Do you ever feel disillusioned by a particular blog?
Not mine of course. Mine is perfect - that’s a given (*smirk*)
Google Reader is my friend and I admit, at times I get a bit snap-happy with all the RSS subscribin’ as I travel around Bloggityville. Current subscription count? One hundred and sixty-one. Number of posts I actually open up to read? Perhaps a third. Hmmm.
I have a system for managing blogs in Google Reader. It involves multiple folders - Big Name, General, Organizing, Homemaking, Frugality… (I’m a nerd. It helps). When I see a new blog that I might/possibly/could read again, I’ll subscribe but I will leave them in the regular list without assigning them to a folder. Only when I have read and enjoyed them throughout a ‘trial period’ will I put them into a folder. The end result is a hodge podge of folders, loose blogs and guilt for not reading half of what I’m subscribed to.
The problem, I think, is that there is SO MUCH good content out there and SO LITTLE TIME in which to read it. My general ethos tends to be, if five cool homemaking sites are great, then wouldn’t 20 in the same genre be awesome? I follow plenty of big name bloggers just like the next gal - the likes of Big Mama, BooMama, Fried Okra, Like Merchant Ships, Scribbit, Rocks In My Dryer and so forth (by the way, the term ‘big name’ is highly subjective and relates only to my own filtering system) and I’m completely loyal, usually devouring every word.
But what happens when one of the blogs you’ve loved and supported (subscribed to, commented on) starts to fall short?
Does anyone else get the guilts like I do?
It’s likely that I will unsubscribe to this particular site and they will not even feel the smallest ripple in Bloggityville over my departure. I’m fine with that. There are other REALLY big name bloggers who I have never been able to subscribe to for personal or ethical reasons - I was reading through the archives of one in particular over a year ago and came up against a flat-out, deal-off reason to avoid returning. The site was completely fantastic and this one point was mentioned only sporadically, but I knew if I continued to read and support (subscribe to) her that I would be living a double standard. I am probably the only person in the known universe who does not subscribe to this site, by the way.
So, ethics and blogging. In my 161 subscriptions (which, immediately after posting this, will be pared back considerably),I rarely come up against something that shocks me. It is a given that you’ll only ever subscribe to sites which you personally identify with on some level so this is hardly suprising. The problem for me comes when I subscribe to a site based on one awesome aspect and then get blindsided by the blogger’s views on other issues, as is the case with the site I am about to unsubscribe from. Do you stay, and employ some sort of internal filter to ignore the icky parts (as I have done for a while now) because you really don’t want to lose access to the ‘good stuff’? The second blogger, Ms Big-Name-Point-of-Contention, is also in this category for me. But since the particular ’thing’ was a personal deal-breaker, the issue took care of it self. The first blogger, Ms Soon-To-Unsubscribe-From, is a little less clear cut. I have felt this way for some time but have held back because the issue at heart didn’t result in as strong of a reaction in me. But lately, I’ve noticed a bit of repetitive posting. Couple that with clashing viewpoints and that’s pretty much tied it up in a bow for me.
I’d love to hear others’ viewpoints on this. Specifically, how many blogs do you follow through Google Reader or Bloglines, are you discerning about subscribing right from the get-go (or do you do what I do, and kind of subscribe then ‘wait and see’),and are you plenty happy to click on ‘Unsubscribe’ when you begin to question whether you’re getting anything interesting out of the deal? What would be a deal-breaker issue for you in the bloggy-subscription world?
Update: After a mammoth Google Reader declutter session I am now sitting at 108 subscriptions with five ‘on notice’ and twelve ‘new blogs to watch’. Taking those into account I think I did pretty good - I’m going to set a 100 blog limit. And you know what? It felt GOOD. Challenge extended…
Saturday, July 26, 2008
Friday, July 18, 2008
The Post In Which I Apologize For Being Such A Bad Blogger
I promise you I have not given up blogging. Although, if my stats are anything to go by, many of you seem to think I already have! That’ll teach me to neglect my friends in Bloggityville, LOL.
Playing catch-up, bullety-wise:
Talented Hubby is still waiting to hear about his (possible) promotion. This seems like an abnormally long time to me (it has been 16 days so far), but TH assures me his workplace does things in precisely this manner most of the time. Fine. I just don’t have to like it.
I’m tracking our expenditure quite extensively this month. I’ve got a bit of a backlog of receipts to enter but come the end of the month I’ll have a pretty accurate guide of where our money is going. And then I’ll feel bad. And then August will be all about Cutting Back. Fun times for all.
