March of the Fledglings 2015

[Slingclutter]

Heartfelt thanks to Whoknows for running the February thread during such a stressful time for her (and to Toffee for helping out.)

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 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 on Flying lessons. Here's the launch pad for more experienced fledglings.

Don't be put off by the purple prose and 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 might 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 15 mins decluttering daily and doing the babysteps is a good way to start. 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 brew + 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, intermittent returnees, regulars, oldies and newcomers very, very welcome!

ta da
too much to be arsed to list
Ds doing his chores without being reminded before I even got up

Just sorting out the last bits so that I can spend the rest of the afternoon being a mum ie taxi, supervisor, chore doing, breakfast prepper, form filing etc etc So a normal day around here then Actually it isn't because ds is being more admeanable than normal. Which actually makes it a lovely day. I don't need grand gestures the not arguing over every little thing means more to me.

Hope no one minds but I am going to post links for tomorrow early because I have a visitor here; and am in the middle of wrestling with supper, plus loads of things still to sort for dd for school tomorrow. (DD told us at 4pm that she needed five things for school presentation tomorrow including ice cubes, white tablecloths and, believe it or not, goose grease - and most shops are shut here on a Sunday afternoon (sigh). But I can't complain too much because she has worked very hard at her hwk this weekend.

I had a lovely plan for today: Mass followed by proper family Sunday lunch but dh in usual style has turned the entire day upside down, without reference to anyone else, so I am now (rather annoyingly) playing catch up.

Bitchy top top marks to your ds for marking Mother's Day in the best way possible!!

Whoknows now on your behalf too; grrrr at all these dh's with rears on sofas!!

Happy Birthday to your twins Swan (and hope some made their way to you too amidst the celebrations!!) And well done for surviving sleepover!!

That's such lovely news for your friend PegLeg!!

So great to hear your ds1 had a good time with his friend Toffee and congrats on such a long list!

And your list is very impressive too Blue; top marks for 'engaging' the family in the chores too!!

Big wing flaps to everyone else!

What is arsing well wrong with the Fat Fairy? Why does her website always take at least three days to catch up with current zone once you get beyond the initial 'today' link - arrrgh....! (I know it's churlish to complain when we can access her website free of charge, but honestly, it's a website about being organised fhs!!).

Anyway, moving on ....[and breathe]...

Baby-step no. 16 for for Mon 16th March is is one to ignore imho about reading something on the website (a testimonial, or a Morning Musing (whatever that is)), although, honestly, she rambles on so much it takes a few moments to pinpoint what the actual baby-step is!! So my advice is to definitely bypass this one!

We are in Zone 3 this week: the bathroom and one extra room, March 15-21.

If you want to, you can declutter 15 mins a day in this zone!

The detailed cleaning list (if you are at that stage) for Zone 3 is here.

Monday's mission is A 27 fling boogie in the bathroom. (If I actually did this as described I would get a big fat fine for disposing of things incorrectly, ie not sorting them properly for recycling; so it all takes a lot longer than she says, so there!]].

The daily focus for Monday is: the home blessing hour that takes longer than an hour.

The monthly habit for March is the controversial one about getting dressed immediately on rising and wearing lace up shoes indoors etc.

For a summary of the above, see the flight plan : www.flylady.net/c/fp.php?tzm=-120 which should update itself daily.

Can you tell that your thread leader is a little disenchanted with our Fat Fairy today ?

Have a good start to the week everyone! And apologies for grumpy tone of above posts!!!

That's made me laugh!

Morning everyone!

DCs are incredibly... active this morning I need to use that energy somehow or they will drive me crazy!

I'm so tired this morning, and working later so it's a Power Of Three type day:

to do
Put dry clothes away
Get DCs to help tidy up a little
A little home ed

:)

house a tip this morning and feeling exceedingly grumpy but will try to tackle it step by step

starting with all those clean dry unironed clothes in heaps everywhere

done
two kids to school
packed lunch made for dd

Sorry I went AWOL last week - lots of work and the mad Mother's Day craft sessions at school every lunchtime.

Need to get back on track this week so:

• All up at out - done
• Washing on - done
• Work - lots!
• Washing up
• Washing hung up
• S&S x 2
• Cat litter
• Kitchen floor (either swept or swept and mopped depending on time)
• Hoover downstairs
• Tidy DS's bedroom a bit as he has friend coming over after school
• Catch up on thread!

Best get on then...
Have a good day everyone.

You know it is a Monday when a text arriving wakes you up at 8:20am and you have 20mins to get ds up and out the house for school. Also cracking an egg onto the bench instead of the bowl is another give away of the Monday status.

I have a day off from the office, a shit load of admin stuff that I need to do, and burnout. Going back to sleep would be lovely. But need to keep gently plodding on until tea time.

to do
email school and event organiser
find pattern to send to a friend
copy out pattern for the mother figure who liked one of my sampler blanket patterns so much she wants to pinch it.
take ds to a local town to get his glasses fixed

So far the ta da list is
get ds to school
speak to the office
catch up with mum over coffee
clear up egg mess in the kitchen

I have a hot water bottle, coffee and about to find pain killers for the head ache. First job is a detailed to do list.

