Tag: annoyed

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Family

Mothers Are Not Doormats!

I’m not feeling the love today.

Or actually any other day for that matter.

Today is the day before Mother’s Day and it has been a shit show. In actual fact total crazy chaos at many points throughout the day.

I have had my head in my hands, been in tears and just lost for why my three offspring are acting like beasts. Yes, they are just plain horrible today, and unfortunately on many other occasions.

I am angry and annoyed at everyone’s horrible behaviour – could not find a picture of a mum but this conveys my feelings

I wonder what led to this. Is it me? I do hope not. I have tried so hard to instil order, tell them to be nice and explain that they need to help others. However, no matter how hard I try I am constantly saying:

  • “Just help others”
  • “Help please!”
  • “Do as you are told”
  • “Why is this still not done, I told you hours ago to pick this up”
  • “If you did it the first time it would be done now”
  • “If you actually tidied up it would be done and then you could do something for yourself. Instead, you decide to take a whole day and argue about everything and still do nothing.”

Some have said that the older two are just hormonal…well yes that might be the case but it is not an excuse for not helping and being downright horrible all the time. If I acted the way they are when I was the same age I wouldn’t have been let out of my room and of course not allowed dinner either.

As you can imagine I have had enough and at many points throughout the day I have had fantasies about having a shower, getting dressed and driving somewhere and just doing something for myself (Without telling them this is what I am doing). I do think that Mother’s Day might not be any better. I can hope but it brings me back to the main issue I have with being a mother:

You should not be celebrated and helped on one day alone. You need help and the niceness to be everyday of the year. People need to listen to you, help and assist, and be pleasant to boot. No arguing about having to pick something up from a messy room that is not yours!

I am not the servant.

I am not a slave.

I am a person that actually wants to do more with my life than to keep on telling people to help and what to do. I am sick of the arguments, fights and who does what and also why they cannot due to the fact that they did it before. Geez if this was only a reason for me to not help.

So according to my kids, I can get out of the following as I have done it all before and it is not my job!

  • Doing the laundry
  • Cleaning up the rooms
  • Folding and putting away the laundry
  • Cooking
  • Reminding people of events and things that are important
  • Shopping for food and other essentials
  • Buying gifts and posting them to people (as I am the one that does this for everyone in this family)
  • Caring for others – maybe someone else can step up while I have a good break
  • Probably loads more points but I cannot think of them at the moment – I will claim that due to me being an overworked mum I can name other points later.

In the current climate, I feel that if I say or do something it gets ignored. I tell someone to do something and it does not happen. I ask for help and it doesn’t happen.

God forbid I have a horrible accident and bleeding out and the kids argue whose turn it is to call the ambulance. I think I would die on my floor if that was the case.

The girls told me one of their friend’s mums just left for a four-day camping trip during the last school holidays. They told me that this mum hadn’t told the kid that they were going on holiday alone, however, I would think that this woman told her partner and all was good. She decided she needed a break alone and went for it. Maybe I need to do this.

I am thinking of declining any family-forced outing tomorrow and would love to take off and do my own thing for Mother’s Day. I need to get some jeans and a nice trip to the shops, a quiet lunch on my own would be rather relaxing.

Are you feeling the same way about Mother’s Day? Or are you just wanting people to stop ignoring you and appreciate you and what you do for them? I believe that some ignoring others and not giving others what they want might wake them up to their silly behaviour. I am exhausted and so over the rudeness.

Oh, and one thing that fucking annoyed me so much was the fact that one of the oldest cannot hang out the clothes properly. She just dumped clothes and other items on the line without opening them up, so shirts were folded over themselves with sleeves still inside the shirt, also jumpers were folded over and just lumped on the line, expecting them to dry was just ridiculous! I ended up redoing it all. You would think they would get it by now, I have told them over a million times. I believe they are doing this on purpose so they don’t have to help! Why can’t they do anything I ask???? Also, why is it a shit job that needs to be redone so, in reality, there is no point asking for help in the first place!

What about you? I think booking that holiday alone is a good idea. I will look into this as a priority. Now, where to go that will not cost the earth is the next question.

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Categories
News

Bring The Drawstring Back!

This is not a new problem but one that has annoyed me for a long time.

How about you????

Is this an issue that makes you angry?

 

I bet it does…. if it annoys you then I want you to get behind my movement to Bring The Drawstring Back!  

As you might have guessed it really frustrates me and makes me very annoyed.

Pants and shorts that look like they have the drawstring cord but it is an illusion.  Yep all fake, nothing works. Cord and string just for show.

In fact, they just have a few bits of cord hanging to allow you to tie in a knot and not an actual bow, and due to no actual drawstring being in the waist of the pants or shorts there is no ability to pull them tighter.

You might not think this is a major issue but it is, especially when you have super skinny kids that have no waists and need everything to be tighten or taken in.

It could be a conspiracy against all people that wish to adjust their pants and not show their bums or undies.

The twins were tiny from the word go and of course have been small with everything and it is hard to get them anything that fits without getting a smaller size to ensure it actually fits around their waist. However, due to the fact that they are growing, I need the length but the waist size for bigger sizes seem to get enormous and therefore falls off my skinny little people.

When Alexander was born he was 1.2kgs bigger than one of the girls, now this is significant but he is still the same as his sisters.  Being a good size for a newborn hasn’t helped the fact that he is going to be a skinny minny like his sisters.

He has an itty bitty waist and needs to have outfits with an adjustable waist or tighter elastic or at the very least a drawstring that is there and actually works.

I’m sure I’m not the only one that is over the fake drawstring phenomenon.

Why are manufacturers doing this?

From a customer perspective, it is horrible. You buy a pair of pants and they cannot be altered to fit you…. stupid actually!

From the seller’s position, having drawstrings mean more time to make each item and therefore each item will cost more. I’m sure they are still super cheap to make in a Chinese factory and sell for a huge profit.

