Feisty Fledgling Flyers flutter through Feb with flair, finesse, flaws, failures, fortitude, feedback, fiascos, fabulousness, friendship and fun!

[sanschocolat]

[The fiascos are all mine btw !!]

And just for Just, February is the new January that was the new January before

If you are struggling 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 wine and cake 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 something 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!

It’s up to you, but 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!

Points to keep in mind:
(1)No perfectionism allowed - this is harder than you would imagine
(2)You are never behind just start where you are and anything you do is progress.
(3) 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.

Humungous thanks to Bitchy for steering us through the hectic January thread and for the wise three-line mantra above.

All regulars, lurkers and newcomers welcome!!

Ta-da!

Clean up cat sick
Force tablet down cat
Breakfast
School run
Wash towels
Sainsburys
Complete and submit OU assignment
Thorough tidy/clean of DCs room
Haircut
School run - sunshine, bliss
Home with DS
Tidy spare room
Clean up another lot of cat sick
Force tablet down other cat and feed them (the one with the tablets is not the one being sick)
Feed DS and me
Pick up DD and friends from drama and take them all home
Feed DD
Make cheese scones
Get DCs to bed
Watch telly
Bed.

I done most of it. The las tfew bits of clutter were scooped into bags and stashed.

I have had issues with Yodel which held me up no end.

So I have a clean downstairs which is decorated for the party. I have a clean upstairs bathroom. Food, party wear out inc mugs etc and pary loot bags done.

In the AM I need to:
6am
Make up sandwiches 20mins
Cut fruit 10min
630
Tidy DD's room 5mins
Close the other bedrooms doors
Put towels out and toilet rolls. 5mins
Bake fairy cakes/dishwash/laundry 30mins
Hoover stairs
730
Get showered and dressed DS, DD and I 40mins
DS to school 20mins
900
Shop for crisps and icing 20mins
930
Put out toys/craft table 15mins
Put food in dishes 5 mins
Lay table

Have a coffee before guests arrive ....10am - do you think I'll do it? If I get up at 6am I think I'll be ok.

Blue my dh said the headmaster at Speech Night made a special reference to Academies (anti them). Dh is very anti too. Ds1 and 2's secondary is one of few schools which is still LA rather than academy.

done
bookclub
babysitter

and I dread to think what tomorrow will bring as I cannot now remember what I should have organised.

sleep now

Good morning everyone! Happy St Valentine's Day! (Not that anything remotely romantic appears to be happening here. Well, I've found the heart shaped baking tins in a cardboard box - that's about it!

So sorry I didn't get back on here last night - rl intervened! Posting links now and will bbl!

**

Tomorrow's baby-step, no 14, for Friday 14th Feb is : reading an essay about how to use a calendar I'm always a bit at this one tbh!

We are still in Zone 3: the Bathroom and one extra room here.

Declutter for 15 mins a day in this zone!

Once you have decluttered, you can if you wish go on to detailed cleaning.

Friday's mission is here. Mopping the bathroom floor and do or teach a hot spot fire drill in dc room.

The daily focus for Friday is: decluttering our handbags and cars.

The monthly habit for February is still : decluttering 15 mins a day.

A summary of the above plus reminders can be found here in the flight plan.

Have a lovely day everyone!

[SC tosses a few rose petals in the air and warbles the theme from Love Story]

**

Bitchy we do indeed do what we do because it’s just normal here and it makes it possible for life to function. I’d love to agree with you on support from outside agencies, but we’ve had such negligible amounts outside of assessment and diagnosis’s all I can say is it seems there’s a lot more out there than there used to be. When ds problems surfaced, prejudice saw background labelled as the cause, and he missed out on so much while that idea was fought and overturned, and lass wasn’t expected to survive, so nothing was put in place for her.

SC I think it’s hard not to be defensive, but especially if you are not ‘of’ the main group. You’ve just listed most of what I was biting my tongue over about how someone from outside that education system might well see that system and causes vs how they might see it and any child who wasn’t slotting into it as seamlessly as they’d like!
Notes thread leader chucking rose petals around with gay abandon.

