June 2014: half way through the Flying year, fledglings get themselves in gear!

[slackcabbage]

Heartfelt and huuuumungous thanks to Goth for being such a superlative, consistent and professional thread leader throughout May (and wow to all those fantastic round-ups every night).

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.

Flylady link here.

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):

1. start or repeat baby steps

1. repeat baby steps + do 15 mins a day decluttering in the current zone

1. 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!

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 (mentioning no names!) can have scary looking lists but don't let that worry you! Do what you can, anything is better then nothing, and don't judge yourself against others.

If all else fails, a + the power of three technique + a bit of support on here can work wonders!

Oh and don’t let it put you off if we appear a bit cliquey – some of us have been on here for years – but all lurkers, oldies and newcomers very very welcome!

Yay toffee. Fabulous news. Rare as hen's teeth statements these days and I know how hard you have worked to ensure DS gets the support he needs and deserves. for you.

swan if it makes you feel better, I swear DS was a naturist in a previous life. If he has pants on I am pleased and he is 10!

That's amazing Toffee . They must have done that pretty quickly. It's heartening to hear a success story when you hear so many tales of woe.

Congrats Toffee that must be a relief for you.

Otoh we are now back at CAMHS yet again.

On a plus note the pain level I normal have is fucking off a bit, and mentally my mind is a bit calmer and clearer. Fingers crossed that continues despite having to deal with the system which does not enough money to care or actually help.

Done fuck all flying. The fat fairy will have to deal with it cos I don't give a shit.

Brilliant news Toffee

Done
Started lounge curtain (1down, 3 to go)
Library
Collect DD
Dinner
Washing up & SS
Woodcraft
Ironing

***

Baby-step no.12 for Thurs 12th is: [[http://www.flylady.net/d/getting-started/31-beginner-babysteps/day-12/ here

We are in Zone 2: the Kitchen (June 8-14) www.flylady.net/d/zones/zone-2/here.

Declutter in Zone 2 for 15 minutes a day!

Detailed cleaning list here if you are at that stage.

Wednesday's mission is here. Tackling the refridgerator (without being a perfectionist about it).

Wednesday's daily focus is: anti-procrastination. Do something you have been avoiding.

The monthly habit for June is drinking more water.

To summarise the above, today's flight plan can be found [[www.flylady.net/c/fp.php?tzm=-120 here]] and will update itself automatically.

Have a good anti-procrastination day everyone!

***

Baby-step no.12 for Thurs 12th is: [[http://www.flylady.net/d/getting-started/31-beginner-babysteps/day-12/ here

We are in Zone 2: the Kitchen (June 8-14) www.flylady.net/d/zones/zone-2/here.

Declutter in Zone 2 for 15 minutes a day!

Detailed cleaning list here if you are at that stage.

Wednesday's mission is here. Tackling the refridgerator (without being a perfectionist about it).

Wednesday's daily focus is: anti-procrastination. Do something you have been avoiding.

The monthly habit for June is drinking more water.

To summarise the above, today's flight plan can be found [[www.flylady.net/c/fp.php?tzm=-120 here]] and will update itself automatically.

Have a good anti-procrastination day everyone!

Oh lawd something went horribly wrong there!! Sorry!! I've just managed to post baby-step number 12 followed by yesterday's links!! Apologies!! Please ignore. I haven't drunk any alcohol tonight either, promise!!

OK FOLKS, THESE ARE THE CORRECT LINKS FOR THURS 12th!!!

*

Baby-step no.12 for Thurs 12th is: here. A bit of a waffly one about building routines without perfectionism, not burning out, and deleting Flylady e-mails which hopefully you haven't got in your in-box in the first place!

We are in Zone 2: the Kitchen (June 8-14) here.

Declutter in Zone 2 for 15 minutes a day!

Detailed cleaning list here if you are at that stage.

Thursday's mission is here. Cleaning kitchen counter tops.

Thursday's daily focus is: running errands.

The monthly habit for June is drinking more water.

To summarise the above, today's flight plan can be found [[www.flylady.net/c/fp.php?tzm=-120 here]] and will update itself automatically.

Fully intended to round-up tonight but after that disastrous performance posting links incorrectly x 2, think I will defer that until tomorrow! G'night all!! Sleep tight!

*

Waves to Goth [will try to do better with posting this morning!!! ) Good luck with the rest of the lounge curtains!! I need to tackle the play room curtains before winter but am procrastinating hugely. Did you finally get to use your treasure maps last night?

Arf at all the young lads on this thread with naturist tendencies

Brilliant to hear that are experiencing slightly less pain Bitchy and good luck with CAMHS. Hope prickly heat rash has subsided.