Personally, I hate having no drawstrings on pants. Especially for kids, and on my PJ”s too! (I seem to have a whole bunch of pajama pants that are just falling off me and yes you guessed it, no drawstring!)

 

I think we should email, phone and tell all stores to put back the drawstring!  Will you stand with me?

 

#bringbackthedrawstring

I did try and create a change.org petition however I couldn’t due to not knowing who to list as the person, organisation, or group that can make a decision about my petition.

Not having drawstrings is an issue that affects many shops and it is not down to one. Therefore this area of the form was left blank and I couldn’t create an online petition.

Note: I have had to change my pajama pants I was wearing during writing this as they are constantly falling down, yes its a look I just don’t want. I could magically fix all pants that do this, but why would you want to? Why can’t I just buy pants that have a usable and working drawstring?

The issue is real and affects millions of people.  Tell the clothing stores you shop at that they need to bring back the drawstring!

 

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Categories
Family

Attitude Galore

I know that this kid is much younger than the girls and is not the twins. I just wanted a picture that conveys annoyance, being angry and upset. Sometimes the kids are like this regardless of their age.
I know that this kid is much younger than the girls and is not the twins. I just wanted a picture that conveys annoyance, being angry and upset. Sometimes the kids are like this regardless of their age.

Note: I wrote this yesterday in order to post today. Today the twins have been extremely good and I have hardly raised my voice. Not sure why they are being so good or what they want but I am just accepting the nice behaviour as lately it is a rare occurrence (Maybe they knew that I was writing this and are being good). One kid cleaned the living room, folded the clothes and put them away. She also wrote me a note saying that she loved me and had a glass of water waiting for me to drink. Very nice indeed.

 

Now to more of what has been the norm around here and to see if it is happening to you as well.

I know that this kid is much younger than the girls and is not the twins. I just wanted a picture that conveys annoyance, being angry and upset. Sometimes the kids are like this regardless of their age.
I know that this kid is much younger than the girls and is not the twins. I just wanted a picture that conveys annoyance, being angry and upset. Sometimes the kids are like this regardless of their age.

What is it with the twins lately?

Any time I open my mouth to ask them to do something or see what is going on and I get attitude!

Yep I kid you not.

I get told the following and it does not matter from which kid:

“Leave us alone!”

“You don’t need to know”

“It is none of your business”

Mind you this is all said to me with the grumpiest of voices and faces, plus it gets yelled at me or screamed like a banshee is yelling, not my children.

Could it be the age?

The twins are nearly nine and lately been wanting more independence. I like to walk them to school after I park the car but the girls have been asking me to park further away and let them walk the rest of the way. One kid said she wanted to “look like a big girl”.

The girls can do a lot of things on their own and some that I wish they would do is help put things away in the house, tidy their room and help when asked. However it seems like it is a fight to get them to do anything or listen at all.

One kid helped Daddy on our land putting up a silt fence. She worked so hard and even got blisters on her hands from putting up the fencing. She did a good days work. However if you ask her to pick something that she left on the floor up, this will be completely ignored.

Is Mummy Invisible?

I could be right next to one kid and ask them to pick something up or put something away and they will not hear me. Most likely ignoring me to see if I will forget about it. (Not likely!)

The same could be when either child wants to pick up things to take to the kitchen. I ask them to wait and tell them to take more than one item to the kitchen. (This makes sense doesn’t it. Why take one item to the kitchen and have to do several trips rather than one trip). While I am asking this child to wait they are already walking away from me. I have to repeat about four to five times to get them to come back and do the job correctly.)

Why is it that as soon as I organise some wonderful treat for the kids they turn into little nightmares. I pay and get tickets for fun events and the kids act horribly towards me during and after the event. Maybe I should not bother! Why does this happen? It is very annoying and stressful to have this constantly occur.

This happened last Monday when I took the twins, baby and myself off to see Despicable Me 3. They were good to a point and then turned into rude and horrible little people. Yelling at me to give them money for the arcade. Telling me that we were staying when I had already told them we were going home. I ended up going home and the kids ended up in their room until it was clean. Once the room was clean and they were behaving themselves they got lunch and could come out of their room.

Does this happen to you? You organise some fabulous outings for the kids for them to just be annoying and horrible about the whole thing. I have told my kids that if their silly behaviour continues they will be spending more and more time in their room. Geez lets hope it gets tidy if this happens.

It is frustrating when you are constantly repeating yourself, and feel like everything is a fight to get even a small thing done. After getting something achieved I feel exhausted as it has taken a lot of energy.

I feel like I need a drink and then a lie down. Maybe a G & T would be perfect after this type of carry on.

This is me, pretending the silly behaviour is not happening. I am also trying to get some quiet and alone time with no noise.
This is me, pretending the silly behaviour is not happening. I am also trying to get some quiet and alone time with no noise.

My Techniques to Help

I have explained to the kids that I am the only one that organises all the fun things for them due to the fact that I am the primary care giver. If the kids muck up they will not have fun and instead be watching the paint on the wall in their room.

One of my techniques to help the twins understand is to put it into context for them.

  • I asked if the girls would want to be friends with someone that once you did something nice for them ignored you? They said no.
  • I then asked if they would be happy if they got tickets to a fabulous event and then their friend complained every second they were at this event. Would they be happy about this? They said no.
  • After going to the movies and being told that there is only a certain flavour of chips available, and not accepting any alternatives. The actions of this child is screaming and crying. I then asked if they were taking their friend to the movies and this happened would they be happy about it. The kids said no.
  • When we go out and end up at a restaurant and the kids don’t like the food options. The reactions are hysterical meltdowns that are just crazy and horrible. I told the kids that we cannot control what the restaurant serves and they need to be more adventurous and try new foods. They agree but then don’t.  I asked if this happened to them how would they feel? Both girls told me that they would be unhappy and upset.

