Fledglings Flying into November

[ExquisiteIyDesigned]

November is the month where we move from autumn into winter all are welcome as the Fledglings cosy up in their nests on this Flylady thread.

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. Check in here instead or download the app, see below.

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
BRC - box/basket of random clutter/crap

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. You can also modify the tick lists to suit your home & lifestyle.

November’s monthly focus is menu planning.

Links are below 👇 if I happen to not add links in time, they do update at midnight for you.

Baby Steps http://www.flylady.net/d/getting-started/31-beginner-babysteps/
Monthly habit http://www.flylady.net/d/habits-of-the-month/november/
Launch pad http://www.flylady.net/c/lp.php
Flight Plan (all the day’s tasks in one place) http://www.flylady.net/c/fp.php?tzm=0
Sneak peek for the week - summary of the current week so you can plan ahead http://www.flylady.net/c/sp.php

@ExquisiteIyDesigned we've had similar weather in the Midlands - we haven't had a clear night since before Hallowe'en and daytime has been similarly muggy with constant cloud cover. I think it's basically everywhere across the UK. We're forecast rain here this afternoon so I'm very hopeful.

No real flying update from me - more false labour distractions - so today is pyjamas and some feel good films and snacks. DW has just popped out to get ingredients for a new vegan crepe recipe and hopefully a "sofa day" might just be what we need to reset, all ready for a new week. Feeling pretty miserable tbh, knowing there could easily be as many as almost 3 weeks more of this on/off labour signs stuff. I'm sure this time will fly by once baby is here, and I'm hindsight, but right now when we're in it, it's as bad as the very early days waiting for those initial scans and tests!

@BeetrootBootreet still no change to the weather here, although milder again today, still grey and gloomy. We are forecast sun from tomorrow, fingers crossed.

@GreenWillowAndHolly welcome back

@SleepingIceDragons hope your rest day has been achieved.

Sunday is meant to be Renew Your Spirit Day, where you do something just for you, whether that is rest, pampering, time outside the house, exercise. I went for a coffee with my phone and diary and had a good sort out of planning and to do lists this morning, which always helps me to feel set for the week ahead, I enjoy doing it in a cafe with a nice cup of coffee and the chatter of other people all around me, I get too distracted at home.

I did vacuum the car yesterday, but as the drive keeps getting covered in fallen leaves at the moment and they are all dry and crispy it is already covered in brown crunchy bits again.

Here is a link for the Sneak Peek into next week’s tasks, we will be moving into the bathroom and one other room,, this could be the stairs and landing, or multiple bathrooms, whatever suits. http://www.flylady.net/c/sp.php

LaMarschallin it has been busy in the Hazel household, but also at work, so when I have a moment to rest, I'm taking it!

ED I still have to get my Jeep cleaned out 🤦‍♀️ but I am on a 4 day weekend right now (don't have to go back to work until Wednesday). So plan to get it done at some point, hopefully today.

cunoyerjudowel did you manage to get your cleaning cupboard sorted?

Dragons are you enjoying your rest day? It's very much needed for you, I feel.

Willow so good to see you back on here! I had not realised it's only 6 weeks to Christmas, which is freaking me out a little!

Beetroot I hope you're able to get some rest in today. You are right though, it does feel never ending right now, but you will have that baby in your arms in a blink of an eye! Then time really does fly!

Plumbers are aiming to come out tomorrow to install the gas line for my gas stove. I spent 3 hours on scrubbing and cleaning it yesterday. It was from an estate sale (someone passed away), we got it very cheap last year and had it in storage until yesterday. It's fairly new, but it was sticky and gross. I should have taken before pictures and posted them here, but I didn't!

Good evening all, so the cupboards all got organised and cleaned and I did a bonus task of washing dogs and hair blocking the bathrooms - a gadget from Temu for all of 80p had it sorted in seconds

Decided I want a wfh area / desk so I am busy hunting one down which will go in the open plan kitchen / diner

My time for me was a bonus run (went to a class with dd this morning for her grappling so wanted to reset)

Still not done the car and the bags for the charity shop / clothes bank are still in my boot

No idea why my post has been hidden, did I do a typo?

Ignore my last- I had a message it was being hidden (my post) until it could be looked at, hence my panic / over thinking lol

Thanks for the welcome back!

@BeetrootBootreet sending positive baby thoughts.

@cunoyerjudowel hurrah for a gadget that makes cleaning hair easier!

