FLYLADY WEEK 3 - Bedroom & Bathroom

 Good morning!

We finally got a bit of rain last night and we're overcast this morning. Still going to be in the upper 80s and humid today, though. Is it fall yet? I'm hoping to get fall decor out this weekend. Maybe that will clue Mother Nature in that we've had enough summer.

My main focus this week is to deep clean the bathroom. We're pretty good about wiping stuff down but this is the week to get serious about the detailing. Keep in mind, you do NOT need to do the entire list in one day. A lot of you have  day jobs and just don't have time. A single task in the evening will help bring the rooms to right. Start with a top project and work your way down day by day.

NOTE: When cleaning any room, start from the to of the room (where the ceiling and walls meet, or the  molding in that spot, and work your way down. I suggest some type of eye covering for this, such as safety glasses from the dollar store to protect your eyes from any falling debris.

*Put your choice of toilet bowl cleaning in place and let it work while you continue on with your tasks.

* Using some type of dust mop, reach up and go around the upper perimeter of the room. $Tree has a mop-length pole with interchangeable heads. I like their dust mop for this. 

* Using a damp swifter, or equivilent head from the $Tree collection, swipe down the walls from top to bottom. Aside from anything already on the walls, this will also catch anything that might have come down in step one. I recommend a FLAT head for this as opposed to a dust-style mop.

* With cleaner of choice and a clean rag, wipe down all cabinet facings.

* Use either a clean swiffer pad or a dust rag, wipe down all the framings, such as doors, windows, cabinet trims. 

*  Wipe down mirros & windows with a clean dust rag, Follow with your window/ mirror cleaner of choice, wash these surfaces. Also dus/ wipe the light globes. 

* If you have a surround on your tub/ sink, wipe these down with a damp cloth. I use a spray bottle with equal parts water/vinegar. You can remove fawcet handles and clean around the base much easier. Note which type you have and check that brand's cleaning instructions (sometimes as part of their install).

If you have hard water build-up, I do use Lime Out for directly behind the fawcet area about every other month. I don't leave it on long, just a couple of minutes then go after that with a tooth brush followed by a clean wet cloth until all the residue is gone. 

*Bathtub & sink drains also get the baking soda/ hot vinegar/ hot water flush treatment that I use in the kitchen. About 1/4 C. baking soda, follwed by 1 C. hot vinegar. I use a silicone spatula to pull all the soda/ resdue to the drain opening then flush with hot water several times. DON'T USE directl from the tap. You want the water HOT before pouring down the drain to assist the vinegar/ baking soda in doing a complete clean out. I heat mine in a 4 C. measuring cup from the microwave or the tea kettle.

IMPORTANT NOTE: When putting ANY liquid in the microwave to heat, place a length of wooden scewer or wooden chop stick into the cup to catch the molucules. This prevents the water from popping when you remove it from the oven. 

* Using cleaner of choice, wash the tub and sink bowls. Follow up with a hot rinse.

* Swish the toilet bowl. 

*  With a clean rag and your spray bottle of vinegar solution, Wipe down the entire outer tank/ bowl/ base of the toilet. 

* Sweep/ mop the floor

BEDROOM:

The bedroom is much easier.

* Repeat walls proces, dusting around the parameer of the room then swiping down the walls. 

* Wipe down ceiling fan blades first with a dry dust cloth, followed by a damp one. 

* Strip the bed and start the laundry process

NOTE: This needs to be done AFTER you've done the steps above or you'll have to vacuum the mattress!

* Light globes/ shades/ bulbs.

* Dust all the furnitue pieces. Remember lower railings on the be frame and the headboar

* Sweep/ mop. 

* If you have access to under the bed, you will not believe what collects under there. This is where I use my $Tree mop handle and dust pad followed by a damp mop.

Did I miss anything? Let me know in the comments.

Be safe Be prepared, Be Blesed!

~ Kelly

FLY LADY WEEK 2 - Living Room/dining Room

 Good morning, everyone!

Another hot day in south-central Missouri. I am so over summer. 

I did get the patriotic decor taken down yesterday and all the fabric stuff washed. Well, except for one mat. Have you ever thought you had everything in the washer only to discover you missed something AFTER the load is finished? That one mat will go in with the curtains, hopefully later this week. I try to have my fall decor up by our anniversary on the twenty-fifth. This will be our forty-second anniversary.

I'm determined to really dive in deep to the living room this week. Get the last of the dry mixes done so the canning jars can go back to the basement. I won't be pressure canning or making preserves for a couple more months. Finally get the tub of boxes for wrapping gifts taken care of. From there, it's general cleaning.

LIVING ROOM:

*  Put away anything that doesn't belong in the space. Have children? Get them to help. I'll bet most of it is theirs anyway. 

* Curtains, take them down. If you can, take them outside to shake out. If not, a no-heating setting on the dryer with a previously used dryer sheet will help. NOTE: Check the cleaning instructions for your drapes/ curtains.

* Dust Everything.

Door/ window frames

Wash the windows (I will add this to last week's list), including tacks. HERE'S a short VIDEO for tips. Clean window tracks help keep the windows energy efficient.

Remove knick knacks from shelves, wipe them down and dust the shelves. (this used to be part of my every Saturday house cleaning as a teenager. Did you have weekly chores?)

