Smiley Saturday

It has been a while since I joined in SS .Things that made me smile this week ...

• It is International Comment Leaving Week for August and I welcome new and returning visitors to my blog. Here is a welcome post I wrote for National Comment leaving month.
  

• my new car - a Toyota Corolla that goes like a rocket !
  

• S & J going to bed without much fuss. We recently made the move to the big bed - they have a racing car bed each but currently sleep together in one. This bed is still in our room but we will soon move them back to their own room. They can then choose to sleep separately or together.
  

• We have rain for the garden yesterday and last night. Hopefully it will soak into the ground and refresh the browned off grass.

• My GP has organised counselling for me.

• The Ear ENT specialist said he will fix my ears ... well the chronic infection and discharge . Then I can order a new hearing aid which has been on the agenda for more than a year. It wasn't a pleasant visit (having one ear scraped out (of wax) and my other ear sucked out so much so I felt faint, but I am happy that I am finally doing something to improve my hearing.

• Things are much calmer on the home front .
  

Head over to Lightening's for more Smiley Saturday posts.


Never miss a post

Thursday's best links bonanza

13 things I found this week that inspired me,challenged me and made me giggle

1. Nicki talks about her son with Down syndrome and the Merry makers and I also found this one Heaven's very special child
   
2. Jane @Kidzarama writing on Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
   
3. This inspiring story on the Shrinking the Bulte family by Craig Harper Motivational Speaker bonanza
   
4. have you ever made said the wrong word ...to your boss Xbox did
   
5. Lilly's Life -has some great finds this week ...Oh Happy Day , this inspiring one on the importance of imagination
   
6. Lizzie @Lizzie's home shared this story on human kindness -My Very Own Loaves And Fishes Miracle (Call Me Blessed)
7. It is Louise @ Journey to Eliminate Debt's blogoversary
8. It Kin's@Kin's home of slightly cracked dreams too blogoversary too
   
9. 'Babies' - Jane and the boys- a old post on her old blog but it made my hear sing -her new blog See Jane Blog
10. mmmm WARNING : don't go here whatever you do if you are on a diet-ICECREAM CUPCAKES@cupcakeproject
    
11. Want to see some great sights near where I live too (thanks Louise)
12. How about a series of delicious flowers-# A must see
13. I am sure we all want to save money easy
    
14. Thanks to Jenn@Jenn's den for giving me this idea today...it has taken me hours but they are all great links.

Welcome NCLM visitors - please read my welcome post HERE




Never miss a post

Monster Monday

I don't know about you but May just flew for me ...I spent most of first week buried deep in the business accounts finalising our 2007 tax, then the Tool man's (DH) other business stuff that was also due.

Winter has arrived -it was overcast though it wasn't too cold.We couldn't play outside much today as they were brick cleaning the house next door using acid. The over spray was drifting into our yard and other our shrubs. Hopefully the pouring rain (now) will wash it off .

I have set a few goals this month inspired by many new found blogs like Journeyer's Chronicles

Good intentions Goals For June

Blogging

• BLOG 365 continues . I haven’t missed a day yet though most days I don’t post till 11pm.

• My new goal is to have my posts up by 3pm (failed x 2 so far) and trying to use Blogger scheduled posts (ahead of time) for days I am busy.

• Find a new comment system (if it’s possible) and design a new header for my blog.
• Continue commenting and connecting with new people during National Comment Leaving Month … leaving a minimum of 5 comments a day on new blogs and returning one visit (I return almost all ;) )

Health

This is crunch time

Eat less of this and this

Ride this for 30 minutes a day five times a week

(You can see more on adding borders and padding to your images at Blogging Sueblimely...an excellent tutorial and easy to follow.I need to tweak it a little more and find a colour chart)

Photography

Learning more about photography is a long term plan but playing around with piknik and other online software.

Money

As I'm essentially a SAHM - we live on a very reduced income since S & J arrived. My aim is to

• explore a few blogs about reducing grocery spending and start my own price book.
• Track our spending more carefully.
• Review what we have been spending the last few months too.
• Stick to my Buy Nothing Challenge as much as possible.I did buy a few things for birthday gifts and some tracksuits pants for the S & J.We have a few clothes from last winter that still fit and preloved clothes so they don’t need too much. They do go through lots of pants because they play hard, tumble and spill onto the dewy grass and find dirt and now sand.
• I have a pattern now to make some pants … just need to buy material
• We received in the mail ta guide for cost/hr of various electrical appliances …time to switch off a lot of appliances.
  

