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

[BitchytheGreat]

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
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 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

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

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

PA - I often imagine what it would be like to be alone. I am never alone and I don't think I'd like it, even though my family sometimes drive me to distraction. So, you have my sympathies. But it doesn't sound as if you will be on your own for long (babysitting duties are looming, DH will return and you will long for peace and quiet!).

SC - thank you. Yes, it is so enfuriating when we are all working so hard to help DS1 and he just walks away, but it is absolutely the nature of anxiety. I had a chat with him afterwards and he admitted that he just panicked. I suggested he explain how he feels next time, rather than walking away and losing an appointment. Being a 13-year-old boy doesn't help. Thanks for the wine. Have added several glasses of the real stuff too .

And good luck with the social stuff tomorrow!

Goth - good to hear your DD likes her new teacher. That's half the battle.

DS1 came home from his friend's house, so no sleepover. He'd had a good time, though, and was in a happy mood.

Off to bed in a minute...

Just - fingers crossed for tomorrow! How nerve-wracking!

Shit just got in. Not read thread. Another stupid early day with meetings tomo. Dumping links and running sleeping

thursday is errand day

missions

babystep

Up and off to exam centre to join queue and get it over with, A bit pointless in some ways as he's already set for a gap year of more HE and working, and wont be going through clearing if he hasn't got the grades, but it's better than dealing with him being a pacing wreck.

Toffee a very hard place for all of you, but you can only take the horse to water, not make them drink.

Bitchy good luck with meetings

must go, hope to catch up with everyone else later.

Hi everyone - I'm still here. Have been suffering a large dose of cba-ness for the first half of the holidays and now need to get into gear. One of the fat fairy's sayings I seem to remember when I first started this flying lark was 'focus makes me fabulous'. Well, I think I lost my focus somewhere and desperately need to get it back.

In just over 2 weeks time DH is going into respite for a week. First time off in over 3 years! It seems wrong to be so delighted but I am. I can feel how stressed I am. Now the question is - how much do I do in that week? There are so many people I haven't visited in the past 3 years, so many places I want to go - but also so many early bath/read in bed nights I haven't had, and I really don't want to be burnt out at the end of it. A week is really only 6 days as both Saturdays are getting him there and back, and it's an incredibly expensive week (we have just too much money to get any help). So I'm trying to plan how to make the best of it, because if I don't it will just slide away. All ideas welcome!

However - first to make this shit-heap tidier so I can then clean it. Power of three I think.

Back later

Good luck to your ds Just

We are off to London to watch the Brainiac show with some friends today so I will only be doing minimal flying.

To do:
Beds
Dw
Hoover downstairs
Quick tidy up
Daytrip to London
Dinner
Work

Got to dash. Have a good day everybody.

Morning morning!!

Happy Thursday - all going to plan so far!!
My DCs had a sleepover in each others bedroom last night so am expecting to go home to a bomb site later!
Cake-wise - 1 Victoria sponge done and frozen, scones, fruit and cherry cake to follow (not all in one go!)

Have a top day xx

Honu don't feel bad about looking forward to a break. 3 years is a long time. I think you'll need a list, and just prioritise what you want to do, you'll not be able to fit everything in, so make sure you do what you really want to do, plus the early nights. And

Fingers crossed Just

Jdub they may surprise you! (Ha ha)

Bitchy hope your day goes smoothly.

Dropped DD for day 2, she still keen , Ipromise you won't get a break down for the rest of the school year, it's just that she's not normally this enthusiastic.

Done
Beds
S&S
Breakfasts
Packed lunches
Washing up
Dd to school

To do
Put bike lights on (the right way up )
Ironing
Go to work, am in centre today, as Kings of Leon are playing in the park tonight and they don't like the idea of me being alone in my little hut with 50,000 fans wondering about.

Hope you all have a good day.

So glad it went well Goth!

Good luck with DS and exam results Just. My nephew is going through the same thing today.

