Tuesday, 27 August 2013
A drive-by hello
I've not forgotten my blog and I've not forgotten my blog friends. Just a little busy right now. In the words of Arnie: I'll be back. x
Monday, 12 August 2013
Happy Homemaker Monday - 12th August
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| For more HHM posts visit Sandra |
The weather...
Rainy but quite bright. Going to be about 15 C today.
Right now I am...
Listening to Chatterbox playing Temple Run and Squidge playing City Island. The music is quite annoying. :)
Thinking...
That I STILL haven't cut the grass and now it's raining!
On my reading pile...
Jane Eyre
On my TV...
Last night we watched Number 23 with Jim Carrey. It's all about something called the 23 Enigma and this chappie who gets obsessed about it. Apparently, Jim Carrey agreed to do the film as the 23 Enigma is something he is fascinated with. I think the film was a pile of tosh and very boring. There's 2 hours of my life I'll never get back! :)
What I found while surfing the net...
I rather like this post from The Moxie Wife: Love for Love's Sake
And this post from my hubby: Children
On the menu for the week...
I have some tuna steaks, some steak pasties, and some chicken in the freezer...I'll probably do something with those but I haven't made a plan.
On my to-do list...
Mow that grass!! *shakes fist at clouds n rain*
Do my usual Monday 'home blessing' as FlyLady calls it
Shopping
Ring the Child Tax Credit people
In the craft basket...
Nothing at the moment
Looking forward to this week...
Time with G tonight as the girls are staying at my friend's for a sleepover. :)
Looking around the house...
I can now hear the girls screaming as it has just started to absolutely pelt it down with rain and hailstones and they're trying to fasten up the waterproof cover on the guinea pigs' hutch. Haha, good timing! LOL
From the camera...
From our friend's camera:
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| Chatterbox getting hugs off two little girls at a church kids club |
On my prayer list...
Friends of mine who are having family issues
My husband and his health issues and his hospital appointment tomorrow.
Bible verse, devotional...
Here's the verses I'm memorising today (I'm memorising Psalm 91):
He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High
WhoShall abidesunder the shadow of the Almighty
I will say ofmy Godthe LORD, "He is my refuge and
My fortress; My God, in Him I will trust."
Surely Hewillshall save you from the snare of the fowler
And from the perilous pestilence. (Psalm 91:1-3)
OK I'm going to check I got that right...not bad, a few small errors. :)
Here's a few devotional thoughts:
On Gratitude:
Waiting till you're happy before you give thanks, is like waiting to be healthy before you take your vitamins ~ Ann Voskamp
Waiting till you're happy before you give thanks, is like waiting to be healthy before you take your vitamins ~ Ann Voskamp
On forgiving others:
For a long time I used to think this a silly, straw-splitting distinction: how could you hate what a man did and not hate the man? But years later it occurred to me that there was one man to whom I had been doing this all my life - namely myself. However much I might dislike my own cowardice or conceit or greed, I went on loving myself. There had never been the slightest difficulty about it. In fact the very reason why I hated the things was that I loved the man. Just because I loved myself, I was sorry to find that I was the sort of man who did those things. Consequently, Christianity does not want us to reduce by one atom the hatred we feel for cruelty and treachery. We ought to hate them. Not one word of what we have said about them needs to be unsaid. But it does want us to hate them in the same way in which we hate things in ourselves: being sorry that the man should have done such things, and hoping, if it is anyway possible, that somehow, sometime, somewhere he can be cured and made human again.~ C.S. Lewis
Friday, 9 August 2013
Friday's Fave Five
I've not done this meme before, and it looks fun. I'm trying to really focus on my blessings. Focusing daily on our blessings, and having gratitude for them, has been shown to improve mental health generally. This has apparently been proven in some scientific studies.
Before I get to the meme I just wanted to share also that I watched an interesting programme on BBC2 about this: The Truth About Personality, this chappie suffered from lifelong pessimism and insomnia. He undertook a series of experiments to improve his general outlook, two of which were meditation and spending time each day focusing on photographs of happy people. Sounds strange but it really did work for him, I'm not sure that it made him into Pollyanna or anything, but it did change his brain-wave patterns and made him look automatically for the positive rather than the negative. It was SO interesting. Do watch it if you have time, it's an hour long but fascinating:
Humour is also a good way for me to 'look on the bright side' too, nothing like a good chuckle to cheer you up. :)
So anyway, here's my Friday Fave Five!
