Fledglings don't makes resolutions in January, they fly through the babysteps.

[BitchytheGreat]

So here it is the dreaded January thread. The thread of resolutions and good intentions for the year that you are lucky if you see through to the end. Welcome to the start of 2014!!

A quick note for newbies, this is a long running thread. We do like new blood around here. However, we do ask you to be respectful that for a lot of us just getting off our arses is not going to help and to avoid suggesting this. We all know life is more complicated then this. So here we do things a little differently. A little bit of flying and a lot of chatter and moral support. Feel free to jump on board and join us in flying.

For those who are new to fly lady she recommends a three step program:

1. Get those babysteps into a habbit
2. Get rid of the clutter.
3. Get that deep cleaning done.

Don't worry if you think you not doing it right but not getting up to it. Some of us have been here for years and we are still decluttering. Because clutter has a nasty way of multiplying if you take you eye off it, especailly if you have kids.

Fly lady ethos tells us a few things that I want you to remember:
No perfectism this is harder then you would imagine
You are never behind just start where you are and anything you do is progress.
It didn't get into a mess overnight, it won't get tidy over night accept it will take time to get on top of things and you will be happier.

So jump on board and lets get started.

Oh and I forgot the proper introductions. "I'm Bitchy and I shall be your guide to the fly lady system for January" better buckle up as things normally get a little crazy when it is my turn to take control. good luck

Cheers Toffee (allowed myself one small glass of white this evening!) Think you deserve a couple of bottles of after that list!

Ta da:
pull out dd's tooth on request! done
polish dd boots done
hang up latest cotton wash to dry done
finish uniform wash done
15 mins brisk walk done
darks wash x 2 (second one doing - need to hang up)
hang up dark wash 1 to dry done
clear sideboard/fresh tablecloth etc done
arrange flowers done
made veggie lentil dahl done
cover three school books (really do it this time!) done two
wrap final present (nope, decided to buy flowers instead)
sort clothes for tomorrow night done
dye Barnet Fair? done
transferred dd school books/files/dictionaries from teeterng piles on floor into new desk done [yay!]
unpack new mugs done
unpack new kettle done
cook fish supper done
telephone call dsis done
email other dsis done
supervise dd bath done
strip and make double bed done

To do:
MFP input
sort Monday tutoring
evening routine
early bed

Tomorrow:
clean out hamster
wash new mugs
big carry of things upstairs and things downstairs
clear sitting room floor
label Christmas dec boxes and finally take up to roof!
box up Christmas paper/ribbons/cards for roof
recycling
rubbish
Barnet Fair cut?/sort in some way if not

Big waves to everyone else! 'See' you in the morning!

done
RE homework after a lot of chasing round the kitchen table
Dd homework help
made tuna pasta for supper
cleared kitchen - dw, table, worktops, hob
washed blazer and assorted uniforms
washed some more stuff, hung out to dry around the house
made a pile to iron, as cleaning lady is returning tomorrow as cannot do Mum's house

found computer which Ds1 had hidden under his beanbag, then ds2 had nicked it, and hidden it under his bed

Ds1 spent two hours just playing the piano and singing to pop songs, dd spent one hour except she needed dh as audience

Ds2 is being "an idiot" in dd's words, but just his usual lively self which means a lot of "redirection"! By some miracle all his homework is done and he has managed to go to drama, and generally be a busy bee!

hi everyone
sorry my visits are fleeting.
slowly getting on top of the house.
hope everyone is coping in their own way

I'm in awe of your ta da lists this evening, especially Toffees! :o

Am steeling myself for a day of craft activities with the DC tomorrow, since it is one of our TV free days. So don't anticipate much flying being done! Luckily I should be ok on the zone cleaning as I tackled mine and DD's bedrooms in my spring clean on NYE, so they just need a bit of maintenance rather than a total overhaul :)

Off to bed in a minute, that's the one flylady rule I always inadvertently follow, I'm generally in bed for 10pm (although I do then spend an hour mning on my iPod ), but that's partly because of the DC getting up so early, I wouldn't be able to function otherwise!

Hope everyone's ok and ready for another week of flying :)

Oh, something to raise a smile after a busy week; DH arrived home with a new toilet seat last week. We needed a new one as DS kept peeing on the hinges and they had gone rusty
The new one is pink When questioned as to why we had a pink one, DH answered that it is because the purple one was more expensive
Ah, the logic of DHs! :o

Whispers - preserve your new toilet seat hinges with a thin coat of vaseline after cleaning, I fill all the screw holes with it and run it round the edges (where it meets the seat), only need to do it once every few weeks, it helps repel the wee.

Just - hope the PIP assessment goes to plan tomorrow.

Some great lists this weekend.

Ta-da!

Sorted 5 loads of clean washing and put it away (apart from the stuff that needs ironing). Oh, just general stuff, nothing really interesting. OU work.