It seems that they understand how their behaviour is making me feel and that it is not nice. The twins acknowledge that they don’t want to be treated like this.

I then said then, “Why is it okay to treat mummy like this?”

Then I get the all encompassing answer, “I don’t know!”

Well I know they are being naughty and not nice and mostly to me and to me alone.

I told them that I don’t like being treated like this either. I don’t like doing nice things for kids who are not nice back.

So unless they can be nice, no fun things will happen.

I have also tried their silly answer to everything back at them. If they ask when dinner is happening I say, “I don’t know”, if I get asked if they can watch TV, I say, “I don’t know”, if I get asked what are we doing today, I then say, “I don’t know”.

I think you get the message. I know sometimes you don’t know and that is fine but this cannot be the answer to everything… maybe it is the other answer to life, the universe and everything?

The Twins Seem to be Better When Separated

Hubby and I noticed the other day that each child is much better behaved when they are on their own. Once they are together the silliness takes over and more naughty vibrations travel between them and they become extremely naughty. Would it be the twin connection?  Have you experienced this?

It is a pity that there are not a lot of opportunity to have more one on one time with each child. We are planning to do more of this on the weekends but it is harder during the week when I am the only care giver and therefore the kids are with me.

Let us know what is working for you?

Have you found it is the age that your children are at?

The twins are seeking more independence and I suppose due to the fact the girls are identical, they are making themselves different from their sister. 

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Categories
Family

Can mummy have a holiday now?

Don't disturb mummy needs some peace and quiet.
Don't disturb mummy needs some peace and quiet.

School has now been back one week and things have gone back to normal, by normal I mean that all the organised events have started and we must be at places at certain times now. In holidays, you can just do whatever you want and choose to stay at home or to not be somewhere if you don’t want to.  I have cut back on after school activities this year to try and have a calmer and easier time. Last year I was madly racing around and the only free day we had was Thursday. Crazy if you ask me.

Lately the kids have been acting crazy and more than usual.

  • Is it the age they are at?
  • Why are they not listening?
  • Why don’t they hear me when I am right next to them?
  • Why is it such a chore to get anyone to do anything or listen to me!
  • Why am I constantly getting ignored? Oh, it is so frustrating when you must constantly repeat yourself.
  • Another issue that is happening is that the twins are never answering me or hubby when we ask them a question. They just never answer. So, you repeat the question. This then leads to nothing again. Ohhhhhh the frustration when kids never answer you. Do you have this happen to? Why do you think they never answer you? I asked and they seem to be able to do this at school. I then asked why it cannot happen at home. The response was, home is different and that is why we don’t. Interesting!

Don't disturb mummy needs some peace and quiet.
Don’t disturb mummy needs some peace and quiet.

Is the reason they are defying me and not listening due to more independence? They do think that they can do whatever they want and this is met with a BIG NO from me. Of course, they can do things that they can do but I don’t allow them to do whatever they want. I have boundaries and rules like any parent.

You can imagine that during the nearly six weeks of school holidays I was driven mad or to a near walking dead zombie of my previous self. Having kids racing everywhere and anywhere, always on the go and not listening when you are telling them no really exhausts you.

My whole being is tired.

All my cells need time to rest and relax.

My brain needs quiet time for mummy to think and to refocus.

The twins being back at school and the baby being at childcare has allowed some time for me. However, this I find is not enough. I think I really need a vacation away from everything.

The school day is short. Drop off at 8.55am and pick up at 2.55pm so that is not a full day at all. If you must be at school for an event, then it is an even shorter day.

When the baby goes to care that is great as then all three kids are having fun and mummy can do what she has been desperate to do.  I could be drooling over getting the house tidy, doing work on the blog or just some quiet time for me.

Lately I have just liked the fact that I can come home and sit in an empty house. This house has no noise, no kids yelling MUMMY at the top of their lungs and the yelling and carrying on that happens when they are fighting which seems like is every minute.

 

I’m so over it. I am fed up.

I want all the craziness to end. I want a peaceful household and for people to listen when they are spoken to.

Why is this so hard to have this happen? I don’t understand!

 

I make a cup of coffee or tea and just stare at the wall or watch the television to chill out while relaxing and calming down. It gives me some time to just do nothing and then I can do whatever I need to do.

 

I’ve been drooling over the whole idea of a mums only holiday. I would go away to a retreat and not come back for a while. Not sure how long but would love to stay for a few weeks at the very least. I don’t think a few hours a day really allows your body to de-stress and to calm down after having six weeks of crazy.

I seem to have the constant white noise in my head. The noise is also the constant conversations and arguments that have just been. I find that my brain keeps them for a while and they go around and around until they are no more. I know I cannot be the only one that has this happen to them.

Some of the things that I do to chill out:

  • Make sure I have some quiet time for just me
  • Do nothing for a while
  • Meditate
  • Take baths
  • If I cannot take a bath, I have a soothing hot shower to relax.
  • Take walks (I do like to take them on my own but if I cannot I take the baby in the pram)
  • Change of scenery. I like to have a cup of coffee out at a café to make me feel good.
  • I do like to go to the movies on my own. This way no one is yelling or creating an issue when mummy wants to watch her much anticipated film. (I am wanting to do this now that Alexander is in care)
  • Clean up the house a bit so that it is more in order. I like to try and have things sorted. Currently things are a mess and that does not help with my mood so tidying up is on the list to do.

Do you find that you need more time on your own to unwind? Do you feel that the little time you get is not enough?

Other than being gifted a retreat holiday for one or winning the lotto to go, I make do with the small things that I can do at home. How do you chill out as a busy and stressed out mumma.

Let us know.

