And this is how it went..

I have had my first day off in FOREVER today!


I have been shooting kinder kids week in week out,
which sees me anywhere from Epping to Clayton to Tullamarine and McKinnon
or Doreen on any given week, and then I honoured a commitment to work last weekend
at the Toddler & Baby Show for a friend.

The kids have been shuffled, favours begged and dinners of toast and beans are a go-go.





Here's How My Day Off Went ( pretty delightfully, although maybe i'm easy pleased! ):


6.00am -
wake up and realise it's a beautiful day and I don't have to be in traffic to some exotic* location

6.05am - wee, and go back to bed
( sorry, but the rest of this story is PG, even is wee isn't. What is wee rated anyway? )

7.00am -
Rise. Inform children that NO, they can't "have a day off" and placate older with a lunch order.
Feel like a Lord.

7.00 - 8.30am -
everyone does their stuff without yelling**

8.30am -
realise kinder starts at 8.30am, not 8.45am as thought.
Fang it to kinder. Arrive 2mins late, but safe.

8.45am -
Drop off older boy, feeling happy

9.00am -
Priceline. I haven't shopped for me in AGES and I have no face powder and the foundation
is low.  I also buy hairspray, dry shampoo, an eyeliner from the 80's on sale for $2 I want
to recapture my youth with ( it's blue ) and a sparkle nailpolish.

Feel happy.

9.30am -
( Guessing the time because i have to BE NOWHERE! ) - pop on down to Target.
I have torn a heap of my skirts on various sharp things lately, and anyone that knows me
knows I love the skirt. Unfortunately, no skirts for me today, but there's a perfect dress ..
if I could cut off the bodice and fit the skirt part to the hips i'd be so freaking happy, it's gorgeous.

I tell the salesgirl about my friend who is rather handy with a sewing machine.
I try on several bigger sizes to fit the skirt part on my HIPS, rather than high on the waist as
the dress dictates. I find the right size. I wonder if my friend can do this?
I plan to ask her, and if not, return the dress.

I love Target.

10.00-10.30am-
pop out of dressing room to see said friend at the counter, paying for something. I yell out.
The assistant says "oh, is this your friend you were telling me about?"

Fluke.

10.30-11.30am -
we hit a few Oppies together and even Coles. We share the bulk buy on Zooper Doopers.
Suddenly the grocery shopping burden is no longer heavy. 
We buy matching Olive Baguettes at Baker's Delight.  Alas, we part for kindy pickup.

12.00pm -
Arrive home to put perishables in fridge.  Scoff a salad while on facebook chatting. 
Realise I have 15minutes to get to Spotlight before Kinder pickup and I really need that
iron-one mending stuff for my skirts.  Zoom it on over

12.15pm -
Get stopped in aisle by lady that wants to chat.  Overhelp to the point we probably should
start dating and sync menses.  Rush off for pickup

12.25pm -
Fang down the Nepean ( abiding road rules ) and make it to the kindy 2minutes overtime. 
Last kid there, but not by much.  The following conversation ensues:


Them: And Leanne, if you could just watch the times for pickup?
Me: Huh?
Them: Your husband was 15minutes late the other day***
 Me: Oh really? Well, I hope you discussed it with him?
( I know they did, so shaming me is pointless, plus, we are not repeat offenders, lately it's been hard )
Them: And your son didn't eat his lunch today ( serious raised eyebrows )
Me *Shrug*
Them: He says he doesn't like jam sandwiches ( who does, seriously?  yuck! )
Me: That's all there was, I haven't been home all week and there's no food in the house,
so we do the best with what we've got.
Them: What does he like to eat?
Me: Tuna and Egg. You know, all the stuff we can't eat here?****
Me: So I give him meat and sauce every day he comes here because I know he will eat it
Them: Yes, that's what he said he liked
Me: Buuuut, we were out, so jam it was. Come on Buddy, let's go!


Seriously.  Well, i'll leave it at that. 

I've photographed at so many LOCAL kinders lately ( including the one my older boy went to,
and I should have picked again and the vibe is just so much more relaxed. ). 
Yes, I understand the allergy situation, but couple that with their "no junk food / no sandwich
until you eat a piece of fruit first" ( we aren't a fruity family but my kids eat strawberries
and apples by the bucketful .. BUT .. they hate them in lunchboxes PLUS we have wobbly teeth,
so now apples are hurties  ) and Mondays are fruit-only and BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH. 
So many rules!  So many distainful looks and I don't even feed my kids junk!  I don't understand!! 

I feel very judged for not being a full-time mum I guess .. that I sometimes have to farm out
my pickups ( OMG, the time I cleared a family friend for pickup and all was good,
but then she got a drilling until someone stepped in to save her  - hello!? )

1.30pm-3.30pm -
check gardens, enjoy sunshine

3.30pm -
School pickup. 

4.00pm - chomp on Olive bread from Baker 's Delight with Eggplant & Garlic Dip.
Seriously Divine, and all the niggles just wash away, wash away :)









*we travel anywhere in Melbourne, even places we haven't heard of yet

** I forgot to check teeth.  Were teeth brushed?  There possibly should have been yelling

*** it's true, but they already berated him.  Am I my husband?  No. 
       Are we ever normally late?  No.

**** ok, its true that my kids really do like tuna and egg and these things are not allowed
         at kinder and I UNDERSTAND THAT, .. but it really limits my lunch options with a
         fussy eater, so please, don't give me shit about our limited lunches, ok? 
         I pack the SAME thing every day and it bores the crap out of me too, but everything is
         banned.  Our kinder lunchbox is:  meat&sauce sandwich, plain popcorn sans
         illegal packaging, carrot sticks ( acceptable fruit substitute my kids eat ) and sultanas. 
         A mum recently mentioned to me about the homemade sushi she had packed - it was
         the avocado/cucumber/rice/seaweed wrapper kind and her child was told no he couldn't
         eat it.  They COOK things on premises they are not allowed to EAT on premises
         due to allergies.  It's insane.

