Is it October already the fledglings utter? We'll Fly with our broom sticks and start to declutter...

[Slimchance]

If you are strugging with C.H.A.O.S. (can't have anyone over syndrome) and S.T.U.F.F. (something that undermines family fun) then this is the thread where we (loosely) follow the step-by-step Flylady housekeeping system (in our own, unique, relaxed style) with lots of chat, support and and along the way.

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

At the same time it is intended to reduce that panicky "rabbit in headlights" feeling when you are overwhelmed and everything needs doing all at once. No problem if you miss a day or two; just jump right back in and it will all come around next month again!

We advise not signing up to receive the Flylady e-mails as you will be inundated! All the information you need will be linked here on a daily basis.

From the first of the month, we will be 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.]

More info here on getting started and Flying lessons. Here's the launch pad for more experienced fledglings. Don't be put off by the barf-tastic language of the site - the underlying system is sound!

Humungous thanks to Whoknows for leading us through the tricky start to the academic year ....

All welcome!!

Welcome SilverSixpence - I too have paper trauma, I really try and keep on top of it but it is SO hard.

Thank you for encouraging words about cats and allergies everyone, I am quite sure I am being really silly (I feel like I did with a newborn baby, out of my depth and paranoid about doing the wrong thing). DD looked fine when I picked her up from school today, but she went round to her friend's house on the way home so isn't back yet, I am going to be watching her carefully when she comes back into the house. Hopefully I will be able to look back at all my silly worries and laugh in years gone by, like last year when i found the notebook of questions to ask the midwife after my PFB was born 9 years ago. Swan - we have just bought a new Ikea armchair, hmm.

Have 15k in less than a month feet . Have been training since August but stopped when I got pg and never got round to cancelling it. So am now a few weeks behind!

Ta da
Hv meeting - they rang me at 9.30 to tell me my appt was 10 minutes ago! Jumped in the car and they managed to squeeze me in!
Popped in to drop something off a work and then wandered round the openair museum. Forgot it's half term in other parts of the country so it was heaving.
Collapsed for a few hours (tomjerrybirthdaycakegate)
Dinner
Washing up
Washing x2
Emptied bins

Should finish marking now but I am too sleepy

Early night for me today

Hello SilverSixpence paperwork is a constant grind (serves me right for being a spreadsheet addict), I try to set time aside once a week to tackle it, so it doesn't become too big a pile!

WhoKnows I'm sure your DD will be ok, when DM was with us last week, she thought her sore throat was down to pollution, but it turns out she's gone down with a cold!

Engels good luck with the 15k, most impressed!

Feet WOW, you're going to feel like it's a brand new house after all this work.

Updated Done
Beds
Washing up
S&S
Cat litter tray cleaned
Bathroom floor washed
2 small loads laundry -having to dry in house
Dry laundry away
Accompanied DH to doctors
Huge shop at Morrison's
Collect Dd from school
Nap
Dd to karate
Dinner
Washing up & SS

Goth you can be impressed if I actually finish it!

I really should be heading to bed now. Got that back to school feeling in my stomach

Evening all!

Flying and decorating all sounds good, feet.

Glad to hear DS1 still doing well, Toffee.

Big waves to SilverSixpence.

Today I have had a few spectacular fallings out with the boys, but also achieved a bit of a house bleugh prompted by DS2's friend and his mum coming round for lunch. Also done some work and been to choir so feeling good.

Slim - here is a pic of the horse. Instead of taking our normal path which it the one leading straight to its head, we took the road shown at the bottom right corner and then walked up to his tail!

Pretty productive day here - and DH even commented on how tidy the house looked

• Parcel taken to PO
• Essentials bought at shop
• Washing load on and hung to dry
• Dry washing put away
• S/S x 3
• Downstairs hovered
• R/R x 3
• Kitchen floor swept
• Kitchen bin emptied
• Had a baking fest - apple pie, jam tarts, mini cookies & flapjacks
• Tea made
• Sink shined

DD spontaneously invited 2 classmates (twin sisters) home after school, so it felt good not to have to worry about the house being a tip. I suppose this means - at least today - chaos has been averted!

Good morning all!

[places extra quilt over Bitchy and sets coffee percolator going on hob]

Only posting links now as was buried in a load of proof-reading yesterday which has bounced back (again) from the printers with more to do today ... not helped by another chunk of our house falling off last night (fortunately nothing major but dh not happy as it occurred in the middle of supper!). Fine if it just fell off and didn't disturb his eating of course ...anyway, lets just say that any hoovering I did yesterday morning has been somewhat undermined by plaster dust.

Hope you are all OK!

A very warm welcome to SilverSixpence! You've certainly joined us at the right time, because the habit for October is clearing paper clutter - 15 mins per day - which doesn't sound very much but does make a difference if you do it consistently. (I will be carrying on doing this well in to Nov and Dec and next year as well unfortunately!) I'm afraid I'm not the best person to advise about filing cabinets because I have an old one that I have stolen from the office which is currently a quarter full of dd's old drawings and school work-books, while the paper it should be housing is scattered around it in on the floor, or on huge wobbling piles on the desk ... . Agree with others though that tackling small chunks every day is the key... like eating an elephant! Good luck!

