FLYing through April: Fledglings Spring into Action

[GoingGoingGoth]

Welcome to the April 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 is 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.

Thanks to SC, Blue & Silvery for leading us through since January and for the brilliant OP I've just cut and pasted.

Have actually done some flying today!

ta da!
Shopping
Car through carwash
Lunch with friends
Decluttered utility room and random hotspot in dining toom
Kitchen mission
Wiped cupboard fronts
Mopped floor
Planted out pansy
Cooked tea
Clean kitchen & shiny sink
Choir
Collapse with University Challenge & Paul Hollywood's Bread.

Big waves to all, esp elliepac - nice to see you & glad things calming down at home.

Night!

Thanks for links goth I was in my correct zone last week. I adapted zone 1 because I have a small hallway and entrance bay and no dining room so moved the bathroom from zone 3 so that could just be boys bedroom.

Ds2 had his first night without a nappy last night. Just waiting for him to wake up to find if he's still dry.

Morning.
Must get cracking
to do
Make beds
Shower and dress
Swish and swipe
Rubbish out
Laundry
Print stuff for ds1
Hotspots
Ironing
Sort dry clothes
Non iron away
Mission/detail
Check links
Cook dinner
Clean kitchen
Play and tidy
Stray item dash
Clothes out
Study

My dad's birthday today, so we are driving there later, had better get him a card and present first disorganised me.
I have doctors appointment later to get this ear syringed so hopefully the buzzing and ringing will stop and I will be able to hear again.
A friend of mine who is doing her PGCE is coming round to do some miscue analysis on ds1.
Need to think of a monthly job for today. Haven't done one for a few days.........

Morning all...Dd is back at playgroup this morning - loving the peave and quiet!!!

Ta da
Up & dressed
dd up & to school
Made beds
windows
breakfast & tidy after
cleaned bins
dusted whole house
rebooted laundry
unpacked dishwasher

To do
hang washing
fold & away clean washing
make doc appt
library??
phone & complain to tesco
start decluttering study
dinner
tidy & ss
quick room rescue - lounge

Good morning all!
Busy at work, and dcs are off with OH at his folks for the day - so I have a spare 2 minutes to make a lovely list!!

done
d/w on
slow cooker on so tea will be ready!

to do
bank stuff
bathrooms
filing
dust everywhere
meal plan

Have a good day - shame it's rainy - one day of sunshine a week is better than none I suppose! x

Morning everyone!

Back home now and feel the needs for a list. DH has been at home since Thursday on his own and you can tell......

To do:-
Unpack suitcase
Washing x lots
Drying x lots
Putting away x lots
Put everything else away
General tidy of whole house
Quick clean of whole house
Food shop
Collapse

If I can restore some type of order then tomorrow I can get back to flying properly.

Back later.

Am pinching Ellie' last item on the list. That is all I am doing today after the errands that were run this morning. you will find me in the naughty corner asleep. Flying? what the fuck is that?
zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Ta da:-
Have done whole list apart from food shop.

Am about to do food shop and then the final thing on my list.

Am also stealing elliepac's last item... being back at school has wiped me out. How is it possible to be this tired and under-motivated after having two weeks off work??? And my two sisters are coming to visit/stay on Sat for the night...and chaos reigns....

I am utterly determined to get the spare room/hell hole properly decluttered once all the bathroom stuff is finally gone. We also have a chance to chuck loads of things when they clear the old bathroom stuff (yay!) so I've made a big pile of wires and dead routers for DH to inspect...

Meanwhile I've been looking in the boxes of doom. I got overwhelmed and put them all back though. What should I do with all the letters, postcards, birthday cards, new baby cards, new home cards we've ever had... I can't quite bear to throw them, will probably never look at them again either. There are too many to all get cut up for sticking. Are there any sensible ways of filing/storing/archiving them? [help]

ok so I didn't go to the zoo but I met SIL and the kids after they came back, ended up staying at their house eating popcorn and watching trashy tv, went to the cinema with them today and now back home lying in the bath whilst DD watches tv. Need to actually do some jobs or all hell will break loose!

To do:
Make beds
Sort washing
Put dry washing away
Walk to shops and buy dinner (sainsburys delivery isn't coming til tomorrow)
Clean kitchen counters properly
Wash bin
SS bathroom
Shine sink
Hotspot
Check there's no rubbish floating around the house (bf isn't house trained properly yet )
Empty bins
Give DD bath

Think that's enough for this afternoon/evening! xXx

Evening all!

