What a Day!

I got quite a bit accomplished today. I love the morning and bedtime routines. I'm a schedule person and a rule follower, so having a list of things to do is perfect for me.

After my morning routine was done, I decided to spend my "home blessing" hour dusting every surface in my house. I started on the middle level and dusted every piece of furniture and everything on the walls. Then downstairs I went, dusting pictures, shelves and furniture in the basement. Then up to our bedroom to dust our furniture and the bathroom shelves.

While I was in the bathroom I decided to declutter. I took a few pictures along the way.

The cabinet - before:

And after:

This part took about 30 minutes or so. I threw away several empty bottles and some that were just plain old. Why on earth do we hang on to things?

Under the sink - before:
And after:
Guess what I found while I was under there? Bubble Bath! So guess what I'm going to do this evening to wind down before bed? Aaaaahhhhhhh . . .

The dreaded medicine cabinet - before:

And after:
I had a mess on the bathroom floor when I finished so I vacuumed and mopped it and vacuumed the bedroom floor.

Kelly's mission today was to find the "hidden clutter" in the living room. I went through all the baskets in my living room, purging all old magazines and catalogs and moving books to the bookshelf downstairs. I have two baskets with knitting supplies, so I took a few minutes to wind the yarn into balls and put it into ziploc bags.

Tomorrow I'll do the floors on the middle and lower levels and it'll look pretty good. Then the decluttering can really start. Whew!

My husband told me yesterday that he likes the routines I'm establishing. The boys aren't leaving their shoes in the foyer, and papers aren't collecting on the dining room table or kitchen counters. We're all getting into the habit of cleaning the toilet and sink after we shower, so the bathrooms are staying clean.

I'm loving the FlyLady's way of doing things. I just hope I can stick to it. As long as I do a little each day I'll be okay. But I'm worried about the day something happens to throw the routine out of whack.

I think my favorite thing so far is the "home blessing hour." Not because I like doing those chores! But because she refers to doing them as blessing your home. I've always considered my home a blessing, but I haven't looked at keeping it up as a way of blessing it. I've always approached housework with dread, something that has to be done and endured. But today while I was dusting, I kept telling myself that I was blessing my family by making our home cleaner and more peaceful. Sounds cheesy I know, but it's the change of perspective I need to stay on track.

Anyway, it's time to make dinner. I think I'll head up and enjoy a cup of coffee in my clean kitchen before getting started. :)

Fly high!