The disorganization is out of control around here.

[ChrisN in NY]

I MUST spend some serious time regaining order around here. I feel overwhelmed, but things have got to change. No time like the present... especially since there is WAY too much going on during the school year.

 

Any suggestions for staying on track?

 

(figuring that I'll be bored in a few years...)

 

Thanks!

[Rich with Kids]

I am in the same boat. I am following the Flylady program and it is amking a big difference. I am trying to be faithful with updates. Join us!

[Sharon H in IL]

Would reading about it help you? Sometimes it helps people get a handle on things.

 

I've heard good things about these titles.

 

Conquering Chronic Disorganization

http://www.amazon.com/Conquering-Chronic-Disorganization-First-Judith-Kolberg/dp/0966797000/

 

Clutter, Chaos, & the Cure

http://www.amazon.com/Clutter-Chaos-Cure-Rosemary-Chieppo/dp/0977740145/

 

and my favorite: Confessions of an Organized Homemaker

http://www.amazon.com/Confessions-Organized-Homemaker-Secrets-Uncluttering/dp/1558703616/

 

Look for them at the library, of course!

 

And Flylady is wonderful. The tons of e-mails are in order to brainwash you to begin to think of doing things on your own. Once you can think of them by yourself, they (and you) have succeeded. Don't quit because of the e-mails!

[WTMindy]

I divided my house into 9 "zones". (You could do more or less) and I work my way through one zone per week. In the summer, I deep clean everything in that zone (including drawers, closets, etc...) In the school year, I just make sure that that zone isn't a disaster. This helps makes the task more managable, so I don't feel like I have to clean the whole thing at one time.

[DB in NJ]

I divided my house into 9 "zones". (You could do more or less) and I work my way through one zone per week. In the summer, I deep clean everything in that zone (including drawers, closets, etc...) In the school year, I just make sure that that zone isn't a disaster. This helps makes the task more managable, so I don't feel like I have to clean the whole thing at one time.

 

 

What a great idea! Rep worthy, for sure, but alas, I must spread the love :D

[Faithr]

I'm chronically disorganized too. Flylady helps in maintenance mode during the school year but I find I simply can't tackle the big stuff 15 minutes at a time. It gives me such a sense of hopelessness because, you know, it will take two years that way to get stuff done. So I use the summer to do deep cleaning. We clean out the garage every spring, that sort of gets the ball rolling for me mentally. My dh leads on that one and his energy gets me charged. Then I work on the places that are my hot spots in the house. So I guess I kind of have zones too but it isn't neatly divided up, it's more, organize all the curriculum, clean up the study (which always becomes a dump), sort through and organize the mud room, go through closets, etc. It can get very discouraging because even in the summer you only get certain blocks of time, after all there are kids in the house messing things up and demanding things like food and such! The only thing is to perservere. I've got through the worst part of the summer now and my house is really starting to look good and feel very organized. I still have quite a ways to go though.

[Peela]

Flylady has always helped me to prioritise my cleaning efforts in an efficient and effective way. I am still not really good with consistency, but I know where to put my energy for most effect, when the energy suddenly arrives. I am still fairly sporadic..but I am more frequently sporadic because I nowadays just do something instead of being paralysed by overwhelm.

If I am completely overwhelmed....I start either at my desk, the kitchen sink, or my bedroom, and I use the timer for 15 minutes and get to it.

Just cleaning one, doable area lifts my spirits. Then I will likely spread out from there.

 

Instead of thinking of everything you need to do, write it down, to get it out of your head.

Then, pick one thing and do it.

Thats all you ever have to do, ever. Pick one thing and do it.

Later, pick one thing and do it.

I use the timer if I need to find my sense of humour and a sense of fun to motivate me. 10 or 15 minutes is plenty to get a lot more than you realise done.

 

I think the other thing I have done is consciously develop a passion for decluttering, for getting rid of things, for loving spacious shelves, clear surfaces and half empty drawers that actually don't jam because they are too full of stuff! I never realised how wonderful these small things are, before Flylady came into my life!

[obiandelismom]

What has finally (sort of) worked for me is to assign days of the week to specific chores. For instance, Tuesdays are bathroom days, Saturdays are laundry days, etc. This way I'm not so weighed down by seeing things that need doing, because I know I've got a plan to do them. The little scrap of paper on the floor in the bathroom doesn't set off a flood of "oh MAN! I need to get the vaccuum and mop and clean up that floor! And while I'm at it, when was the last time I wiped down these walls???" I don't know about you, but all that WORRYING about cleaning completely saps my energy to actually DO some cleaning! But now that I have my schedule, I look at the scrap of paper on the floor, mentally shrug, and figure I'll get it next Tuesday when bathroom day comes back around. Funny thing is, now that I'm not all freaked out about it, I usually just pick the dang thing up off the floor & throw it away! Problem solved! :D

[mommylawyer]

I tried FlyLady, and was happy for a while, but I felt so much pressure to keep shoes on my feet all day that I had to give it up. (I even take my shoes off at the office... if I'm not meeting with a client, that is.)