Toffee hope you are all still in a celebratory mood this morning!! And like Swan wanted to say don't blame yourself for snapping over pant-gate! You have the patience of a saint - particularly for one whose sleep is continually disturbed - and everyone blows a gasket from time to time! If it's any consolation, I am constantly counting to ten atm because dd is going through a very bad phase of not even doing the minimum things required of her atm: packing school bag and setting out uniform the night before, bringing cereal bowl through to kitchen after use, and she is making her father late every morning for the school run. And yet I am walking on egg shells around her because she is already very stressed about exams and I don't want to shout and add to that stress!! Think I might gnaw my own knuckles away before the week is out though

Very impressed by your dh cutting your ds1's hair. I used to cut dh's hair but began to be overcome with uncontrollable hysterical (nervous) laughter every time I did it, which is not good when you are wielding a pair of sharp scissors. Strangely enough, he hasn't asked me to do it recently ...

Swan good luck on your S. London sojourn again today! (Love all your creative teaching ideas btw.) And relieved to hear that school history debacle is being sorted out satisfactorily.

And your garden sounds absolutely delicious. Mine is starting to look a bit ragged tbh - bindweed encroaching in borders - and I have lots of sick-looking seedlings in tiny pots shrieking "replant me" every time I walk past. Only consolation - our beautiful ancient giant philadelphus is in bloom atm - it glows a beautiful white in half light and the scent wafting through the windows is glorious. It was in flower when my father died (a decade ago now) so always reminds me of him every year .

Ellie your ma sounds fab - great you have her support and that of your bf. Although, as you say, fecking tough it must be for you right now. xxxx Take care. [Proffers plentiful reserves of for rest of week.]

Eyelet so relieved to hear that you managed a bit of sleep and congrats on water bottle initiative nice to know someone reading links

Castle did your dh eventually wander back in???

Big waves to whoknows (hope you are OK x) Alice Mercury Droitwich Blue Engels Pushme Feetheart Just Honu Carpe and everyone else!!

Right, am grimly determined to do some proper Flying today despite planes still interrupting sleep (they are flying over at 11pm at night and 6 am in the morning fhs!!).

Had hospital scan yesterday which revealed nothing conclusive [sigh] which used up a large chunk of the morning, then had lunch with dd out after school (half day Wed) and then (after a quick sojourn to the shops to buy dd a swimsuit) spent the rest of the afternoon drilling her on dates relating to la préhistoire, l'antiquité, le moyen age, les temps moderne et l'epoque contemporaine - all of which have their own dates plus about fifteen dates within each of those categories to learn. Arrggghh!! I can't ruddy well remember them all never mind an 11 yr old! And Charlemagne is just a meaningless name written on a piece of paper to her: at least I have vague understanding of context. The way they teach history here is so dry Ended up sticking index cards on trees around the garden to help us remember!!

Btw if anyone knows where I can download/get hold of a map of Europe pref showing major rivers, seas, and showing the 28 Member States but without the names of the countries written on it - I'd be deeply grateful!! Have Googled and although there are interactive ones about, can't seem to find one to print out. Trying to avoid having to draw it a million times over ... .

As to Flying:

Ta da:
morning routine inc dw, rabbits, s&s, wm

To do:
urgent e-mail to dd's child psych about appts
revision prep
e-mail to god-daughter
e-mail to dd's godfather
clean entire downstairs (home bleugh that did not get done on Pentecost hol)
ironing away
more laundry
prep house for dd's tutor this pm
supper prep?
give some thought to dd's concert outfit on Sat and my own

Errands:
quick supermarket shop
photos
haircut?
dh shirts

Urgent : save seedlings!!

Have a productive day everyone!!

SC - Pant-gate! That made me laugh. It shall be known as Pant-gate henceforth! Thanks for your kind words.

Sorry the scan didn't reveal anything conclusive - although, it's good it didn't reveal anything undesirable too. But it's maddening not to get an answer.

Am very impressed at you sticking cards on trees in the garden to help your DD learn her dates.

DS2 is in disgrace. Yesterday evening, I told him how important it was that DH and I had enough sleep - for him, too, as I would be very grumpy if I didn't get enough. I told him not to disturb us before 8am this morning. I even put a 'do not disturb' sign on our door.

He woke us up at 5.22 ! When we protested, he said, "But I can't tell the time" - which I happen to know is untrue because he was doing lessons on telling the time on ConquerMaths and scoring 100%.

DH put him back to bed, pulled his blinds back down and told him to STAY IN BED. Thankfully, we managed to get back to sleep. DS2 is still sound asleep now, so clearly needed some extra hours.

DH says we should punish him. I don't like punishment. I prefer learning from consequences and earning rewards. But this is so naughty. What would you do, dear fledglings?

My lovely cleaner is here today, so the house will be restored to a state of cleanliness and tidiness once more .

Crappy week, and in a tearing rush, but I have to squawk with excitement as I can't do it in real life (I'm at work!) and DH is non-contactable due to meetings so...

I GOT AN INTERVIEW!!!!!

The bad news is that it's next week when I'm on holiday so I can't go. I've emailed them to let them know, but I think I'll have to resign myself to not being offered an alternative.

But still... I GOT AN INTERVIEW!!!!!

Oh, and Toffee get him a gro-clock. Maybe a bit childish for him (I can't remember how old he is), but it may work as a deterrent and a "we'll take it away when you prove you know how mornings work!"

WELL DONE CARPE! (Bugger about being on holiday though).

I will look at gro-clocks, thanks.