I got a surprising amount done, so here are my Ta Das:
❤️ Morning routine
🧡 Walked WillowHound
💛 Batch cooked - they turned out to be banana muffins as DH let the bananas go over again and I made marmite seeded crackers too
💚 Spread out the craft projects. Not going to get it all done.
💙 Roast pork but no cauliflower cheese - by the time I'd baked 3 separate things I was good for nothing but putting the joint in the oven!
💜 Cleaned the kitchen light fittings (ugh the grease)
❤️ Had a look at the baking cupboard. Closed the door and went away again.
🧡 Got DH to clean the microwave and empty the crumbs out of the toaster, he uses them too.
💛 Started trying to marshal all the moving parts of Christmas - DH has no living relatives we need to see, but I have one parent and two siblings and one adult DC is making noises about doing an independent Christmas this year and another will (probably) be here but may leave Boxing Day but the third may only be able to arrive on the 26th and my sister's work rota appear to STILL be up in the air. I am thinking of saying to the rest of my family "book something you can all do, we'll come if we can".

Morning all,

Today we are moving into the bathroom and one other room, for us this is the landing. http://www.flylady.net/c/fp.php?tzm=0

Our mission is to check supplies in the bathroom and putting anything that is needed on the shopping list, yay, I did that on Saturday. I realised yesterday that the bathroom is in need of a deep clean, it is small and so has a few shelves and they haven’t had all the things lifted down for a good clean for a while, I made a start with the windowsill last night.

Monday is also Home Blessing day, when we change beds, empty bins, hoover and dust, we tend to split this over the week (mostly weekend) so the vacuuming and bins have been done (bin day is today) but dusting and beds have not, waiting for the elusive sunny breezy day for drying of bedsheets.

Some great lists everyone. @cunoyerjudowel I keep charity shop stuff in my car boot till it is full (I also keep my swimming kit and reusable shopping bags in there but it is a small car).

@GreenWillowAndHolly a Christmas conundrum indeed. We have our plans somewhat dictated by the preferences of extended family members, but having established a plan that works about 15 years ago it is the same every year, but we haven’t had any DCs staying away yet.

Tada! (Sunday)

Finished hotspotting breakfast bar
Found notebook I’ve been looking for in amongst some magazines and catalogues
Removed a load of clutter from dining table (work in progress)
Finally got around to filing everyone’s certificates etc in fireproof folders, bought them months ago
Finished my non-Christmas lego from last Christmas
Got Christmas lego out of the loft
Brought down some old toys to declutter
Cleaned out baking cupboard (DD left out food colouring last week and I realised just how ancient all that stuff was and bought new on Saturday, the liquid colourings probably keep forever but these were the gel ones and not so sure)

Nearly forgot:

Cleaned bathroom windowsill
Washed and dried all towels, bathmat and flannels
Sorted and put away my portion of two loads of laundry from earlier in the week
Found homes for a few bits that have just been lying around (spare picture hooks, spare caps for car tyre valves)
Re hung a picture that had fallen off the wall (the string on the back failed, probably because it was about 80 years old and picture had for as long as I remember been propped up till I hung it up last week). Luckily it fell onto carpet.

So that was quite a productive day. I retired to the sofa for Strictly and stayed there till bedtime which was nice, but I was doing a lot of reading for my volunteer role.

Just going to mention the babysteps again, these are the foundation of the Flylady system, some are a bit, erm, debatable, but mostly they help us set up daily and weekly routines that will keep our homes ticking over, it is worth browsing them every now and then even if you’ve been doing this for years.

http://www.flylady.net/d/getting-started/31-beginner-babysteps/

I have ds who stays away at christmas but as it is a split parenting thing we have a pretty established routine. I am hosting this year. Yes that means hopefully enough building work has stopped, been tidied away and house restored so that we can have a full sit down dinner. We have a very established menu so that the only thing that gets changed is what has to because the pissing manufacturers have changed the ingredients (looking at you this year Tesco) and a work around is needed (have 2 options so already know the how just need to do the doing) I am also one who has some stuff prepped ahead. So beginning of next month will be a fluffy of christmas food prep (combined with normal food prep condensed into one month).

Kinda got a rest day yesterday (cooking, laundry never ends) and there was a minor flurry of activity due to the fact that the DIY that was done requires a settling period where problems might show up. Problems did show up so they had to be fixed.

Plan:
tools away from yesterday's work area
morning appointments
afternoon DIY and cleaning up.

