After the rain

I'm feeling refreshed - it's amazing how much even an hour of rest can do.  We are blest to have some home-help one day a week, and today instead of rushing about doing my jobs or going into town to do things, I'm taking it quiet.  The nanny has taken the big kids to the beach for morning tea, so when the baby went to bed, so did I.  I slept for just under an hour and it was amazing!! 

I'm excited as we're having a guest for dinner, so I'm going to make a nice dessert to go with roast lamb (the staple at our house).  This afternoon the plan is to still take it easy - but just do a general house clean up - and if I'm really lucky, get some sewing done.  Told you I was going to do something just for me .... You see, I'm kinda like a catcus I think.  If I don't get some rain (or some sleep/quiet time) I get really realy dry and prickly and then I'm poking out at all the people I love the most.  The thing is, usually I know I'm pokey and dry and parched, but try to keep on being super-catcus who can survive through it all.  Nope - you gotta stop.  Stop and enjoy the rain (rest/you-time).  Even if it might only be five minutes with no-one banging on the toilet door - savor it.  Then we can look up and about and spy the rainbows, soak up the weet-bix covered faces, cheerfully clean up the fourth spilled thing and get on with it ...

Off to spy some more rainbows before the big kids get back (and I will mop the floor while they're gone as then it can dry before they're back :-) )

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Late night

The baby girl is teething - at the moment, nothing is helping - so I'm just giving her a few minutes to grizzle before I try and re-settle her.  It's hard not being able to settle her - I'm really not a CIO parent, I hate it - makes me feel awful inside, but I get that it works for others.  Sometimes though, I wish it didn't upset me so much, would make this time of night more manageable if i didn't feel so awful letting her cry.

Prayers for a good rest of the night would be appreciated.  Off to cuddle a baby.

AAA...choo

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I'm a bit like this today .... lots of things I want to write about in my head, all floating about - slowly forming into something somewhat coherent - BUT hay fever or something similarly coldlike has also come to visit for a wee bit.  So ... the words will have to wait awhile and get in line behind the housework and child-keeping-happy and mummy-keeping-sane things that must be done first.

Monday

At times I feel like I am odd.  I generally like and enjoy a Monday.  This Monday however started with a large rodent showing its face in my kitchen.  The morning was then spent getting bait stations set up - along with traps that are effective and child-friendly.  I am still really petrified of the thing, but hopefully, with these measures in place it will be where it should be - and fast.

Mornings are pretty busy at our place and start early - usually around 5.30 on a good morning at the moment.  I'm ok with that - generally it helps me to get a cup of milo in before starting on the breakfast run.  Currently on weekdays we have porridge and weekends the kids get to choose something else.  Personally porridge isn't my favorite, but I'm yet to find something else that fills everyone up and everyone (including the baby) can eat.  Porridge can be made, cools down enough for the little ones and a big bowl keeps DH going till morning tea time.  If you have any other ideas - I'd like to hear of them.  I have seven to feed :-)

DH gets off to work by 7.15 most mornings, 8am at the latest at the moment.  The big boy needs to be ready around 8.30 - so there is usually some down time for him between eating breakfast and the school bus.  Often if he's had early breakfast (pre-7am) he'll be asking for something to eat just before he leaves.  Currently I'm giving him a muffin or some toast.

Other morning stuff is load the dishwasher, make the bread buns, and the biggest jobs seems to bed getting the kids dressed.  Still working on a better system of that though.  Mr. 4.5 isn't keen on doing it himself, and I'm aware with school looming he needs help with confidence to learn.

Baby and Mr.2 go back to bed around 9.30ish ... otherwise we end up with a snooze in the highchair at 11.30 :-) 

All in all - mornings are  busy, but they usually set us up for a good day.  And tomorrow ... well, that will come soon enough - so I better go and get some shut eye.

If you're wondering about the 30 day shred - well, the past two days I've attempted it and done it as long as the kids have been happy with me doing it.  I realise now, it isn't going to as easy as saying "hey, lets slot this into my life as well" - we can try to juggle the balls, but if one has to drop - this one is the first at the moment.  It has made me aware of some really easy exercises (such as starjumps) that I can do when I have moments that I think of doing them, or when we're goofing off outside.  Oh - and the punch squats - I like doing them!!