Fan Blades/ Light Fixtures

*Furniture

Using a vacuum hose attackment, clean between sofa/ chair cushions. 

Sweep under/ behind all the furniture you can

Sweep/ vacuum/ mop the floor.

Often times, just picking up what doesn't belong in a room can make a huge difference in the asthetics.

DINING ROOM:

If you don't have a dining room, swap out for another room in your home. The basics will fly anywhere thoughout your cleaning routine.

* Put things away that don't belong. 

This is a great time to see if you're putting the same things away every week and can you create a better storage system for them. Because we practically live at our dining room table. Bob built us each a cart for our respective sides of the table for the things we like to keep handy.

* Shake out drapes/ curtains (same application as for the Living Room)

* Windows & sills (same as for Living Room & other rooms in your home)

*Change linens such as table cloth/ runner

* Dust everything

Shelves

Sideboard

Table/ Chair legs & cross boards

Fan Blades

Door frames/ base boards

*China Hutch/ cabinets

Dust will seep in between the doors. 

I deep clean mine once a year - prepping for Christmas decor. I take everything out, rinse/ dry them, wipe down the inside and shelves then put dishes back in place.

Sweep/ vacuum/ mop

IMPORTANT NOTE:

Once you get into this routine, you won't need to be as detailed with things like the window tracks (maybe once a quarter) unless you've had storms that blow everything in through the screen to settle in the tracks.

HERE IS A VIDEO on cleaning tips collected from 'professionals on Tik Tok. The first one they show is using a Swiffer. I use this trick because I'm less than tall so reaching things like the top of the mirror can be a challenge without climbing or asking Bob to wipe it down.  I also use a shorter handle with a cloth on my swiffer to wipe down the inside of my oven after I've run the cleaning cycle. 

If you have any tips to share or questions about how to clean something, please post them in the comments below.

Be safe, Be prepared, Be Blessed!

~ Kelly

FLY LADY WEEK 1 - Laundry Room & Kitchen

 Good morning!

We've had cooler temps the past couple of days, putting me in a much needed cleaning mode.

As promised, I have a check list. Mind you, items may be added before this list is complete and while broken down by space, they are not in any particular order at this time. If you have suggestions for either, please leave them in the comments. At some point I want to provide a google docs.

IMPORTANT NOTE!

You don't have to do everything in one day! Make a check list, decide what you can do each day and tackle them.

If you've not done this complete clean before, decide what you can do this week and what can wait until these rooms come around again next month.

If that's the case, I would suggest tackling the deep cleaning items such as cleaning the oven or the Emeril. Next month, those items will be much easier and you can do more of the other tasks. You'll slowly build a routine. 

LAUNDRY ROOM:

I'm going to give the list then items with ** will be discussed at the end. 

*  Pitch/ put away anything that doesn't belong in it's current location. This includes emptying/ putting clothes away from the dryer. If things are in the washer, toss them in the dryer now so the dryer will be available for a later step.

** Once the washing machine is empty, do a cleaning cycle. 

* * Dryer empty, Clean the entire length of the dryer venting. There are brush kits available for this.

* * Wipe down the appliances top/ sides. Dust behind the appliances 

* If you use separate containers for your detergent, fabric softener, ect. Fill those now.

* * Clean beneath the appliances

* Dust ceiling fan blades

* Wash light globes & replace any burned out bulbs you've been meaning to get to.

* Wipe out window tracks/ sills & windows

* Vaccuum register vent

* Check smoke alarm & date on fire extinguisher

* Emtpy trash

* Sweep/ mop floor

This is also a good time to take recycling bins to recycling center

KEY POINTS:

** 92% of home fires involve the clothes dryer  LINK FOR COMPLETE INFO

 Cleaning the lint screen with every load will require less drying time, giving you better energy efficeincy.  

If you have a lint hose attached to your dryer and venting outside,  you need to deep clean this using a bursh kit. You'll go from your lint trap at the point of entry and from the point of exit. Check your dryer manual for complete instructions. 

** Aside from wiping the outside and top of the machines, you'll also want to dust/ sweep behind them This provides better air flow and less chance of things to catch should you have a spark. This is also a good time to make sure the plugs are in good condition. If you see a problem you don't feel equipped to handle, contact an electrician.

** Just like behind the appliances, it's important to clean beneath them. Again, mostly for air flow. And if you have one or more cats you won't believe what you'll find under there besides dust bunnies.

To do this, I  use a yard stick, laying it flat against the floor and sweeping to the front or an open side. Once everything is pulled out, I strap a swiffer cleaning cloth to the yard stick with an elastic band and repeat the process. 

** My washer has a cleaning cycle that I purchase their tablets for. Check your manual for tub cleaning tips. You'll find great tips from GAIN HERE.

KITCHEN:

* Put things away that don't belong clutter the counters

* Wipe down all surfaces

** Wipe down any appliances such as microwave, mixer, toaster, etc.

* Emtpy the toaster crumb tray and wipe out.

* * Detail drains/ shiny sink.

* Descale the coffee pot according to manufacturers directions. 

Note: I don't by the cleaners. I fill the water receptical with white vinegar, let that run then continue running pots of clean water through until the vinegar smell is gone. This may take several passes.