 

This is what works for me:

 

1) I have the children help out whenever possible. A wise woman told me that about 2 months ago, and it has actually helped. Every at home day, they have to pick up toys before lunch; every night before bed, they have to clean up their rooms.

 

2) I do "easy" laundry during the week (on my work days). By easy, I mean things I can easily fold and put away without hangers - towels, sheets, washcloths, blankets. I do the hard stuff on Saturday and Sunday evenings/nights (usually, very late nights).

 

3) I do "easy" meals on my work days. Leftovers, cook-ahead meals, frozen pizza, etc.

 

4) I also try to do my heavy-duty cleaning on Monday and Friday evenings.

 

I do like a previous-post idea of separating the home into zones to tackle. I might try to do that, too.

[hypermusicmom]

Would reading about it help you? Sometimes it helps people get a handle on things.

 

I've heard good things about these titles.

 

Conquering Chronic Disorganization

http://www.amazon.com/Conquering-Chronic-Disorganization-First-Judith-Kolberg/dp/0966797000/

 

Clutter, Chaos, & the Cure

http://www.amazon.com/Clutter-Chaos-Cure-Rosemary-Chieppo/dp/0977740145/

 

and my favorite: Confessions of an Organized Homemaker

http://www.amazon.com/Confessions-Organized-Homemaker-Secrets-Uncluttering/dp/1558703616/

 

Look for them at the library, of course!

 

And Flylady is wonderful. The tons of e-mails are in order to brainwash you to begin to think of doing things on your own. Once you can think of them by yourself, they (and you) have succeeded. Don't quit because of the e-mails!

 

 

Yes, reading helps AND adds to the clutter for me, Flylady has helped, AND I fall off the bandwagon a lot. I had an organized friend come to my house once a week to help motivate, "now Wanda, do you REALLY need that..." and even call, " hey, Wanda, don't forget your laundry, etc... " a very very nice friend to help... and the friend has to be very tough, because you get angry with them while loving them.

[ClassicMom]

What's Up for Today???

[frogpond1]

since Flylady, I cannot go barefoot at all it drives me absolutely crazy.

 

I used Flylady to help me understand how to keep a hold of it all and now I do my own version of Flylady. This week however my husband has torn up our bedroom to put in new floor and my house is a disaster. I'll use flylady crisis cleaning today and by tonight I'll feel much better. That is what I'm off to do now!:tongue_smilie:

[Ferdie]

I divided my house into 9 "zones". (You could do more or less) and I work my way through one zone per week. In the summer, I deep clean everything in that zone (including drawers, closets, etc...) In the school year, I just make sure that that zone isn't a disaster. This helps makes the task more managable, so I don't feel like I have to clean the whole thing at one time.

 

Mindy,

 

Do you mind sharing what are your 9 zones? Sounds like a great plan.

 

Hey, and congrats on you 6 green squares. Yahoo!

[ChrisN in NY]

My problem isn't the cleaning... my kiddos do most of that, and the jobs are assigned by day. And they're pretty good about getting them done.

 

It's the STUFF that I'm responsible for that's the problem. I am just so. darn. busy. during the school year that I put something down and forget about it because I've had to go on to the next thing.

 

I got the Flylady emails once before. And my sink still gets cleaned frequently (enough). It may be good for me during the school year, but I don't think it'll meet my needs right now.

 

I did reserve Organizing from the Inside Out by Julie Morgenstern through our library system -- I read about it here on the forums! -- but it hasn't come in yet.

 

I think.. no, I'm SURE that I need to spend less time on the computer! That will go a long way.

 

My other problem is that there is just too much (in a sense) going on here. I am in and out of the house multiple times every day, and I get sidetracked easily.

 

I am working to make myself stay focused on my tasks, and get OFF the computer.

 

On the plus side, when I took dd to her eye dr appt this am, the rest of the kiddos went with me to Staples where I bought a few sale items, and a box of 10x13 envelopes. I started yesterday and am nearly done today emptying their notebooks of TWO YEARS' worth of school papers and sorting through to make a portfolio for each child for each grade. We also went to the grocery store to buy food for ds's graduation party in two days.

 

One step at a time.

 

Getting off the computer now...