I’ve had a few ’side projects’ on the backburner these last couple of weeks. Apart from the expenses tracking (which, naturally enough, involved the use of one of my Super Dooper Spreadsheets), I’ve been working on my Home Management Binder. It’s getting a complete overhaul. There are tons of sections I have in my current one that I no longer use or have found other homes for (keep watching for BooMama’s Before and After Challenge - not sure when yet, because it was rescheduled from the original July 25 to a time later in the year - but it will all make sense then) and I was sick of flipping through pages I no longer use, so I’m cleaning up and cleaning out. And, you know, any excuse to pretty it up again, LOL. I was originally going to convert it all to A5 size (half size), mistakingly thinking a smaller version would make it more streamlined and practical (don’t do that folks. Stick to A4. You’re welcome). Thankfully I came to my senses and now I’m having fun playing around with my scrapbook pages to design a new cover and section tabs (is it wrong that I buy scrapbooking paper, even though I don’t really scrapbook? If there’s a pretty pack of paper and it is on special, I will buy it. I then have the worst time choosing the ‘right’ one for projects such as these).
I’m also setting up a Grocery Price Book. It has been in production for weeks and weeks, because I’ve not put in the half-hour of effort it would take to finish it off. You will see what I mean when I post about it, if I ever get it done. Despite the delay, I do think I’ve hit on a really good way of doing it - maybe a little too OCD for some, but kind of fun to work on for a clearly-irrational gal like me.
The school holidays are dragging to a close. Because all of the Piglets are school age, and we don’t homeschool, it’s a bit of a shock when each holiday period rolls around and they are home all day. They get bored very fast. With everything. And taking them out can be quite expensive. And tiring. Just ask Master J who fell asleep on the bus coming home from a day out with two other families. And Miss Moo who was cranky and oppositional and finally crashed on the couch. Between the three Mums yesterday, we had eight children ranging in ages from 9 ½ down to 2 months. Three of them were 6 year old girls. I need to put that in bold because it is worth remembering. And we took them all to a toy store. My ears are still ringing. I didn’t do too much damage, only walking out with a $7 board game (which will go directly into the Gift Drawer), a ‘Phlat Ball’ (frisbee-which-converts-to-a-ball-in-mid-flight something-or-other - bought with Boofah’s leftover birthday money, so it doesn’t count) and a Barbie Sleeping Beauty Little Golden Book (a total con orchestrated by Miss Moo because — “the brothers got something and I didn’t!” I know. Read the comment above regarding 6yo girls. My defences were weak).
Speaking of which, remember how I mentioned my friend Della in a previous post? Della was one of the other Mums there yesterday and she complimented me on my writing style here, which was sweet to hear :)
I’ve got another blood donation in the city scheduled for Tuesday. It will be my second. And unless they completely forget to switch the machine off at the appropriate time and drain all my lovely blood out, my second of many. Apparently if I donate three times in 2008 and I get a groovy 2009 diary. Cool.
In case anyone related to me is reading, my birthday is just 77 days away. Money to spend on Amazon would be nice. Specifically for this. I’m just sayin’…
I’m off to choose some pretty scrapbook paper for my Home Management Binder…
Playing catch-up, bullety-wise:
Talented Hubby is still waiting to hear about his (possible) promotion. This seems like an abnormally long time to me (it has been 16 days so far), but TH assures me his workplace does things in precisely this manner most of the time. Fine. I just don’t have to like it.
I’m tracking our expenditure quite extensively this month. I’ve got a bit of a backlog of receipts to enter but come the end of the month I’ll have a pretty accurate guide of where our money is going. And then I’ll feel bad. And then August will be all about Cutting Back. Fun times for all.
I’ve had a few ’side projects’ on the backburner these last couple of weeks. Apart from the expenses tracking (which, naturally enough, involved the use of one of my Super Dooper Spreadsheets), I’ve been working on my Home Management Binder. It’s getting a complete overhaul. There are tons of sections I have in my current one that I no longer use or have found other homes for (keep watching for BooMama’s Before and After Challenge - not sure when yet, because it was rescheduled from the original July 25 to a time later in the year - but it will all make sense then) and I was sick of flipping through pages I no longer use, so I’m cleaning up and cleaning out. And, you know, any excuse to pretty it up again, LOL. I was originally going to convert it all to A5 size (half size), mistakingly thinking a smaller version would make it more streamlined and practical (don’t do that folks. Stick to A4. You’re welcome). Thankfully I came to my senses and now I’m having fun playing around with my scrapbook pages to design a new cover and section tabs (is it wrong that I buy scrapbooking paper, even though I don’t really scrapbook? If there’s a pretty pack of paper and it is on special, I will buy it. I then have the worst time choosing the ‘right’ one for projects such as these).
I’m also setting up a Grocery Price Book. It has been in production for weeks and weeks, because I’ve not put in the half-hour of effort it would take to finish it off. You will see what I mean when I post about it, if I ever get it done. Despite the delay, I do think I’ve hit on a really good way of doing it - maybe a little too OCD for some, but kind of fun to work on for a clearly-irrational gal like me.
