Saturday 31 December 2022

2022 Happenings

January
We started the new year with a lovely quiet night.
Eljay lost his fifth tooth on the 15th.
Tiger changed jobs on the 24th and switched to a four day week
We did a sleep study with Flinders University.
School started on the last day of the month. My babies are in year 6 and year 3!
The rail line that links WA to the East was damaged in severe storms.

February
The school year started well, both boys have lovely teachers.
Chai did swimming lessons at the beach.
Mask mandates commenced and adults had to wear face masks at all indoor public areas.
My Mum and Step Dad were here for a few days which was nice.
Chai has been losing so many teeth lately! He lost 3 this month!
I joined the school board and attended my first meeting. 
I did my first days paid work in 11 years.
The damage to the rail line is causing food shortages. There are a lot of empty shelves and stock shortages. Meat and eggs are in short supply as is toilet tissue, tissues and most packaged and canned food. We can still get fruit and veggies.
The rail line has now been fixed but we're told it'll still be weeks before shelves are fully stocked again.

March
WA opened it's boarders and let people from interstate and overseas enter WA.
Mask mandates were introduced for children from year three upwards. The boys both have to wear face masks at school and any indoor areas.
I did a few more days work. 
Chai graduated from his OT. He's now officially too tall to work with her anymore.
Chai turned eleven! We spent the day in Busselton and all had a great time. In the afternoon Poppy and Uncle S came over for afternoon tea then we went out for a pizza dinner. It was a lovely day.
I'm having to shop every day as the supermarket shelves are quite bare. 
I did a few more days work.
I became the Vice President of the P and C.
COVID is everywhere.
Eljay lost another tooth. It came out while he was at school. This was tooth number six. 
Food prices have gone up drastically.
Petrol is now over $2 per litre.

April
Despite the rail line being fixed the shelves still have bare patches.
School holidays! Eljay wasn't happy about the holidays as he loves school. Chai was happy because he's not enjoying school.
Petrol prices have gone back to a more affordable level (around $1.70 per litre). 
Easter was lots of fun.
We're still wearing masks and COVID is still everywhere.
Chai's psych is very worried about his tics and thinks that he need a new assessment done. If only we could get in to a paediatrician.
My StepDad painted our living areas, it looks so good. White and fresh and lovely. 
The weather is starting to cool down, it'll be fire weather soon.

May
I worked a lot this term. It was fun, I'm really enjoying it. 
Covid got us all this month. Chai bought it home from school and within two days we all had it. It was a very wet, cold week so being in iso wasn't too bad.  
The fatigue lasted for about six weeks, that was tough.

June 
Uncle W is now with us full time. It's lovely having him around. 
Both boys ran their school cross country and did really well. Chai improved his place significantly. Last year he beat one person, this year he beat seven people.
Eljay came second which meant he got to go to the interschool cross country.
Chai saw the paediatrician and had another diagnosis added to his list. 

July
This month the boys discovered roller skating. I'd never taken them as I didn't think they'd like it, but we had a birthday party at the skating ring and they loved it, so now we go there regularly. 
Eljay ran at the interschool cross country and did so well that he was invited to the state cross country.
The July school holidays were wet! 
The new skate park opened in the second week of the holidays so we spent every non wet day there.

August
Eljay turned nine!
He also ran at the state cross country and did really well. I think he has real potential and he loves running so we're going to practise more and see how he goes next year. 
Hubby turned 49. 
Eljay had a birthday party to go to. 
We all got a cold but it was mild, thankfully. 
The boys had book week at school. Eljay dressed up as pikachu and Chai dressed up as Lazerbeam. They both looked awesome.
I applied for the pool recruitment, it was not fun. I really don't like writing selection criteria.
Fuel has finally gone down in price a little. 
Food prices have gone way up, it's ridiculous. 
Dad broke his foot when a lump of wood fell on it.

September
I got into the pool recruitment!
Chai lost another tooth.  
The big skate park opened.
Term three ended and the school holidays were here. 
Mum and SD came to visit for a few days.  
The boys had their school disco.
Chai got a head injury and seven stitches at the skate park.
Eljay went away with Uncle and cousin for a night. It was his second night away from me and his first night being away without Chai being there. 
The fuel excise cut ended and fuel prices went up again. 
Food is still difficult to find. Tissues are always out of stock and other things are randomly unavailable. This month capsicum, cucumber and cheese have been difficult to find. 
The boys Grandad (FIL) was admitted to hospital with a chest infection.