* Repeat the same process for the refrigerator and stove as we did for the washer/ dryer in the laundry room. Remember the top of fridge and cabinets.. any open areas. Particularly if you don't have a vent hood over your stove. Include the vent hood, if you have one.

* If you have a counter top appliance like an Emeril 360, Put a pan of water in the appliance and turn on to 400* F for about 30 minutes. If you've not done this in awhile, you may need an hour. Then wipe down with a warm cloth. Again, if you've not done this before a weekly clean will help get you to a cleaner appliance. If you cook anything especially splattery/ greasy, you might want to get into the habit of doing this after cooking to make the task easier. 

* Clean out the refrigerator and wipe everything down (trays/ containers/ bottles) with a warm soap & water. Follow with a clean warm cloth. 

** Clean the oven. If you have a self-cleaning oven, this will make life so much easier. If not then oven cleaner it is. 

* Dust Fan Blades/ Clean light globes as we did in the laundry room.

* Sweep/ Mop. 

FOR THE SINK: This task will help prevent drain clogs and is much better than using chemicals.

   Place a 1/2 C. of baking soda into the drain receptical. Heat 1 C. of white vinegar and pour slowly over the drain opening. Use a spoon to rake any baking soda more into the drain opening. If you need a second round of the vinegar to get it all, heat another cup.  Follow this with 2 C. of hot water to wash everything through the drain.

   Next, fill the sink with hot tap water and a 1/4 C. of household bleach and let sit a few minutes. Do other tasks on the list while you wait for the water to cool. Once cool, remove the plug to drain the sink then wipe the interior and exterior of the sink, including faucet items down with a clean warm, white cloth.

FOR THE OVEN:  I have a self cleaning oven so I simply run the cycle then use a short-handled swiffer with a warm/ damp dishcloth to wipe everything down. They now have Swiffer with an adjustable handle!

If you need to use the oven cleaner, here's my steps:

Lay a few layers of newspaper or shop towels in a row in front of the cabinet. 

Remove the oven door (check your manual to make sure yours does this) and rest it against the cabinet. on the cabinets. The towels/ newspaper will catch the cleaner drips running off the door.

Spray the oven (I always prefered the cold oven method with less fumes). 

Let this set the recommended time (usually 30 minutes) while you're doing the other cleaning, Then wipe down with warm clothes. Will take several wipes. 

If you want... do the kitchen BEFORE the laundry room. Then you can toss your rags into the washer and get them done before cleaing the washer.

~ ~ ~  ~ ~

That's it for this week. Please. leave comments. I'd love to know more about your cleaning routine. Did I miss something? Let me know.

Be safe, Be prepared, Be Blessed!

~ Kelly

FLY LADY WEEK 4 - Office

 Good morning!

A quick post this morning as I am multi-tasking all over the place to kick off the week.

For starters, I didn't get anything done in the bedroom last week except wash the bedding. 

I've been busy getting the 25 Days Of Christmas videos  up on my creative channel and taking a minimum of two hours every evening to work on my book... until Friday happened. LOL Isn't there always something?

Bob set up at a gun show in West Plains last weekend. I helped him set up on Friday after his eye appointment then did a couple of other errands. I wanted things out of the way because I had big plans for the office while he was gone.

I guess you can say, I got an early start on the office.

Saturday, I had a solid eleven hours to work in the office while he was gone. I put in 18,000 (yes, that many) steps pulling stuff off the floor out of the office, sorting it on the bed so I could bring it back into the office in an organized manner. 

Sunday, I pulled boxes/ baskets off the sofa and sorted the contents. Everything is now sorted and put away, donated, or pitched from those collectives.

I won't get anything done the next couple of days. Bob's going to man the house while I go pay bills then settle into a hotel (FREE night!) to get my planners set up for August so nothing drops into an abyss the next couple of months. I want to finish Q3 strong!

I use the HB90 method from Sarra Cannon for most of my planning. However, once I get my stickies done and on the kanban board, I almost never transfer anything into the planners, giving them their own time slot to be done. I just pull stickies off and work through them like a To Do list.  I've started dating the sticky notes so that is helping but there are still other things that really need to go into my planner.

I've made serious progress on An Ozarks Homecoming by working on it every day. I need to get the blurb written so I can order the cover so that's my goal for this week. I'd love to finish the components I need to enter the cover contest at the Ozark Creative Writers Conference. The deadline to enter is August 31st. No self-imposed deadline for me this time around, I need to get moving! I'm ready to put this book out there then start on Book 3 in the stand-alone series while I'm at the conference in October. This entire series takes place in Eureka Springs, Arkansas and Book 3 was inspired by my real life hero to set it at the conference, not just in the surrounding community. I can't think of a better time to write the opening then at the conference!

Back in the office later in the week I'll continue the sorting, pitching, donating, writing.

What's your plan this week? I hope it's somewhere cool.

Be safe, Be prepared, Be Blessed!

~ Kelly

FLY LADY WEEK 3 - Bedroom & Bathroom

 Good morning, everyone!

After a day of struggling with an email issue that's been going on for over a month, I think I've found a 'happy at the moment' place and get back to what I'm supposed to be doing.

This week is all about the bedroom & bath. 

