Oh What a Day!

Today was one of those where all of a sudden, everything in the house must be cleaned, moved and just generally assessed. Anyone who has stepped foot inside my house lately will be able to tell you that it was well and truly over due.

Given the mammoth task it is not surprising to say that there is still plenty for me to finish tomorrow. It was one of those projects where every step led to another five things to do. The end result though is certainly well worth it all though.

The new layout not only feels more spacious but also easier to manage. We have removed a number of common dumping grounds. Hopefully this will curb the tendency to dump. Some members of the household have a terrible habit of just leaving things where they were last used. The concept of actually returning an item to it's 'home' or where it belongs is at times too great to be grasped.

But enough on the awesomeness of my homes new layout. There are so many other things I want to share in the post. Like the amazing dinner I threw together (without having to go to the shops) I just love it when dinner can be done without purchasing a single item. I have been so busy today that the greatest distance I have been from the house was to take the rubbish out. I must also say that this point greatly delights me. I find something very comforting to know that I have not had to venture outside my own little bubble.

So all in all things look like they are on the up. I am somewhat in control of the house, my writing has gradually increased and I am slowly becoming more active. My new Ion Energy bracelet thing seems to be doing just fine so far.

Photo credits can be found here

And Breathe

2...3...4... and in 2...3...4 and

There a certain times today when that little mantra, as such, has run through my head. The circumstances surrounding my breathing and counting has varied greatly. In fact I am almost amazed at how many different situations can use the assistance of breathing and counting.

For example at the shops when children wanted to drag me in different directions rather than scream and twitch I simply took a deep breath and counted to ten, sometimes the tens were rather quick succession but I did not growl or let my temper get the better of me. I managed to restrict my raging urge to a stern sharp voice.

When I was running to the shops and back as part of my 1km time trial, my gasps of breathes, in between my huffing and puffing, were alternated with a run, 1, 2, run, 1, 2, as much as possible. To give me extra inspiration I threw in the odd 'I am awesome' chant. In case you are interested I took 9 minutes. I figure at least that should be easy to improve on. Should being the operative word. I am not exactly a master at pushing myself but that is a whole separate post.

Back to the breathing...

(Big breath in and straighten of shoulders with further breathes to try and regain focus) (Which appears to now be gone completely) :(

...

... ...

... ... ...

Nope still nothing... I am sure that is because of the awful music that the radio is playing at the moment. It is some techno boppy thing that just does my head in. If my posterior was not glued to this oh so comfy chair or my thunder thighs not achey when I walked I would perhaps go and turn it off or change the station. Since that is not the case though I will suffer, just not silently.

Seriously though I do find that some music will aid in my writing more than others. I have in fact a folder on my iTunes that is labeled possible writing songs. Though the fact that music can alter moods and affect situations is not exactly a ground breaking statement. If by chance you are interested in finding out more check here

(Another short sigh to contemplate what to write next) Which actually turned out to be nothing

Get Rhythm

Whenever I am feeling a bit down and out I tend to find comfort in some good old fashioned country songs. I am not really sure where this stems from. Possibly my father, he was a bit of a country, blues and rocking kind of guy and I know my mother likes the odd Johnny Cash song as well. I can't ever really recall listening to a whole lot of music as a child though.

I can remember the odd occasion when we would put an LP on to do the housework and I can remember spending hours reading all the song titles from the Kenny Rogers collection but that is about it, well aside from the parties. I have very fond memories of my parents parties. They would put the speakers in the windows that faced the front yard and we would just rock out. There were always a few other kids my age there as well and we would run and dance and just generally have a good time.

We never listened to much Johnny Cash back then but he is now one of my all time favourites and whenever I feel a bit low he is who I turn to. When I started this post I had intended to put a youtube video of one of his songs but instead I will leave you with this link to an early demo version of Get Rhythm

Uh oh

After nearly 18 months, perhaps even longer the mathematical side of my brain is not exactly in top gear at the moment, I think my body may be getting ready for the lovely (not) monthly red visitor. Some may call it Aunty Flow, Charlie, that time, but to me it is just a down right pain and one that I have not missed. Though I must say I don't use the word pain in terms of actual pain, I (touch wood) have not ever really to be one that gets terrible cramps or any of the other awful side effects that many women suffer from. I just find it a huge inconvenience.

