If your nest is cluttered and getting you down, join February's Fledgling Flyers and turn it around

[pushmepullyou]

Welcome to the February Fledgling Flyers' thread. A very big thankyou to ToffeeChristmasCake (who will presumably return under her non-Christmas name ) for seeing us through the thick and thin of January decluttering.

All flyers and fledgings old and new are very welcome - we have a fairly relaxed attitude to flying and take some of the babysteps - such as getting dressed to lace-up shoes - with a pinch of salt. We also strongly advise against signing up for the FlyLady emails.

From the first of the month, we will be following Flylady's tips on restoring order to our homes, using one of the following methods:

1. Babysteps
2. Babysteps + 15 mins daily decluttering
3. Babysteps + daily missions

Following the babysteps helps to establish daily routines and build a weekly plan.

If you are overwhelmed by the mess in your home, start with just one thing: shine your sink. It's amazing what you can achieve by just doing a bit at a time!

Pleased be warned that my month's leadership comes with a bit of a caveat as I am due to have DC2 at the beginning of March so there is a chance I may disappear mid month! Thankfully Toffee has very kindly offered to deputise in the event of the unexpected appearance of DS .

Apologies to Toffee (and by extension Ellie) for blatant intro plagarising and thankyou to Nettie for the thread title

See you all in February!

Morning ladies!! Getting ready for the week ahead here.
Dresses to shoes done
DS ready for hockey tournament and send of with DH and FIL done
Read part of Sunday paper whilst enjoying proper Dutch soffee done
Dishwasher on done
Washing machine on done
Empty above mentioned machine and put contents in therefore designed area's
Clean kitchen
Shine sink
Iron shirts for DH and DC's (= 15) done
School uniforms/pe-kits/sports kits ready for week done
No leavers today so rooms just tidy/make beds etc. done
Tidy ground floor/dust&hoover
Late lunch at Bil & Sil2b
Feed and clean animals
Shower myself and PUT SOMETHING DECENT ON (yes I meant to shout at myself there!!)
Put on dark/hockey wash after return of DS

Ballinderry - it will get better! (the hotspots, I mean).

SilverSixpence - welcome to the thread. It sounds as if you have seen benefits from flying already. Don't mention Lakeland to me - I can't resist them! Will have to look up that ecover mop now.

Swan - sorry for the knot in your stomach and unrefreshing sleep. Don't try and do everything - it just feels too overwhelming then. I hope lunch with B and SIL goes better than you expect. And that you get a decent night's sleep tonight. Incidentally, I had a rare 8 hours' sleep on Friday night and felt much worse on Saturday . Btw, wasn't it you who did the lovely mantlepiece arrangement? Sounds as if you are easily artistic enough to do a tile arrangement.

Nicknacks - excellent list, especially the getting ready for tomorrow bits. I couldn't do without those myself.

Doric - just 15mins decluttering a day makes an astonishing difference.

Ellie - sorry a bomb went off in your house. Hope you have a lovely lunch out today and can forget about housework for a bit.

Leo - 5 extra people for dinner - argh! I can barely feed our four sometimes. Best of luck and hope it goes well.

Skip - I hope you managed a bit of leisure time, as well as flying, and that you did sit down with a paper!

Had my lie in this morning, although I was regularly interrupted by small people wanting me to read them stories or chat or admire their Lego train station. My list for today is:

Ring other mother about my DS not wanting to meet her DS (not looking forward to that)
Lunch
Decluttering in the loft
Play with DS2 (special request)
DH take binbags to dump
Laundry
PM routine
Dinner
Eve routine
Bed at decent hour

Back later. Hope you all have a lovely Sunday.

Blijmuts - sorry, x-posted. That looks like a very busy day!

Gosh, you have all been so busy this morning and I have done - er - exactly nothing . Apart from go on MN, of course, which is, of course, a very, very important job.

Another wasted morning thanks to this headache - if only I could at least read or MN in bed... In the meantime, DH has laid the rest of the floor, simultaneously kept the DC entertained and woke me when lunch was ready.

