September Fledglings gather here, let's banish clutter at the start of a new school year!

[CallingAllEngels]

Here we go again- a new month to whip our houses into shape!

If you're suffering from CHAOS (can't have anyone over syndrome) and STUFF (something that undermines family fun) then you need Flylady.

Don't sign up for emails on the Flylady website as you'll be inundated. Everything you need to know will be posted in the thread on a daily basis.

Depending on the stage you're at with FL you'll be:

1. Starting or repeating FL's babysteps.

1. Repeating babysteps + decluttering for 15 minutes per day in current zone.

1. Reinforce babysteps + daily missions if you'vefinished decluttering.

4.Number 3 and detailed cleaning anyone here yet??!

Bear in mind:

1. You're never behind!

1. No perfectionism allowed.

1. Your house did not get into a mess overnight, it won't get tidy overnight.

Some of the fledglings have been chatting and flying on MN for 10 years. I still think of myself as a newbie sometimes (even though I've been here for 2+ years!). Everyone's welcome! Old timers, newbies and lurkers alike, come and share your ta das, to dos and a whole lot more

Sorry for lack of OP links - am posting on the laptop that time forgot and am just keeping my fx that the OP posts!

Will be back on August 31st (pretty late probably!) with links for the 1st September.

yeah. steam mop water... who knew? dodgy stuff that...

Hello All - looking forward to children going back to school and trying to get back into some sort of order. Had a flash of insight while on holiday - we were staying in a compact but uncluttered holiday cottage and I found myself tidying up and putting things away without even thinking about it!!! I realised it was because (a) it was tidy to start with so stuff was more noticeable and (b) everything had a place so it was easy. Unlike here where every surface is covered and there is nowhere to put anything so it hardly seems worth bothering tidying :(. Some serious decluttering needed, albeit little by little as that is the way it came in! I've just registered for my next OU module and am attempting a big 60 pointer in a subject slightly outside my comfort zone so my first job is clearing my desk...

To do:
Clear desk, doing filing/recycling/chucking out old pens etc
Clean desk
Get excited about shiny new books turning up soon
Er...do some studying?

Yay for lauren being back and yay for another flybaby. Massive congratulations to you both.

Today has mainly consisted of packing and cleaning, driving, unpacking and cleaning. DC's ate staying at stbxh's tonight. I am going to grab a shower and get an early night. I have not been out of pj's by 8 for 6 weeks let alone out of the house..

mercury glad your first day went well.

engels thanks for the mammoth round-up.

For the record, I cook a roast maybe every other weekend (tis dc's favourite meal) and have an upright piano. Used to play rather well, passed lots of exams and everything but not any more.

See you tomorrow!

I feel your pain ellie - my alarm is set for 6.25am. Ouch!

Night fledglings.

Love the personal responses, and am very impressed - I'm struggling to keep up with reading the thread. Failed miserably on the first 15 minute task (which is a shame as the front porch could do with a good dust and clean). Will have to catch up on Thursday due to other commitments.

Will try to keep track!

Just focus on the babysteps vivacia - I think I ignored the missions for the first year and I didn't do it today (since we got our front door painted 2 weeks ago so everything is lovely right now).

I will also struggle with specific personals. But I will make sure I'm reading, I'm sorry I'm not being rude!

Thanks for the welcome backs everyone definitely stay away from the steam mop water!

Joining thread for the first time and chuckling to find a fellow wolf runner in training denial here (waves to feetheart)

DS back to school on Thursday so next 2 days are school prep, and then the house blitz starts.

Beginners idiot question....where are the links

standing Follow Engels (the OP) posts and you'll see them each evening for the following day. Tomorrow's were posted at 19.07 this evening. Having the ops posts highlighted can make this easier in a busy thread like this

Thank you :)

Congratulations pregnant fledglings I'm feeling a bit broody now! Although being as I've just spent a week cleaning up toddler sick I'm not quite as broody as I would normally be!

Hope you survive your first day back Ellie!

Ta da
Cleaned out car to send it to have it's clutch fixed (the nice people at mini give it a mini valet if it's empty)
Restored house to the tidyish condition it was in at the beginning of the day
Part cleared the entrance
Online shop booked
Read the fly lady page about evening routines (hopefully the first step to having one!)

So not a brilliant day but not a disaster either!

Trying to think of something nice to do tomorrow as it's the last day of the holidays for DD and she had a bit of a rubbish holiday last week as she was ill for most of it. Was thinking about Filey but the forecast looks better for the west coast. Not sure I can face Blackpool though!

evening all...
day not quite to plan...have 2 poorly dc have been dosing with paracetamol regularly and keeping everything crossed for recovery for tomorrow...
off to bed now, as have to be up for 6 and have also slipped into lazy habits over past 2 weeks off work!

Morning all. Couldn't sleep so have been up for half an hour. Still get back to school wobbles even after 15 years teaching!

Today I am starting as I mean to go on by list posting. Today's to do looks like this:-

Survive work
Go see friend for coffee after work
Dinner
Get dd's school stuff ready for morning
Put away holiday washing
Do 1 load of washing

That will do...am easing myself in gently.

vivicia ( may have spelt wrong as I am on app and can't scroll back -sorry) if it makes you feel better, I have been on this thread for 5 years this month and still don't do the missions very frequently...in fact I still struggle to do all the babysteps.

pmpy I would choose Filey over Blackpool every time (although am biased as have spent most of the summer there!) Have a lovely day whichever you choose.