Hi everyone - the unpacking is now pretty much done and I feel like we’re actually setting our future home peeping through. We had guests on Saturday and it was actually all quite achievable - I wouldn’t say there was no need for a mad rush pre-guest clean but it wasn’t as crazy as normal! I’m glad it’s the bathroom - my one other room is going to be the spare room / kids study area

Willow the Christmas dilemma sounds tough, but I think you have the right idea.

I personally like the idea of an open house situation, so they can come and go as they please, although I've never done it and usually prefer a solid plan. I think I would still want to know if/when people were showing up!

DD will be working this year, she only has Sundays and Mondays off, so will have to work. Same with Thanksgiving. She will come the following weekend, so we will have 2 celebrations.

ED that was a long ta da list! I love that baking is included in that though, I find it's usually relaxing for me!

Dragons I'm glad you got some rest!

Dolphin it's exciting seeing your new home coming together. Not having to run around like a crazy person before guests is an achievement in itself (well not as crazy as before flylady), and shows the system works!

I still haven't cleaned the Jeep 🤦‍♀️
I really need to do it today though, it's the last day of nice weather (probably for the rest of the year), but I am waiting to hear from the plumbers, if they're coming today, what time etc.

The weekend was spent getting the old electric oven out (was fitted into the cupboards), cutting the cupboard and countertop to fit the freestanding gas oven that's going in. The plumbers are aiming for today to get the gas line ran in through the house, but it could be tomorrow. It all depends on how many calls they had over the weekend that were scheduled for today (instead of them paying their emergency rates).

This morning I dropped DS off at school, early, as he starts drivers ed today 😱

My sympathies to everyone with Christmas organisation to do. Our plans are very simplified this year! We've never hosted so there's no precedent and with a new baby we're just going to drop in on local family as and when for quick visits if we feel up to it. Hoping we can keep things relatively low-key in the future too as I find Christmas itself a bit overwhelming at the best of times 😬

Blue sky here! There was finally some break in the cloud last night which has held through until the day and there's actual blue up there. Genuine bona fide sunshine. Delighted. And we're supposed to have a clear night tonight. Hoping it stays clear at night for the full moon later this week.

Meanwhile, it's bathroom week in Beetroot House: ensuite, main bathroom and a downstairs WC plus the utility that the WC comes off of. Today has been mostly "the usuals" of the home blessing/bleurgh which has been really nice - to even have a sense of what "the usuals" are! Perhaps this my first year of Flying has now started to sink (!) in. And I had a 3 hour nap. So not much else done!

Today's wins:
Vacuumed lounge, hallway, kitchen
Quick vacuum of front stairs (bottom half only!)
Cleared draining board
Refilled cooking oil
Breadmaker on
Restocked loo rolls throughout
Towels changed throughout
4x LOL washed, folded, put away

Concentrating on en suite and family bathroom, or shower room and bathroom as en suite only has a bath and family bathroom only has a... you can see where I'm going 😊
Cleaned the windows in both then gave the shower a really good going over. When I first moved in I thought the shower screen was frosted - turns out it was just limescale 😱
DH (who does the washing) had done the bathmats yesterday and I know I'm fine for various bathroom supplies.
Also cleaned up cat sick × 2 - I'm assuming furballs or a too hastily ingested mouse. Or both. She seems fine now, thankfully.
Otherwise, having a fairly leisurely day. Did our usual 30 minute or so walk into town (hope it counts as Loving Movement). Supper's an easy pasta dish from the new Hairy Bikers' Comfort Food book (RIP Dave) and then we enjoy the quizzes on BBC2. Victoria C-M is on DH's laminated list (for any Friends fans).

Fell off the thread for a few days 🙈 I've kept on top of the basics but not much zone flying completed . We have had no takeaways for more than a week (we were having them at least once a week) and we've only had a freezer dinner once so this is something I'm really pleased to add into the daily routines . I'm sure all the little changes I keep making will one day just click and I'll have a sparkling home 🤔

Todays tada
🎉 usual morning , up, washed , dressed , kids up washed & dressed
🎉 made bacon butties for breakfasts and cleared up
🎉 LoL in the washer ( writing this has made me realise it is still in there 🙈)
🎉 school run
🎉 work
🎉 school run
🎉 sat with a coffee for half an hour ( pms is in full swing and I woke up about 430ish this morning so this sit down was very much needed)
🎉 tea (Sunday dinner leftovers)
🎉 tea pots
🎉 made chocolate cornflake cakes with dd2 ( trying to make rather than buy , I'm not sure it works out much cheaper but daughter loves baking so it's an activity to do together )
🎉 cleaned up baking things

Still got a few bits to do before relaxing for the evening , downstairs is quite untidy so that'll be my next 45 minute slot , hopefully will have time to get the things out for tomorrow too ! I'm not sure I'll get any zone work completed or home bleurgh but I'll see how the evening goes !