Categories
Family

Summer School Holidays End

I know a cat photo is strange to put in this post. I did look for a photo of an annoyed mum or parent. Or even kids being silly. I thought that this annoyed cat summed up my feelings and might even represent some of my facial expressions over the holidays.
I know a cat photo is strange to put in this post. I did look for a photo of an annoyed mum or parent. Or even kids being silly. I thought that this annoyed cat summed up my feelings and might even represent some of my facial expressions over the holidays.

I love summer.

I love holidays.

However I am over the craziness of the school holidays and keen for kids to go back to school. There I said it. Lately everything is a drama, and I am so over it.

When is my turn to take a holiday?????  I have been trying to use positive thought power to attract a family holiday to Fiji maybe, or possibly a working holiday just for me to Queensland or Melbourne. Who knows… I am just dreaming and putting it out to the universe at the moment.

I know a cat photo is strange to put in this post. I did look for a photo of an annoyed mum or parent. Or even kids being silly. I thought that this annoyed cat summed up my feelings and might even represent some of my facial expressions over the holidays.
I know a cat photo is strange to put in this post. I did look for a photo of an annoyed mum or parent. Or even kids being silly. I thought that this annoyed cat summed up my feelings and might even represent some of my facial expressions over the holidays.

One thing that I am not looking forward to is the weather getting cooler but one BIG thing that is making me smile is the hours that will be mine when kids and baby are at school and care.

Soon I will have some uninterrupted time. This time will be quiet. No kids yelling, no kids arguing and no baby demanding cuddles or screaming and crying. The joy of soon having two days to myself, aside from school pick up and drop off.

The girls start grade three on Monday and due to the baby being in care on the Tuesday I have organised something for me.

I’ve made an appointment to get my hair done. Yes some pamper time for mummy. It will be relaxing and so nice to do something for me and to be on my own for a change.

Are you looking forward to school going back? Are you over the kids acting feral and crazy lately? I know I am. I am longing for some lovely time to just be at home and to get things done. It could be blogging, sorting things out with the house or just sitting down and having some quiet time for me.

What are you wanting to do when kids go back to school? Let me know.

Categories
Family

Tired or Just Acting Up?

What is it with the kids lately? Every morning they get up and argue. Not only are they arguing they are yelling, screaming and just being horrible.

On top of the yelling, screaming and arguing, they are ignoring anything I say and not doing what they are told. Also when I have asked them to come and sort something out, they race off in the opposite direction to play or hide in the backyard.

Are your kids being mischievous and naughty lately? Is it due to the end of school or something else?
Are your kids being mischievous and naughty lately? Is it due to the end of school or something else?

Is this just kids being out of sorts due to the end of term?

Holidays start next week and this Friday is the last day of school.  If this is what they are doing now I am fearful of the holidays.
I have told the kids that if they continue this terrible behaviour their holidays are going to be very sad and boring. I said that they can stay in their room and tidy it up and if all tidy they can play in there. This you can imagine was met with more yelling and crying!

My reaction to all of this is, what the hell is happening? What is the problem and when can I go on holiday? Why can’t I curl up and ignore people too?

I did take myself to the corner of the house and just have a big yell and scream to let out some annoyance at the stupid and silly behaviour. Aside from this a nice spa retreat alone would do me just fine!

Since this happened all again this morning I need some nice quiet alone time. I still have the noise in my head and I find that time relaxing helps me feel better. I’m telling the kids that they just need to speak nicely to each other and to calm down. I don’t want the yelling and horrible behaviour as it impacts your stress levels, how you feel and it is not good for any of us.

It is also draining to have to deal with this daily and sort it all out. I’m having the same conversations with the kids each and every day…. I am so exhausted I could go right to bed now.

  • Are you having the same things happen in your house?
  • Are your kids acting up? What do you think the issue is?
  • Could it be the end of term? Are they just over tired and need a break?
  • Could it be a full moon or something else mystical (you never know right?)

Send in your ideas so that I might know why we are having crazy days lately.

 

Categories
Family

Just Like Me

The other day one of the girls walked into the kitchen bawling her eyes out. She was so upset she could hardly tell me what the issue was. Once she calmed down a bit I finally learnt what the problem was.

I did initially think that she or her sister had hurt themselves and we might need to take a trip to the hospital. Thank goodness it wasn’t the case.

The kid who was extremely upset told me that she was very sad that Amy Pond and Rory had died. For those that are not aware of these names or characters, they are in Doctor Who. Yes my girls take after hubby and I with their love for the Doctor.

Amy Pond and Rory Williams, from Doctor Who. Image found on Pinterest.
Amy Pond and Rory Williams, from Doctor Who. Image found on Pinterest.

I tired so hard to make her feel better but she kept on saying things about Amy and Rory like they were real people…… OH gosh… what do I do now???? She is a sensitive little bunny and these things upset her. I was like her as a child.

Yes there are moments that I get frustrated at behaviour and then realise that I am exactly the same. Do you do this too?
Yes there are moments that I get frustrated at behaviour and then realise that I am exactly the same. Do you do this too?

One thing that I did say was how about we watch the next episode to see what happens….So I will do that with her to see what happens next. From memory all works out well….but she does not know that.

Although I was shocked at her attachment and upset for the characters of Doctor Who, I had to think back to what I did when I saw this episode for the first time.

I did the same thing. Yes I cry and get very upset. I do the same thing when one doctor dies and he morphs into a new person…. I get to love and like the doctor and I don’t want them to change at all…However it does change and therefore it means more upset from me and now from one of my girls.

It got me thinking about that saying “That awkward moment when you find yourself being frustrated with your child…For behaving just like you.”

I am getting annoyed that she gets upset easily…however I have completely forgotten that I do the same thing. It is major to a child if their favourite characters die in a show or a book. It is very upsetting as an adult too.

I made sure that we had cuddles and kisses and talked about it, she felt a bit better after some nice mummy cuddles.

Have you had moments that your little ones have pushed your buttons to then realise that their behaviour is exactly like yours? Let us know what happened.

 

Categories
Family

Our Vivid Experience

This was our Vivid experience in 2016.