October
The weather started to warm up then changed it's mind and cooled down again. 
Term four started. It's Chai's last term of primary school!
Chai started a gradual transition to high school.
I'm still working two days per week. 
Eljay started Little Athletics.
The boys Grandad had a small stroke whilst in hospital.
Our local skate park opened. The boys love being able to go there after school.
Eljay quit Little Athletics after two sessions.
The boys had their sports carnival and both did really well.
Grandad had a small stroke. He's recovering well.  
We finally got another trampoline and the boys were thrilled.
I got a contract at work!
The boys loved halloween. Chai went to a party at a friends house, Eljay, H, Tiger and I went trick or treating. It was really cold so H and I went back to her house whilst Tiger and Eljay drove around.
Chai had a great time at the Halloween party and didn't want to come home. 

November
Aunty K moved into her new home. 
The train lines have been damaged again so mail is taking ages to arrive and food shortages are back again (not that they ever went away).
I went out to dinner with my work ladies. They're such a lovely group of women, I really like them. 
I got a permanent position at work! At this stage it's one day a week but who knows what will happen next year. 
I'll be working 3 days a week, 1 day is a permanent day and the other two days are under a contract. Hopefully they'll become permanent too.
I was asked to take over as the chairperson of the school board. As of next year I'm the new school board chairperson.
Chai has been doing a transition to high school which cumulated in two full days there.
The boys Grandad got covid but thanks to antivirals is recovering okay. 
 
December
Grandad got out of hospital. 
Covid cases are rising again.
Mail is still taking up to 4 weeks to arrive.
Food shortages are still happening.
Summer is here. We didn't get Spring, we went straight from 15 degree days to 30 degree days.
Chai graduated primary school!
School holidays started! 
We spent a lot of time at the beach, the boys love it and are getting really good at boogie boarding.
Grandma, Grandad and Uncle S came down for a few days over Christmas.
Christmas day was busy, we had a house full of friends and family.
New Years Eve was spent with good friends. It was the perfect night and the first time we've seen in the new year in about 12 years. 

Happy New Year everyone! Here's hoping 2023 is kind to us.
 

Wednesday 21 December 2022

Nourish London Antioxidant Multi-Tasking Super Balm

 

A few months ago I was sent the Nourished London Antioxidant Multi-Tasking Super Balm to review. Now that I've been using it daily for over two months it's time for my review. 

It's no secret that I love a multi-purpose product. Anything with multi-purpose or multi-tasking in the name gets me every time. I love a product that I can put on my bench or in my handbag and use for lots of different things.

My skin has been struggling lately. I'm not sure if it's allergies, peri menopause or stress, but my skin has been really sensitive and irritated. Everything I put on it stings and even rubbing in lotion can cause a reaction. I've stripped back my routine to absolute basics. This Nourish London balm has been one that made the cut. 

This comes with a muslin cloth and can be used as a moisturiser, cleanser and face mask.

I've been using it as my cleanser, day cream, night cream and once a week I'll put on a thick layer as a face mask. It's very gentle and soothing so doesn't irritate my skin at all, even when it's super sensitive and irritated. 

I've also been using it on Mr 9. He has sensitive skin that's prone to irritation. At the moment his face is really sensitive so I've been using a light layer of Super Balm on his face at night to hydrate and ease the sensitivity. 
 

Despite daily use I've barely made a dent in my pot so I'm hoping it will last a long time. 

You can purchase Nourish London products from TVSN or from their website. 

TVSN currently have a great set on clearance for $59.95 that has the Super Balm, a pillow spray and a face roller. I'm so tempted to get it!


Friday 16 December 2022

FFS Friday - Battery exhausted

Hello beauties. How are you all? Holding onto that last shred of sanity? Same.
I'm feeling very relieved. The school year is over, I've done my last day of work for the year and now I can relax. There are a few things to do to prepare for christmas but the mad rush is done.
 
My big boy has finished primary school! There was a while there I didn't think I'd say that. I thought we'd be homeschooling so he wouldn't get to graduate primary school. How lucky we are that he got to finish out his primary school years at such a gorgeous school. 
 
