My home is a mess

craftygranny

snookey wrote: »

Hi everyone. Parsnip head we are from Liverpool so its an ideal holiday destination Wales for us. We are there in an hour. Brother outlaw usually takes us and brings us back. We are staying in Pwllheli in a caravan. Esther hope the weather is nice.
Iv cleaned the kitchen today but thats it. Dd room still in sight for the weekend.
I got a fantastic bargain on flea bay two shelving units with glass doors, for,wait for it, 98p each!. The seller had put them as buy now instead of starting from. Only downside is that its costing 35 to 40 pounds for delivery. Willl be great for my books.
Had a snooze this afternoon with three of my cats. Weather was really naff today even had to put the heating on. Its raining now.
Outlaws came today with sweets for the kids but nothing for the dog. Dog was not amused. He thinks he is another grandchild and expects something when they visit. He sat sulking.
Hoping a cleaning fairy visits in the night and house looks like a show home. lol,

Oooh fab bargain shame about delivery costs but still a good price.

Can you let me know if the cleaning fairy visits then i can pm you my address and they can come here . lol

snookey

I will do Crafty granny,lol.
Shelly dont know if it will help but I tried spraying water with a little salt up my nose and it helped clear my sinus alongside the antibiotics.

Crafty granny you must visit wales its fab and not expensive.

soupdragon10

Haven't been on for a few days as I've picked up some work which has taken all my time. OH has picked up the housework baton and kitchen, hall and landing/bathroom are still looking good.

Bedroom looks like an explosion in a laundry though, so that's the next thing to tackle.

One big upside was that not having to rush round and do HW yesterday I actually sat down and finished my patchwork bag which is looking nice and will be useful for taking packed lunch in. Also made b/day card for SIL.

Today have written 2 letters I've put off for ages, as the study although not uber tidy is good enough for me to not need to feel guilty about not tidying (if that makes sense).

Helen I hope you enjoy your trip to Cornwall - I've lived here 20 years now, and don't go anywhere else on holiday as I prefer my own bed and am lucky to live in such a beautiful part of the country. I don't know St Ives well - it's at the other end of the county (I'm within driving distance of Plymouth).

GreyQueen

Afternoon Messies, I am at the parents' place aka Clutter Central and just HAD to tackle the back bedroom. It is just about wide enough to take a bunkbed, a large chest of drawers and the very small computer desk where I'm typing this. It's also contains the window above the porch where the cats jump in and out at night and the door into the airing cupboard so it's a busy room anyway and is like a giant cupboard full of carp.

Last nikght I was awakened by cats crashing around and have decided that it should have the top of the of the chest of drawers cleared to be their launch pad. So I've cleared the pile of misc carp onto the bed. Where it can't stay as I have to sleep here tonight.

Aarrggghhhh. Am sneaking up on the muddle in baby steps and heartening myself with little bits of forum time in between.

Back home tomorrow and then to work on Tues. Hope you are all having a good day.

rigsby1967

Hi Messies.

I haven't posted for a few days because i have done absolutely nothing :eek: (well apart from keeping the decluttered kitchen clean & tidy).
The animals are getting to me a little at the moment, 1 of the cats has !!!!!! twice on the stairs, 2 of my chooks are bullying another 2 chooks, 1 kitten is poorly so on anti-biotics and is very difficult giving to a 6 week old, the duck is attacking one of the cats and she just stands thier taking it :eek::( But i think the real problem is not the animals but me being PMT :mad::mad:, :rotfl::rotfl:.

GreyQueen I saw your siggy and must ask how on earth you have done without chocolate since the 1st May :A?

Well i hope everyone is having a good day.

Rigs

Confuzzled

helen_jelly wrote: »

I bag up all their carp and dump it in their bedrooms - its up to them to deal with it then - if it isn't sorted within a week I go up there with a black bag and threaten to either chuck it or watch them clear it away - try that a few times and they soon learn to put away the bagged stuff - I have no problem with them playing with their stuff - but they have to clear it away!!

i tried this with my daughter when she was around 4-5, she would just say 'ok' and shrug her shoulders :eek: she genuinely did NOT care! mind you, she always loved playing with all the recycling, so always had 'new toys'!

helen_jelly wrote: »

Your 8 year old is perfectly capable of doing that [mine boy is 8] - try to remember that you are training him to become the perfect partner for a future girlfriend/boyfriend!!! - just a gentle reminder about the treat thats on offer - keep at it hun and we're all behind you 100% of the way

thankfully now, at 9 she's far better about things. don't get me wrong she still moans about it but she WILL get on with things, especially if i give her something to look forward too, like an ice lolly when she's done or a trip to the park etc. she also knows that the living room is HER responsibility now because she makes most of the mess there. I do a bit by picking up my own desk area, hoovering my area and taking dirty dishes into the kitchen but it's mostly her job. edited to add: most days i do let her make a mess in there but with the knowledge that SHE will have to clean it up, that way she gets to be a kid and i don't have to stress too much over the mess... win win!

