I’m increasingly finding pleasure in places I never thought I would. Currently, I’m finding it in housekeeping.

I’ve been an on-again, off-again flybaby for ages. For the most part I really, really like FlyLady.

I learned a lot of critical skills from FlyLady, and even though I haven’t been a flybaby for about 6 months, a lot of the stuff I did as a flybaby has stuck. Here’s the important things I learned:

1. I need a timer to function. Really, really need a timer. When people first come to my house they usually notice I have about 15 timers in a small one bedroom apartment. They laugh, until they realize that I use them ALL. Nothing has helped my productivity like setting a 15 minute time limit on things. I will probably write post after post about my timers. I would have never tried them without FlyLady.
2. I am not the only one fighting with perfectionism. There are ways of dealing with it.
3. It is possible to have a tidy, neat house that is also a joyful house. Cleaning does not have to include what it did when my Mom was doing it- freaking out, screaming, and crying, begging, playing the martyr card, and other unpleasantness. I’m finding a lot of joy and satisfaction in the routine of keeping my house.
4. Routines are the cure for ADD. Seriously, keep routines going for a month, focus on building one at a time, and CHOOSING what my routines and habits will be, instead of defaulting to whatever I happen to be doing, has done amazing things in my life.
5. I am not behind.

I’m currently adjusting my old Flylady control manual to my new house and my new life. I’m also incorporating a lot of stuff from the amazing book Home Comforts by Cheryl Mendelson.

Don’t get me wrong, there are some things that Flylady does frankly annoy the hell out of me, but I think any flybaby that isn’t perky and clean cut is going to occasionally have some eye-rolling moments. I like testimonials and success stories in general, but I wish Flylady’s didn’t ALL have some sort of hawking of FlyLady’s stuff on it- don’t get me wrong, I bought the calendar and it was great, but it gets a little out of hand. And frankly, my house is a shoe-free household and nothing is going to change that. Wearing shoes that have been worn outside on carpet gives me the heebie jeebies, but THAT is another post.

I’ve been astonished at how a few small changes in attitude have changed keeping my house lovely from drudgery and a chore, to something that actually brings me a lot of satisfaction. I might not be able to do all the things I want, or blow money on extravagant purchases, but I CAN make sure that my house is clean, comfortable, smells like baking bread and lavender, and that my friends and family feel comfortable and at ease in my home.

I’m finding that spending 15 minutes cleaning my bathroom and 15 minutes tidying in my kitchen leaves me feeling a lot happier than watching a 30 minute TV show.