Home-♥-Loving

I am miraculously now into my third week of Home-Loving and although I don't exactly look forward to the 2-3pm hourly slot, the visible results are motivating me to keep going with it. Whoop-whoop, go me, go me, go me!!!!! My Declaration of Intent ie writing it in my Home Diary is surprisingly effective at keeping me on track and I am sticking to my schedule like a very well trained sticky thing. I wear my apron to perform my daily decluttering/tidying/cleaning, and I find that stripy socks also help make me feel spritely and not too serious. Can't be too serious about tidying and cleaning, that would never do.

This week Flylady instructed me to go forthwith into Zone 4, so I'm working my way around The Master Bedroom. I started on Monday with the top of the chest of drawers, a notoriously hot-hot-hot clutter spot. I cleared it with one fell swoop of my arm, whoosh!!! Two hundred and twenty five objects fell off the top of the drawers and onto a tray. 225!!!!!!! It was hilarious, the top of the microwave was nothing compared to the top of the bedroom drawers.

But now as you can see it is all tidy, I even buffed up the surface with a duster and some polish and blessed it with a wee vase of garden flowers.

This afternoon I tackled the bedside tables and under the bed. Oh my. The dust was inCREdible. I am so so so glad that nobody was there to see it excepting for Little B who thankfully cannot yet use words to convey what he saw to anyone. It is our little secret. I decluttered and sorted, vacuumed and polished, stood back and sighed with satisfaction. It's working!! I am slowly but surely feeling a peaceful vibe easing into each room I give my love to.

I stood on the windowsill to shake the dusty duster out of the open window and had a rush of affection for my sweet little back yard down there. It was a bright and blustery afternoon and the washing was flapitty flapping on the line.

I am keeping on top of my laundry, fitting it in to each and every day just as Flylady tells me to do. A load goes on at night, then in the morning it's ready to either peg out or sling in the drier, depending on weather conditions. It's not so hard.

I wonder if you find all this talk of dusting and decluttering a bore??? I really hope not. I'm keeping my real-life friends and neighbours up to date with it all too. I give them a daily run down of what zone I'm in and what I'm doing/intending to do in the zone whether they want it or not. Everybody I've talked to this week knows about the 225 object show down, it raised some incredulous laughs. I do fear that I am not Good Company when I'm this way out, but I find it hard not to talk about things that are occupying my mind.

I'm still finding time to carry out the sort of Home-Loving that really floats my boat though, the pretty stuff. How could I not??? I bake (fruity flapjacks yesterday), light candles, plump up my hooky cushions, stroke my blanket collection and arrange fresh flowers. Market dahlias this week look.

It's totally fantabulous to walk into the room and be greeted by these beauties. Aren't they just......so Beeeeeeeutiful???

And on that pretty note I'm going to love you and leave you and go and partake in a spot of bed appreciation. I'm marvelously good at that.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Edit to add ::

re the 225 items! For those of you who asked.....most of them went in the bin, including the 27 dirty elastic bands, the 3 cray fish claws, the rabbit skull and the 43 bits of paper. All the other stuff was put back where it belonged (various tools, hairslides, jewellery, money, birthday candles, lego etc etc). What really amazed me was how many of the objects that were on the top of the microwave were also on top of the drawers. For example, golf balls, allen keys, marbles, paper clips, batteries, broken beaded jewellery. In both hotspots. Life is quite bizzarre here at number 24 sometimes!

 


 

 

Comments

[Lindsay]

You've got me inspired to do the same - I've just bought the book (Housework Blues) because I spend too much time angsting over the never-ending chores that eat away at my days when I'd far rather be doing something more creative. I'm looking forward to sitting down this evening and absorbing some of its wisdom. I love it when my home is tip-top-tidy and finding a way to keep it that way without the mental torture that goes with it has got to be a good thing. Thanks for the inspiration. xx

[Justine]

Can I ask, what did you do with the 225 items??!!

[Jody]

Lucy you are awesome, love the 225 objects.
Do you want to come and start on my house when you've done yours?

[Amber-Jane]

I have been loosely following fly lady for years now - it has made such a difference to my home too :) I am constantly amazed at how much we have in common lol

[Doreen Ganley]

Well done Lucy.It is difficult when there is a little one hanging on your legs when you're trying to work. Still it can only get better and try and teach the others to tidy bits of their toys and rooms as well! I know that's where I went wrong with my two. You have to TEACH them to be tidy.Now I'm retired I try to do a set job each day as I think I have all week to do jobs (except the mornings I do things with my friends. Retirement is so busy. dojo x

[KarenB in Oregon]

As usual, you are an inspiration to me! Thank you for telling us your dirty secrets - and thereby providing motivation for many of us to follow suit. Treating the tasks as "Home Loving" makes a huge psychological difference for me!