Honu great that you are getting some respite care. I can see that under a week isn't a long time after 3 years and the temptation would be to cram everything in when you need a long rest. Actually, can see that just planning the week given all the surrounding circs could be quite stressful as so much depends on it. Hope you can find the right balance

Thanks for late night links Bitchy

Waves to everyone else!

Have precisely one hour and 20 mins in which to hoover, prep a crumble, prep baked spuds & salad, make a salsa and get myself gussied up. Leaving it all until the very last minute was the only way I could motivate myself! Don't think Flylady would approve somehow ...

Good luck with exam results to Just's DS and SC's nephew!

Just - you are so right about only taking a horse to water. DS1 is quite capable of messing up his chances at getting a life outside the four walls of this house and it is so frustrating, but we can only trust that he will make the right decisions in the end.

Honu - I'm so glad to hear that you are getting some time off your caring responsibilities. I think you need to be really careful not to overschedule and end up just as tired as you are now. Could you write a list and work out your priorities, then just do the first few? Six days isn't really that long and you need time to just enjoy reading in bed and getting long lie ins.

Goth - good to hear back-to-schoolness is still going well.

Jdub - hope it's not too much of a bombsite back home. Am impressed by all your baking so early in the day.

Mercury - the Brainiac show sounds a lot of fun .

Bitchy - good luck with your meetings (poor you).

Today didn't start so well. All I wanted, as I stumbled downstairs, bleary eyed, was a coffee, but DH got there first (which was fair, as he had to go to work early). Then DS2 started talking at me non-stop about Minecraft (groan), DS1 started complaining about DS2's non-stop talking and I managed to catch the coffee percolator on the sleeve of my dressing gown and pull it off the work surface. Coffee grains and hot water splattered spectacularly all over work surfaces, floor, dressing gown and even inside cupboards .

So I spent the next half hour clearing up whilst making pancakes for hungry, non-stop talking boys. Finally, packed them both off to waste time on screens, just so I could have some peace.

Nothing planned today, so I'm going to attempt a house rescue, room by room. Every room looks like a bomb site.

Hope you all have a good day. Cross fingers for exam results!

Meetings today have gone well but am feeling drained. fuck flying. Going to sleep for a bit and then process everything. bbl with links and hopefully read through properly. sorry.

Sticking head in to say we picked up results and he'd missed his offer, and we thought that was that and did the whole comiserations and changing plans stuff, then right in the middle of trying to convince him the world hadn't ended, an email turned up scongratulating him on being accepted, along with one saying he'd exceeded his offer (he hadn't) and after frustrating morning, we've finally got to the bottom of it all; he's got his place regardless!
Totally mentally done for now, but have the insurance unit to finish clearing, and neighbors house to move, so of to do it.

Sympathies Bitchy, glad it went well.

SC fingers crossed for your nephew.

Honu hope you get some rest.

Must run, hope to get back later.

Oh my, what a rollercoaster, Just! But congratulations to your DS on getting his place! (What is he going to be studying? ).

And also an especially big congratulations to you, as you home-educated him through all this, as well as coping with floods and all the other things life threw at you. What an achievement!

And - typical! - I see you are helping a neighbour move house when you probably need to go back to bed.

Bitchy - glad meetings went well. Sleep well. (I always have to sleep after difficult meetings too. It's good to switch off).

Ta da :

D/W unloaded and reloaded
Coffee granules cleared up from cupboard, floor, drawers, etc.
Extra washing up done by hand
Times Tables practised with DS2
Covered hair in coconut oil to condition (have been reading 'S&B threads)
Stripped bed clothes
Two loads of washing done
Washing hung on line outside
Room rescued started in DS2's bedroom
Swish and swiped in bathroom
Watered plants
Various snacks for boys
Washed oil off with shampoo (still can't decide if it's made any difference)
Let DS1 take DS2 to playground on his own (followed at discrete distance and they didn't spot me)
Boys' lunch
Found DS1's old skateboard in loft
DS1 went out on his skateboard alone (what is going on?! He's going out at last)
More washing up
Emptied kitchen bin
Put recycling out (embarrassing number of wine bottles )
Made important phone call
Made my lunch

Right, am going to continue tackling both boys' bedrooms now. I need to declutter the excess toys by putting them in the loft cupboards. There is just too much stuff!

