Following Flylady into September - Fledglings starting a new term

[EspeciallyDivided]

Welcome to the September Flylady Thread where we follow the Flylady routines for running our homes and lives. Links to the relevant parts of the Flylady site are posted each morning (most of the time - see naughty corner below). The Fledgling threads are long running, some have been posting for years some are new, all are welcome. Just jump in and ask if you don’t understand anything. The chat is an important part of the thread too, housework is not the be all and end all, we like to pass the time amongst friends while we get our houses in order.

This is not a strict thread but a gentle way of following the guidelines on the Flylady website without having to sign up the emails, which can become a bit overwhelming. Do as much or as litle as you can, there is no judgement here.

If you are new to the system start with the baby steps. These are designed to get you into a routine so you know longer think about doing the chores they are just habit. Set time, set day - do the thing. We do recognise that this is not a good system for quick decluttering and many of us in the past have combined this system with other systems for getting the heavy duty sorting out and cleaning out done. We don't judge.

Babysteps and household focus zones start again on the 1st of every month hence a new thread at the start of each month to keep things orderly. That is one of the great things about Flylady, you can jump in whenever because everything comes back round again soon. You are never behind.

Lastly we have a naughty corner - if you are struggling in any way this is a spot to join in the chat snuggled into comfy cushions with some nice drinks and nibbles until you feel ready to Fly again. So even if you have not lifted a finger around the house you can stay and chat. The thread leader may be found there from time to time putting the kettle on and plumping up the cushions.

Welcome to September.

This link www.flylady.net/c/lp.php is the Flylady launchpad. All the different parts of the system can be found here.

This is the Flighplan - the do do list which updates daily www.flylady.net/c/fp.php?tzm=-60

Babysteps are here www.flylady.net/d/getting-started/31-beginner-babysteps/

Thanks, contact is ok now (was very scary at the time as they had a seizure). DD1 just being checked over now but all clear for her thankfully.

Can’t believe it’s term time tomorrow!

I'm glad DD is all clear Perry and good to hear that her friend is doing okay. A seizure would be very scary indeed!

@BloomingHazel what took you to Idaho?
I've just downloaded the app and I re the Weekly Home Blessings (which makes me want to be sick). Is that a list for the whole week or each day?

Sorry it's obviously for the whole week but when they say 'dust' is that the whole house or just the special zone?

Erm, it’s actually all meant to be done in one hour. This is, in fact, impossible. Unless you live in a bedsit or studio flat. I could just about manage it without changing any sheets but it would still be very slapdash.

The whole house in one hour that is

I interpret it as run the vacuum cleaner round the middles of floors downstairs and up, flick a fluffy duster along the worst bits, empty waste paper baskets and give the bathroom mirror a quick wipe.

Hang on I've just dropped to the floor in shock

Zoo the shirt is actually a fleece lined plastic coat/jacket. I'm size 10, bought a size 6 and you could still fit two of me in there. So I unpicked it, cut it to fit and restitched it. Looking at the pic, the left side is how it arrived, the right side is what I changed it to. So you can see the difference. I've finished the whole thing now both sides.

Thanks for the self tanner explanation Hazel I'm even more scared of getting it wrong now! I hate to be wasteful but I think it's going in the bin, I only wanted sunblock, that'll teach me not to read the packet properly. It wasn't cheap either.

Ta-da's:

😈 lovely healthy meals: salmon with rice and salad for dinner. Feta cheese wraps with salad for tea.
😈 home blessings to start the next week clean and tidy
😈 faffing around with a new SIM card
😈 tidied airing cupboard
😈stain removal on a dress

Next installment of my book: the lady with amnesia worked as a stripper after the war, lied to her fiancé about her job and he found out when he saw the show! There's a film about the theatre I'll try to find it

The film is called Mrs Henderson Presents

Pompoms I see home blessings as meant to be a quick whiz round of the worst bits. If you can do it without DC under your feet or interrupting you, if you're fit and healthy, with a system/routine then it's surprising what you can get done in an hour. Problem is a lot of us aren't fit and healthy, there's constant interruptions and we're doing FlyLady because we've descended into chaos and have no routine! I consider it something to aim for, not something I've failed at if I don't achieve it in an hour.

