Festive Fledglings Flap Frantically Towards A Calm, Clutter-free Christmas!

[SingToTheSky]

OK so clutter-free is a bit ambitious. But anyway, all welcome to join us for a jolly holiday thread, in which we very loosely follow (or at least half-heartedly mention now and then) the FlyLady system of housekeeping.

I’ll be posting links and reminding us all of various tasks up until Christmas Eve, for those who want to follow the system - and if it’s like previous years there will also be some specific extra missions to help us prepare our homes for Christmas. However, we really are just a bunch of frazzled Mumsnetters who will be very happy to welcome you along for chat whether you follow the system or not! We discuss housework, sure, but a whole lot of other stuff too.

We will also continue with the Keep Calm Corner, in which you’ll find various diverting questions, memes etc.

And finally a huge thank you to Foxes who did a fab job of running the thread for the first time in November! 💐

Zoo what a fright hope you feel ok now. Great list I don’t know where you find the energy.

Ed love the baubles and unusual ones too.
Dancing has yours improved any. DH stuck the meat in to reheat. Mine was dried up but didn’t say anything he had ruined it. Put his own dinner out and left mine in to ruin. I made a lovely bread pudding and he didn’t even say it was nice. Said nothing so I had seconds and I washed his plate up. We ate it in front of the tv he didn’t say anything tonight after dinner. If I didn’t like this house so much I would leave.
Hills I hope you have a good night.
MC lovely baby snuggles.
Sing I hope you don’t get any worse.

Ta Das
Kitchen.
Washed Crystal glasses. Dried and put away.
Wiped inside the dresser cabinets.
Put back all the glasses.
Washed the floor

Cut out pieces for display.
Bed made

Insomnia is driving me nuts!so far 2hrs sleep...
Kcc we has a bauble when I was little that looked like been cut in half and 3wose men were in it.i loved it so much.
Very sentimental of zoolets Xmas creations.i have a couple that were done when they were small

🍒👋 to the night team!
Zoo 2 hour sleep is brutal. How are you distracting yourself in these waking hours?

Bower I love bread pudding! One of my favourites. Next time no lovely puddings for sulky DH if no appreciation shown.

Sing how are you and your DS feeling? Hopefully tests will turn around quickly.

Joining you zoo and MC , ds needed his inhaler

Tinselette I hope your DS is feeling less wheezy.

i am hoping all three of you have made it back to bed. I am apparently up for the day. Anxiety dream and too much coffee yesterday. But going to make the most of it and get stuff done whilst everyone else is still asleep. It will be blissful and then probably take a nap later.

I leave some extra strong brew in th the naughty corner for thse in need.

This is another good video...

hills once awake mind whirls over what I need get done/mustn't forget.some my most productive stuff happens when only me and furry overlords are awake
Tinselette hope D's ok
MC read MN boards,check news and weather,play alphabetty game

Need pop town today,not sure I can face it!

DS has an autism workshop this morning at 10 online

Bbl

Tada
Cats fed
Wash on
Lav harpicked
Sorted thru bag Xmas bits and wrote list who has what
List started what still need get(mostly online)
Check time shops open
Military list of potential shop trip
Time to wake the girls....(D's gets bit longer as he compliant pretty quick,they need longer to find their "polite sides")

Not sure I have a polite side before 11am tbh, and then that is a bit of a push if i am not in work.

I am battling the people. I have one who insists on helping. But their help involves rearranging stuff. This morning it has been discovered that the milk free pastry brushed and measuring spoons have been put away with the milk ones. Thus contaminating them, delaying several things that I need to do and leaving me to curse the person. Issue is it all used to live the 10 years ago. It is a can't remember the current times thing. And whilst i would love in my over tired grumpy state to go bat shit, am going to have to tread carefully as is a balance of enabling independence whilst ensuring safety of others. Cross contamination is a massive issue here and we have protocols for washing up, and protocols for how to handle stuffs like this. Doesn definitely put and Offs into the morning though.