1. Our holiday
Every year my Mum and Dad take us away on holiday. We never have enough money to pay for a holiday ourselves so this is a great great blessing. This year we went to Cornwall, to a place called Bodieve near the small town of Wadebridge. We had fantastic weather, only a couple of days of drizzle and cloud - which in England is a huge bonus! Cornwall is a beautiful place, I've always said that my dream is one day to retire there in a small old cottage on the coast.
2. Birthday!
I turned 40 on holiday! Yes, I know, I don't look a day over 21. Here I am opening my cards in the cottage. My Dad looking resplendent in his slippers and Squidge still in her jammies. It was a lovely day. They made my breakfast, and I got some lovely presents! I am loved. :)
3. Eden Project
One blessing we see often, but daily take for granted is the beauty of plants. Trees especially are essential to our survival, they provide oxygen and are an integral component of the water cycle.
Whilst we were there, we visited The Eden Project. The project aims to educate about and protect the earth's plants. There are two biomes to visit, the rainforest biome and the Mediterranean biome, plus a whole host of other things to look at. It's fascinating.
Inside the rainforest biome, which is SO humid and contains butterflies and birds flying around, there is an aerial walkway. It is unbelievably high up. It is suspended from the top of the biome by wires, so when you're walking up the steps and standing on the platform it is swaying. Also, the floor is metal mesh, so you can see right through. It is not something for the faint hearted!
4. Birds of Prey and Jellyfish
You know, God has created some amazing beautiful creatures.
Whilst we were there we also visited the Cornish Birds of Prey Centre. What an wonderful place. It is immaculately clean, the birds are all well cared for, I think all of them are rescue birds. Birds that have been mistreated or given up by their owners. Apparently the Harry Potter films led to lots of people deciding to keep owls! What on earth possesses people to think that they can keep owls as a domestic pet? Anyway, here are some pictures. Such beautiful creatures!
Speaking of fascinating creatures, here are some jellyfish from the beach. Chatterbox was not impressed one day at the beach, there were hundreds of them in the sea.
5. Family
I just love the summer holidays. I love them because I get to spend more time with my girls and when we go away with family it's even better!
Have a most blessed weekend!
A cheerful heart is good medicine,
but a crushed spirit dries up the bones. ~Proverbs 17:22
Before I get to the meme I just wanted to share also that I watched an interesting programme on BBC2 about this: The Truth About Personality, this chappie suffered from lifelong pessimism and insomnia. He undertook a series of experiments to improve his general outlook, two of which were meditation and spending time each day focusing on photographs of happy people. Sounds strange but it really did work for him, I'm not sure that it made him into Pollyanna or anything, but it did change his brain-wave patterns and made him look automatically for the positive rather than the negative. It was SO interesting. Do watch it if you have time, it's an hour long but fascinating:
Humour is also a good way for me to 'look on the bright side' too, nothing like a good chuckle to cheer you up. :)
So anyway, here's my Friday Fave Five!
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| Visit Susanne at Living to tell the Story |
Every year my Mum and Dad take us away on holiday. We never have enough money to pay for a holiday ourselves so this is a great great blessing. This year we went to Cornwall, to a place called Bodieve near the small town of Wadebridge. We had fantastic weather, only a couple of days of drizzle and cloud - which in England is a huge bonus! Cornwall is a beautiful place, I've always said that my dream is one day to retire there in a small old cottage on the coast.
2. Birthday!
I turned 40 on holiday! Yes, I know, I don't look a day over 21. Here I am opening my cards in the cottage. My Dad looking resplendent in his slippers and Squidge still in her jammies. It was a lovely day. They made my breakfast, and I got some lovely presents! I am loved. :)
3. Eden Project
One blessing we see often, but daily take for granted is the beauty of plants. Trees especially are essential to our survival, they provide oxygen and are an integral component of the water cycle.
Whilst we were there, we visited The Eden Project. The project aims to educate about and protect the earth's plants. There are two biomes to visit, the rainforest biome and the Mediterranean biome, plus a whole host of other things to look at. It's fascinating.