Even though I have been at work today I have a pretty good ta da list?and it?s not even seven o?clock

Yesterday?s washing away
Today?s washing on
Yesterday?s washing up
Today?s washing up
Delicious cassoulet for dinner (with English sausages..yum yum!)
Mission! (first time in ages) My bin is clean!
Swept kitchen floor
Put out paper recycling for collection
Sorted through junk mail
Emptied kitchen bin and kitchen scraps bin
Cleaned downstairs toilet/replaced towel

Still to do?
DS to bed
4k run (my running partner is busy today so I have to get out the door based solely on my own motivation..eek!)
Shower and face mask
I should do a set of marking for tomorrow and prepare some lessons (starting Animal Farm tomorrow and haven?t read or taught it for years )
Plan my outfit for tomorrow
Restock DS nursery bag

Hi everyone.

I have been away for a few days with DH's work and haven't had time to catch up on the thread yet but hope everyone's ok.

Not done much today as we only got back mid-afternoon and dd1 didn't have a nap so required lots of meltdown avoidance supervision

Ta dah
Unpack
Cook dinner
Eat dinner
Bath dd2 and out to bed (in progress!)

To do
Wash up
Ironing
Eat ice-cream
Send emails
Shine sink

My biggest achievement today was throwing away a half-broken hand-blender that has been gathering dust on top of our fridge for over a year. Not such a big thing in itself, apart from the fact that it was at DH's suggestion !!! I almost fainted from shock! He even said that it felt good to throw something away

There is hope yet for my decluttering efforts.

Well, haven't done marking but everything else on my list done.

Am hopping back on MFP because I feel like I have eaten my way through these last few months to try and get through the winter and am paying for it now especially as I wibble when I go running

Going to bed a happy fledgling

Blue I periodically go through letters/cards/postcards and every now and again I manage to actually throw things away!

I must say that most postcards go in the bin. I have held onto some postcards that I sent my parents when I was travelling a million years ago and put them with my photo album. I keep handwritten letters from my best friend and close family but everything else - BIN!

Same with things like moving cards/birth cards/wedding order of service and invitations. I always ask myself - how close am I to this person? If I still feel very close to them then I keep, otherwise - BIN! (and I usually end up revisiting my stash every year or so and thinning it further).

My best friend (who lives the other side of the world) and I correspond regularly through snail mail and cards as well as emails and I'm actually looking forward to use sitting together when we're old and grey and laughing our way through our letters.

As a teenager and student I used to make great photo albums and stick in ticket stubs, cards and postcards but now I cba!

ummmm so im very well initiated into the naughty corner.

To do:
Make beds done
Sort washing
Put dry washing away
Walk to shops and buy dinner (sainsburys delivery isn't coming til tomorrow) done
Clean kitchen counters properly half done
Wash bin done
SS bathroom
Shine sink
Hotspot
Check there's no rubbish floating around the house (bf isn't house trained properly yet angry )
Empty bins half done
Give DD bath done

oops......

so proud of myself for actually washing out my bins! its one of those jobs i NEVER do! DD was really excited and found some rubber gloves and helped me! its nice shes trying to get involved with making the house nice! will start giving her little jobs to do i think xXx

Bitchy flew on Monday (don't over do it!) Was Paul Hollywood's bread nice ? and after a busy morning today has hidden in the naughty corner.

Quick apology to Silvery re zones, I just thought you were being extra keen.
Was DS dry this morning?
How's your ears? And did you have fun at your Dad's?

Louise enjoyed the calm of a child at play group, and got loads done.

Jdub popped in out of the rain. Where a outs are you? We had lovely sunshine, but a horrible cold easterly wind today!

elliepac is tidying away after her DH....and completed her list and is hopefully collapsed resting

Castle is back at school today, and is understandably tired. But has visiting sisters to look forward to.

Blue is decluttering, but why are you showing your DH the cables,unless he's some sort of saint, you know they'll end up in his 'man drawer'
Re cards, if you want the space, but would like some record of them, why not photograph them, it's what I do with DD's daubings works of art.
Although I do have a box with some a lot of her baby stuff.

EllieTTF didn't go to the zoo, (but I've been singing all day! ahem) but had a popcorn/trashy TV/cinema day instead. And got her DD to help clean the bin, that's a good idea, small children fit in little spaces so much easier than Mummies.

Engels has completed an amazing list despite being at work. good luck with Animal Farm, not a fan of Orwell, had to do 1984 at school (in 1984). Saying that it was more interesting than Graham Greene.
I also use MFP (and input cleaning as exercise )

ellesabe has come back after a few days away(was it nice?) and has decluttered with her DH's help (ok I take it back Blue), but had an overtired DD.

