NST JUST JUNE

apple_muncher

Today I am grateful for dh going and picking up our courtesy car (could've had it on Mon but thought our car was going to be all better by today, so didn't bother, so when it turns out our car won't be sorted until late next week, then it was worth it), for getting the sainz shop all done, for my workouts, for the sunflowers growing, for dd finishing sch for the week, for being allocated a slot to go to sch to have a session with my y10 kiddies (sooo excited to be going to see them!!!).

greent

Today I am super excited about having ordered a dishwasher - and it (fingers crossed!) arriving and being installed next week - ours hasn't worked since Nov....... Also thankful for a flebay sale of some toys of DS2's and poss fbook sale of something of DS3's, a mostly-fun game of cards with all 6 of us after dinner, the weather being dry this evening for a pre-dinner walk, for the refund of our cancelled Summer flights arriving

mothernerd

June Challenge Day 20
Staycation Ideas for Coronavirus
1)   Start a blog
2)   Factor in lots of time for self-care
3)    Have a movie marathon
4)    Declutter your room or house
5)    Learn something new
6)    Go somewhere local (if possible). Alternatively find out about your local area, local history, footpaths and cycleways OR just sit out in your garden or balcony (just sitting by the window people watching is fascinating
7)     Do things you've been putting off
8)    Take time to read more
9)    Go on a health kick (could do a spa day or a 'health farm' day - you can lie on the bed if the 'detox' stuff makes you ill)
10)   Start a business
 (by katie the tourist on pinterest)  (with some additions by me)

I was feeling overwhelmed by all the things 'that need doing' so I've just done a brain dump - 4 and a 1/2 pages of stuff that's bothering me - or is coming into focus as I've been ignoring it whilst doing something more important. So now it's down on paper rather than buzzing around in my head like a swarm of angry wasps. It's not complete, Just the things I can see from this room, next stages in the garden and niggles that I've noticed (bathroom floor, the bit behind the 'front' door between the kitchen and living room doors, edges of doorways, marks on doorframes - a lot of it is from when I come in from the garden, leaving wellies/ boots inside the door etc). So here are 4 ideas on how to proceed.
1)   Have an allocated day for each task
First heard of this used by a poster on another thread. She was running a small business from home and found the only way she could cope was to have set days for doing things - business, housework, cooking and meal planning, paperwork. It didn't mean that no-one got fed on other days but that each day was allocated to a particular activity to concentrate on/ think/ plan/ take action.
2)    Pick one task
Pick one task, put down the list or notebook. Do the task that you have picked. Rest if necessary (it might have been painting a room). Pick another job from the list. You can pick the easiest or quickest (if you aren't feeling strong or well or not like doing anything at all, a few quick wins will give you energy and heart to continue), the one that will save you most money or time (in one of the TED talks I noted last week the speaker used the example of never finding 2 hours to set up automated bill paying but then realised that it would save him half an hour each month so after 4 months he was 'gaining' half an hour per month.
3)   Quartering
Have four sections (the original article suggested putting all the tasks on post it notes). Along the top each task is graded by difficulty (how long or how much hassle it will be - clearing a room or moving furniture up or down stairs is difficult, taking five minutes to put something away isn't) and along the side how important it is (basically how much it bothers you - getting a tax return in on time is important, a drawer that jams each time you try to shut it is a serious niggle, anything that you can continue to ignore indefinitely is not important). If it's only an easy five minute job (or would be if you remembered to put the glue/ thread or other item you need on your shopping list) and it niggles all the time or would massively improve the look of your home or simplify the morning rush, get it done. 
If it's important (needs to be done - anything legally required, house jobs that need tackling before they get worse, makes you feel ill/ despair every time you see it) but a massive hassle, sit and have a think about it. Work out how to cut it down into stages, think of ways you could improve it, effect a temporary repair/ partial solution until you have the time/ energy/ cash to deal with it. If it's a shed or garage that cannot be entered, open the door, grab one box, shut the door, take the box to a place of safety, sort that one box then decide if you want to continue or postpone the next box for another day. I did this with the back bedroom at mum's partner's home - every Friday, for a few hours, for months (room had the old kitchen units, one large wardrobe, two sets of drawers and various sets of shelving, all used to store items and the door would half open. I also worked (for a Keep Britain Tidy project group ironically) where the 'store cupboard' door would only open a few inches when I started. I cleared it and found many valuable resources (we mostly worked out of the office as there were 11 of us and our office was a slice of a former classroom only 4' wide). 
4)   Flat surface rule
Clear it, clean it, put back only what belongs there. 

mothernerd

June Challenge
Organising quotes to brighten your day
Based on the amount of laundry, I'm going to assume there are people living here that I've never seen
Real life is really starting to interfere with me crafting time
The best time to start was last year. Failing that, today will do   (Chris Guillabeau)
And then one day we decided we were tired of sleeping in, doing whatever we wanted in a clean house - so we had kids
Tomorrow - a mystical land where all human productivity, motivation and achievement is stored

mothernerd

I made a huge To Do list today. I just can't figure out who's going to do it.

mothernerd

Going to have breakfast now. Yesterday I planted more broccoli, potatoes (some seed potatoes, some cut off sprouting bits) and cauliflowers. I cleaned two window bottoms, most of the bathroom (still need to do the floor), 1 load of washing (left it out in the rain except for 2 items belonging to mum), fed us using leftovers and stuff cooked the day before.