While there are things that need tending to, I'm not diving in hard this round. For this week, I'm going to focus on making a list of what needs decluttered. One area is the bathroom cabinet on my side.

When we remodeled the house we used deep pantry cabinets on either side of the vanity, not realizing how easy things could get lost in there.  The other thing was I chose baskets to organize everything on each of the five shelves. After 20+ years, let's just say there's A LOT in there that can go.

My plan is to pull each basket out, pitch what no longer serves me then by individual 'refrigerator' type storage bins. They are quite deep in length so should work great in the cabinet. Something similar to these:

WAYFAIR

I think the bins system will allow me to keep things separated and not all dumped into one basket on each shelf.

If I can at least get the pitching done this week then I'll know the type of bins I need to purchase.

Do you have a cabinet in your bedroom/ bathroom that could use a serious pitch session? Maybe it's time to go through the winter clothes so you know what to purchase for the coming season. Reward yourself with a cozy fall sweather for your efforts.  

I meant to get in here last week with pictures of my #jaritupjuly progress but the computer/ email issues was more than I could deal with. I did get some things in jars. #jaritupjuly only runs through the 25th of the month, but I'm taking the entire month.

What's on your list for this week? Remember, any little step forward is still progress. You got this!

Be safe, Be prepared, Be Blessed!

~ Kelly

FLY LADY WEEK 2 - Living Room & Dining Room

 Good afternoon!

Apologies for the late-day post. Still trying to get back on track after being at a writer's conference last weekend. Granted, the conference was virtual but I made sure last week's blog posts were up then focused on writing. 

Last night, I'd already shut down before realizing I hadn't scheduled today's post. Then up about every two hours last night made for a rough start to today.  

These two rooms are pretty much non-committal. I need to prep for being unavailable Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. The writer's retreat is virtual, as well, so I have stuff to get done. Focusing on deep-diving into a room or two is not on my agenda this week. Part of the issue will be sitting my car bag in the living room so that we have room in the back of Angel for something else this weekend. It's always something.  

I did get the living room sofa cleared last night so Bob and I could both sit and enjoy back-to-back episodes of Forged In Fire while we ate supper. Up to that point, Bob was the only one with sofa room. I had my Patriotic Journal kit items on my end. 

I'm also hoping to get more of the jars out of the living room. I have three weeks left of the #JarItUpJuly and I really want to get more items in jars. I did get the Dinner Rolls mix in jars yesterday. I got 9 pints of mix from a #5 bag of self-rising flour. 

Summer is always a busy time. If you have kids, I suggest just focusing on keeping things in some semblance of order while educating them on taking care of their own things. You are not their maid, nor are you serving them by picking up after them. They can, and need, to pick up their stuff. 

I'll see you later in the week with #jaritupjuly pictures.

In the mean time....

Be safe, Be prepared, Be Blessed!

~ Kelly

FLY LADY WEEK 1 - Kitchen & Laundry Room

 Good morning, friends!

I hope you had a wonderful holiday weekend. Sometimes, it's hard to comprehend our country as we know it has been in existence for 250 years. But then, as I approach 65 I find that hard to believe as well.

I got a head start on the this area last week. We had a nice day so I stripped out the items I could move. I began by a deep sweep of the floor followed by a serious mopping. Mind you, I still need to steam clean and use the bissel but that will wait until I do the deep clean for the holidays. But this was a start. While the recycle bins were empty, I gave them a good scrubbing before putting them back in place. How you can wash the cans & plastics and still wind up with crud in the bottom of the baskets baffles me. 

I have one goal for each of the two areas; laundry room & kitchen:

LAUNDRY - the pet bins. I don't need any of the things that belong to Honey B anymore. I want to use one of the bins for the bird food containers. I also need a better place to put the box where I collect magazines for recycling. We'll see how this goes as I don't have a definitive plan, yet.

KITCHEN - the corner where the coffee pot used to sit at an angle. We changed that when we got the new pot system. Now the area has become a catch all for all manner of things we use routinely. I want to change that out so the area is ready for the Fall tiered trays I bought a couple of years ago and have  yet to put into place. I have one for Fall and one for Christmas. I'd like to find a white one for the rest of the year. Maybe I need a 'me' day of shopping. I've not done one of those in a long time.

I'm planning to have a check list for each of the weeks by the first week in August. While not all of the items on the list will apply to everyone, they might get you looking at your area with a new perspective.

In the mean time...

Be safe, Be prepared, Be Blessed!

 ~Kelly

#JARITUPJULY

ANGELA - THE INQUISITIVE FARMWIFE

Good morning, everyone!

Welcome to Jar It Up July!

I don't know about where you are but summer has arrived with temperatures near 100* with heat indexes topping that.  The heat is exactly why I'm not going to be doing any water bath or pressure canning for the challenge this month. Instead, I'm going to be giving my jar vacuum sealer a work out. If you're curious, THIS is the one I use and am very happy with the appliance. The item has gone up about $5 since purchasing ours but is still a great deal.  

I have a long list of what I want to put up this year, most of which I've gotten from Jara at Wicked Prepared on YouTube.  Here's a direct link to her Meals In A Jar Playlist.

