Mad Fledglings March through the Spring cleaning

[BitchytheGreat]

So here we are, March already.

So for those who don't know the fledglings is a long running thread. Some of us seem clicky but that is because we have been chatting on these threads for nearly half a decade makes everyone feel old we quite like fresh blood though so feel free to jump in and join us.

Three key 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.

If you are new then trying to spend 15mins decluttering and the babysteps is the most. Some of us Bitchy can have scary looking lists. One word of advice ignore them. Do what you can, anything is better then nothing, and don't judge yourself against others.

Feet - here's the recipe - it worked out really well, dark and fudgy, and the boys haven't detected the beetroot at all! :)

So sorry, just - wishing you bon courage for today.

I have decided to give myself a "star chart" for the week - trying to tick off various challenges around healthy eating, exercise, not yelling at the boys, and have also added doing the missions. I want to give myself some kind of accountability on here, and elsewhere...

Hmm, you must have done a better job with that cake than me Blue I made it last year and the beetroot taste came through really strongly, we didn't enjoy it at all.

I'm at work today, we went to a wedding on Saturday, then had a quiet day at home yesterday. I think I've come down with another cold (hadn't shifted the first one yet) and felt quite rough all day, but I needed to complete and submit an OU assignment by today so had to crack on with that, got it submitted last night. Tonight I will be on to the statement appeal paperwork, starting to feel as though I spend all day and night at the computer at the moment. Flying-wise, not too bad, we are more or less on top of the laundry and the tidiness levels aren't too bad. Really need to fit in a home bleugh though.

Moooooooorning!

I've been AWOL. Life had consumed me and now I'm refocused on house stuff. Well a bit.

Chaos here. Having issues with MiniPP1. Nothing major. Mainly developmental I think. Trying to exert his authority and wanting everything his own way.

Ta Da's
Dogs walked
S&S kitchen
One laundry load on

To do
Tackle kitchen hotspots
Finish ironing
Write the never ending to do list which I still haven't started
Put clean laundry away

Will catch up on everyone's news once I have a bit of peace and quiet this afternoon.

BBL

That's a shame feet - we really liked it. Maybe up the cocoa a bit? I ended up splitting the mixture between 2 tins and sandwiching the cakes with a gingery cream cheese icing like you have on carrot cake, which helped I think.

Blue recipe looks good and very serendipitous (thank god for spell check) as I've just cooked a batch of beetroot and have too much for chutney. Do you think I could get away with olive oil as don't have any rapeseed in.

Done
Packed lunch
Reboot laundry
Made beds
Windows
Dry laundry away
Small amount of ironing (5 things)
Hang out laundry and the sun has come out!
2 job applications
Bagged recycling to go out
Get dressed
Prep veg for dinner plus extra potatoes for cottage pie
Tackled veg box as it was stacking up:
Peeled and chopped onion, some were starting to spout
Cook beetroot
Washing up

To do
Make casserole for tomorrow
Make beetroot chuutney
Washing up
Take out rest of recycling
Get laundry in
Litter tray
Collect DD
Supervise homework
Ironing
Dinner

BBL

Olive oil might have a slightly different flavour, but whatever you've got would probably work just the same I reckon, Goth. Also made a spicy beetroot pesto which would work with olive oil.

Ta da!
Laundry done and out on line
Pilates
Mission
Checked out recipes & skip hire

Ellie strength can be overrated, but thank you. Wish you the very best with the op, and hope you have rest and recuperation list planned.

Goth I’m in me, me, me mode every day at the moment!

all thanks for good wishes. they did actually fortify.

Swan see below, all motivation fireworks duly peed on. Probably just as well really.
Have got back from course, annoyed as cancelled and moved to tomorrow, and have lost several hours, fuel and medication, that I could have used better. Then decided it warranted a coffee break before starting. Now regretting that!

still to do
Carry on boxing up everything because wherever it’s going it won’t do it without being boxed.
Pray
Talk to storage people
Move fencing and see if cutting contaminated bottoms of is an option.
Take lots of photos of latest damage in flat.
Rip out newly laid woodwork and flooring. Try not to sigh.
Clear drain of ***
Catch up English come hell, high water or effluence
Catch up home ed diary
Dinner
Ironing
Listen to friend
Plan tomorrow
sleep

