It's February - Fledglings are Flying (let's face it there's not much else to do).

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Here we are on the February 2021 Flylady thread - this time last year we were just starting to realise that the world was going to change in a big, big way. The Fledgling threads have pulled us all together and been a great source of comfort and distraction from it all.

This is a friendly housekeeping thread based (loosely... Extremely loosely sometimes 😂) on Flylady's housekeeping system . Welcome one and all, lurkers and long-time posters alike. Join in, hang out, but above all remember you are not behind, just jump in where you are.

The beauty of Flylady is that you don't have to flatten yourself trying to get your house clean to begin the routine upkeep; the first - and only - thing she asks you to do is to shine your kitchen sink. Routines - morning, afternoon and evening - are built gradually through her Baby Steps. To those, you add a Daily Focus and a weekly area to concentrate cleaning on. By the end of a month, your whole house will have had some attention. If you miss a bit, never mind, it'll come round next month!

For this month, I'll be posting daily links to the Launch Pad on the Flylady site so you can follow the daily focus and cleaning missions. You can sign up to receive emails from Flylady, but we suggest you don't - she sends masses, which will clog up your inbox and drive you insane into the bargain.

Because this thread has been running a while, there are some acronyms we use to make life easier
S&S - swish and swipe, round the bathroom to keep it acceptable daily
LOL - load of laundry. No, we don't find washing that funny!
Ned - born of a typo, a mythical being who assists with laundry mountains
The pointy stick ----> to motivate people
PO3 - Power of 3, if you can only face a few tasks. People often find groups of 3 tasks stack up over a day!
The Naughty Corner - where we head when it's all Too Much. Usually stocked with fresh coffee, fluffy throws, delicious snacks and the opportunity to sit quietly with friends or build a blanket fort and sulk in it if you need to.

During the Pandemic, we have also been using the KCC or Keep Calm Corner, invented by long-time poster / thread leader SC. This is a regular dose of memes, questions for discussion, random trivia etc to distract us from the rest of the world. All contributions welcome!

Remember - No Fledgling Left Behind!

sing i think a C is now a 4 or low 5

That’s cool then. Her targets were all 4s for now, I’m really not sure if that’s a blanket thing due to the sets she’s in (they put her in second lowest for everything when she started in the December of y8, so 4ish terms ago)

I guess they don’t have as much data for her either as she was home ed before this.

I think for the current year 7 and 8s (i have both) its really hard for them to assess and set targets due to covid. My year 7 has been set quite low targets when he is MUCH more capable.

Tada
Fed cats
Wash on
Did best not to LMS over "discoveries'
Wake and make D's brekkie
Stick up valentine hearts to zoolets wardrobes
Pop shops
Wipe shop
Give D's a yogurt
Living room
Clean windows
Wipe sills
Quick tidy of TV unit
Wipe mantlepiece/around fire
Quick wipe of floor
Kitchen
Quick wipe of surfaces
Wipe toaster
Wipe kettle
Wipe cupboard fronts
Wipe tumble drier and wash machine
Clean mini oven
Wipe hob

Bathroom
Clean windows and mirror
Disinfect sill
Clean all tiling
S+s
Sweep up stray litter
Littertrays

Sort out some Amazon stuff that's been quarantining

Make choc chip banana muffins

Now having few minutes rest and applying a hot muffin to my face before I start making lunches

To do
Bit of work in my room
Menu planning/recipe sorting

Yeah that’s true. So little contact with teachers now, it’s difficult all round! I’m really pleased that last week her English teacher started doing short live lessons to introduce the work.

I feel so out of touch with the system now, it’s changed so much since I was at school, and I actually left school in year 10 due to a breakdown and only went back to take a few exams (enough to get into A levels at college).

Still not really sure what to do with DS (year 7). It’s hard to access science teaching out of school and that’s his strong point, but his communication is such a struggle that although he could probably learn the info for say a chemistry GCSE now there’s no way he could actually put that on paper. There’s a college that he can go to part time at 14 though to do core subjects and a vocational course but TBH none of the vocational stuff interests him anyway! He is adamant he’s not returning to school which TBF I think is the right choice for him.

We might have to seriously consider online school just for science TBH. A tutor would be better but clearly that can’t happen face to face anyway! In the meantime there are some one-off online classes he’s interested in so that might be a good start. He’s taken quite well to zoom for scouts and tap dancing etc.