Inside the rainforest biome, which is SO humid and contains butterflies and birds flying around, there is an aerial walkway. It is unbelievably high up. It is suspended from the top of the biome by wires, so when you're walking up the steps and standing on the platform it is swaying. Also, the floor is metal mesh, so you can see right through. It is not something for the faint hearted!
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| The high suspended walkway |
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| Photo from the platform |
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| A butterfly in the rainforest biome |
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| Outside the biomes, the metal-man you can see at the bottom right is made from discarded electrical equipment |
You know, God has created some amazing beautiful creatures.
Whilst we were there we also visited the Cornish Birds of Prey Centre. What an wonderful place. It is immaculately clean, the birds are all well cared for, I think all of them are rescue birds. Birds that have been mistreated or given up by their owners. Apparently the Harry Potter films led to lots of people deciding to keep owls! What on earth possesses people to think that they can keep owls as a domestic pet? Anyway, here are some pictures. Such beautiful creatures!
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| Not a bird, but still a beautiful creature! :) Squidge having fun on their zip-wire |
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| This made us chuckle. Poor Romeo. |
Speaking of fascinating creatures, here are some jellyfish from the beach. Chatterbox was not impressed one day at the beach, there were hundreds of them in the sea.
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| Apparently this kind of jellyfish can give you a painful sting |
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| Investigating jellyfish in a bucket - these kind don't cause a painful sting - but we didn't touch their tentacles just in case! |
I just love the summer holidays. I love them because I get to spend more time with my girls and when we go away with family it's even better!
Have a most blessed weekend!
7 Quick Takes vol 228
Speaking of pet psychologists, this clip from Frasier is hilarious:
Our latest favourite comedy programme is The Big Bang Theory. Don't you just love Sheldon? Jim Parsons plays the part amazingly well. I love the Rubik's cube tissue box, I saw it on eBay. WANT! But we're a bit skint at the moment so it'll have to wait. I had to look up how to spell Rubik's...I thought it was Rubix, but obviously it was a cube designed by Rubik, hence Rubik's cube. See? Apostrophe for possession, so helpful. Just saying. :P
One of my favourite Big Bang episodes, Penny takes Sheldon to Disneyland and comes up against some custody issues with Leonard. :D
Speaking of Leonard. Sheldon calls him homunculus, which generally refers to a small perfectly formed human. This is now Squidge's new name.
The girls have been enjoying themselves at a church holiday club all week. They love it. Chatterbox is helping to look after the younger children. She just loves it, and they love her. She has a real gift with little ones.
Speaking of Chatterbox, she is 12 in just under 2 weeks. Twelve! Where did the time go? They grow up so fast. These school holidays are such a blessing, to spend lots of time with them because it goes so quickly. *sigh*
For more Quick Takes, visit Conversion Diary!
Thursday, 8 August 2013
His mercies are new every morning...
...and this is His gift of grace.
Good morning. I'm sitting with my toast and marmalade and a lovely steaming cup of coffee. Mmmmm.
I am try to get into the habit of prayer at set times again. When I go away on holiday it all becomes a bit hit and miss.
A morning prayer
Lord, I light this candle because you LORD, are, "My light and my salvation; Whom shall I fear? The LORD is the strength of my life; Of whom shall I be afraid?"
Without your light, Jesus, I am blind and living in darkness, for You said, "I am the light of the world. He who follows me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life." May I always live in Your light.
I pray, Heavenly Father, as a child of yours, that I remember always that I have the light of Jesus within me. May I carry that light to others and always walk as a "child of light".
You tell us Lord, that we your children are, "The light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house". May I today be a light in my home for you Lord.
Kindle in me a flame by your Holy Spirit, may the oil in my lamp never run dry, may I always turn to you to be filled with life and light. May I always be awake and alert.
And now, Lord, help me to meditate upon, learn and live your Word today. May your life giving Word be, ...a lamp to my feet and a light to my path."
In Christ Jesus, who was and is and is to come, amen.
[Scriptures: Psalm 21:1; John 8:12; Ephesians 5:8; Matthew 5:14-15; Matthew 25:1-13; Psalm 119:105.]
I have a few things to do today, the garden is the most pressing...that and Squidge's toenails! My word, I think she's been digging in the garden with them! LOL.
