Flying into February. Flylady support and chat thread

[TheMainCharacter]

Are you looking to finally getting into a new routine with housework? Something simple to start that can be easy to add to over time? Flylady may be the answer for you!

This is a long running thread, but we are a friendly bunch and all are welcome to join in.

Do NOT sign up for the Flylady emails - it's an excessive amount sent every day.

There are Baby Steps for starting out, add one thing at a time to start good habits and routines.

There are 5 zones that we will rotate through, don't worry about finishing it all this month, it'll come around again next month! Flylady is NOT about perfectionism!

Daily missions: each day of the week has a different mission.

• Monday: Home Blessing (or as we call it, home bleugh)
• Tuesday: plan & play
• Wednesday: anti-procrastination
• Thursday: errand day
• Friday: clean car & purse out. It's also date night (with your significant other, or friends, or yourself!)
• Saturday: family fun day
• Sunday: renew your spirit

Common acronyms we use:

• LOL: load of laundry (washing is certainly NOT funny!)
• DW: dishwasher, we are not rotating wives by any means, although an extra pair of hands could come in handy sometimes 😆
• LMS: lose/lost my shit
• DNLMS: did not lose my shit

There are more, feel free to ask us to explain something. I'll try to update links every day, although if you can, it's worth downloading the app, you can even have it send you notifications (although I only have it for when the zones change). You can also modify the tick lists to suit your home & lifestyle.

Links are below 👇 if I happen to not add links in time, they do update at midnight in the UK

Launch Pad: https://www.flylady.net/d/new-links/
Zones: https://www.flylady.net/d/zones/
Baby Steps:https://www.flylady.net/d/getting-started/31-beginner-babysteps/
New/Most Popular Links | FlyLady.net
https://www.flylady.net/d/new-links

Checking in for the new thread (NC)

Thanks for the new thread. I haven’t really had any ta-das so that’s why I’ve been quiet

Thank you for taking over and running the February thread!

Thanks for the newghread Character and for last month's Hazel. I shall do my best to lurk although I'll probably have no time to post

February’s habit is to declutter for 15 minutes a day.

Thursday is errand day.

We start the month back in zone one which is dining room, front porch and entrance. Today’s mission is to dust the skirting boards in these areas. Just for 15 minutes.

Today’s baby step is to shine your sink
https://www.flylady.net/d/getting-started/31-beginner-babysteps/

Apologies if I’ve got any of that wrong, feel free to correct me! I’m pretty new to Flylady myself and find the website awful! I have the app but can’t do links from the app so am having to brave the website

Right here we go, February, let's be 'aving you. Thanks for the new thread @TheMainCharacter

Today's errand is getting the car MOT and service sorted. First time using a new place who do collection and delivery, so I felt very fancy this morning and only slightly perturbed at handing over the car keys to a total stranger. Fair play to them, they did have a branded fleece on, but still. Quite unnerving.

Today's wins:

• Cleared top of shoe bench so it can actually be used
• Fully cleaned out coffee machine ready for its descale next week
• Swept kitchen floor ready for mopping later
• Emptied out and cleaned fridge, rearranged two of the shelves

To do:

• Mop kitchen floor
• Most of the zone and routine tasks

Might channel my energy to LMS at the hallway later. Filled with a lot of stuff that is just "waiting" to go somewhere else that has hidden tasks. We moved house last year and brought with us a sodastream canister that needed to be returned. Have we done it yet? No. Do I know where it needs to be taken? No.

I'd love to have the hallway a bit "nicer" today/tomorrow because DW has been away for work for a week and is back at the weekend. Hallway has been a bit chaotic for a while. Would be a nice "welcome home to a relaxing space" if I can get it sorted.

So far, so good character
Ditzy you're welcome! Good luck with your endeavors, it does sound like you'll be busy.

Cabbage that looks like quite a ta da list! It'll be nice for DW to come home to clear hallway. If she's anything like me, she'd love it!

