Fighting Fibro with the Flylady

I've had a long-term, on again-off again relationship with the Flylady. This relationship predates my Fibromyalgia. But now that I've come to accept that Fibro is a permanent part of my life, I'm beginning to fully appreciate the life management system offered by the Flylady.

Have you heard of her? Have you tried it? The basic premise is that you can do anything for 15 minutes, including things you'd rather not do. Like housework, for instance. Check out her website for details on how to reclaim your life from CHAOS (Can't Have Anyone Over Syndrome). I know when I'm in the midst of a flare, it is very easy to feel bad about what I can't do to maintain my home. Setting a timer for 15 minutes and tackling a room always makes me feel better about myself, which in turn helps me feel better in general.

I've been rereading Sink Reflections with a few buddies on Twitter. After finishing the first chapter, I've decided to focus on:

• Clean counters: these make my small kitchen feel bigger. And organized.
• BBR (Before Bed Routine): This includes getting my gym bag ready, as well as preparing breakfast/lunch/snacks. This usually happens as soon as I get home from work so it is finished before I exhaust all my energy for the evening. When this is done, I can get out the door and have time for a good workout before getting to school.
• Going to bed at a decent hour: Ha! Going to bed at a decent hour sometimes means staying awake until AFTER I put Turtle to bed. The trick is to stay in bed (asleep) until my alarm goes off the next morning. Exercise helps me sleep through the night. But, in order to have enough time to exercise, I need to have completed my BBR (see point above).
• Doing something everyday that helps me feel special: This is a tough one! Right now, I make sure to indulge with my Body Shop Satsuma Body Oil with my post-workout shower. I've also unearthed my Satsuma Parfum Oil. I can't help but smile when I get a whiff of that orangey goodness!

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Crazy weekend

What kind of shenanigans were you up to this weekend?

Inspired by Ms. Caboo, I cleaned my living room ceiling fan. Then, I swept my ceiling and my walls. Yup. I'm crazy like that.

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I kid you not, my living room feels bigger now that I've finished that task! I'm considering it the first task completed in getting my home ready for the holidays.

Do you have heavily textured walls and ceilings that require the occasional sweep?

Preschoolers and Housework

I really don't want to spend all my waking hours working at my paid job as well as my unpaid ones (home & family).  I need help caring for the house in order to have time to recharge my own batteries.  Sadly, the Kitchen Fairy was last seen with the Cabana Boy heading for the Seychelles Islands so that source of free help is no longer available. 

There is however one source of help available to me nearly 24/7.  She's got red hair and loves being with mommy all the time.  She loves to mop the kitchen floor and handwash dishes. She can scrub potatoes and carrots like a pro and loves to wipe down cupboards and baseboards.  Turtle is a Montessori kid so she's learning how to do dishes, wash windows and scrub tables at school.  However she's not always the most motivated helper so one can't always depend on her helping when one needs it the most.  Due to my work with small people, I'm getting quite good at identifying the "currency" each little one uses.  My Turtle is turning into quite the girly-girl, so the key to motivating her to help around the house was the word pretty.

The words "clean your room" were replaced with "make your room pretty".  We have gone from Turtle emptying her dresser drawers and closet on a daily basis to keeping it tidy with just a five minute rescue.  Making things pretty is a concept she can understand.  It sounds like playing!  Cleaning is something Mommy doesn't like to do and should be avoided at all costs.  But now when Mommy says "I'm going to make the kitchen look pretty," a little voice can be heard to say "I want to help!"  It is also motivating Mommy because making things pretty is a lot more fun than doing chores.  Reading design/home/crafty blogs is finally paying off because they are inspiring me to prettify my home  :D