Monday, April 16, 2012

Back to reality

School holidays are over and I have to say it couldn't have come sooner. I really do love my kids don't get me wrong, but wow do they get in the way! I know that Motherhood is the life I have chosen and that at least for the next 14 odd years they all need to be my number one priority, but really can I not just have a small amount of time to myself, or to get things achieved that I want to achieve?
I think at the moment I am just spreading myself way to thin, and I need to plan better and be so totally more organised. I have been trying to write lists lately and it has been keeping me more on-task but I still need to get rid of all the time-wasting activities I have in my day and become far more productive.
It is just that a lot of those time-wasting things are the only time that I have to do something mindless or to escape reality for a few minutes. It is just so hard to come to the realisation that my life does revolve around being a mother 24/7. There are so many things that I want to work on, but I just don't know how I can do it all, especially while I still have young children. I look at other people (I know, I know I should never look at other people) and get bogged down in their successes or the way they can fit so much in their days and it makes me even less productive. What I need to do is remember that they may be older than me, or their children are older than mine, or they have more surplus cash than we have, or have simply worked harder than I have to get where they are. I really need to do less comparing and more doing, even if my doing is only in small amounts. Surely any doing is better than no doing.

So,  I am going to really nut out my days, prioritise my time, stay on task and eliminate the wasteful hours in my day. I know I can do this, and I know I can be more effective in all aspects of my life. A better mum, a better wife, a better housekeeper, a better eater, a better exerciser, a better business partner, a better blogger, a better crafter and a better me. In the last 12 or so months I have come so far and I really need to pick up the slack again and get back on track. All in all, there is so much truth in what they say about being a Mum - it really is the hardest job.

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

Some 2012 Milestones

This beautiful girl has lost her first tooth

This beautiful girl starting wearing knickers

This beautiful boy had all his locks cut off

And this beautiful girl started walking!

Daddy was also pretty clever and got a new job and has been writing his blog - you can check it out here: http://pkssocksthatrock.blogspot.com.au/

Monday, February 20, 2012

Settled

(some very cheap artwork... thanks Bunnings)

Time really does just keep a tickin, doesn't it? We have moved interstate since my last post. Back to the homeland of Bris vegas, which I could not be more thrilled about. The kids have settled nicely into a lovely school, I am slowly acclimatising to this thick Queensland heat and getting myself and my days organised. I have just joined a gym, and did my first class today which felt really good. I also gave Bikram a go a couple of weeks ago, and after hating it the first 2 times, by the third time it was feeling much better and I think I will definitely go again, on a semi-regular basis. The 12wbt started up again last week, and I am really looking forward to reaching a few of my fitness goals this round and also getting to my ultimate weight which is about 7kg away. I have also signed up for a few events, including the Brisbane City Raid that Paul and I are doing this friday night, and then in early March I have a 5km run that I have signed up for, so I am looking forward to that too.

On the home-front the house is starting to pass as liveable, even though it is tiny and is really not made for a family of 6 and all the possessions that come with those 6 people. All four kids are sharing a room which is actually working well so far, and I am quite happy with how their room is looking, we got some new bunk beds and spent a small fortune at Ikea, so we have managed to actually keep all of their clothes in their room also which is awesome.

I have also set up my sewing room / office which was totally overdue as I have orders that I need to get moving on, and I just couldn't do it with it being such a mess. So starting to get on top of things and now I just need to become an expert planner and then I think things will run very smoothly. Paul starts his new job next week, so it will be weird not having him around so much, but I am looking forward to getting into my own routine as well. He has secured a management position with a particular fruit that grows on trees, and I couldn't be happier, surely this could only mean my future is filled with shiny new technology, pity about the bad timing purchasing an ipad and a new iphone 3 weeks ago! Oh well...

I am off to the sewing table again now to finish up a beautiful quilt going out to a pregnant mummy, what is your afternoon looking like? 




Friday, December 30, 2011

Give a Kiva Loan for free!

Just a quick post - I received an email this morning from Kiva advising that they are giving 3000 new lenders a Kiva loan for free, so get to it now and follow this link and make someones day!

http://kiva.org/ladieshomejournal

Promise I will be back with something a bit less "service announcement like" soon :) Happy New Year!