At work today and will be tackling another area in the dungeon, hopefully finishing it today. My back isn't as bad, but my chest feels tight. Possibly from heartburn/ acid in the night. I'll have to see how today goes.
I'm taking tomorrow off! DH & I are going to a concert, staying the night. It'll be a nice break and change from the norm.

Thank you for the encouragement, @HazelNotHungryLC. I definitely work well with a deadline, so the hallway is looking a lot better than it was now I have a "pleasant welcome home for DW" plan! Now there's just a "charity shop box stack" and no random recycling or garage bits in the way. I won't have time to get the boxes out the house before DW is back but it's a heck of a lot nicer than it was before.

However, in moving the cardboard boxes around I discovered the direct contact with the cold tiled floor has meant they've got a bit damp, and one has a hole in the bottom of it. Lesson learned - there's a bigger price than just clutter for not getting to the charity shop for weeks on end!😓

Afternoon wins:

• Tidied coat rack
• 15 minute tidy and clean in kitchen
• Shined up kettle and toaster
• Cleared draining board
• 20 minute tidy in hallway
• Put up hallway mirror (which has been waiting for quite a while!)
• Put up pictures in kitchen (also waiting a while)

Forgotten wins:

• Completely tidied out car in preparation for service (and they're giving it a thorough clean too - hurrah!)
• Filled the bird feeders

It's day one and I'm worn out already! 😁

Hope all the newbies, Owl and, erm, another bunch of people whose names escape me (sorry!) didn't find the first month too hard going. Stick with it and you'll get there

You're off to a good start Cabbage

Not going to ask what you have a dungeon for Hazel, don't think I want to know 😉

I don't often venture into other parts of Mumsnet Cat but I came across you on another thread. We have the same affliction so I know how hard it is. If you're keeping up with basics you're doing well and if you're not, it'll get easier as you build mini routines into the day to help you. It all takes time to establish

Onwards and upwards everyone!

Thank you @ItsieDitzyBitsOfOnionInTheSoup (if that was meant for me). Yes it is hard and I feel like I can’t do much most days apart from the basics even though I do try and get rid of some old stuff

Sorry everyone I’ve been a bit slack as thread leader today!
@CabbageBearGoat your list is impressive. Your car story reminded me of a friend’s dh who merrily handed over the keys to someone who’d said they were there to collect it for the mot and service only for my friend to tell him it wasn’t booked in! Fortunately it was actually at their garage as an error had meant it was auto booked for the same day as the previous year without them being informed.

A clear hallway would be heaven to come home to, mine is usually full of tools and sports equipment! Oh and sodastream canisters can go to curry’s, Argos or the range in my town. Hope that helps!

@HazelNotHungryLC i hope you feel better for your night away. Was it very dusty when you were moving stuff? That can cause a tight chest.

My tadas are not impressive today.

Morning routine
school run
pharmacy for mum
prep dinner
yoga class
visit dad
hang up lol
fold and put away lol
school run
swimming lessons
dinner etc

@TheMainCharacter oh my god I never knew that about taking empty sodastream canisters to a shop. We've been trying to do it by post and have had three failed attempts! Wow. And we want a few Argos bits soon so that's an easy win. Thank you!!!!!!!! And the car did come back (shiny and clean!) so now I know for next year 😅

Cat I think getting rid of old stuff is going to be key. We all seem to have too much, except minimalists and even they keep decluttering to stay minimalist. I keep imagining the place with less in it and thinking how easy it will be to clean everything and get to everything easily to put it away, like FlyLady says. It's slow progress but I have to have finished it one day even if it's a long time in the future. I seem to use up a lot of energy moving things around because there's too many things and it's always in the way

I'm hoping shaking the rooms up will make me see more obviously what I'm using and not using. I watched a YouTube from MinimalMom where she says just have one hobby and stop trying to do everything. I was like 😱

Cabbage damp boxes aren't good! Did anything get damaged inside them?