Planning and Productivity

• Finish organising this and sort my filing cabinet and system out .

• Staring 2008 tax early this year and getting end of financial year stuff underway.

• Learning more from Journeyer on Getting Things Done

• Review and rewrite my 43 things and draft my 101 in 1001 days. I want to start on my birthday.

• Make new to do lists and charts- I found this excellent link to a create your own custom styled schedule and task list for kids and adults. It has every theme imaginable - all the cartoon characters (Like Thomas,Sponge BOB, DORA, Sesame street ,Princess and animals etc) you chose your own pictures and you add your own task/chore list... then print it off.

it will hopefully help me ...

• Leave earlier to get to appointments. playgroup and church on time

Growing our own vegetables

We still have a few white zucchini growing , and a few seedlings of chinese cabbage ,cauliflower and something else ? – our neighbours who are market gardeners gave us LOL – I have to ask him again. I want to plant more seedlings this week. I have 4 tiny tomato seeds planted but they are for later on.

Have you got any short goals or long term plans ?
What are your goals for June ?

Oh ! I almost forgot the biggest thing is planning S & J's 2nd birthday. The Planning Queen has a series of great tips.

S & J are now 23 months old. I can't believe it.They have just started talking the last few weeks. Still, it is hard to know what they are saying but they uses some signs and gestures. I catch my breath when I see the love they have for each other always fighting playing near by or riding the toddler bikes alongside each other.

With awe and wonder I marvel at the little things they do like patting or comforting one another when they are crying or hurt (or saying sorry after whacking the other with a toy) and even sharing chocolate.I listen in amazement at the things they say to me, 'EAT' opening the fridge door standing there like the teen man does and "NO" with new gestures (wagging a pointy finger) and the way they giggle with each other or try to hunt down find Matilda (kitten) to give her the dangly toy.

They leave a trail of destruction but laughter in their wake.

Welcome NCLM visitors - please read my welcome post HERE

One last thing ... I am trying to get to bed by
I am so addicted to blogging ... I can't leave you all. For the sake of the Tool man -it's my no 1 goal.

Never miss a post

52 blessings Grateful Fridays,

Another week and it has been a good one ... lots of randomness tonight as I wrap up my week.

• Firstly The Blogosphere blitzed Alison's busiest day ever -thanks with over 8000 hits !
  
• I started
  

  NaComLeavMo
  

  on 25th May . National Comment Leaving Month has been a lot of fun so far and I found a lot of new blogs.
• It was my blogosverary too.
  
• Our dishwasher got attacked by roaches recently - we didn't know. It broke down of the horror of making the teen do the dishes. Exasperating beyond measure.
• Our microwave was finally fixed after 5-6 months. In Dec we called the appliance repair guy who came and looked it over- said it needed new turntable motor. He was going to order it - quote was about $200 .It was a convection microwave that I use as my main oven so we said - yes ! We wanted it back by Christmas ... never happened. We let it slide.
• I still used it -just got used to turning the food or burnt edges LOL. I waited for M to ring the slacker fix the 'problem '.
  
• Finally a few weeks ago Dh took the microwave to someone else. We got it back yesterday - $142 (yes less indeed than the slacker quoted... *bing* we saved $60 odd )
  

• I digress to add the slacker guy who fixed our dishwasher - was the only one we could get - we had no choice since we hoped the dishwasher was a warranty problem. He was the authorised repairer.He still kept us waiting over a week. Unfortunately it was not under warranty and it was expensive - overcharged this too probably and took him 2 hrs to figure out the problem!
  
• The hot water system that didn't heat up last night (apparently - we hope) so we have no hot water tonight. DH had stripped off himself not for me and the babies for a shower - he jumped in to warm it up ...at the same time I was quickly filling the sink to wash up (non dishwasher stuff) - NO hot water ... I go to tell him - he who is hastily drying off and two nekkid poopy buttered babies are suddenly running about the house. I boil the kettle to make hotwater for the laundry tub bath. The teen is screaming - hey someone wipe his b u m . I chase the babies - Dh is out checking the powerboard ? Who knows why - tomorrow we find out it heats up today overnight- if that makes sense. I stopped him from drilling through the case to push the button to make it start !
  

So what I am I grateful for my appliances ... I can't live without them though for thousands of years people have but these comforts certainly make life easier. Cockroaches I have no idea why they walk the earth. Vermin.