So what has led me this conclusion?

Well for starters I can feel my hormones raging a battle against each other which resembles something similar to WWIII. As a result of this internal feud I have been in a bit, ok a rather bad, mood. The last two days have seen me yell and scream like a possessed fisher monger's wife. Which I think I actually prefer to the blubbering mess that I am today.

(Deep long sigh)

Anyway my house is more than a shambles, I can't even think of an appropriate word to describe just how disheveled the place looks. The washing is piled up almost to the ceiling, actually there are two mountainous piles. One waiting to be folded and one waiting to be washed and then folded. Arrggghh. It is like a never ending battle. One that I don't even feel close to winning and that is before I start on the dishes and just general tidying.

(another deep long sigh)

Some days it is just all too hard.

Feeling Obliged

That is why I am here right now. I feel obliged to. I had actually sat down to put some music on but then that turned to checking mail which in turn led to ducking into FB for a quick squiz. Socialising in the flesh might not be something I relish but when it comes to an online community I like to check it all out. I guess it is the invisibility that I find appealing. Or at least the perceived invisibility...

Ok well that didn't last long. DD3 decided that she was actually not going to have a sleep now after all. The phone ringing twice probably has something to do with that. As it turned out the phone was little more than a waste of time. The person trying to call me had a very poor connection which dropped out as soon as I answered. So all in all my tranquil writing conducive conditions are now well and truly dispersed. Grrrrr....

Even if I was only here because I was feeling obliged to I did have some really good stuff to share, well at least I think I did. Perhaps it will come back to me. In the meantime you should check out this blog I aspire to this level (though obviously without the drawings as I know that is not something in my artistic repertoire) I have heard that this author actually now makes her living out of new writing and that is what I would love to do as well

Time

It is something that I am constantly thinking about.

Apparently it is great for people to have time to oneself. Personally I am not sure I am sold on the notion. But perhaps that is just because as a mother alone time is something of a stranger to me.

Anyway this afternoon was deemed as free time. Only it didn't really go as I imagine free time should. I guess it is all about how you define free time. On this point the whole house is at a loss. When I heard that it was free time I thought oh goody I could do some writing.

Instead I ended up giving the girls a manicure, which I must say was great. I had planned to give myself a bit of a pedicure as well but I got bored and lost interest and only managed to take the incredibly chipped and nearly 2 month old blue stuff off.

Right now the children are all gathering round demanding attention and while it may sound terrible I just want to scream leave me alone, just for two minutes please leave me alone.

Instead I will leave you with this terrible post and hope for my time to do a new one soon.

You want me?

Earlier today I received a very flattering email. It has made me smile everytime I think of it.

Wanna know what it said?? Keep on reading

Well my dear friend and fellow mummy blogger Nicole over at Highlights to Housework has asked me to do a guest post on her blog.

Given the recent disasters to hit the eastern coast of Australia, she thought it might be nice if she got a few women to share what they were grateful for. My post can be found here

Yuck!

Grrr!

Stupid Blogger. I wanted to put a picture in of how awful my blog looks but for some reason Blogger wants to put this one first. Which clearly is not awful as it is the new Rambles look for a bit. Scroll down to see the atrocity I was faced with the other day.

Here is a screen grab of the awful layout and colours that I refer to in the next post. OMG! What an earth was I thinking????

Wow

Okay so I just stopped by to check out how I left things and OMG! It is worse than terrible.

As I sat here watching the pictures load, the image that appeared before me was one of terror and disbelief. I was so shocked by what I saw I was compelled to start writing. (Which ok is not such a bad thing)

Anyways I must admit that I knew to expect something terrible but it was just the level of terrible that really surprised me. Actually I am not sure that terrible even really describes the gut turning bile I witnessed... (runs of to find thesaurus)...

There is so much going on in the world at the moment. Currently one of the spotlights is on South Eastern Queensland, Australia. They are experiencing the worst floods since 1974. As I am writing this I suddenly realise that this is also the same year that Darwin had a visit from Tracy.

Now other than a topic of conversation the floods thankfully are not near me and as yet I haven't heard of too many people who know someone personally affected. Time of course will change that. The disaster is still in the making and there is much yet to unfold. Thanks (or possibly not) to modern communication we are able to practically watch the event take place.