Ditzy the "dungeon" is just where the boiler is and there's some storage space, down in the basement of the building at work. It's dark (no windows), thick concrete walls and a creepy vibe if you go down there by yourself.
2 years ago I spent a few days down there, after getting a mint(!) thrown at me and having just a creepy feeling, I couldn't go back down there again, by myself. Thankfully a coworker agreed to working down there with me and we got it done!

character I hadn't been working down there yet when I had the tight chest, otherwise that would have made sense. I actually think it's from heartburn, it's just really weird.

So today was filled with being in the dungeon, rearranging etc again, this time dealing with mouldy boxes & paperwork 😫
There was dust, mould, dirt everywhere. We were wearing gloves, but still not good to breathe it in. At one point I moved a box above my head and it snowed dust/ mould/ dirt all over me. Needless to say, I took a shower as soon as I got home!

Friday is clean your car or purse out day. It’s also date night (could be with your significant other, a friend, or yourself).

Today’s mission is to add personal touches to the dining room, hall or porch such as a tablecloth or door mat. Or, if you don’t want to add anything do a 27 fling boogie. Put on some music and get rid of 27 things. Anything counts!

Today’s baby step is to get dressed to shoes as soon as you get up (I think lots of us ignore that part but the idea of getting ready to face the day is a good one)
https://www.flylady.net/d/getting-started/31-beginner-babysteps/day-2/

@HazelNotHungryLC I hope your chest is better today. Enjoy the concert! Your day yesterday sounded hard.

@CabbageBearGoat glad the info about the canisters helped. I’ve had a hit and miss service with the postal returns too and find it easier to take them in store.

@JewelleryCat please post even without much accomplishment, I bet if you list what you have done it’s more than you think! Or just come for the chat!

@ItsieDitzyBitsOfOnionInTheSoup i hope today was a little easier and less exhausting for you.

Haven't been very productive again today. The hospital visits are draining and I kind of need time to decompress afterwards, as well as update various family members. Then it’s hard to motivate myself to do housework. I am also hugely affected by my hormones and right now am in the tired phase of the month!

Tadas
👏morning routine
👏school run
👏sample for nhs survey done and sent
👏parcel return
👏hospital visit
👏family members updated (I’m counting this as a task)
👏lol hung up
👏downstairs vacuumed (not very thoroughly)

Making a curry for dinner tonight and I badly need to dye my hair but not sure if I’ll have the energy once the kids are in bed!

character I am really looking forward to getting away, even just for the night. I'm actually going to be having the "date night" tonight! We will be with friends as well, but got a nice suite in the hotel to stay in, so looking forward to relaxing as well. My chest feels better today, so far (it's still early - 8am).
How is everything going with your dad? If you don't mind me asking. It's really hard and draining to visit people in the hospital (& care homes), don't forget to take some time out for you to rest.

Well, I completed Dry January, will have my 1st drink tonight since NYE and don't plan on going overboard.

To Dos:
☕️ make & drink my 2nd cup of coffee (MIL called & woke me up earlier than I wanted, she didn't realise I took the whole day off! 🤦‍♀️ I couldn't go back to sleep!)
☕️ LOLs
☕️ pack an overnight bag
☕️ possibly bathe the dogs (they're stinky again 😫)
☕️ drop DS & dogs off to ILs
☕️ maybe wash the Jeep on the way back home
☕️ have lunch with DH before getting on the road

We are in no hurry today, which makes it so nice!

Thanks for asking @HazelNotHungryLC
He needs a care plan in place before they let him out of hospital so just waiting for all of that to be processed. He’s up and down, sometimes he’s lucid other times not but his mobility is so poor now and he can’t use the toilet independently or feed himself so can’t just be let out for my mum to deal with.

Have a great time tonight and enjoy the leisurely day!

