Sink Reflections by Marla Cilley (2002, Paperback, Reissue)

If you were not "Born Organized" and you are living in "CHAOS" ("Can't Have Anyone Over Syndrome!) then this book will help you; at least, it has helped many others in the same situation to recover. I can say with certainty that flylady's system really does work!

Her system is very simple. Anyone can do it. The best part about it is that, when you use her system, you never get behind. There is no failure with this system. You have permission to go at your own pace. In fact, "baby steps" are encouraged and "perfectionism" is discouraged. As flylady says, your house did not get messy in one day and it is not going to get clean in one day either.

What flylady does is, slowly and step by step, teach you routines that will work for you. The very first routine you will learn is how to shine your sink, and to make sure that it is shiny every night before you go to bed. If you stick to that routine every evening, it means that you will be greeted by your shiny sink every morning. Once you have that routine down, it's on to the next one. And it builds from there...15 minutes at a time, until finally, not only are you living in a clean house but you are also easily able to maintain it.

The humor in this book is great too. Flylady is very empathetic; mostly, I think, because she really has been in the same clutter-filled situation herself, and she found a way to dig herself out of it. She is never judgemental.

In my opinion flylady's system only has a couple of very minor downsides. One of them: she insists that you get dressed to shoes every morning. The shoes part just does not work for me; we don't like wearing our shoes inside. Also, there are a lot of acronyms to keep track of (CHAOS, etc.) None of this is that problematic, because with this system you can always just use what works for you and ignore the rest. For the most part I find the system to be very user-friendly and workable. It works for me!

To test flylady's methods for yourself, the first thing you want to do is buy her book. Then go to her web site and sign up for her email list. At first it might seem a little strange- getting daily emails from someone you've never met, never mind emails that say things like "where's your laundry?" But once you get used to it you'll probably find that the system works very well. (And if you don't like the emails, you can always unsubscribe.) Then buy the book for your friends/family who weren't "born organized"!

Definitely recommended!

I first saw this book four years ago when it first came out. Given the fact that it is still getting a decent price four years later, you know there is something to it.

Marla, called the FlyLady because she had a career tieing fishing flies, was a disorganized single mother living in chaos (or as she would say, CHAOS--Can't Have Anyone Over Syndrome) when she came up with her system for getting and staying organized. Basically, she believes that a clean home reflects a person's inner state and by building up your own self-esteem and applying some simple tools, you can live a happier life of peace with a home that welcomes you.

This book tells some of her life story (living in an abusive home, etc.) as well as some stories reported on her website, flylady.net. I pictured her as a blue collar "Roseanne" who practices both tough love and compassion. Hey, she's been there. I liked this book because it's slim and a fast read and a great reference for when you're feeling down and discouraged.

She basically says you should never go to bed without shining your kitchen sink. The sink basically is like a lighthouse beacon, cheering you up enough to try doing other cleaning activities. This little act of nightly discipline helps you establish a routine. (Among her other mantras are to wear tie shoes in the house--tie shoes give you a more productive feeling. If you don't wear shoes in the house, buy shoes meant just for indoors.)

Overall, this is a great addition to the library of organizing books as it reflects the opinions of someone who has truly been there.

A great book which will motivate you even if you don't follow all of the steps. The great part about this book is that when you need motivating a couple of years from now this is a book you will grab and devour all over again. Several years ago I felt overwhelmed with too much stuff and didn't think I was good at organizing. (Besides not wanting to spend the time doing it! My very organized mother and brother used to kid me that I must have been adopted!) I found out from doing the baby steps, the fun 27 fling boogies and hot spot fire drills that organizing and keeping the house clean no matter how busy you are is doable. I really got into it and was so proud of my space. I found that life was simpler without so much clutter. The routines rubbed off on other family members making it even better. I ended up with a cleaner, better organized space and had more time for myself. That part still amazes me! I had more time for my hobbies and enjoyed them more.
I have used variances of the routines for just my scrapbooking room to keep it organized and for my office which is away from home. If I ever get lazy I can get rejuvenated with Sink Reflections. I highly recommend it if you are like me and don't think that organization is one of your top skills. I think you will be very happy if you use even a portion of the ideas in this book. Go for it!

FlyLady. It seems to be a buzzword among stay-at-home parents. "Have you done FlyLady yet?" Conversations at the Tot Lot, playgroups, and meetings would more often that not lead to a discussion about FlyLady.

I went to her website and found it a little confusing. The introduction video on 'shining your sink' was understandable, but I didn't really understand where to go to from there. So I bought her book on Ebay.

Reading the book is one part resource and one part personal narrative on how she became the FlyLady. She proves that she understands where us stay-at-home parents are coming from and that she hit a 'bottom' that a lot of us do not see. While I enjoyed her personal story and reflections, I got a lot more out of her literal advice and organization strategy.

When it came to her personal reflections, I really enjoyed her outlook on 'perfectionism'. I agree that I have had those feelings and that is my tendency. I sometimes didn't agree on other aspects, but those things I didn't agree on didn't affect the organization strategy she suggests.

On her organization, I loved her suggestion of a 'Control Journal'. I have put it into practice and my life is easier already. I took her lists for her cleaning schedule and fit it to my family and our needs.

I would suggest this book to any stay-at-home parent that feels that sometimes they spend their life cleaning and cooking, rather than basking in the smiles and giggles of their children. That was my inspiration to look for a resource that would help me organize my cleaning so that I was only cleaning around an hour a day. It may take a few months to get the routines down, but I think it is worth it.

To conclude, I feel that while I may not be a 'devout' flybaby, I am definitely incorporating her strategies and using her as a primary resource to organize my cleaning routines.

Sink Reflections by Marla Cilley is a great self-help book. She gives great ideas on organizing your home, what to clean, how to clean. Marla will even make suggestions as to how to develop a cleaning routine. She also gives a lot of pats on the back for women who are overwhelmed with careers, families, and keeping order in their homes! One of the neat things about Marla's book is that she injects a lot of humor throughout!

I definitely took a lot of ideas from her book such as the "27 Fling Boogie" and still reference it quite often.