Basic mixes:

Cheese sauce

Alfredo sauce

Chicken gravy

Brown gravy

Mulling spices

Baking mixes:

Dinner Rolls

Muffin Mix

Quick Brad

Bread In A Jar

Meals:

Mountain Man Casserole

Creamy Lasagna Skillet

Hamburger Lasagna

Shepherds Pie

Chicken Ala King

Philly Cheesesteak Pasta

Italian Stew

Burrito Filling

Chicken & Rice Bake

Vegetable Beef Soup

We've tried several of these and very happy with the results. They are something Bob can dump and fix if I'm not home or need help with dinner on a busy day. 

These are all made using freeze dried products (some ingredients may be substituted with dehydrated but the rehydrating will differ a bit. 

My plan is to do these on Sundays and possibly one other day during the week. I can do all the Baking mixes in one day. Same with the Basics. The meals will take a bit more so will probably do two a week, pairing up similar ingredients for specific dishes.

When I'm through with this project, I'll know what I need to restock in my freeze-dried food pantry. Now that Thrive doesn't exist anymore, I'm looking at ThriveAList  I know a couple of ladies that were with Thrive, have moved to Thrive A List and are very happy. Leisa and Jara both work closely with the company.

I'll be back soon. In the mean time, let me know in the comments if you are participating in the challenge and what you are most excited to have a supply of in your pantry.

Be safe, Be prepared, Be Blessed!

~ Kelly

 

FLYLADY WEEK 5 - Basement

 Good morning, friends!

Appears as if the rain has finally moved out and now it's just going to be HOT! 

This should be the week I work on the basement, but other things have to be taken care of.

Bob did spend some time last week organizing the boxes/ tubs in the shower room. He opened up a tub that said 'restaurant pans' on the label then promptly left the tub sit open in the room rather than putting it back where I had it stored.

I do need to do some decluttering and rearranging. There are cardboard boxes that I can break down and take out to the greenhouse for the strawberry bed mulching and I'm sure there's a few things that can go to thrift but right now there are three other important things I have to take care of.

Wednesday starts #jaritupjuly. I'll be making up all kinds of jar mixes such as both chicken and beef gravy, alfredo sauce mix and cheese sauce mix.  Then there are 'meals in a jar' that I need to replenish or didn't get to in January. None of these require the pressure canner, water bath canner, or the dehydrator. I'll share my complete list with you later this week.  

I'd also hoped to share my 4th of July decor. We got the front deck cleaned then rain/ thunderstorms visited several days in a row. I hope to squeeze in time tomorrow morning to get that done. I also want my coffee bar set up. 

This is a Rough Draft Challenge (writing challenge) month with Sarra Cannon in the Heartbreathings community. I'm determined to be inspired by the patriotic theme of the month and finish pulling this book together. I've already told Bob I need two hours every evening except what we do for the 4th celebration. 

To round things out, I'm doing 25 Days of Christmas in July in my creative community (KellysCreativeDreams on YouTube and Blogger). Aside from a Christmas themed thing every day for the first 25 days, I'm hoping to get another journal kit done up and out of the way with a Pink Christmas theme.  

Not a lot of cleaning this month at all except the basics and trying to declutter the studio as I work through kits. I'll keep the Fly Lady posts coming and I have other posts to pepper in throughout the month on my schedule. 

I hope you have a great & safe 4th of July!

Be safe, Be prepared, Be Blessed!

~ Kelly 

PANTRY PREP - #JarItUpJuly

 Good morning, friends!

I'd hoped to be doing more of these Pantry Prep posts. Some days, it's really hard for me to come into the office and focus when sitting at the table playing cards or dice games with Bob are much more inviting. 

courtesy of Ray Shrewsberry - Pixabay

One thing you will never see on this blog or my YouTube channel is a pantry tour. In one side, people talk about safety then on the other side they show everything they have stored and where! While I don't buy into the apocalyptic scenario (completely), that doesn't mean I want people to know what I have and where I store.  That said, let's move on. ;-)

So what is #jaritupjuly?  Well, the easiest description is to visit Angela @TheInquisitiveFarmWife on her YouTube channel. You'll find the video with all of the information and participants links HERE. 

I'll be talking about my complete list in my video HERE.

For now, here's the overview:

Since I have no desire to boot up either canner nor the dehydrator in summer heat (why make the AC work any harder than necessary) I'm going to focus on Meals In A Jar, Mixes, and dry canning such as oatmeal, flour, rice, cereals, etc. 

Next week is Week 5 in the Fly Lady cleaning zone so Bob and I will be doing an inventory of the shelves and making a list of what needs replaced. My #jaritupjuly list will grow from there. 

Leisa at Suttons Daze has a VIDEO explaining how are food supply is going to affected and seeing price hikes this fall, so we're out to get ahead of that. If you missed that post, HERE is Leisa's video. She doesn't spout nonsense, or believe in fear-mongering. She gives you statistics and where she gets her information from - reputable sources. I love her.

I hope you'll join the rest of us squirrels and start stocking your pantry.

Be safe, Be prepared, Be Blessed!

~Kelly

FLY LADY WEEK 4 - Office

Good morning, friends!

I think this is  my favorite week. I'm sure you know by now I'm trying hard to make sense of the office/ studio.

By the time you read this, I will have FINALLY gotten the gift box tub put together and out of the Living Room. I've also taken care of the canning items except for the table holding wide-mouth quarts for a project I'll be talking about on the 26th in the Pantry Prep post. 