The school holidays are dragging to a close. Because all of the Piglets are school age, and we don’t homeschool, it’s a bit of a shock when each holiday period rolls around and they are home all day. They get bored very fast. With everything. And taking them out can be quite expensive. And tiring. Just ask Master J who fell asleep on the bus coming home from a day out with two other families. And Miss Moo who was cranky and oppositional and finally crashed on the couch. Between the three Mums yesterday, we had eight children ranging in ages from 9 ½ down to 2 months. Three of them were 6 year old girls. I need to put that in bold because it is worth remembering. And we took them all to a toy store. My ears are still ringing. I didn’t do too much damage, only walking out with a $7 board game (which will go directly into the Gift Drawer), a ‘Phlat Ball’ (frisbee-which-converts-to-a-ball-in-mid-flight something-or-other - bought with Boofah’s leftover birthday money, so it doesn’t count) and a Barbie Sleeping Beauty Little Golden Book (a total con orchestrated by Miss Moo because — “the brothers got something and I didn’t!” I know. Read the comment above regarding 6yo girls. My defences were weak).
Speaking of which, remember how I mentioned my friend Della in a previous post? Della was one of the other Mums there yesterday and she complimented me on my writing style here, which was sweet to hear :)
I’ve got another blood donation in the city scheduled for Tuesday. It will be my second. And unless they completely forget to switch the machine off at the appropriate time and drain all my lovely blood out, my second of many. Apparently if I donate three times in 2008 and I get a groovy 2009 diary. Cool.
In case anyone related to me is reading, my birthday is just 77 days away. Money to spend on Amazon would be nice. Specifically for this. I’m just sayin’…
I’m off to choose some pretty scrapbook paper for my Home Management Binder…
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
Sleep Is Overrated...And A Lovely Bonus
Having an open-ended ‘wake up time’ is seriously overrated.
I’m not going to say what time I actually rose this morning, free from the aid of an alarm or hungry child, but I will say one thing. Too much sleep can be as bad for your state of mind as too little.
Yes, you heard me.
I’m not used to All The Sleep! I am a nightowl and go to bed quite late most nights. Then I rise somewhere around 7am to begin the school prep stage, putting total number of sleeping hours at something like five. Six on a good day. As much as I fully understand this pattern to be my own fault, I would have thought a few extra hours of uninterrupted sleep would feel GOOD, not BAD.
I feel sluggish, icky and have done precisely zero housework in the few hours since rising. When I rolled over and glanced at the bedside clock this morning, I laughed and went back to sleep. I didn’t see the first digit. I thought it was still the middle of the night. I am stupid. Auugh.
The kids are still at their grandparents’. Last night Talented Hubby and I had nachos for dinner. Yum. Don’t worry, I didn’t just upend a bag of corn chips on a plate and top it with salsa (though that would have made a spectacular ‘married with no kids’ supper, don’t you agree?) I made it with ground beef. The salt content was through the roof, but there was protein in it, goshdarnit. TH is still waiting on news of his promotion. He’s the kind of guy whose level of stress increases with each passing hour he doesn’t hear anything. He’s heard some really positive things from his coworkers though, so fingers crossed.
Also, a shout-out to a Real Life Friend who has begun reading my blog lately. Isn’t it funny how lots of us bloggers still want to keep their blog life separate to their real life? I’m like that. I don’t tell people I know personally (or am related to!) about this corner of my world. Della (hi!) however knows and has popped in and left a couple of comments. In a private email she brought to my attention the fact that in my Home Management Binder Tour contains some ’side links’ which lead to an ‘invited reader only’ page. In case anyone is wondering, that post was written on the old Blogger blog. When I imported everything to Wordpress in March, the post itself remained intact but any link to pages at the old blog now don’t work (after I had been with WP a couple of months I set the old blog to ‘private’. It was a disaster site anyway, removed pictures, etc. Just ugly). Don’t stress though - most of those internal links were to my Routines and other various homemaking lists which have since been altered. I’m about due for another Home Management Binder Tour anyway (with some significant changes) so when I get that up and running I will also included the Routines in it in the “Binder Basics” section. I can sometimes neglect the ‘peripherals’ of the blog, all the various extra pages and such. It happens. So Della, welcome :)
Talented Hubby and I are going out for an early dinner tomorrow night, possibly a movie, and perhaps some late-night shopping. We’ve finally saved enough money for our new TV. Yes, its an expensive one, but we honestly don’t do/buy much throughout the rest of the year and we’ve been saving for some time, so we’re excited to finally be able to purchase it. It helps that we received some unexpected bonus payments from the government. It’s kind of complicated to explain to non-Aussies, but basically down here most families receive some money from the social security system to help with the cost of raising a family. It’s made up of a few different payments, some means tested and some not, and its different depending on whether you are partnered or not, but essentially, the less you earn, the more you get in SS, and vice versa. Even those earning a decent salary usually get something. In order to get these payments you have to give an income estimate to the government at the beginning of each financial year (which begins in July here). If you end up earning more money than you state, you have to pay some back. We did that once. It’s not fun. We’ve since purposely OVER-estimated our income each year. We get a little less each fortnight but we don’t tend to miss it. What we love, however, is receiving the balance back as a lump-sum at the end of the financial year. Kind of like having a term deposit account you forget about for twelve months then realise is due for maturity. Depending on the amount we quote to the government, this lump sum payment can be quite significant. For the coming year, for example, we quoted a figure far beyond what we actually earn at present, to account for this possible promotion TH might get. Last year’s quote (which is in the process of being ‘paid up’ now) included a fair bit of ‘wriggle room’ which gives us a nice little bonus. In addition to this, our federal budget a few months back saw a bonus $600 paid to recognised carers (which we are, because of Master J) and we also ended up with another carers bonus of $1000 recently as a last minute sweetener, also from the government. When you add on our regular tax return and another payment paid per child (Aussies will know what I’m talking about)…. we feel very blessed to have the extra. We were almost ready to buy the television before all this money came in, so now we’re over that, and we’ll have a little extra to put toward some household repairs and the odd item of furniture, as well as topping up the mortgage a smidgeon.