Blue travesty, treachery, and betrayal indeed. Been on the receiving end of a different kind and know how emotionally exhausting it is for those fighting it faced with slick dishonesty wrapped up prettyly.
I know it’s not a lot in the big scheme but an additional signature available here for any petitions etc.

Whoknows hope cats are just being annoying.

Swan given the average 17 yr old’s bedroom, she’s unlikely to notice.

Toffee good luck with additional work, and hope half term provides some relief foryourselves, and everyone suffering school stress.

Thinking Sounds like you’ve cracked it. Well done!

Happy St Valentine's day.

Brain still not not functioning here. Have work course at a different place and a fair way out, and trying to balance out medication to allow me to drive there, be there able to function, yet safe to drive back, (but decluttering bit's of car I can reach and handbag stands a chance of happening) combined with need for more storm prep and can't get it all ordered, so just going to focus on those two for now and work out list later.

Fairly full list today - must get as much done as I can today, as I don't get a whole lot done with both DCs are home (especially DS1 as he needs constant supervision).

Happy Valentine's Day.

Had a lie in this morning. DH and I both forgot it was Valentine's Day, but DH pointed out that he had done the washing up by the time I woke up .

DS2 has an 'Insect Day' (as he calls it) today, so half term officially starts now. We are dropping him off with MIL whilst we go to work for a couple of hours. DS1 won't go to his learning centre - no surprises there.

thinking - best of luck with the party. here for you when it's over.

ta da
get involved in a very heated discussion on sn
washing
letter to school
put pan on for handwarmers and promptly forget it is on
Negogiate the nightmare that can be getting a doc appointment
pick up ds' prescription

Toffee - love Insect Day :)
We have one too. DC currently in front of Winter Olympics but being dragged off to solicitors 20 miles away soon with bribery promise of session in lovely ceramic painting cafe.
I have to drop stuff into solicitors once DH has found evidence of his full name! Hates first name, always used middle name, doesn't have much which includes first name as he tries to ignore it so doesn't put it on anything. Fine most of the time but NOT when trying to anything official - grrrr.
May suggest deed-poll as possible birthday present if I haven't thought of anything else by next w/e

I'm a bit like that with my middle name Feet - I pretend it doesn't exist because I got teased about it at school. However it is on my passport, driving licence, tax etc.

Good luck with the party Thinking.

No INSET day here, I've been at a friend's for coffee all morning (an hour round drive away), just got back, house is freezing and a cat was being sick again, the other one this time. So, I've cleaned the carpet, lit the fire and now need to go and do some cleaning to warm myself up.

feet I change people's names

Well, insurance man been to look at the window. Tis all due to shoddy building work in the first place apparently and also due to me not having cleaned the bit of the window where the hinges are.

So that's your project for the day - cleaning the bits of windows that you can't even fucking see

Grr to window, Silly.

Thanks Just and swan. Spending all of today on lobbying duties, and going on local radio again this evening! Prime Drive Time slot!! Eek... It's just so daft!

Hope the party goes well Thinking

Sorry to hear about cat woes, WhoKnows

Cat people WWYD?

We're supposed to be going away for the weekend, away Sat morning to Sun afternoon, with next door looking after the cats. They are both off their food, doing little bits of sick and soft poos in their trays. We've never left them before. Not sure whether one of us should stay home with them.

I wouldn't be comfortable leaving them if they are unwell.

No, me neither, it's a bit unfair on next door as well if they have to come in and clear up sick. I don't really want to stay here on my own, but it's DH's parents we're going to see, I didn't go with them at Christmas because of the cats and would have liked to go, but OTOH I could do with the time here to get on with my OU. Dilemmas!

Just dashing through - just recovering from school run drive - more evil than usual owing to public transport site and hideous weather. Drivers so aggressive here. Like WW3 out there [quivers].

