Let April Spring Cleaning with the Fledglings commence (hopefully Dogsbum wont turn it into too much of a shower....)

[Dogsbumhair]

The fledglings is a long running thread based on the Flylady cleaning/tidying principles. Personally I’m a newbie with only a couple of months flying under my belt but some members of the group have been on the thread for a number of years, so the thread is a mixed group of more and less experienced fledglings. I have found myself to be very warmly received as a newbie so please don’t be scared to join the gang.

Flylady link link here.

The system initially seems quite confusing so my advice as a fellow newbie would be to just go with it and accept that you will probably feel a bit confused for the first couple of weeks and then it will start to come together and make more sense.

The basic principles are (very) loosely as follows:

1. No perfectionism allowed (it is your enemy and it is stopping you getting anything done)
2. Little and often is the way to go (your house didn’t get in a mess in a day, it wont get sorted in one)
3. You are never behind, just jump in where you are (We are in a different zone of the house each week and all the house zones come round once a month, so all the tasks will come round again soon)
4. The point of this system is that by doing little and often your life isn’t dominated by housework and you have more time to do the fun things that you’d much prefer to be doing

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.

Later on today I will be posting up the links and information for tomorrow’s tasks

The advice from the wise and experienced members of the group is not to subscribe to the emails, but I have to confess that as a foolish newbie I do receive them I have learnt to ruthlessly bin anything beyond the actual flying tasks though.

Hopefully I haven’t missed anything too important off this introduction, but I’m sure someone more experienced will pop up to supplement this information if I have.

Good luck and happy flying through April!……………..

Dark - hope you got to bed before midnight. And yes, I suspect DM's way of coping will be keeping herself furiously busy. She is also in that phase where lots of friends are getting in touch, wanting to see her and offer support, so that helps. It's good for her to know so many people cared about her partner.

Thanks, Grey.

ta da

Up early to wake DS2 so it's not too much of a shock for him tomorrow -
raised blinds, chatted, dispatched cats into his room (total failure. He slept through it all).
Fed cats
Put two loads of washing on
Had breakfast and checked emails
Made shopping list for DH
Woke DS1
Managed to wake Ds2 about 10 (he will struggle tomorrow...)
Cleared up furballs
Polished his school shoes
Nipped to corner shop
Unloaded d/w
Reloaded d/w with never-ending washing up
Tumbledryer on (working again after DH discovered a very damp book clogging up the back )

Long list to get through today. Dh has gone to work and is popping in on his mum (not too well at the moment) and shopping on the way home.

Fear not on DIY front, as it happens Grey's suggestion is exactly what I'm doing, setting the timer for 15 mins and doing something and then having a rest. I've also got a few things left to buy for Meerkitten so I've been doing a bit of online shopping and research so I can still feel like I'm doing something useful even if I'm also drinking a hot choc and watching tv as well!

All the DIY I did yesterday only added up to an half and a hour in six 15 min timer blasts with rests in between. So for example, I just set the timer for 15 mins, put another coat of paint on door step, which only took 5 mins, washed brush and put away tin, leaving about 7 mins so I dried up and put away a few dishes and then when timer went off I sat down to the hot chocolate I'd made in advance and I'm now on here with the tv on too in front room

So don’t worry, all my DIY is like that now since finishing painting Meerkitten’s room. Just about everything else I’ve got to do can be done like that, in little bite sized chunks with nice rests in between. In fact I’m doing a lot of the jobs that I often leave for a long time because normally I find it a bit boring and frustrating doing tiny little jobs where more time is spent washing up the tools afterwards than doing the job, but as it happens they are the perfect jobs for me to do now, so it is sort of working out well. I did all the more physical jobs earlier in the pregnancy as I knew I wouldn’t be able to do them at this stage. In fact I did all the really heavy lifting jobs before I got pregnant, I wouldn’t risk doing the full on plastering and floor levelling that I’ve done in the past whilst I’m pregnant. Even I’m not that mad

Feel free to continue reminding me to take it easy though if I mention doing anything a bit more crazy! I think I’ve got so used to DIY being my job that I do need reminding at times that being an incubator for Meerkitten is a valid job too!

