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Housekeeping

Find cleaning advice from other Mumsnetters on our Housekeeping forum.

August is when the fledglings party, and perhaps do a bit of flying, maybe.

746 replies

BitchytheGreat · 01/08/2013 00:54

Roll up, roll up to this special birthday month for the fledglings...

We are going to attempt to keep the dc happy, whilst flying. No mean feat in the month of holidays and adventures.

Rule 1. yes even in a birthday month we have rules
It is not about perfection. A little is enough, no really.
Rule 2.
You are aloud to spend time doing fun things, don't regret them or feel guilty.
Rule 3. This one is a fat fairy rule.
you are never behind, jump in where you are

So newbies if you are reading this you are probably thinking wtf?! This is a wonderful system designed by the fly lady. in days gone olde one fledgling had a dream about the fly lady in which she was a fat fairy, thus the thread nickname fat fairy was born. Just so we don't confuse you like Wink
Anyhows, this month it is Bitchy's turn to lead, and perhaps this should come with a warning. She has her own unique style of leading but don't let that scare you off, the fledglings are luffsly and generally far more sane then the bitchy one Grin just be aware of bitchy's special brew. Terribly high in caffine and can sometimes be found in the naughty corner. Which reminds me, the naughty corner if for those who are struggling for whatever reason or those just in need of a stiff drink.

So this flying thing. It has three stages:
stage one: the babysteps. these build a routine. some of them are contriversial, and some a little wishy washy seem a little less significant. But most are really good.
Stage two: babysteps and missions one the routines are in place the missions are designed to help you tackle tasks room by room. These room by room approach is helpfully referred to as zones.
stage three: the mythical deep cleaning stage yeah lets just ignore that, none of us have got to the point where we have not only decluttered but got in control of the chaos Grin

Oh yeah CHAOS - what the fat fairy calls "Can't Have Anyone Over Syndrome"

That clear as mud? good. Let's Begin....

OP posts:
elliepac · 08/08/2013 16:09

Ta da:-
Put all dd's clothes in new cupboards
Move all dd's stuff back in her room
Make dd's bed
Put decorating stuff in shed
Load car for skip trip
Washing

To do:-
Skip trip
Pick-up dc's
Find something for dinner
Cook dinner
Collapse

ToffeeWhirl · 08/08/2013 16:22

Thought you were oversharing for a moment there, ellie Wink.

PA - am trying, and failing, not to giggle at the doggy antics.

Blue - good luck with car-retrieval adventure.

Bitchy - sorry DS didn't sleep till 2am this morning Sad. Poor you.

SC - hope your DD falls into bed early tonight after her sleepover. Glad your house is stuck back together again.

Mercury - hope your cold is better today.

Castle - hope you are ok and settling back into being at home.

Ta da :

Lie in achieved because DS2 slept in and DS1 remembered not to wake me Grin
Healthy b/fasts all round
D/W unloaded and reloaded
Kitchen tidied
Kitchen counters wiped
Dining room table cleared
Spider hoovered up (sorry)
Kitchen and dining room hoovered
Kitchen bin emptied
Food recycling put out
Handwriting exercises with DS1
Times Tables practice with DS2
MIL visit - tea made, same old stories listened to all over again
Lunch
Washing up and tidying up
Walked to friend's house with DS1 to feed bearded dragons
Took DS2 to playground
Walked to local shops
Cup of Brew and MN time

To do :

Ironing
Make apricot slices/flapjacks or something
Dinner
Remain patient with DS1 (tricky)
Wine

WhoKnowsWhereTheTimeGoes · 08/08/2013 16:31

Just popping by to link to another thread

Free Kindle Housekeeping book. I'm just about to download it, got to be worth a look if you have a Kindle (or Kindle App).

I have just taken 13 carrier bags of stuff to the tip and the charity shop.

MercuryRising · 08/08/2013 16:42

Thanks Toffee I feel a lot better today.

List complete Grin

All I need to do now is bring in the dry washing, clean up after dinner and keep the dcs relatively quiet as dp went to work at 3.30 this morning and has just gone for a sleep.

BlueEyeshadow · 08/08/2013 17:00

Thanks Toffee! Will be getting up at silly o'clock tomorrow morning to get 7am Eurostar to Calais, then across France by train and taxi. Night in a hotel, bit of booze shopping then back on Saturday evening avec voiture - or at least that's the plan. Fingers and toes crossed!!

