NYE

31 December 2015

Ok it is New Years Eve and you can feel the expectation mounting, all of the changes that are going to be made.  The build up to the party, finding somebody to kiss at the stroke of midnight, the hope that you are standing by a policeman at midnight so you can plant a kiss on them ( it is supposed to be good luck to kiss a copper at NYE).
This year I am going to top all of that, the family and I are going out for fish and chips at the beach and then will be home tucked up in bed by 9:30, now you may say that is a pretty sad NYE but master 9 and miss10 don't cope with staying up after 8pm, I don't drink - two drinks is my limit, hubby and I  can't stay awake till midnight anymore - we require a full 8 hours of sleep otherwise we are wrecked the next day.
I am spending it with the people I love and that trumps any party, drinking session and policeman any day, for those who are working on NYE thankyou for giving up your chance to be spending it with the ones you love to look after us, thankyou for keeping us safe.  To all of the military personnel who are deployed, have just been deployed may you stay safe and enjoy your NYE celebrations wherever you are and however you do it.

I have a short shift today which is good, because I would like to be home early so that I can come home and take a breath.  This year has been a whirlwind of changes and while I have enjoyed everything that has come with it it is time to just top and take a breath.  So once I have done that it will be back into it in a big way and I am relishing the challenge, I have told you of my goals for the New Year, I even bought a goal journal so that I can write down what I want to achieve and how I am going to achieve them.  I fully believe that if it is written down that I am held accountable and it will happen, yes goals change which is why I write them in pencil - it also means that I can re-use the book because I just have to rub out the goals from the year before.

ok I must go to work, talk to you in the new year xxx

Back to work

30 December 2015

Well it was back to work for me yesterday, and it was 37c and humid.  I think I had drunk half a litre of water before 11am, then the weather turned and it cooled down to 27.  That is good because you were not sweating but then it started to get warm again so that we had to put the aircon on last night.
I think it is going to be another warm one today but don't think it is going to be as warm as the ones we have had - we have had days of 38,41,37 and 39.  There have been many power outages because of the heat ( the use of aircon), trains have been stopped ( because the tracks have warped).

So we are not far from New Year and I have to admit I will be happy to see 2015 behind me, we have faced many challenges and I am ready for a new start. I have started making some changes already - they say it takes28 days to make a new habit so I am getting a start early, for 2016 I plan on being more organised, cook and bake more, be around more for the kids because lets face it they are not going to stay young forever.  So as a consequence of that I am going to be asking for time off from Tupperware so that I can be home for the kids and as yet I have not decided if I am going to go back. Don't get me wrong I love the product and believe whole heartedly in it I have just have lost the energy for going out and doing parties, I think this has been a progressive event and I am not surprised to be honest because I just don't have the energy after work and on the weekends I am so busy with the kids.

Not quite a New Year but a new start.

26 December 2015

Hello I hope you had a great Christmas, we have just come out of our food,present and visitor coma and I am starting to feel ok.
I am glad yesterday wasn't hot because I don't think I could have survived you see master 9 was jumping up and down beside our bed at 5:30 in the morning telling us that it is time to get up, its Christmas,its Christmas.
By the time we left to go to lunch ( its is a 1.5 hour drive), I was on my third coffee and feeling a bit tired, I didn't eat to much at lunch this year and lunch and desert were cleaned up fairly quickly before we had to leave.


Ok I am now going to share with you something I don't share ( other than my immediate family know), my daughter has a condition which means she still has "accidents", her tummy will be all bloated to the point where she will throw up because there is no room in there for food.  When she is at her worst she will be angry, moody and she will even throw up because the food has nowhere to go.  She has to be constantly reminded to go to the toilet which is met with anger and us being told that she doesn't need to go and she can't smell it because she is so used to it.
Some days I just want to go and cry because  I am tired of dealing with it and don't know what to do, I blame myself because I am the one who is responsible for the food that is eaten and mostly I blame myself because I should have been able to prevent this and should have seen it happening.  I have done the getting angry,bribing her to go to the toilet, medication, a hospital visit to get flushed out, telling her that she smells, been brutally honest with her.
 
