11th silly thing | not doing more of this sooner

A day of spending the day with family and friends at a twins' 5 year old birthday party, and then the rest of the day scrapping... I can hardly think of a better day.

Actually, hold that thought.

I would have rather spent more time with my friends at the party enjoying conversations instead of running around after my toddler and listening to half a dozen snippets of conversation.

Yes. That would have been much better.

5th plan b | making cards instead of making beds

Everyday is a winding road

I get a little bit closer

Everyday is a faded sign

I get a little bit closer to feeling fine. - Sheryl Crow

Getting your life back after having babies happens in teeny tiny steps.

Like waking up one morning to discover that you've had enough sleep; discovering that the house is beginning to resemble some sort of order; the return of a calm and steady voice that doesn't escalate at the smallest thing; the expanding of a very important trait called patience...

And one day you realise that you're able to find time to do the things you enjoy. Because as a Mum, there's not much time to do things just for yourself. So when it does happen, it is pure luxury.

Tonight I discovered that wonderful thing called time. I made some cards. I was creative.

And it felt so good.

OCD AND ME

OCD. What's that you may ask? Well, it seems I have OCD written all over my body (and house), and have been in complete denial until now...

You see, last Friday I visited my hairdresser. She hasn't been my hairdresser for long, but apart from the fact that she cuts really good hair, she and I clicked. And it was this particular visit that I realised why.

We were chatting about Christmas and my ever increasing desire to put up the Christmas tree (which you will be so proud was not put up until 30 November). She told me she hated putting up and taking down the Christmas tree, to which I responded, "Why?". After all, I thought she was like me...

Then she told me that she has a little OCD problem. OCD? Yes, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, she responded. Then she proceded to tell me her Christmas story from last year.

It was in January this year when she put down her tree. Yet afterwards she couldn't sleep. That's because she put all the baubles into the Christmas tree box. You know, loose-like. She couldn't bear to think of the baubles out of order like that. So in the middle of the night, she found all the original boxes and put the baubles back in the order in which she purchased them. You know, pink, then silver, then pink, then silver. You get the picture. As she was telling me that everything had to go back exactly the way she bought it, and then put the lights back also as she bought it, she whispered to me (so none of her staff or customers could hear over the nightclub music) "It's f@$#ing sick, is what it is".

But as I giggled nervously at her frankness, you can imagine my shock and horror to think there was actually something wrong with putting the baubles back into their original boxes (in order) and folding the wires of the lights just so it looked like it was brand new. I actually hadn't thought anything of doing just that.

And then just last week I was talking with one of my oldest and dearest friends, and during our weekly chat she stated, she might sound slightly anal for doing it, but she was going to buy boxes for her Christmas decorations this year and colour code them so she could coordinate different colours combinations in the years to come.

And I thought the idea was brilliant.

But then I thought, how come these people think that simply being organised is a sin? While I think that I am slightly anally retentive, I usually relish in my organising capabilities. (And some of my friends do too!)

This same friend then challenged me to go through my cupboards and my house to see what else I do that is slightly OCD. Then take a photo.

So then I did. And here's my list:


1. There are new matching wooden coathangers in our new wardrobes (my husband's shirts are in colour order from lightest to darkest, short-sleeves to long-sleeves).

2. Our clothes are also folded in colour order (from lightest to darkest).
3. I have an 8-week meal cycle complete with rice, pasta, roast dinner and soup nights.

4. My scrapping desk is something of an art form, but everything is in matching jars.

5. My Christmas tree has only three colours on it: blue, gold, bronze.

Okay. I don't think that anything there is TOO bad. But after some comparisons with friends, I have also discovered that...

What I do not have is:

1. Alphabetically ordered herbs and spices.
2. Tins in my pantry all facing the same way.
3. Every single article of clothing ironed before it's put away.
4. Photo albums.

So, putting all those very unorganised things aside, I think I could almost say I was a balanced person.

Aren't I?

a new addiction?

My Wrapping Desk

My very first card - for my cousin's little baby girl Tilda Kelly.

My second card - for my dear friend Mish who turned 30 this week.

My third card - for my step-brother who just became a daddy for the first time. He thinks his son is the most beautiful thing on earth.

My best friend will be so proud - I think I have a scrapbooking addiction.

You see, it was she who has been working on me for around four years now. And her hard work and scrapbooking gifts have finally paid off.

But it's not really officially scrapbooking though.

Because I have other friends who are big into Wrapping Rooms - you know, rooms that are filled with pretty papers, cards, ribbons and set up like a little shop for gift wrapping. One very creative and talented friend even has a clipping on her fridge of her dream Wrapping Room - it's to die for. And I wanted a Wrapping Something. And because we aren't flush with space in our house, a desk was all I had.

Did I mention that I love wrapping paper? And if I find something I really love, I buy it. Simply because it's pretty. And these treasures lie around with no home and I don't really use them because they're not in a space where I can see them (and usually I buy something else with the gift). So it was time I became more organised.

On top of this, I find it crazy paying $5-8 for a card. Just a card. And there's nothing more personal than a hand-made one. This was my compromise to scrapbooking: creative stuff in a smaller format. And something I could justify.

So, with my new desk 'space' - a lovely old desk that my hubby lovingly crafted in our formal lounge - has been converted. Glass jars filled with ebellishments, rolls of wrapping paper bundled together, and ribbons in vases. Oh I am indeed inspired and in heaven.

Now I confess I am no natural and there may be a little way for this amateur to go before she can sell her cards for money. But I've been wanting a hobby apart from blogging, Facebook and cleaning, and this could well fill that creative gap.

I madly created two cards and two tags in one night. And that night I dreamt of all the other things I could create. Is this where the obsession starts? Is this what happens to fellow scrapbookers? It's becoming clearer what this addiction involves...

lots of love

Call me soppy or sentimental, but I have just gotten off the phone to our eldest daughter, and gosh - I really miss her.

We have just chatted about life, her work, being a mum and of course Madison's progress.

She can't wait to be a mum and be at home. That is really great and I just love that she isn't going to try and fit the mould of the working career girl like the Generation Xers who were told we could have it all. Well, that's a load of rubbish. It seems that anything goes these days.

I just did a little quick digital scrap which shows how I feel about our kids. It's short and sweet...

happy birthday

It's now a year since Madison was born (well, tomorrow anyway). As most mums say, "the time has just flown by" and reflecting back, it's been a busy year.

How anyone can believe in evolution still has me stumped, and now I am more sure than ever that it isn't possible. Especially when I see the miracle of a baby growing into an adult. The learning curve is amazing.

Just today I visited a friend who has just had a baby. Holding this precious little bundle brought back to me that only a year ago, Madison was that small and helpless. Now he can get himself around and continues to delight in the Education Game called Discovery.

He continues to dazzle me with his fascination with life and it helps me to appreciate the little things all over again.

My best friend Janine was over last weekend and for those of you who know her, she is a scrapbooking addict. She loves it so much she owns her own scrapbooking store and is on an elite design team for her designs (go to ScrapbookStation if you're interested!). She is also published regularly in the scrapbook magazines. Anyway, she has been convincing me of scrapbooking, and thinks I could be good for it.

Well, she hadn't convinced me until now as I just don't have anywhere to store lots of papers and pretty embellishments, until she told me about digital scrapbooking. I did some googling and was quite impressed at what you can do. And it seems to be more my price range (which always helps!). Even though I haven't bought anything 'scrappie' just yet, I have been fiddling with my newfound knowledge in Adobe Illustrator and think that this could be my new hobby! It's the beginning of something beautiful, I think!

Happy birthday Beautiful Sunshine. May there be many wonderful birthdays to come...