I totally get what you mean about productive time without people. I am making the most of people not being up and annoying me getting in the way and making noise The peace is lovely, even if the to do list is not. I reckon i have about 2-3hrs of ironing up next. but going to get dressed first. PJ productivity is a thing and I don't care what the fat fairy says about it! so nerh

Ta da
Sort the abandoned shopping and put away where goes with shelf rotation
fold the bags the shopping was delivered in
was up the big stock pot
get cottage pie bottom half
top with the extra mash from yesterday sausage and mash and stuck in fridge
Look at fridge and pull out all the things that have died
Add clean fridge to to do list
stick load put on before bed into dryer
put load into washing machine
move the boxes of brc that are not going to get dealt with before christmas into the garage
pack away paint sheet from the skate board painting
wash up the pans
folding
ignoring of sock pile of doom
Top up the pepper plants with some food and soil
wash under tap to get rid of white fly
transfer tomatoes into bowl and wash the brain jelly mould they have been hanging out in for a while
get 5 lots of bread proofing
Prep water for prepping potatoes for grab and go meals
Put 2nd load into washer
hand up first load of washing for the day
ironing
3rd load washing into machine
2nd load into dryer
Sort spice/herb/condiment trolley

People are now up. And they have already irritated me. I think today is going to be one of those days where people just breathe wrong

And apparently the door bell is definitely broken. FFS!!

Great list hills I know what you mean about people. They distract your mind from what you intended
Zoo I know what you mean DD was like that. Sorry your not sleeping. I sleep a lot on these tabs but don’t want to get up. I went to bed about 12 didn’t sleep till about 1am. It is cosy in here and DH is downstairs😌😝
MC you should make one. The reason I did was because himself went shopping when I went to church he piled it all in boot and squashed the bread. Waste not want not. I put cinnamon and nutmeg on top. There is some for today😚 I had forgotten how delicious it was.
Tinselette how is you DS ?
Sing how are you and DS feeling this morning?

Morning, DS seems a lot better thanks, hopefully the test will arrive today. I feel a bit grotty. I couldn’t order a test - I read it properly this time and it says I can’t have one as our household already recently ordered one. So even though I now have symptoms I’m not allowed. I think I just have to assume I am positive if DS is?!

Or they just have to do that thing where you need to be working because being helpful init
Or they forgot to eat and need to come eat whilst you are trying to cook tea...
Or they are supposed to be working/online schooling and they are bored and thus making a drink almighty mess in the kitchen
Or you are trying to clean the lounge and they keep walking through.....

Yeah not feeling peopley this morning. One has been warned to stay out the way, one has been roped in to help, the other has had fresh bread thrown at their head and i am trying to convince to be up for online school ffs get a grip and just bloody suck it up kiddo

Otoh Christmas has appeared in the lounge. And a touch of class tweaked. there are some things that are really past their best but because they have always gone up they need to go up. Just negotiated another location.

Just taking a bread for 2nd breakfast and probably the 4th coffee before i need to get cracking with the next round of things. sitting down? what is that.

Bower we had to order a Covid test for him. He was up needing inhaler in the night and has a continuous cough plus runny nose. Hope you are feeling better sing 🤜

He had the test at walk in centre so waiting for results. He looks pale. Hope everyone else okay. Slow start today I think. Will fill in holes in wood prior to painting.

Glad ds is feeling better Sing

The test thing makes no sense if you have symptoms. I thought it was if you didnt have symptoms you couldnt have a test

Hope your poorly one is ok Tinslette

Thanks Hills and everyone else. He's had a Cadbury's chocolate mini roll and cup of decaf tea which has lifted his mood.

Also ta da

Sort out what remaining Christmas decorations are being put up.
evict boxes from the lounge
Warn the people to not breathe near me and to stay out the way
wake teen for online school
Watch with cynicism in the fact that the UK is going against most other countries for Christmas with a new covid variant and relaxing rules. Makes plans for massive lock down in January.
5 lots of bread cooked in various guises
2 more batches on bread dough prepped to rise
Make shopping list for later
put away some ironing
more folding
Sort out method of payment on an invoice
Sort some financial paperwork
Sort some post for hitting the post office later
sort stuffs for a bank run in same go
another load of washing in machine
another in dryer

right gotta make some more phone calls and see if i have trousers that are dry enough to wear out. Not sure that shorts are a wise idea atm. I mean it doesn't bother me but people are soooo judgy Nice and warm out there!