Yeah Just many congratulations to your ds!!! As Toffee said, a testament to your dedication/home-edding skills!!! (Sorry you were put through the mill before you discovered the final results though - what a palaver! No one has called here so far so I haven't dared call my sister yet!! Hoping no news is good news ...)

Blimey Toffee you have certainly bounced back after a frustrating start - congrats on completing such a long list!

Glad meetings went well Bitchy and absolutely no need to apologise please!!!! You are doing great job of thread-running!

Your baking sounds delicious Jdub

Hope you are having a lovely day out Mercury

Waves to PA Goth Castle Trazzles Feetheart Whoknows Blue Engels Asheth Twin Zing Jess I'mazoozer and everyone else I have missed

Lunch went well in the end although I did cut it a bit fine. So my ta da list is basically: get up, morning routine, hoover ground floor, re-arrange sideboard, faddle about with table cloths, set table, make salsa, make salad, bake pots, cook steak/sausages/brochettes, make green bean salad, make peach and redcurrant crumble (one healthy one for dh just with oat flakes and real deal for us). Gussy myself up. Entertain. Lose rabbits. Find rabbits. Drink . Clear up. Laundry. About to play some badminton with dd. I don't intend to do much else today really either

Goodness, that's plenty for today, SC! Hope you can relax and drink more now.

Yes, not sure how that list happened. Will add more shortly...

Well I really could do more Toffee feel surprisingly energetic ... should set timer and do a bit in boudoir ...but Mnsetting instead!!!

Arf at your undercover surveillance techniques

hello everyone look what I have

anyone?

oooohhhhh, Zing yes please !!

friday, fuck fun day

missions

babystep yeah i'd skip this one, but up to you.

and fuck fun!!!!!!!

Shall we make tomo and this weekend party time? it was about mid way through the month when the first ever fledgling thread appeared! Twas started by our ever amazing DWMummy and swan and brought a few of us long timers out to play.

Sorry, Bitchy you is wrong! It was SC who started the very first one and it was in July. I joined her and we jumped right in for August. For August is was just us chattin doing the babysteps, then in September we were joined by Ellie, Swan and mummy I believe.

I can have but fuckfun is off the menu for the next 10 months.

Oooh, party-time!

Will there be more ?

Sorry there will be no fuck fun, PA . Fancy DH doing volunteering work when he has duties at home .

I have more on my list - but I'm not sure I can be arsed to write it down. Suffice it to say that I have decluttered DS2's bedroom and removed a boxful of books and one of toys up to the loft space. His room needs more work, but looks better already.

Wine has been drunk, meals cooked, DC washed. DH did the washing up . I just have to read DS2 a story and put the clean sheets on our bed.

Another quiet day tomorrow. Highlight of the day: the plumber is coming to mend our loo...

And thank you to those who started this thread. It never fails to cheer me up.

See I knew if I posted that I would be put right!!!!! can't remember the name i was using at the time I knew it was a branch off thread from the fly thread that was scary looking with long lists for the newbies to learn what it was about in a less intimidating system. Can we have a party anyway and let the thread be like the queen and have two birthdays? [hopeful]

Sorry SC

I thought it was SC too, although I didn't join until the November. Yes, party time!

Our house is tidy! Some of it is even clean! This is thanks to a) me tidying up in advance of ILs visit at the start of the week and b) MIL doing quite a bit of tidying and c) me making an effort to keep up the good work. Little and often.

Well done to DS Just - what a relief. Will he be staying at home with you or going away to study?

Hope your DN got the required results too SC.

Ta-da!

Morning routines, spare bed stripped/washed/dried/remade.
Library for reading scheme book change
Swimming
Home for lunch
Off to big town for school shoe shopping
Home for more washing
Take DS to football
Home, dinner, MN and er, that's enough for one day.