So, a tip. If you want your man to come shopping with you, tell him you’re looking at big screen TVs. Works like a charm!
I’m not going to say what time I actually rose this morning, free from the aid of an alarm or hungry child, but I will say one thing. Too much sleep can be as bad for your state of mind as too little.
Yes, you heard me.
I’m not used to All The Sleep! I am a nightowl and go to bed quite late most nights. Then I rise somewhere around 7am to begin the school prep stage, putting total number of sleeping hours at something like five. Six on a good day. As much as I fully understand this pattern to be my own fault, I would have thought a few extra hours of uninterrupted sleep would feel GOOD, not BAD.
I feel sluggish, icky and have done precisely zero housework in the few hours since rising. When I rolled over and glanced at the bedside clock this morning, I laughed and went back to sleep. I didn’t see the first digit. I thought it was still the middle of the night. I am stupid. Auugh.
The kids are still at their grandparents’. Last night Talented Hubby and I had nachos for dinner. Yum. Don’t worry, I didn’t just upend a bag of corn chips on a plate and top it with salsa (though that would have made a spectacular ‘married with no kids’ supper, don’t you agree?) I made it with ground beef. The salt content was through the roof, but there was protein in it, goshdarnit. TH is still waiting on news of his promotion. He’s the kind of guy whose level of stress increases with each passing hour he doesn’t hear anything. He’s heard some really positive things from his coworkers though, so fingers crossed.
Also, a shout-out to a Real Life Friend who has begun reading my blog lately. Isn’t it funny how lots of us bloggers still want to keep their blog life separate to their real life? I’m like that. I don’t tell people I know personally (or am related to!) about this corner of my world. Della (hi!) however knows and has popped in and left a couple of comments. In a private email she brought to my attention the fact that in my Home Management Binder Tour contains some ’side links’ which lead to an ‘invited reader only’ page. In case anyone is wondering, that post was written on the old Blogger blog. When I imported everything to Wordpress in March, the post itself remained intact but any link to pages at the old blog now don’t work (after I had been with WP a couple of months I set the old blog to ‘private’. It was a disaster site anyway, removed pictures, etc. Just ugly). Don’t stress though - most of those internal links were to my Routines and other various homemaking lists which have since been altered. I’m about due for another Home Management Binder Tour anyway (with some significant changes) so when I get that up and running I will also included the Routines in it in the “Binder Basics” section. I can sometimes neglect the ‘peripherals’ of the blog, all the various extra pages and such. It happens. So Della, welcome :)
Talented Hubby and I are going out for an early dinner tomorrow night, possibly a movie, and perhaps some late-night shopping. We’ve finally saved enough money for our new TV. Yes, its an expensive one, but we honestly don’t do/buy much throughout the rest of the year and we’ve been saving for some time, so we’re excited to finally be able to purchase it. It helps that we received some unexpected bonus payments from the government. It’s kind of complicated to explain to non-Aussies, but basically down here most families receive some money from the social security system to help with the cost of raising a family. It’s made up of a few different payments, some means tested and some not, and its different depending on whether you are partnered or not, but essentially, the less you earn, the more you get in SS, and vice versa. Even those earning a decent salary usually get something. In order to get these payments you have to give an income estimate to the government at the beginning of each financial year (which begins in July here). If you end up earning more money than you state, you have to pay some back. We did that once. It’s not fun. We’ve since purposely OVER-estimated our income each year. We get a little less each fortnight but we don’t tend to miss it. What we love, however, is receiving the balance back as a lump-sum at the end of the financial year. Kind of like having a term deposit account you forget about for twelve months then realise is due for maturity. Depending on the amount we quote to the government, this lump sum payment can be quite significant. For the coming year, for example, we quoted a figure far beyond what we actually earn at present, to account for this possible promotion TH might get. Last year’s quote (which is in the process of being ‘paid up’ now) included a fair bit of ‘wriggle room’ which gives us a nice little bonus. In addition to this, our federal budget a few months back saw a bonus $600 paid to recognised carers (which we are, because of Master J) and we also ended up with another carers bonus of $1000 recently as a last minute sweetener, also from the government. When you add on our regular tax return and another payment paid per child (Aussies will know what I’m talking about)…. we feel very blessed to have the extra. We were almost ready to buy the television before all this money came in, so now we’re over that, and we’ll have a little extra to put toward some household repairs and the odd item of furniture, as well as topping up the mortgage a smidgeon.
