Sunday, May 27, 2012

Vision Board



I have felt the need for a Vision Board for quite a while now. It has been nagging and nagging at me but I kept thinking there were other important things to do first. The last few years I have felt that I have been "treading water" and just trying to get through each day. I real feel like I need some sort of planning, direction and goals for myself. So, I decided to put together a Vision Board.

A friend gave me a gift voucher for Christmas and I really took my time deciding what I was going to spend it on. Just before Mother's Day Kikki-k had a sale on where if you spent a certain amount you got a $25 gift voucher for June. So I decided that it would be a good time to get the board. I had to spend a small amount out of pocket as the board was more expensive than my voucher but I have also got another voucher to spend next month. More free stuff!!

The board is a work in progress as I clarify where I want to go and what I want to achieve. I'm looking forward to developing it on a regular basis. Not sure how "pretty" I want to get it as it is in my bedroom and really just for me. Thoughts anyone? At the moment I have 2 sheets one with my financial goals and one with personal goals, both long term and short term. Also, a picture of a KitchenAid which I would love to get. And Oprah's list of her book club books which I want to read my way through. I've already read about half so it's not that big a task.

Do you have a Vision Board? If so what sort of things do you have on it? I'd love to hear your suggestions and how it works for you.

Sunday, May 20, 2012

One thing leads to another.

In the name of good blogging I am about to make a huge fool of myself. I work at a school for students with physical and health impairments. Last Friday there was a dress up day to dress up as your favourite book/TV/film character. I also decided to get into the spirit as well as you can see from this photo:


This is a Lion Costume I made about 20 years ago for a fancy dress where I went as the Cowardly Lion from the Wizard of Oz. There were a whole bunch of us that dressed up as the entire cast. I always do hang onto dress ups as they come in very handy on various occasions and you can usually fit a small number of dress ups into a lot of common themes.

Anyway, that is not quite the point of this blog. When I was going through the suitcase which holds my dress ups I found quite a few things that I forgot about. The suitcase fits into the bottom of my wardrobe so it has not been on my list of things to go through in my decluttering efforts as it is tucked quite neatly away. I have moved twice in the last 3 years and it has just come along each time without really being gone through. It was always my intention to go through it but it was down the list of areas to tackle due to it being out of sight.

But since I had the suitcase out I thought it would be a good job to go through it (and the one that was sitting on top of it). There were a number of dress ups which have stayed there but I also found a few things that I had forgotten about and can be used or given away. There were some T-shirts that I had kept for sentimental value. Some I put into the bag to go to the op shop and some I have decided that I can just wear around the house as I do not have a sentimental attachment to them any longer. Some did go back into the suitcase and my intention is to cut them up and make them into a quilt as I do have an attachment to them still.

I also discovered the first quilt I made. I did a fairly good job at the quilt top, however, my quilting leaves a bit to be desired. I have kept it as it is nice to keep that first quilt so I can see how far I have come. It's also good to use as an extra blanket on a bed in winter.


Amongst my discoveries was a Spiderman fleece blanket and a Shrek doona cover that I had for a boy I used to look after for when he came for sleepovers. I had completely forgotten I had them but have now got them out to use for B. Very handy!

So after a quick last minute forage for a dress up I have found some useful things, got rid of more stuff I don't need and have emptied one of the suitcases. Not bad work I say.

I'd love to hear your stories of things that you find by accident - good and bad!

Thursday, May 17, 2012

More Free Stuff

Well, I must be doing something right at the moment. Today I have scored 2 lots of free stuff so I'm feeling pretty good. My friend over at Winging it Mum calls them Thrifty Thursdays and I certainly had one today.

I had to go to Spotlight today as I needed to get a some sewing supplies and pick up a few things for B's birthday party next month. They are having a special at the moment where if you spend $100 you get $40 off your purchase. By the time my things were totalled up it was over $100 so I scored my $40 off. This was all stuff I needed so I didn't buy any more things than I would have without the special. Win!

This afternoon I got a visit from Aussie Farmers doing a door knock to check if I was happy with their service. I have been getting my fruit and vegetables and other products from them for about 3 years now and I love the convenience of having it delivered to my door. I answered her questions in less than 5 minutes and at the end she gave me a $40 gift voucher for Quickflix! Another win!

So on my Thrifty Thursday I have scored $80 of free stuff and I'm must admit it's making me pretty happy.

Tuesday, May 15, 2012

Upcycling

In my quest to live a simple life and trying to reduce waste I am looking to recycle and upcycle wherever I can.

I have always been a sewer but have not sewn as much for B as I thought I would. When I can go to Target or K-Mart and buy him a pair of tracksuit pants or shorts for $5 it is simply not economical for me to make any for him. However, I have this week upcycled a few items of clothing for him.

Firstly he had these jeans that were a hand-me-down so had already been well used. You can just see in the photo that there is extensive wearing in the knees - more than it's worth patching. So I decided to make a pair of shorts out of them to extend their life.


Jeans with worn knees

All ready to become shorts
All finished and ready for summer!

I also picked up this old men's shirt to make a new pair of pants. I found the instructions on how to do this here so I won't bore you with step-by-step instructions and photos. Suffice to say this shirt:






Became these pants:

I took a photo of the back as I used the pockets in the original shirt for back pockets of the pants (don't think the photo shows them clearly though). Unfortunately, B has a real aversion to buttons (not sure why) so I had to cut them off otherwise he won't wear the pants.

The shirt cost me $6 at the op shop, I already had the elastic and it only took me about half an hour to make. For a pair of "dressier" pants I think that it not bad. I only just had enough fabric lengthwise to make the pants so may have to make shorts in future. Of course I don't have a home supply of men's shirts so if anyone wants to send their partners my way when they are finished with it would be much appreciated. Hehe!

