oh, how I love thee scent of flowers...

 Since my mum has come out of hospital she has pretty much moved in with us untill she heals.  We have converted the kids playroom into a private room for her so everyone has their space.  My mum is healing very well.  It turns out it was actually worse than we first thought but the good news is, its healing quite fast.  She has had her jaw wired and is in alot of pain and the eating side of things is hard for her.  The poor love.
She has lots of visitors over the past week and with them has come flowers...lots of flowers.  She was placing them in her room at first but it then got too many, so now we are lucky enough to have our home filled to the brim with stunning fresh flowers.
We have the most amazing bunches...many my favorite, so although they are my mums flowers I am lucky to also get the joy of them.

The aroma of the jonquils is sensational.  We were out most of Saturday last weekend and when we arrived home our house smelt like a flourist.  jonquils are such a romantic and homely flower...They are so sweet.

We also have beautiful pink and white snap dragons that gracefully stand in our kitchen.  There is somthing about them that reminds me of my cute little nanna.  They are wimsical and homey.  I just adore them.

 Oh, and I cant forget the sweeping Orange and white Tulips. 
There are soo many others in amongst them but those just stand out to me.  So stunning and beautiful.
The weather has been chilly and the days quite dark, seeing my mum hasnt been well we've just been staying in doors and staying warm and the flowers have just brightened up these dark old winter days....Oh, how I love thee scent of flowers ♥♥♥

Winter has arrived! Its cooold!

Yes, thats right.  The shorts and summer dresses have been put away.  The heaters are out, the soups simmering on the stove and it's time to snuggle.

Now, generally I am a summer gal.  I Love the beach, being warm (yes, I feel the cold very much) and I hate bulky clothes...BUT, Ive found as Ive got older I am actually enjoying the cooler months.

Im enjoying snuggling up on the couch with my little family sharing a big oversized blanket watching a great movie with hot chocolates.

Im enjoying huddling around the backyard fire cooking marshmallows after eating a hot roast lamb and vege's.

Its fun travelling to the country with just my husband and staying in a cosy, cute little cabin and falling asleep in his arms in front of a roaring fire.

Oh...and the food!  I know, I know...fatty, hot, filling...but oh so tastey and comforting. (hey, summer is for working it all off *wink wink*)

I must admit, we live in Queensland and I agree that it isnt as cold as the other states but Im a sook.  For some strange reason this year does seem to be colder than normal eeek!

But I dont mind, for now its nice staying in...wearing my toasty jammies, and enjoying a nice warming glass of red.....mmmmmmm see ya!

The humble Caravan!

Ok, so in an effort to take my mind off my poor mum I will Blog about our families latest little project...'Our humble little caravan'.  Yes, after much umm-ing and ahhhh-ing my husband and I decided to invest in a little caravan.
Our reasons are simple.  We want to enjoy life, not just drudge through each week.  We want to spend quality time with our kids.  Take off once every so often and enjoy this beautiful country of ours, even if its just a night or two over the weekend.
With the price of everything rising it is so hard to do this.  Even to book a cabin is quite expensive to do it on a regular basis.  This way now, we can keep the caravan stocked and ready to go at anytime.  It will only cost us the price of a tent site and we are inside with electricity and off the ground.
So, we hopped online and purchased an old 30 year old caravan.  We picked it up last month and my husband has had an absolute ball doing it up.  It is so, so cute and retro.  We have painted it all white on the inside and freshend it up.  He has built new doors and benches with off cuts from the timber place nad he has a brand new bar fridge at his office that noone wanted so that is going in it too.  what a bargain eh?  We also got a brandnew cheap but good microwave (yes, microwave LOL) that we are also putting in it.  Today my hubby is putting a new floor in it.
He has fixed the bed in it for both him and I and built brand new bunks in it for the kids.

 Considering we only paid $1500 for it, and the bare minimum doing it up we are quite happy with our new little holiday home on wheels.

My mum was to help me sew some geogouse vintage curtains this week for it but in light of what has just happened...that may have to wait a bit.  I am getting some nice fabric from Ikea....as you can see from the pic, this is what Ive chosen.  Im going to have to double back it as it has to block out light, so Im going to get a different but matching fabric to go on the other side...

