Fledglings fly into December to party hard.

[HillsBesideTheSea]

Morning.

Tomorrow is December 1st which means roll call for the fledglings and shiny new thread. It might seem a bit clicky but it is because it is a long term thread, park your arse in the naughty corner for moral support, natter and various delicious goodies. Oh and smidge of housework too.

We follow the flylady system HOWEVER we adapt it to suit the circumstances of our lifes and sometimes we ignore the slightly more fluffy/bonkers babysteps --because we can and there ain't no one the boss of us

I have done bugger all today. Oh apart from solving the what the heck to get DD1 problem. So we are done for the Caglets now.

aaahh ! Apart from feeding and changing that darling baby! I hope!

Caglets ticked off list is a triumph. Wait till they get older and tell you they don't need anything.We bought shirts lasts year. Not going down that route again as only 1 in 3 kept it. Bought DD a dress which she may not like. It will look cute on her but not sure of reaction.

Socks are so boring. Football the only hobby for two. One also walking but we have done that to a death three years ago. Tried offering sailing as eldest used to be mad on it from 3- 8 years (with my dad) and if we had stayed living there probably would have been accomplished sailor now.It is in the blood. I don't want to pay for it if he doesn't go.Still thinking about it. He does have a home made hamper which I have nearly finished collecting for. The other two stopped theirs years ago. They get offers of tickets for big matches through a long term friend so not worth doing that as they can get brill seats. Hate just giving them money and nothing to open. DH and I joked that perhaps we should give them a beautifully wrapped box with nothing but a note in saying" Well you said there was nothing you wanted!"
Bought a goat one year cos one wanted a goat when he was little and I felt mean saying no.DH said he could have it if we got rid of pony.Mean, mean, mean he knew I would never part with her. Help! one week to go.

Right off to have a cup of tea and pamper my hands with lemongrass
scrub. Had a lovely afternoon crafting a present and watching show jumping. Some beautiful horses, what a hard course though. My friend was a great show jumper. I never had the nerve and I used to worry about forgetting the course, I did it once. Mind you her pony was brilliant you just pointed him at the fence. He also used to jump out of the field when he was bored. we used to get out of school to go and find him.

Well yes definitely has been feeding and changing and ohdearIcan'tmoveshe'sasleeping :o ♥️

I will have to do dinner at some point though and I have a feeling it'll be with her in the sling. Sigh.

Finding older ones tricky here too. DSCs are young adults and similarly don't need anything as they have earnings now and can buy stuff like games and DVDs and clothes that they want. One is getting currency for her trip next year but will choose a little something to open as well. It's going to be a rough Christmas for them though as their maternal grandmother has days, if that, left :(

Oh how sad for them.

My dad was given that news one November...three weeks. He rallied and lived until May he always believed in positive thinking and the Consultant said it was the only thing keeping him alive. He said to my mum in December "He should be dead." My mum used to be a nurse so I guess he felt he could voice that comment.Dad had cancer.57.

I hope she rallies too.At least until after Christmas.
What about something to attach to her case too I am sewing badges of places I have been to a strap for next time I travel saves picking up the wrong bag. Someone nearly walked off with mine I had to show the contents before they were convinced.

Right better get to Choir. Carol service.

Absolutely slightly hungover shattered after Xmas do last night. Have done no flying and am just waiting for bedtime now. Planning to admit defeat and hope to be organised like I hope every bloody day tomorrow.

I am always hoping stressy but never got anywhere yet really. I was wondering if anyone had any New Years resolutions in this vein?

Ah Bower 57 is so young I’m sorry :(

Managed to get away to cook dinner and put Miranda on the iPad. By the time I’d finished baby was awake and screaming. Sigh. I am loving the box sets section on iPlayer as I also need to watch series 2/3 of line of duty. I’m thinking of getting Netflix in new year, not least as I need to be up so much for night feeds! Anyone here use it?

I can’t believe it’s a week to go now.

Thank you for the present idea by the way! It’s a bit complicated with their DGM as she has actually been refusing care/food and been incredibly nasty to them (no dementia just what she is like) and actually now that she is so very very ill, as horrific as it is to say, I think they all feel it is time now. It’s just awful for them, I remember by the time my own Nan was getting towards the end she was ‘ready’ and sort of gave up, but that was really more that she was at peace with what was going to happen, had lived a full life etc IYSWIM. But this is very different.

Sorry for the vent and very unfestive chat, I just feel so bad for them, they have been so good to her but to have it all thrown back at them like this is so very painful.

Crikey you have all done bloomin' well everyone! Really impressive lists here! Congratulations!