Going there has been truly life changing for us. The boys have thrived, we've all made new friends and I got a job there! I had no idea what I was going to do for work after I had the boys, but now I find that I love working at a school. It's not something I would have ever considered, how lucky am I that I stumbled into it.
 
The last few weeks have been crazy. The boys had so much going on at school, I had a lot going on at work and I was trying to get everything finished for christmas. Thankfully the boys last present arrived yesterday. I just have to pick up one more thing for them, get a little gift to add into my bff's present and then other than christmas lunch I'm done.  

We don't have much planned for the holidays. We might go away for a few nights but other than that I just plan to enjoy the boys, laze around the house and relax. Next year is already looking like it's going to be busy, so I want to be well rested and ready to go. 

Have a lovely weekend.

Friday 9 December 2022

FFS Friday - Cherry on top

Hello beautiful people. How are you all? I am tired. Tired, drained, mentally and emotionally exhausted.
I've decided that Christmas sucks. It's just way too much hard work. All done by the women.
 
Whilst the men sit around happily doing nothing, the women are left to organise everything. We organise the presents, the school events, the secret santa gifts, the teacher gifts, the Christmas lunch/dinner, elf on the shelf and everything else that goes along with Christmas. It's so much hard work and I'm just not here for it. 
 
Last Sunday we went to a Christmas event for the kids. I had to buy a gift for both of the boys so they could get a present from Santa. When we were waiting for Santa to arrive hubby asked me if the boys were getting a gift. I told him they were and he asked me how much I had paid them for the gift. I told him that I'd bought the present, wrapped it and given it to the staff (whilst he was standing right next to me). He'd been oblivious to it all. I'd emailed to say that we would attend the event, I'd sent back the registration form, put it on the calendar and made sure we were all there on time.
 
If I did nothing, there would be no Christmas. No events, no meal, no guests, nothing at all.
 
As if all the organising wasn't stressful enough, school has upped the ante this year. Chai has had three excursions in the past two weeks. Next week (the last week of school), they've pulled out all the stops. Chai has his grade six graduation plus a birthday party. Eljay has two fun play days where he has to wear bathers, take a change of clothes, give a secret santa gift to another student and take dishwashing liquid for a slip and slide. 

This weekend we have to find a birthday present for the party Chai's going to, get the secret santa gift for Eljay and make gifts for seven teaching staff.
Added to all that I'm working every day next week and stupidly agreed to go in the work secret santa thing so I have to bring a gift for a colleague two days next week. 

Did I mention that my car isn't running at the moment? Thursday it started making a really awful noise which turned out to the the brakes. Tiger is a mechanic so started fixing it on Friday, but as it's VW it's not as simple as that so what would normally be a quick job has turned into a huge deal. Poor Tiger. I will never again buy a european car. They're way too expensive and complicated to fix. Having said that, it was Tiger would bought this car, I would have happily stuck with my Commodore. 

I'm also in the midst of organising for next year. I have to sort out the boys uniforms and books, figure out Chai's therapy schedule and work out how I'm going to manage to be in two places at the same time Monday to Friday next year. 

I need a rest!

I hope you are all surviving the silly season with a little sanity in tact. Have a wonderful weekend beautiful people and always remember you are perfect exactly as you are and your presence is a gift to the world.

Sunday 4 December 2022

Thoughts of the week

1. Two weeks until school's out. Not that I'm counting or anything.

2. Summer has arrived with a vengeance. I was not at all prepared for it.

3. Have you ever thought about how much Christmas sucks for Mums?

4. On that, I don't know what it's like at your house, but in my house nothing would happen for Christmas if I didn't arrange it and that sucks.

5. Who's been shopping lately? Bought anything fun?


Sunday 27 November 2022

Thoughts of the week

1. For anyone who needs to hear this, it's time to clean out your freezer. Do the fridge whilst you're there too.

2. I am wondering if I've overcommitted myself for next year. Time will tell.

3. Chai and I were going through our CD and DVD's last weekend. I found CD's with singles that I'd burned to play in the car. I've been playing them this week and it's been awesome. I love listening to the old songs I used to love. Who remembers Kiss Me by Indecent Obsession? Hah.

4. How overwhelming are all the Black Friday emails? I'm going through and unsubscribing to all of them. I don't need to be inundated with emails.