[Emma]

dahlias are my absolute favourite flowers lucy, and you always make them look extra-specially beautiful in your photos.

and i don't know how you do it, but you are always so inspiring - i'm even inspired to do some housework myself now! x x

[wilma]

oohh my.... this post could be about me... After 5 years and 3 girls, I now finally have a bit of 'space' during the day and no excuse but to start clearing the site. And what a sight it is, not only does it need decluttering and decorating - but what do you do with all the treasures hidden in the cupboards and under the beds by the little angels? And our poor little Cherry-on-the-top (similar age as your Little B)is witness to Mummies daily despair whilest scraping breakfast of the furniture and stopping the dog from helping herself to the leftovers...
I am sooooooo tempted to turn my back and do a bit of hookey......
Lucy, love the blog!

[maypole]

Well done! I also did my bedroom this week, even under the bed.It's a great feeling. OH's bedside table is always covered in nuts and bolt type things that come out of his pockets.
Keep up the good work.

[Kathryn]

Go girl, I admire your persistence and appreciate your sentiment of not getting too serious about it! I can feel your sense of satisfaction all the way down here in Australia. Your post is certainly NOT boring..........keep up the commentary!

[Kat]

Hey I recognise that mouse! Ours is called mini miny mouse.

Must be something in the air - I'm springcleaning, decluttering and generally turning the house upside down. Reading a book called SORTED and well getting sorted!

You've inspired me to keep going....

[Sandra]

Don't fear Lucy, you're never, ever dull! In fact all this talk of home-loving is very infectious. You've certainly given me the home-loving bug and thanks to you, my house is looking much better!

S x

[Amanda]

I love hearing your enthusiasm about loving your home. It's infectious, I'm sure.

[lekki]

225. I hear you. Empathise.

[a cheerful living adventure]

Utterly lovely to hear your enthusiasm for loving your home! I've been jumping on and off the flylady bandwagon for years- and I always feel better when I'm on it. Thanks for the joyful reminder! xx

[naomi]

You talk about it in such a light hearted, colourful way, how could we find it dull? You are inspiring me to do a bit of home loving too - now if I can just get my 5 little boys to do the same - I might have a home as cosy as yours too!

[Mrs Tightwad]

Hi Lucy!
Had to share this with you - I found some shoes similar to yours in a local charity shop (see my blog post here http://tightwadgazette.blogspot.com/2011/09/happy-feet.html

Anyway, I wore them to work one night at the nursing home where I slave on the night shift and one 'old dear' exclaimed " Oooh, I love your pasties" Now confusion is a normal situation here at work but this one had me beat, I didn't have a clue! I had to apologise to her and explain that I didn't understand what she meant
"Why your shoes dear! When we were little we all had shoes like that, with the stitching around the edge. We called them pasties because that's what they look like"
Obvious, when you know and I thought it was a sweet name, mine are now known as my pasties!
Made me smile :0)

[Carole]

Hi Lucy,
I haven`t commented for a while but i have been reading your blogs regularly. But i must say that your blogs are never boring and i find the "home loving" posts are really inspiring. So i`m just having a quick coffee and then i`m off to dust our bedroom & i`m going to move 2 bedside units & i know i`ll find what you had under yours, yes DUST!!! I think an hour each day is a brilliant idea & as you say you can get alot done in an hour.
Take Care
Love Carole from Rossendale xxx

[Susan Wright]

Hi Lucy, Thank you for telling us about Flylady .I am inspired and have just saved her PDF.My house is drowning in clutter and actually rather than being interesting it stops me being creative because i just look round and feel overwhelmed. Any project i do lately goes wrong and i think this is because i have too much on the go. I am inspired and cheered as always by your lovely blog. Thank you so much.

[Mieke]

Keep writing blogs like this! Keep writing blogs anyway. I love them, no matter what subject. You always make me smile. Thank you for that.

[Carol]

What is it about beds and dust bunnies? It doesn't matter how often I poke the cleaner hose under there - they still come back! I totally agree with wearing a pinny to do these things. It really gets you into the role. Well done you - keep it up.:)

[bellabeeandme]

I too have a HUGE appreciation for my bed. I love it. Without fail I always utter the biggest sigh as I snuggle down into it's loving embrace. ha ha! I'm also trying to get 'on top' of the househole, but get too easily distracted, find excuses to find something else, anything else to do, and plus it's all a little haphazard. Maybe I need a bit of structure too. I am currently using that 2-3pm slot to get on top of the ironing though (when I'm in)!!
Kier x

[Lemanie]

PS - oops, didn't mean to sound racist there, just suits my personality better ;-) and I meant to say that I follow flylady because it takes me approx 1/2 hour per day to tidy and clean up after 5 people and allows me guilt free time to do lots of other woolly, jolly, jaunting, baking things.

Mel x

[Lemanie]

Dear Lucy,

lovely to hear of your continuing success on the flying front. I got my house in order and keep it that way (mostly) with the aid of the lovely flyladies here http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.php?t=3495103, they are friendly and helpful, encouraging and laugh-making, much more British and much less scarey than the US version, you might want to take a look?

Gorgeous post and photos as usual, thank you so much.

Mel x

[Karen]

So impressed - I toohave a problem with clutter and lack the cleaning gene. Since reading on eof your last posts I looked at Fly Lady and have adopted her simple task of cleaning down the sink every night and boy does it make a difference! It is nly a little thing but it really works for us at the moment. Must try to progress to her other instructions! Well done you.