We went to Vivid last Saturday night. Hubby and I had never been, either had the kids. I must say that we were rather excited about our impending adventures.

However they were dashed quite quickly. The crowds and very rude people made the night not as fun as it was meant to be.

I know we chose to go on the long weekend, we chose a weekend and you have to expect it to be busy and crowded. BUT I did not expect to be pushed at every chance anybody got. I like others were on top of others just trying to walk to the Opera House to see the lights. During this horrible walk I had many people try to walk on top of my kids, one lady in particular try and push me away from my family and I lost touch of the twins. I had to have a word with this terrible person. I told her that I don’t know where she was going but pushing people and making me lose my kids and family was not on, not in a crowd like that.

The kids and I at Vivid last Saturday. This picture was taken when we could finally move around freely and not be on top of others. It was nice to be able to walk and to sit on our own. One thing that was lovely was the amazing view and the lights.
The kids and I at Vivid last Saturday. This picture was taken when we could finally move around freely and not be on top of others. It was nice to be able to walk and to sit on our own. One thing that was lovely was the amazing view and the lights. Please forgive the graininess of the photo. It was dark and hard to get a good image with the phone.

I also chatted with a lovely man who was helping his mate in a wheelchair walk back from the Opera House. He said that it was feral. People were not seeing the wheel chair and trying to walk on them also. Just chaos!

At one point hubby had to yell at a woman to watch what she was doing. Her bag just narrowly missed the babies head. Yes no one seemed to see the pram either. I think we all turned invisible that night as many people decided they could not see us. Maybe we were wearing Eric the Viking’s Cloak of Invisibility? If so it finally works!

The walkways were a free for all. I would have thought that one side would be for getting to the Opera House and the other for going back to George Street and the trains. It was not to be. Due to all this chaos the kids only experienced two hands on lightening installations at the Quay. There was no way to make it to other installations and get there in one piece. From our perspective it was very dangerous. If there was a disaster or say fire happened I’m sure we would have been trampled as the crowed would have stampeded to safety.

I do understand that this is a popular event. Sydney has many visitors and therefore this means crowds. However we picked late afternoon to early evening to make sure that we were not in the way.

Maybe in the future there could be more family friendly events and times? I know that they said it was family friendly but we did not experience this last weekend.

How about having more control over the crowds. Having people police the crowds and monitor lines: having one side for one direction and the other for the opposite. Just common sense actually.

I’m not sure if they are doing this currently but maybe having free shuttle buses to other destinations around the city would encourage more movement of people (they did close many streets to help with access and this was a good thing to do. It was a good help and one of the only pluses of the night) This way the crowds are always moving and not staying in one spot all the time. I know this would cause other issues such as waiting for buses and other connections but maybe with frequent buses or trains this could be avoided. Or the wait would be very small compared to the possibility of being pushed and shoved to see the pretty lights.

One thing that I could not understand. Vivid closed a section of the walk way to go towards the Opera House. They then made you go back onto the road to then walk around this closed section of walk way, this meant that we were again on top of many if not hundreds of people. Once we then turned the corner we noticed that the walkway was all open once you got around the bend. Why would they close this small section to have you in human traffic chaos! Just a disaster all round if you ask me. Why not have all the walk way open to encourage people to go everywhere and to of course to not have an angry mob happen.

Once we did get out of the bumper to bumper human traffic it was rather pleasant. Due to us having the baby and a pram we were able to access the bottom walk way at the Opera House. This allowed the kids to run around, me to sit down with the baby and to marvel at the lights of the Opera House and the rest of the harbour.

 

 

 

It was a HUGE pity that we did not see and do more. We were expecting so much more.

Did you go to Vivid? Were you at Circular Quay? Or did you go to Taronga Zoo? How about Darling Harbour or The Botanical Gardens?

 

 

What were your thoughts? Did you have a great time or were you stuck in human traffic with extremely rude and horrible people like us. Let us know.

 

Categories
Family

Are You Afraid of the Letter Z!

I don’t think I have a hard name. It is easy when you think about it. It is not spelt strangely. It is rather ordinary in the scheme of names actually.

You might already know, My name is Suzanne. Yes very basic and easy. The name is how it sounds.

So why is it when I fill out forms or tell someone my name they call me, Susan?

Do people have a fear of the letter Z? I think they do. Even if they get my name sort of right they don’t add the Z.

Beware of the Letter Z. Many cannot put it into a name or try and substitute an S instead.
Beware of the Letter Z. Many cannot put it into a name or try and substitute an S instead.

 

I really don’t get why my name is so difficult for so many people.

Susan is a completely different name. It is not my name. It has never been my name. It also makes me so annoyed that people cannot get my name right, even after many times telling the same person that my name is not Susan!

I try so hard and make sure that I get other people’s names correct. I was always taught that it is a sign of respect and it is also to polite, plus shows that you have listened to what the person said their name was.

It does make me think…. if you write, “Suzanne” down on a form why do you then get called Susan. If you know why this happens, please tell me!

I have even signed up for newsletters online and put my name down as Suzanne. And you might have guessed it…. I now get emails addressed to, Susan!

Are you like me and have your every day name changed into a different one? Or do you have a name that has an X, or Z in it and no one gets it?

Does this happen to you? Do you feel my pain?

How have you addressed this with people that insist on calling you a different name? Have you started calling them the wrong name to illustrate a point? I did this at school to a teacher as he called me Susan. I then got into trouble. Yes fine for them to get your name wrong, but you cannot get their name incorrect…. oh well.  I think he eventually got the message.

 

Categories
6 years and beyond

Misplaced Fitbit Flex

UPDATE: The kind people at Fitbit are replacing my Fitbit Flex for me. How lovely and exciting. Yes as you might guess I have not located it and been sad ever since I lost it. My device should arrive soon, and pictures will be posted when it does.