Whoknows dd (backed up by us) looked after a neighbour's cat for a few days in the early part of the Christmas hols. It was sick a bit during that time. Wasn't too bad but if it's honest opinions you are wanting, I would have preferred not to have to do it. Not really because of clearing up itself (although I'm not good with cat/dog sick/poo love horse poo though ) but because of the worry if the cat was ok or not. (They had warned us in advance it had digestive complaint but we didn't know what was 'normal' ifyswim.)

BBL to catch up with everyone!

[Surprised Mumsnet hasn't added a heart emoticon for today )

Some of us like to forget that it is valentine's day. I guess HQ are aware that this can be a very hard day for some and have left it as a safe place to escape to. Although the weather has meant the focus is on that and not loved upness on the main focus of the day

I have seen the doc and have more pills then i quite know how i am going to deal with. hopefully I shall be feeling better pretty quickly. That word rest has yet again been mentioned. I am bored of that word!

Fingers crossed you are feeling better soon Bitchy.

I have been a bit today at how many of the DCs classmates are exchanging Valentine Cards and gifts today, some of the Yr 5's are well and truly smitten with one another.

Ta-da!

Well, it may not happen now, but having asked super house proud neighbour to cat-sit I have felt spurred on to getting the house tidy. Kitchen is a bit grotty, I usually start there and get no further, will tackle it in a minute, but spare room, living room and landing are all looking considerably better than they were this morning. Have also renewed house insurance.

Toffee was it you that was being compulsorily water metered as well as us? Had our first bill today and it was £29 a month including sewerage, slightly more than we used to pay under rateable value but better than I had anticipated.

whoknows - I would still be happy to catsit an off moggy. make sure you leave vet details though just in case.

half term. yay

I'm going to see how they go with their evening meal then speak to neighbour, they have cats too, so they will have an idea what they're in for if we do go.

Good morning all! Hope you all survived the high winds!

Tried to get back on here last night and Mumsnet site wouldn't open for some reason. Posting links now though

Well done for getting through another week's Flying btw! You've all been doing brilliantly!

Today's baby-step, no 15, for Saturday 15th Feb is about making your bed every day.

Today is our last day in Zone 3: the Bathroom and one extra room here.

Declutter for 15 mins a day in this zone!

Once you have decluttered, you can if you wish go on to detailed cleaning.

No missions because it is the weekend.

The daily focus for Saturday is: having fun with the family.

The monthly habit for February is still : decluttering 15 mins a day.

A summary of the above plus reminders can be found here in the flight plan.

*

Just as well I am up early. Decided to cook dh an extremely complicated fish dish last night, and dd some jammy 'love buns' (basically mini jam sponges in heart shaped moulds) but then drank far too much prosecco. Chaos awaits in the kitchen downstairs .... [groan]

Fortunately no entertaining today as planned. All been postponed by a week. However, loads to get through, so it may not be until much later that I catch up on personals.

In the meantime, Just, Bitchy and Toffee - thanks for your support/advice - much appreciated!

Big waves to everyone else!

Well, weather has improved here, still gusts of wind and showers but nothing like as bad as last night. I'm staying here while DH takes the DCs to his parents, the cats seemed better last night and were eating more but one had been sick again when we got up. I'm finding it worrying that unless you catch them in the act you've no idea which one it was, I didn't think of this when we got them. At least this way I have got a chance to catch up with my OU work.

Hope everyone else has come through the storms unscathed.

Morning!!

Big day planned today:
Declutter entire house
11 mile run
Catch a mouse
Send ds1 off on his second ski trip
Help out at a Birthday Party
Hair cuts for DS2 & 3
Meal out with extended family

Better get out of bed!

Just done morning routine.

DW
WM
Worktops
Hoovered (DH)

The next 9 days are a wash. No point in me making lists of things to do as I won't complete them with DCs home. I will, however, make my list of what I've managed to get done and post them. It'll make me feel as if SOMETHING has been done anyway.