5. I've been slowly going through and decluttering. It's such a good feeling.

Friday 25 November 2022

FFS Friday - Broken?

Hello beautiful people. How are you all? Doing okay? Not doing okay? Just getting by?

I'm plodding along. Looking forward to the school holidays and wondering if I've overcommitted myself next year. I'll be working three days a week, I'm the Deputy President of the P&C, I've agreed to take over as the Chairperson of the School Board and Chai will be at high school. 
Add to that looking after the household, arranging Chai's therapies, trying to exercise, keep in touch with friend and family and look after myself I'm not sure how I'm going to fit everything in. 
I suppose I'll just have to be super organised. 
Organisation is not my forte. 
 
Tiger is becoming stranger by the minute and I have no idea why. If it wasn't for my cousin here confirming his strange behaviour I'd assume it was just me, but turns out I'm wrong and it's him not me. 
 
Sunday was the perfect example.
I did the washing, hung most of it out and left the smalls in the washing machine because there were dry clothes in the washing basket. I was planning on hanging the smalls out when I got back home. 
When I got home I took the smalls out of the washing machine. I noticed that there was quite a bit of water splashed around in the machine which was unusual.
As I was starting to hang the clothes out this is the conversation Tiger and I had:
Tiger: Is that washing clean?
Me: Yes, that's why I'm hanging it out.
Tiger: Oh. Was it in the washing machine?
Me: Yes.
Tiger: It's not clean any more.
Me: Why?
Tiger: I threw dog water on it.
Me: (Thinking I'd miss heard him) What?
Tiger: I threw dog water on it?
Me: You threw dog water on it?
Tiger: Yes.
Me: How did you manage to get water into the washing machine?
Tiger: I threw it in there.
Me: ???
Tiger: I thought the clothes in there were waiting to be washed.
Note: I do not leave dirty clothes in the washing machine to be washed. The only exception is when I load the machine late in the evening (after 8pm) so that I can do a load first thing in the morning. It was not first thing in the morning.
Me: Why would you throw water into the washing machine? There's a sink right next to the washing machine! You'll ruin it. Why would you do that?
Tiger: I just did okay!
Me: I have no idea what to say to that. 

Seriously, WTAF???? Why would you do that when there's a sink right next to the washing machine? 
I spent the next ten minutes walking around the house shaking my head and thinking WTF. My cousin was trying his best not to laugh and wouldn't even make eye contact with me. He thought it was hilarious. 
 
Every time I think about it I still go WTF.

I really think Tiger is broken.

Wednesday 23 November 2022

Limited Edition Carmex!

Carmex have a new, limited edition design and it's so cute.

Isn't it gorgeous? I'm tempted to get a back up, but I won't because I have more lip balm than I can use in this lifetime. 

The flavour is the regular, awesome Carmex, it's just dressed up in leopard print. I got mine from the chemist. 

Friday 11 November 2022

FFS Friday - What?

Hello beautiful people. How are you all? How has your week been?
My week was long. I was hoping it'd be a quieter week but it wasn't. I wonder if life will ever slow down again? I really hope that it does. Maybe I'm not being realistic with that one. 
 
How are we so close to the end of the year? I'm not at all prepared for christmas. Need to get onto that asap. In my spare time, which I have none of.
 
Anyhow, isn't today's date awesome?
 
That's all I've got today. 
 
Have a wonderful weekend. 


Tuesday 8 November 2022

Kitikiti Yaatu Deodorant

After eleven years of searching I've finally found the best, most effective, bicarb free natural deodorant. Big call but very true. I'd resigned myself to either smelling awful or  having to reapply my natural deodorant several times a day. I really don't like having to carry my deodorant around to reapply, but that's just the way it is with natural deodorant. It might be different for the ones that contain bicarb, but I can't use products with bicarb in them.
 
Thankfully I've now found a natural, bicarb free deodorant that works even better than regular deodorant. It's the Kitikiti Yaatu sensitive deodorant. 
 

This stuff is amazing. It works until you wash it off. I apply in the morning and it keeps me odour free all day and all night until I have a shower the next morning. No reapplication, it works for twenty four hours. 
 
It smells beautiful, applies easily and is just a gorgeous product. I have sensitive pits (which is why I use natural deodorant) but have experienced no irritation or stinging, even on freshly shaved pits.  