Have you ever put something down and cannot remember where you put it? I have and it happened to me yesterday. YES, I have misplaced something important. Admittedly I was tidying up, tired and thinking about dinner, tomorrow and all the other things that I need to do and obviously not the task in hand.

What have I misplaced? Well that would be my Fitbit Flex. Yes, my new wonderful device that monitors my steps. The Fitbit had emailed earlier that day telling me that its battery was running low and it needed a charge (Yes the Fitbit emails you to tell you to charge it – very cool indeed). I knew where it was and it was sitting on my side table next to my bed. Right, I know where it is, I will deal with it later.

Close up of my Fitbit Flex. You tap it to show you the dots. The dots represent how many steps you have done. A full row of dots indicates you have completed your 10,00 steps or more! Half way shows that you have done at least 5,000.
Close up of my Fitbit Flex. You tap it to show you the dots. The dots represent how many steps you have done. A full row of dots indicates you have completed your 10,00 steps or more! Half way shows that you have done at least 5,000.

Hubby then asked while I was up could I get his Pebble Watch as it needed a charge. I then remembered that my Fitbit needed a charge also. I went to the bedroom to get both items. I gave hubby his watch and who knows where the Fitbit went! I now cannot find it.

I thought that I put it on my desk that I had since tidied and had the charger ready to go. Now I just needed the device to charge. This has been the quest of today and last night. To find my Fitbit Flex. Today I have had no luck. My aim tomorrow is to find it and in the process clean a bit of the house. I have a fear that I might have had garbage in one hand and things to keep in the other…. could I have thrown it in the bin?

Garbage night is soon, and before I will go through the garbage to make sure that I have not thrown it out, as that would be very bad news if I have! Best to check before the bins go to the tip.

What is the worst thing that you have misplaced? Lost or cannot find? I wish I could go back in time and find where I put it…. would hypnosis help? What would I do to make me go back to that very moment in time? I don’t know how to do this, so think getting stuck into every area is the way to go. I just hope that I have time to do it all. I am going to prioritize on the bins, and certain areas that will be more likely to have this much loved and missing device.

I just cannot believe that I have lost it in my own house when I went to go get it! I must be sleep deprived if I am doing things like this!

Send in your stories so I don’t feel so bad about this silly act of tidying.  If I cannot locate it I will have to replace it. 🙁

Categories
5 years and beyond

Annoyed!

Note: One good thing is my order did not get cancelled and will be shipped today! I will receive a new dongle for my fitbit soon. So that is great news.

My first annoying thing of the day!

When I packed up to leave due to impending fires, I packed my fitbit and of course the dongle that went with it. For days I have not been able to find the dongle, I had the fitbit zip but not the bit to sync to the computer. Annoying and driving me mad trying to find it. Since I looked at all places that knew it might be and not finding it, I bit the bullet and did an order via the FitBit website to order a new one.

I then got busy getting ready to leave the house and came back to my desk to get my phone and of course what do I find, Yes the dongle sitting on my desk near my keyboard! Typical that this has happened. Once I got home from dropping kids off and seeing if I can get some things for their school which is the other story I will tell I tried to set it all up again.

Do you think it is working? NO! The computer sees that the Bluetooth dongle is connected but the software for the FitBit is not talking to it or seeing that the dongle is plugged in! I have restarted the computer. No luck! I have removed FitBit Software and reinstalled, still no luck! Getting very annoyed now.

I tried to cancel my order this morning due to finding original dongle but now it is not working I might need the order to turn up. My emails are bouncing back and will try to let them know via their website. I had to remove the app on my iPhone as it was not syncing and downloaded the new one. The new app for my iPhone is trying to update and never does it. Also it is taking forever to sync. Not sure why but will ask them this as well.

2nd annoying thing of the day!

My kids are dressing up as insects for the Rhododendron festival. Every year the pre-school marches in it. One kid is going to be a lady beetle and the other a butterfly. Do you think I can find a costume for this, NO! We have no K-Mart, Target has fairy costumes that the kids don’t want, the toy shop has nothing, Go Lo the cheap shop that had dress ups is closed, I have gone to the second hand shops and they have nothing! And of course the costume shop is closed!

My option is to borrow one, the kids wear fairy costumes, make something at short notice and no time, or drive to Penrith to get one. Not sure if I have the time to do the drive to Penrith as that takes a day with kids.  There is no where here that I can purchase a cheap costume for kids. One shop was selling a fairy costume for $62 each! Not good for a little parade and for 2 kids. Just too expensive.

I know I should have organised something earlier but I was busy and did not look at a sign at the school. My mistake. Now I need to get it sorted before Saturday!

3rd annoying thing of the day!

Need to clean the house in record time as today is the only day without kids. Well tomorrow is sort of but have about 1 hour of time tomorrow for me. So I’m going offline to power through the house like a woman possessed!

Let me know what has annoyed you lately! Send in your comments.

Categories
5 years and beyond

Swearing at Kids Is Not On!

Angry Man.Image courtesy of sumetho at FreeDigitalPhotos.net
Angry Man.Image courtesy of sumetho at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

While on a train ride home I noticed a family. There was the mother, father, grandad and child who was a little boy. This little boy could have been five years old but looked small so maybe under five. Hard to know. My girls are small and always taken for younger.

The reason I noticed this family was due to some bad language. I am not a fuddy-duddy but when you speak like that to kids it is just not right. I do slip from time to time but make sure to let my girls know that this type of language and words are not on and I make sure not to speak like that. If I do it is to myself and when kids are in bed!

Now for the most upsetting part. The family moved to empty seats that were in front of me. These seats were facing each other to allow the family more room. The mother, grandfather and child came to the new seats first. Then the father.

When the father approached the seats he went off at his child something fierce. He said, “F*#K, why are we moving seats!  I don’t see why this will give us more room! This was all directed at his little boy. Why is this his problem? Does it matter where you sit as long as you are together?