I will catch up on the personals , I hope you all don't mind me posting . I find popping it all on this thread keeps me accountable and motivated to get the jobs done !

Of course we don’t mind @Searchingforbaileys I find the lists very motivating too.

Tada!
Swish and swipe bathroom
Work
Few bits from supermarket on the way home
Quick bite to eat (off to yoga shortly)
Our bed stripped and sheets washed
DW emptied and refilled
Counters wiped
Sheets into tumble dryer
Litter trays de-pooped.

Just seen two hedgehogs in the garden, haven’t seen any for weeks (we feed them). One was pretty small, hope it is OK, it scuttled off when I approached. Normally we see them most evenings through the summer but far fewer sightings this year despite the feeding.

How lovely to see hedgehogs, ED. So sad there are so few of them these days.
I'd love to feed them but I understand the recommendation is for cat food and that wouldn't last long in our garden.

Like you, Searchingforbaileys, I find reading posts here keeps me motivated. It's interesting to see what everyone is doing and setting down my plans here makes me much more likely to enact them.

We use dry hedgehog food from the pet shop, the cats do eat some of it, magpies and pigeons peck at it too.

Now lying in bed with freshly washed and dried sheets on, lovely. Night all.

Morning,
Tuesday is Planning Day, our mission is to scrub the countertops and basin in the bathroom(s). I got ahead of myself and did this on Sunday so this morning I have cleaned the two higher shelves, and they certainly needed it.

http://www.flylady.net/c/fp.php?tzm=0

Back later, got to sort out my packed lunch now.

Where is everyone <peeks under cushions>. Hope you are all OK and haven't tripped over your lace-up shoes.

I managed to wipe down all the bathroom shelves today, plus rotate the DW, feed cats and hedgehogs, pay a bill and that was about it but more than I would have done without Flylady. I have put out everything I need for tomorrow, work then straight to a school governor meeting, so clothes, diary, laptop, notebook.

My sleep pattern is fucked. today i lay on my stomach and pulled all the ranodm crap out from under the kitchen benches in the kick board spaces. 2 new drawers are going there instead - After i have deep cleaned the floor. Just drinking a coffee before getting going on a nightshift timing of housework. Also loving this colder weather. It's good for my soul. So snuck out for a long walk before i got started. <plugs self back in to some motivating music with a good beat and heads back into the kitchen>

The colder, sunnier weather lasted precisely one day here, then back to grey and gloom. However it is forecast to be properly cold next week, on the one hand we need it to get the season back on track, kill off pests and diseases, on the other I am worried about our little hedgehog, who was back again last night.

So, Wednesday. Anti-procrastination day. I still haven’t phoned the garage about my car.

Our mission is to scrub our tuib or shower. Flylady suggests finishing it with window cleaner but I’d worry about it becoming lethally slippery.

http://www.flylady.net/c/fp.php?tzm=0

Thanks for the info about the hedgehog food, ED. I'd really like to encourage them into the garden but our cat is supposed to be on a diet. It's a quandary. We have got a hedgehog highway through the garden which hopefully helps a bit.

haven't tripped over your lace-up shoes 😀 I remember you said this was a controversial one! I don't have a pair of LU shoes. My equivalent is putting foot cream on then covering with socks.

I did the shower plus paintwork, doors and towel rails in both bathrooms yesterday (plus the little plastic doofers on the end of the light pullcords - they get surprisingly grubby) so today will be cleaning out the cupboards.
We've got workmen coming in this am to look at the hob which has been cutting out every now and then. I was motivated to finally call them last anti-procrastination day. I find it difficult to settle to tasks when I'm expecting people.
No meal-planning for tonight as we're out with the team from work that we used to work with. Lots of us have retired, some work elsewhere, but we were very close-knit and get together regularly. So that's definitely something to look forward to.

ETA Of course I've got a pair of lace-up shoes - trainers!
Still don't want to wear them round the house though.