Off to have some Family Fun at the airport - they do a guided tour, including a ride on a double decker bus, which is perfect for DS. It's only for over 5s, so we had to explain to DS that we would pretend he was 5 (he's 4.5), upon which he burst into tears and kept insisting that he's 4...

PMPY Sorry to hear that your BIL is in hospital; hope he recovers from the infection soon.

ellie I ask myself the same question on a daily basis.

Welcome SilverSixpence.

Hope some child-free time does you some good, swan (it usually helps me get things in perspective) and enjoy your child-free time too Skip.

doric Don't worry too much about the decluttering for now. You're right - as a newbie, you only really need to be focusing on the babysteps.

leo Hope dinner goes well.

Sorry, no time for any more personals as DH has informed me we have to leave now. Hope everyone's having a good weekend.

Blijemuts wow you've managed so much in just the morning!

I'm off to my sister's for lunch, still got the bathrooms to go - such a pain having two bathrooms!

Silversixpence you are dealing with a REAL morning person here. I move mountains when I first get up,that's just the way I am,yes I was the child that would be wide awake at 5 every morning much to the annoyance of my poor long suffering parents Trumping you with having 4 bathrooms to clean on a daily basis .
Problem with me is it's downhill all the way from about 4pm. I am no fun after 9pm as by then all I'm good for is a snuggle on the sofa with a cuppa and a slab of chocolate!!

Empty dishwasher done
Empty washing machine and put new load on done

Ok i have a problem.....

I have been doing my de-cluttering religiously every day now and have two boxes and five black bags of things to go.

Problem is.... I can't do it.

I'm not sure why but it's all up in my bedroom and I feel really really sick everytime I think about putting it in the car and taling it to the charity shop/clothes bank.

Why do i feel like this and how do i get over it?

taking

morning all
ellie that is always how I feel at weekends and in holidays....in reality 6DC in the house +DH = not much chance of anywhere staying tidy for more than 30 seconds

swan yep...I need to be on verge of total breakdown before DH takes DC too...in fact have used that one this morning...wailing about various things and now he has taken little 3 to the playground

had a terrible night's sleep, stressing about various things to do woth DD3 and school (long ongoing story...DD3 has Asperger's, probably dyslexia too, struggles a lot at school...ongoing battle to get her the right support etc)
woke up feeling a bit sad and overwhelmed, plus feeling "bad Mummy" for not "doing" more educational stuff with her at home to help (result of spending way too much time on the internet researching tips for helping DC with dyslexia...sigh)
House also in total disarray...sigh

on a positive note...I have been for a 10K (7.25 mile) run... my longest distance yet, and am chuffed to bits I made it
have come back feeling much better (knackered, but in a good way!)

am now going to go get some belated lunch then crack on whilst DH and littlies are out:

Need to prioritise my list:
so to do:
washing - lots
clean clothes away
tidy/quick sort littlies wardrobe
tidy/quick sort girls wardrobe
sort dinner - roast chicken, (+ think I'll make a syrup sponge...yum!)
make Chick and mushroom pie for dinner tomorrow
make extra white sauce to freeze for use by Nanny later in week (anyone frozen white sauce before ....will this work?!)

then this evening I am going to do some planning of how to organise my evenings, and make sure I fit in time to do more with dd3...(doent help that her book bag is AWOL again....sigh)

right...need to go eat...

BBL

toffee hope phonecall went OK, and other mother was understanding.

OFM you have done brilliantly today - somehow it is the little frictions that grind one down as well as the serious problems. Dd is the ongoing problem here - we cannot seem to deal with her continuous rages Dh and I seem to be rotating good cop bad cop roles all day long..

B and SIL and newborn were an 3/4 hour late for pub lunch (not surprising really - I don't blame them in circs) but it didn't help that I had left mobile behind and dh was furious with me and them.
However nice lunch had by all, B and SIL were lovely, baby was asleep cheered all
dcs had long park day, cue unfortunate tantrum from dd about wanting to climb a particular unclimbable tree/dh absolutely fed up.