The texture is different to most other natural deodorants I've tried, it's very soft and creamy, like a body butter.

A little bit about Kitikiti: Kitikiti is owned and operated by Brodie, who is a Perth based Aboriginal Walmajarri from Fitzroy Crossing in the Kimberley, Western Australia. Kitikiti means armpit in the traditional Walmajarri language pronounced “giddy-giddy”.

All products are hand made and include native flora from her home country. The artwork on the packaging is painted by Brodie and represents Aboriginal culture.
 
Yaatu deodorant is natural, bicarb free, vegan, cruelty free and fully compostible. 
 
A 50g pot costs $21.95 and a 60g tube costs $22.95.
 
You can purchase Kitikiti products from their website

Sunday 6 November 2022

Thoughts of the week

1. Is anyone else totally over making dinner every night? I am. I'm over having to decide what to eat, I'm over cooking, I'm over eating. I'd be perfectly happy if we could live on liquids and I never had to cook again.
 
2. Who's bought something from the holiday releases? I have bought nothing. The only thing I'm planning to buy is the SPF lip balms from Ultra Violette. They're one of my favourite SPF balms, I love that they're tinted.
 
3. I have found the best natural deodorant. Have I already mentioned that? I don't remember. Anyhow, full post coming soon.
 
4. Not to scare anyone, but it's only six weeks until school holidays.
 
5. Talking about Christmas, I have no idea what to get anyone.

Friday 4 November 2022

FFS Friday - Zzzzzzzz

How is it November? I am so not ready for this.

So, how have you been beautiful people? I've been busy. Busy working, busy volunteering at the school and busy with life. Frankly I'm exhausted and over being so busy. Life is much nicer when it's quiet. That's one of the things I loved about home schooling. Life wasn't quiet, but it was a lot more relaxed. We weren't busy, we didn't have a schedule, we did things when we wanted to other than the occasional appointment. Life was very different. 
Whilst I think we're happier now, I miss the carefree, unhurried days. 

I have so much to say but don't know what to say. 
Like so many other people, I'm tired. This time of year is not fun, it gets so busy with end of year school things for the kids, organising for next year, planning for the school holidays and a whole pile of general life things. 
 
There really isn't much point to this post. I hope you are all well and happy. If not, I hope things improve soon. You've got this, you're amazing.

Have a lovely weekend beautiful people.


Tuesday 1 November 2022

Dr Ceuracle PLC Vita K Liposome Oil Ampoule

I know the aesthetics are not the most important part of skincare, but when something looks good it makes me want to use it. How amazing does the Dr Ceuracle PLC K Vita Liposome Oil Ampoule look! It's one of the coolest looking products I've used. But, as I said, that's not really important, it just makes it fun to use. 

The orange part is oil based vitamin k and the water base is made up of products rich in vitamin k. They mix together easily so you get a good blend of both layers when the product is applied. 
 
This product treats pigmentation, dark spots and brightens. I have a few dark spots so was eager to give this a try. It's designed to be used after serum and before moisturiser. I shake the bottle vigorously to mix the two layers of product then apply a thin layer. Once it's dry I apply moisturiser. 
 
After six weeks of use I can see a definite difference in my skin tone. My skin looks brighter and the dark spots are lighter. I'll be interested to see how much lighter they are once I've finished the whole bottle. 
 

My skin can be sensitive at times however I didn't have any issues with sensitivity. I used this twice a day and experienced no irritation or redness.

You can purchase Dr Ceuracle from various online stores, the PLC Vita K costs between $40 to $46 which is very reasonable.  

Note: This was provided to me for review.
 
 

 

Wednesday 26 October 2022

Dr Ceuracle Royal Vita Propolis 33 Capsule Eye Cream

One thing I'm really lax with is eye cream. My eyes are very sensitive so when products get in them I suffer all day. Due to that it's rare for me to bother with eye cream. I was recently sent the De Ceuracle Royal Vita Proplis 33 Capture Eye Cream to trial and was hooked as soon as I took it out of the tube because it comes with a really cute little applicator. I'm all about the cute little touches. 

 
Royal Vita Propolis 33 Capsule Eye Cream contains vitamin c, royal jelly, vitamin e, collagen capsules and propolis. It reduces dark circles, plumps and hydrates.
The massager improves circulation and helps to firm.