I'm only seven days from the next Full Moon. so pitching really isn't my agenda for this week. The best time to purge is between the Full Moon and the New Moon. Get rid of what no longer fits you or that you don't want to grow back (or at least at a slower pace)

With that in mind, this week will be all about organizing what I DO want to keep. I don't need in the sewing corner at the moment so I'm going to move all of my kits to that end of the room so I can get around in here, then stage what I do want to pitch after the 29th when the next Full Moon makes an appearance. 

I have other things I need to do in here that doesn't pertain to cleaning. July is going to be a really busy month so I'm trying to prep what I can  now.

* RoughDraftChallenge to finally get this book pulled together. 30 days of FOCUSED writing

* Ozark Creative Writers short pieces. Deadline is August 31st.

* #JarItUpJuly (I'll be talking about that on the 26th)

* 25 Days of Christmas (cards) on the Creative blog/ Youtube channel

* Pink Christmas journal kit (I've had this kit in a bag for 5 years! Time to get it done. 

I'm trying to work through all of my kits, one journal per month. We'll see how this goes but so far, so good. As I type this on Sunday, I'm hoping to finish one this afternoon. I've had all the elements and the signatures for about three years. I'd intended to finish it at the retreat in April but when I opened things up, I realized I didn't have a cover. Instead, I used what I did have to make MORE elements for the journal. LOL 

If you don't have an office or a craft room, what will you work on this week? With school out for the summer, maybe work with your kids to declutter their room and give them a fresh start for the coming school year.  Please let me know what you'll be working on.

Be safe, Be prepared, Be Blessed!

~ Kelly

FLY LADY WEEK 3 - Bedroom & Bathroom

 Good morning!

I don't know about you but I've had my share of weather, either for me or for family & friends.

I did get the canning stuff moved to the basement. The basement organization is the last week of the month but Bob got motivated to do some rearranging. The good thing is, I now have a place to put the extra jars from up here away. I may be packing meat sales in the freezer for the next couple of months but I'm not doing any canning until later this fall.

I did get the night stand cleared last week. Looks nice, and I have room for the keepsake box Bob got me for Christmas.

This week, I want to focus on getting the roll top desk in order so I can start listing projects again. Get photos off my phone and into the respective holders. Some are for the list journal and others are for the Yearly/ Monthly albums.  I'll worry about my clothes closet next month. I need to try stuff on and think about what I'll need for conference in October. One thing at a time.

The bathroom is in really good shape except for the cabinets. They need a good going through/ purge. If I take one basket of stuff a month, I'll have a fresh start by January... Baby steps.

What do you want to work on this week? Is there a space in one of these rooms you've been putting off tackling? Now is the time. Purging in the span of time between a Full Moon and a New Moon is the best time to help insure none of what you get rid of finds it's way back in some form. We have about 16 days left.

Be safe, Be prepared, Be Blessed!

~ Kelly

FLY LADY WEEK 2 - Living Room & Dinning Room

 Good morning, friends!

A bit wet and dreary here in the Ozarks but that's okay. The plants all need a good soak and I can stay inside.

While there is still a lot to do in the house over all, I have two main focuses this week.

Living Room:

* take the canning stuff back to the basement. I'm done doing any canning until fall. 

* FINALLY get the gift box tub taken care of

Dining Room:

* go through the pile of 'state' flyers/ brochures in prep for finishing the States Junk Journal this year.

* go through more of the cooking magazines. I'll note any recipes I want to try then take the rest to recycling

Sometimes you just need to find a FOCUS point rather than looking at the room as a whole. That's my plan of attack for this week. What's yours?

Be safe, Be prepared, Be Blessed!

~ Kelly

FLY LADY WEEK 1 - Kitchen & Laundry Room

 Good morning!

How can we be entering a new rotation already? Where does the time go?

Well, I can tell you a good portion of my time is spent with Bob. Though over the course of May a lot of my time was canning potatoes and baked beans. As you read this, I'll be processing the last of those #40 of potatoes. I am so ready to be done with those! I'm also putting the pressure canner away until fall. We're going to move into summer temperatures pretty quick and, if you've not experienced pressure canning, the task is a hot job. I don't want to work my AC any more than necessary.

For the most part, I'm done canning though I am planning on some blueberry and strawberry jam. I can put those in the water bath canner and they don't have a long processing time. An early morning task.

Now I can focus on serious cleaning.

I'm hoping for next month to focus on an actual task list that I can share with you. Things to look for in your own home you might not have thought of. For this last month in quarter 2, I just want to spruce things up a bit.

Laundry:

Go through the 3-cubby unit and get rid of anything I no longer need. We have no plans to get another dog so the bath towels, extra bowls, vet back pack, etc. can go! That will free up at least 2 cubbies for bird feed. LOL Yes, we have a wide variety of birds (and squirrels and raccoons) we feed on the front deck. Bob has gone from we aren't going to be able to afford bird feed to, 'let's grab a couple extra bags while they're on sale'. LOL He's so funny. He even researched what squirrel prefer and their visiting habits. He's such a softy. 

So cubby/ wild life food is the priority for that room. I also run the cleaning pod for the washing machine. 

From there it's the weekly run of the rumba and detailing the litter box area.