We have tried to keep the vintage/retro feel of the caravan with making feel like new.  And I think it does.(Pretty close anyway). 

Im very exited about our first trip...mayby when it warms up a bit.  The school holidays start in a week and my husband wants to take little T away for a boys bonding night in it LOL...that should be fun.  They are both looking foward to it.

So...Here's to many a holiday in our humble little caravan!

My poor Mamma.

 I must dedicate this weeks Blog to my beautiful mamma.  I Know I want my total Blog to be positive and happy, However today Im so worried and concernd for my mum.
Last wednesday evening my mum was walking down her outdoor stairs to water her garden and she had a bad fall.  Not just a slip, but a fall...bad!  We rushed her to the ER and they took her straight in...AND it was a crowded room too.  It tuns out she has broken her jaw in 2 places and shattered her chin.  Im so, so sad.
Im the type of person who instantly thinks the worst.  Without going into to too many details she was a mess.  lost a tooth etc.  NOONE SHOULD EVER SEE THEIR MOTHER LIKE THIS!!!!
My mum is 60 years old, had a sad life and at times she infuriates me like nothing, BUT at the same time she is one of my best friends and she single handedly raised me the best way she could and for that I love her deeply.  I couldnt sleep at all wednesday night...My mind kept thinking "what if was worse, what if..., what if..., what if..."
I know I shouldnt but I do.  Yesterday was a right off for me.  After dropping my kids at school I went to bed and pulled the blankets up over my head and stayed there for 2 hours.  Crying and sleeping.  My stupid irrational fears, insecurites and anxiousness overwhelmed me.  Im trying so hard to be positive.  Sometimes its hard but I know I gotta try.  I have to.
At this very moment my mum is in surgery getting it all fixed.  Im going up to see her soon.  I know she'll be ok.  I just gotta keep telling myself.

THE BIG CLEANOUT!

Ive heard the saying "a clean house is a clean mind"...Believe me this is soooooo true.  Our house was getting so cluttered that it was truly effecting my mind.
Naturally I hate clutter.  It annoys my like nothing else.  I hate walking into my home and seeing a pile of...stuff just sitting on the dining table.  But this is what it was like, but instead of just being on the dining table it was on the kitchen bench, the 'supposed' study, the kids playroom, laundry EVERYWHERE!!!!.  My husband and I had a bit of a melt down over it 3 weeks ago.  I was angry becuase of the state of the house, he was angry because he couldnt find anything. 
I thought "wow...Im a married, 31 year old mum of 2...what is wrong with me!!!  why cant I be more organised????".
I have read about 'flylady' (flylady link here) Watched Peter Walsh on Oprah (Peter's link here)
and still I didnt know where to start.
It is all so overwhelming.  Anyway, as I said my husband and I kinda lost it about 3 weeks ago and so we just tore everything out of the study and kids playroom and started with a blank canvas...two actually.
Once the room were empty we cleaned, painted and scrubed.  The rooms actually looked amazing...empty.

The next job was the biggest.  3 weeks of sorting, clearing and working out what actually is of value and what actually is just...clutter.
I took a little bit of fly lady, a little bit of Peter Walsh and added them together with some amazing advice from a good friend of mind who used to live in the states.  She worked as a Professional sorter over there.  Yes, over in the states she told me that this is big work there.  So many pay to get people in (like Peter Walsh) top help declutter and sort and organise.  She said business is non exsistant in australia...hmmm I wonder why?
She offered me some amazing tips on how to organise and declutter my home.  An absolute wealth of information...that I will hold onto forever.
I have alot of artsy, crafty items.  Lots of toys, lots of magazines, lots of material, office supplies etc.  This is all now soooooo neat and sorted.  I know where everyhting is.  My laundry is now a laundry.  White, fresh, open and clean.  Again, a place for everything.
My study things are in place.  My bathroom is...you guessed it sorted.
Believe me when I say it was a big job.  I mean...BIGGGGGGG!  Im exhausted but I will tell you what.  It was completly worth every bit of effort.  We have taken 5 trailer loads to the tip...I feel like a weight has been lifted.

