October Fledgling thread 2016: where we fluff up our feathers and fall back in to autumnal Flying routines

[Strikingclock]

Welcome to the October 2016 Fledgling Flying thread!

Come and park your broomsticks mops and buckets here!

This is where, from the 1st of the month, we attempt to declutter and follow the 30-step wisdom of Flylady (minus cutesy language and a surfeit of e-mails) with lots of chat and support and mutual motivation (and of course) along the way.

More info available here , here, here and here.

As usual we will be following a three-pronged approach - and don't worry - we are all at different stages. (Some of us are still stuck at the decluttering stage after quite a few years ):

• repeat or start baby steps (again!)

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

or

• reinforce babysteps and do daily missions if you have finished decluttering.

And those of you who have decluttered and are really enthusiastic can throw some detailed cleaning in to the mix as well!

The idea is that we focus on short, ring-fenced, daily bursts of activity (steps and routines) that will help our homes run (more or less!) on "automatic pilot" allowing us to do far more interesting things instead!

This is a very long-running thread so we may appear cliquey but we really aren't! All newcomers, long-termers, lurkers and intermittent returnees not only welcome to join in but positively encouraged to do so!

Helpful pointers: No perfectionism allowed! If it took a while to create the current C.H.A.O.S. (can't have anyone over syndrome) in your home, then it will probably take a while to reverse the situation (you can't clean clutter!). Small steps are the key! And you are never behind: just jump in where you are at!

Any questions, don't hesitate to ask!

Good luck!

I didn't earn enough to pay tax last year either. Most of the questions are not relevant to small earners. It's a pain figuring out what they all mean though.

Our favourite family game is Ticket to Ride

How do you guys do your control journal? I'm a bit confused about what it is ?

So far I've been writing lists on a magnetic whiteboard on my fridge and ticking them off as I go.

Well done "foxcub* on the sleeping front.
Congrats on the little victory with the cleaning foxes

cagmaking room for more makes perfect sense to me

So the battle began at 5as couldn't sleep thinking bout it...
Tadas
(Quiet kitchen jobs)
Tidy cupboard under stairs
Sort freezer(been mean do this for a while and best done whilst zoolets not around or they may bagsy a stray lolly funders keepers)
Sort cubord under toaster-houses tins,cereal etc.its in such a pickle couldnt see what's in there anymore

Feed cats
Feed zoolets

Pop shop baking supply's for church event tomorrow

(Bathroom)
Wipe bath
Wipe sink
Wipe n clear window will
Sort drawers of zoolets ablutions products
Wash floor
Empty bin
Clean radiator and skirts
Clean windows

(Ds room)
Quick tidy under cabin bed(has curtain to hide yhr ness but not only covered floor,trickling over landing!!),stacking washing for dif bags,books to go away,toys back right boxes
Picked up discarded paper for recycling and gathered any rubbish left him and lil zoo to sort it as she his partner in crime/playmate guilty not always put things away

(Hall stair n landing)
Hoover carpet (dd2 hold hoover on stairs as weight gets me so out breath try do it),skirts
Clean banister(beyond disgusting)
Move box's of shoes,bags, general crap on floor and hoover.return things correct places,sifting out rubbish and things that need return to proper homes
Wash hall floor

(Living room)
Quick clear main pathway
Stack toys to be returned rooms/homes
Clear coffee table

Have snack and quick mn what I've done to admire and congratulate myself later

Ooh and 3rd load washings on,first fold put away,second on dryer.flagging dreadfully so must crack on.kitchen surfaces and some baling before lunch to do!!

Me again!!

(Continued)
Kitchen surfaces cleaned
Lemon drizzle cake made(with dd2)
Clean out fridge
Wash into dryer,more on
Blueberry muffins in oven

Time to have lunch

Cag and others - the deadline for the simplified paper tax return for lower earnings is Monday. It's very quick to fill in once you have all your figures. Did mine this week. I always faff about and put it off, and am always pleasantly surprised by how painless it is!

Am flat out with work at the moment, and DH has taken the boys out for the afternoon, so need to get back to it. Flying has gone by the wayside between that and half term!

Hi all, (a bit gingerly because of back) returning to Flying today! Can't say I am feeling wonderful and dd is definitely not quite right yet (even though we managed a trip to school to pick up books/hwk for half term).

