Fledgling Flyers Olympic August thread.

[BitchyDragons]

Ok so not the wittiest of titles but this month we have the Olympics, holidays, return of football season and heading into the new school year. It's going to be a busy one...

Firstly thanks to Blue and Ellie who kept us on track last month!

Right, most of you should know how this works. It's a three pronged attack.
Phase one: The babysteps master these and you will be working like clockwork.
Phase two: Adding in Decluttering this will help you keep on top of the amount of stuff contributing to CHAOS.
Phase three: Missions Targeted activities to keep the chaos at bay and starting the deep cleaning.

The golden duster of Flying is stage 4: deep cleaning. This is for most, unrealistic and should only be considered once you have completely decluttered. PA might achieve this simply by virtue of some extreme life decluttering. Although I probably won't recommend her method.

Now for those of you who are completely lost, lets rewind a bit.
CHAOS: Can't have anyone over syndrome. Yep you know that state where you are embarrassed to have play dates fucking hate that phrase or people pop in unexpectedly.
The fly lady approach works by breaking the house down into tiny activities which you do repeatedly yep sounds bad written like that but bare with me and then build up into a routine that becomes habit and you stop thinking about it no really, you do.

Clearer? Yeah ok. I have probably lost you but there is loads of support and help on this thread. If you are confused then ask. However, as this thread starts on the 1st on August I refuse to post the first babystep until later today.

This thread comes with a warning: For those of you who have not yet encountered my leadership of the thread. Be afraid, very afraid aware that I have a rather unorthodox approach and that things can get a tad unpredictable. Starting with a namechange. So who?s on board this month?

Oh and spot markers can help themselves to a magic eraser and ensure there are no marks on the thread for the start of the month. Let?s start as we mean to go on

Firstly appologies for the lack of links last night.

Secondly link for wednesday are as follows:
day
babystep 20 and babystep 21
missions

night.

Sounds great Ellie - well, possibly apart from the lightsabres! Happy birthday to your DS for tomorrow.

Toffee - make sure you don't overdo it!! Glad you're feeling better though.

Thanks for linkies, Bitchy.

I was feeling very down this afternoon somehow -tired and unable to stop the boys hurting each other and generally useless - but picked up a great book for 50p and been gripped ever since!

Night.

Hi
Loving the room ratings. V motivational to get them up one level, I can but try!
Lounge 2
Dining room 2
Kitchen 5
Master bedroom 5
Bathroom 3
Dd1 room 3
Dd2 room 3
Playroom 4

Waves to all, Ellie happy birthday to DS, have a fun day

Now, I have a dull dilemma.......Even though house is pretty much a disaster zone, we do in fact have a cleaner who comes every week for 2 hrs. . the thing is, the more flying I learn to do and the more chores I actually tackle myself between her visits, the more I am realising what little she actually is doing. I'm just so grateful for someone cleaning the bathroom and clearing a freshly vacuumed path through the place that I dont pay much attention! Trouble is, she has kind of become a friend and as one of the few local babysitting options, I'd hate to upset her by basically suggesting she pull her finger out, but DH is increasingly pointing out that 'we are paying x every week and you're doing more cleaning than she is'. I can see his point but i always make excuses, saying that its hard for her to work round all the piles of papers and whatever to actually clean, but on the other hand, she never even stays the full 2 hrs.The thing is, if she was at least managing a decent home bleurgh, then given I have to do most flying at toddler nap time, if she was tackling things properly I would have a big chunk more time to actually tackle the clutter. How on earth do I broach the subject without it making me curl up and die? I really should sort it out so she's not leaving floors unmopped and dusting half a room and so on.I'm cringing just thinking about how to discuss it with her though, I'm sure anyone reading this is thinking, 'just get a backbone'!!
So much for going to bed at a sensible hour, instead I am pondering this!! BB in the morning

Love the room grading!

Kitchen 1
Living room 3
Hall and stairs 2
Bedroom 4
DD's bedroom 3
Bathroom 2
Attic of doom 5

Main worry is the attic - the scaffolding is going up on Thursday and the loft converting men are coming on Tuesday - by which time it needs to be properly and completely empty . This is not going to be easily achieved!

Happy birthday to ellie's DS and glad you're feeling better toffee .

scruffy that's a difficult one. I am a terrible wuss when it comes to these things, I think I would probably write a list of the household jobs and ask her which she thought were realistic in 2 hrs. Perhaps write out the house bleurgh and say it usually takes you an hour, would she be able to take it on plus some other tasks on rotation flylady style

Night all, sorry not many personals but must, must go to bed!

Motning all

Bit knackered tgis morning as didn't go to sleep until after 1 and up again with DD at 6

Heavy day at work today so not planning on much flying

To do
Routines
Make doctors app
Hoover kitchen stairs
Fold and put away clean clothes
15 mins decluttering in loft
15 mins decluttering under our bed

Motning? Morning!

Morning! Another busy day work wise including a potential new mindee coming to look round and then my mum is coming after she finishes work as she wants me to set up a Facebook event and she doesn't have a clue

To do:
Routines
Walk dogs
Baking with mindees- shop for ingredients
Pick up dog poo
Put DD laundry away
Put front room hotspot out
Sweep kitchen floor
Today's and yesterday's missions

pushmepullyou that's a great approach. She knows I am desperately attempting to get more organised so if stuff is written down we may have a laugh at my obsession with lists without getting into the 'er, what exactly are you doing here on a wednesday' conversation . Off I trot to scribble frantically and make it look like have been pondering this for hours....