Morning! I have a bad case of the post-Cheltenham blues ... . Entire house a veritable tip, but sil is here so we went out this morning and I don't know how much I am going to get done this afternoon. Also, feel so tired for some reason I could happily lie down on the floor and go to sleep.

Also feel v. worried about dh who is v. stressed at work. You wouldn't believe the number of clients (on whose behalf he is working) who obfuscate, cover up and generally land him in it. And then don't pay their bill.

Forgot about body clutter yesterday. Wish I could forget about it.

Sunday 9 March 2015 : I weigh in at a whopping 81 kg which is just under 13 stone [sob]

Sunday/Monday 7/8 March: 80.6 kg but scale went haywire shortly thereafter ,showing 5 different readings one after another, so I'm not convinced that's right at all. I'd certainly be surprised if I lost any weight at all after this past week. NOte to self: buy new weighing scale.

You sound very energetic Feetheart!! Good luck with your list. And think you are v. noble to volunteer for lunch time craft sessions.

I'm with you re: grumpiness today Swan.

Waves to MrsMook!

Hope pain killers are kicking in Bitchy and oh dear re: the egg.

A (caffeine hit) for PegLegand everyone else in need!!

Time to stroke a rabbit I think ...

Just beware that different scales weigh differently SC and where you are in a building will affect the weight too. Upstairs and down stairs will weigh a bit different. Can't remember which is lighter though.

Good lord Bitchy never knew that!! I am very high up which I guess is not good news, but scale stays in same place! Although tried it again and it is now saying 80.2 kg so you never know!! I'm going with it anyway, as, even if illusionary, it is giving me renewed impetus for healthy eating ... .

SC dh is also stressed atm. It is difficult when you feel they have chosen a job they love but at the same time it "sometimes" a source of tension and takes from the family a proportion of what it gives. It is also difficult when they are "providing", to know what the boundaries are (although I know that in your case you are very much helping in the family business). Your poor dh must be feeling a sort of rebound anyway after his father dying so recently.

done
ds2 started badly today with a typically fixated tantrum over his airport
managed to calm him down
went for a walk with him
started on timetable - spelling followed by handwriting

but now he is playing in his room rather nicely which is unusual the telly has broken so he cannot switch it on having been given instructions to put his clothes away and remake his bed with clean sheets/duvet cover

I am still wrestling with the dishwasher - another dose of draincleaner I think is in order - except I cannot go out now - waiting for a parcel for dh

slowly dealing with the mess - moved dirty plates from kitchen
hung out sheets
stripped my bed
hovered my bedroom floor
put out airport there
paid elec bill
tried to do some bureaucratic stuff but got very agitated and had to stop for my mental health Just trying to get through to people on the phone and listening to annoying answerphone messages from professionals makes me have palpitations of rage and despair

Thank you Swan. Sorry to hear your dh is v. stressed too.

Dh is very upset about his father, but you couldn't really tell as a casual observer, as he is being typically stiff-upper-lip about it and flinging himself in to work (as ever!) as a counterpoint.

May I just say "hats off" to you with dc permanently at home! I have my dsil here, and although we get on reasonably well, I am not used to having someone permanently in the house. Why is simply chatting so very tiring?

Good luck battling with bureaucracy!!

Change of routine here as I've got rather mouldy looking tonsils and feel knackered. Normally I'd lug my (nearly) 2 year old and 4 year old around Buggy Babes, but I've not got the energy. In positive news, a combination of time, paracetamol and ibuprofen have meant the laundry mountain is being tackled, including my nemesis of putting away. I had been trying to do the bit at a time, but floundered in the last few weeks. I'm now 3 loads away from civilisation!

Been productive in the bathroom too.

Relatively quiet on here today - hope everyone OK!

Poor you MrsMook it's miserable being ill when looking after little ones. I hope you feel better soon and well done for Flying despite feeling grotty.

Finally managed to whip myself in to finishing morning routine (in the late afternoon! ) doing a few bits of ironing, stacking dw, cleaning kitchen surfaces and sink and rounding up and doing a bit of laundry plus some admin tasks. Currently doing rubbish and recyling and cooking a joint of pork which I failed to cook yesterday. So nothing startling but keeping things ticking over. Really need to be ploughing through home office and boudoir though.

Feeling tired so taking the opportunity to post the links for tomorrow now, and then, after supper, going to have an early night! And perhaps I'll achieve more tomorrow.

Have a good evening Fledglings!

Baby-step no. 17 for Tues 17th March is Bitchy's favourite ie the one about setting a bed-time every night and sticking to it!

We are in Zone 3 this week: the bathroom and one extra room, March 15-21.