So, a tip. If you want your man to come shopping with you, tell him you’re looking at big screen TVs. Works like a charm!
Monday, July 7, 2008
My Babies Have Left Me!
The Piglets have left to spend a few days at their grandparents’ home a couple of hours drive away.
It’s the school holidays here. Two weeks of “Muuuuum! He stole my seat!” and “I didn’t break it, I swear!” Except by some small miracle we get to shuffle the kids off for the first week. Hallelujah! Okay, so I love my kids dearly, and even had the opportunity to go with them to Nana and Poppa’s house, but chose not to. The allure of many an hour doing Precisely Zero Parenting certainly held its appeal. So I stayed. It felt strange packing their little suitcases-on-wheels knowing it wouldn’t be me reaching into the backseat to break up the fights on the drive over. Or battling with them to brush their teeth properly lest they fall out during the night. Or, you know, tucking them in tonight.
But they’re gone. And for the last two hours Talented Hubby and I have been official residents of Geekdom, as we sit across the room from each other, tap-tap-tapping away on our respective computers (we are so lame!) I keep checking over my shoulder for a Small Person. I even commented to TH that my mouth keeps wanting to form the words “SHUT THE DOOR!” (it’s cold here at the moment and we’ve had the heater on quite a bit - the kids never remember to close the doors as they barrel through them). And its gloomy and rainy and I don’t know, wintery outside and I really want a Piglet snuggle. They’re awesome. And it’s only the first day!
It’s not all doom and gloom though. There are benefits to not having the kids underfoot. For starters, as it is the holidays, if they were home they’d be in Ultra! Excited! Mode! all-the-blessed-time, LOL. Throughout the school term they’re all packed off to school by 9am and forgetting for a second the usual housewifery tasks, my days are fairly loosey-goosey. Hubs is often about, but he’s often not as well, depending on his roster. It’s especially busy in the mornings and afternoons, but the days are pretty quiet. Holidays are always a bit of a shock to the system after 10 weeks of easy-going days.
But this week? I don’t have to set an early alarm (or any alarm for that matter). I can sleep till noon every day if I wanted to (don’t worry, I won’t). With Talented Hubby on dayshift, he’s out of the house before I wake and gone most of the day. I don’t have to drop everything at 3pm to pick children up from school. I can cook spicy food the kids won’t touch in a pink fit. TH and I can go out to dinner without having to mortgage the house (seriously, have you noticed how much even good ol’ McD’s adds up to for a family meal these days? Sheesh). All this glorious time stretches out in front of me this week and all I can think of is, I wonder whether Miss Moo’s hair got into the carbonara sauce at dinner? Did Nana remember to clip it back? I really should organize their closets. Does Master J need one new pair of jeans or two? Did Boofah remember to RSVP to his friend’s party? And, when will they be back again?
I have this dream in my head that I’ll be able to knuckle down and get that fourth bedroom all fixed up as a surprise for Boofah when the kids return on Friday. I’ve wanted to finish it off as a surprise for ages, but until this week all the secretive spy work was going to have to be done in the space of one school day, in order that he didn’t smell a rat. With four days up my sleeve, I have oodles of time to get it done. The weather forecast is gloomy, and it’s a perfect rainy-day activity. And with TH out of the house I can crank up the Ballads playlist on my iPod/stereo whatsit. Only there’s a great monstrosity of metal in there at the moment (the home gym, aka The Beast) and we still have to work out where to put that until it can be picked up by the relative who put dibs on it. But fingers crossed.
I’m not reaching for the phone to call the kids. Honest…
It’s the school holidays here. Two weeks of “Muuuuum! He stole my seat!” and “I didn’t break it, I swear!” Except by some small miracle we get to shuffle the kids off for the first week. Hallelujah! Okay, so I love my kids dearly, and even had the opportunity to go with them to Nana and Poppa’s house, but chose not to. The allure of many an hour doing Precisely Zero Parenting certainly held its appeal. So I stayed. It felt strange packing their little suitcases-on-wheels knowing it wouldn’t be me reaching into the backseat to break up the fights on the drive over. Or battling with them to brush their teeth properly lest they fall out during the night. Or, you know, tucking them in tonight.
But they’re gone. And for the last two hours Talented Hubby and I have been official residents of Geekdom, as we sit across the room from each other, tap-tap-tapping away on our respective computers (we are so lame!) I keep checking over my shoulder for a Small Person. I even commented to TH that my mouth keeps wanting to form the words “SHUT THE DOOR!” (it’s cold here at the moment and we’ve had the heater on quite a bit - the kids never remember to close the doors as they barrel through them). And its gloomy and rainy and I don’t know, wintery outside and I really want a Piglet snuggle. They’re awesome. And it’s only the first day!