Yesterday we all sat down at lunch together and planned the whole week ahead's meals. did the shopping today and feeling on top of menu planning for the first time in a long time.

Today I took DS to a hockey tournament, which went well, he has moved up and age group but seemed to fit in well. The sun shone throughout (hoorah!).

Ironing time now.

Interesting idea about the loo seat, WhoKnows.

Today has been a bit mixed as DS1 seems to have collapsed with some kind of virus this evening. Will have to see how he is in the morning... Have managed to get on top of the laundryat least.

Night all.

Evening all

Fun day here! Walk in park, visit to local community artist's thrift shop & cafe, the organic food shop then home for a quick tidy up before DD's best friend and parents arrived (who only left at 9!)

It was lovely, the girls played brilliantly together and the adults played Pandemic it's a board game were you work together to battle 4 different viruses before they wipe out humanity. Let's just be grateful we don't work for WHO or else humanity is doomed we were terrible! but had a lot of fun.

I've now stuffed myself with maple syrup fudge, and so will be back starting 5:2 again this week.

Hope everyone is ok, will try to be more involved this week.

Hoped for a lazy start to the day but DH got up and banged and crashed about getting dressed. When I commented that he could have done so quietly so as not to wake me up he replied that he had tried to not disturb me!

We nipped into Reading where DH got some new trainers and DD and I got a running top each. Mine is fluorescent yellow and quite a snug fit so I felt rather self conscious when we went out for our run stumble later on!

So as not to watch Call The Midwife, DH washed the pots and then said perhaps I could "reward" him as it saved me doing them. No chance there boyo as you made all the mess!

Ta Da

• Emptied D/W
• Washing load on and hung to dry
• Ironed shirts/uniform for the week and most of DD's bits
• Went out for walk/run with DD
• Sorted bags and bits for morning

I have a Bitchy/Toffee-esque list that I will be ploughing through tomorrow

Ok not long home.
absolutely completely and utterly exhausted. but had a lovely good for the soul bad for the body kinda weekend.

Tomo is monday so lots of links. not sure i can care enough to post right now so will do so tomo morning. But just incase you are eager to get started early launch pad is here and you can find the info you will need. Will do proper links tomo. night

babystep: laundry

We are in zone 4 so 15 minutes decluttering

missions

Yep it is monday and that means the dreaded house bleurgh

Ok I lied. I thought about it and tbh I have every intention of grabbing a nap if i can tomo. So ther you go linkies linkies you've got the linkies....

Not doing well on the pain sleep front here, and rearly aren't safe to be MN'ing like it.

Toffee That does seem to be the crux of things, but part of the reason I’m being pushed onto this PIP assessment is to decide if I should be lifted out of the situation a bit, or not, as far as I understand.
Amazing list!

SC thank you for that, though please don't let it be that. I am going to try and get an appointment tomorrow after the assessment.
Chap who had a go at me, was apparently Pentecostal, and had several strong things he loudly and publically pronounced, while insisting he had a right to. I asked his daughter and partner to take him away twice, they just blanked me. People can be pretty weird.

Swan homework done true miracles
Who knows toilet seat idea interesting here too.
Blue hope ds not too ill
Goth sounds like a really good day
Dizzy good luck with list
Bitchy well done getting a great weekend under your belt. Love the description.

Trying not to wake ds, so very quiet to do:
Ironing
Watch ADHD video
Read forms
Work out where proof of identities wanted are
plan out how the tree can be got down on wednesday and what needs to happen Mon and Tues to achieve it.

Morning all! [Waves to Just. So sorry you are still in pain. Hopefully unlikely you have eye socket infection but just though worth checking out - sorry - didn't mean to alarm - am worry wart - hope you can get doc appt today.]

Have just been woken up by dh going to the loo and can't get back to sleep (despite feeling tired). Feel anxious/restless and (sorry for tmi) am perspiring. Can you have a hot flush when you still have periods? I dunno! (Am 50 this year [yargh, don't like seeing that in black & white] but absolutely no sign of menopause - wish there was frankly.)

Anyway, have decided to get up and (quietly) potter and do stuff ... .

[Puts strong coffee on the hob for Bitchy ]

Another one who can't sleep but I'll not be getting up. Desperate to try and get a couple more hours.

[Blows sleep dust in direction of Nicknacks]

Hope everyone's back asleep or managed some.

SC tbh I may need the kick up the butt over the eye. Common sense says things aren't ok and I've been quietly scared about how unwell and feverish and out of kilter I am day in and out, and not properly recovering, and I'm just living on painkillers which isn't a good thing, and while I know I don't help things it doesn't feel like there's any interest from Dr. Perhaps if I tried being actively worried that it was scary x there might be more interest in telling me not to be silly it was harmless old y.

Then realises you're wide awake too SC! Doh!