In terms of the evenings I did laugh out loud at Toffee’s comment that that is what Mumsnet is for! Brilliant! I didn’t mean that I didn’t have anything to do, more that I’m used to DP not being here in the day and me being busy doing DIY but the evenings usually have a structure with me finishing DIY about 6pm ish and tidying up and then starting tea and then some time together, so it’s more about being used to that being our time than not having anything to do.

Obviously I haven’t missed him yet as he only left yesterday but I wonder if it might start to feel odd not having that structure and that division between work and downtime that is usually created by whether or not DP is in the house. I do try to treat the DIY as a job and try to create a sense of hours that I work and hours that I’m off to some extent as I think it can be hard for your brain to separate when you work from home, I don’t know if anyone else finds that as I think some of you work from home. There is a danger of never being off work when I can so clearly see the jobs that need doing as they are right there in front of me!

Anyway, it is a lovely sunny day here so I’m making the most of the opportunity to get some sheets and towels washed as I believe the weather is supposed to turn. I’d like to go out for a walk but I think it’s probably a bit warm at the moment and I don’t want to overheat so I think I’ll go for a bit of a stroll later when it’s a little cooler.

Toffee I hope your DM is ok when you see her.

Tomorrow’s links…..

Baby-step no. 27 for Mon 27th April is here

We are in Zone 5 The Living Room and Zone 1 Entrance, Front Porch and Dining Room this week: here

If you want to, you can declutter for 15 mins a day in Zone 5!

The detailed cleaning list (if you are at that stage) for Zone 5 is here

Monday’s mission is here

The daily focus for Monday is: Monday Bleurghh

The monthly habit for April is making your bed

For a summary of the above, see the flight plan: here

Happy flying…..

Ta da list

Picked up electric planer from Screwfix
2 loads of washing (washed, dried and folded away)
Changed to thinner duvet
2nd coat of paint on door step
Painted sanded wall patches in kitchen
Hoovering and tidying in cellar
Emptied bins
Recycling of paper and plastics
Washing and drying up

By the way, I'm noticing that we are close to the end of the month, I think someone had volunteered to do the links for May but I can't remember for sure, can anyone remember?

If it is any encouragement I've actually really enjoyed it this month and I can't believe the month is nearly up. It has really helped me to stay focussed but it has also been enjoyable and made me read all those baby steps that I hadn't read before

DP just called and interrupted my flow so I can’t remember what else I was going to say about running the thread this month, so will just post this and see if anything comes back to me

Well done on the links this month dogs, fab work!

Not a bad day today, DH took DD out this morning and we went out to a garden centre this afternoon - unfortunately we were very late back due to the road being blocked, so tea was slightly different than planned (hacked chunks off the chicken rather than roast it whole for speed ) and we have a hectic week ahead of us so tomorrow morning will be spent planning and the rest of the week will be spent STICKING TO THE PLAN!!! I need to enforce order on myself, never mind the house!

Hi Dogs - it was me who volunteered for the May thread, so I'll post a link to it on the 30th, then you can put your feet up!

Thanks Fizrim! Good luck with the planning, mine always seem to get derailed in some way, somehow

I'll get ready to hand the baton over Grey! Looking forward to putting my feet up!

Good morning fledglings,

Had a really full-on weekend taking DD1 to a dressage training camp which thankfully was only 5 mins away from where we live, and I still had to get up at 5.30am on Saturday to get there in time with pony and all necessities. Was very thankful I wasn't driving up from Cornwall (to Gloucestershire) like some people! Anyway she had a fab time with fitness sessions, private lessons, rider proficiency testing, sports psychology and test riding! I was a bit disappointed that despite being paired up with a lovely friendly 15yo who was primed to support DD and help her integrate socially, DD resisted all attempts to spend any time with her or any of the other girls and remained resolutely solitary :-(. Ah well, she still enjoyed it.

Today was meant to be another day with my head in research papers and literature reviews, but DD2, who was away at a friend's for a sleepover at the weekend, was up in the night with the runs so is off school today. This is one of those rare occasions where I hope she does just immerse herself in Minecraft for much of the day so I can get on.