Anyway, will soldier on with family life now after a cup of tea.

Nick that is a big clear out, I'm not suprised you find it a bit overwhelming. What about taking it, and resolving to buy yourself a treat to fill the pyschical gap, something that is beautiful, and useful. Could be for the dcs even. I do sometimes miss things I've thrown away, occcasionally I end up buyng them again [so to speak] red cardigans to be specific , but mostly I promise you, you will NOT MISS what you have chucked.

nicknacks maybe not the most practical, but could you take it one bag at a time? Getting rid of one black bag doesn't seem as scarey as five bags fullGood idea from swan about buying a treat as reward too....

swan continuous rages can be so draining...

ok...have done more or less nothing off list...and am sort of abandoning hope now

have managed:
3 loads of washing...
roast chicken dinner in progress
printed out lots of resources for DD3
emailed Ed Psych and Autism Outreach team about dd3

Now need to sort wardrobes and check oranisation of uniform...
Sadly though DD3 has just had a MAJOR melt down, which we finally resolved...only to be replaced by DD4 going off in major tantrum over something or other...oh and DD3 now crying again it seems....sigh...
Roll on bedtime

BBL

Normality chaos has returned!
DCs all in their rightful places, all tired and grumpy, but they are home!!
Fridge and "nibbles" cupboard already emptied
Washing mountain has exploded out of the wash bins.
Chocolate cake sat on kitchen side for tea.
What more can a mum want? I am happy.

Blijemuts, I am the same in the mornings and can get up and get lots done before anyone else is even stirring. Useless in the evenings!

Overflowingmum, it sounds as if you have had a trying day. Early bedtime, maybe.

Apparently DD2 is being collected by boyfriend in 20 minutes and she needs some tea, so I am being summonsed. I will try to get back later.

Ok so I cheated!

My mum came around earlier and I told her about my trouble! She offered to take them to the hospice shop for me. So we loaded her car up. It's gone and I feel weird. Haven't decided if it's a good weird or a bad weird yet. Either way it's gone now. I think because a couple of items were baby things, like a mobile, first duvet cover. I have enough mementos (sp?) and they weren't the sort of things i would have kept but it still felt pretty heart-wrenching.

Anyway apart from bathing kids and putting them to bed, whihc i'm about to do, I'm all done for the day and ready to sit sown and watch Dancing On Ice!

Haven't caught up with thread but just flapping past.

Very busy and enjoyable w/e. Ambled about on an 'armchair' in the forest this morning (couldn't really call it riding) and then our turn to do lunch and hosting of various children and parents - roast chicken with all trimmings + apple crumble - not very innovative but good.

All just left so now it's time to pick up detritus ... not too bad ..; although haven't dared entered dd's room yet!

Sympathies and to you who are feeling a bit stressed out and grumpy ...

Glad your fledglings are safe and sound back in the nest PA

Nicknacks [SC dons pince nez and strokes chin] there are usually good reasons why people find it reluctant to part with clutter:
here are five of them

Pre-dd, I held on to my London work outfits years after I needed them because they represented a "me" I was proud of at the time (loved my job back then!) It was the moving forward bit on to different pastures I was scared of ....and losing that particular 'identity'.

The other reason I hold on to things is because I like to think I'm creative but in reality I just hoard loads of craft and sewing materials!! (I do make something every so often but materials out of all proportion to the projects I actually finish!)

To get rid of something requires a decision. Making a decision generally means deciding to go in one direction and by definition rejecting a different path. Does that make any sense to you? Sometimes clutter represents a "safe place" or "barrier" to stop one making any decisions at all (although that in itself is a decision ifyswim.)

Anyway, wish I could benefit from my own deep pyschological insight and chuck out a few more bags of stuff from our master bedroom . It's a bit better than yesterday but needs more worK.

Sorry no more personal messages. Got to calm down dd and persuade her in to bed.

Nick ahhh! x-posted - too later (sorry!!)

Well done for getting rid of it!!!

too late

Oh btw Pushme and Ellie

very happy to do links if Ellie has time to do round up tomorrow.