It’s not all doom and gloom though. There are benefits to not having the kids underfoot. For starters, as it is the holidays, if they were home they’d be in Ultra! Excited! Mode! all-the-blessed-time, LOL. Throughout the school term they’re all packed off to school by 9am and forgetting for a second the usual housewifery tasks, my days are fairly loosey-goosey. Hubs is often about, but he’s often not as well, depending on his roster. It’s especially busy in the mornings and afternoons, but the days are pretty quiet. Holidays are always a bit of a shock to the system after 10 weeks of easy-going days.
But this week? I don’t have to set an early alarm (or any alarm for that matter). I can sleep till noon every day if I wanted to (don’t worry, I won’t). With Talented Hubby on dayshift, he’s out of the house before I wake and gone most of the day. I don’t have to drop everything at 3pm to pick children up from school. I can cook spicy food the kids won’t touch in a pink fit. TH and I can go out to dinner without having to mortgage the house (seriously, have you noticed how much even good ol’ McD’s adds up to for a family meal these days? Sheesh). All this glorious time stretches out in front of me this week and all I can think of is, I wonder whether Miss Moo’s hair got into the carbonara sauce at dinner? Did Nana remember to clip it back? I really should organize their closets. Does Master J need one new pair of jeans or two? Did Boofah remember to RSVP to his friend’s party? And, when will they be back again?
I have this dream in my head that I’ll be able to knuckle down and get that fourth bedroom all fixed up as a surprise for Boofah when the kids return on Friday. I’ve wanted to finish it off as a surprise for ages, but until this week all the secretive spy work was going to have to be done in the space of one school day, in order that he didn’t smell a rat. With four days up my sleeve, I have oodles of time to get it done. The weather forecast is gloomy, and it’s a perfect rainy-day activity. And with TH out of the house I can crank up the Ballads playlist on my iPod/stereo whatsit. Only there’s a great monstrosity of metal in there at the moment (the home gym, aka The Beast) and we still have to work out where to put that until it can be picked up by the relative who put dibs on it. But fingers crossed.
I’m not reaching for the phone to call the kids. Honest…
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Pottering...And Rambling
Apparently someone in the know has tallied up the Total Germ Points for our household and deemed we haven’t met our quota. Three out of the five of us have colds this week and Miss Moo had to have another day off school yesterday because of a stomach bug. Thankfully this time around it seems to be one of those ‘blink and you’ll miss it’ types because she’s back at school today. Good thing too, because school lets out for the mid-year holidays on Friday. I need to suck up all the kid-free days while I still can!
Seriously though, I feel so helpless when the kids are ill. Even though this bout was nowhere near as horrendous as the last, Moo has developed a unique method of vomiting which sounds suspiciously like an airway obstruction. Nothing like the sound of a choking child to make you thankful for a still-sound bladder :P We gave her a dose of the same medication which fixed her last time and that was the end of it. And in the way only a 6yo can do, she bounded out of bed this morning and calmly announced that she made it through the night without ‘making chunks’ in her hair. Awesome sweetie.
Today, as I still feel pretty lousy, has been all about The Vague. I worked on my Family Cookbook this morning. I have a couple of loads of laundry to do (meh). I’m in the process of reinvigorating (again) my Home Management Binder (stay tuned). Pretty easy kind of day.
A few days ago I tried to book our regular respite worker (specially-trained care worker, which we have access to because of Master J) only to find out she had retired. Sigh. The respite people like you to have two or three workers on file so that if one can’t make it, another can, but since we are pretty flexible with our Date Nights and can easily reschedule, we’ve taken the easy route all these years and only met and got to know one. The kids love her, so its sad to know she won’t be around. Now we have to go through the hassle of meeting a new worker and having the kids like her. And you know, there’s the security issue of having a new person in your home. I’m not the only one who hides the Petty Cash jar whenever a babysitter comes around, right? With C, we never had to bother because we trusted her and though I’m sure our new care worker will be wonderful, there’s that initial apprehension. I have it with all caregivers/teachers/doctors. Till I get to know you and trust you, you’re fair game for verbal dissection with my husband. And doubly so when you throw a disabled child into the mix. I remember one other time we tried to meet a second worker and I just didn’t gel with her AT ALL. I felt guilty at the time calling up the respite agency and saying ‘no’ to her, but hey - my kids, my rules. We meet our new person tomorrow. Actually, only I do - Talented Hubby has a Big Time Interview for an internal transfer at work (fingers triply crossed everyone…thanks) and the kids will be at school - but this gives the opportunity to vet her before involving the kids. If she puts me at ease, I’ll book a shorter-than-we-normally-take respite session and TH and I will head out for coffee for a couple of hours (rather than the five or so hours we are normally gone). Hubs thinks my process is a little extreme but I reminded him of the previous failed introduction and he zipped up.