Haha, now there's a to-do list:
Laundry
Gardening
Toenails
You don't often see that on a to-do list. ;)
The garden is jungle like. I'm pretty sure that whilst we have been away on holiday someone has been pouring miracle grow on the weeds! No doubt as I am mowing the lawn I will uncover David Attenborough making a documentary about gorillas or something. "Here, in someone's badly maintained garden, we see a whole new eco-system has exploded."
Anyway, must get on. Finish coffee and then smoke family out of their beds.
Have a blessed day!
Hugs.
Good morning. I'm sitting with my toast and marmalade and a lovely steaming cup of coffee. Mmmmm.
I am try to get into the habit of prayer at set times again. When I go away on holiday it all becomes a bit hit and miss.
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| Add caption |
Lord, I light this candle because you LORD, are, "My light and my salvation; Whom shall I fear? The LORD is the strength of my life; Of whom shall I be afraid?"
Without your light, Jesus, I am blind and living in darkness, for You said, "I am the light of the world. He who follows me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life." May I always live in Your light.
I pray, Heavenly Father, as a child of yours, that I remember always that I have the light of Jesus within me. May I carry that light to others and always walk as a "child of light".
You tell us Lord, that we your children are, "The light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house". May I today be a light in my home for you Lord.
Kindle in me a flame by your Holy Spirit, may the oil in my lamp never run dry, may I always turn to you to be filled with life and light. May I always be awake and alert.
And now, Lord, help me to meditate upon, learn and live your Word today. May your life giving Word be, ...a lamp to my feet and a light to my path."
In Christ Jesus, who was and is and is to come, amen.
[Scriptures: Psalm 21:1; John 8:12; Ephesians 5:8; Matthew 5:14-15; Matthew 25:1-13; Psalm 119:105.]
I have a few things to do today, the garden is the most pressing...that and Squidge's toenails! My word, I think she's been digging in the garden with them! LOL.
Haha, now there's a to-do list:
Laundry
Gardening
Toenails
You don't often see that on a to-do list. ;)
The garden is jungle like. I'm pretty sure that whilst we have been away on holiday someone has been pouring miracle grow on the weeds! No doubt as I am mowing the lawn I will uncover David Attenborough making a documentary about gorillas or something. "Here, in someone's badly maintained garden, we see a whole new eco-system has exploded."
Anyway, must get on. Finish coffee and then smoke family out of their beds.
Have a blessed day!
Hugs.
Wednesday, 7 August 2013
More humour therapy...
Hahahaha this so looks like Boots. Perhaps she has a secret life.
Anyway, G is on the phone to his sister, so a brief post. Boots has finally calmed down after coming home from the cattery. She's been so stressed out, poor kitty. Last year, knowing her stress levels, I got her some tablets from the vets to calm her down whilst she was in there. Perhaps I should have done that this year too. On the first day back, she was purring away happily, then turned on me full claws hissing crazily. She was cat-on-the-edge.
Yesterday I had a brief snooze...well it turned into 2 hours but that's another story...fortunately Boots decided she was hungry. I woke up to her licking my elbow. When I woke up she said, "Mew" hopefully and then ran off down to the kitchen. Which takes me to this funny cat picture:
Today she's been very chipper, following me around meowing and rolling around showing her belly so that I will scratch it. Life's never dull with a cat.
Anyway, G is on the phone to his sister, so a brief post. Boots has finally calmed down after coming home from the cattery. She's been so stressed out, poor kitty. Last year, knowing her stress levels, I got her some tablets from the vets to calm her down whilst she was in there. Perhaps I should have done that this year too. On the first day back, she was purring away happily, then turned on me full claws hissing crazily. She was cat-on-the-edge.
Yesterday I had a brief snooze...well it turned into 2 hours but that's another story...fortunately Boots decided she was hungry. I woke up to her licking my elbow. When I woke up she said, "Mew" hopefully and then ran off down to the kitchen. Which takes me to this funny cat picture:
Today she's been very chipper, following me around meowing and rolling around showing her belly so that I will scratch it. Life's never dull with a cat.
Humour as therapy
Haha, after writing the previous post, which to be honest was rather cathartic [I just checked the dictionary to see if I was using the right word there - well I was, but I just want to make it clear that it has nothing to do with my bowels!] I watched the video I added to end of the post and saw this picture. I don't know who the author is, someone shared it on Facebook, but it really made me chuckle.