Today I decided that I have to be at the table to make the changes, today is the day we go forward and get rid of this once and for all.  This means that I go back to cooking decent meals, I make their snacks for school and for home doing cooked breakfasts in the morning, and more importantly limiting the amount of junk food and soft drink ( soda) they drink.   So I will be going back to planning a menu for the fortnight, and yes there will be some nights where left-overs are eaten or they may be turned into bubble and squeek.  I am going to have to learn how to be a bit more frugal and make the food budget stretch a bit further. No I may be slightly taking this a bit to far but it is time to get back to basics and be a bit more engaged with what my family are eating and what chemicals they are putting in their mouths, I am not going to the extent of no sugar because I don't think that is entirely realistic and it would be to hard to control.  So it will be bringing out the cook books ( Betty Crocker, CWA cook book, Good House keeping) and doing things from scratch.  I am also going to try some of the "cleaning" products - bicarb soda, vinegar, Eucalyptus oil and see how much that reduces my grocery bill.

As a mother,wife it is my responsibility to look after my family, now I can hear you all say it is not 1950, you don't have to be a slave to your family, well I am sorry to say but the pendulum has swung and I am adopting a great deal of things that the housewife of the 1950's did.
Not only will I be doing a great deal more cooking and baking but I am going to start learning to sew, knit, crochet because lets face it all of these things are dying arts and well I am going to join the movement and help bring them back.  Things that my Mum and Grand-mothers taught me, so as you can see by the title I am not waiting for the New Year to come I am going to start doing this now.

GSD Day

24 December 2015

Its Christmas Eve, and well you can feel the the energy in the air, I will be checking in with  NORAD soon to give the kids a countdown on when Father Christmas leaves and so that we can start tracking him, might even see if we can skype.

It is a GSD day today, before you ask I will tell you GSD is Get Stuff Done Day, so we have been busy in the Smart household getting stuff done and well I am just about done with the stuff that I had planned to do.  I will be looking forward to sitting down tonight and having a rest - but it would probably be better if I did the ironing and got ready for tomorrow.  The presents have been loaded into their carrying device, the portable fridge is in the back of the car, car has been filled up with fuel.  The last minute bits and pieces have been taken care of - I think, but I am sure something will crop up that I need after the shops are shut!!!.


Today is so much cooler than yesterday, it got to 41c yesterday and was 25c overnight - I don't think the aircon went off from Tuesday.  I am glad it is going to be cooler on Christmas Day because a stinkin hot Christmas is not fun but this weather changes are affecting master 9 and hubby's asthma and well the last place I want to be on Christmas Day is in ED.  Speaking of hospital spare a thought on Christmas for all of those people who have to work Christmas Day it must be hard being away from family and friends, we usually make biscuits for the police, firemen, ambo's and to have in ED but this year I didn't get there and it is one tradition I don't like having missed.

Ok I will chat to you after Christmas, so whatever you are doing and wherever you are Merry Christmas to all, and to all a goodnight. xxxxxx

Christmas is just around the corner

22 December 2015

Well the slide towards Christmas is gaining momentum, while I am in utter disbelief that it is three days way miss 10 and master 9 are just jumping out of their skins in excitement and are discussing if they can open their presents early before we go to my Mother In-Laws house for lunch and how early they can get up.  I am going to be taking Patterson for a walk before we go so there will be no present opening before I have done that.
I think the kids should have to make their beds before presents because otherwise there will be know way that any jobs will be done after presents have been opened but I will cave and let them open them before anything gets done - they know that I am a soft touch.

Yesterday we went on the Amazing Swan Valley Chase, and just between you and me I had a great time.  We did do a couple of stops - to a winery,chocolate factory and to a ice-cream shop, so it probably took us a bit longer to complete but we had a great time.  Miss 10 and Master 9 were very tired last night and in bed early.
We went to places that I didn't even know were there, and we got to see some great scenery, spend time together and we never left Perth and was only 20 minutes away from where we lived.  I did walk away with a couple of bottles of chocolate liqueurs and let me tell you I am having a hard time which bottle to open first!!!

Today is a big cleaning day, I want to get it all done so that Christmas day I don't have anything to do but get my coffee in the morning.  The best part of getting everything done in one day is that it is over and done with the bad thing is it is 8am the aircon is on and it is going to be 38C today. I think the forecast for Christmas Day has changed to being hot, it was going to be spring day temps last week.

I am now starting to procrastinate about the house work and that is not a good sign - I can't be defeated before I start!!!!.  So the only thing for it is to put on some music and get started, all I need to figure out is what sort of music to play and what to start with.............hmmm this is going to require another cup of coffee.