Gaaaah. Teens and preteens and exams and pressure and aaaaargh

The grades are an interesting thing. When I was teaching I remember a yr 7 kid being in teens because they had got 5s and 6s in yr 6 but was getting only 3s and 4s in yr 7. A lot of people are not aware that the 2 scales are completely different and that they are not comparable. The schools often issue 2 grade the predicted grade and the target grade. The target grade being the grade that is thought that they will achieve end of yr 11 when sitting their GCSEs whilst the predicted grade (at least in ds' school) being the grade they would get if they sat it today. Ds' school used to say if they were on target to get the target grade or if they were needing to put in extra work on the way.

ds has been told to aim for minimum of 5 as it is a high C. A 9 is the equivalent of a E at AS level in old money. His school demands 6 or 7 in the subject that they are wanting to do at A level.

It has been snowing for 2 days. NOTHING is sticking. So it is just cold and windy.
My sleep pattern is all over the place I am falling asleep at 4am ish and waking up at btwn 12 and 3 pm. I need to sort this mess out.

Step 1. get up - make coffee, eat breakfast
step 2. have a bath
step 3. Geography sheets
step 4. figure out what is for tea
step 5. figure some stuff out

get up and got has got up and went.

I didn’t realise you used to teach hills! Thank you for info.

How are things going with DS and the big future talk?

DD1 is home and is working on some secret finding thing from a cartoon with DS. No it’s not schoolwork but atm I’m just happy seeing them do something together.

I’ve heated a tin of soup from the stash for a late lunch as I forgot again! I did reheat pasta for Cagletini though.

Haven’t dared use the DW yet 😂

Ha, yes, I remember S2 being a little concerned about his numbers in Y7 compared to Y6. (Fortunately I am excellent at discreetly reading upside-down so was able to report that he was in - erm - a very solid position in the class!)

I suppose that's one advantage of the new primary not-levels: they get numbers normalised around 100 now (well, not now, but you know what I mean ) so obviously nothing to do with NC levels or GCSE grades.

oh yes, the lists...

YesTaDa
changed our sheets and made bed
put whites wash on
thanks to someone else's searching, found evidence that the baptism of Mary Charlotte Maria is definitely three people, and added Maria's marriage (under a spelling error too great for Ancestry's standard algorithm to cope with) husband and children to the tree. Yes, Maria had a sister called Mary (both surviving to adulthood). I was already used to Elizabeth and Eliza, but this one I've not seen before.
conclusively lost the game of Mah-Jongg.

TaDaToDay
drank tea before it got cold
made a start on last night's washing up
got reminded about committee meeting (just as I'd run a second bowl of water) so did that instead of exercise class which at least my knees are pleased about
circulated some more papers for tonight's PCC meeting
made mental note that I really must do some sorting of emails...
made lunch
cup of tea, made shopping list
put wash on
emptied compost bucket
decided weather wasn't going to improve and grabbed a not-quite-precipitating moment to walk to Tesco
put recycling bin out

ToDo
stop at 3, eat orange and put on coffee, make a start on curry so it's cooking by 4 (last time the beef was a little bit tough still)
put dough on for naan
hang washing
make sure I know whose PCC membership is expiring this year
set up document for minutes
roll naans, cook rice, cook naans, dish up, make tea
PCC meeting

I only taught long enough to establish my hatred of the English education system Sing That teacher training still haunts me though still fucking finding my notes from that time in the randomest places That one encounter with the people above Ofsted was enough. To be a teacher you need to be able to survive bureaucracy, crowd control and ever moving targets without going insane or opening your mouth to fight the system. It was not for me.

I am tired and grumpy and needing to get away from this hell hole for a while. but it is snowing enough here that the hill roads will be dangerous. But dear god there are so many fucking people out and about that it isn't safe out there to walk... I live in an area of entitled arses. Fuck off with your meet ups to walk and your kids playing together, Also fuck off with you kids meeting at the local supermarket to hang out.

I considered a teaching career too (that’s why most of my OU modules were in maths) but became disillusioned as well as ill before that point. I totally admire people who can do it, but tutoring one on one is probably as near as I’ll ever get!

I just got back from a walk in the snow. I felt less cold than I did waiting at the bus stop the other day (pre snow) and it’s made me a bit more confident about going out in it as I don’t feel achy now (will have a hot shower in a sec though). I was getting a bit restless and decided to just try it, definitely helped.

Hey nesto 😂 love it

The things you learn on this thread🙇🏼‍♀️

Zoo how’s Scout-cat?
Sing I hope you are going to put it on tonight.
Waders fancy that🤷🏼‍♀️ Women knowing about men’s things? Whatever next🤣

So I have been fairly busy once I got going.