Better go and get breakfast. Am also back on the diet having eaten my weight in ice cream and drunk twice my weight in wine over the hols. Twas fun though.

Morning fledglings!

Getting up for my first day at work in nearly 7 weeks has been made slightly easier by my tidy kitchen, laid out clothes, pre-made lunch and
re-packed bags for myself and ds. Wonder if I can keep this up for the next month 3 days?!

Welcome standing ! The links will be every evening. Not too late since I'm not a night owl and am an hour ahead of UK fledglings anyway.

Have fun today pushme whatever you decide.

Hope dc are feeling better hyper.

Okay, here we go. Once more into the breach dear friends...

ellie I will join you in a small to do list

Survive work (good idea)
Washing up this evening (DH does dinner)
Make packed lunch
Lay out clothes for tomorrow (which may involve ironing...the pile's been looking at me for 6 WEEKS!)
Mw appt this evening

Morning all!

My alarm goes off at 6.15, but I naturally an early riser so am usually awake by then anyway. Unfortunately the knock on effect of this is that I'm cranky if I'm not in bed by 10pm, which makes me rubbish company on a night out.

Ta Da
Morning wipe of toilets and sinks
My bed straightened (I throw the covers back to air it, then make it when I get home). Can't do the DC's yet as they are all still in theirs!
2 loads of washing out on the line
Dishes put away (DH did this)
Bags packed for swimming and work

To Do (when I get home tonight)
Sort out school bags and dinner money etc ready for tomorrow
Clean school shoes
Get school uniforms out (have already ironed them)
Panic about the fact that my PFB starts secondary tomorrow
Bring washing in and iron what needs ironing, put away.

Have a good day everyone!

I've been a lurker but have progressed a lot in the last 3 months.
My greatest problem is getting rid of the rubbish I am throwing!

However I must have disposed of at least 30 black bags to either charity or a dump.

I have 1/3 of a cupboard full of ex's old videotapes to get rid of - must do it this weekend so I can put boxes of photos there.

I am nearly done with my kitchen - just need one more folder for CD's wh8ich were cluttering surface.

Last left is the sitting room - I am going to get new panels on the floor end of October and by then we have to sort out everything.

Hopefully house is going to be tidy by Christmas... then the loft next year!

ta da
usual morning routine
tidied up living room
washing up
paid bill
checked bank
reviewed budget
ordered prescriptions online

to do
organise this week's tasks
check this week's and next week's schedules
check winter prep list to see what can be done today
tidy up dining room
put £ on electric meter
tidy ds2's room
there's more but I can't think of it at the moment....

Just remembered another To Do - check DD's hair for nits and put some deterrent stuff in it so that she hopefully doesn't get them again when she goes back to school tomorrow.

Gosh everyone is busy already this morning! I have had a first stab at an evening routine list that extends from when I get home until bedtime. It has 33 things in it though, which seems rather a lot. What do you all have on yours?

Happy first day back ellie and engels hope it goes well

To do
Get up and have a lovely day out!
Check everything is all ready for school
Find laundry pen
Label new school clothes
Implement new evening routine for first time

Morning.
Showered and got dressed after my run. I haven't done yesterday's mission because I only worked about 11 h, plus commute another 2-ish.
So , to do
Wash the front door, tidy the entrance bit.
Do today's mission.
Washing
Plan next week's menu for the next shopping day.
Have a long bath tonight and in bed at 9 with a book.

Hi! Can i join? Living in chaos! Have tried flylady, but lost track, so this looks good! Got way too much stuff! How do i follow? Thanks!

Dds birthday and 9 mindees here today- chaos and I'm writing today off I'm afraid. Family will descend on us this evening and 2/3 dc are back at school tomorrow. Eek!

9!

I though it was enough that DS has got a friend round, we have an unexpected overnight guest tonight and we're all back at school/work tomorrow.

Syork - welcome! And all our other new Fledglings.

Have you got your Mumsnet set so you can find the OP's posts easily by colour? Each day on here the OP posts links to the relevant parts of the Flylady website (CallingAllEngels post at 19.07 last night). Babysteps are a little new habit to start doing daily, one for each day of the month, the house is divided into zones where we declutter and do a bit of more detailed cleaning each day.

Have a look at this page Getting Started, a good browse, but don't sign up for the emails, you will be inundated, just follow our thread instead.

Oh bloody hell. September is clearly not the new January. You are all talking too much. 125 posts in 2 days!!!!!

ta da
Deal with sockgate
Remind ds he was supposed to do homework last night -thankfully it was only reading and he generally reads in bed for a bit.
make lunch
despatch child to school and catch up on playground gossip from the summer
swear at laptop and manhandle windows 8 into something usable again
check emails and spend 5 mins clearing out cluttered in boxes (multiple accounts)
Download ds' favourite coding program again
repeated restart computer for applying all the changes made
hang out ds' kit
shove washable stuff into machine
request new login to mn

Currently trying to figure out where the cards with the pin numbers for office is so can reinstall

There is a lot that needs to be done in september. I gave in and ordered a new matress. The trip away last month really showed how much my current one is affecting the quality of sleep. But they are delivering it to the room which means access to my room will be needed in just over a week Also need to finish the complete gutting of ds' room that happened during the summer. Also planning on signing up to a course so need to install the required software and do that. Plus there is all the admin and stuff for the new volunteer managing role I took on over the summer. plus have been really ill again so need to rest a lot too.