To do

Routines
Chase fridge delivery before old one gives up the ghost
Call dr (to see if DD2 can have her jabs with a cough!)
Bedroom surfaces
Decluttering here for 15
Uncover kitchen (currently whole room appears to be hotspot )
Shop for squash etc
Missions from mon&tue
Make tiffin with dd1
Punctuate the above with the day spent predominantly on Feeding times at the madhouse and 'mummy I need a wee wee', 'I want a snack' and 'owwwwwww she's pulling my hair'

I think I will be a fledgling for a long time yet, have a good day all!

Hello all, sorry I posted the other week and then disappeared, we've been on holiday. DH back at work today though and less than two weeks to get DS ready for Reception and some sort of routine in place!

To Do -

• Breakfast
• Laundry - fold dry, put a load on
• Fridge
• Kitchen - tidying and cleaning
• Tesco - 10-12
• sorting crafty stuff out
• decluttering in bedroom
• Lunch

Sorry all. Plans went a little awry in the face of a teething/non-sleeping DS.

Today I'm planning a supermarket shop and a crisis clean in view of the PIL arriving tomorrow. Oh, and a promised trip to the park with DS. Bugger.

See you all at midnight!

Morning all...

To do:
Hoover, sweep and mop
Dusting
As above but more carefully in bedroom zone!
Book hair appts
Exercise
Ironing
Work
Remake beds
Website text

Ta da!
Beds stripped
Washing on line
Boys to CM
Bought lightbulbs
Cleaned car windows - can see through them now!
Cleaned front door

Hi everyone!

Have tried to do some tidying this morning.

Ta da:
DSs beds stripped
2 loads of laundry hung and washed
1 load in washing machine
emptied dishwasher
reloaded dishwasher
1/3 kitchen cleaned and organised

• Extractor hood
• stove top
• counter top to left of sink, sink area.
• counter top to right of sink partially decluttered

out for the afternoon, so not much on the to do list

To do:
dinner and bedtime routine for DSs
Ironing
Finish kitchen

So today has been fairly laid back on my part and insanely busy on ds' part.

Ta da
Up and out
meeting in next town

In the meantime ds has been using his imagination to play games , painting, playing with the giant mechano stuff, watching tv, telling his gp about his holiday etc.

So the house is more messy then when i left this morning but meh. It's nice to have him back. About to drag him out to collect his glasses.

• Breakfast done
• Laundry - fold dry, put a load on no still wet
• Fridge done
• Kitchen - tidying and cleaning bit
• Tesco - 10-12 done
• sorting crafty stuff out
• decluttering in bedroom bit
• Lunch done

+ scrub lunch off baby done + researching eczema done

• quick pick up front room
• clear and wipe table/floor
• 5 min sorting craft stuff

I'm feeling very procrastinatey for Anti-Procrastination day. :-(

Bitchy sounds like DS is doing great. :-)
BlueEyeshadow is always welcome here!

Arses - I find antiprocrastination day tends to have that effect on me too. Can I pick you brains about something? Pm or fb better?

Sure thing, either.

Thanks Arses

Right I need to get ds' room sorted and his stuff put away. Let the great clothes sort begin.

Toffee - I've been concentrating on decluttering the "stuff" that's been in the garage for the 3 years we have been here and have realised I'm never going to get round to selling a lot of the bits I've kept, so off to somewhere new it goes. You should have seen the little old ladies faces in the Hospice Charity Shop when DD and I walked in the a huge bin bag and a box full yesterday!

Got more boxes off our removers yesterday so now need to finish off the bits upstairs in the bedrooms.

No housework today as been out with DD to the cinema and the park all day but will throw in a load of laundry later.

To do:

Book hair appts - tried but no answer
Remake beds

Ta da!
Website text
Exercise
Ironing
Work
Hoover, sweep and mop
Dusting
As above but more carefully in bedroom zone!
Beds stripped
Washing on line
Boys to CM
Bought lightbulbs
Cleaned car windows - can see through them now! grin
Cleaned front door

Not bad...

Ta da:
meeting next town
shopping (i forgot I'd done this earlier)
Go through all of ds' clothes and pull out stuff that is too small or boarderline (although need to go through the socks still)
make shopping list of clothes that ds needs (only needs PJ and school shoes so happy)
knit a couple of 10x10cm squares for stresshead blanket.
soak taps and shower in cleaning fluid stuff.

To do:
links
clean taps and shower ready for getting up stuff tomo.

Just wanted to pop in and say I am still here, reading and lurking, but just not posted much as don't have a lot to say. House is looking good, decluttering is slowly but surely getting done and kids are being suitably entertained with an activity (usually free!) each day. :)

Waves to everyone!

• quick pick up front room done
• clear and wipe table/floor done
• 5 min sorting craft stuff done

Got more done than I thought I would.

Can I ask how do you make morning routine work with very little children?

I always struggle with this as DS wake-up time has always been so erratic, and now DD is here and just as unpredictable.

How old are they and where do you have to be?

I would recommend that regardless of dc wake up times, you set an alarm and get up at the same time each day. Get as much done as you can whilst they are still sleeping. Lay out clothes each evening and pack bags. Work out the latest time you need to get the dc up to still be out on time and wake them (if necessary) at that time. Always aim to leave ten minutes before you need to to allow for missing shoes, toilet breaks etc.

babystep 22
mission
Thursday is errands day

Oh dear, home after 9 days staying with my parents.
Dh tried I'm sure but the house is not only untidy but dirty too . So tomorrow will be a busy one. Back in the morning with a list. Hope you are all keeping well xx