My heart and prayers to all who will in one way or another be touched by this tragic time. May the casualties be as few as possible and the loss as little as can be.

2011 The Year of Trying

So welcome to the New Year. (A bit late I know but hey better than never) With DD1 away I am on something of an auto pilot at the moment. It is just easier that way. After all life must go on and all that. Perhaps why the meet and greet group has been such a good idea?

As you may recall I have been stepping outside old boundaries and trying something new. Now I know that the rest of the world has been out meeting people for quite some time but it has not been a regular part of. I look back to my early twenties and I wonder how I ever got by. I mean every day I was out there, in public meeting people talking to all sorts of different characters and apparently loved it. Quite frankly at this point in my life I could not think of anything worse, hence why I am a SAHM (with strong focus on the SAH aspect)

So my first two attempts at this new way of life have proved to be quite sucessful. So far all the people have been incredibly lovely and it has been nothing but a positive experience for me. In fact it has been so positive that I have a further two bookings made for the coming week and I am even considering extending this. However I am cautious not to over extend myself so I will probably refrain.

Other things I am going to try this year include, regular cleaning (I should clarify that regular actually means daily), regular exercise (again daily), and a heap of other fads that will apparently in the end make me feel like a better person. That is not to say I don't currently hold a positive self worth but it is important (or so I've been told) to always strive to improve oneself, at least in some small way.

So far my trying has really just been limited to the meeting people. Small steps. It is only early on in the year, I still have a further three hundred and fifty odd days in which to try. Initially I was going to set myself a minimum of one thing a day to try. However once I started to think about it all I realised that one a day is just not enough. Which poses a problem. You see one a day I think I could actually manage any more could be overwhelming and I don't want to set myself up for failure. I guess perhaps I am just going to have to try harder

So far so good

Well the whole walking and meeting new people went really well. The rain held off, while the black clouds prevented not just the sun's burning rays from coming through but held back a great deal of heat as well. We walked for around an hour and a half, covering nearly 5kms. Just enjoying the beautiful views and wonderful company. There was something quite relaxing aout just chatting with a stranger. I guess it is because you know it won't have to go to deep. It is like a first date where you can wet your toes before diving in.

To really top the morning pleasantries right off we managed to prevent any major children upsets or injuries.

This has left me with a rather good feeling about the meet and greet tomorrow. The only destructive factor is the weather. Which of course is beyond control. I must say though that I am fairly confident that mother nature will play along. After all it is for a good cause.

Trying something new

Now for some reason, whenever I tell this to people in the real world they always seem surprised, but the thing is, I am not really all that big on people. I mean I don't feel the need to have a lot of human interaction. Well at least not outside my little comfort bubble group (which is pretty much just my kids, mum, brother, sister and of course hubs)

Apparently, or so I am told, I am a real people person, what ever that means.

Anyway why am I telling you all this?

Tomorrow I am going to step right outside my little bubble world. I am going to meet a stranger. Yep that's right you heard me a stranger, someone new and unknown. I have a blind walking date with a woman I met over the Internet through a virtual mutual Facebook friend. Even better on Saturday I will meet a whole group of them all at once. Talk about jumping in the deep end!

Why the sudden turn around I hear you ask?

Well I am not really sure. Something just keeps telling me it is the right thing to do. According to Hugh in About a Boy, "no man is an island" Actually now that I think about it I don't think he did ever say it but if you have seen the movie you will know what I mean and if you haven't seen it well maybe you should :)

Ok, taking a rather right turn right about now I am in a quandary.

I just went to look for a link to firstly Hugh and then About a Boy. Finding the link to Hugh was particularly easy as Wiki is a somewhat perfect source. However I did find it rather disturbing to learn that my much loved actor crush is actually heading towards the ripe old age of 51. The startling disturbing notion here is that for me to not see that as old means I, myself must also be aging and that is not something I am ready to part with just yet. I mean I am sort of ok about aging, I mean I still look fairly youthful despite the old silver strand here and there but only if you look really really hard.

