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!

We have no evidence of a nest other than one or two random ones at the end of hibernation and one or two at the start of it. I currently have a wasp trap set up so hopefully the bloody thing will find it. Other wise I will be up at 6am until I can manually despatch it.

Evening was very renewing spirit wise. Stupid but good for the soul. ds otoh was still up when I got is so it will a tricky morning tomo.

have just wasted an hour and a half trying to top up DS's mobile (he has only had it a few weeks) - I'd completely forgotten his username and the reset link on the webpage wasn't working. Sorted now thanks to kind posters on their forum. Waste of bloody time that was

Anyway, been at work today, and ballet this evening, we aren't doing badly for a set of middle aged beginners! Not too much Flying in between, still trying to straighten out DCs bedrooms. Oh, did manage 3 loads of washing though.

Morning! Links herewith, back in a bit!

**

Baby-step no. 24 for Tuesday 24th March is : the very useful swish & swipe.

We are in Zone 4 this week :the boudoir March 22 - 28) .

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 4 is here.

Tuesday's mission is planning holidays, meals, creative projects, excursions, medical appts.

The daily focus for Tuesday is: spending 15 mins organising your sock & tight drawer. Chuck all the mismatched ones!

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.

Small steps everyone!

*

Morning everyone, thanks for the links SC not that I'm really following them at the moment

DS got me up at 5:20 this morning, bit of an improvement I suppose.

Bless a big well done to your DD, hopefully some of her effectiveness can rub of onto your dissertation work (what's it on by the way?)

Ballet sounds great WhoKnows, hope you are enjoying it.

Waves to Blue Swan Bitchy and everyone else.

Ta das so far:
Cats fed
DS milk and fed
Emptied and reloaded dishwasher
Emptied kitchen bin into outside bin
Trimmed and arranged a lovely bunch of flowers I was given yesterday from work colleagues

To do:
Get myself and DS dressed
Washing on
Make beds
Make hair cut appointment for DS
Errands in town:
*pick up DHs prescription
*take eBay parcels to post office
*go to Pets at Home for a new scratch post for claw crazy kitties....
*take DS to a park or soft play place

I haven't mentioned it yet, but I am giving up work next week. The plan being to have some time at home before I go back to my professional training in September (assuming I get through the selection panel).

there is so much round the house and garden Id love to get done - major declutter of dining room and spare bedroom for starters. Plus, we have a serious paper clutter problem in our house, literally piles of stuff in every room that I want to sort out.

But I imagine I'll spend a lot of my time reading on the sofa and playing on my sewing machine, at least to begin with!

Oh GreyMalkin that sounds like bliss!

My dissertation is on nutrition in the periconception period of a subsequent pregnancy after having a baby with a congenital heart defect. I am however using a control group of women with healthy babies, so if anyone is pregnant for a second or more time or has given birth in the past year to a second or subsequent baby it would be great if you wanted to fill in my questionnaire! Takes about 15 mins. Unfortunately MN will only let me post in the "Not for profit surveys" board which as you can imagine doesn't get a lot of traffic"!

Very quiet on here today. Have been working, but was also in school this morning with my governor hat on, which was interesting.

Hi everyone!

I've not been on for over a week, I'm ok but it's been a bit crazy. Have been settling into home ed but also managed to get some more housework done, DCs' bedroom is really tidy and we are gradually tackling the whole house. Trying to find the balance (seems a common phrase for me lately!) between keeping up the momentum and not overdoing it.

The other thing is I'm really not settling into my new name I'll be back with another in April!

Good evening.

ta da
ds to school
Sleep
ds to bed at the time I want
Knitted some more boring pieces - minor technical problem with them so they need tweaking
start piecing the blanket
Cast on and get started on another strip for the blanket

Seems a lot but I mostly slept.

Bless well done to your DD and I hope you manage to press on with the dissertation soon.

I am shattered and so is DD. It's a typically busy week on the way to a half-term break and I hope she stays fit until next Monday when we have a break! Also discovered that our landline is off, so my last free day on Thursday is now slightly marred by waiting for the engineer in the late afternoon/early evening. Good job I did the stash and dash earlier this week!