I've really enjoyed using this eye cream. The massager is solid and lovely to use, it feels very cool and soothing. With twice daily use I'm noticing that my eye area looks firmer, the dark circles are a little lighter and the fine lines are plumped up. I've had no eye irritation (yay!) so am able to use this morning and night. 

Whilst this is very hydrating it absorbs quickly. Once I've applied it's dry within a minute. I'm thrilled to have found a very affordable eye cream that's effective and doesn't irritate my eyes!
 
You can purchase Royal Vita Propolis 33 Capsule Eye Cream online for between $27 to $35.

Note: This was provided to me for review.

Sunday 16 October 2022

Thoughts of the week

1. Imagine how different the world would be if we spoke words of love to women and taught them to love their bodies, instead of constantly tell them that they are flawed and need to change. If we told them that the things they've been taught to hate about their bodies are beautiful and they're perfect exactly as they are? Wouldn't that be wonderful. That'll never happen though, because women hating themselves is a billion dollar industry.

2. I have hope though, the world is changing. Women are standing up for themselves and taking back their power. Iran is the perfect example, as is the MeToo movement. It's happening and I couldn't be prouder.

3. People are different now to when I was growing up. The world is different too. I don't think people are better, they're nastier and more aggressive. I don't know why. We had an incident at the skate park this week. A boy of about 12 was being rude to the other kids and yelling at them. The other adults there didn't bother doing anything about it, but after he'd screamed at Eljay twice and nearly had him in tears I asked the boy to not be rude. I calmly and quietly said to him that it's okay to ask other kids to move, but please don't yell and swear at them. A whole pile (about 15) of teenagers came up and started recording me and yelling at me not to be a Karen. They didn't even know the boy who I was talking to so I have no idea why they got involved. I stayed calm and told them that I would like everyone to be polite. They kept on yelling at me so I walked off.
What is with that? Why be rude and aggressive to people, especially when it's nothing to do with you?

4. Also, what's with people not standing up for themselves? There was another man there watching the whole thing but he stayed as far away as possible. After I'd walked off he came up to see if I was okay. He said that he'd noticed the boy being awful to the other kids but he didn't say anything. He then said that there's no way he'd let his 16 year old go to the skate park because of the horrible (unsupervised) kids there. I told him that if everyone stays quiet then the nasty people will continue to get away with their behaviour and by staying quiet we're condoning it. 
He didn't have an answer to that one.

5. Since when can we not nicely ask people to be kind? Why does it have to be seen as a confrontation? Also, why do people think name calling is appropriate? Is that the way they're treated at home? I just don't understand the rudeness and nastiness of people.

Friday 14 October 2022

FFS Friday - Tired tyre

Hello beautiful people. How are you all? Have you had a good week? Anything you want to talk about? 

We're back to school and work now. I'm still working this term which is great. They've kindly let me change my days to fit in with Chai's gradual introduction to high school. The schedule the high school have given us is crazy. If you were working you couldn't do it. The first two weeks he goes for an hour, the second two weeks he goes for 1 hour and 45 minutes, the next week he goes for 2 hours 45 minutes, the week after that he does two full days in a row then the last week I go with him for an hour. 

I have to take him to each session then take him to school afterwards. The high school is fifteen minutes drive from the primary school so if I was working it'd take a good chunk of time out of my work day. 

It's also going to give me a bit of an idea how I'm going to manage getting both boys to school at the same time in two different locations. I still haven't figured out how I'll manage that one. They both start and finish at the same time. I need a clone. 

We're giving Chai a phone for christmas, I'm thinking we might need to give Eljay one too. I really don't want the boys having phones, but if they're going to have to wait around for me to pick them up, having a phone would make me feel a bit more comfortable about it. Maybe I'll get Eljay a smart watch. 

I'm also wondering how we'll fit Chai's therapies in when he's at high school. At the moment we do therapy straight after school, but once he's at high school it'll take me longer to get him to therapy so all the times will have to be pushed back. It'll also mean that he might not be able to do his tutoring as we'll have to leave for school before his lesson is over. Maybe I'll be able to break it up into two half hour sessions, that might work.

I've been avoiding thinking about next year as I can't see any solutions. I've been hoping that an easy solution will magically appear. There's still time so maybe it will. I have my fingers crossed. 
 