Toffee great that your ds1 enjoyed his first lesson back at school! Glad you had a good time with your mum and good luck with reward system!

Sounds as if you have well and truly tamed the C.H.A.O.S. there Dizzy! [Awards golden feather duster.] [Snaffles a jam tart.]

Hope your first day back goes well Engels and isn't as bad as anticipated .... Good luck with the 15k training!

Top marks for your home-bleughing and list completion respectively Blue and Goth! (Think it's obligatory to embarrass one's 9 yr olds on a daily basis isn't it? )

Sounds as though your building project is truly nearing completion Feetheart¨Top marks to you for getting through all the work involved!

Aye Whoknows here's hoping it's a rug allergy!!

Hope you are enjoying your holiday Elliepac!

Big wing flaps to Swan and everyone else/anyone lurking/anyone I have missed!

Have a good day everyone!

**

Today's baby-step, no. 22, for Tues 22nd Oct is about building a control journal. By no means obligatory!

This week we are in Zone 4: The Master Bedroom.

Once your boudoir is totally clutter-free [SC cackles hysterically], you can go on to detailed cleaning.

Tomorrow's daily mission is here dusting bathroom skirting boards.

Tuesday's daily focus is planning menus, medical appointments, nights out, holidays and travel etc etc

The habit for October is clearing paper clutter.

Here's today's flight plan which summarises the above.

You are all Flying really high! Keep going everyone!

*

Wow Dizzy just clicked on your link to the Uffington white horse - it is amazing. Just Wikipediae'd it (another new verb?) and hadn't realised it dates from the Bronze Age. You are so lucky to live within striking distance!

too. fucking. early.

That is all.

Morning all. Lovely day yesterday. Cinema in the morning and then whiled the afternoon away at BF's house drinking coffee while the DC's amused themselves. Then back home where the DC's rediscovered the Wii and played for ages happily.

This morning so far we have played the Wii and made random crap with crafty stuff. It is still raining here so we are planning a trip to the local museum for a visit and to partake in their crafty stuff plus lunch in the cafe and then to hospital to visit FiL who is getting better.

Flying.....what's that?

Have done some this morning.

Ta da:-
Washing on
Dryer on
Putting away
Washing up
Tidy
Made beds
S/s bathroom

To do:-
Tidy our bedroom before we go out

silverspoon (hope i have remembered that right...am on phone) welcome. I am shite with paperwork. It lives in bags. Cannot offer any advice then really but nice to have you onboard.

engels hope back to work goes ok. I have a shitload of tests to mark....watch what I post on Sunday...that's when I will end up doing them. The way i see it, I work bloody hard during term time. I am allowed a few days without even thinking about work.

Better go and crack on with our bedroom.

Shit it's silversixpence....sorry.

Dizzy - that looks lovely. I can offer you the <a class="break-all" href="http://www.google.co.uk/imgres?imgurl=lh3.ggpht.com/_Cg02E5r8Wzo/SrOLe2FIkuI/AAAAAAAABHA/_ThVyIK7_j4/whipsnade_chalk_lion_ge_500px.jpg&imgrefurl=armchairtravelogue.blogspot.com/2009/09/huge-chalk-lion-whipsnade-england.html&h=375&w=500&sz=126&tbnid=TW_wMxoqnvo4jM:&tbnh=92&tbnw=123&zoom=1&usg=__4U4BS9n2AKuPyhajrRnnFADeuS0=&docid=Rle9LxLymrNyOM&sa=X&ei=OzpmUtn_EITQ0QXPtIH4Dg&ved=0CDoQ9QEwAw" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Magic Lion It is in the grounds of Whipsnade Zoo and is magic because at night it comes to life and protects all the zoo animals - DC are now 10 and 7 and are not really sure if they believe us any more . The building at the top of the hill is a cafe and many hours have been spent sitting outside nattering whilst DC run up and down the quite steep hill.

I had a shower in our New Shower Room this morning - the first one to have a go though I was closely followed by DH and then DS. Very exciting
Feel a bit of a fraud going on and on about building work as it has only added 9 square metres to the house but it seems to have taken FOREVER and the disruption has been much more than we anticipated. I am SO glad that we can now use the front door again and not traipse mud all over the kitchen floor - does mean I need to clean it though as I had virtually given up

Need to get lots of work done today, including filing of work stuff. That might count as paper clutter.
So today:

• Run - done
• SHOWER - done
• All up and out - done
• Elderly neighbour's lottery - done
• DS's bedding in to wash again - done. Thought we had cracked being dry at night but maybe not. He has agreed that we need to go and talk to the school nurse again.
• WORK
• Sort out dinner
• Reading at school
• Early dinner
• DS and DH to Beavers
• Ironing
• Early night

Anyone heard anything from PA? It all went quiet after her stupid interview with the people who wanted her to prove she was a native. Do we need a petition, a whip round and a rescue mission?