@DitzyBluebells why is it called Home Blessings??? 🤮

<picks up pompoms and pours her a stiff drink>

I do sometimes manage to do my version of the home bleurgh in about an hour, but:

• I do each bit speedily against a 5/10 minute timer
• I can only do it within an hour if I’ve been doing it regularly. Miss a few weeks and it takes longer as more muck has built up
• everywhere has to be tidy before you start
• I need everyone out of the house
• It is not a deep clean, it’s hoovering in the middle, dusting the main surfaces
• Ignore any other jobs you notice while you’re busy
• changing the bedding is not included. Flylady is living in cuckoo land - we have a king size with 2 quilts and DD1 has an awkward bunk bed. No way it’s getting done in 10 minutes.

Basically mine is 5 minutes dusting, then hoovering and mopping, downstairs, followed by uostairs 5 mins dust, 5 mins hoover and 10 mins in the bathroom, finishing with emptying upstairs bins. I do the mirrors in with the zone cleaning unless they are obviously sticky.

Impressive work on the shirt Ditzy you clever thing you.

Enjoy your long weekend Hazel. I want a mojito!

Hope DD is ok Perry.

Glad you’ve had a chance to do something in your own room instead of the Zoolets Zoo, you deserve somewhere nice too!

Good luck at catching up with the studying Hills.

YesTaDas:
✅lots of LOLs - baskets almost empty 😱
✅ started home bleurgh
✅ sacked it off after doing the living room and we went to the fair instead

TaDas:
✅ cleared the ironing pile, plus ironed all uniform ready for Tuesday
✅ stuck name stickers into new uniform
✅ finished home bleurgh
✅ hoovered stairs
✅ <drum roll> wiped down front door
✅ cleared fly graveyard from utility window sill, and wiped down WM, TD, cupboard fronts, back door and door into garage
✅ meal planning, shopping list
✅ did shopping and DLMS with DD1, who was determined she was coming with me and wanted everything in the shop
✅ delegated putting shopping away to DH
✅ shined sink

Pompoms I don't know. I've only been doing FlyLady (badly) for a few months. I quite like "home blessings" though! Makes me think something like if I'm kind to my home (by making it clean and tidy), my home will be kind to me (by being easy and pleasant to be in). But I think I'm alone in that, on this thread anyway. I can't bring myself to call FlyLady the FatFairy either. A while ago I got fed up with the sound of myself moaning so decided to try to use more positive language in my life swiftly wraps myself in cling film before everyone vomits on me! 😆

I think home blessing kind of makes sense too Ditzy, although it’ll always be home bleurgh to me, because I feel very bleurgh about having to do it

I can explain the fat fairy reference. It was before she put a picture on her site. A former and much loved fledgling who is fine but off doing her thing in RL had a dream which involved FLy lady, I can't exactly remember how the fairy and fat reference came about but they were connected to the dream and she earnt the nickname fat fairy. A lot of the OG fledglings were a lot more sweary, and definitely NOT twee in any way shape or form so certain things kinda stuck. And funnily enough the fatfairy's website update with a picture of the Fly lady as a fairy with a magic wand and who was by her own confession not the 100% skiinest of individuals. Body declutter was a whole thing that she did too.

So mostly it is me who is old, rather cranky, anti twee and with a long ass memory and no short term memory that calls her the fat fairy. And i make no appologies because it makes me smile as I remember old friends and the adventures we shared.

Home bleurgh is another anti twee thing. Mostly because it feels more like a curse that takes forever and dear god why monday? Mondays are just so god damn monday ish. And bleurgh i just don't wanna

I will be perfectly honest I hate the twee. Loathe how many "fluffy" pointless babysteps there are now and quite frankly feel that religion should very much follow the same Willy principle as for politics. You may have a religion, I may know you have one. But for fucks sake don't be waving it about in public. Also i am no simpering wimpering I serve my family and it is my blessing to do so kinda person. Some of the things, some of the testimonials show exactly how not Fly lady I am. Sometimes i wander if i would be better hauling my ass to a different system like unfuck my space which is heading in the right level of sarcasm and swearing.