Any other tips for upcycling clothes would be much appreciated. I have a few other projects to try so I am a bit excited about the old and unwanted becoming new again!

Sunday, May 13, 2012

Mother's Day

Well today is Mother's Day. B has been quite excited about it this year and all week has been asking "is it Mother's Day yet?"

So to make the day extra special I asked him if he would like to cook us breakfast today. I thought French Toast would be an achievable meal for him to mainly cook on his own. He loves spending time with me in the kitchen and is a really good help but today I was the helper and he pretty much cooked it himself. It gave him a real sense of achievement and pride that he was able to do this for me. I had considered going out to breakfast but I am so glad we didn't. This was much cheaper and the learning and his sense of accomplishment was definitely worth it.


Dipping the bread

Flipping the toast

Topping it all off with berries and icing sugar

In church this morning our minister talked about the Julia Ward Howe's Mother's Day Proclamation of 1870 which was a proclamation for peace and that women should rise up for peace. I really like this idea rather than the commercial thing it has become now.

Arise, then, women of this day! Arise, all women who have hearts, whether your baptism be that of water or tears!
Say firmly: "We will not have great questions decided by irrelevant agencies. Our husbands shall not come to us, reeking with carnage, for caresses and applause. Our sons shall not be taken from us to unlearn all that we have taught them of charity, mercy and patience. We women of one country will be too tender of those of another to allow our sons to be trained to injure theirs."
From the bosom of the devastated earth, a voice goes up with our own. It says, "Disarm, Disarm!"
The sword of murder is not the balance of justice. Blood not wipe out dishonor, nor violence indicate possession. As men have often forsaken the plow and the anvil at the summons of war, let women now leave all that may be left of home for a great and earnest day of counsel. Let them meet first, as women, to bewail & commemorate the dead. Let them solemnly take counsel with each other as to the means whereby the great human family can live in peace, each bearing after his own time the sacred impress, not of Caesars but of God.
In the name of womanhood and of humanity, I earnestly ask that a general congress of women without limit of nationality may be appointed and held at some place deemed most convenient and at the earliest period consistent with its objects, to promote the alliance of the different nationalities, the amicable settlement of international questions, the great and general interests of peace.


There has been a huge amount of controversy going around at the moment about the Time Magazine article "Are You Mom Enough?" We are all mum/mom enough. We do our best to nurture, teach, care and love for our children and if they know that then THAT IS ENOUGH! A friend of mine wrote a really great blog about this (click here).



This photo is all the things I have received for Mother's Day. A lovely friend sent me a card of support after my last post which was really lovely. I have other friends who have given me flowers and a card every Mother's Day from B which is very much appreciated. Then B made a card for me at kinder complete with a box of chocolates and a couple of lavender sachets.

In the card B made for me at kinder they got him to say his own message which was: "I love my mum because she has a key card KIA car and she always plays with me." This was a really lovely message as being a single parent I sometimes feel like I do not play with him as much as I should as I am the only one to do all the jobs needed around the house. It's nice to know that he still thinks I ALWAYS play with him. Although I'm a bit over playing with toy cars I just keep thinking that one day he won't think playing with Mum is cool.

So, Happy Mother's Day to all the mothers out there. And to those of you in my life that have not been blessed with motherhood thank you for the mothering roles that you play in B's life and the lives of the other children in your lives. It really does take a village to raise a child and I certainly appreciate the help and support I receive on this mothering journey. It is with that help and support that I can proudly say I AM ENOUGH!



Tuesday, May 8, 2012

Back to Basics

The last couple of days have not been the most pleasant in our house. B has had a few meltdowns and inappropriate behaviour over the last couple of days. We did have a fairly busy weekend and I am hoping that he is just a bit tired. My other option is that as he is nearly 4 he is about to hit the testosterone surge that apparently occurs around this age.

So tonight I am going back to basics. I am hitting a few parenting books that I have found useful in the past to refresh myself. I know that bad behaviours occur from time to time, however, it is also the way I deal with them and parent through this that really determines the outcome. I have a habit of holding on to my frustrations with his behaviour long after they are an issue. It is something I really need to work on and improve.

"Raising Boys" by Steve Biddulph and "Turning Tears into Laughter" by Lou Harvey-Zahra

I was very lucky that today was a lovely day so we got to spend a bit of time outside this afternoon which is always helpful when we are having a bad day.

I would love to hear your strategies for how you deal with bad days. What works and doesn't work for you and your kids? I am open to any ideas!!!

Thursday, May 3, 2012

Free Shoes!




Being a single parent on a very tight budget I try to save money wherever I can.

I have never been a member of fly buys or similar loyalty programs as I feel that I do not spend enough money at these places to make it worth my while.

I get loyalty cards from the cafes I visit regularly to get a free coffee after every 5-10 I buy. This is very handy for weeks when money is a bit tight but I can still get a coffee at one of my favourite cafes.

However, Betts Kids which is where I buy B's shoes do offer a loyalty program of a free pair of shoes after you buy 5. I took the card thinking I would not be able to redeem anything as you have to buy all the shoes within a 2 year period and since I only have 1 child I didn't think I would achieve this. I also misplaced the first card (which had 2 purchases on it) and had got another one. In my clearing out of my paperwork I found the first card so when I checked both cards I realised that I qualified for a pair of free shoes. Hooray!! The shoes were $40 and I didn't have to pay anything for them. Score!!

I would love to hear of places you know that offer reward programs that are actually achievable. Any tips on other places I may frequent would be very welcome.