGE boxes of toys and games to the daycare (as well as a large Little Tikes workbench),
- and have a large bag of stuffed animals to get rid of.

Not to mention all of that, but I am updating my kitchen and will clear out lots of unused pots, platic containers and such when I get to re-organize it. Right now the contents of my kitchen are in my living room while my cabinets get installed and painted. I only have 800 sq ft of living space for a family of 4 (unfinished basement) so I want to stay on track this year. DH got some big tool boxes and storage stuff for the basement, so that will be my next chore when the main level gets completed. I feel like I am bragging, but I know that you other supportive "flyers" would understand what a big chore I have just completed.

Keep up "fluttering" ladies...it pays off!!!

Sia
Member

03-11-2002

Thursday, January 11, 2007 - 10:31 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Sia a private message Print Post    
Like Serenity, I haven't posted much lately, but I've been de-cluttering (or trying to) and have been getting help with this since last summer. One of my friends cleans houses for people, and I've been paying her to help me clean and organize and do the things that my physical limitations have kept me from being able to do in the way that I want.

She's helped me paint at my summer cottage, has helped me insulate my storage building in my back yard at the farm (aka, my pout-house), and has been helping me clean and organize the farmhouse. Although this is a huge house, it is full of three generations' worth of junk and old furniture (and clothing, paperwork, etc.), and much of it is unheated and unlivable. The house was built in 1863 and is in poor shape. I'd be a candidate for Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, honestly!!

I'm trying to get rid of the junk and, my #1 crime, old paperwork. Slowly things are shaping up, and I so appreciate my friend's help. She is also, as of today, becoming my diet-buddy as we begin a month-long health overhaul. Maybe I should stick a post in the diet thread so that perhaps a few TVCH-ers will try and keep me accountable, too. I really need to lose weight, or I am going to die within the next few years. My kids are too young to do that to, so I need to get serious.

Urgrace
Member

08-19-2000

Thursday, January 11, 2007 - 1:16 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Urgrace a private message Print Post    
The pots and pans are all sorted, some put in a box for freecycle, the rest all neatly and categorically arranged in their cabinets. I even went out and bought a couple stainless steel lid racks ($1.47 ea) to neaten up the lid cabinet and make finding the right one a little easier.

My "tool" drawers are next. I've accumulated too many cooking tools and have no usable space for storage. Most of the stainless steel spoons, spatulas, tongs, etc. are going to make way for some nylon and wooden ones. Some of the longer tools will be stored in a crock, and the rest will be put in organizer boxes in the drawer. I'll probably start this project tomorrow.

Today I've spent the morning connecting with freecyclers making appointments for them to pick up the pots and pans and the Christmas boxes. I also had a couple of jackets to give away.

If you haven't heard of freecycle, go to freecycle .com and see if you can get into a group, then give away your extras to people who really can use them. Oh, you can also pick up a thing or two, yourself!

eta: I'd be a great candidate for Extreme Makeover: Home Edition myself, Sia! My entire house needs leveling, so all the walls are cracking and floors are tipping. <sigh>

Native_texan
Member

08-24-2004

Thursday, January 11, 2007 - 1:20 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Native_texan a private message Print Post    
I did the kitchen tool drawers night before last and lightened the contents by 9 pounds (which I did report).

Urgrace
Member

08-19-2000

Thursday, January 11, 2007 - 2:07 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Urgrace a private message Print Post    
LOL those tools do weigh a lot, don't they NT! I had a potato masher and a ladle that caught on the drawer every time I opened it. Not any more. Those are the first things I pulled out when I decided to de-tool!

Urgrace
Member

08-19-2000

Thursday, January 11, 2007 - 2:11 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Urgrace a private message Print Post    
Hey, I just saw the decluttering challenge thread. No scales here so I won't be weighing in, but that is an interesting concept.

eta:-(Wish someone could declutter the files here. File locking need new keys! LOL

Vacanick
Member

07-12-2004

Thursday, January 11, 2007 - 2:43 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Vacanick a private message Print Post    
I'm trying to declutter but have limited time. After work, after dinner, after helping son with homework and doing dishes. Last night I did clean out my silverware draw ... no more plastic spoons or hot pepper packages for me!!

Any suggestions?

Dipo
Member

04-23-2002

Thursday, January 11, 2007 - 2:47 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Dipo a private message Print Post    
Wow, lots of new players! You guys are doing great!

I am going to go through my baking cabinet stuff. I think I have some loaf pans and other stuff that I have never even used once, LOL.