What appliances can't you live without ?

---

I am also very grateful for my Virtual friends - new and old - some which are real life friends .

I am have touched by the many instances this week to the extent that though Internet friends can’t replace your community of real life friends this virtual world can add to it.

It is the supplementary support, that in good times and/or in bad times brings us to tears and cheers us on.
When our world is shattered - cyber friends can help us pick the 'virtual' pieces. When we are triumphant - they can celebrate with us.
When we use it earnestly and with compassion to reach out in friendship, we can receive it in return - that for some us is very real. I hope that we can give and take a little of this support.
I know there are are some bloggers who never get many comments - I was one of them. In my travels the last few days I have read some heartbreaking and inspiring stories.
I try not to comment for the sake of return comments but I know that it the way we start new friendships. We strike a cord and we build up a rapport... eventually... hopefully.

I found another new Aussie blog last week A goodsort - go read there latest post - Are yours heading south ?

and they shared this awesome prose from The Modern Goddess Blog -

Mountain Dreaming from the book

The Invitation ... by Oriah

It doesn’t interest me what you do for a living.
I want to know what you ache for
and if you dare to dream of meeting your heart’s longing.

It doesn’t interest me how old you are.
I want to know if you will risk looking like a fool
for love
for your dream
for the adventure of being alive.

It doesn’t interest me what planets are squaring your moon.
I want to know if you have touched the centre of your own sorrow
if you have been opened by life’s betrayals
or have become shrivelled and closed
from fear of further pain.

I want to know if you can sit with pain
mine or your own
without moving to hide it
or fade it
or fix it.

I want to know if you can be with joy
mine or your own
if you can dance with wildness
and let the ecstasy fill you to the tips of your fingers and toes
without cautioning us to
be careful
be realistic
remember the limitations of being human...

read the full poem here or Oriah

buy the book from Harper Collins

Welcome - if you are here from NCLM please read my welcome post HERE

Never miss a post

A New BEST day ever -update

A NEW DAY HAS BEGUN - target reached !

I am asking all my readers to join the blogosphere in helping Allison - by a simple click or more if you have access to other computers (say in an office)


Melissa from Stirrup Queens and Sperm Palace Jesters wrote ... A New Day

The day that Allison lost Zoë is forever marked her "best day ever" on Wordpress because it is the day that the most people visited her blog. For her own emotional well-being, she needs this post to be taken off her blog dashboard. The way to do that is to create a new record for visits to her blog.

On Thursday, May 29, please click on Allison's blog, Our Own Creation, and help replace that post with whatever is currently up on her blog that day. Everyone needs to visit on the same day--May 29th--because if we simply click throughout the week, it won't bump the day she lost Zoë from that section of the dashboard. I am writing this now to give us time to spread the word. Take the graphic I created and place it on your own blog. Don't worry--I'll remind you to click that day.

We need 2,350 people to visit Our Own Creation on May 29th. We need 1,785 people visit Sweet Zoë.

I have to check the time zone for Australia but sometime over 3-4 pm Thursday should do it.

If you are visiting from NaComLeavMo please read my welcome post HERE.
♥

Never miss a post

Empty Arms

NaComLeavMo: More Conversation Than You Can Shake a Stick at

25th May was my Blogosversary and it also marked the start of NaComLeavMo. I am playing catchup today. Melissa from Stirrup Queens and Sperm Palace Jesters wrote

... Blog writing for a month is all good and fine; but what about the other side of blogging--the comment leaving? Comment leaving is an integral part of blogging. Without comments, blog posts are as flat as...Flat Stanley. Blogging is a conversation.

Welcome ... If you are visiting me for NaComLeavMo and are struggling with infertility or pregnancy loss, I am sorry if the pictures of my IVF twins upsets you. My story is complex.

For 14 years I've straddled the realms of long term infertility, local adoption, surprise pregnancy and the subsequent unexplained loss of that precious little girl when I was 6 months pregnant in 2004 (Charlotte was stillborn) .Then we embarked on an IVF journey that gave us our miracle boys in 2006.

I want to share this with you Empty Arms .If you want to know how someone suffering infertility feels please watch this video too and share it.

Anyway from May 25th to June 25th I am up for a full month of intense comment leaving.*gasp*

I look forward to visiting you and I hope to meet many new people and share my story too. It should be a lot of fun.

Never miss a post