• All up and out - done
• Bed stripped - done
• First load washing done and out, second load done and hung out - done
• Stuff on Freecycle - done
• Important letter - FINALY done (been putting it off)
• Cheque for 10k entry - done
• Some work
• General tidy up and hoover round
• Ring carpenter - done coming tomorrow
• Ring handyman - done and got quote
• Renew railcard - looking for offers
• Defrost freezer in garage - work in progress
• Order hanging basket sunflowers for Mum and us as they sound nice
• Second stage of orange liquor that I put into cupboard and forgot about - need one more orange
• Make toad-in-the-hole batter for dinner - next job
• Do a round up at some point before too much else happens

I have also:

• Boiled up bloody beetroot
• Sorted towel shelf in airing cupboard
• Burnt hand whilst defrosting freezer - much cold water and now only a bit of one finger is red/sore
• Scoffed bread and jam for lunch as it was quick, easy and yummy
• Sat and drunk tea and chatted with neighbour
• Sat and drunk tea and chatted with gymnastics mum who came to borrow dressing up stuff

Batter and hoovering next...

X-posts just
Your "Try not to sigh" says a lot about you I think. Mine would read "Try not to implode/explode"
I know you have had no choice about all the crap (literally and metaphorically) that has been thrown at you again and again but you continue to battle onwards when most of us would have crumpled into a small gibbering heap.
You may not feel it and it won't help clear up the sh*t but you are one strong lady.

Well I pulled myself round and managed to bless the downstairs and bathrooms plus morning routine.

Just - can't believe you had to make all that effort to get to the course, only to find it cancelled. Could they not have informed you first? .

ellie - thinking of you. Hope the op is all over soon. I second whoever said we expect to see lists of reading/watching tv (new 'Walking Dead'?)/sleeping, not Flying.

Poor thinking . Colds are so pointless and horrible (have just got over one, so am particularly aware of this at the moment).

Swan - good luck at parents' evening tonight. To be honest, I think it's great that your DS1 enjoys the social side of school and I'm sure the academic side will fall into place as he matures.

Goth - you are on a roll today. Very impressive lists.

Bitchy - glad you woke up in a good mood. Hope work went ok.

feet - I like the sound of orange liquor . You are posting impressive lists too today.

Blue - I hope you have a nice reward lined up when you've done your reward chart (, maybe?)

WhoKnows - best of luck with the statement appeal paperwork. So sorry you also have a cold.

Peanut - sorry you are having issues with MiniPeanut1 .

Ta da

Breakfast for DS2
Packed lunch
Took very reluctant DS2 to school (black cloud hovering over his head the whole way there)
Breakfast for DS1
To work
Quick shop
Home for lunch
Maths with DS1
DS1's TA visited to check work
DS1's online English lesson
Took DS1 to appointment at CAMHS
School run
Quick chat with teacher
Home for snacks and relaxation

DS2 has been absolutely dreading a long school trip tomorrow. I checked with him when he came out of school and he was still dreading it and was horrified when he realised it was tomorrow. So I said he didn't have to go - and he flung his arms round me. Saw the teacher and explained the situation with the new school and then said there seemed little point in making him go on a school trip he didn't want to go on if he was leaving anyway. She was fine about it.

On the way home, DS2 said, "I knew you were on my side".

what time does everyone get to do morning routine?

is it before/after school run/work

i need to get up earlier, ive never viwed mornings as a proper part of the day, not a morning person either, but woukd like to chsnge this.

just and sending virtual magic pumps, mops and airfreshners.

My intertnet broke earlier. Here is the post i wanted to post:

"Normal white bread recipie but I take use 2/3rd of the flour amount as oatmeal (medium or mixture of medium and fine if i have it) I add a beaten egg to the liquid (I use oat milk rather then whey/dried milk powder and water) but it will work using that. key is the egg for extra help to bind, and 150g (out of 450g total flour amount) to be strong white bread flour.

can give you full recipe but the quantities vary depending on the size of the bread machine pan. Let me know if needed and i will find all of the exact quantities if needed.

If you were a hair brush where would you be? Can only fidn the one that makes my hair really static. And blue sparks hurt and make people give me funny looks"

Work was ok but managed to leave my phone there so will be having to go back tomo to pick it up which is a pita. Got some stuff to do before heading off to get ds. Busy busy day

I have to do my morning routine before I leave for the school run

• s&s bathroom after my shower
• clear breakfast stuff
• empty & reload dishwasher
• empty & reload washing machine
• put on tumble dryer if needed

If I fail to do this then the rest of my day descends accordingly.