Had two serious shopping days but have sourced and purchased 2 slimline water butts (cost £1 less than another the same as our existing one and will take up less space - one is going in my polytunnel so I don't have to cart buckets of water around), staples for my staple gun, small tins of outdoor paint to spruce up an old dustbin and any 'tired' old containers, a large roll of plastic mesh to support things that need to grow up fence panels, 6 pollen filters for my CPAP machine (hoping they will send me some after my phone appointment next month but had a minor panic last week when the machine fell over - trying to find a white filter 3 cm x 2 cm on a white sheet isn't easy), 2 cans of spray to protect the couch and armchairs once I've cleaned them, bulk pack of mealworms for my birds (Tessimo could only send 100g and Wilco removed them for my trolley as unavailable) and various other things I can use. Was tempted by tree stakes and 20 pack of bamboo canes but resisted. 

Audiology dept are going to send some batteries for mum ('s hearing aid - batteries for mum would be excellent idea) but would like to change the tubes if we can arrange for someone to take the hearing aids in and return after 16 minutes to collect them. Have counted that we have enough batteries for one month so will ask people. One refusal - regular hearing aid worker who talked mum out of this as 'they usually measure them'. Subsequent talk with mum on why they are unable to do 'the usual' and do not have any idea when they will be able to - when they can do appointments again they will have to deal with'urgent' cases - people for whom surgery or therapy could possibly save their hearing. I thought cutting new tubes to the same size and shape as the existing ones was very good. We might be getting photos of the new baby tracked the grandmother on bookface and sent her mum's email (set up by me, not taught mum how to do email yet)

Today I am eating my way through a mountain of toast and will then look at my list, may get outside for a bit before the sun gets too hot and I have many veg to prepare if there's a decent film to watch (varying standing and sitting down jobs).

I am grateful for finding a lot of the things on my 'wanted' list or equivalent/ alternative, for having enough food ( a bit glut or famine on which items get delivered but first world problem), being adaptable and resilient (spirits starting to rise again), for delivery people and everyone helping to get us in through this crisis (especially the qualified early student nurses who've just had their 6 month contracts halted after receiving just one month's pay), for getting things planted yesterday even though I really really didn't want to go out (told myself if I dug planting holes, I could come in if it rained and they would be ready for the plants), for the brain dump giving me clarity.

ditty1234

Just had a quick read, so many lovely projects and strategies for getting things done - here I am absolutely not rally doing anything! Although grateful for 7lb shifted, and fitting into more of my clothes,  muffin top gone from st4rbuck size to £land size ! I planted lots of things in my garden earlier in the year, but now all the peas and other things are going brown around the edges and full of black fly - have sprayed w dish soap. Also my grape wines are happily growing but not a grape in sight. 
So more decluttering to do today and a little nap. Have a lovely weekend. 

Toni'sfriend

NSD No 15

Hot here so we are having a quiet day and a fake away kung po chicken for dinner.

Hope to be a bit more productive tomorrow.

f0xh0les

I have been busy hoovering and stripping and remaking beds.  I potted on my chili plants and repotted some houseplants I bought as they were £5 for  3 plants in a large ceramic pot (proper price £15), I was going in for one of the plants anyway (£5 each) and some pots, so I bought 3, and then had spare 'other plants' so potted them on and they will either die or not. I think one of them is some tiny midget peace lily type affair, and the other one just looks like it should still be in the 1970s on a doily -a bit begonia-like leafwise, but the flower is almost polyanthusy.   Anyway, they are hideous and awful and I laugh everytime I see them on the mantle in the back room. 

Finished another book -I read until 3am  and got up at 8. Laundered nearly all the sheets before rain stopped play, but it is supposed to be dry here from 10am tomorrow, so the rest can go out then.

My filo was mouldy!! So spanakopita was off the menu suddenly, and  I quickly made a toad in the 'ole instead, and tomorrow will have to be spinach fatayers (the drained spinach is in the fridge), and a store cupboard biryani for supper. 

I am cleaning the bathrooms and hoovering and tidying the ground floor tomorrow, and making chocolate dipped hazelnut shortbread biscuits for Fathers' Day for the father in the house.

Chillin' out until the school run starts again on Monday (I have not missed it) by starting another book and watching the football.  Next week we are supposed to hit the 30's (heat, not the 1930s .........although some possible similarities economically) and I am dreading it. 

apple_muncher

Today I am grateful for it being the weekend and not having to set an alarm, for doing some of my workout outside on the grass, for a wander with dd this morning, for getting an eye test for dd for this afternoon, for lists.