Soooo Tired

17 December 2015

I had my final Christmas Party last night and I left early - the others kicked on as I was leaving and I am soo tired.   For me late nights during the week are a disaster because I am up at 6am getting ready for work and getting the kids ready for school.  Speaking of school, today is the last day of the year and then it is 6 weeks of holidays for the kids.   I finish tomorrow and get just over a week off, hubby finishes today and gets just over 2 weeks off - oh to be a kid again with the long summer holidays, your biggest concern was what was for lunch and dinner and if you would be able to squeeze it in between playing with lego and playing under the sprinkler.
I actually said to hubby this morning as we dragged ourselves out of bed was the thing I was looking forward to the most on my days off was getting a sleep-in, now I know that is not going to happen but the thought of it is soo nice.  Maybe I could try playing with Lego, and under the sprinkler and get somebody else to worry about the adult stuff for that day and in saying that I am going to get myself another cup of coffee ( kids aren't allowed to drink coffee which makes it taste sooo much better!!!!!!!)

Ok I am back, did you miss me???

So on my time off I am going to be able to get this house organised and decluttered, I am really looking forward to it.  Now coming from me that is a really big earth shattering statement, I will be able to take my time and not have to rush through it. I have started forming plans of what I am going to do and how to do it.  The first room I am going to start with is the Master Bathroom, while it only has a small cupboard I am sure there is going to be a better way of using the space, then it is on to the master bedroom there has to be a better way of using the space. I will be posting updates and I will post before and after photos.

ok I have to go to work and get the kids off to school, chat soon xxx

Its starting to to feel like Christmas

15 December 2015

It is starting to feel like Christmas, it is warming up here in Western Australia and I am somewhat glad because it has been a cooler than normal start to the festive season. The Christmas temps have been published and it is going to be a very pleasant 33 centigrade so not to hot which will be great.  It will be warm enough to have the aircon going but not hot enough that it just gives up and burns out.
I am lucky that I am not over a hot stove or oven for Christmas lunch, for us we have a mix of hot and cold food - the meat is hot and it is cooked in the webber so the house doesn't heat up, I often wonder what it would be like to sit down to a hot meal at Christmas lunch and then have the Christmas pudding then I realise where I am and thank goodness for aircon because you try and park under the vents so you get this nice cool air wafting over you.

We are one Christmas party down 4 to go, the kids are having one at school on seperate days so I am going to be spending tonight doing some cooking for it, then I have another one on Wednesday night - the dress code is little black dress and I hate to say I don't own one.  I do however own a black dress that has blue with it will that count? I am not going to go and get the dress to wear for one night and I can be pretty sure I wouldn't find one this late in the game anyway.  My hubby's Christmas Party is on the 23rd - no partners allowed this year, I can understand why they do that but it would be nice to see some of the people he spends a heap of time with during the week.

I am counting the days till get to go on my holidays - it is a massive3 days away and I don't go back to work till the 29th.  I guess with Christmas day, Boxing day and the public holidays in between it stretches my break out then I have two days of work and a day off.  As a SAHM I never took much notice of Public Holiday's because it was never a day off for me but now oh I am loving it.

Home Management Binder

14 December 2015


I have finished my binder, it has been streamlined, tweaked and it is working well so far but there is always room for improvement.
I used a couple of binders I had at home so it cost me very little to do ( which is good this close to Christmas) and here are the people who kindly put up their printable on the web for us to use

alainaann.com ( recipe section cover)

lifeyourway.net ( Children's wardrobe checklist,calendar,symptom/medicine tracker)

household management 101.com ( cleaning checklists,Christmas budgeting form,Christmas card list)

the organizedhome.com ( Birthday party guest list)

Now all I need to do is make sure it is in a spot so that the kids and Hubby know where it is and are able to use it.

All my visitors are gone thank goodness, I love seeing them but I have become very bad at having people spend time in my home.  I feel like they are judging me actually I know they are.  Yes they say they are here to see me and the family but what they are really saying is we are here to see you and we are going to talk about how the house isn't tidy and there just happens to be a slap up meal that has had no thought put into it.  Ok the meal I will stick my hand up and say yes to because generally I can't be assed to cook but I don't need to be criticised for it.  I didn't wait on anybody, consider my house a self serve  or you don't eat.  I tried to have time off yesterday but I ended up doing stuff and being exhausted at the end of the day, it is the same with Saturday I tried to have time off but that didn't work out too well being that I had to brave the shops twice.

So I have finished work early and I am going to be doing some cooking for tonight as I have to take something to a Christmas party.  I am trying not to go over board and I am only going to use what I have here in the pantry.  It is either going to work out well or really bad and at the minute I am laying bets on the fact that it will turn out bad!!!!!!

