I have always been at war with Oceania

... where Oceania is the tide of squalor rising about my thighs.

Today I started by clearing the cardboard packing from the wardrobes from the upstairs landing and the children's room. Then I put their books and toys away in their room and then I put away their laundry, helped by some visiting children. I got the rest of Emer's clothes from the old wardrobe and some more of their toys from the old bedroom and put those away.

At some stage I spent ninety minutes straight sorting through mank and yuk in the front room, moving the benches and sweeping behind and under everything. I also sorted boxes of towels and now the children have three big toyboxes under the sofa in their bedroom, so the ones under the living room sofa are gone.

I emptied and refilled the dishwasher twice. I broke a glass and swept it up. I cleared the kitchen floor and fed the cats. I nursed Astrid down to sleep. I found almost all the Cuisenaire rods and fraction blocks. I folded Rob's laundry so it's a much smaller giant pile on the bed, because his wardrobe still isn't ready.

I did a bit of yoga and took my hedmeds.

In with all this boring unrewarding horrible pointless tedious yuk I had a few opportunities for stuff I like, but I don't need to whinge about that. My children are fabulosity itself.

18:20 I put things in the attic from under the loft ladder and I found the missing lens from Rob's glasses. I also sorted laundry for service washes and found more piles of rubbish with which to obscure the upstairs landing.

I really, really want some really, really tall and skinny laundry baskets for colour-sorting laundry. About 40l is enough.