Will bring plenty of Wine for the naughty corner bar... :)

Castlelough · 08/08/2013 18:50

Dashing thru mid-crisis cleaning! Guests gone for a pre-dinner nap after our strenuous surfing lesson this afternoon! Grin
House is the definition of chaos. Sad
I did warn them beforehand (my brother and his now, as of 12 hrs ago Grin fiancé) that it would be as DH has been left to his own devices for an entire week, and it had been such fab weather before Dad got so suddenly sick that house was in chaos before I ever rushed off to Dublin.
Still, it is embarrassing Sad.
Cat hair everywhere. Horse blankets piled on armchairs, clothes piled everywhere Sad. We have a single width wardrobe between myself and DH in rental house, no other clothes, shoe, coat, boot, welly etc storage. And I refuse to invest in odd bits of furniture here before moving into our own house.
Ok rant over.
Dinner in oven. Champagne for the newly engaged couple is cooling. It's sad and lovely at the same time, my brother had confided in Dad that he was going to propose to long-term girlfriend on a romantic expensive holiday that they should now be on. But of course all was cancelled with the suddenness of Dad's passing... we are all glad DB decided to go ahead with proposal, but it's bittersweet...
Anyway, chin up ... must try to re-home horse blankets...!

Will catch up tomorrow!
Castle x

PositiveAttitude · 08/08/2013 19:17

WoW what a day!!

Proudly presents my first ta da list for a very long time:

kitchen cleaned
Washing done
BBQ - success
DS bedroom moved around and sorted, bed moved out, furniture moved around.
Spare room cleared sorted, cleaned and spick and span! - have someone coming to stay temporarily tomorrow, so sort of gave me the kick up the bum I needed
Wet room cleaned
Bathroom cleaned
Upstairs hoovered
Hair dyed
dog fed and walked x2
rabbits cleaned out fed and watered

List to to do early tomorrow morning:
Windows to be cleaned upstairs
Bedside cabinet to be moved into spare room
Hoover downstairs
Paid work.....URGENT!!!

I have an interview tomorrow morning, so must get it all done, beautify myself and get to interview looking all serene, sophisticated, sensible and very employable!

BitchytheGreat · 08/08/2013 20:52

Aww and there was me hoping for more exciting tales and adventures from the dog walking PA glad you got some good advice though.

Any how super tired after yesterday so here are the linky poos for tomo...

Babystep 9 the room rescue.

missions

friday is... sort your car and purse out. And we are being stubborn fat fairy and it is also date night. So lets introduce Toffee's wished for babystep. Fuck fun is advised should you so chose. Enjoy!

awaits pa's horror Grin

OP posts:
MercuryRising · 08/08/2013 21:41

I am sitting catching up on Eastenders feeling quite smug because despite having four children in the house all afternoon it is actually tidy Grin I just need to make sure I stick with this.

So to do list for tomorrow:
Dw
Wm
Swish and swipe
Beds
Mission
Drop in to see dsis
Lunch at ddads
Stationery shopping for Sept
Ironing
Evening at work
Hoover downstairs
Cut grass

Congratulations to your dbro Castle. I can imagine it must be a bittersweet time for you all but it most be comforting for your dbro to know that your ddad knew about the proposal and approved.

elliepac · 08/08/2013 21:44

At least if we do Friday our way, I get to look forward to some fuck fun after hyperventilating at the state of the carWinkGrin.

Ta da:-
Dinner
Washed up
Putting away of laundry
Bath
Masterchef
Wine
S/s bathroom ( twice in one day, what the fuck is that all about)

To do:-
Sleep

Have a good car picking up trip blueSmile.

castle what lovely news at such a sad time. Am sure DF would be so happySmile.

BitchytheGreat · 08/08/2013 21:48

Precisely Ellie now you just have to convince dh...

OP posts:
BlueEyeshadow · 09/08/2013 05:04

's too early

Have a good day evereyone!

ToffeeWhirl · 09/08/2013 07:58

Hope trip goes well, Blue. Bring us back some Wine to restock the naughty corner bar, won't you?

ellie - hope you enjoyed the new baby step Wink

Mercury - congrats on sticking with the routines and enjoying the resulting tidy house Grin

Bitchy - thanks for posting the links even though I never do any missions, except by mistake

DH and I are taking DS2 on a trip today - visiting a museum and meeting up with my BF at the same time. We are meant to be having a picnic . So that means I have an hour and a half to make the house look respectable before MIL turns up to look after DS1 Hmm.

Ta da :

Put wet clothes in tumbledryer

To do :

Drink Brew
Get dressed to waterproof boots
Get DC dressed
B/fasts
Make packed lunch for DS2
Pack bag
Iron today's clothes
Room rescues downstairs
Write note for MIL re DS1's meds
Be ready to go by 9.30

Hope you all have a lovely day.

ZingWidge · 09/08/2013 08:02

we are all tidying like crazy. Estate agents are coming at 10.30 and 12.00 to value house [facepalm]

to do
everything. quite simple!Grin

ToffeeWhirl · 09/08/2013 08:10

Zing Good luck!

