A Bonus Day

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Yesterday was supposed to be a big day, I had to take 3 kids to our nearest big town so my Muddy Organiser could have a follow up appointment with the ENT. It was going to be a long day, it was going to be traumatic, as my Muddy Organiser was going to have a nasendoscope examination and I knew she would not like it one little bit and I had been mentally preparing for how I was going to get her through it for a few days.

Much to my joy the appointment was cancelled, and rather than doing the 200km round trip I got a bonus day at home. 3 loads of washing, a sparkling clean car inside and out, some gardening, some farm stuff, some cooking and some time just at home with my 2 youngest Muddy Kids was just what I felt like.

I love a bonus day, I find that mentally because I think it's an extra day I am so much more productive, I keep on the move and power through my jobs, feeling really good because I'm crossing things off my list. I don't know why, as really I know it's the same as it would have been on my non-work day, but the power of the mind is a curious thing. Now if I could just find a way for it to trick me into exercising more than I am I think I'd be on a winner.

Do you have the same thing going on when you get a 'bonus' day or is it just me?

The day they saw my bra

After all her initial bravado about catching the bus my Muddy Puzzler has turned all that on it's head and it has become a battle to get her on the bus in the mornings. It's not that she's crying, it's not that she doesn't want to catch the bus. Her answer when I ask her why she's upset is 'I just want you'.

 

Yesterday was the worst day we'd had, I ended up climbing on the bus with her (those steps are big steps), sitting her down on the seat next to a little Kindergarten girl while I tried to peel her hands off me and she kept repeating 'I just want you Mum, I just want you'. In the process she has pulled my top down and every kid on that bus copped a look at my bright purple bra (no, I kid you not, it was purple).

 

It breaks my heart, but the bus driver and the other kids on the bus tell me she stops 'crying' just after the door closes and she's fine the rest of the trip, it's just the actual getting on the bus that seems to be the hard bit. The bus drivers are wonderful and the preschool staff are always so good at getting her off the bus and onto it in the afternoons, I'm just not sure how we overcome the actual first bit of the bus trip. At the moment though I cry each time the bus drives off as I'm wracked with mother guilt. I know that if I start driving her in (which isn't always possible) then it will be back to square one and even harder when she next has to do it, so for now I'm sticking to my guns and you can be sure I'll be wearing high-necked tops from now on!

 

10/52

 

 

Muddy Puzzler - Loves the swing - until the motion sickness kicks in

Muddy Boy - So proud to climb up there by himself

Muddy Pixie - Getting so clever at steering the ute and staying on the dirt road

Muddy Organiser - Exhaustion at the end of a long week

 

A photo of my kids each week, every week for 2013. Linking up with Jodi at Che and Fidel.

 

 

Grateful for good friends.

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At the moment I miss my friends, friends both near and far, things being so flat chat has meant that I haven't had the chance I usually do to make phone calls, have an occasional cuppa with my friends or even run into anybody really. The focus has been on work and home, trying to get that balance right and keep things moving.

The thing is though that for me it's my friends that keep me moving, that keep me running on an even keel. Yes Muddy Hubby is fantastic and he and the Muddy Kids are my world, but sometimes I just need a friend to bring things back into focus.

So this week I am grateful for my friends, because I know when I finally find some time they will be there for me, to listen, to laugh and to just enjoy spending time with. Because that's what good friends do, just be there for you, even when you don't have time to call them!

I am delighted to watch my Muddy Girls start to make more friends and I am hopeful that one day they have built a strong friendship network just like the wonderful one I have.

I get such joy out of them coming home and saying 'I made a new friend today' and hearing all about their new friend and what they did at school or preschool together. We sit down and we talk about the importance of friendships and being nice to everyone and I can't wait til they realise the true value of good friends who will always be there for you.

Yes, this week I'm grateful for good friends, you know the ones, they're always there for you no matter what.

Happy to be linking up with Maxabella for 52 Weeks of Grateful over at Village Voices. Please check it out, you'll be pleased you did.

How's The Serenity

When I was on full-time maternity leave I could go a week or two without leaving the farm, without seeing friends or having any social outings. One week I could cope with, more than that and I would start to get a bit snappy, a bit insane as I started to feel the isolation. Then of course when I did make it out I'd be a bit socially excited and talk non-stop and flap and be absurdly happy.

Now that I'm back at work, ironically I long for an occasional week at home, a week where I don't go anywhere or do anything. I know in myself I couldn't do it full-time all the time, that I thrive too much on the company of others to not work and get out an about.

What I miss though when I'm in town and working is the peace, the fact that I walk outside and the birds are soaring in the sky, the chooks are clucking away and the occasional train goes past, but other than that it's peaceful, like Michael Caton said in The Castle - 'How's the serenity', that's what I miss about home when I'm at work.

I am now working 3 days a week, and I must admit am struggling to adjust to adding a third day, I know it will come in time, but for now, until I hit my stride it's a struggle. Remembering what happens on each day, trying to make sure I've made enough lunches in the morning for everyone and trying to let go of that mother guilt as I walk out the door for work is hard.

I'm thinking about some kind of schedule or calendar, but haven't found one that I really love yet, so I'm thinking I'm going to be making my own, any suggestions welcome! Until that's finished though my brain is on a bit of overload and the mother guilt is running high. It does however make me cherish those days at home, to spend a little bit of one on one time with the kids and soak up everything I've missed on my work days and enjoy the serenity.

Grateful for Rain

It's been busy, at home, at work, in my head, things have been going along at a fast pace and I am scrambling to keep up with it all. The best bit about this week though has been the rain, up until this morning we had had 59mm, that my friends is glorious rain for us, the last decent rainfall we had was in July last year, so this was very welcome, as things were getting dry and everyone's confidence was getting low.

So this week I am grateful for the lovely rain we've had, for the fact that even though I'm in a bad mood, the rain kind of matches my mood and it's made Muddy Hubby very happy, so that is a good thing.

I'm also grateful for the lovely Bush Mobile that comes once a fortnight, it lets my kids get dirty and messy and have lots of fun and my only thing to clean up is their clothes. It's a win win for us.

I am grateful for the afternoon routine of feeding the animals, to stroll outside and spend some time feeding the animals, getting to know them and watching the kids joy as they feed them and care for them.

Lastly this week I am grateful for shovels at the back door, so that we are always prepared when the snakes are about. We got another one at the back gate this week, it was dark and my wonderful sacrificial snake dog alerted us to it, and Muddy Hubby was quick to act, stopping the snake from getting our precious dog, so yes, I am grateful for shovels and for my snake sticks which are now charged and working in the garden.

Linking up for 52 Weeks of Grateful over at Village Voices. Bron hosts a great link up every week, definitely worth checking out!

9/52

 

Muddy Organiser - So proud of her pretend play and cooking up a storm to deliver to her family

Muddy Pixie - Such joy in riding the rocking horse while singing 'Ride a horse to bambury cross'

Muddy Organiser - The joy of playing with play-doh at bush mobile, because I don't let her do it at home.

Muddy Boy - It's big, it moves and I can push it.

 

Linking up with Jodi at Che and Fidel for 52 - A Portrait a Week for 52 weeks in 2013.