You Have To Start Somewhere

In my previous post, I discussed how my housekeeping/organizational skills fell to the wayside over the last couple of weeks. That happens to all of us,and we shouldn't feel bad for it.I do admit that once most of my house was up to speed,it was quite a good feeling,and I am now on a quest to try and maintain it as best I can. This means that when appointments comes up on specific days, I will have to restructure my weekly plan. I just have to do it, is all. However, two weeks ago we had an appointment every day for a week,and the VA hospital is an hour an a half away,so by the time I got back home,I didn't have the drive to do much of anything.
However, we are not going to schedule so many appointments in one week anymore,so I should not have that problem ever again.
We all want to be more organized in our daily lives, especially when it comes to maintaining our homes. Anything that will make upkeep easier is a good thing,and the less time it takes,the better.
After reading Flylady's website ( www.flylady.net) I sat down and wrote out what I have to do in each room to maintain it. Now bear in mind, if you follow Flylady,she had one room a week that is concentrated on,that you spend so much time out of the day in. I found if I can get this room done in one day, it works out better for me,and if need be, I will break it up into two.
I looked at his schedule for the first time in a while since nice weather began-like I said in my previous post,nice weather means more to do outside,so the inside is basic upkeep,no extras.
I have some things written down that seem silly-such as sweeping each day. I know I have to sweep each day,because I live with one cat, two dogs,two men and a boy. We have dirt driveway and walkway. It's a given I have to sweep. It's the never ending battle of my life.

Monday-Zone room,clean out fridge,make menu and grocery list,Zone mission,Sweep/dust house,spend 10 minutes decluttering one area
Tuesday-Groceries and errands,Zone mission,Sweep
Wednesday-Finish Zone room ( if needed),Zone mission,sweep/dust house,declutter where needed
Thursday-Laundry,go through magazines,sweep,Zone mission
Friday-Balance checkbook,go through any paperwork (such as bills,etc),Zone mission,sweep/dust house
Saturday and Sunday- free days

Now, bear in mind this is a basic list,and depending on what comes up when, I will have to switch things around. However, you get the idea. Zone missions are on the Flylady website.These are small extra things to do in your zone room each day. Now, not everybody can follow Flylady to the letter,and I am one of those people,so I adjusted her idea to fit my lifestyle. It is a continual work in progress.
One other thing I did was make a binder with all certain information in it so I know where to access it. It's a simple three ring binder. I have 5 sections in it:
PHONE NUMBERS- I made a list of all the phone numbers we need-emergency,neighbors,friends,Rick's army buddies,VA contacts and all extensions,military contacts, etc. I also keep a list of all of Rick's doctors,what they are for,and which VA hospital they are in ( Rick has gone to three VA facilities)
RESTAURANT MENUS- We don't go out or order out very often,but they are good to have to help make decisions.
HOUSEHOLD-This is where I keep my list of daily chores,as well as things I printed off the Internet from various websites regarding household organization.
SCHOOL-This is for info from Zach's school. Right now I still have receipts,balance sheets,and info about the Nature's Classroom trip he went on this past May. I will throw those out and start anew with the letter his new teacher sent to him this week. It has his teacher's email,and what Zach needs for school in it.
TOWN INFO- All town phone numbers,times when town hall is open,monthly town meeting times,etc.
I keep this binder next to my microwave,so I always know where it is. You will be surprised how much time is saved trying to find a phone number. We just go to the binder and VOILA! There it is. It sounds so simple,but sometimes,simple is all it takes.
You have to start somewhere!!!!