So once the realisation of having a crush on a fifty fella passed I went looking for a link to the movie. After all the movie was made some 8 years ago now so if my crush remains on that character it is much easy to accept any age gap. Anyway rather than find a link to the movie I stumbled across a page of quotes. I had forgotten just how many lines really hit home to me in that movie (hence my deep affection for it) Only as it has been a while since I actually last watched it and I am amazed at how much I managed to muck up the usage of my quote. Oh well, live and learn hey?

So rather than a post about my trepidation regarding the forging of new friendships I give to you the strongest of recommendations to go and watch About a Boy

Packing

Phew! Christmas is done and dusted for another year. In fact in just a few short days there will be a whole new year ready to begin. I am constantly amazed by the speed of time. It seems like it was only yesterday I was bringing her home from the hospital...yet reality is that it is now over nine years later and I am packing her up ready to visit her biological father for her first solo visit in many years.

(Deep sigh with lots of tension)

Anyway...

As always my desire to write is at it's greatest when writing is the least practical thing in the world for me to be doing. In this instance I should actually be packing for the afore mentioned trip or perhaps even sleeping before departure. As my husband just pointed out (in a rather loud tone) In under six hours you will need to be at the airport with packed bags.

Darling daughter number one will be away for around 2 weeks. I will be accompanying her for the first plane ride and then bio dad will collect her and take her for the rest of the journey. I will then spend a night in a lovely serviced apartment and return home. All up I am gone for around two and half days. Darling daughter number three will also come along for the ride.

This means of course that darling daughter number two and hubs will be hanging at home for a few days. Which is nice for them. And apparently me.

People keep saying "oh what a nice break for you" guess what? I don't think so. I didn't have children to have a break from them. I like having my kids around. I like the noise and chaos that it can at times entail. Ok maybe not all of it but certainly a lot of it. When they are not with me I tend to spend time wondering what they are doing.

(Another deep sigh...not so tense this time)

I really wish I could find a better way to communicate my sighs to you. I feel that they help set the tone for what I want to say.

Righto guess I better get back to the packing then...see you in a few days

Three days and counting

I just love Christmas! From the food to the decorations, to the joy and the bringing of people together. It is all just wonderful. Of course the presents make it pretty special as well.

Now I know that it is not always very PC to associate presents and Christmas but go see my mother. She was the one that would continually make each Christmas better than the last. She had much the same effect on birthday's as well. I say had not because mum is no longer with us but because I these memories come from my childhood rather than as a connection to now. I still love my mother dearly but I have reached a point in my life where there are people other than her who can affect my reactions to events and situations.

Anyway to be truthful I am writing this post well after Christmas and all that it brought with it. Today is Saturday 5th March 2011. I am tidying up my blog as it is considerably easier than tidying up the house. Blog tidying involves sitting while house tidying requires actual energy and effort.

As it turned out Christmas was quiet lovely. We had lunch in the Ballroom at Sky City Casino which did cost an arm and a leg was also worth every cent. The buffet was full of choice. There was seafood, roasts, salads, vegetables, fish and more. A beer and wine package was included but was not really used at our table. I understand why there is not an open slather tab on spirits and hard liquor but I do think that each person should get one or two.

This year Christmas was definitely not about the presents which warmed my heart greatly. The girls and I tried making presents (as always) but the success rate was low (as always) I thought that basket weaving and clay figures would have been lovely gifts but it turned out to be trickier than I had envisaged.

Photo credits can be found here

A world of rules

Rules. Can't live with 'em, can't live without 'em.

Personally they are something I struggle with. I am not a big believer in always following the rules. I understand that they have a place and they are there for a reason but at the same time I can always see exceptions.

However I get incredibly frustrated when my rules so to speak get broken. For example when darling daughter number one decides to not come home at the set time. While you could argue that this is not really a rule I see there as being little difference.

Essentially in my role of mother I can be seen as the office manager and as such I need to ensure that all employees are working to their best ability. This means I am also responsible for assignment designation and regular productivity. Naturally none of this can be possible with out some sort of schedule and time line. Therefore when I say please come home at half past three I mean please be home at half past three not three hours later.

At the end of the day there is a part of me that says don't worry about it, it is not worth the battle. After all she is only next door and there is nothing stopping me from going and getting her. It is not even as if she is missing out on something or stopping us from doing something. It is a rainy Saturday afternoon. It is just the principle of the matter. I said something and she should listen and respond appropriately.

Oh what to do?