preparations

Hello and welcome to my new members :o), I will pop over and see your space too, I love linking up with people!

We love getting ready for Christmas in our house. It is almost more fun than the day itself. The anticipation, the yearly family traditions, the school nativity, and of course Father Christmas himself, HO HO HO!
With only 5 1/2 weeks to go & one pay day to go, this is what we have been up to these last two weeks...

The munchkins have written their letters to Father Christmas...very important if we don't want them to change their minds on present ideas 3 days before the event. That did happen last year!! One wants pink peppa wellies, the other a pirate ship...can you guess which is which lol! This yr was the first year my son actually wrote his letter without any help, so cute,  one for the scrapbook! ...(watch this space!). We posted our letters to the North Pole and believe they will have arrived by now for the elves to start making their toy.

On a more crafty note, my son has finished his entry to the school "Christmas colouring competition"...no peeking! I will put up his marvellous pic (i'm not biased obviously) after the event.

We have had our Christmas photo shoot, courtesy of moi, ready to go on the front of our Christmas Cards (watch this space). Can you guess what she is yet?!

And ....I am also in the middle of knitting our Christmas decorations. Very thrifty of me I thought, coldteaandsmellynappies.co.uk  would be impressed don't you think?!

I'm not entirely sure how I am going to use them yet...for the puddings I wondered about an afternoon game, (we have 9 for Christmas day) of "hunt the pud". They are hollow underneath so I could stuff them with a chocolate truffle or a little cling film wrap of sweets. The stockings are either the start of a garland for the fireplace or for on the tree to put chocolate coins in...

Next week is the Great British pudding bake off with my friends, when we'll make our own Christmas puds, yum! Well, how have you been getting ready for Christmas?

x

Me time

Happy Tuesday everybody!

So who has had some "me time" in this last week? Spent some time on their own with themselves, hobbies or in their favourite "me time" place...no jobs , no chores, no responsibilities....

So I'm not the only one then who has a mere shadow of a memory from when they had time to themselves last month, last summer or last year even...?

This weekend I sat down and wrote out a chart of our weekly activities, jobs & chores.

Now that munchkin no.1 is at school, we seem to have more to do than ever. There's the reading, phonics practice, writing practice, collages about this or that, after school clubs, swimming lessons, friends back for tea, mountains of school uniform washing... how did I ever think I would have more time once he was at school full time?

I don't know which is worse for loosing out on "me time": working mums who are always juggling jobs and home, or "stay at home" mums who are always at home surrounded by toys and an untidy house ,and feel they should be doing spectacular activities with their munckins and hosting super coffee mornings for others?

What I do know is that "me time" is important. You cannot be on call 24/7 without stress accumulating. If we are to give kids/work/partners the best of ourselves, we need time to rejuvenate, be at peace with ourselves, unwind and nurture our souls.

The Oxford dictionary describes "me time" as:

'time spent relaxing on one’s own as opposed to working or doing things for others, seen as an opportunity to reduce stress or restore energy'

so why do we feel so bad about taking time out? 

There's the perception that we are lazy, selfish, have our priorities wrong. Or maybe we don't take "me time" because we don't like ourselves very much? 

I am challenging us to schedule "me time" each week, even everyday, what? yes everyday. In order to look after ourselves and cherish ourselves. In my weekly planner I referred to earlier on, I have scheduled me time 5 days a week. It ranges from half hour slots during a nap time, or an hour in the evening when the kids have gone to bed. 

A couple of days after starting this i feel the benefit already. My jobs /housework time is more productive, and when the stresses and strains of the week come upon me i always have in the back of my mind the next "me time" is coming soon. The next step is to encourage hubby to do the same...perhaps take it in turns to play with the kids for an hour at the weekend before we go out for the day as a family.

What to do in "me time"?

Well, it takes a bit of practice, but there's a few things I like to do .

1. Knitting for myself

2. Scrapbooking

3.Reading

4. Theres a spot by the sea I like to drive to and sit and look at the waves. 

5. Having a costa hot chocolate in the supemarket cafe.

6. Meditation
7. Taking photographs

Cherish yourselves this week by planning time to do your jobs AND have "me time". It can be done!

What others say about "me time":

"Wanting to be someone else is a waste of the person you are.”
― Marilyn Monroe


Peace comes from within. Do not seek it without.”
― Gautama Buddha



“We can never obtain peace in the outer world until we make peace with ourselves.”

― Dalai Lama XIV



"It's often said that a mum is the engine room of the family. But even if she's running on Duracell batteries, she can't survive at optimum levels if she doesn't have a bit of time to herself"

-Daily Telegraph Nov 2008

what do you like to do for "me time"? 
x

summer memories

Did you get up to anything crafty over the summer? hubby and i entered a craft show ! 

I entered 5 categories and actually won 3 prizes, i was so chuffed!

 I won 1st prize for my scrapbook page. it was a page about my sons first blackberrying adventure :o). i used lace, buttons, blackberry pins, die cut birds on my sizzix machine, inking, embossing on my sizzix, twine, die cut flowers, gems, journal tabs and patterned paper.

I won 3rd prize for my anniversary card. its a triple easel card. i used shrink plastic, gems, inking, embossing, acetate, die cut squares using papermania dies, metal words, sticker letters...

I also won 3rd prize for my beach photograph. i took it in Polzeath, Cornwall, on a lovely week away.

I didn't win anything for my knitted hat or finger puppet farm, but i had so much fun making them and looking at everyone else's handy work.


Hubby also entered. he put in 3 photographs and he won a prize for each of them! very proud moment!...it was so lovely to see (especially after I had "encouraged" him into it lol!). Next year the munchkins will be old enough to enter too, I cant wait to see them getting crafty x

what crafty things did you get up to this summer?