It’s Boofah’s birthday on Saturday! What a bundle of - well, CURIOSITY - that kid is! It seems like such a long time since this. This kid has absolutely flourished since he skipped a grade a couple of years back. We have such interesting conversations in the 7 minute walk to school each day. Just the other day I was explaining to him the concept of credit cards and why Mummy and Daddy don’t just go out and buy the new TV he’s heard us talking about wanting lately. I told him we could ‘buy’ something (clearly not the TV, LOL) for $200 and take it home today but we would owe the bank interest for (potentially) many months and end up paying perhaps $250. Or we could save that money and buy the item outright and only pay the original $200. He thought about that for a moment and agreed it was better to save. Wow, a parenting moment that stuck! I had to giggle at the serious look on his face as he mulled it over though. Actually, starting pocket money at the beginning of 2007 (the kids were 8, 6½ and 5) was one of the best things we ever did. They get the equivalent of half their age per week (Boof is particularly excited because he’s due a pay rise this weekend, LOL) but of that, half must be put in their money tins, which eventually ends up in the bank. They’re free to spend the other half. So Boof, who is turning 8, will soon get $4 - $2 for his tin, and $2 for his wallet. The coolest thing about this system is that all three of them have been saving their ‘wallet money’ for the longest time and have each put in $50 toward a new gaming system for when we (eventually) do get the new TV. Daddy’s influence had something to do with that, LOL, but $50 is massive for little kids - at Boof’s new rate, it’s almost six months of not spending a dime! Last year they chipped in $40 each to buy Guitar Hero 2. Pocket money is an awesome learning experience for kids.
Boofah has requested the following things for his birthday:
Fruit Loops for breakfast (the birthday child always gets to choose a ‘treat’ box of cereal - I hate these things!)
a day out with Mum and the other two kids while Daddy is at work, and a Donut King hotdog lunch. Not Wendy’s. Must be the donut shop’s. I’m not complaining. They have DONUTS.
A chocolate mud cake (originally going to be bought from The Cheesecake Shop but given the kid has a sound financial head on his shoulders he readily agreed to a much-cheaper boxed mix - but only after I sweetened the deal with his choice of candy to put on the top, LOL).
dinner at our favourite pasta restaurant. We started going to real sit-down dinners with the kids last year - not very often, but for special occasions and maybe once every 2mo during the ‘dry’ (ie, no birthdays) half of the year. It’s a great night out and though more expensive than takeout McDonald’s, we’re all getting far more out of the experience than just a full belly.
Clearly, nutrition takes a backseat on birthdays :P
Oh, and if you’re Australian, you’d have heard about the speight of toy sales coming up. For his present, we broached the idea to him of looking through the catalogues and choosing three or four things (in our budget) which he would like to have, with direction from Mum and Dad as to the appropriateness of his choices. The ’surprise’ - he still wanted some mystery - is which thing he gets. It was a bit hard to ignore the incredible deals that will be flying around in the next couple of weeks. Boof is so careful with money I know this method will work - not so with the other two!
With the end of term looming, we have some other things on the horizon as well. I was originally scheduled to do my next blood donation on Thursday but that had to be postponed when I got sick this week, leaving the day free for an Ikea trip. Being a photographer, Talented Hubby is in love with their cheap photo frames. I’m on the lookout for some very basic student desks for the kids for when Boof FINALLY moves into his own room. I’ve also put aside a couple of op shop (thrift store) finds especially for Miss Moo. She’s only ever known her bedroom as hers and Boof’s and was saying she would miss him (awww, right?) so making sure we have the desks ready to put up on ‘moving day’ will help smooth the way for everyone. Plus, they need them anyway. All three of them are getting homework now and I have this crazy notion that we should get back to dinners at the dining table - not easy when it is strewn with math worksheets and old spelling tests (and a laptop, and four half empty cups of tea, and the wrappers of many a sweet treat…but I wouldn’t know anything about that, no sirree….)
Seriously though, I feel so helpless when the kids are ill. Even though this bout was nowhere near as horrendous as the last, Moo has developed a unique method of vomiting which sounds suspiciously like an airway obstruction. Nothing like the sound of a choking child to make you thankful for a still-sound bladder :P We gave her a dose of the same medication which fixed her last time and that was the end of it. And in the way only a 6yo can do, she bounded out of bed this morning and calmly announced that she made it through the night without ‘making chunks’ in her hair. Awesome sweetie.
Today, as I still feel pretty lousy, has been all about The Vague. I worked on my Family Cookbook this morning. I have a couple of loads of laundry to do (meh). I’m in the process of reinvigorating (again) my Home Management Binder (stay tuned). Pretty easy kind of day.