I am clearer.  Organised and on time.  I know where things are when I need them. I go to bed with a spotless house (thanks to flylady) and I wake up ready to take on the day rather than feeling that low, sinking feeling of "UGH...I just gotta clean today and look for this, and that..." I now get up, EARLY...Have an early morning coffee and breakfast with my husband before the kids are awake.  Next the kids are up, breakfast for them.  Lunches made and off to school.  No more looking for shoes, library books and hair ties...
Even the kids are happier, more organised and have even started helping with the cleanout.

Dont get me wrong.  I know I will still get my moments, Life isnt perfect but with a bit of organising life is so much more simpler.  Throwing out old baggage (mentally and literall LOL)  you feel so much lighter and clearer...like you can take on the world.  Here are a few tips that I have learnt over the past month...

•  Dont keep anything that isnt of worth...somtimes we hold onto recepts, junk mail, and other bits of papers/items...DONT!!!  Clean out your bag, car, table, messy spots as soon as you get home and again before bed.
• One tip my friend drove into me...IF YOU HAVNT USED IT IN 6 MONTHS DECIDE...to either throw it out, give it to charity OR if it is sentimental...USE IT, put it in an album or display it.  Dont shove it away in a box, put it under the stairs for the next 10 years.  Whats the point ??
• Do we REALY need ALLLLLLL those pictures your children draw/paint and make?  This is realy hard for me as I am a sentimental freak!  Im one of those people that have boxes and boxes and boxes of art from my kids.  I had to sort and decide what I was going to keep.  I got it down to 2 boxes...one for each child.  Here I place ONLY special picture/art as well as school awards etc.
• Kids toys...do I realy NEED to explain this one??  We threw out about 3 garbage bags full...yes, those annoying Mcdonalds toys do add up.  Also I was suprised at how many broken toys we were hanging onto.  WHY???  Just keep the ones they actually play with and are realy special.
• Dont keep magazines after 1 year.  My husband and I have a magazine subscription.  We get mags every month.  We purchased an accordian type file.  Here I put each month on a tab.  Each month the mags go into the appropriate month...after Decemeber...we will throw them out and start again.
• Buy boxes.  You know those big clear boxes that you can get from crazy clarkes, the warehouse and Sam's warehouse??  Well they are a life saver.  I bort about 6 medium sized ones. With these I sorted alot of my items into their appropriate boxes.  Now a tip my friend gave me was to mark EACH box..but dont mark it with 1, 2, 3 etc mark exactly whats in each box.  At first I thought "huh?" but once I did it I actualy did see the sense in it.  If you can see whats in the box you actually know whats there.  You can tend to forget whats in there otherwise.  Then as you use the box remark it accordingly.  Great tip, that one.
• For my small crafty bits and peices I was told to go get a fishing tackle box.  FANTASTIC.  It not only fits stickers, embelishments, small diamonties, and ribbons etc...but also my hot glue gun, staple gun and templates.  All neat and excactly where I leave them.
• Go to bed early...rise in the morning early....such a crucial thing for keeping and staying organised.  Weekends can be the exception...but even then its good to keep in routine and get up early and enjoy the day!  Good for the mind too.
• Clean as you go...clean as you go...clean as you go....( i keep telling myself this)
• Spend 15 power mins a day for a quick tidy up.  If you do this just a couple of times a day...its amazing how much this helps aliminate the big, big mess at the end of it.  In our house we call it a 15-min-blitz.
• Go to bed with the dishes washed and away, lounge room tidy, bedroom tidy and give the house one last sweep glance before bed...makes rising so much nicer.
• when you wake up get the sun onto your face.

As I mentioned earlier, you do get your days where you feel Blah....and in my opinion this is human and normal, if this happens, go with it after all we also need time to rest... but if you try to keep your house tidy and clutter free on most days...your mind and body (and family) will thankyou for it.

Now, I just gotta get into my kitchen and sort that out....