If this is how he talks to his child in public what happens at home? Maybe I am a fuddy-duddy by thinking these things. How your parents treat you affects the rest of your life. My father was scary, mean and violent. I was terrified of him and wondered what he would do next. When I was younger I stuttered and was extremely shy due to this. I am not like this now. Kids are impressionable and they need to be nurtured not sworn at for moving seats on a train!

Have you encountered bad behaviour especially with language from parents towards children? Kids repeat what they see and hear. If you are swearing they will do it to you and others. Have times changed that much that this is acceptable? I never knew certain words like these until I was much older. Maybe it was my family or how I was brought up? Or is it a sign of the times?

What are your thoughts?

Categories
3 years and beyond University Study

Outside v’s inside work

Why is it that as a mother you have to look after kids and still try and get the housework done? The husband gets space to do outdoors work (and other things); with a little help from the girls he basically got time to get it all done. I know both jobs are not fun and a lot of work, however it is very hard to get the house tidy with two little people wanting you to spend time with them, play with them, cuddle them and you get the idea.

I managed yesterday to get the bathroom clean, but this was only due to me putting the kids in their room for enforced quiet time. Not really quiet time, however it is time that mummy can do things without two kids under foot.  Other than the bathroom, the kitchen got a little tidier and so did the living room. Other than those rooms, not much got done.

At lunch time today we are expecting the girl’s great aunt and her girlfriend for lunch, so I am working away at finalising the house. I have tidied our room and added fresh sheets to the bed; I have put more clothes in the washing machine (need to put clothes on the line), tidied up the living room yet again, the hallway and off to do the dining room and kitchen for finishing touches.

While I am doing all this my husband is at the computer figuring out an issue with his email. I did ask that he get up and help, however his view was that he is tired from yesterday. He did do a lot of yard work and the entire front yard. Not only did he cut and prune trees and shrubs, he mowed as well. It does look great, and I can imagine that his body is a bit sore and tired.  Although I think that as his relative is coming that maybe he might help with the inside? Is this too much to ask? I really don’t think so. So I thought why not update the blog if other people are at the computer as well.

I also find it incredible that even on holidays I am the one that is mainly looking after the girls. I have told him that this weekend and Monday I need to focus on my assignment for university. I have no choice as it is due by midnight Monday evening.  So after lunch time today and family time tomorrow, he is looking after the kids.

The girls do get involved in some tasks to help, putting their shoes in their room, helping putting away groceries, they have cleaned their room although this was just them putting all their toys on the shelves,  wiping down tables however the use of the spray is way to much, putting away toys in the toy box, and some other things. I find that it is hard to get these things done, although I am trying to involve the girls so that they are learning to put things away also.

Do you have any tips or tricks for getting housework and other things done with kids? What do you do? Some ladies I spoke to said that they don’t bother if the kids are around, I do try but nothing seems to ever get completed. Why do you as a woman get criticised for not completing the inside when you had other things to care for, namely two children.   I would like on this Easter break to finally get help with cleaning the windows, and time to do some other things, maybe my sewing?  One can only hope. Send in your ideas for doing chores/housework and other tasks with kids around.

Categories
3 years and beyond University Study

Good behaviour & feel good fairy where for art thou?

Today is not good, still not well, although kids seem to be getting better. However, no one is doing anything mummy is telling them. It is a tiring day and indeed week. I am so tired that I decided to have a rest until the screams of kids made me get up and tear them off each other.

We went to playgroup to get the kids to run around and exhaust themselves, although this is not the case as they are running around like mad things as I type this post.

Julia off shopping with her teddies in her pram, and Lillian is shopping in the bedroom, while closing and opening the door. I am sick of the arguments, and would just like to have someone put me in a room for time out and they can mind the kids.   Cannot wait for bed time tonight or at least time for when I can be by myself for a time.

My list of woes today and really for the week:

  • Lillian has a red rash under her nose due to rubbing, licking and having a cold. She will not let me put paw paw cream on it, moisturiser and I am worried it will get worse.  She will not put it on herself, and it is a big fight to get her to do anything about it. If I do get some on her lip, she rubs it off as soon as I get it on.
  • Blowing of noses – is getting better, but Lillian especially is rubbing and making her rash worse.
  • Not listening.
  • When I tell them not to do something the reaction is upset, crying. Then it is hug me, carry me and be with me all day.
  • No one is resting even when they look like they will fall asleep. When they do go down for rest time they are screaming, arguing and just making more problems. This is mostly due to them being overtired and sharing a room.   Why can’t they just lie down and have a sleep.
  • Asking for a certain food and then not eating it, and now they are saying they are both hungry. It is currently 3.30pm; I am not feeding them heaps of food for them to then not eat dinner.  So no snacks until dinner.
  • Julia refusing her cough mixture, she thinks it is yucky. It is not bad, but not as nice as other medicines she has had. If she would only let me give it to her, she would not cough so much. She let daddy give it to her this morning but refuses me to do it all. I am so over this.
  • Not getting any house cleaning and especially university work done. The university assignment is a worry and I am sure will get done, but it is on my mind.

So my worries and annoyances are nothing unusual. So now I need the good behaviour fairy to come and fix the kids, and then the feel good fairy to come and make us all better.  This will make sure that they are in school next week and then mummy can have a break and get some much needed work done.

Have you had days or times when your brain is overloaded, you have kids at you, you are sick and tired, and really just want to go to bed or pack it all in? The girls are now watching soothing play school. I swear there is a subliminal track in this show that makes kids be quiet and nice. Pity I cannot have this bottled in a spray and use it at will.   I hope your day and week as been better than mine. Crossing fingers that the weekend will be better with the husband home for help. Send in your comments about your trying days or weeks.

Categories
3 years and beyond Uncategorised University Study

Good behaviour & feel good fairy where for art thou?