Haven't achieved much yet (dd now on half term holiday for a week and a bit) except laundry and dog walk, and a bit of dog training, but hope to post ta da list later.

Good news is that the man from the bank he say "yes" so now more piles of accounting/paperwork to do yet another tight deadline. Although entire strategy has been planned and managed forensically by dh there is still an element of "gulp, now we have to make this entire project work. No going back." Scary stuff! But exciting!

Rather strangely, date of finalisation of sale has been brought forward and date when we take possession has moved back but all involves loads and loads of admin. The bureaucracy here is truly pheonomenal!

Enthusiastic waves to Toostressy! Hope you are having a lovely holiday!

qazxc Information concerning cj here.

Links to various varieties of cjs here not something I have investigated I must admit + printable reminders.

My control journal is a fat A4 file. It contains a list of daily, weekly, monthly, 3-monthly, bi-annual and annual tasks and routines (all adapted to suit this house), important addresses (plumber, vet etc) and has kind of morphed in to a tri-lingual instruction booklet for pet & house sitters for when we go away (instructions on central heating and how to look after individual pets etc). I must admit, I don't refer to it very often now because all the routines are so ingrained. But it's still a very useful tool to have around. It also contains lists of things such as "things I will do next year to make Christmas go more smoothly" etc etc. HTH! I'm old school but I would have thought everyone would keep this on the home computer now.

Hope you are feeling better and are having a lovely day with your friend Cag! Arf at HRC ! (Mine definitely qualifies!) Enjoy marathon game playing! (Well, decluttering might as well be enjoyable, no? )

Afreshstart I think mouth to mouth puking definitely wins the day ! Well done on very good list of things achieved. Your mention of clean sheets in Moses Basket brings back some very happy memories

Bloomin' 'eck Stillivinginazoo you have been Flying like a Trojan!! That's an amazing lot you have got done! Sorry to hear your dd2 is suffering Stillliving earache is the pits; hope she managed to sleep!

Foxes relieved to hear you had some sleep (although 4.5 hrs still isn't an awful lot!) and congrats on toy decluttering and everything having a place! I'd say that is a big victory not a small one!

Looks like you are making real progress too Fromwestoeast you've achieved loads! Well done re: bags for charity and for kicking dreaded shoe shopping in to touch! Not to mention ironing and baking for a friend! And the all important paper decluttering of course!

Encouraging wing flaps to everyone else!

x posts

Bloomin 'eck again Stillliving I barely had time to write that and you have produced another amazing list [reserves a blueberry muffin for when they're baked]

Hi Blue you sound v busy! Well done on not procrastinating over tax return though! Good luck with getting through all the work! Half term is always tricky when it comes to Flying.

Yes thinktank in birmingham, kids loved it, I felt sick from all the travelling, these ad's are slowly killing me off I swear. But we did have a record of earliest time for sleeping household ever with sleepover, followed by early bedtimes all round the following day.
Kids go back to school on Monday, mount washmore has been tackled so they all have clean uniforms.
I've done a sign up this morning, and I'm planning on chilling out for rest of the day owing to sickness.
Hope everyone is ok.

Waiting around for the midwife all morning. Yawn. Hate that they don't give an actual time.

Ta Da

Breakfast pots
Dry washing away
Bottles washed and sterilised
Living room hoovered
Dryer reloaded
Pets cleaned out
Shopping ordered

To Do

Dinner pots
Table and worktops
Hoover stairs
Bathroom bin
Washer on

The hoover is reassembled and back in action! So needed in a house with a messy toddler and two indoor cats.
Todays ta-das :
Clean up shiny sink after breakfast and lunch
Swish and swipe bathroom
Laundry washed and dried
Vacuuming living room, dining room, dd bedroom, landing, stairs and hall.
15 mins declutter in living room.
Some ironing.

Humph. I'm grumpy and tired and keep picking stupid fights with dh must try and be nice! He has come home early from work , dd is asleep and dh has taken ds upstairs to try and settle him to sleep but I can hear him grizzling so I can't relax anyway. Plus I've got the hump with dh for no real reason now and can't seem to cheer up. Maybe I'll go and say sorry and we can start again! I forgot how emotional sleepless nights make you.