[May be physically awake Just but mentally dead!! ]
Yes, it just sounded from your recent posts as if you the infection/virus/whatever it is, hasn't left you (especially with feeling wobbly and collapsing in shop etc). You should be recovering your strength by now. Hope you can make Dr see sense although I know that requires yet more energy you don't have atm. Don't be too stalwart when you see him/her!! Or perhaps see alternative doc if poss? Surely they will take it seriously when they see you were admitted to A&E??? Hope you can get it sorted anyway. (Wish I could offer more practical support instead of witterings btw !!!) And good luck at horrible meeting!


I suppose getting a bit more support/respite is out of the question?

Blue meant to say earlier, hope your ds is feeling better this morning

Ta da:
printed out copies of animals for dd's art class that we forgot to do over weekend
seen dh off on trip (he was meant to go last night but decided to take early flight this morning instead)
ironed school pinafore and jumper
cleaned out hamster although this was supposed to be dd's job
tidied bedroom
bkft/shower/hair
chivvy dd in to getting music bag ready

To do:
dw, wm, s&s, rabbits
school run
dining room table hotspot
clear sitting room floor
clean kitchen
carry lots of things up and down stairs
carry on with laundry

and too many things to list here but that will do for now!

Hope everyone has as good a start to the week as poss!

oh bugger

dh has just come back
he has forgotten wallet/passport etc

neither of us can find it

phew, we've found it (buried under heap of files in office) but dh has missed flight so is staying put today. Perhaps just as well as we are going to look at a secondary school for dd tonight (important as may determine whether we relocate to UK in next two years or not) and timings were a bit tight re: his return journey.

Right, that's quite enough excitement for one morning. Back to boring chores ....

[leaves out and big platter of pain au chocolat on naughty corner bar + low-sugar fruit salad for dieters]

Have a good start to the week everyone!

Just so sorry you are still in agony, and painkillers can sometimes mask the extent of the problem. Severe sinus infections can be agonising,my mum often gets them (and has done for as long as I remember), holds on as long as she can and then deteriorates. But with antibiotics they do eventually clear. It is always when she is under stress though.
A wry story about emergencies: Two days ago my mum lay awake all night thinking she was having a DVD (deep vein thrombosis) as her leg went all numb and seized up(it has been a terrible problem that particular leg/ankle numerous ops etc). She said she lay there waiting till dawn when she could wake up my 80 year old father who was very tired after driving all day, thinking about all the things she hadn't organised and how no-one would be able to sort out anything in the event of her death Dawn came, she forced my Dad to google DVD, he grumpily told her it didn't sound like DVD, but in the event she ended up in hospital with tracking tests etc etc where they took her completely seriously. Luckily it was just that she had done far too much (aeroplane, walking through terminals, rushing around) the previous few days and her leg had rebelled. It is terrible though how it feels so difficult to ask people for help - my father was literally lying next to her and she thought she was dying and she still didn't wake him up I told her next time she should call an ambulance. To which she responded she couldn't reach that side of the bed where the phone was or otherwise move.

SC I have hot flushes and I'm only 48! I don't think I've been admitting to myself that they are hot flushes

done
we had an exhausting night...well it would have been fine if we hadn't had to get up at the crack of dawn as usual to get dd off to school and the boys out by 7.30. Ds2 wet his bed (unusual nowadays) came into our bed (dh departed to another bed) Dh froze all night, ds2 wouldn't settle, I didn't settle. We could have happily slept till 9am after we finally went back to sleep but alas, school

walked ds2 to school

Dogsitting today and need to combine with cleaning lady and hair standing on end cats (they hate dogs, especially terriers)

Today i have come back to earth with a bump. flying can go fuck itself it is not happening.

Thanks for the tip, Who :)

Sounds like everyone had a rubbish night's sleep Mine wasn't too bad, although DD was up at 5.30 which was a bit of a shock.

Hope you manage to get to the GP today, Just.

Don't worry about the flying Bitchy, there's always time to get back on the wagon.

Both DC have coughs this morning and DS has a temperature, so I have relented and am letting them watch tv today. We did do painting this morning though, I felt like superwoman as they had painted and I had cleared everything up by 8.30am! One of the advantages to a 5.30 start!
Only done basic routines so far, but hoping to get some zone cleaning/mission done later when DC are distracted by a film :)

Hope everyone has a good day!

Good work on painting with dc whispers, you are braver than me!

i am behind on the thread but judging by whispers's post lots of us in similar situations...I was in bed most of the weekend, some kind of virus, felt really low energy, sore throat..

Anyway I remembered the rule of washing and did a load a day

Just a quick one for the moment as need to actually do stuff and not just talk about it as usual.

Just - hope PIP meeting is as positive as it can be and GP can help. You really sound like you need a huge chunk of good luck to counteract the cr*p that you have been dealing with.

Busy w/e and a big row (VERY unusual) but lots of talking this morning and the upshot is I need to find the app that various people have raved about on here - I haven't paid any attention up until now as my system worked for me but this might work for both of us. Also needs to be Android compatible.

Waves to everyone.
Best get on...