I was very pleased that on Sat, DH finally took DD2 shopping for a new guitar as she had outgrown her old one, and the new one is a reward for doing so well in her Grade 1 exam. The price paid was a bit scary but DH has been researching and overthinking this decision for weeks and he had to get a 'proper' guitar rather than something from China like I would have got (for a lot less money....!).

Bless - my DS2 is just like that (introverted), which is why my attempts to get him to join in at home-ed events have failed miserably. He has several good friends, but doesn't seem to feel any need to mix socially elsewhere. Sounds like your DD had a fantastic day anyway.

And I hope you manage to get your work done today, in spite of having your DD at home.

Fizrim - good luck with your busy week and sticking to The Plan!

Dogs - I'm really impressed by how organised you are. This will stand you in very good stead when you have MeerKitten. I used to find that just leaving the house with a baby or toddler required astonishing levels of advance preparation. Glad to hear you've enjoyed running the thread this month. I always find it gets me back on track when I run the thread as I actually have to read the steps again.

Managed to get loads done yesterday. I decluttered both the bathroom and kitchen and polished everything till it was sparkling clean, ready for DM's arrival today. Have also put clean sheets on DS2's bed (which becomes her guest bed) and tumble dried the towels to make them fluffy. Put flowers in DM's room. Tidied away toys, etc.

The school run this morning was just the shock I knew it would be. I am so out of practise! Dragged DS2 out of bed at what felt like the crack of dawn, made his packed lunch, found examples of his work to show his teacher, made breakfast, fed cats, brushed teeth and so on. DS2 was very good at getting ready and astonishingly calm about the taster day, although he had a momentary lapse in confidence when we arrived and wanted me to stay with him a bit longer. The school was so lovely and everyone was very welcoming. I just hope they want him.

Dashed to work with DH, then drove to PO to deposit orders, then back home to find the man who's doing our garden parking outside. So now he's out the back, preparing the decking.

Now I have to tidy the sitting room and upstairs landing, do some hoovering and maybe (but don't bank on it) tackle our bedroom. Oh, and must remember to pick up DS2. Then DM arrives and we have a CAMHS meeting with DS1.

I'm going to want a glass of wine or two tonight.

Also need to ring the dr. DH found an unopened letter on his bedside table, addressed to me. It was from the surgery, asking me to make a 'non-urgent' appointment about my blood-test results. All this time I've assumed no news is good news because I hadn't seen the letter. We think DS2 put it there to be helpful, as he sometimes collects the post and brings it to us in the morning.

Morning all!

Bless did you see any of AP's last hurrah at Sandown? Never seen so many hard men cry all at once! I was sitting at home blubbing too!
Dressage camp sounds fab! Sorry to hear your dd2 is ill though. It must be so hard juggling dc and serious study. Hope you manage to get some work done today.

YY Dogsbum you have indeed done brilliantly with links and thank you very much indeed Greymalkin for volunteering to run thread in May!! Much appreciated!!!

Dogsbum good to hear you are taking it steady! Ditto what others have said in that I'm sure your dh would prefer to come back to you and bump healthy and well and rested, rather than completed DIY projects! Hope he has a good trip! And watch what chemicals you are breathing in!! (Hope that doesn't sound too nagging!!)

Good luck with THE PLAN Fitzrim!! I need to enforce order on myself too so totally with you there!! And 'courage' wrt to situation with elderly relatives. Sorry to be morbid but I know how draining it can be (dh and I have just emerged from a period where we have lost 3 parents in just under 4 years; my df having died many years before) and it is very, very hard. Hardest of all is the reality that these situations often do not get better despite everyone's best efforts, so you must try and look after yourself too as well as everyone else. (Sorry if that all sounds very down-beat - I sincerely hope in your situation that things do improve!!) Just trying to say 'protect yourself a bit if possible' because needs can get greater and greater as time goes on, requiring more and more inner (and practical) resources. Good luck with it all x

I'm so very sorry to hear the very sad news about your mum's partner Toffee . He sounds like a lovely man! What an awful time your dm has been going through. I hope she has a good visit and I'm sure she will find it a comfort to be with you all. Good she has you and lovely friends around to offer support. Sorry to hear your mil is unwell again too. (Ditto what I said to Fizrim above.) But good news re: tumble drier and at damp book!!