So, on that note, I'm going to go put some music on and get on with my day.
Monday, 5 August 2013
Happy Homemaker Monday - Post Holiday Chaos!
The weather...
Rain, rain, rain.
Right now I am...
Sitting on the bed typing this with a finally relaxed pussy-cat snoozing on my feet [we've just got back from holiday and being in a cattery totally stresses her out]
Thinking...
That I need to get tea going. Hubster is on his way home and Chatterbox is going to a youth event at church tonight, so she needs to have had her tea soon.
On my TV...
Catching up on Big Bang Theory.
Top Gear.
I watched the revealing of the actor who will play the 12th Doctor (Doctor Who) last night on BBC. I wished I hadn't because it's much more fun to find out when he regenerates in the TV programme...but I'd have found out anyway, the papers, TV, radio, Facebook and Twitter have been talking of nothing else. Plus I find Zoe Ball a most annoying presenter.
What I found while surfing the net...
On the menu for this week...
Tonight, pasta bolognese I think.
Tomorrow chicken drumsticks and mash
I haven't really thought further than that.
In the craft basket...
Nowt.
Looking forward to this week...
Getting the house sorted out! And the garden. My word it's overgrown!
Looking around the house...
Mess. An orchid that needs serious attention. Snoozing cat. The girls making jewellery at the kitchen table.
From the camera...
Crazy cat:
If I photoshopped her eyes red...scary! LOL
On my prayer list...
My hubby has a Urology appointment coming up soon, hopefully they will find out what is going on with his kidneys, etc. I'd be grateful for prayers.
Our next door neighbour's mum has just died suddenly, I'm praying for her.
My cousin and a friend are both going through painful separations from their husbands both of which were precipitated by the husband have come as such a terrible sudden shock to them.
Bible verse, devotional...
Deuteronomy 31:8
"The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged."
For more Happy Homemaker Monday Posts visit Sandra.
Sunday, 4 August 2013
Excuse me I'm an introvert!
I've just found an article that explains me so well!
10 Myths About Introverts
Here are a few quotes:
This is so me. I really struggle with small talk, particularly with people I don't know. Even with people I know I can find it hard to think of things to talk about. But I can talk for England about things that I'm excited about, and I am genuinely interested in people.
Yes, I am baffled by all that beating about the bush and pretending. I'm always shocked when people are dishonest or can talk about nothing when there is something more important going on. Plus, pretending all is well with small talk is just silly when you know that there's something up. Makes me so frustrated. Get it out in the open people and we can talk about it!
But this one was so helpful to me:
So true. It explains so much about why I react to things like I do. The church we are in now is very, very social, which I love. But I also need peace and space and I find it stressful if I have to do too much. I can't be doing with people in my face all the time; yet, I love people and I love to talk and find out things about people. However, a whirl of social activities get's me where my head feels too full of stuff and I crave space. I can't cope with going to church where everyone's lively and in top emotional state and then have to do something social and busy straight after. Well, that's not true, I can do it and have done it and enjoyed it, but I find it exhausting and need a day to recover, lol. Being out every night gets my head in a total spin.
It's so nice to realise I'm normal...ish. :D
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Hat tip to Leila.
10 Myths About Introverts
Here are a few quotes:
"They hate small talk. Get an introvert talking about something they are interested in, and they won’t shut up for days."
This is so me. I really struggle with small talk, particularly with people I don't know. Even with people I know I can find it hard to think of things to talk about. But I can talk for England about things that I'm excited about, and I am genuinely interested in people.
"Introverts often don’t see a reason for beating around the bush with social pleasantries. They want everyone to just be real and honest. Unfortunately, this is not acceptable in most settings, so Introverts can feel a lot of pressure to fit in, which they find exhausting."
Yes, I am baffled by all that beating about the bush and pretending. I'm always shocked when people are dishonest or can talk about nothing when there is something more important going on. Plus, pretending all is well with small talk is just silly when you know that there's something up. Makes me so frustrated. Get it out in the open people and we can talk about it!
That is true. I do enjoy being with people. I love sharing ideas and talking about a variety of things. But I do also need time alone.