Kitchen:

I have 2 main areas of interest this week. 

The back area of the corner counter top. I want to declutter, add a lazy susan and possibly a couple of 4th of July/ Patriotic decor pieces.

The other area is my baking island. I already have the Patriotic decor for that space, I just need to clear everything else off so I can bring that in. I have planned to show you what that looks like in a later post.

Getting those areas done this week will be a big win. Can't wait for those two rooms to start looking inviting again.

Are you following this cleaning routine or have you developed your own? I'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments.

Be safe, Be prepared, Be Blessed!

~ Kelly

FLY LADY WEEK 4 - Office

 Good morning, everyone!

Looks like we get a day or two break in the rain. Saturday, I finally found healthy strawberry plants as well as Marigolds. Who knew those flowers would be so hard to find! I'll be planting my own next year, so that will help. I'm putting the marigolds in the tomato and zucchini tubs. We're going to put the strawberries in a holding pattern in the tower pots until we get the bed built. I need to wait for the 4-th of July firework tents to go up so I can haul a massive amount of cardboard. 

As you read this, the two areas of my bedroom will be done. I still need to take care of the 2'x4' table holding my Christmas paper crafting but not ready to bring it back into the office yet. But I will be able to sit at my roll-top desk and work on planning out the next big personal project - Alchemy180. I'll talk about it more in a later post. 

For this week, I'm back hard on the office. I have multiple areas to work on so I'm taking each area and using my Your Path Forward game board for inspiration. If you want to know more about that, I'll link the video HERE. I need to do an updated video this week that I hope to have posted by Wednesday, so if you are interested in that, please subscribe and click notifications on the linked video. That channel is my author account, Angela Drake. If you like Hallmark quality stories, I think you'll enjoy my books. I need to re-release one I got rights back to and Book 2 of the Eureka Springs series is coming soon.

Let's start with the Ugly Truth of this office. Watch the brief video then you'll understand. I'm being fully transparent here.

I know this looks bad. I'm not a hoarder. I USE my stuff and, most of the time, I can get exactly what I need in the moment. However, I want to be able to sit on my sofa and write or read the current book I need to write a review for. Come into my office, shut the door and just do my thing. 

The main things I need to focus on are:

1 - The filming corner

2 - The space in front of the scrap rack binder shelf

3 - Record videos then put the retreat items away 

4 - Clear the sofa, stacking the kits in front of the work table

5 - Finish 3 Bee journals and get one of them in the mail

6 - Organize the stamps that we moved. Some hadn't been included into the boxes yet.

7 - Put digital kits away

Next month I plan to focus on my Tim Holtz storage area.

Using the Game Board Strategy of Your Path Forward (brain child of YA Fantasy author, Sarra Cannon), I'm just going to pick one area, map it out on the game board then get started. If I can get through at least three areas this week, I'll count it as a win. 

The red bag has been returned to the car. One task down! The rolling craft bag is taken care of. Some items were put back where they belonged. Duplicate items stayed in the retreat bag. I've also cleared the filming table... then put stuff on it again. LOL It's a process!

So, as you can see I've made some progress.

What area are you focusing on this week? What major project could you make progress on using the Your Path Forward game board strategy? I'd love to hear from you.

Be safe, Be prepared, Be Blessed!

~ Kelly

FRIDAY FREEBIE - 25 Free Ways to Cut Your Electric Bill

 Good morning, everyone!

This is the beginning of a regular to semi-regular post. I plan to try for every week but at least twice a week. Stay tuned.

The theme of this post will be whatever comes to mind regarding everything household, prepper pantry, gardening, etc. Usually sharing a trusted YouTuber.

Courtesy of https://pixabay.com/users/geralt-9301/

This week I want to share a video by my favorite homesteading youtuber, Leisa from SuttonsDaze. A year ago, she posted a video about FREE ways to cut your electric bill. Before you watch the video, I understand not all of the items will be feasible for you. But, if you can apply even a percentage of these, I think you'll be less stressed when you look at future statements.

I can say I've tried a couple of these for sure and they WORK! Our electric bill was almost $300 about four months ago. Mind you, we were using our 'back up' electric heat (rather than the wood burner I prefer) and because of that the house wasn't keeping as warm, forcing the heat to run more as well as a space heater for Bob in his mancave and one in my office to compensate for what my Split can't handle when temps got into the teens. We've learned a few things.

One, Bob will spend less time in his mancave and in the main part of the house when it's really cold. The trade off is he can work downstairs more in the summer where it's cooler as opposed to running the AC upstairs as much. As for the split in my office, it's energy efficient but not always able to handle the super cold temps. They just aren't made for that.

Two, I've gone back to hanging clothes on the line whenever possible. Sometimes laundry will wait until I can if weather is severely cold or wet. Clothes will dry mostly in cold temps. A few minutes in the dryer in the evening to top dry them and heat the house a bit is another great trade off.

I understand a lot of you will say you can't hang clothes outside for whatever reason. You Do You. That said, if it's a pollen issue, let them dry outside then bring them in and toss in the dryer with a dryer sheet as you normally wood EXCEPT you only need to run the dryer (possibly even with NO HEAT) or low heat for about 10-15 minutes. You'll be amazed how much you'll save.