SC glad you are all feeling a tiny bit better even if not fully recovered yet. And good news about the bank. Take it easy!

Fresh that winds me up too when they don't give you a time. Some of them ring when on their way but only give you about five minutes to prepare!

Ta das
Rubbish out
Laundry hung up and more on
Bedrooms room rescue
Living room room rescue
Handbag cleared out a bit

I'm not going to make myself more grumpy with a to do list! to do - cheer up?!

Still no sign of the mw. She's meant to be signing us off today too!

Ta Da

Breakfast pots
Dry washing away
Bottles washed and sterilised
Living room hoovered
Dryer reloaded
Pets cleaned out
Shopping ordered
Dinner pots washed
Table and worktops wiped

To do

Bathroom bin
Hoover stairs
Washer on

Ta Da

Breakfast pots
Dry washing away
Bottles washed and sterilised
Living room hoovered
Dryer reloaded
Pets cleaned out
Shopping ordered
Dinner pots washed
Table and worktops wiped
Washer on
Bathroom bin

To do

Hoover stairs

Tomorrow's baby-step no 29 for Sat 29th Oct is: here. "Anything you do today is better than it used to be" plus weekly pamper mission here.

Newcomers - here is the launch pad from which you can navigate the site:
www.flylady.net/c/lp.php .

Unusually, we have been in Zone 5 for the entire week this month: the sitting room/family room/den, 23-29 Oct inclusive here.

No mission because it is the weekend!

However, if you do zone work at weekends:
Declutter for 15 mins in the current zone!
Once decluttered, you can go on to 15 mins of detailed cleaning.

The daily focus for Saturday is family fun.

The habit for October is getting rid of paper clutter,
here: www.flylady.net/d/habits-of-the-month/october/.
(Scroll down for detailed explanation.)

The daily flight plan here: www.flylady.net/c/fp.php?tzm=-120 will update itself (hopefully) and will provide a quick summary of the above.

[htlsmile] [htlsmile] [htlsmile] Have a great spooky weekend everyone! [htlsmile] [htlsmile] [htlsmile]
***

Oh bugger, sorry, that shd have read ..........

Have a great spooky weekend everyone!

Really really impressed by how so many of you on here are Flying with babies, with young 'uns, when sleep-deprived, when ill! Bloody well done everybody!

Babblehag well done for tackling Mt Washmore/kids trip/sleepover while suffering from horrible nausea!

Afreshstart well done on a very respectable list of chores achieved! (Hope mw turned up eventually - surely they cd give you 3 hr time slot?)

Foxes Totally, totally understandable that you are feeling worn out and grumpy Well done on list achieved despite fatigue!

qazxc gosh, huge amount of hovering there + loads of chores done! Well done!

Waves to everyone else!

Ta da:
animals
carried laundry downstairs to basement (ouch)
triaged laundry
emptied and filled dw
dog walk 1
dog training 10 mins
shined kitchen sink
cleaned kitchen surfaces
2 loads washing done and hung up
2 loads more on
dining room table hot spots
tidying dining room/sitting room 15 mins
banking (which took a less time than I thought!)
greeted and paid dog walker (walk no.2)
made salmon fish cakes and t&t green beans
made speculoos biscuits with dd
2 long phone calls with sil and dsis1

Play room/tv room still in dreadful start as is boudoir. So annoying everything has descended in to chaos again. But it's a start!

G'night all!

Ooh speculoos biscuits! Yum.

Nice afternoon at friend's house but now sneezing with scratchy threat :( :(

Had a brief but successful decluttering session before bed - some games chucked and some put aside for charity (although will see if I can make a few quid from them first)

Oh no, hope sore throat doesn't develop in to full blown cold Cag

Frustratingly, I am wide awake having gone to bed early. Dog and I, having crept about tidying kitchen and doing more laundry, are now sharing cheese and biscuits and watching Jane Eyre... furry one loves a good period drama.