Ta da :

Have drunk Brew Grin

elliepac · 09/08/2013 09:33

Morning allSmile.

Slightly quieter day today which will mainly consist of:-

Washing (nearly caught upShock)
Toy sort out in living room to try and make it more like a living room and less like a branch of toys r us (oh for a bigger house with a playroom)
Garden tidy

That will do for today. Taking it easy after a busy few days. Got to leave some energy for fuck funWinkGrin.

Jesstryinghard · 09/08/2013 10:17

Mercury legoland is awesome you'll love it - we live local so go a lot :)

Can't see much flying happening today

Am banking on getting some
Done when my son goes to his dad Sunday :/ not that I would dream of doing more than 15 mins of
Course !! Wink

BitchytheGreat · 09/08/2013 10:29

Grin Jess. oh you are allowed to do more then 15mins as per the crisis cleaning rules but 3x15mins and then 15mins with a cuppa is the fat fairy's order. not that i ever stick to that though

Got to finish of everything that didn't get finished. Half a ton of laundry as we are playing musical beds due to visitors and still do something fun with ds.

Need to get so much done. really really cba and feeling a bit like death today. no rest for the wicked though. so must get cracking.

OP posts:
Steamedcabbage · 09/08/2013 11:13

Hello everyone, hope all ok ...

Many congratulations to your db and his fiancé Castle Flowers What lovely news at such a sad time. So glad your father knew what was afoot though x

Waves to Jess!

Enjoy your day out Toffee and hope the weather holds for your picnic (must be hard leaving ds1 at home x)

Have a great trip Blue!!

Grin Grin Grin at further doggy exploits PA!! Hope canine contraceptive counselling not required!

Well done on finishing your dd's room Ellie! (Feel guilty because dd has been waiting 7.5 yrs for hers to be done but can't really decorate until we have fixed holes in walls and put in more electric points. Have told dh (before he was ill) that dd will be leaving home before we've started it at this rate!)

Good luck with valuation Zing!

Congrats on your tidy house Mercury which must have taken some doing what with 4 dc, and long working hrs, and (sorry - missed it earlier) given that you were ill too. Top Flying marks! (Will be following your lead and putting dd to bed at usual time this weekend - she is cream crackered.)

(And to you too for your mega list yesterday PA)

Asheth sorting lego still definitely counts as Flying!

Waves to Engels Feetheart Honu Just and eveyrone else I've missed!

Feeling a bit grim today - hot and cold as though have temperature - wierd because it's only 22°c. Wandering around achieving not a lot (except laundry and prepping supper). Just hoping I can get to dd's end-of-pony-club-week show this afternoon. Poor beasts get "decorated" with purple streamers in their manes and tails - hooves covered in glittery foot oil etc. Dc plastered in face paint (on top of the mud).

Have roofers here this afternoon and builders two doors down are back from their holidays and drilling with avengence. Longing for a calm, green field ...

Steamedcabbage · 09/08/2013 11:15

Soryr - must be ill - forgot to mention Bitchy! Hope you feel better soon too!

Jdub · 09/08/2013 11:42

A very quick and belated good morning!!
Been on holiday, but back today with avengeance!!!
Much washing done = much putting away to do!!
Need to do a lot of food shopping and cooking, so that's my wknd in a nutshell!

I LOVE the sound of glittery hoof oil - how magical!! x

elliepac · 09/08/2013 13:31

Welcome back jdub. Am in the opposite situation. Going away tomorrow and still trying to get washing done for holidayGrin.

Ta da:-
Washing x lots
Putting away
Transferred the vast majority of DD's toys into her bedroom (new underbed storage!)
Cleared out living room leaving only a barbie house/cruise ship and dolla house in living room tucked away
Cleaned living room

Am sure I said I was taking it easy todayConfused.

BitchytheGreat · 09/08/2013 14:32

Urgh.

I need a list.

a ta da list would be good but i haven't really finished anything and started a 101 different jobs Hmm

in progress
sorting the lounge out
sorting my room out
sorting the dining room out
dealing with washing
sorting the frutility room out
un-labeling various items of clothing of ds'
swear at tumbler dryer that has random alarm going off that i can't seem to sort out

to do
finish all of the above

OP posts:
BitchytheGreat · 09/08/2013 15:43

Oh dear lord what have HQ done this time?
page layout has gone all screwballs

OP posts:
ToffeeWhirl · 09/08/2013 17:48

Back from our day out. It was lovely, but I am so, so exhausted - and now DS1 and I have to go and pick dandelions and feed the bearded dragons. It is absolutely the last thing I want to do right now, but will be fun for DS1.

Might bbl, unless I fall asleep first.

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