Ta da
Cleaned basin and loo, need to do shower.

Kitchen- wiped over cupboards.
Cleared out baking draw.
Wiped each section.
Sort and wash some, return.

Worktop. Remove everything then wipe. Spray with polish rub in then buff up.

Remove everything on other worktop, spray, clean and polish. Wipe all canisters and put back.

Went to shut hens in and they all came back out to see me so I went and got them some dried worms. They go mad for them.

Gammon, sweet potato, carrots and peas.
Mincemeat and apple pastry thing.very rustic.

Ooh. Dishwashers sound weird. :o Or this one does anyway. So exciting. We’ve put a half load in. Took a while to sort the salt, water softening etc and figure out how the heck to change all the functions etc. We felt A Bit Dim. But it’s on now. Yay!

I have just put mine on so came to see if you had filled it Sing Yeah the information is hard to comprehend but you end up only using one or two cycles anyway. They can be noisy with the new kitchen they integrated ours and you rarely hear it compared to the other one.

Dishes on DH washed the mugs x2 and bowls x2. We had pudding after I loaded it.

:o we aim to please. I’ve not checked since it finished - barely left the sofa 😳 cagletini fell asleep on me, I know I should move her but she’s so warm and snuggly.

I’ve been looking online at sensory stuff for DS (so much of it is so expensive, I’m trying to really think about what is needed for him and what might make a useful but achievable routine) and have also done the totally urgent task of emailing Gamewright for rule clarification on a game I don’t actually own yet (I have the app, but the rule appears different on there). I am stunningly efficient today, clearly.

Right, must go and do my decluttering challenge for the day.

I am done with the snow now, That you can take all of it! Ventured out for a trot around neighbourhood today, haven't been out of the house in a week. Hills I echo your sentiment, our local park was heaving with people! Not going back there any time soon.
Sing Congratulations on losing your DW virginity 😁 What do you think of it? Did it meet your expectations?
Waders glad to hear your heating is back on.

Ta das:
💥Played with aquariums
💥Watered plants
💥Made dinner
💥Cleaning cycle on DW, inspired by all this DW talk
💥Rubbish out to the bins
💥Kitchen surfaces cleaned, and cleaned kitchen stove top and extractor fan as per mission.

Had a bit of a slump in the afternoon where I just vegged in front of TV for few hours. Need to be a bit more 'get up and go', I am trying to cut down on how long telly is on for, even as a background.
Right, bed time. Whoop! 🍒👋

Well mc I did just go and gaze lovingly at the crockery thinking I couldn’t believe it was so clean. DD1 saw my face and reported to DH “mum loves the dishwasher more than us” 😂

I don’t. Yet.

Question though - just how careful are you meant to be when scraping food off before you fill it? Like the odd bit of rice/cereal etc? I was perhaps Overly Paranoid this first time.

Did my challenges - cleaned a bathroom shelf and toiletries tub (dear lord it was grim in there, how can items that make you clean make a tub so dirty?), emptied cleaned and refilled the tub of polydron, and threw some random stuff away. Then did my weights routine. Just need to draw (today’s close up was half a footprint in the snow).

Warning - always check your dishwasher for random animals before switching it on

Try and scrape off all the solids and cats Sing it's far worse picking them out of the filter in future. No rinsing needed though, the manual for ours actually advises against this because it has sensors that think the stuff is clean if you have rinsed it and then does minimal cleaning.

😂 I shall look out for erroneous animals. It would be remarkable given our lack of pets. Maybe in summer when we leave the back door open 🤔😂

I do remember having to clean the filter (we had a DW growing up) and euwww so you’re right, scraping is worth it!

Done my drawing. Just trying to get the biggest Caglet to go to bed 🙄

When we bought this house we inherited the Bosch dishwasher, still in good nick, from the previous owners of the house. Except they didn't realise that you needed to clean the filter 🤮😫. I'll never forget removing it for the first time.

Oh good lord hope how long had they had it?! Surely after a while it would’ve barely cleaned anything 🤢 how often are you meant to clean the filter? I want to put reminders for all these things (it has warning lights for salt and rinse aid). And a regular day for maintenance washes and such. I think the drawer of the washing machine needs a more regular clean. Ick.

It was seven years old when we moved in. It was clogged with old grease and God knows what. The rest of the house was fine - I just think they didn't have a dishwasher before.