Colouring Books

13 December 2015

I went and finished the Christmas shopping yesterday, well when I say I did it was a family effort and well I am putting it out there,,, next year I am doing it all on line so that I don't have to deal with the hoards of people which I have narrowed down to the following three categories A: The exasperated parent - we are trying to find that perfect present because if we don't there will be hell to pay.  B: Kids - they have been dragged from store to store they are tired,hungry,bored,my feet hurt, when can we go home and on the verge of tears. C:  I have left the shopping to the last minute and I am trying to get through the whole two families without slapping somebody in the shops because I am sooo stressed and if you get in my way I will mow you down with my shopping cart.
Now in yesterday's case I was two of these and so I bought myself two colouring books, now my kids have great amusement in the fact that I sat and coloured yesterday afternoon after I had been to the shops again to carry out C, because the presents I had bought were not age appropriate, the silver lining to that is they are going to get donated to charity so that some children are going to have presents to open on Christmas Day.

So last night while watch TV I was knitting and colouring and came to the realisation that we are now no longer in ratings season so the people that control what program goes on TV can put any rubbish on and get away with it.  I know it is Christmas time and we need to have some christmas movies ( my personal favs are White Christmas and Miracle on 34 Street the remake though I hear the black and white version is pretty good, and there has to be others but I just can't think of them at the minute) but really the ones we have had of late are really bad.

Ok so that is my Christmas whinge over and done with and it feels good to get it off my chest, now if I only had milk I could make myself a cup of coffee.

One visitor gone and the other one is descending tonight, which is really inconvenient considering I still have to go to work tomorrow and the kids are going to school.  I did consider saying that we are not going to be home , but I need a decent why we are not going to be home and well I wasn't quick enough to come up with one.  Which means I will be back at the shops to buy in extra food and will once again come face to face with the hoard of people, is it rude to serve cereal up for dinner?

Family

11 December 2015

So I have some family members descending on me this weekend, one expects the house to be in showroom condition the other will expect me to wait on them hand and foot. I do love my family and I do enjoy seeing them I just don't want them at my house giving me a critic and to become the servant because I have nothing better to do.  I guess it is a common complaint that family bug you and you put up with it because well they are family.  I am not able to say that you have made me feel inadequate, miserable and wanting to move to another country so I don't have to deal with you. Which is why I have been up for a hour already and it is only 6:20 am and I still have to put in a day's work - I am going to be worn out before I even get there.  The worst part of this I am not able to go and do my usual Friday night thing because I am going to have people here, but I guess I can always change it to Saturday night.
So before I go to work I have to peg out some more washing, I don't understand where it all comes from, the kids wear a uniform to school, I wear a uniform ( of sorts) and my husband is the only one who is able to wear what he pleases.

This is going to be a quick chat because I do have to get on and get this house in show room condition ( I bet you can see the eye rolling and me beating my head against the wall huh!!!!) ok will chat to you tomorrow or later tonight after I have got rid rid of one lot of guests

Noodles xxxxx

A week and a bit

9 December 2015

Yesterday I received a letter from my workplace and when my son had bought in the mail it was given to me.  He then asked if I had been fired to which I replied No, then it was have you been promoted to which I again replied No, he then asked if I had quit to which I once again replied No.  After going through all of that I asked what is going on and why he doesn't want me at work - his response was "I don't get to see you anymore and I want you to do Tupperware full-time so that I get to see you", again today after I had picked him up after school he asked if I had quit because he doesn't want me working because he never gets to see me. I don't think he understands that if I stop working all of the little extras that get bought well they are not going to be happening, I would love to stay hoe but I like working I feel like I am contributing to society and I am valued.  If you are a stay at home Mum you are not valued by society because you don't earn a income and that is what makes me sad.


In a week and a bit I am holidays YAY,  when I applied for leave it seemed so far away and now it is soo close I can almost touch it.  Thing I am looking forward to the most is being able to spend time with the kids and Hubby, to be able to chill, might even be able to get some Christmas snack cooking done. I can't believe that the year is almost at an end it seems to go by faster and faster the older I get
the rounds of Christmas parties will soon begin and then before we know it Christmas, Boxing Day and New Year will be upon us.  Then we start sliding towards Australia Day then the kids are back at school - I keep looking for the pause button just so I can stop and catch my breath but I can't find it, if anybody knows where it is please let me know.

