Shine your sink

FLYlady has a 31 day Babysteps program, each day you add a new habit to your day each one building upon the last. Well I have plenty of habits, most of which are bad ones. Isn't amazing how much easier it is to create bad habits than good?!

Day 1 was to shine your sink. The idea is to keep your kitchen sink empty and clean. Duh! We all know that is supposed to be, and how much easier it is to clean as you go when the sink it free. Yet my clean salad bowl, baking stone and large pan were all sitting in the right side of the sink (my holding area) for varying times ranging from a month to a week. Why didn't I just take the 2 minutes maximum to put them away? Because they don't have easy homes, I have to move things around, and use a steps tool. Simply put, I am lazy. Well, I have kept my sink clean and clear for the past 2 days and it really does make a huge difference! I made cookies and bread, I had been putting off because the sink overwhelmed me. It sounds so stupid, but those 3 clean dishes in my sink kept me from using and enjoying my kitchen. FLYlady says waking up to a clean sink can and will make you smile, and that is her way of giving us a big hug. When I walked into my kitchen this morning knowing all my dishes were clean and my sink was shiny I felt so good about myself. I made a yummy breakfast for the kids, and put the dishes straight into the dishwasher, and now my day has started off in a positive and motivated way.

Now don't misunderstand, the rest of the house looks as if a tornado came through, my baseboards are dirty and I am pretty sure no one has anything clean to wear to our Christmas gathering today. But my kitchen sink is empty and shiny, and so at least I've accomplished one thing more than usual!

FLYing to become a better homemaker

I am not a naturally neat person, it just isn't in my blood. Neither is Handy Hubby, so the example for our kiddos has been less than ideal. The reality of that fact smacked me across the face when I noticed Biggest Brother tossing trash aside and dropping toys wherever he was when he was done with it. Wow! The blinding strobe of a light bulb above my head was screaming "Stop being a do as I say, not as I do mommy!!!".

I decided to find a way to make cleaning a routine to better instill in myself and my kiddos the habit or being neat. Off to the Internet I went to google "cleaning schedule" and found a bunch of so-so charts, but nothing that really motivated me. Then I stumbled upon www.FLYlady.net and felt a twinge of excitment! I explored the site and loved how homey it felt, and for the first time I felt ok about being a messy mommy who hated having company over - because I am not the only one!!

Anyways, I joined the site and have decided to begin their "Babysteps" program to create new habits to be a better homemaker. I'll keep you up to date on the steps, and how well I am following them. Go over and check out the site if you could use a dose of encouragement and guidance yourself, if you decide to take the Babysteps challenge along with me let me know!