FLYing through March: Fledglings Assemble

[SilveryMoon]

Welcome to the March Fledgling FLYers thread

... where we (loosely) follow the step-by-step Flylady housekeeping system (in our own, unique, relaxed style) with lots of and chatting along the way.

This little-and-often system is designed so that we can follow a series of steps and routines each day (which gradually become second nature) in weekly designated zones of the house; defining and minimising housework - which in theory should leave us with more time to do other, more interesting things instead!

At the same time it is intended to reduce that panicky "rabbit in headlights" feeling we get when we are overwhelmed and everything needs doing all at once.

To avoid being inundated with details, we advise not signing up to the Big Tent

We are in the process of following Flylady's steps and routines using a three-pronged approach (dependent on the stage everyone is at):

• start or repeat baby steps
  

• repeat baby steps + do 15 mins a day decluttering in the current zone
  

• reinforce babysteps and do daily missions if you have finished decluttering.
  

[And if you are really enthusiastic and have finished decluttering - you can go on to detailed deep cleaning in each zone.]

Flylady site here

Don't worry if you are behind; just jump right back in and it will all come around next month again anyway!

All the links for the babysteps and missions will be posted here every day and we'll all be here to cheer each other on.

to SC and Blue for leading us through January and February and for the brilliant OP I've just cut and pasted .

Let's get the old dust balls rolling for March!

[MercuryRising]

Hello all

Im suffering with insomnia after working nights for the last two days. I thought I would catch up with the thread before reading and hopefully heading back to
bed and sleep.

It sounds like lots of us are having a hard time at the moment

Im really sorry to read that you are having such a shit time at the moment Silvery. It's so hard to deal with the dcs calmly when you are stressed. I hope things get better for you soon. Is there any chance of you getting a couple of hours to yourself away from home, the family and work just to have some time to yourself? Sometimes I find even just an hour walking the dog by myself helps me to destress a bit.

Nicknacks fingers crossed the waiting list isn't too long. Is there any way you can appeal against the school you have been allocated? Its heartbreaking when the dcs are upset and the situation is beyond your control isn't it? Fingers crossed it all works out the way you want it to.

Toffee I hope ds has a better day tomorrow once he has caught up with some sleep and that you all have a fantastic time celebrating your dhs birthday.

Ta da
Made beds
Washing off rads and airers folded
Wash load in
Hoovered upstairs
Dw unloaded/ reloaded
Living room tidied
Lovely afternoon spent at sils.

Tomorrow my dm is taking the dcs to visit my dsis so dp and I have a very rare childless day. We are hoping to get the bathroom sorted by the end of the month so we are off to look for new tiles and to have lunch tomorrow and then back home to see how easily we can remove the old tiles.

To do for Sunday:
Make beds
Dust and hoover downstairs
Washing out
Wash in
Dw
Iron school uniforms
Empty the car (which currently resembles skip on wheels) and hoover
Dcs homework
Spend lovely day with dp

Big waves to all.

[ToffeeWhirl]

DS1 has just come downstairs and said breezily, "You were right, Mum, I did need that sleep." No apology though, let alone any indication that he knows he behaved badly and that he might have upset me.

I slept with DS2 because I didn't want to disturb DH last night, so had lots of sleepy cuddles from him.

Mercury - it must be really difficult coping with a sleep routine of any sort when you work nights. I hope you managed to get some sleep in the end. Thanks for your kind words. Enjoy your child-free day.

[SilveryMoon]

Good good Toffee I was at the bottom of a bottle at that point last night!
Mercury Have a great child-free day.

Morning everyone else.
Today we renew our spirit. let's all try to fit this in today. I'm going to read my book in the bath, shave my legs and not wear any make up today.

List
Clear breakfast
Bath and dress
Swish and swipe
Empty rubbish
Clean litter trays
Change bed sheets
Glass shelves/mirrors
Polish/dust
Hoover
Mop
Polish shoes
Make and freeze week's sandwiches
Ironing
Dig out ds1's swimming trunks
Get pe kits etc ready for school
Pay credit/store cards
Bleach plugs
Food shopping
Go through paper work that's in the glove compartment, no idea what's in there
Laundry
Feed cats
Cook dinner
Clean kitchen
Lay out clothes
Shine sink

Have a good day

[ToffeeWhirl]

I will renew my spirit by wearing make-up, Silvery! Hope you manage to get that time to yourself in addition to your (very long) list. I am still sitting on the sofa drinking tea whilst DS2 watches children's telly.

Oh hang on - that's me renewing my spirit, isn't it? Might have another cuppa then...

[SilveryMoon]

I'm still on the sofa too. Drinking hot chocolate. Having a CBA moment.

[SilveryMoon]

Look what I've forgotten to link to this month habit for march is to get dressed to shoes.

[mrsbugsywugsy]

morning all. sorry to hear people are having a hard time.