Noodles xxxx

Kids and the internet

8/12/2015

Hello in there it is me out here

Ok so we are giving miss 10 a laptop ( a old one from work) for Christmas so I am now going to be wading into the Internet Safety for Kids.  My Hubby is pretty computer literate and can set it up so that there are certain sites she can't access and can monitor her browsing history but I still worry about the fact that there are so many people out there seem to get a great deal of pleasure in hurting kids in one way or another. I understand that we have to let our kids go out into the world and explore and make their own mistakes and learn from them ( I hope they do learn from the), and I certainly don't want to be a Helicopter Parent so how do I keep her and master 9 safe in a world when there is danger lurking in every nook and cranny?

Last night was the last nigh of Scouts for the year and I was lucky enough to see master 9 get his silver boomerang and his pet badge, he has put in so much hard work to achieve this ( he is Dyslexic and left handed) and I have seen him struggle with the things the other kids can do soo easily,  As most of you would know from my posts long ago master 9 found it difficult to do even the simplest of things like tying shoelaces, throwing a ball,buttoning his shirt up and now through a great deal of hard work on his behalf, his teacher he is now able to accomplish these things.  You may say why wasn't he able to do these things and I am being dramatic but I saw the frustration on his face, I saw the tears - when he was told he was stupid, couldn't tie his shoelaces.  I have seen him struggle in class because he doesn't know how to write,spell or read, this year alone he has come so far and I couldn't be prouder of my son and the best part is because of his teacher he now looks forward to going to school and is itching to get out of the house in the mornings to get there.

Miss 10 is doing well in school, I am so proud of her.  She has developed a love of books - which is a big surprise , considering last year it was such a big deal for her to read!!.  She has discovered that she likes to draw, sing.  She is not overly keen on sport and well I am ok with that, I do want her doing a sport and I am trying to find one that does grab here interest but we have not had any luck so far.
I think with her she is going to be one with a gentle nature but she is stubborn so I am not sure how that is going to work!!, she does have something that I could never teach and that is compassion and empathy intact with kids do and for that I am very grateful.

Well that is all for now

Toodles xxxx

The Christmas countdown

7/12/2015


Today's blog is going to be a short one because I have been at work so there is nothing really to tell.
Tonight is the last night of scouts so I am going to see master 9 get his silver boomerang - I have no idea what that means so if there is somebody out there that reads this and knows what it means please let me know.

The Christmas count down is on in earnest now, the kids have been counting down to the days until they finish school and I am counting down to when I go on holidays which just happens to be a couple of days before Christmas.  It seems the older you get the quicker the year goes and then it hits a certain point in the year it is on fast forward and the weeks just start to blur into one and I loose days!


Project Home Management Binder is well under way and I have a dew things to get sorted out and it will be complete.  I am looking forward to showing off what I have done and where I found my pages.   I will have to make sure that the photo's are not wobbly - I have a really bad habit of making them look like they were taken on a leaning slope and are slightly blurry!!!

It is still cold and well that is starting to annoy me, I hate it being cold but I also hate it when it gets really hot - Perth Summers are hot and long, the air-conditioning really does get a work out!! The beach becomes a popular place to hang out especially if there is a fish and chip close by because that takes care of dinner ( it is too hot to go to the beach before 3pm)

BRRR

6 December 2015

It is supposed to be summer here in Perth Western Australia, and well we have rain its cold and windy while other parts of the country are sweltering in 40C.  It is so bad they cancelled the Christmas Pageant now that may not sound like a big deal but the Pageant is the start of the count down to Christmas ( for me anyway), it means there are 20 days till Christmas Day and the frenzied shopping can begin.  I always say that I am not going to leave the shopping to the last minute and every year I am there playing the game of parking bay stalk and my favourite standing in long lines and listening to tide kids wail/scream/cry.  Now I am a fairly patient person when it comes to shopping but even I want to randomly slap people around christmas time for doing stupid stuff in the shops for example - stopping in the middle of the aisle and making it impossible to get past, stopping and talking to people you haven't seen in months and disrupting the flow of traffic going past the shops, and my favourite going the wrong way past the shops when you can clearly see that one side the traffic is going one way and the other is going the other way ( I probably haven't explained that well).

Yesterday I had to play carbay stalk twice and I didn't get what I wanted so I am thinking I will have to go today, which puts me in a flap because today I wanted to start on my new and improved home management binder. So I will have to go and get some paper because I can be almost certain that the paper will run out while I am printing out pages!!, I need a new binder(s) and post-it-notes, plus file dividers.  I am pretty sure I know what sections I want to have in the binder I just need to figure out how I am going to get it to work and where to keep it so that everybody in the house can use it as a reference point.