         Picking a 'safe' lunchbox that meets all the rules without getting in trouble and repeating
         it for 12months .. not insane.


But besides that one niggle where I was made to feel like a lesser parent
( I wish i'd mentioned the road traffic game we played the other day where they encourage
children to weave through traffic to collect a BALL kicked onto the ROAD, OMG?! ) ..
all the parents standing next to me whispering to their sweet babies "you know,
we never chase balls onto roads EVER, ok?  We can always buy another ball, but there is
only ever one you, don't ever do this ok?" , and yet a jam sandwich is being  a bad mother.

Life is weird.  The older I get, the more weirdos I meet :)

But it was largely a GOOD DAY! :D .. and this Olive Baguette is DA BOMB!  xx

Don't Dream It ( Plan It )

I'm not sure if it's modern life, early onset alzheimers, , or the fact i'm not a very good grown-up .. but I am awful, awful, awful at noting, planning, keeping track of things.

Now it's back-to-school time again though, I need to get my house in order.  For it's not just my schedule that needs organising .. it's all those notes from school, and playdates, money to bring, things to do/buy/make, places to be, et-cet-era..

For example, I made arrangements to take swimming lessons for the little ones with a friend.  Then she couldn't make the day allocated because they had kinder.  So I told her to change the date and let me know.  That was about 2weeks ago.  And i've just noted NOW the new day clashes with OUR kinder days.

I'm sure this doesn't happen to organised mums.


Which brings us to Personal Planners.

Personal Planners has generously given me the opportunity to give away one of their custom-made planners or notebooks.







I've been playing along on their site this morning - and there's endless design possibilities.
Want to upload your own image - perhaps a photo or your own design?  You can do that.

Or: simply use a premade template and leave the design effort in the too-hard basket and still end up with a pretty, personalised product. 







You can change colour, text and design on front/back cover as well as inlay.
There are clever boxes for to-do lists, gym sessions, timetables and preschool sessions, and perhaps the best idea is the way you can import friend’s and family member’s birthdays into your diary - direct from facebook.  Too easy!

Finally, your diary is printed and delivered direct to your door.  Tick that off your list!



Here are a few things that I like about these planners:

·         Design the front/back cover

·         Customise the inside to suit your style & needs.

·         Add friends & family members birthdays

·         Choose between 4 different sizes

·         Pick the start date ( June?  October?  When *does* your year start? )

·         And best of all its fun and easy!







WOULD YOU LIKE TO WIN A PERSONALISED PLANNER?
Yes, You Would?


Well, you're in luck, my friend, because here's what you can do:


- LIKE  the Personal Planner and h&b facebook pages ( it's nice to be liked! )

- LEAVE  me a comment here - tell me how organised you are, or aren't, or how crazy your life is, or a funny story about either, or just that you're a bit broke atm, or that you think your dog communicates with aliens.  Or just say Hi!  ( I know you're strapped for time )

- SHARE  using the social media buttons directly under this post - tweet it, Google Plus-One it ... whatever your preference..



Do all, do one, do some .. but don't do none, or you won't win ( sorry, but thems the rules )


a Rafflecopter giveaway


I'll announce the winner on the 4th Febuary - GOOD LUCK!








SmallPrint:
- Competition is open to all readers, local or International
- Prize can not be exchanged for money
- Prize donated kindly by the folks at Personal Planners in conjunction with h&b
- Competition opens now, and will run to 4th February, 2013
- Winner receives: a gift card for any planner in any size, and shipping is pre-paid.
- Judge's decision is final

Playdates.

I absolutely hate them.


Now, don't get me wrong .. my kids get plenty of socialisation, and basically, I think about 70% of my life is dedicated to making them happy .. as opposed to simply fed, clothed and cleaned.

It's the ME factor. Yep, despite the fact about 1% .. ok, maybe 2% of my life being dedicated to me being happy .. I still feel like a horrible old shrew with every playdate I turn down.

I.just.don't.have.the.time.energy.or.inclination.

Honestly.


I'm tired. real tired.

I work, mother, do all the cooking and cleaning ( got a great husband, but he's always working too .. lately, he was overseas for a month ).
Recently a pair of my pants disintegrated and we realised I was wearing them in images of my firstborn at 6months old.
I don't go shopping for me. I have a 3yr old. When I get babysitters, it's so I can work, not flit around shopping.
It's not much fun at the moment, but I figure my time will come ( I look forward to being alone in a changing room again )

Every day after school, I let my kids play with other kids for on average an hour, in a park near the school. Let them run, climb, have fun.
On Saturdays there's birthday parties, and Sunday is my husband's day off, so that's family day.. if i'm not working.

Dear Reading Recovery Teacher..

Sorry if I seemed a bit curt this morning, but let me just recap for you:

- When you called me two days ago to let me know of your wonderful programme that my son would be starting with you, I was thrilled. When we chatted extensively about his history and his various speech programmes, therapists, when he started to speak, I was delighted. You seemed really interested in getting him on track, your programme sounded great, and the eventual outcome positive.

- Since we were on the phone for a good 30minutes and had exhausted every question, every piece of history, I must admit I was surprised that you wanted to tee up an appt to 'discuss things further' .. there really was nothing else to talk about, but I figured you wanted to meet me face to face, and that's ok too. I was pleased with your 8.45am appointment, and said how that worked well with me and why.

I couldn't help but think how lucky we were to live in a country that seems to take such an active interest in my son's academic progress and who take steps to ensure he keeps up to a level suitable to his age group.