Off to bed, yawn! See you tomorrow.

hi

done
had old friend of dh from uni to supper - and cooked all the things the kids don't like "risotto with mushrooms and roasted tomatoes" sort of food

really nice although ds2 did end up watching an awful lot of telly whilst we talked to our guest... need to work out what to do with him on these occasions - possibly train him to go to bed by himself

Parks group - our local so entirely stress free

Saw Parent partnership to start ball rolling properly for EHCP

Started packing ds1's ski trip suitcase - very stressful to think of him going so far when he is so disorganised but he's done it before just not so far away (Colorado to be exact eek) I'm not quite sure if he is looking forward to it - one of those trips which has taken two years to come to fruition

Ds2 did Art today with dh for Home Ed - we were looking at pictures of animals a la Darwin. Ds promptly made them into a cartoon - not what I intended but better than nothing

Ds1 still On Report at school which is a very boring monitoring system which drives us nuts and doesn't seem to make any difference to how well he does his work - moreover seems to send dh incandescent with rage when we get these formal "monitoring letters" sent as he pointed out, just before holidays start.

Very tired but just biting my nails till ds1 is safely off on his trip and then I will bite my nails some more and hope he is enjoying it and not breaking any bones on the ski slopes. Two concerts to go as well.

Evening all,

A productive day here.

Two lots of washing done, 6 sorted (accumulated from last couple of days).
Bath cleaned
Bathroom floor and ceiling steam mopped
Cat bowls and mats washed
Kitchen sink properly shined
Kitchen counters tidied
Bag of old school uniform given away
Car insurance renewed (complicated due to Mr Dishonest as mentioned last week) but at least managed to keep cost as it was before.
Complicated arrangements for Thursday sorted out (I'm going out and DCs and friends need ferrying all over town)
Various bills for activities/holiday childcare paid
Pilates class
Sainsburys
School runs
DD to ballet and tap
Out for a curry with friends.

Swan - glad to hear you are getting started with EHCP, good luck! I have only had minimal contact with our PP but they have been helpful.

Bless - sorry, my youngest is 9 so I can't help you.

Baby-step no. 25 for Wednesday 25 March is : reading a testimonial about how it took Flylady several months to develop routines one at a time; ie one you can safely ignore.

We are in Zone 4 this week :the boudoir March 22 - 28) .

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 4 is here.

Wednesday's mission is decluttering and cleaning your bedside tables.

The daily focus for Wednesday is: anti-procrastination. Do that thing you have been avoiding!

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.

Have a good day everyone!

***

Sorry not to get back on here yesterday; a bit of a full-on day! (Another just about to start today!)

Hope everyone OK!

Bless congratulations to your dd2 on getting a distinction in her music exam! That's brilliant news!

Good luck with the wasps Bitchy!

Well done re: your long list yesterday and ballet Whoknows! Glad you are all enjoying it! [SC shudders at thought of wobbly self in leotard]

Swan Wow at Colarado!!

Greymalkin great that you will have some time before September to get house in order! I've had 10 yrs

Fizrm good luck with getting through the last school week!

Blue glad governership going well so far!

Waves to everyone else I have missed!

Day has not started well. Just seen that I have missed the deadline for applying for hot lunches for dd next term [bum].

Diet going disastrously.

House a mess!

And received letter yesterday that said that dd's application to first secondary school choice has not been successful (first 80% automatic allocation) so she now goes through to clearing. [Bites nails].

Sorry to hear about the secondary application (and dinners) SC. And no to leotards, it's leggings and a very long tee shirt for me at ballet! I have got pink satin shoes though .

Feeling rough this morning, I started a cold on Sunday, was ok for a couple of days but downhill from last night.

[passes hot lemon tea to Whoknows with large dollop of honey]

Whooooooooh to shiny pink ballet shoes !!

I hope all those not well will feel better soon! And ugh to all the school issues.

Ta da
School run
2 clean sinks
Vacuumed living room
Cancelled MOT appt which doesn't expire today as I thought but on 6th June!
Handed out info sheets about my study to mums in the playground with newish babies.
Booked DD2's flute exam for May

To do
Marinade tofu for tonight's dinner
Buy broccoli for tonight's dinner
Or think of an entirely different dinner altogether
Dissertation. As I tried to go to sleep last night I realised I have 3 x 4 weeks till my hand-in date, and bearing in mind what needs to be done (3 major sections to do which will probably each need more than 4 weeks), this is Not Enough! Had to push that out of my mind otherwise I never would have got to sleep. But didn't sleep well.