"Introverts are perfectly comfortable with their own thoughts...But they can also get incredibly lonely if they don’t have anyone to share their discoveries with."
But this one was so helpful to me:
"Introverts typically relax at home or in nature, not in busy public places. Introverts are not thrill seekers and adrenaline junkies. If there is too much talking and noise going on, they shut down. Their brains are too sensitive to the neurotransmitter called Dopamine. Introverts and Extroverts have different dominant neuro-pathways."
So true. It explains so much about why I react to things like I do. The church we are in now is very, very social, which I love. But I also need peace and space and I find it stressful if I have to do too much. I can't be doing with people in my face all the time; yet, I love people and I love to talk and find out things about people. However, a whirl of social activities get's me where my head feels too full of stuff and I crave space. I can't cope with going to church where everyone's lively and in top emotional state and then have to do something social and busy straight after. Well, that's not true, I can do it and have done it and enjoyed it, but I find it exhausting and need a day to recover, lol. Being out every night gets my head in a total spin.
It's so nice to realise I'm normal...ish. :D
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Hat tip to Leila.
Friday, 2 August 2013
7 Quick Takes Friday (vol. 227)
It's late here, but here's a post!
As I'm doing Jennifer Fulwiler's 7 Quick Takes Meme I'll also mention one of her other posts from this week that I rather liked: Organizational hacks for the rest of us you know one of those posts that makes you sigh with relief when you realise it's not just you that struggles with perfection - LOL.
The notion that I have a medical condition (Housework ADD!) that prevents perfect housekeeping was just the excuse I needed for my chaotic ways.
I am unable to stick to a schedule, but I LOVE putting them together. A Home Management Binder! It will be beautiful. I like making the folder, spending hours picking the font colours, working out how long each task should take, colour coding each task dependent on its nature, etc. Such fun. I never finish it though. I think I have about 4. Equally, I am unable to stick to my perfectly thought out schedules.
Here's why: Say I decide to clean my kitchen, it can go one of three ways...
1) I start off cleaning, then I notice my cupboard is a bit dusty inside, so I take all my pots and pans out, but then I notice that some of the pans at the back of the cupboard are grubby with rust spots, so I then get on the internet to see how to deal with rust spots on cooking equipment, I find an article but notice that it links to another article about learning to crochet and I would like to learn how to crochet, but I wonder how much hooks are on eBay so I look them up, then I remember I need to finish off in the kitchen, as I get to the kitchen I notice the time! It's 3.25pm and I am late for picking Squidge up from school, I leave the kitchen in a state of devastation, messier than it was before.
Or, 2) I start cleaning the kitchen, I notice the light fitting has cobwebs, I clean the light fitting, whilst I'm up on ladders I notice the top of the cupboards are a bit mucky so I start to clean them, but because the kitchen air is greasy the tops of the cupboards aren't just dust - I need some Vim, so I get more cloths out and a bucket to start cleaning with that and then notice that mucky water has splashed on the cupboard fronts, so I start to clean those, as I'm cleaning the doors I notice my cupboards are really grubby inside, so I empty them all out, I then notice the clock and it's 3.25pm and I am late for picking up Squidge from school and I leave the kitchen in worse devastation than it was before.
Or, 3) Knowing that my kitchen is a Pandora's box and quite possibly one of the seven circles of hell I avoid cleaning it and spend all day pottering about generally wasting time only to finally look up after getting distracted by the boxes of children's artwork, deciding to sort it out and spending hours reminiscing about their childhood and how cute their pictures are or some such nonsense to see that it is 3.25 pm and I am late to pick up Squidge from school and my kitchen is in a worse mess because I have, during the course of the day, contributed more pots from lunch and snacking, plus I now have artwork strewn about the living room that wasn't there before.
If you read all of --1-- and its excessive use of commas and never ending sentences, you deserve a reward.
So how do I manage my Housework ADD (or whatever)? I set a timer. 15 or 10 minutes per room. I put on some jolly bouncy music to motivate me. My aim is to do everything as quickly as possible so that I get lots done before the timer goes off. First I have to tidy the room (I have a box to throw things in that belong in other rooms, which I return to their correct location when I reach that particular room), if I still have time left after tidying I start to clean the room. As soon as the timer goes off I have to move onto another room. After I've been through all the rooms (I don't have a big house) I have a nice break. I then do 15 minutes ironing, or something else. If the house needs a thorough cleaning I will start again at the beginning with the timer. I can use the timer on other projects that tend to get out of control, like filing or sorting photos, etc.