A few days ago I tried to book our regular respite worker (specially-trained care worker, which we have access to because of Master J) only to find out she had retired. Sigh. The respite people like you to have two or three workers on file so that if one can’t make it, another can, but since we are pretty flexible with our Date Nights and can easily reschedule, we’ve taken the easy route all these years and only met and got to know one. The kids love her, so its sad to know she won’t be around. Now we have to go through the hassle of meeting a new worker and having the kids like her. And you know, there’s the security issue of having a new person in your home. I’m not the only one who hides the Petty Cash jar whenever a babysitter comes around, right? With C, we never had to bother because we trusted her and though I’m sure our new care worker will be wonderful, there’s that initial apprehension. I have it with all caregivers/teachers/doctors. Till I get to know you and trust you, you’re fair game for verbal dissection with my husband. And doubly so when you throw a disabled child into the mix. I remember one other time we tried to meet a second worker and I just didn’t gel with her AT ALL. I felt guilty at the time calling up the respite agency and saying ‘no’ to her, but hey - my kids, my rules. We meet our new person tomorrow. Actually, only I do - Talented Hubby has a Big Time Interview for an internal transfer at work (fingers triply crossed everyone…thanks) and the kids will be at school - but this gives the opportunity to vet her before involving the kids. If she puts me at ease, I’ll book a shorter-than-we-normally-take respite session and TH and I will head out for coffee for a couple of hours (rather than the five or so hours we are normally gone). Hubs thinks my process is a little extreme but I reminded him of the previous failed introduction and he zipped up.
It’s Boofah’s birthday on Saturday! What a bundle of - well, CURIOSITY - that kid is! It seems like such a long time since this. This kid has absolutely flourished since he skipped a grade a couple of years back. We have such interesting conversations in the 7 minute walk to school each day. Just the other day I was explaining to him the concept of credit cards and why Mummy and Daddy don’t just go out and buy the new TV he’s heard us talking about wanting lately. I told him we could ‘buy’ something (clearly not the TV, LOL) for $200 and take it home today but we would owe the bank interest for (potentially) many months and end up paying perhaps $250. Or we could save that money and buy the item outright and only pay the original $200. He thought about that for a moment and agreed it was better to save. Wow, a parenting moment that stuck! I had to giggle at the serious look on his face as he mulled it over though. Actually, starting pocket money at the beginning of 2007 (the kids were 8, 6½ and 5) was one of the best things we ever did. They get the equivalent of half their age per week (Boof is particularly excited because he’s due a pay rise this weekend, LOL) but of that, half must be put in their money tins, which eventually ends up in the bank. They’re free to spend the other half. So Boof, who is turning 8, will soon get $4 - $2 for his tin, and $2 for his wallet. The coolest thing about this system is that all three of them have been saving their ‘wallet money’ for the longest time and have each put in $50 toward a new gaming system for when we (eventually) do get the new TV. Daddy’s influence had something to do with that, LOL, but $50 is massive for little kids - at Boof’s new rate, it’s almost six months of not spending a dime! Last year they chipped in $40 each to buy Guitar Hero 2. Pocket money is an awesome learning experience for kids.
Boofah has requested the following things for his birthday:
Fruit Loops for breakfast (the birthday child always gets to choose a ‘treat’ box of cereal - I hate these things!)
a day out with Mum and the other two kids while Daddy is at work, and a Donut King hotdog lunch. Not Wendy’s. Must be the donut shop’s. I’m not complaining. They have DONUTS.
A chocolate mud cake (originally going to be bought from The Cheesecake Shop but given the kid has a sound financial head on his shoulders he readily agreed to a much-cheaper boxed mix - but only after I sweetened the deal with his choice of candy to put on the top, LOL).
dinner at our favourite pasta restaurant. We started going to real sit-down dinners with the kids last year - not very often, but for special occasions and maybe once every 2mo during the ‘dry’ (ie, no birthdays) half of the year. It’s a great night out and though more expensive than takeout McDonald’s, we’re all getting far more out of the experience than just a full belly.
Clearly, nutrition takes a backseat on birthdays :P
Oh, and if you’re Australian, you’d have heard about the speight of toy sales coming up. For his present, we broached the idea to him of looking through the catalogues and choosing three or four things (in our budget) which he would like to have, with direction from Mum and Dad as to the appropriateness of his choices. The ’surprise’ - he still wanted some mystery - is which thing he gets. It was a bit hard to ignore the incredible deals that will be flying around in the next couple of weeks. Boof is so careful with money I know this method will work - not so with the other two!
With the end of term looming, we have some other things on the horizon as well. I was originally scheduled to do my next blood donation on Thursday but that had to be postponed when I got sick this week, leaving the day free for an Ikea trip. Being a photographer, Talented Hubby is in love with their cheap photo frames. I’m on the lookout for some very basic student desks for the kids for when Boof FINALLY moves into his own room. I’ve also put aside a couple of op shop (thrift store) finds especially for Miss Moo. She’s only ever known her bedroom as hers and Boof’s and was saying she would miss him (awww, right?) so making sure we have the desks ready to put up on ‘moving day’ will help smooth the way for everyone. Plus, they need them anyway. All three of them are getting homework now and I have this crazy notion that we should get back to dinners at the dining table - not easy when it is strewn with math worksheets and old spelling tests (and a laptop, and four half empty cups of tea, and the wrappers of many a sweet treat…but I wouldn’t know anything about that, no sirree….)
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