Good morning!!
Rainy day, so it's nice to be at work.
Managed to hoover upstairs and downstairs at the wknd, so I MUST wash the floor at some point this week.
Starting to have a good clear out (in preparation for Christmas) so I need to empty my car of the bags that have made it thus far!
DONE:
all up fed out
and left the house in a relatively tidy state
TO DO
plan tea for tonight and tomorrow
meeting pm therefore NO cleaning for me tonight!
Have a good day xx

Feet - good point about PA. A quick search reveals that she was online on MN five days ago, so at least she was still in the country then. What do we need for a rescue mission?

This morning I am on my own, so I'm making a start on decluttering the home ed stuff in DS1's bedroom, which means I am following October's habit of decluttering paper clutter .

She has been about on fb a little. so fingers crossed she is ok. Guess getting all those new jobs to juggle means she is back to being silly busy again too.

Hello you lovely lot!! How nice to be missed and stalked I feel luuurrrrrvvvvved!!!

The reason I have stepped back has been because I could not trust myself to be quiet and not massively rant about the situation and stupidity that I was facing. I think we are getting to the end of it....I do have telephone confirmation that I am in the clear, just waiting to see it in black and white. Once I have that in my hand I will be back for some chat housework!
A little hint as to what has been thrown at me is this......it was thought that I had been washing money!! Brother has been brilliant!!!

Once letter is in my hand I will come back and join you all! --and then I wont care what I say because it will all be over.

Thank you to all those who noticed that I wasn't around. I always fell a bit invisible, so that meant a lot! and copious amounts of [wine and will be here for my return.

Aww, PA - what a ridiculous thing to happen. Glad you are OK and hopefully it will all be sorted out soon. Flylady doesn't say we should wash money, at least that's something.

Hurray! Glad you are ok, PA! Thank goodness your brother has stepped in to help. It must have all been very worrying.

Glad to hear you haven't been carted off PA but sorry that it is still ongoing. Looking forward to your imminent return and vast quantity of . Ooooo, we will need a party

Toffee - at water pistol. From items near-at-hand I could provide a tape measure, a cat litter tray and a sad-looking hyacinth that is supposed to be DS's responsibility We will make a dangerous fighting force and will bamboozle them with our weirdness

I have done some work and now have 16 mins to prep dinner, straighten hair and get something to eat before I have to go to school to read with children.

Back properly later, but have an unusual 3 hours that can be at least partially dedicated to flying so just popping in with a list.

To do

Make and eat lunch
Fold washing
Unstack dishwasher
Get food out of freezer for tea
wipe sides
Clean hob
Put washing on
Take out bins x4
room rescue living room
room rescue boudoir
Paint some skirting boards (probably)
Check household budget
15 mins cleaning en suite
15 mins cleaning kitchen
5 mins decluttering entrance

lunch first obviously!

Thanks for the warm welcome all. I got a reply to my thread but it was a bit like a blunt sledgehammer so think I will stick with you all here . We are redecorating and the clutter has come out of its hiding places in spectacular fashion!

So far today:
Listed 5 lots on freecycle and got rid of my gym ball
Put away one basket of clothes
washing up done
Supermarket shop done and put away
stuff in car to take to tip

To do
nappies in wash
hang out nappy load
put away dry clothes
school run
ds to taekwondo
dinner for dc
baths and bed
15 mins paperwork declutter
Change sheets

Yay PA Hope it all gets sorted out soon.

SilverSixpence sounds like you've been productive.

Done
Morning routines
Visit to doctors (check up)
Dry laundry away
Ironing
2 small loads laundry washed & drying in house
Tidied bedroom cupboards
Collected Dd from school
Nap (again!)
Dinner
Washing up & SS

Great to see you back PA! Hope you receive necessary confirmation soon. [Rubs camouflage paint off face and removes twigs and moss thatch from hair].

Big waves to everyone else!

Hope no-one minds but just going to post links and run. Am buried (unusually for me!) under a huge pile of work and have a couple of hours to go tonight having taken a break for GBBO. Already have loads of stuff from printers and dh has now dumped an entire tome on me to be ready by Nov 10th -just in time for school hols - so will have to find childcare [bum]. DD will not be happy as we had loads of plans.

BB to catch up in the morning.

G'night all!

***
Tomorrow's baby-step, no. 23, for Wed 23rd Oct is adding an afternoon routine to your day.

This week we are in Zone 4: The Master Bedroom. Spend 15 mins a day decluttering in here!

Once your boudoir is totally clutter-free you can go on to detailed cleaning.

Tomorrow's daily mission is clearing flat surfaces in your bedroom.

Wednesday is anti-procrastination day.

The habit for October is clearing paper clutter.

Tomorrow's flight plan will update itself andprovide a summary of the above!

Keep going everyone!

Btw either you were all being incredibly polite or none of you spotted my deliberate errors in the links today! [For our mission we were meant to be cleaning skirting boards in the bedroom, not the bathroom, and we were meant to be doing that today, not tomorrow .] Sorry about that! Never at my best first thing in the morning or late at night or around lunchtime ... .