Early Morning Funnies

In the wee hours of the morning our darling son Gremlin woke us, shortly followed by his sister, he decided that he would tell us all about what he learned in Kids Church on Sunday.

Gremlin: Guess what, God fought Goliath
W@dsy: Oh really?
Gremlin: Yeah and He chopped off his head.
W@dsy: Don't you mean David?
Gremlin: Nope, it was God
Chicken: Yeah and then Mummy needs to sticky tape his head back on
Me: ????

Passions

I was talking to a friend the other day about everyone has something we love to do, she loves cooking, W@dsy loves teaching and playing computer games etc.

Then she asked me the big question, what do I like to do?

It stumped me, I actually hadn't really thought about it before.

Sewing was the first thing that came to mind, but now having thought about it a bit more I think that as much as I enjoy sewing, my real passion is helping people. I love being able to do something for someone who needs it whether it be a listening ear, babysitting, or just cooking a meal to make their lives easier. I think that's one of my favourite things about being a stay at home mum, being free to help when needed.

It makes me wonder what Gremlin and Chicken's passions will be.

What's your passion?

A Weight Off My Shoulders

I was so young at eighteen, so naive. It sounded like such a great idea, it was so easy. Just fill out the forms and then you have a safety net. 

Then you realise that it can do so much more. It's okay, you can pay it back later. And you do, for a while. Then it starts to get out of hand and it seems so big, like it's never going to go away. You strive to get everything under control, and you succeed for a while, and then the cycle starts again, and you feel doomed.

Yes, credit cards are evil.

Guess what, mine is now paid off! The relief is amazing. 

I went into the bank to get them to lower the credit limit so we have some still available for emergencies but it can never get so big again.

Am sooo happy.

The Clean Machine

As most of you who know me can attest, I hate cleaning. Let's face it few of us actually enjoy it. The main problem with being a stay at home mum now is that I have to look at my messy house all day, every day.

So after a little while of not working I realised that I had to organise myself or I would go crazy. I did what any modern housewife would do in my situation and whipped out my smart phone and googled "how to clean" and "how to organise." Obviously I found a lot of websites on the subject and spent a little too much time drooling over beautifully organised and labelled cabinets that cost waaaaaay too much for a single income family. I tried a few different cleaning plans but realised that too much structure drives me just as crazy as chaos does! After a lot of trial and error I have learned these things:

• I don't have to do everything at once
• I need to cut myself some slack. I won't have time to enjoy my house if all I do is clean all day
• Take regular breaks
• It's okay to mow half the lawn one day and then the other half the next day, it's a big lawn!
• Even doing the smallest bit of housework is better than doing nothing at all
• If I feel like cleaning out an entire room or cupboard, that's okay too
• My crazy kids enjoy "helping" me clean, so just go with it
• My friends are awesome and listen to me whine about lack of motivation on the phone and encourage me to get off my butt
• It's okay if my house doesn't look magazine perfect, it looks like my family actually live here and enjoy it

Okay, so my methods aren't daily cleaning plans but they are working for me. How do you guys keep up with housework?

PS. After much research on the internet, if you are not sure how to clean something, the answer is probably "use white vinegar"