*

BABY-STEP no.7 for Monday 7th February
is a REALLY IMPORTANT ONE here

Tomorrow, we will be in ZONE 2 (the kitchen) all week
Click on here tomorrow and all will be clear

as will missions

Monday is home-blessing (or home overhaul) day (as we prefer to call it).

Have a great week everyone!
Back tomorrow morning!

Oh and a warm welcome to SilverSixpence who I missed before!

Many thanks to Stillchuckingit

Who suggested I tackled my bed-side table by taking a box and dumping everything in it, clean surface and drawers, then in 15 mins bursts complete the task... it worked !!! And it's now done - it wasn't as bad as I anticipated and your suggestion helped to make the task seem more doable, thank you for your words of wisdom while my head was stuck firmly in the sand.

Dh has also made a start in the garage - which is currently the home to many an eight legged creature - he's making admirable progress and has now produced another week's worth of shredding to keep me busy. He seems to be enjoying decluttering - but he's only just started - I'll take what I can get!

Sink is still clear - but the house is looking like a weekend has hit it - happy and messy from kids who have had a lot of fun.

Back to flylady tomorrow, looking forward to creating some order in the kitchen....

Thanks for that Still - by the way, WTF is Big Tent?

I am just in awe of you OM, how you manage to keep up I don't know!

Nick, I can totally identify. One of the biggest hindrances to me when chucking stuff out is the whole dilemma of whether I'll miss it once it's gone, what if I regret it, it's so final once it's binned etc. I end up keeping way more than I need to, only for me to have to sort it again years later. Hopefully this Fly malarkey will help me sort it permanently :)

Change cat litter
Fold yesterday's washing
Put away folded washing (has to wait 'til later as DP in bed)
Sink and dishes done about 5 times and dirty again
Make a cake with DS done, see my profile for the result :(
Prepare eBay items for postage done

And that was it! Don't know where today went, spent a while colouring in with DS, and we had a couple of hours in the park this afternoon, but mostly DD was a PITA again (why? who knows!) and I got bugger all done. I could, of course, do some stuff now but I have at last got a glass of wine and am winding down a bit ... we'll see.

Hi all

Was looking forward to joining you all but ama bit disheartened with the first hurdle; the shiny sink thing....

Firstly I have a dated kitchen with a white melamine/plastic/ whatever its made out of sink; it wont shine but I do already spray it with bleach almost every day otherwise it stains? So I take it I am supposed to give it an extra good bleach 1st?

But as for putting the dirty pots & drainer under the sink (have no dishwasher), I have no room under the sink, the kitchen is OK on the surface but the cupboards are fit to burst, there is nowhere else to put the lightbulbs, cleaning stuff, spare kitchen rolls etc.

Is there an alternative 1st step?

Thanks for all the messages of support. I don't know why I find it's so difficult but like you say it's so final! Tat i don't have such a problem with but it's stuff that has potential memories that i really worry about. You can't re-buy these, can you? Some clothes I find it hard to shift too and kids toys.

List went very well today though.

Online shop done
Washing done 5 loads
Pack swim kits done
Pack PE kits done
Lay out uniforms done
Kids Homework done
Hoover stairs not done
Wash bannister done
Bath/hair/nails etc kids done
Bath for me before bed
15 mins declutter done
2 mins hotspot done post and paperwork spot

Looking forward to tackling the kitchen!

Nick you reminded me - I also did 2 minutes on the kitchen table - set the oven timer - and it's great! Much improved although gosh darnit I was glad when the bell went 'ping'

Evening all,

Went out for pub lunch with MIL and family but it was awful, really grotty food but a good time was had by MIL on her 65th so that's what matters. Got home and the dc's were in danger of not living until the end of the day so we took them to softplay for a couple of hours, fed them there and by the time we got back it was bath and bedtime. Softplay can be hell but we always go at the end of the day when it is quiet, by the time we finished tonight we had the whole place to ourselves!

Back in a minute with a round-up as pmpy is away and posting on a phone isn't conducice to roundups! haven't looked through thread yet...this may take some time .