🎄❄️🎁 Tuesday 15th December 🎁❄️🎄

Zone - 3 - bathroom (and one other room which I forgot about)

Daily Focus - planning (last minute Christmas planning? Does it count as last minute yet?)

Today’s Mission - sort your laundry area as the other room

✈️ FLIGHT PLAN ✈️

🎄❄️🎁 The Keep Calm Corner Advent Calendar 🎁❄️🎄

This absolute classic song won’t be new to anyone, but I had to share it as it evokes a funny nativity play memory. I don’t have many of those since the Caglets didn’t do much school! But this song always reminds me of a little boy standing next to DS when they were all singing along to this. He stayed silent throughout except every time it went “oh my lord” which, each time, he positively belted out and drowned out the others 😂

If you have any funny or sweet nativity memories do share ❤️

Finally, bonus fact of the day that has nothing to do with Christmas - my mum told me today that to hurkle durkle means, in old Scottish dialect, to lounge in bed after you should be getting up. I feel this is necessary information due to our December habit of pampering! 😜

🎅🏻🎅🏻🎅🏻🎅🏻🎅🏻🎅🏻🎅🏻🎅🏻🎅🏻🎅🏻

Indeed hills it’s a bit weird. It made a big point of NOT ordering tests for extra family members if they didn’t have symptoms. And I didn’t at that point!

Hope DS feels better soon tinsel

Ooh think I may have to hurkle durkle (autocorrect does not like that!) tomorrow morning. My DGF was Scottish and had lots of good phrases but he never told me that one. That’s weird about the tests Sing. My DSis ordered herself one the day after ordering one for DN and had no problem. However that was a few months ago. I suppose it’s matterless now, as if DS is positive it’s 10 days isolation for the rest of you whether you’re positive or just a contact I think. I would have thought they’d want accurate numbers though.

Hills you’re a machine this morning!

Extra for the last night’s night time crew.

Ta da:
🎁 me and DD dressed, s&s, beds made, DW emptied, last night’s laundry hung up.
🎁 DD deposited at nursery
🎁 shopping completed. Got everything on list so Christmas gifts are complete and we now should only need a top up shop plus veg for Xmas lunch. Awards self for staying in budget.
🎁 cuppa and crumpets for breakfast
🎁 shopping away and fridge wiped
🎁 paintwork in downstairs loo cleaned with sugar soap. I mentioned doing the walls weeks ago but never went back and did the boxing in or the door.
🎁 started wrapping gifts after yelling at Alexa to play me some festive cheer
🎁 stopped to MN and have a cuppa and mince pie. I recommend the salted caramel ones from aldi. Yum.

To do:
🎄 finish wrapping
🎄 call mobile phone company re contract
🎄 write some cards
🎄 wash hair just before leaving for hair appt later this afternoon.

Right. Back to it 👋

Yes and really my data is more “important” than his - since lockdown ended I’ve done a lot more like visited a pub for a meal, been to the shops etc so all that track and trace info will be missing?! I’ll keep checking anyway as I still have a few days (my symptoms only started yesterday).

DS has just done his test. It’s now a 30min walk to the nearest priority post box so DH will have to go in a mask.

Ugh some ill feeling developing between DSCs and DSS’ GF over Xmas bubbles. I hate that it’s causing tension! We won’t be remotely offended if we don’t make the list (it’d be sad but it’s just one Xmas of many better ones in future) but I don’t think that makes a difference really as he still wants to see us all. :(

I’m not actually sure if that data would be relevant anyway though as come to think of it I’d been home since Saturday afternoon 🤔 not sure how long it’s contagious for before symptoms... oh well. Hopefully we will get DS’ result ASAP.

Batteries in the thermometer seem to have run out 🙄 but I don’t feel hot anymore anyway just a bit groggy and some of us feel a bit sick/tummy crampy 🙄

I should really see what work needs finishing for the end of term 🤦🏽‍♀️