A Good Bite

It's hard to find a good bread for hungry mouths.  When you're feeding seven people, cost as well as goodness comes into it.  So when the chance to review Natures Fresh: White Toast with added fibre came up I jumped at the chance. 

I got the loaf and since we're rural and I buy in bulk, the bread went straight into the deep freeze.  One of the criteria I have for bread is that it defrosts well, none of this clumping together, can't get the pieces apart.  Win on this point!

I used half the loaf for fairy bread for Mr.2's party ... it kept its shape nicely.  After the party was over Miss 9 months was happy to munch on a sammie triangle of marmite and cheese.  It was good to see the bread didn't disintegrate to quickly and the crusts were easy for her to eat as well.

Baby Miss with her marmite and cheese sammie

Kiwi Favorite: Marmite and cheese

Party fare: Fairy Bread

Check out the bread here if you want to have more of a look-se.  This mama rates it as reasonable price wise, strong health-wise and great taste-wise .... and the kids all agreed!

Bump in the road

You know what - I think this exercise thing is here to teach me that I can't control everything.  I like the idea of doing it because it's something I can do, repeat every day and have a measure of control over.  BUT add five wee monkeys into the mix, and really - I need to be more flexible.  This morning they didn't want to play exercise with Mama, so five minutes into it - I decided they needed some kid time more than I needed to exercise.

I will try and get the routine in  this afternoon, mainly because I'm a bit worried what my muscles would think if I skipped a day - so at least if I can't  get the routine in I'll do some starjumps and squats.  Today is  the day I have a nanny come in - so instead of going to do jobs that are easier without the kids tagging along - I've planned a Mama and daughter date with Miss3.  Miss3 and I have been having a few issues - not sure if it's smack bang in the middle kid thing, I'm 3 thing - or just plain I haven't had any one on one time with Mama thing.  So at least I can remedy the last one.  We're going to head down to the beach together - go for a walk and then I'll get some lunch with her from the store there.  I hope it is a nice time - I'm looking forward to it - and while I haven't told her yet (don't want the other kids to get upset) I know she'll be stoked as well.

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Right ... it's time to get the breakfast into the plates and food into tummies.  Have a wonderful Friday everyone!

Day Four + Birthday cake

Day Two and Three were torture ... to be honest, I had more than a couple of five second breathers there and my starjumps and skipping didn't remotely resemble the nicely toned trainers  BUT I did move for the thirty minutes or so and today i only had a couple of five second breathers.  Extra bonus for today is that I can bend, move and squat without going owowowowowow.  I know I must be doing some sort of movememt because I'm a sweaty mess afterwards.  It is actually nice to have a quick shower and get into the day freshened up.  Now - just to stop negating my work with all the chocolate. 

Mr.2's birthday cake

Last night I made Mr.2's birthday cake for playgroup today - 10 grey M&Ms for stones on the cake .... all the rest for me (and DH may have had a few).  On the bright side, I am exercising, so they should at least cancel each other out right?  Today's goal is to drink much more water so that my milk supply stays up with it as well.

I really recommend doing something at home - our USB stick plugs into the TV, so I've just loaded it onto there.  Yesterday the AB section was done with Mr.2 trying to help .... he danced along with the star jumps.  This morning big miss held my hands while I tried to do skipping - and that was good.  They are around, but it's still some me time.  I do need to make sure it gets done before 7 though - today was a bit late, which meant DH was ten minutes late out the door - so tomorrow I need to jump out of the bed a bit faster - or change it to a different time of the day - maybe mid-day while kids are having book time on the couch?

Day Two

Right ... so things we know ... after having five babies in a row ... pelvic floor muscles will need some work.  There are a few exercises where they're doing ten and by the time they've finished I've done four (pushups) BUT done day two, I'm sweaty as - so guessing I've done something .... and yes, my muscles are sore.  I'll let you know when that stops.

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Just for me

This month - I'm doing something for me.  I'm doing this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Pc-NizMgg8

It's a thirty day shred.  I don't want to specifically loose weight, but I do want to get my fitness level up.   This seems like something I can do while the kids are in the room with me, star-jumps are something they can do, along with running on the spot.  It's only thirty minutes - hopefully I can do it before morning tea every day and I am hoping that it will give me some more energy to keep going through the day.

So ... anyone want to join me.  I'm going to take my measurements tonight and we'll see how it goes.  No laws, so if it gets too much, maybe I'll do it every second day - but I want to give it a good go.

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