Saturday, December 24, 2011

Merry Christmas and a winner!

Well it is finally upon us - Christmas is tomorrow and the big man is nearly here. Merry Christmas to everyone, I hope you have a lovely day with your friends, family and loved ones. We will be enjoying the company of some lovely neighbours for our last Christmas in Adelaide, and they have a pool so that is like gold!! Thank you for stopping by over the last year and checking in with my ramblings, hopefully I will see you again next year, I have loved receiving your comments and getting to know you all better as well. Thank you also to all of my customers who have visited me either online or in person at markets over 2011, I look forward to bringing you lots more EdanRose goodness in 2012 too!

And the winner of my KIVA gift card was:  CooCoo!! Congratulations, I have sent you an email :)


Tuesday, December 20, 2011

All I want for Christmas...

I know it is really too late to be posting this, seen as though there is only a handful of days before Christmas but nevertheless here is my 
Ultimate Christmas Wish List.  








 


Some real lovelies there don't you think! I know at least one of those things will be under the tree because I already purchased it.
( ipad2, Elk, Elk, Witchery, Elk, Sancerre, Emily Green, Country Road, Garmin, Lorna Jane, Salvation Jane, Lush, Table Tonic, Table Tonic, Table Tonic, Table Tonic)
Also don't forget to enter my KIVA GIFT CARD giveaway, see my last post for details :)

Sunday, December 18, 2011

My Christmas Gift to you - KIVA

Earlier this year I came across KIVA.ORG, and thought it was such an easy way for me to try and make a difference in someone else's life that was less fortunate. Basically KIVA allows you to lend a person of your choosing $25 to help fund a loan which they can use to grow their business, or pay for equipment, or use for personal expenses etc. You are given the estimated time that it will take for them to repay the loan and how often they will make the re-payments. You are then sent updates on how the loan is progressing and when you have received payments, and then when the loan is fully re-paid you have the option to either re-invest your money in another loan or withdraw your money. Here is a video from KIVA which explains it in a bit more detail.


How Kiva Works from Kiva on Vimeo.



How cool is that? The thing that I love about KIVA is that the profile of the loan recipients are so thorough and all have photos and personal details, so I can choose someone who may have similarities to me like have 4 children, or be my age or have similar hobbies. To think that my little $25 is having an impact on someone on the other side of the world is really wonderful and somewhat empowering.

These are my two current KIVA loans:



Souhad Samer is a 32 year old Tailor from Iraq and she has 3 children. Myself and 66 other lenders have funded her to purchase a generator and other inventory so she can continue to build her tailoring business where she makes and repairs women's clothing.

Janviere is a 36 year old General Store Owner from Rwanda. She has 4 children aged between 4 and 12 years. She has owned her shop for 1 year and sells Cassava Flour, Sugar and Salt etc and she is open every day from 7am till 6pm. Myself and 20 lenders have funded her to purchase more of her goods for re-saleand she intends to re-invest in her business and save for her family's future.

I am also going to make another loan this Christmas, to spread the love just a little bit further, and because I know how great it feels to do this, I am giving you, one of my lovely readers a KIVA GIFT CARD so that you too can bring some joy to someone less fortunate.

If you would like to be in the running to win this gift card, (and no this is not a sponsored post, I am buying the gift card out of my own money), simply leave a comment below, telling me what brings you joy at this time of the year. So it is not hard, I can think of a million things that brings a smile to my face at this time of the year, so really there is no excuse to not enter.  Also, I would love it if you were a follower of my blog as I would love you to come back another time and see what I am up to. And if you are lucky enough to be the winner I would love to know who you decide to give your loan to.

Competition is open to anyone in the world, and I will be drawing the winner on Christmas Eve at 9pm, (or sometime around then!)

Don't forget you can always just go and make your own loan too, there are currently 6138 loans that need to be funded, follow this link which is an invitation from me to make a loan :) http://kiva.org/invitedby/megan3844

Merry Christmas and Good Luck!