thanks, always looking to refine. I think I need to start getting up at 6am

I try and do the morning routine before the school run, but I don't always have to leave for work straight away so when I get back so I tend to grab the cordless vac and run it round then, it's easier when there's no one else in the way. S&S tends to get left too, we only have one bathroom/loo and it is fully occupied with people banging on the door before the school run, it would be mean to stay in there to do cleaning. What does throw everything is if DH forgets to put the DW on the night before, or if we have had to put it on during the day because of too much stuff (often happens at the weekend). Laundry gets done on my days off in winter, as I can chuck through one load after another and into the dryer, from about now I try and do it early so it can be on the line before the school run.

make it work for you thinking If i got up at 6am I would just end up killing everything and anyone who i encountered. I function better by working through my evening. tweak it, play with it and find the way that you do best. Else lower your expectations. I have to do that most days but god help you when i am furious and not able to go training. The to do list gets scary. The last one was scary by my standards!!!!!! And freaked out the regulars enough to get me into trouble. And it has taken 3 years plus to get into the swing of this system properly.

Whilst I am here I am going to post the links because due to a laundry fuck up ds' christmas blanket is still wet and the back up that i ababndoned when the edging went wrong cos i was sick of the sight of the project needs to be completed urgently before bedtime tonight Least it gives me motivation to finish it up.

Tuesday is planning day

missions

babystep 11

Who - depending on my state of mind I either explode with rage at him, mutter under my breath or say nothing whilst inwardly seething and handwashing the items immediately required then putting the DW on.

Toffee - thanks for the . I've been mainlining it something chronic today. How do these little people have the capacity to test your patience constantly? If I have the word NO shouted at me one more time I think I might cry/open the wine and crisps/leave home or do all three.

I've managed to cross off "finish the ironing". What have I been doing all day?!? Oh yeah fetching small people. Feeding and watering small people. Taking clean laundry upstairs but not put it away.

Peanut - An older mum and childminder once told me that the main quality you need with little children is lots of patience. I had to remind myself of that many times. Time for now?

You have reminded me that I've dumped all the clean washing and ironing on DS2's bed and need to put it away (out of sight, out of mind). Thank you!

ok, ok I think I will get up at 7am. I normally get up by 730, but mornings are often spent hunting for clothes and ironing. If I resolve these issues in my night time routine (yet to do properly) then I will need less time.

bitchy the type of cleaning you describe up there^ is what I'm like when I know Im having people over.

peanut finish ironing ?? now that is scary and the little people. Who knew when you were pregnant how much time you would spend constantly feeding and wiping, Im talking way past baby stage too. little blood termites

toffee true I think I have less and less these days I beat myself up about this all the time. I try to be I really do.

So as you may have read Im pleased my house is tudy after last big declutter and since joining this thread. Its lovely to be able to et DS have a friend over tomorrow night.

I must confess...Bitchy's post mentioning a christmas blanket...oh dear the shame of it:

I have two 3ft decorated (well sort of) christmas trees in our bedroom that still need to be put away I woke up last night and saw lights and realised DS must have switched the 'prelit' things on when he was in there. -I think this is beyond a 15 minute declutter remedy-

Tonight when putting MiniPP2 to bed I discovered all the piled clean laundry on the change table! This has happened many many many times!! This is why I need to try and put it away when I take or upstairs but what usually happens is that the room I need to put clothes away into usually is occupied by a mini having a nap or I start to out it away and then the inevitable "Mummmmmmeeeeeeeeeeeeee" distracts me and I go off to deal with that and then I forget completely about the clean laundry until I take the minis to bed or go to bed myself and then I'm too tired to deal with it and so it gets shoved on the floor or on top of the laundry bin until I remember the next day.

Toffee I will take that !

I've have tried a new tactic tonight with the minis. I've tried not reacting to unreasonable behaviour and not getting cross with them. I guess it's reverse psychology. Not sure how long I can keep it up for.

yy to full change table, done that when Ive lifted my little one out of the bath and stood there with wet squirming whingey little thing...bit like them mandrakes off Harry Potter.

I think what you have said about being distracted seems small but actually is quite inhibitive to getting things done, the stop start of it all, forgetting what you were doing....it so inefficient.

I try to tell myself to stop moaning (I moan a lot) the 1950's housewife had it much harder in terms of flying re technology. However they had less distractions and had more commuity support, more likely to have famiy nearby.

I remember my old neighbour had her parent come round and take her baby out while she hoovered etc. I had no one and flt a little jealous . Sometimes you dont realise how alone and self sufficint you have become as a familt unit until you see how much help others get, sometimes when they dont appear to need it.

Anyway we are all still alive, fed and warm - blessings counted.