If you want to, you can declutter 15 mins a day in this zone!

The detailed cleaning list (if you are at that stage) for Zone 3 is here.

Tuesday's mission is: cleaning behind the lav in the bathroom and spending 15 mins chucking out rubbish in the other room.

The daily focus for Tuesday is: planning. Med appts, haircuts, wardrobes, menus, holidays.

The monthly habit for March is the controversial one about getting dressed immediately on rising and wearing lace up shoes indoors etc.

For a summary of the above, see the flight plan : www.flylady.net/c/fp.php?tzm=-120 which should update itself daily.

If you are finding it tough going right now, just remember any small tiny thing achieved is better than nothing. And if your family are fed and they are wearing vaguely clean clothes, then you are doing well !!

**

I'm afraid I've been ill for the last week and hence I haven't been on here and haven't been doing any flying since last Monday either. I'm ok just some sort of ear nose and throat type thing and a degree of light sensitivity so I'm struggling with screens. Still not feeling great and the screen is hurting my eyes and increasing my headache just to check in with this brief message. So will log off now and come back when I'm feeling normal again.

Just wanted to say that I haven't vanished and I will be back as soon as I can. I am feeling much better than my worst days but I feel exhausted and currently have earache, headache, sore throat, bunged up nose, etc. So will slope off now. Hope you are all ok and will check back in soon I hope. Take care until then.....

I'm back! Dh is off work this week so today we tackled the ironed clothes version of the Himalayas. Pleased to report all clothes put away, missing school cardigan located in bottom-most pike ( thought dd1 had lost it at school), 2 bags of rubbish and 3 of outgrown clothes removed plus a stuffed carrier bag of outgrown pants/socks to go to school for spares as they're running low.

Washing machine still broken (12 days waiting fir repair now), hoping tomorrow it gets fixed. Been using neighbours/parents/Inlaws machine. Has meant we've kept right on top of it though.

Hi all, I'm shattered. been up since before 5am and because nursery let DS sleep for three hours this afternoon, he put up an almighty strop about going to bed tonight.

I am going to bed and leaving the entire house in a tip and I don't bloody care

Night

Tired as usual after work! But made the mistake of having a coke with dinner - so now a little wired.

ta da
Got the DCs to put their clothes away (didn't get round to doing ours though!).
Tidying with DCs - about an hour! Still feel like we are just moving crap about but a little progress nonetheless.
Did some home ed too, just a little literacy stuff and then left some maths for them to do with DH while I was at work.
Filled in that home ed form with DH.

Tomorrow is laundry mostly. Should make a dr appt and pick up my meds. Busy evening as we have to stay in the village centre for DD's brownie initiation :) so will have to take it a little easier in the morning, although we need to post the form for the LEA so we might take a little walk/scoot.

Oh but I do have good news - I had a work idea a little while ago and (sorry for being vague) the absolute big boss absolutely loves it and it's going ahead :) feeling really happy.

Peg - that's fabulous! Not surprised you are feeling so chuffed about it.

dogsbum - so sorry you've been so ill. Sounds awful.

Too tired to read the thread properly, but just wanted to share DS1's achievement at visiting the school again this afternoon, in spite of not feeling very well. This is significant progress as normally the slightest hint of illness is enough to panic him.

Home ed not so successful. Really struggling with DS2's attitude at the moment. Managed some work on Shakespeare (it's Shakespeare Week, so I thought I'd make the most of it) and studied vertebrates and invertebrates. Neither topic seemed to be of any interest to DS2 . Hoping for a better day tomorrow.

Night all.

Morning fledglings,

I had an early night and a sort of lie in (compared to usual get up time of 5am) this morning, so feeling a bit better.

Ta das so far:
DS nappy change, milk and teeth cleaned. I even managed to clean in his ears with a cotton bud - really needed doing - eugh!
Cats fed
DS bed made and bedroom straightened up
Washing machine on
All toys from last night tidied away and lounge floor hoovered.

To do next:
Breakfast for DS and me
DS and me to get dressed (stuff you fat fairy-who says we can't be productive unless we are fully dressed see my ta das so far) feeling rebellious
Empty and reload dishwasher

I really need to go to town as have lots of little bits to do, but it's raining pretty steadily here. Not sure I fancy it...

Toffee that's fantastic about for your DS1, you must be so proud of him.

I'm not sure what your feelings are on using TV as an 'educational resource' but what about watching Gnomeo and Juliet as a way to try to encourage him (or as a reward) for engaging with Shakespeare?

Thanks toffee I was so happy that I may have jumped around and made a right twat of myself :o I'm just hoping that I'll be allowed some work time to get more involved (as a lowly assistant I normally wouldn't, but hopefully they'll make an exception as it was my idea). It's going county wide rather than just our branch too so potentially huge!

And huge well done to DS1, wow that is huge progress! Sorry DS2 is in an awkward phase - what do you think is causing it?