We've been in Cornwall this week. It's been lovely. The cottage we have stayed in is comfortable and roomy. But I'm really looking forward to my own bed. There's nothing like your own bed is there?
I have a new camera and have been playing around with various settings. Here are some macros I took:
I'm looking forward to picking up Boots from the cattery. I do miss my cat! Sad I know.
It's Chatterbox's birthday soon. She'll be 12! Moving closer to those teenage years. I'm not sure I'm ready. :)
The notion that I have a medical condition (Housework ADD!) that prevents perfect housekeeping was just the excuse I needed for my chaotic ways.
I am unable to stick to a schedule, but I LOVE putting them together. A Home Management Binder! It will be beautiful. I like making the folder, spending hours picking the font colours, working out how long each task should take, colour coding each task dependent on its nature, etc. Such fun. I never finish it though. I think I have about 4. Equally, I am unable to stick to my perfectly thought out schedules.
Here's why: Say I decide to clean my kitchen, it can go one of three ways...
1) I start off cleaning, then I notice my cupboard is a bit dusty inside, so I take all my pots and pans out, but then I notice that some of the pans at the back of the cupboard are grubby with rust spots, so I then get on the internet to see how to deal with rust spots on cooking equipment, I find an article but notice that it links to another article about learning to crochet and I would like to learn how to crochet, but I wonder how much hooks are on eBay so I look them up, then I remember I need to finish off in the kitchen, as I get to the kitchen I notice the time! It's 3.25pm and I am late for picking Squidge up from school, I leave the kitchen in a state of devastation, messier than it was before.
Or, 2) I start cleaning the kitchen, I notice the light fitting has cobwebs, I clean the light fitting, whilst I'm up on ladders I notice the top of the cupboards are a bit mucky so I start to clean them, but because the kitchen air is greasy the tops of the cupboards aren't just dust - I need some Vim, so I get more cloths out and a bucket to start cleaning with that and then notice that mucky water has splashed on the cupboard fronts, so I start to clean those, as I'm cleaning the doors I notice my cupboards are really grubby inside, so I empty them all out, I then notice the clock and it's 3.25pm and I am late for picking up Squidge from school and I leave the kitchen in worse devastation than it was before.
Or, 3) Knowing that my kitchen is a Pandora's box and quite possibly one of the seven circles of hell I avoid cleaning it and spend all day pottering about generally wasting time only to finally look up after getting distracted by the boxes of children's artwork, deciding to sort it out and spending hours reminiscing about their childhood and how cute their pictures are or some such nonsense to see that it is 3.25 pm and I am late to pick up Squidge from school and my kitchen is in a worse mess because I have, during the course of the day, contributed more pots from lunch and snacking, plus I now have artwork strewn about the living room that wasn't there before.
If you read all of --1-- and its excessive use of commas and never ending sentences, you deserve a reward.
So how do I manage my Housework ADD (or whatever)? I set a timer. 15 or 10 minutes per room. I put on some jolly bouncy music to motivate me. My aim is to do everything as quickly as possible so that I get lots done before the timer goes off. First I have to tidy the room (I have a box to throw things in that belong in other rooms, which I return to their correct location when I reach that particular room), if I still have time left after tidying I start to clean the room. As soon as the timer goes off I have to move onto another room. After I've been through all the rooms (I don't have a big house) I have a nice break. I then do 15 minutes ironing, or something else. If the house needs a thorough cleaning I will start again at the beginning with the timer. I can use the timer on other projects that tend to get out of control, like filing or sorting photos, etc.
We've been in Cornwall this week. It's been lovely. The cottage we have stayed in is comfortable and roomy. But I'm really looking forward to my own bed. There's nothing like your own bed is there?
I have a new camera and have been playing around with various settings. Here are some macros I took:
I'm looking forward to picking up Boots from the cattery. I do miss my cat! Sad I know.
It's Chatterbox's birthday soon. She'll be 12! Moving closer to those teenage years. I'm not sure I'm ready. :)
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