I had a quiet day at work, which was good as DD had been up at stupid o'clock with a bad tummy ache. She's ok now, quite chirpy, but has spent most of the day on the sofa with a hot water bottle and LOTS of books.
Iam off to bed once I've done the links, as I feel absolutely drained. Bin will be washed tomorrow (maybe not, it's my birthday, and there are some things I refuse to do)

LINKS FOR WEDNESDAY 10TH APRIL

Babystep 10 is about the 'power of 15 minutes' I think this is a good one. Even big jobs can be broken into 15 minute chunks and with breaks in between can be a lot less daunting.

Daily focus for Wednesday is anti-procrastination

Today's Mission is to clean the kitchen sink taps (with an old toothbrush)

Flight plan for our routines, should update automatically

Yes, went to dads, took a birthday cake, boys sang happy birthday and then ate most of it!
Friend came round to do some reading with ds1 who felt very under pressure I think and cried but after being bribed with a pack of star burst did Ok.
Not much flying so need to claim a place in the naughty corner. Reason being that I saw something online about some horrible crimes against children carried out by someone I used to know. Knew the children too and all this was going on when I knew them and just feel numb andshocked. Have literally spent all day looking at the article thinking it'll change you know?
Anyway, not something I can do anything about and know it's not about me it's about those boys whose lives have been ruined but wish I'd known what signs to look for. But sure everyone that knew them feels the same.
Tomorrow will be a better day.
Where I think I'm going wrong is I've spent a couple of days not looking At my cj and I think the lack of direction is affecting my efficiency iyswim.
Better day tomorrow, promise.
Oh and ds2 woke up wet and decided on a nappy tonight. Sure he'll get there soon, he is only just 4.
Sorry for lack of personals I'm just not in a good place at the moment.

Silvery that sounds horrible
An ex-bf of mine when through a similar thing when Harold Shipman was charged.

Morning one and all. So last night I did indeed collapse in fact I fell asleep in front of the tv before 10.

Today I have a list which is both flying and work related. DC's are at the childminders this morning for a few hours so need to crack on.

To do:-
Morning routines
Washing x lots
Drying x lots
Putting away x lots
Write a scheme of work for Controlled Assessment
Write 3 lessons for Controlled Assessment
Dinner
First C25k run
Evening routine
Mission

If I don't appear back later on it is because I have died doing the run.

silvery that is awful. There was one situation at work where it came to light that a girl who had been in my form for 5 years (she was Year 11) had been abused by her father in the worst possible, systematic way. I remember beating myself up about it and wondering why I had never noticed anything. It's so sad.

Have a good day everyone.

Morning all.

Good luck with C25k Ellie - first few weeks are hard, especially the jump form Wk3 to Wk4 but it works. I HATED running at school and never attempted anything until 4 yrs ago. Needed an outlet (3yr old with broken leg to look after at the time), chose running as it was quick and cheap, did C25k, ran Race for Life that year, got addicted, ran half-marathon last year and have place for Great North Run this year :)
Just take one day/week at a time and, if after Wk4 you are 'enjoying' it (not necessarily the running but the endorphin-high afterwards :)), get measured for some proper running shoes.
Engels - you sound like you are getting back into it. How long until your 10k?

Blue - I'm with Goth, DO NOT show your DH the cables, chuck them ASAP, he will have more, they always do :)

Odd day today so need list:

• Work - done
• DS ready for tennis (DH to take)
• Hoover throughout
• Usual routines
• Fabric out of loft for DD and friends sewing-fest this afternoon
• Make bolognese, chicken soup, ice-cream and possibly some cake. Feeling the need to cook and will be abandoned once sewing girls arrive :)

That will do for now.
Have a good day everyone.

Goth Happy Birthday ...hav a great day - agreed that some things should not be done on this special day - bin cleaning included!!

had a late night sorting budget (anti-procrastination - finally got it done since I first thought of it in November )Am shattered, Ds didn't settle after 4am, and dd is so full of energy its draining just watching her...

not much flying will be done today...need and its only 9am....and I don't drink

I missed Goths birthday? Sorry!
Must be a wriggle on
to do
make beds
clear breakfast
Shower and dress
swish and swipe
rubbish out
check links
go to friends
laundry
mission/detail
cook dinner
clean kitchen
ironing
hotspots
sort dry washing
non iron away
STUDY
stray items away
shine sink
clothes out

That'll do. Hopefully will have a more productive day than yesterday

Thanks for the tip re taking photos of cards - a good idea, Goth. Actually, DH has agreed to chuck several dead routers, splitters etc and agrees that we don't need all the wires. He says he'll look through them tonight. If it gets too put off, I can always chuck the lot when the skip comes on Friday. Also got to work out what to do with his chess trophies from school!