Brrrrr [shakes rain off umbrella]. Where did spring go? It's freezing!

Ta da so far:
ironed a few items of clothing
morning routine inc wm, rabbits, s&s
sorted laundry
prepped sports kit for dd again (yes, every Wednesday morning comes around as a surprise )
volunteering slot
emptied dishwasher
cooked potatoey, carroty, parsnippy, bacony "composition" (with cheese on top) for lunch (prepped yesterday)
on-line shopping for Easter plus stocked up on birthday cards
more laundry

To do:
boudoir
write Easter letters/greetings

I don't know, dd is now fast asleep again on sofa after normal Wed half day at school, where she's only had sport and RE. This is not normal is it? (Bit worried because this is what happened last Wed and she proceeded to sleep through Thurs and Fri too.) Must book that blood test for her.

Today I was supposed to be flying around like a crazy person getting things done. 1 bout of insomnia and a children with a medical issue later and I have only just woken up after going back to bed when ds was delivered to school.

I have loads that needs doing and the rotten sleep pattern is not helping mind you neither was the pig headed subborness wrt just finishing something last night

To do
wash kit
pack kit
sort out food for ds
pack car
leave house by 3:40
play on the motorways - in a game known as try not to get stuck in road works
sort out kit issue
get child into shower and bed before 10pm (preferrably closer to 9pm)
Early night!

Hi everyone,

I'm finally back in the land of the living, although two weeks of no DIY and no flying means I'm way behind on things, but I think I need to take it steady until I'm sure that I'm fully recovered, I'm pretty sure that I am though.

Bit of a blow losing two weeks of DIY work when due to my increasing size I only have a few weeks left of being able to do some of the jobs that involve being on my hands and knees, etc. Still will just see how I get on.

DP has been told that he has to go away with work to India for nearly two weeks when I'm between 32 and 34 weeks pregnant so that is an unexpected thing to have to factor in. DP is the big worrier but what can we do, he doesn't have a choice, it would be worse if meerkitten was already here I think. I'll be under orders to sit still on the sofa for the whole time he's gone though I expect to make sure that nothing happens. I feel fine now but I don't know how I'll feel when he's gone, it's not like he can pop back if she decides to arrive early!

I've just had my food shopping delivered as I figured I'd better learn how to do supermarket shopping online as that will be easier I assume with a baby but it feels quite odd and I can't bring myself to trust them with fresh ingredients, sticking with heavy tins and cleaning products, etc. at the moment. I have to say I'm sure it has taken much longer than it takes me to go to the supermarket but I'm sure I'll get quicker with practice.

I'm sure I had more to say but brain has gone blank. Today no flying yet apart from washing up last nights dishes. I've had my whooping cough jab, put away supermarket shop and been to DIY store to buy new light pull to help me finish off the bathroom.

Will check back in later when my head is perhaps a bit more back in the flying groove.

I haven't even tried to look at the thread, let alone catch up, so I hope that everyone is ok.

Can you get parsnips in Belgium, SC? They're pretty unheard of in France as i understand.

Frustrated with work and with DS1 and with myself this afternoon. Have also failed to get hold of someone i need to speak to before tomorrow.

SC - poor DD - sounds as if she is still fighting off that virus. Good idea to book the blood test. Sorry to hear about the secondary school application.

WhoKnows - hope you start to feel better today .

dogsbum - I always do online shopping - much better than traipsing round a RL shop. Sorry to hear that your DH has to be away for work when you're 32 - 34 weeks pregnant.

Bitchy - well, you obviously needed that sleep. Hope you can catch up with all the things you need to do.

Bless - sympathies on the dissertation worries.

Went for my blood test today and was sent away because nobody had told me I needed to fast . So am going back again next week.

Bearing in mind Bitchy's comment a while back, I have backed right off formal work with DS2 and we have just been watching DVDs, reading, cooking, playing games and going out. 'Wonders of Life', with Brian Cox, has so far covered evolution, chemistry, physics, astronomy, biology and geography. Today we've practised Times Tables rhymes and played Monopoly. DS2 is still quite emotional and tricky at the moment, but a more relaxed pace has helped.