I'm also using electric appliances less with most even unplugged (I'll get to that next) Our stove is a gas range and the only thing we run on a 250 propane tank. A fill lasts us between 4-5 years!!

As to unplugging things, we moved as much as we could to power strips. When not in use, I simply turn the strip off. I've done this with my dehydrator, our bed (we have serta system that raises & lowers), the tv in the bedroom (I only use for a couple hours in the evening when I go to bed, as well as the Emeril Multi-oven, the mixer and the toaster in the kitchen. 

Making these small changes have cut our bill in HALF! Mind you, I know we won't be using the back up heat, but we're using the AC as little as we can.

So check out Leisa's video below then see how many of the changes you can make. Also, please subscribe to her channel. She does in-depth research in a lot of things that affect our Pantry Preparedness. You'll be glad you did.

Be safe, Be prepared, be Blessed!

~ Kelly

FLYLADY WEEK 3 - Bedroom & Bath

 Good morning, friends!

Looks like another wet week in the Ozarks. Great time to focus on the inside cleaning.

I do love my naps but I really need to get the bedroom in order. This week I'm going to focus on getting the roll-top desk organized. I have a basket of stuff to use there. I started participating in 'listing' with a content/ product creator called Listing With Layle. Layle walks you through documenting life in a 2-page spread of a traveler's notebook. I love the concept and I played along for a few weeks but I didn't have a place where I could really lock myself away for 4-5 hours journaling & visiting with others. Yes, I have a studio but everything goes on here. When I found that vintage roll-top desk at a yard sale for $40 I knew that would be my journaling spot. Once we got it moved from the warehouse to the bedroom, I never took the time to actually set it up. That will be my main focus for this week. That and clearing off my nightstand. The piece is actually a vintage vanity that has seen better days. The top needs stripped. Not my task. Just to clean it off and declutter the two drawers. 

I'd love to wash the bedding & put it on the line. Sadly, with the forecast I'll have to get an early start one morning so I can put everything through the dryer. Our power bill has dropped considerably since I've stopped using the dryer so much. I'll be posting a video from a YouTuber I follow where she talks about saving on the electric bill. In the mean time, what are you focusing on this week?

Be safe, Be prepared, Be Blessed!

~ Kelly

Those two tasks will do me while I focus on clearing the craft room/ office so I can work in here next week.

FLY LADY WEEK 2 - Living Room & Dining Room

 Good morning, friends!

This week we focus on the living room & dining room. For you, that might just be one or the other. Ours is a combined 26' x 12' living space separated by our sofa and a sofa cabinet we use for our board games. 

I should go through those this morning, first thing and add to the car full of stuff to go to Goodwill this week. Yes, I know there is a lot of controversy about Goodwill but here's something some people may not be aware of. While there is a huge financial payout the higher you go up the corporate ladder, they help a lot of people. They have education centers that help people get their GED and other learning opportunities, (some) offer daycare while those people are learning. They higher disabled (in a variety of ways), giving them a chance to gain life experience while receiving a paycheck and help the community. For the most part, the ones I've been in are clean. I have a local thrift store (former furniture store) that smells of cat urine and their receiving room is stacked with bags of stuff that literally go the full width of the room and to the ceiling. I realize this is partly due to lack of volunteers, but seriously, I won't even donate there anymore. 

When you look at your living room, what do you see?

End tables/ coffee table tidy, ready for your beverage while you watch a movie? Or do you see clutter to the point you don't even know what lays beneath? For us, we have both. Bob's end table houses a small storage box to keep 'his things' in, a coaster, a lamp. Mine has a lamp, a coaster... and stuff left over from when I sorted out my car console. yeah. I'm the collector here LOL. 

Our sofa/ recliner arms have a storage section beneath. I've not cleaned mine out in forever. Bob's is home to the remotes.

I did a lot of decluttering in here on Friday but there is still more to do. Out of frame on the far left is a card table with my current canning supplies. I spent last week canning sausage and hamburger. I still have #25 of potatoes left to do this week. After that, I plan to canned baked beans. The basket that looks like a bassinet holds the kitchen towels I've not had the chance to fold. That's first on my list after writing this post. The box on the Gazelle on the far back sits on top of an empty tub. I plan to clean that out today. The tub is going to hold reusable boxes we can use for gifts at Christmas. I'll finally have them all in one place. So, not a lot left in the living room.

The dining room will take a bit more work so I've decided to work in stages starting with the game cabinet. I not only have games in there we no longer play (over 40 years we've chosen our favorites) but vintage candle holders, puzzles and a variety of candles. Next will be the immediate stack in the foreground. Those two stacks are in need of breaking down for images to put in my States Junk Journal. I really want to get that journal done and the remains gone. I had a 3' lateral file drawer at one point full of travel books/ brochures by state. Those stacks are all that's left for me to break down into the actual images I want to use.  

The key is to look at your space, make a list of the areas you want to focus on then start with one. If one section is all you get done this week, that's one completed area towards your goal to a tidier, more welcoming home. 

Did I mention Bob may have friends visiting from Iowa later in the month? LOL Yep, expecting company is always a good incentive. 

Please tell me in the comments... What is the one thing you can do in your space this week?

Here's to progress.

Be safe, Be prepared, Be Blessed!

~ Kelly