I haven't done at all well today (apart from church + visit to expat shop for UK comestibles) and I don't have the excuse of a newborn baby or a hangover Like Bowerbird spent a lot of time watching Olympia this afternoon. Just don't have much energy and I need to be a bit more realistic about what I can achieve I think.

DD on the other hand is in over-drive! She always alternates between being totally hyper and utterly exhausted post exams. Today was a hyper day; I found her doing some BBC bite size GCSE biology revision "for fun" because having studied for hrs and hrs for weeks, she finds going cold turkey difficult. But she also met up with friends for a game of badminton and a crepe so that was good. Then she went out for a run with the dog after that.

Sorry to hear about your dscs grandmother Cag hard enough at any time of year but particularly hard this close to Christmas.

Sorry to see things still very difficult for your friend Zoo that must be so hard for her and her family. Congrats on a really incredible list! Sped read that as "lost spare donkeys"

Safe driving Hills!

Hope you can rest up a bit tonightCallmeCordelia after your w/e away! Ditto after your night out Toostressy!

A-may-zing list Afresh start as Craig R H would say!

And yours too Bowerbird5 you have incredible reserves of energy! at your friend's pony!

Waves to everyone I've missed!

Gosh yes that is young Bower.

Xpost Gosh 57 is very young indeed Bowerbird5 . That must have been very hard

That sounds like an incredibly difficult situation Cag

[Covers ears at mention of NY resolutions - I haven't managed to achieve 2016's yet!!]

for cag and bower
sc my phone did try to adjust to spare donkeys but i spotted and corrected just in time!!wish i had donkeys.spare or otherwise.ds is very horse mad.......

Just catching up. Hope your friend is ok zoo and Bower, that is young. My df had cancer and we nearly lost him on Christmas Eve last year. He rallied and made it until 22 January. It would have been his 81st birthday on Tuesday, the first without him. Took dm to Morrison’s today. She was given a voucher for a free bar of chocolate for her birthday. When df passed away, I change the points account to her name but didn’t think about the fact that they would have df’s birth date in the account. It was so sad but the cashier was being so jolly about this chocolate bar so we just smiled and thanked her. All these firsts are going to be hard and they are all so close together.

Everyone has been so productive for Christmas! I haven’t been able to do anything about the food given that we are dm’s. We will need to go out for a big shop soon!

Tadas from yesterday
Managed to work out the dog carrier (ddog wasn’t impressed!)
Drove to Canterbury (after going to bed early after my unusually organised Friday, I woke up at 2am and could not get back to sleep - was sooo tired!)
Repacked dd’s clothes in carrier bags as there was no room for a suitcase (how we are going to fit ds2 and dh’s suitcases plus Xmas presents in on the return journey I have no idea).
Tided and micro cleaned dd’s room
Emptied dd’s overflowing bins (to be far she has been ill with a nasty virus all week - I did leave her to vacuum)
Packed up the car
Drove to Portsmouth
Watched Strictly (love Joe!)

Hardly any of those are flying tadas though as those that are were for dd’s room so I guess they don’t count?

Tadas from today
Small food shop
Gave a dm and dd a lift to see my dniece in a swimming competiton (had to stay behind for ddog)
Dropped off and picked up ds1 and his dgf from the cinema
Loaded dishwasher and washed up rest
Put on and out a load of washing
Wrapped some presents!!! Finally !

Afresh, you said that dd didn’t have any single present over £40. I am now thinking I don’t spend that much on mine compared to other people. I usually spend £50 to £60 each. That’s ok, right ?

It's more than ds will get (approx 45 total incl stockings stuff) it suits my budget and I am not going into debt for christmas. If it feels right to you long then it is right. What other people do/give is their business as they know what is right for them and their budgets imho.

The Christmas holidays have officially begun for dd and I so I am ready to jump back onboard properly. For some strange reason I woke at 5 this morning so decided instead of aimlessly mumsnetting to get up.

Ta da so far:
Living room tidied
High chair cleaned
Dry washing folded
Washload hung out
Drying up
Washing up
Recycling bagged up
Kitchen cleaned

I need to make ds1 lunch for school and then I am taking dd, ds2 and dn for a walk this morning. I also need to pop and buy some stocking presents for ds1, do some wrapping and tackle some more ironing.

Cag we love netflix. In fact we now watch very little live TV.

57 is no age at all Bower. We lost my aunt to cancer at the same age and it was awful as she should have had so many more years.

longtime we do tend to go abit ott with christmas but then dont really buy toys etc other than christmas and birthdays. My eldest has had a new games console at £250, where as dd has lots of smaller plastic tat things. So for his one box she has a huge pile. Our christmas budget is 250-300 per dc. Although ds3 has not had that much. This is a reflection of my childhood and dp always says its too much but i cannot bloody help myself.

