Walking in a Crepey Wonderland!

[MrsSchadenfreude]

I couldn't see that anyone else had started a new thread, after Stropps carelessly finished the old one without starting a new one, so here you are.

ds football all off this weekend. Luckily, X-box works whatever the weather.

Am clearing out dd's room (she is away - I did warn/promise her). she hasn't grasped the basics - everything is on top of a baselayer of sweet wrappers/tissues/old essays. I am going to try financial incentives (for getting rid of some of the hoarded broken junk)/penalties but do find it depressing (she is 17 and due to go to university iN Sept all being well). She can't even manage to put tops in one drawer and bottoms in another, and keeps buying clothes because she thinks she hasn't got anything. I suspect the chaos is affecting schoolwork at the margins. Any top tips? I know she should take responsibility for this, but we have tried leaving her to it, and I can't take it.

So we get back from pub last night and get a phone call. 'Hi Mr BD I understand it's your birthday and you mum has arranged a special delivery - will you be in in half an hours time?'

Cue dp having kittens imaging strippergrams and god knows what :). I did point out it was highly unlikely his 80 year old parents would organise such a thing!!!

CV - I think you have the patience of a saint - I can last a weekend with dp's family before I lose it!!

Yes, DC don't go back till Tues, but it is going to come as a shock to them. Particularly DD who hasn't been going to sleep till 1/2/3am and not waking up till lunchtime. Don't know how she got on this morning getting up for gym coaching at 8.30 as she was on a sleepover last night...

Lalsy, I can't offer any tips - I am looking for the same! Are all DD's happy to live in pigsty's?

BD, what was it then?!

lalsy - don't want to depress you but as you know my dd is AT university and pulls all clothes on to the floor as soon as she gets back to her bedroom and then borrows my stuff as can't find anything. ds's christmas stocking even went missing for a couple of days such is the chaos. xx

DD2 is happy as a small pig in a pigsty. DD1 imposes some order on her room - and even suddenly started tidying the living room last night . I recognise the "nothing to wear" wails from DD2, I must say - then her father huffs and says "we" need to buy her new stuff as I point out that in fact she has a number of garments, just can't be arsed to look for them.

Took my PFB to have her ears pierced this morning. She is v chuffed with self.

A wooden owl sculpture (something they had seen up here at the arts fest and is by a local artist)

Ds will have been off school a month when he (finally) goes back on Wednesday - no idea how he will cope...

Bag everything up until they learn to put things away? (She says viewing the devastation that is ds's room - and he's only 10)

MI, that's the start of a slippery slope - it'll be cartilages before you know it

addle, does she house-share at uni or have her own room in halls? Sheffield looked totally modernly fab for students, it was fab while I was there too!

Rudy you did the right thing......

Yep - even if you have p'd her off, just think how many more might have been p'd off (never mind you!) if you hadn't said no

Thanks crepesters! It is the rubbish I mind most. Will see how bribery works.

Lalsy, speaking as a non-tidy person (who, when clearing out my childhood bedroom prior to my dad selling up, sat on her bed and thought "I have been tidying this room for 30 years and it's still not done" ) I am trying to help my dcs learn to have better habits. It is hard when it doesn't come naturally and I don't always set a good example. Still, we have recently trialled a "How To Tidy Your Room" 10 point plan - I have a list on the back of their doors of ten things that if they are all done, a room will be tidy. I have asked dcs to do any 3, but different each night, in the 5 mins before they go to bed. It is helping enormously. I proudly described this system to a couple of tidy friends and they looked at my like in a sort of "how could your kids not know how to keep a room tidy?" way, which was shaming, but ds1 doesn't know at all, and ds2 and dd, while better, still need reminding.

Rudy - hopefully your friend will find someone to look after her dd and then have a brilliant child-free time at your party. Courage!

Wilbur, I am hyperventilating with excitement at the thought of a ten-point plan....is it published anywhere? Could you post it? Could you slip it to me secretly under cover of darkness somehow? My dc definitely don't know how to and my dd is just hopeless and finds it overwhelming.

Wilbur, would you be so kind as to post/PM me the list - I feel our family could benefit from it

Hello all, hope you don't mind me creeping back in, crepey wattle wobbling

I am in Worst Mother mode as I have let DS3 (autistic) spend ALL DAY on the iPad. Shoot me now. And he has an inset day on Monday, when his older brothers are back at school, so that will be dire

Wilbur, please post/email it!!

Have added to my Capsule Collection of grey sweaters with a cashmere number, new (still with tags on), M&S men's (extra large but so soft and fine it's not bulky and is pleasantly thigh-length*), down from £99 to £9.99 in the Salvation Army shop.

*on me. Admittedly on anyone normal this might not be the case.

O my lovely Pirate, I shudder to admit how glued my NT 10 year old is to her father's tablet.

In fact if he's happy, I'd consider it for Monday...

OPM, boys in wet weather is very difficult - DS is climbing the walls by 3pm if he hasn't been exercised. And he is not interested in the xbox/computer/ipad. Well, he plays xbox if his mates come round, but otherwise, nightmare. So thank your lucky stars he sits happily on it all day

Yes, Wilbur, please post the 10 point tidying plan! We have restored some order to the sitting room, now that we have the Shelves of Wonderfulness. DD2 is generally quite tidy. DD1 lives like a pig in shit. We mucked out her room the other day, and filled a bin bag with dirty tissues, empty ventolin and serotide puffers, old sweet wrappers, old carrier bags, empty shampoo and shower gel bottles. We also found a lot of dirty knickers (some with used ST stuck in them). There was also a pile of used towels (used once and thrown on the floor), lots of random items of clothing, some dirty, some clean, which were folded neatly (originally) and put on her bed to be put away. DH read the riot act, focusing on the dirty pants, hoping that the shame of him doing it would have an effect. It did - for a few weeks. We are now back to pig in shit mess, although have found no dirty pants now - these seem to migrate to the laundry basket at last.

Pirate, DD2 spent almost all day and a good chunk of the evening yesterday playing Minecraft with her BFF who lives in Texas. When they got bored with that, they switched to Skype. Don't feel guilty.

Oh MI, you have reminded me - in S&B news, I went to a local boutique sale with a friend this morning and got a dress/tunic thing and a top with butterflies on for £40!

'Kinell, MrsS, that really is revolting!

Btw Rudy, you v definitely did the right thing.