Toffee I'm the last person to be offering advice on dc rewards-punishments - none of my schemes seem to work! Well, they do for a fortnight and then it all goes to pot again! But how about "every hour that ds2 get up too early, to be matched by one hour/half an hour's less tv or screen time" or just set a very strict set time before which he CANNOT disturb you (except in dire emergency). Give him a clock and say from now on we can't be disturbed before x o 'clock in the morning but if you are wide awake you may read quietly or listen to the radio etc without disturbing others.

Any ideas for stopping dd delaying dh every morning? (They are never late to school but she's leaving everything until the last minute and stressing everyone out.) I'm tempted to tell dh to leave early one morning without her and ask her how she intends to get to school (because she takes him so much for granted when he is here). Or take one Playmobil horse away for every stressful morning. Obviously, going to have to go back to standing over her (again - sigh) to make sure she gets stuff ready the night before.

Carpe that is brilliant news!! Congratulations!! And hopefully they will hold the interview until you get back - perfectly reasonable to have a holiday booked after all!!

I wasn't actually expecting to get an interview at all. One of those "bollocks I'll apply and see" applications. It's only for a year, but it's for the local council, and they do tend to fill posts internally, so I'd hope I'd be shunted about after. Or I could poison someone I suppose! I'm actually hoping they offer me an interview this week coming, but lord knows what I'd do with DS then; I'd have to get something organised for him.

I applied for another job yesterday too, only for an assistant post, but it's local and if I discount travel (£1200 - £1500 per year plus lunches ), then I can take a lower paid job, and I can be about for DS when he goes to school.

I may be starting to believe that I'm not as crap as I feel!

That is a nice feeling Carpe

Today has been a day off finishing things off. Hopefully will be killing off this crochet project and would like to kill off one more today as well. Done some work on a third project already too, so it is pretty much a crafting kinda day.
Tomo needs to be a more practical day as I have part-ex'ed my car and need to find the paperwork for the hand over next week so I shall be spending most of the next week culling paperwork and sorting a whole load of stuff out decluttering wise. So using the crafting culling to let my brain do some thinking and planning ready for the action part. Should really have some long lists next week but will see. Trying to reduce my reliance on the internet and computer mn/social media and the associated wasted time. So will see. Still working on babystep no 17. I want to get that one sorted and that is the big aim atm.

Another epic fail on the authoritative parenting here! Ds2 stayed at home today and I took him to Denmark Hill with me. On the other hand we both had lots of exercise, helped my cousin with her toddler a teensy bit, and ds2 behaved in a very grownup and sensible fashion which makes a change. There is hospital drama down there, very difficult for all concerned, so I'm glad we went but the fallout at this end is just mess city as I'm too tired to deal with anything after a day of travelling..

Ds2 is now reading the Guardian sports pages only and relaxing.

Toffee I think there is a compulsion to seek company when you wake up. I think the best solution is just to put him firmly back in his room and eventually the burning desire to get up early will subside. I think if you remove the reinforcer (the company I mean) they eventually don't bother to wake You up, even if they wake early.

SC that sounds remarkably like a scene from As You Like It, the notes on trees I mean - is that the wrong play I'm thinking of?

I only know a few dates 1066 and possibly the date of the WWs. I could probably put things in the right century but it is often an eyeopener when you start putting all the famous people in date order and see how they fit into the general historical dates.

Oh dear, I need to do some tidying now don't I? puts feet into virtual footbath

Well done Carpe!

SC - my DD is just the same, she faffs about, won't do anything efficiently, takes twice as long as everyone else to get dressed etc, drives me absolutely mad.

Hot and a bit sticky here today. Been at work, just been doing a bit of tidying and hoovering. Thinking about washing the car, I like the idea of getting the garden hose going. I have done q fair amount of decluttering this week, but have reached that point where every cupboard in the kitchen needs a good tidy out, stuff has all been jammed in instead of stacked neatly etc. It won't actually take all that long, but I keep putting it off. I did the baking trays the other day, I replaced a load recently so I took the old ones to the tip and managed to lose more than I bought. That has free'd up space for lunchbags, which used to perch precariously on top of baking trays on top of the fridge/freezer, now they are in a nice basket by themselves up there and won't keep toppling off hopefully.

If it makes you feel better sc I struggle with dates and i am a history teacher.

Good day at work today. Dmum has gone to visit her DB for a couple of days so I have a bit of space to myself which is good I think.

carpe awesome news.

Back later.

Personally i happen to like dates, but sometimes they can be a bit odd.

Nearly finished both the projects i wanted to cull so i am happy. Be glad when everything has been rehomed!

Oh perhaps I should add that I am not doing well with the heat and it think it is affecting brain function/sanity levels...

I'm with you on the heat Bitchy. It's clammy up here, with sea haar that keeps appearing and disappearing and I want a thunder storm to clear it. Preferably with lightening and torrential rain. Haven't had one for years

Thermometer in the house still reading 23c at 10pm.

Oh, and the football is on

Are you in my house carpe? It is too muggy and I let DS stay up to watch the football. Why oh fucking why did i do that?