I am in bed as dd went back to sleep after feeding at 6am, and so did I, and has only just woken us up again . a lie in has definitely renewed my spirit.

is it against the'rules' to have a housework day at the weekend? this is what we usually do as dp is home so we can both muck in one of us keeps dd from crying while the other one tidies

[WhoKnowsWhereTheTimeGoes]

I think you have to do what works best for you MrsB - Flylady seems to think we all have a fair amount of time at home during the week to do all the daily stuff and it isn't true for many people either because of work or young children. I do have plenty of child free weekday time (2 school age children and only work 2 days) but I prefer to spend a lot of it studying and exercising at the moment, so a fair amount of the housework tends to get shunted to the weekends.

[SilveryMoon]

mrsb That's great about the lay-in
Tomorrow, you will find out about the 'weekly home blessing hour' which is the main housework jobs.
The point is to be able to keep the weekends free to have fun, not spent catching up with the things we didn't get done in the week.
We all have to make adjustments to this system so it works for us individually.
For example, I don't do the daily focus things, I do everything spread over the weekend (food shopping, home blessing, bag clear out, fridge etc), I have merged my bathroom into my hallway and entrance zone so zone 3 is now just the boys bedroom (this bit will make sense soon, don't worry).


These kids are driving me potty! Why can't they just do things the first time I ask. Again, it's taken 2 and a half hours from when I first asked them to get dressed til they've actually done it.

[Engelsemama]

nick nacks and silvery sorry to hear about bad news and the hard time you're having. keeping my fx for you NN

silvery I can sympathsie with feeling like you have to do everything (see my comments about DH below )

Ta da
Washing up
cleaning kitchen surfaces/hob
Pie filling cooking in oven (another hairy bikers special)
DS changed, fed, changed, fed, changed, in bed and talking to himself
Made enough noise and PA sighing that DH got the hint and went to bed instead of mooching and snoring on the sofa the whole day (like yesterday) so I don't feel I have to tiptoe around him
3 sets of reports for school

To do
One set of marking
Go for a run
Finish pie
One other thing in the house...not sure what yet! But would feel good to do a mini mission/15 minute declutter somewhere.

[LillethTheCat]

Well I suppose I should put some sort of list up for today.

tada

• Strip beds
  
• Wash bedding
  
• Dry bedding
  
• Wash up after breakfast
  

to do

• remake beds
  
• Wash up 2X
  
• Shine Sink
  
• Sort out homework for DS
  
• Coursework
  
• Revision
  
• redo CV
  
• Apply for jobs
  
• stop reading MN
  

Sorry to hear there are bad times for people. Hope things get resolved quickly.

Yey to the lie-in mrsb It was just this morning I was discussing with DH when it was likely to be our next lie in. I think we're talking some time in the next 5-10 years.

DD2 has started to open doors now so whenever one of us leaves the room she follows. Its a bit of a pain when DH is cooking etc.

Was planning to go for a run this aft, but its gloomy and I should really get on with coursework and applying for jobs. I know I said I was going to concentrate on coursework, but Ive seen a few jobs I want to apply for so figure why not. Besides I want more money (even though I probably wont end up with more money by the time Ive paid to get to and from work)

BBL

[NickNacks]

Thank you all for your lovely supportive messages. We're all feeling a bit more positive this morning and accept that we'll just have to wait until the 28th March (right before the long bank hol weekend!) to find out whereabouts we are on the waiting list. Ho hum.

General Sunday jobs going on here, homework, bags being packed and laundry getting washed.

Sorry I don't feel like posting a ta da list. And apologies for the lack of personals. I'm wallowing :(

[mrsbugsywugsy]

hmm, housework in the week is usually' damage limitation', with big jobs done at the weekend. maybe this will change as dd gets older or as I get to grips with the fly lady system?

done:

clean bathroom
hoover floors
mop kitchen
sort stuff onto new bathroom shelves
change bins

to do:

laundry
washing up
sterilise baby things
shine sink
clean windows
sort paperwork
make dinner

[ellesabe]

Today's TA-das
Swish and swipe
Clothes away
Put wash on
27 fling boogie (which I actually found much more difficult than I thought I would)
Successful leadership training with achievable 6month goals set
Tumble drying
Dinner cooked and eaten

Still to-do
Clear up from dinner
Check tomorrow's schedule
Shine sink
Glass of wine and Oceans 12

[SilveryMoon]

Ta Da
Clear breakfast
Bath and dress
Swish and swipe
Empty rubbish
Clean litter trays
Change bed sheets
Glass shelves/mirrors
Polish/dust
Hoover
Mop
Polish shoes
Make and freeze week's sandwiches
Ironing
Dig out ds1's swimming trunks
Get pe kits etc ready for school
Pay credit/store cards
Bleach plugs
Food shopping
Go through paper work that's in the glove compartment, no idea what's in there
Laundry
Feed cats
Cook dinner
Clean kitchen
Lay out clothes
Shine sink
Print training certificates for work
Complete appraisal review form and e-mail to head

Back in a bit to round-up and post tomorrows links

[ellesabe]

Is it bad that the first thing I'm doing from my still to-do is have a glass of wine?