OMG a haunted dungeon Hazel 😱 thank goodness it's at work and not at home. Hope you needn't go down there again

I hope they get something sorted for your dad soon Character

character that's really hard to go through. Hopefully there will be a plan in place soon as I'm sure he'll be more comfortable at home, but it'll be good for your mum to have help.
My mum struggled to care for my dad for a few months before he was put in hospital. He was her carer, so it was tough for both of them to have the roles reversed.

Ditzy I will need to go down there again, eventually. There are probably hundreds boxes of paperwork that will need to be shredded, but there's a process to get to that point. It will take months, I'm sure, before we get the okay, and then someone is going to need to take the boxes to the shed truck! Once that's sorted, we should only ever have to go down there once or twice a year - to take more boxes down there.

Ta Das (so far):
🦥 video chat with mum
🦥 makeup on, hair done
🦥 infuser refilled
🦥 lol in washer (after asking DS to start it an hour before. I had to switch out the load as I wanted colours washed. He hadn't started it 🤬)
🦥 folded clean clothes from the dryer
🦥 started packing

Thanks to @TheMainCharacter for this month, and to @HazelNotHungryLC for January. Much appreciate all your hard work

I start each month with great intentions, slow down about the third week with immense to-do lists, then give up in the final week feeling like a complete failure.
This happens in everything I try - decluttering, housework, frugality, weightloss, absolutely everything.

I'm trying to be a little more laid back this month, not fixating on how little I achieve but putting on some nice music and not feeling guilty for looking after myself.

Tomorrow is wash all the uniforms, tidy kitchen, and meal plan for the coming week. No dining-room here, will hoover and dust in kitchen instead. Hallway is full of homeless clutter, so tidy that then hoover including stairs if poss.

Saturday is Family Fun Day

Todays baby step is to reiterate the baby steps already covered, shining your sink and getting dressed to shoes.
https://www.flylady.net/d/getting-started/31-beginner-babysteps/day-3/

I hope everyone has a nice day ahead today. I don’t really have any plans apart from kids tennis lessons and might have to drive ds to work as his bike got stolen yesterday 😡He rides everywhere normally so this is a massive blow for him. Hopefully we can find a decent secondhand one asap.

@Scourgify your plan for today sounds reasonable. To do lists can be very overwhelming. Removing pressure and taking a laid back approach sounds like it could help. I always think something is better than nothing (and often doing something motivates me to do something else. One bite at a time as they say!

@HazelNotHungryLC that must have been really tough for your parents. At least my mum is in good health herself but it definitely won’t be easy.

Is there any room for a former fledgling to jump back in and try and sort her life out? It’s been months and months since I’ve been on the thread, but I had a read this morning and you have all motivated me. The house isn’t a complete disaster, but I’m certainly not in a hurry to invite anyone round. I haven’t stayed on top of decluttering, and DH has been working overtime most weekends which is when he usually takes the kids out and I get on with the home bleurgh. Work has been manic too.

It’ll take my a while to work out who’s who, although I definitely know Hazel <waves>.

Thanks for the thread Character.

I’ll dump some tadas (insert “dealt with feral toddler or 6 year old’s attitude” between each one):
✔️stripped and remade DD2’s bed. Others made
✔️A token effort at s&s x 2
✔️ 2 x LOLs
✔️ tidied DD2’s room
✔️sorted bags of clothes to donate/dump
in textile recycling which have lived in the utility for who knows how long and had begun to merge. They will make it out of the house one day
✔️braved the supermarket with both DC
✔️ unpacked shopping, cleaned and organised fridge and larder
✔️DW on
✔️cleaned sticky finger prints from living room window/mirror/tv
✔️tidied dining room/playroom
✔️swept downstairs floors
✔️ordered new school uniform for DD1 who just refuses to stop growing.

DH is due in soon, he’ll be making dinner and allowing me a cuppa in peace then we’ll be settling down to watch gladiators. Hope you’ve all had a good Saturday.