Congrats on your productive w/e DEM and hope you managed sufficient shut eye quotient! Thought of you on Sat (one of dd's ballet classes) when they were indeed doing the splits (well, various stages of them). Talking to teacher afterwards; hadn't realised that some people can physically never ever manage to do them - thought it was one of those things that everyone can do with lots of practice (dd nearly there but not quite!)

Hope you enjoyed your bil's visit Blue and congrats on long list achieved!

Waves to Seaside Honu Swan Engels Feetheart Pushme Nicknacks Castle CaptainSubtext Whoknows Mercury and everyone I have missed!

Good weekend mostly. Celebrated on Fri because we heard that dd had been offered a place in her first choice of secondary school, (last 20% phew!) having been rejected in the first round. (It's a state school but she now has to pass oblig national end-of-primaire exams in order to go on to secondary education.) She and dh were delighted and I am genuinely delighted on their behalf (but I was secretly hoping that dd and I might have had to rtn to UK for a bit!). But all in all, this is a much better solution for her languages and good to have plans settled.

Like Blue spent most of Fri/Sat cleaning and cooking. Stripped and re-made all beds. Laundered uniform, sports kit, ballet kit. Tried to get dd to do hwk and failed. Made first ever attempt at 'proper' Indian curry (only ever made Thai curries before) + lemon and cashew rice + a cobbled together version of stuffed parathas + different chicken dish for visiting children. Then table setting and hair cut (leaving dh in charge).
Enjoyed evening with lovely friends and their lovely dc (who are in turn lovely friends of dd!). Did first round of clearing up.

Furry friend btw behaved himself behaved really well considering it was his first experience of having lots of people around.

Up early on Sun and off to church and then back home to more clearing up which I dispatched fairly promptly. DD though procrastinated with hwk and I got increasingly irritated (but counselled by dh, determined not to nag or 'be negative' or say anything). She fell asleep on sofa and woke up at about 4.45pm declaring that she felt sick and ill. Same pattern as previously. She did look white. She ended up eating a tiny bit of rice for supper and going to bed early. Still white and seeing start this morning (but iron levels normal ) so missed first set of (art) lessons today, but she did go in about an hour ago. We know there is nothing seriously wrong with her (because of blood tests) so as usual, am baffled by all of this. Guess we will have to cancel all entertaining until the exams are over. Don't understand it though because we made sure she had lots of sleep.

Feeling a bit down in the dumps this morning. Dh very abrupt and uncommunicative and totally wrapped up in work. He is also getting frustrated with dd (his academic standards are very very high and he expects a lot from her, even though he is much softer than me when it comes to general discipline) and I feel like I am always having to mediate between them. Feel like popping around to a friend's house for coffee but the ones I would really like to see have either left to live in different countries or are otherwise engaged . Really, really miss them. So going to stroke dogs and rabbits instead [old saddo emoticon] .

Have a good week everyone!

Thanks for your kind words, SC. And huge congratulations on DD getting into your first choice of secondary school! That is brilliant news.

So sorry you are feeling down this morning. It's hard not to have any close friends to visit when you're feeling like that. Could you plan something with a friend so you have something to look forward to, maybe?

As the GP has ruled out physical causes for your DD's issues, I suspect it is stress related. Is she picking up on your DH's high expectations? I remember having very similar symptoms when I was in a state about secondary school exams. I had my first panic attack during a church service and remember momentarily losing my sight, which was terrifying. My DM said I went completely white. Not sure what to suggest, except tlc and reassurance.

x post (which I thought I had written and posted but has disappeared in to ether, so apologies if similar version appears again)

Toffee congrats on all the cleaning/reorganising and good luck with your very demanding day today! And best of luck to your ds2 with his taster day too!! (Gosh, that has come around quickly!!) Hope he loves it!!!

And good luck wrt blood tests etc. Sounds as if they have found the reason for your fatigue (which is good) but that it is not too serious if not urgent (also good!) so hopefully it is something that can be fixed fairly easily! Fingers crossed for you!