Amaaazing list Zoo!
And some other long lists on here too, Afreshstart, SC
Sorry if I missed others!
Went out visiting a friend yesterday so nice to get time out from working!
Got a laundry load on the line and ironed before going. Meant to vacuum the upstairs but that never happened.
Tackled one cupboard of sideboard in the evening. Cleared the baby puzzles which youngest DS has grown out of. They have gone upstairs. Some will go to a friend for her baby, other bits will go in the loft in a storage box for visiting DC. Threw out some tatty books. Also got tool box out and fixed the broken shelf in that cupboard. So now I have two shelves in there.
Hoping to get stuff done today. Half term is easier for me, but it's nearly over
Back to the madness next week

Lots of good decluttering yesterday - well done everyone!

Cag hope you're feeling better

SC cheese and biscuits and Jane Eyre sounds great but I'm guessing you would rather be asleep!

Better night with ds last night he slept 3.5 hours and then was up for a few hours but then slept another 2 hours. Ok it sounds crap but he hasn't slept more than an hour after 3am for about a week!

Has another small victory yesterday after the washing machine was broken for ages and everyone was ill for ages I have FINALLY caught up on the washing! I can close the basket again!

I'm up feeding ds but going to hand him straight to dh and have a lie in as dh work been cancelled today - hooray!

Happy weekend everyone!

In the end we made lemon drizzle,blueberry muffins,gingerbread loaf,banana oat muffins and dd2 made Victoria sandwich!!

Having a birthday in the house.lil zoo is 9today!!(feels thoroughly depressed my baby isn't a baby anymore as she covets the tablet dp chose for her.technology isn't my thing,so I not involved.fir me ho be long emotional day)

Short volunteers at community cafe today so I said I'd go in for an hour to help set up.I won't be missed here anyway. Must go get ready

Time slot given by the mw is 8-5. It's ridiculous. She did eventually turn up though. Little ds is now back at birth weight.

Ta Da

DC fed
Sink filled

To Do

Breakfast pots
Hoover stairs
Put away shopping when it arrives
Bottle wash and sterilise
Sort dcs swim bags

For now I am drinking tea and eating

Aw I love jane eyre, it was the first classic I read (we were studying the first 10 chapters in year 8 but I loved it so much I kept going)

Throat, nose and eyes feel thoroughly shitty :( I am long overdue my usual changing-of-seasons virus though. Just hope it's better by Monday as we are going to a new learning group which I think will be really great for my two (it's a group of just 6 kids at one of their houses, and the parents take turns to lead topics, they'll have scrapbooks etc).

Needless to say I will not be flying today. Unless you count eating my body weight in chocolate and carbs.

DD has that in common with you Cag , 'Jane Eyre' was the first classic she read and she is still obsessed with it!! Hope horrid virus is short-lived [hands over hot lemon and honey drink].

Afreshstartplease glad mw turned up eventually and baby ds progressing well!

Stillivinginazoo wow at all that delicious baking! Bet that is hugely appreciated! And incredibly good of you to do a volunteering stint on the same day as hosting a party. (Hope I am not speaking out of turn but I am sure you will be missed at home!!) Hope your dd has a lovely day!

Sympathies re: tablet.I felt the same when dh insisted on buying dd a lap-top for her 12th birthday. I didn't think she was mature enough and (without going in to details) I was proved right, despite us putting strict boundaries in place. It's been the source of constant friction between dd and me because I am the one policing it while dh is off travelling the world . Technology is a wonderful thing but I am yet to be convinced of its positive effects on teenage girls. DD is just about to get it back after a six week total technology ban (following a serious infringement) as she needs it for a school project and we'll see how it goes from here...there is a lot of trust lost between us over it though which needs to be re-established.

Foxes so happy for you that you can have a bit of a lie-in! Constant broken nights are hellish. That is bloody well done re: washing pile btw!

Lovely that you were able to have some time out with friend fromwestoeast. And yay to sideboard cupboard decluttering and mending of shelf! Sorry you are dreading rtn to work, hope you can get in a bit of r&r before then!

I am feeling a bit directionless today because we were supposed to be attending a friend's birthday brunch this morning and prepping madly for Halloween bash this evening but because of dd being ill, we are doing neither. House is still a tip (the effects of bad back) so I should be doing that of course... sigh... but without the impetus of friend's turning up, I am procrastinating horribly of course. Need to get bum in gear.

Hope everyone has as good a Saturday as possible!