Out of the blue, I heard from DS2's prospective school earlier this week. A pupil is leaving at the end of the school year, so they'd like DS2 to come in for a two-day taster after Easter. So, assuming the taster days go ok, it may be that home ed will only last for another six months' anyway, which gives me time to focus on anything DS2 needs to catch up on, as well as giving us time to just enjoy ourselves with trips out, etc.

DS1 is making astonishing progress. He is spending far more time downstairs with us, instead of up in his room, and is enjoying DS2's company more. (Yesterday, it was like a madhouse with boys charging round, having a water-pistol fight, and the cats chasing each other). He calmly sat through a meeting with the SENDCO about GCSE options on our last visit and has been sent home with the list of options (which he won't read, but still...). Then he decided he wanted DH to take him to an abandoned nuclear bunker (he is interested in empty buildings - likes the spookiness, I think), so off he went on a three-hour round trip today . He said he felt panicky on the way home, but was otherwise ok.

The problem with both boys starting school in September is that the schools are in opposite directions. DH wants me to do an intensive driving course so I can drive DS1. Am terrified at the option. Is it possible for me to go from non-driver to driver within six months?

Sorry, very little Flying news in the above. But I have been keeping up with the basics but not the missions.

Ah, massive Flying fail: nothing for dinner tonight .

And no wine in the fridge either.

Toffee -that's great news about the school place for DS2, that's taken a long time. Hope he enjoys the taster. I have known people go from non-driver to driver in a week on those courses.

Thanks for all the virtual Lemsips, I'm holding up ok but getting through boxloads of tissues.

Evening all!!

Bit more of a successful day errand-running and Flying wise thankfully! (Don't get me wrong, I am starting from such a low, sluggish level that it's not that impressive when looked at objectively, but better than recent efforts).

Ta da cont'd/...
1.5 hrs admin work for dh
spoke to dsis1 on phone
washed parts of school uniform (out of sync!) and hung up to dry
2 more loads of laundry
made large vat of usual 'Thurs' veg soup
hwk supervision (1.5 hrs)
served and cleared up supper (pasta with simple tom and courgette sauce)
rabbits
carried clean laundry upstairs
blitzed soup
wm loaded for morning
watched half of the news but so very about plane crash I had to turn it off
clothes out for tomorrow
dd to bed again

Step away from the knitting needles Bitchy!! That list looks very respectable if you ask me! Hope your ds is better now and that you can catch up with shut eye tonight!

[Wonders if tofu and broccoli were consumed chez Bless this evening]

Dogsbum Remember that with Flylady you are never behind! So take it steady (good you are ordering heavy stuff online)!! And although I'm sure it's frustrating having to take an enforced rest, I'm sure you will benefit from it later on ifyswim; once Meerkitten has arrived I mean Sorry to hear your dh has to travel so far away though; totally sympathise as dh was travelling for most of my pregnancy and dd's infancy and it is hard not to worry. (Do you have any other support/family nearby?) Hopefully you can make the most of it though and profit from being able to eat what you want, sleep peacefully and have total control of sofa and remote control !!

Blue yes, but only very recently within the last couple of years!! (And I keep being asked by Belgians what parsnips are and how they are cooked, as I happily load them in to my basket!!) Just waiting for swede now ... !! Hope work proves more fruitful tomorrow! At the risk of sounding like a broken record, remember you are never behind with Flylady!!

Toffee bummer wrt blood test but well done for putting in motion ... . And brilliant to hear that things are moving so positively towards school places for both boys in Sept- really terrific!! I'm probably the world's worst, most reluctant wimpy driver (esp over here) so not really qualified to comment, but certain it must be possible to learn to drive in 6 months. (Some of our colleagues in the office have had to learn French from scratch and that can be done in 6 months if they really put their minds to it; and reckon driving is a lot easier than that!! ) You'll be great!!

[Hands over half a dozen boxes of Kleenex to Whoknows.] Hope you feel better soon!

Big encouraging wing flaps to everyone else I've missed!

Back in a mo with links ... .

Did everything on the to do list except get child into shower, he decided he would rather do it in the morning as he gets up at 6am. So he just went to bed all stinky tonight. I'm not worried as I needed to wash his bedding anyway. So just means I have to be organised. Just about to make a hot water bottle and head to bed I think