Hope your ma has a lovely visit (as much as poss in circs anyway) x

Hello everyone,

Bless - dressage camp sounded fab, as does a nice fancy 'real' guitar.

SC - great news re school place

Toffee - hurray for surviving school run!

SC and Bless - are you both into horse racing then? I live five minutes away from a very new racecourse and went for the first time yesterday. It was a nice day out.

Waves to DEM, Dogs, Fizrim, WhoKnows, Blue, Engles, Castle, Seaside, Swan and everyone else I've missed.

So..... Bit of a busy morning:
DS awake at 4:15 this morning and took a lot of handholding to stay in bed and go back to sleep
Came downstairs to find dishwasher had flooded the kitchen
Took DS to nursery
Found an appliance repair person who came out to fix dishwasher
Mopped and tidied kitchen floor
Trip to post office to send ebay parcel
Trip to B&Q for plug fuses and watering can
New fuse put in the slow cooker
Dinner put in the slow cooker
Beds made
Wash on and hung out on the line
Second interview arranged for two weeks time
Booked sofa in for a professional clean

To do:
Park arse on sofa with vat of coffee
Thread leader master plan document for quick cutting and pasting
Start watching Dowton Abbey series three
Write to pen pal
Collect DS from nursery
DS epic groom: bath, wash hair, trim nails, clean in ears (he is going to hate me)

Look!!!!! Since when did MN have a ?!?! Can we keep it as our resident pet? Pleeeeaaaasseeee?!?

xx post!

Thanks in rtn for kind words Toffee! Feel a bit better now because dh came home from lunch and we actually had a proper conversation and he didn't look at his phone once [shock!! Seeing friends Wed pm and possibly Fri morning so shouldn't complain but there are just significantly less of them than there used to be! And not being replaced at same rate as I am losing as they are moving on ifyswim!

ooh we have [star

oops - that didn't work

trying again ...

we have too!! When did that happen? Er, and why?

Greymalkin oh dear, what a horrible night and start to the day you have had! Hope it improves and good luck with ds grooming!! And hope you get a good night's sleep tonight!

I am a confessed follower of The Turf. Think I know which racecourse you mean (very rare that new ones open nowadays; they are usually closing down)! at living so close! (Is it a dirt track?) They've mostly closed down over here and are mainly interested in trotting anyway. Chantilly is our closest.

You sound very organised wrt thread running btw!

Toffee sorry, that should have read, 'not replacing friends as fast as I am losing them/they are moving on'.

For those of you who have dc at secondary school, do you make new friends at the school gate? I have a feeling it will be very different to primary school in this respect.

And thanks for thoughts re: dd Toffee (posted too soon before). Dh is convinced she is 'swinging the lead' or is convincing herself she is ill in order to get out of studying. I'm not so sure because she really did look very white yesterday and this morning was very quiet/subdued. I think there is a strong possibility, as you say, that this could be down to stress (although I had a quiet talk one-on-one with her yesterday and she was adamant everything is fine). Will be keeping a careful eye on situation.

And meant to say 'snap' Toffee because funnily enough, I remember having panic attacks/fainting in church and/or assemblies and losing my sight too!! Really, really horrible.

Ta da:
morning routine inc animals, dw, wm, s&s, and dining room table hotspots
laundry
wiped down kitchen surfaces
general tidy up
dd to school late owing to collywobbles
dog training (calmly sitting in basket and 'staying' while I go in and out front door) - getting there but will take lots more time
doggy teeth brushing
1 hr admin for dh/office
lunch with dh
more office admin (40 mins or so)

To do:
sewing
ironing (mounds of the stuff!)
school run
ballet run
dog walking while dd at ballet
hwk supervision
supper and clearing up

BOUDOIR!!!

All very tedious (apart from dog training) I'm afraid ... .

Yes you can keep it grey but you need to clean up after it. So as you are the next thread leader it is all good and gravy.

Sleep yeah not great last night and lost countof how much coffee i have drunk today. But i don't have the shakes yet so it can't be too bad

Not really remembering what I read so I will just and curl up until my meeting later.

DS2 loved his taster day . When I said, "What did you enjoy?" he said, "EVERYTHING!"