MY area is the kitchen so i mainly do the dishes and laundry and most of the cleaning in there but she cleans the lower cabinets and the cleans the floors because my back and knees make that very difficult for me. she actually LIKES using the cleaning wipes anyway so it's no hardship for her

i sat her down a long time ago and explained that it's just the two of us and i can either spend my 'spare' time cleaning or with her, she chose it to be with her and has been far far better about cleaning since then, sometimes she even does extra that i don't ask! she still needs reminding sometimes but she agrees that the house is more pleasant when its' clean and she knows she can't have friends over if the house is a tip so that's motivational too.

she gets pocket money and that isn't exactly linked to chores, however if she is stroppy and unhelpful i start taking money away and that straightens her up quickly! she also gets deductions if i have to keep telling her to turn off lights, close doors, not leaving her computer on all day/night etc (not much, like 10-50p depending) and she has become VERY good about not doing those things, she even chastises me when i forget :rotfl: now that my knees and back have gotten so bad there are more things that are difficult for me so she gets and extra fiver a month IF she does those things without much groaning and she's chuffed to bits about that. that's worked really well because it means she feels more responsible, she knows how much it helps me, i have less guilt and she's learning the emotional benefits of the responsibility of care but on a nice easy learning curve. she's very proud of herself and she should be, i'm a very fortunate parent to have her :T

i think just sitting down with the kids and being dead honest, not blaming just letting them see the exhaustion and frustration and maybe even a few tears so they realise JUST how much it hurts is a GOOD thing. kids need to know you AREN'T superhuman, if you try to act like you are they will expect you to be! best thing i ever did was to be dead honest with her about how busy i am, what time frames i have spare time and when i don't (i work from home, self employed means waaaay too many hours and deadlines) and because i have been honest she has learned to be respectful and patient as long as i hold up my end of the bargain too. i make special days for us, or special girls nights and she'll ask if i have time for something that day and if not i give her a realistic idea of when i could make time and i stick to it.

perhaps pointing out that less cleaning for mum makes more playing with mum and sticking to a day out or trip to the park when they've done what has been asked will help though i do like the bag/box idea too, really a mix of things will probably help, all children have different things that motivate them so it's finding one or two that work best really.

as for the cleaning, i started reading this a few weeks back, got very inspired and cleaned a bunch of the kitchen then got slammed with deadlines and poor health so i stopped reading it so i wouldn't feel guilty but it's been nagging at me to get things done. i've been doing small things like cleaning things whilst waiting for the microwave to finish or cleaning the loo cuz a repairman was coming (might need the loo!) etc

but yesterday we both worked on the living room and did some deep cleaning, today we've been working on the kitchen, we'll have to do more tomorrow it was seriously minging and then we shall take her room and work together the next day, then mine working together then the loo again then the hall and stairs another day and i'm sure the lawn will need mowing by then. however once the house gets really clean i shall just have to do my two bouts of 15 minutes of us both cleaning to keep on top of it i think

i've also taken all the extra cutlery, mugs and plates and packed them away so i HAVE to do dishes more regularly! i also bought one of those sponge things on a hollow stick that you put water and washing up liquid in so i can just clean the plates and mugs as we go along and just save up a few days of pans to do a load of washing for. i think that should work better for us. at least with less dishes there is only so much mess i can get in the kitchen :rotfl:

ok back to lurking for awhile, sorry for the novelette, i like to get it all out then get on with it

GreyQueen

rigsby1967 wrote: »

Hi Messies.

I haven't posted for a few days because i have done absolutely nothing :eek: (well apart from keeping the decluttered kitchen clean & tidy).
The animals are getting to me a little at the moment, 1 of the cats has !!!!!! twice on the stairs, 2 of my chooks are bullying another 2 chooks, 1 kitten is poorly so on anti-biotics and is very difficult giving to a 6 week old, the duck is attacking one of the cats and she just stands thier taking it :eek::( But i think the real problem is not the animals but me being PMT :mad::mad:, :rotfl::rotfl:.

GreyQueen I saw your siggy and must ask how on earth you have done without chocolate since the 1st May :A?

Well i hope everyone is having a good day.

Rigs

Trick is, stand in front of the full length mirror in my bedroom and turn sideways.:o Yup, that is NOT a baby bump. Plus my knees and arches hurt so I'm clearly too heavy. I've been giving up chocolate since at least 30 years ago with more failures than I can count. Have been naughty this weekend with cake and ice cream but will be back on the straight and narrow tomorrow.:o There just comes a point when shame motivates you to do something and I hit that point.

soupdragon10

Confuzzled - sounds as though you are taking loads of baby steps, so you shouldn't feel guilty about the cba days (renamed contemplation days as it's when messies look at what they've achieved).

Grey Queen, I found the only way I really got mess cleared (rather than moved around which was my normal trick) was to have a rubbish bin or bag, a recycling bag or bags. Each piece of paper/book/item went into either one of the bins or bags or was put away immediately in its proper place (or in a specific labelled box to go to another room).

It was amazing how just having somewhere to put all the junk mail (rather than throwing it in the bin), meant that I put out 4 bags of recycling paper alone when I did my study. I also now have a designated box to store newspapers upstairs, so they don't hang around.

Best of luck finding your bed.;)

snookey

Grey queen Im trying my best to lose weight as is oh. We have a wi fit which was great until I sprained my foot then I sat on the couch munching rubbish.
I cant seem to get in the cleaning mood which is a pain as Iv still lots of sorting ect to do . Iv done nothing today. House is tidy in the main rooms as oh cleaned them but its the dd room and spare room that really needs sorting.
Ill let you know later if I get the motivation.

cyclingyorkie

helen_jelly wrote: »

Ohhh Wales - we used to go to North Wales when I was little - I loved it and, unbeknown to DH, I plan for us to go there next year - have a lovely time Esther

Well I have cleared [well 95% cleared] the DR table and tidied up the fleabay bits, I also gave the kitchen a bit of a going over but thats it for today

Helen x

I grew up in Manchester and had 6 holidays in Llandudno - I suspect i could find my way around even now!

We got slightly braver after that and did another 5 family holidays in Tenby.....

Did i mention that i love Wales.......

Tidied up the kitchen and have 3 loads blowing on the line. Given that i don't feel too good that will have to do for today...

Hope everyone enjoys the bank holiday...