But i'd miss the company, cos this lot are rather fabulous. And if you do follow the practical babysteps then it does work.

ta da
1 load of washing
Tea out of freezer for the people to take care of reheating themselves
study on the hill
Just off for a walk.

I love this thread already and everyone who is helping me learn the ropes.

@HillsBesideTheSea so this blessings business is just for Mondays? That makes it more doable and do like a Monday manic house sort to be honest. It's out of the way for the week and I can earn my days out and fun times. (By that I mean walks to the library and brain numbing baby groups)

ta da
🩺put more laundry away
🩺quick tidy up in living room
🩺LOL
🩺hospital trip
🩺added a few bits to tesco order

Not really managed anything else but oh well. Have set my alarm for back to work tomorrow! At least it’s only an online meeting just with colleagues and isn’t till 9.30. Night all.

There is definitely a slightly religious angle to the Flylady philosophy, if you ever find your way to the testimonials page it is quite full-on gushing. But it is perfectly workable whatever your faith or none.

I spent a couple of hours listening to Stacey Soloman's audio book Tap to Tidy today. I like Stacey and a lot of what she says makes sense and agrees with Flylady but my goodness its sickly sweet stuff.

Occasionally I go to the sitemap, there is FAR more content than we normally touch on here, it's worth a browse occasionally.

www.flylady.net/d/sitemap/

Sorry Pompoms if I confused you doing my home blessings today. It's only once a week. Think we were supposed to be relaxing today. I forget which day is for which thing

I love how FlyLady's nickname came from a dream Hills I wonder if she saw it and it inspired her website pic. I expect she's too busy with FlyLady stuff now but wouldn't it be amazing if she was once on a Mumsnet thread about it

Thanks for the Sitemap page ED I added it to bookmark list. Found the Testimonials page ages ago and read those. I'm slowly working my way through a page called Archives. It's massive and will take me forever but I found some interesting tips in there so far

I watched a film tonight then de-spidered the porch again, only two little ones this time. Feels like I'm winning the battle. They must creep in when I'm not looking 🕷🕸

Ditzy don't throw it away! Chances are it won't be very noticeable anyway, especially if it has a sunblock in it. Just think of the prep work as extra pampering! And wait a few minutes before getting dressed after applying (no white!).
To answer your question, DH is originally from Idaho. He was in the US Air Force, stationed in England, we met, got married, had DD and moved to Idaho when he got out of the military. DD was 2, she's now 18!

We got home earlier than planned tonight, but still late (it was 11pm when we got home).
It was a long day, but worth it!
It's now bedtime. I should be able to catch up properly tomorrow, although it is DSs birthday!

🍒👋 to everyone

Morning all, quick fly by from me this morning as I need to get DD off for her first day at college and myself to work, yikes.

Today, as discussed yesterday, is home blessing hour www.flylady.net/d/daily-focus/daily-focus-monday/
I won’t be doing it today, you can mix the days around to suit yourselves.

The flight plan is here www.flylady.net/c/fp.php?tzm=-60

Our mission is to scrub our stove tops. Happy Monday everyone.

<looks at stove top and shudders>. Yep, that needs done Hope DD’s first day goes well ED!

Monday does not work for me as home
bleurgh pompom. I tend to do it split between the weekend and my week day off when I’m not on mat leave (it’s been very random/hit and miss while I have been!)

At Willy principle Hills, I haven’t heard that one, but I agree.

Thank you @Upsadiddles .

Just remembered I made a start on home bleurgh tasks last night by cleaning the mirrors in our bedroom. I had the bedside light on and got out of bed again then noticed how filthy the full length mirror looked with the light reflecting in it. Went downstairs for glass cleaner and cloth wnd did it there and then 😇