DS1 on very good form and stayed for the whole CAMHS appointment. Astonishing.

DM here now. The boys are giving her lots of cuddles.

Tomorrow’s links…..

Baby-step no. 28 for Tues 28th April is here

We are in Zone 5 The Living Room and Zone 1 Entrance, Front Porch and Dining Room this week: here

If you want to, you can declutter for 15 mins a day in Zone 5!

The detailed cleaning list (if you are at that stage) for Zone 5 is here

Tuesday’s mission is here

The daily focus for Tuesday is: Planning Day

The monthly habit for April is making your bed

For a summary of the above, see the flight plan: here

Happy flying…..

Evening all,

Could I just say, Dogs - what a very good job you've done at thread leading this month, especially considering you've only been with us for a short time . When is Meerkitten due? I am impressed with all your DIY in the run up to his or her arrival.

SC - I wonder about stress with your DD too. My DD has been having intermittent episodes of "feeling sick but not being sick" for the last year or so, all physical causes have been ruled out, so it's likely to be nerves/stress, but she is adamant that it isn't (she is blaming it on anything from "being too cold" to "having a shower"). DD seems like a confident little thing, but I am worried that she might be covering up things she's worried about.

Toffee - well done to both your DSs today, you must be very proud of them.

Grey - thank you for offering to run the thread next month.

Ta-da!

School run (early to breakfast club) - only minor trauma with DD losing her shoes (later found in the back garden). She had to wear trainers but didn't get into any trouble.
Work - busy at the moment
A bit of work for second job on the side - both employers are happy for me to cross-fertilise as they are similar business but not rivals and I can use ideas from each to benefit the other.
Pick up an order from a shop
School run
Email / admin stuff, still chasing around after DS's statement appeal. His school placement from September has been agreed, but the finer points of his statement are still in dispute
Dinner
OU assignment submitted - one more to go then that's it for the summer
Ballet class
Not much actual housework, however still maintaining a decent level of tidiness (for us)
Invited friends for coffee on Fri, so will have to do some dusting etc by then.

Oh, I would like to make a belated boast about doing a huge amount of steam cleaning yesterday. Kitchen cupboards, inside and out (not all of the insides, am working my way round those), oven, wall behind the cat's bowls which gets splattered with food, various things from an old playhouse in the garden that has been demolished to make way for new potting shed in a few weeks. Also went round the downstairs of the house with a damp microfibre cloth and de-fingerprinted lots of grubby paintwork.

Bless dressage training camp sounds great, I didn't know there were so many strands to it though! Sounds like a lot of work.

Toffee yes, running the thread is great for focus, you can't really slack off completely when you've got to at least log in once a day to do links.

I am organised but I'm not sure what I wrote that gave me away! Not sure if it will help with Meerkitten as I've heard a rather disturbing rumour that babies refuse to be organised however hard you try! I will probably have the world's most organised changing bag though

Thanks Steady for your help in getting started running the thread this month, I wouldn't have been able to do it without the information you sent me as I didn't have a clue what to do.

Feel free to nag me about safety. I do have various grades of face mask for DIY jobs, all the way up to a full on gas mask type affair with changeable filters so I'm pretty good on that score.

You are right about DP preferring me to be rested than do lots of DIY. I really need to focus my energies on just finishing off a couple of jobs in our front room that are very noticeable as they are near the tv but don't need a lot of work to finish. That will give me the best return on my energy and will be the jobs that DP will most appreciate seeing completed before Meerkitten arrives. I need to focus and not get distracted with doing other jobs that I fancy doing more basically

Congrats on DD getting first choice of school by the way, that's great! Sorry to hear you were feeling down in the dumps this morning, I hope you are feeling better.

Grey that sounds like a long day with a 4.15 start and a flooded kitchen! I hope the day improved after that start! I assume the dragon is for St George’s Day so probably wont be here long I suspect.

Toffee so pleased taster day and Camhs went well and that DM is getting lots of cuddles.

Whoknows thank you very much for saying I’ve done well with leading the thread and for the flowers. Meerkitten is due in mid June.

Well done on all that steam cleaning!