As I type this it is bucketing down with rain, the washing that I have on the line is getting re-rinsed and I am facing the reality that whatever gets washed today is going to have to go in the dryer, I don't have a issue with the dryer it just feels wrong to be using it in summer.  But with all my grumbling comes with the small hope that this rain might top up the dams so that we are not on water restrictions for all of summer, living in such a dry climate you would think that we would be used to it but every year it takes us by surprise that we have water restrictions.  Yesterday was our coldest December day since 1960 something - yes I did a bit of research on that.  Instead of being 35C like expected I think it only got to 23C so out came the jeans and sweaters while I know that doesn't sound cold to those in the Northern Hemisphere here in Perth we are kinda in bushfire season so to get it was cold.

I may get my wish of having a white christmas yet!!!, have been told that it isn't cold enough to have snow and that I would like it for the first 5 minutes until I can't get warm then I will complain about how cold it is!! Have been informed that snow is great when it first falls because it is white and fluffy, it then turns grey and slushy and doesn't look so nice and you don't want to play in it.  I guess I have always had a romantic view of snow as I have never seen it - and on TV doesn't count, and have never been in a cold enough climate to experience it, my romanticised view of snow is sitting by a roaring fire, a big real christmas tree, the snow falling outside, kids building snow men, and snow ball fights, the big white fluffy snow - I watch way to many movies andTV shows that involve snow!!, I guess the part that I haven't thought about is the fact it is soo cold that the car is covered in ice, the ice on the roads and the other stuff like not being able to get food or the fact that the water in the pipes might freeze and you have no water!!!.

On that note I am going to go and look at the rain, bundle up in jeans and a sweater and get on with my day
Toodles xxx

I am back

December 4 2015

Hello World I am back, There has certainly been a great deal of changes in my life.  

I am now a working Mum, I work 5 days a week and needles to say after work I am shattered but I somehow manage to keep going - I am not going to tell you what I do as it would breach client confidentiality.

I also have started working with Tupperware Aus/NZ, I started working with them the same time I started in my other job so I am busy trying to balance those two while keeping the kids, hubby and fur baby happy.

The kids have had birthdays so they are now Miss 10 and Master 9, which means I have also had a birthday and I am closer to 40  than I would like!! but life goes on - I will have a mid-life crisis when I have a spare two weeks to myself.

The kids are sick and off school at the minute, master 9 has a ear infection and miss 10 has a chest infection and this all stemmed from a sore throat. So they are on Anti-biotics again - this is probably the 4th time this year they have been on Anti-biotics now I know that doesn't seem like a great deal to most people but when both kids have Asthma you kinda pay more attention to illness, colds, weather changes because well it could land us in hospital and that is not fun at all.

I have decided to re-do the Home Management Binder so that it fits with the fact I am now working because the one we have had for many years is not not practical anymore.  While I was a SAHM it worked fine but I have come to realise that I just can't fit everything in and do it to the standard I used to.  I hear you all screaming 'the kids should be helping out, why isn't everybody doing stuff to help you out?", to be honest it is quicker for me to do it on my own - the kids do have jobs that they have to do and well that was a battle getting those done but we are finally there.  I am finding that I have one day to do all of my house work and I don't get a chance to spend time with the kids or hubby on the weekend because of it and well weekends should be for having some down time not working more so the Home Management Binder should help me work smarter not harder

So when I get my binder finished I will put up photos to show you what I did,  I understand what works for me may not work for you and if it does that is great but please don't take what I say as the be all and end all to household management.  I have spent many hours trawling the internet looking at blogs, you tube  on household binders and I have pulled bits from each and tweeted it to fit our family.

With Christmas right around the corner ( 20 days to be exact :/) the tree has been put up, have done some decorating, haven't done any Christmas cards and haven't even contemplated cooking I am wondering when I am going to get the presents bought and wrapped.  Time seems to be on fast forward and I can't find the remote to press pause, I think I am going to have to pretend I have a meeting on one night and go and get the shopping done.  I am looking forward to the break that comes with Christmas and Boxing Day, time to stop and sit and do as little as possible, possibly watch some of the cricket and stay out of the heat - mind you it doesn't feel like summer today it is more like early spring when they forgot to turn the temperature up!!, the wind will help get my washing dry and the fresh air flowing through the house makes me feel like the bugs that are causing the kids to be sick are being blown out.