Today is not good, still not well, although kids seem to be getting better. However, no one is doing anything mummy is telling them. It is a tiring day and indeed week. I am so tired that I decided to have a rest until the screams of kids made me get up and tear them off each other.

We went to playgroup to get the kids to run around and exhaust themselves, although this is not the case as they are running around like mad things as I type this post.

Julia off shopping with her teddies in her pram, and Lillian is shopping in the bedroom, while closing and opening the door. I am sick of the arguments, and would just like to have someone put me in a room for time out and they can mind the kids.   Cannot wait for bed time tonight or at least time for when I can be by myself for a time.

My list of woes today and really for the week:

  • Lillian has a red rash under her nose due to rubbing, licking and having a cold. She will not let me put paw paw cream on it, moisturiser and I am worried it will get worse.  She will not put it on herself, and it is a big fight to get her to do anything about it. If I do get some on her lip, she rubs it off as soon as I get it on.
  • Blowing of noses – is getting better, but Lillian especially is rubbing and making her rash worse.
  • Not listening.
  • When I tell them not to do something the reaction is upset, crying. Then it is hug me, carry me and be with me all day.
  • No one is resting even when they look like they will fall asleep. When they do go down for rest time they are screaming, arguing and just making more problems. This is mostly due to them being overtired and sharing a room.   Why can’t they just lie down and have a sleep.
  • Asking for a certain food and then not eating it, and now they are saying they are both hungry. It is currently 3.30pm; I am not feeding them heaps of food for them to then not eat dinner.  So no snacks until dinner.
  • Julia refusing her cough mixture, she thinks it is yucky. It is not bad, but not as nice as other medicines she has had. If she would only let me give it to her, she would not cough so much. She let daddy give it to her this morning but refuses me to do it all. I am so over this.
  • Not getting any house cleaning and especially university work done. The university assignment is a worry and I am sure will get done, but it is on my mind.

So my worries and annoyances are nothing unusual. So now I need the good behaviour fairy to come and fix the kids, and then the feel good fairy to come and make us all better.  This will make sure that they are in school next week and then mummy can have a break and get some much needed work done.

Have you had days or times when your brain is overloaded, you have kids at you, you are sick and tired, and really just want to go to bed or pack it all in? The girls are now watching soothing play school. I swear there is a subliminal track in this show that makes kids be quiet and nice. Pity I cannot have this bottled in a spray and use it at will.   I hope your day and week as been better than mine. Crossing fingers that the weekend will be better with the husband home for help. Send in your comments about your trying days or weeks.

Categories
3 years and beyond Family Katoomba and Weather Pre-School

A bit grumpy

Lunches are made and are in the fridge. Week 2 of pre-school starts tomorrow, yippee another 3 days off (not full days, just a school day) for me to get some things done and for my time out. I am really looking forward to it.

This weekend was busy for me. I was tasked with looking after the girls (Not like this is different from the status quo anyway) as James had to work on a presentation for his work.  It was very disappointing for me, as I like the fact that daddy is available on weekends to be with the girls and to help out.  I know it was work and it does not happen all the time so that is something to be grateful for.  However it got me thinking.  Why is it o.k. for the husband to lock himself away at the computer all weekend just due to a presentation for work? I mentioned that when I have urgent projects or things I need to do for university, I don’t get that amount of time to do any of my work. I have to do it all at night, not during the day when you are at your best.  I did mention this to James and it was met with I could always get an extension on an assignment if I need to. He cannot get an extension for a work presentation.

To top it off, Lillian was so unsettled Saturday night that she was screaming and crying and was a mess. I ended up taking her to bed with me, the girls call mummy and daddies bed the “big bed”. She snuggled up to me and wanted to hold my hand and cuddle me. She was so upset. James went in at first to calm her down. He thought that worked, but when he left she was hysterical. When I first came into her room she said there was a thing coming in the window for her. I told her that she was safe and all was o.k. probably did not help that there was a house down the road having a party and playing doof doof music. The beat was vibrating on the girl’s floor. I was just thankful that Julia slept and I only had to deal with one upset child at a time.

So Saturday night I did not sleep the best, as I had a little girl trying to snuggle into me, which was very nice and wonderful, however it makes you get in all sorts of different positions that cannot be good for your neck or back. Hoping that tonight I will have the bed to myself aside from James.   I was so tired after dealing with Lillian in the bed and getting up early for Julia. I organised breakfast for the kids and me, and after we were all fed, I told James that I was going back to bed. It was nice that was o.k, as I knew he was still doing his presentation. The girls played nicely with each other. They played in the backyard due to sunshine at the time, and watched Tangled, the new film about Rapunzel. The girls are so invloved in the story that Lillian was calling herself “Tangled” and Julia was calling herself “Gene”. I suppose this is a nice change from Fiona and Shrek. So I should not complain to loudly as it was nice to have that nap this morning as it was much needed.

James’ presentation is complete and I hope it will be a success on Monday.  The weather here has been crazy all weekend as per during the week. I took the girls swimming at Springwood on Saturday; it started out as a nice sunny day.  When we got in the car to drive to get lunch for everyone there were black clouds, and it poured down.  Today it did the same thing, however it was not blue skies, there was sun and clouds and it did the same thing. Thunderstorm this afternoon and now another one while I write this, thunder getting very loud and the lightening is like flash photography.

Does any mother/partner get annoyed when it seems like that when you ask for the same thing you don’t get it? I do not begrudge James getting his presentation done or letting him have the time to do it. I just feel that he could have come out with all of us for a little family time. He likes the job, and I like him having the job, plus he is good at it. However, I am not sure why you cannot spend some time with the family during the day and then get back to the presentation later in the day or work on it during the evening. It would tire out the kids and also then we could leave him alone to get his work finished.  I will use this to my advantage though, next time I have a major assignment, he can look after the girls all weekend.  I think that is fair, don’t you?