Dd currently stressing over santa coming into her bedroom to fill her stocking ....

Oh and i might not have spent the full budget on dd but she has outgrown a lot of the toys she has. Shes not really into playing with dolls and play food etc any more

Afresh, when I was very little I apparently said "I don't want that man in my bedroom!" and was quite scared about it.

Stockings were left downstairs after that, which is much more practical. I still remember inching the living room door open, fingers grasping for the light switch.

I never even gave DD the option, stockings go downstairs as far as she is concerned!

Cag, we have Netflix and love it. You can set up profiles, DD has one that only shows children's stuff. Cbeebies, Netflix and iplayer make up 90% of TV watched in this house.

To do
Unpack bags
Washing, lots of
Wash kitchen floor
Go to opticians with yet another pair of broken glasses
Change beds

Yes she has said she is scared. I said he doesnt go properly in anyway. We usually leave stockings on each bedroom door. It helps me get an extra half hour in bed! I will see how she feels on the night i think. Shes also fretting incase she cant get to sleep and so doesnt get any presents.

callme you have reminded me to put ds2s broken glasses in my coat pocket, thankyou

Ds3 stinks. Absoloutly stinks. Ive changed him once but keep checking him again the stench is so bad.

So far i have just been pottering, filled sink, changed ds, fed him and dd but im gonna crack on now

Just realised it's Monday. Home bleugh.

I need more

Right, sitting down for 5 mins before madness ensues here.

Links

Launch pad of all knowing here
Babystepping the 11 commandments
Missions normal here holiday missions here
Zone 4 www.flylady.net/d/zones/zone-4/
Kids fly here
daily focus www.flylady.net/d/daily-focus/daily-focus-monday/

Morning everybody! I'm a bit behind on the thread...

Ta das
Daily routine

To do
Change towels etc
Change our bed sheets
Polish mirrors
Swish and swipe bathroom
27 fling bedroom
Declutter in bedroom
Hoover
Mop
Dust
Empty bins

Think that's enough to be getting on with.

I'm trying extremely hard to be very laid back about all things Christmas! Repeat after me - its just another day!! (Need to listen carefully to my own advice)

I stupidly said I would go into school so going to have to go soon.Just couldn't face going in for 9am.Might make 10 if I hurry well 10.15am. Washed up last nights dishes cos I was late in after Carol service and didn't have my dinner until 10pm. Couldn't be arsed after that.

Yeah I struggled in my 56-57 th year because I was being investigated for bowel cancer, had a nodule in my throat removed and had a dodgy smear so had a scrape...there and then! I was back and forth to the hospital and I never told a soul. DH knew after son had to pick me up one day as treatment was rough and blood pressure plummeted and oxygen low so he had to come back. Thankfully it was all clear.60 now.
Can't believe it! I can appreciate all the trials and tribulations that you young mums are going through though as i haven't forgotten how hard it is.I had no help from grandparents as two died by time eldest was 8 and one disabled one a distance away then abroad.
Well I better get going. Might come back with areal tree as closer than going 50 miles for one i wanted. Happy flying going to do mine when I come back.Only have two more cards to do for church oops!

Good morning everyone! Argh one week today!!!!!!

A bit hectic here! Tarted up for office Christmas lunch (well as tarted up as I get nowadays ; think pregnant looking hippo in a dress with bad hair) then off to end-of-term Mass at dd's school.

Then we are meant to be heading off on maneouvres but shall we say one member of the family at least [cough] is not remotely ready!

Thank you for that reassuring mantra Foxes it is exactly what I needed to hear today!

Ta for linkies Hills!

Afreshstart could your ds3 be going down with something? Or have something stuck up his nose or in his ear? Or does he have cradle cap or similar? Or are you pregnant?

Congrats on your early start Mercury!

Think you are very saintly to go in to school today Bowerbird5

I'm sorry it is going to be such a hard Christmas for you and your lovely ma and your family this year Longtime

Can recommend Netflix Cag I am currently engrossed in the Crown and can't stop talking like the Queen ...

We have stocking downstairs too! (DD too old not to detect oldies creeping about in her bedroom and she has always woken at the slightest thing anyway.)

As for spending on presents; it varies from year to year depending on circs. DD had very expensive phone for her birthday during summer and had new badminton racket/bag/trainers for St Nicolas so will just be getting a few clothes for Christmas and she is cool with that.

Must dash! Big wing flaps to all fledglings including Honu and everyone I've missed! Have a productive afternoon everyone!

Forgot to wave to CallmeCordelia and Zoo too and anyone else I have missed!

sc it was definitely coming from his arse! Dd commented on it to so not my senses either! Hes now been asleep over three hours so could be coming down with something but hopefully not!