[SilveryMoon]

So, since the last round-up:
I got drunk and then paranoid about post to Toffee
Toffee waas pleased her ds2 had a good time with his friends and also happy that ds1 is continuing to learn how to better regulate his emotions when he becomes a bit stressed.
mercury had a bout of insomnia last night after coming off night shifts. Hope you manage to get some sleep tonight. Also hope you had a productive and nice child-fee day (show-off )
mrsb had a lovely lay-in thanks to her sleeping dd. Jealous!
Today we have mostly been discussing housework (no shit, Sherlock I know) and when we do the main jobs. It?s all about tweaking people
NickNacks and co are feeling more positive today about the school situation and are now going to wait to find out how high on the waiting list ds is for his desired school.

Been very quiet on here today so hope that means everyone has been having a nice day doing lovely things.

Really looking forward to INSET tomorrow for the child-free time (not the training we?ll be doing though, hope it?s interesting)

*
LINKS FOR MONDAY 4TH
We are in my favourite zone this week: The kitchen.
here is some info on zone 2 and how to get started
babystep 4 is one I think most ignore. It's writting reminders on post-its and putting them in your bathroom and by your sink. If you did have anyone over, they'd think you were insane!
mission to clean countertops
daily focus for Monday is weekly home blessing hour and this link should update automatically
sneak peek for the week for those of us who like to pre-plan to within an inch of our lives

The habit of the month is getting dressed to lace-up shoes.

That's a lot of links. Just take the bits you need, and newbies, you are doing the babystep (1-4) and decluttering for 15 mins. Anything else, don't worry too much about.
We advise you to take it one step at a time, by all means ignore the crap ones, but don't do too much.
FLYlady talks about how it didn't take a day for your house to get how it is, it won't get straight in a day.

Happy FLYing everyone

[SilveryMoon]

Ha ellesabe I'd join you but had 2 bottles last night so trying to have a night off. Pouring a drink is the first thing I do after ds's have gone to bed.
Enjoy

[ToffeeWhirl]

Hope you are enjoying that wine, Silvery . Am drinking bubbly to celebrate DH's birthday.

Ta das :

Decluttered dining room (which means all the stuff is now in our bedroom again )
Cleared dining-room table
Loaded d/w
Put washing on
Hoovered
Mopped kitchen floor
Cleaned and cleared kitchen surfaces
Cleaned mirrors
Polished brass
Emptied bins
Made up with DS1 and had a cuddle
Ironed school shirts for DS2
Ordered Ds1's World Book Day token so he doesn't miss out by not being at school
Made DH's birthday lunch (roast)
MIL here for lunch
PM - had a nap to catch up on lack of sleep last night
DC's dinners
More washing on
Ironing
Opened Cava
Bedtime routines

Hope you all had a good day.

Thanks for your round ups and links, Silvery.

[ToffeeWhirl]

Looking at my list, I think I have just done a 'home blessing' one day early .

[Cuddledup]

Hi All - Good to see what everyone's been up to in recent days. Have done lots today including a home bleurgh a day early.

Ok does the death of a gold fish whose tank was in the living room count as de cluttering for the living room zone?

Another question - how often do you change your sheets? I do them weekly but it's a real faff doing duvets. I thought if I change the bottom sheets weekly and then turn over the duvet then I could change the duvet cover fortnightly.

Off to do the before bed routine.

[drivingmisspotty]

Thanks silvery Yes, the post its on mirror are a bit nuts!

Sorry to hear about your goldfish, cuddledup

And Lileth, yes hopefully the move will be a good opportunity to declutter. And I cannot believe the clutter! Unfortunately spending too much time procrastinating on right move app at mo...

So, today's tada
Everyone up, dressed, breakfast
Church (only 5mins late)
Bit of shopping
Lunch
Baby nap
Play with preschooler
Tesco online shop
Sort laundry from drier and put away
Washing machine full ready to go on in morning
Clean inside microwave
Washing up loads of times
Bathe kids plus stories and bed
Lay out clothes for tomorrow
Email work re return dates following mat leave

To do tomorrow
Tackle fridge before online delivery!

[SilveryMoon]

cuddle I change all sheets weekly. I know some people who have a sheet on the mattress and then a sheet under the duvet so when they get in the top sheet is in contact with their body not the duvet cover, you know?

[GoingGoingGoth]

Hello all

Silvery & Toffee read your lists and thought "is it Monday?" Wow, you've both been busy.

Done
Beds
Windows
Wash up
Litter tray
Hang washing out
Play board games with Dd
Washing in
Change DD's bedding
Vacuum
Dry laundry away
Dinner
Wash up & SS
School bag & uniform ready for tomorrow

Just about to do small pile of ironing whilst watching Stardust -love it

[SpecialCircumstances]

Done:
Washed to bottom of laundry basket
sorted filing cabinet
cleaned Hoover filter
filled in job application (that's how great my first week went!)
Swept and mopped floor
hoovered
Sorted out maternity clothes to lend to a friend

to do
post parcels
get laminating pouches
Dust babies room
start decuttering 'office'

pleased to say Dh noticed how tidy the house is looking and was very impressed! He spontaneously tidied up after tea every night this week!