We went back to the skate park for the first time since Chai's injury. Chai was understandably a little nervous, so we went to a smaller skate park and he quickly got his confidence back. I'm a nervous wreck the whole time they're skating, but Chai isn't so that's good.
 
Have a lovely weekend!

Sunday 9 October 2022

Thoughts of the week

1. The kids and I watched Little Monsters at the cinema this week, we really enjoyed it.

2. My BFF gave me a Philosophy shower gel last week. I'd forgotten how nice luxury shower gels are.

3. I've been using the new La Roche-Posay Cicaplast B5 serum, it's amazing for sensitive, irritated skin.

4. I have found my holy grail natural deodorant. It's the sensitive deodorant from Kitikiti Mantu. I'm almost finished my first tube and am about to repurchase. I've yet to put it to the test through hot summer days, but so far it's kept me completely odour free all day and night, which no other natural deodorant has managed to do.

5. We still have no coffee machine.

Friday 7 October 2022

FFS Friday - Be still my beating heart

Hello beautiful people. How are you all? I hope you've had a good week. 
Ours has been quiet because of Chai's injury. Here's what happened:

Last week we were on a play date at the skate park. We live there now. We go almost every day and spend at least two hours there. The boys are really good on their scooters. They always wear helmets and don't do anything stupid.

So, we're on the play date, it was just Chai and I because Eljay was away. I saw Chai go into the bowl, next thing he comes out, covered in blood and screaming for me. That's one of the worst feelings as a parent, seeing your child running towards you covered in blood.

He had a huge gash on his head, just above his eye and it was bleeding all over the place. His face, hands, shirt, shorts, legs and shoes were all covered in blood. I could see his skull through the wound. It wasn't nice.

The car park is about 100 meters away and the first aid kit was in the car. I won't be making that mistake again. From now on when we go to the skate park the first aid kit will be in the skate bag. 

Anyhow, Chai was naturally very upset. I lay him down to calm him down and get him to stop yelling. I only had a few tissues in my bag and nothing that I could use to stop the bleeding. Thankfully a young teenager gave us a bandage and another lady gave us some gauze and cleaning patches. Chai was really upset so I gathered our things together and we walked to the car. 

On the way to the hospital we called Tiger to get him to meet us at the hospital. He was in a loud area so said he'd call us back. We got to the hospital and Chai was starting to get a bit woozy. At the front of the hospital they have a tent set up, you have to go there, sanitise, put on a face mask and answer questions before they'll let you into the hospital. Sometimes they'll refuse to let you in. Anyhow, as soon as they saw us coming they got a wheel chair. Chai refused to sit in it but was he was wobbling all over the place I made him sit down. I managed to sanitise my hands and grab a face mask then we went into the emergency department. 

As usual the emergency department was full. Tiger still hadn't called so I sent him  a photo of Chai sitting in the wheelchair covered in blood with the message "You need to leave work now." I didn't need him there and could have left him at work for the day but I'm over dealing with these things on my own. As soon as he saw the photo he called to see what had happened and left work.
 
Thankfully kids covered in blood with head injuries are seen very quickly. We saw the triage nurse who put gauze and a big bandage on then sent us down to wait for a Dr. Whilst we were in with the triage nurse Chai's friend who he'd been on the play date with arrived. He was understandably very worried about Chai. 

I would have been happy for them to stay and sit with us, but thanks to covid rules they had to leave. 

We didn't have to wait long for the Dr to call us back. They checked Chai out, had a good look at his skull and got ready to stitch him up. I thought we'd have to stay in for the night but because he didn't lose consciousness, didn't have much of a headache and was very lucid we were able to go home.
 
Tiger arrived before they started stitching Chai up, but wasn't allowed to see him because of covid rules.
 
Chai ended up with seven stitches. The wound goes right through his eyebrow, which he's really pleased about because he's been wanting a "cool eyebrow scar" for years now. 
 
I still have no idea how his head got cut. His helmet fits well, doesn't move around and sits out 3cm's from his head. He said that he smashed it into the concrete edge, so he must have been on a funny angle. He had a slight bruise around the wound but no other marks. No redness, bruising or swelling. I'm really at a loss as to how it happened.
 
I am so grateful that he wasn't more seriously wounded. It was so awful, my Mummy heart is still feeling fragile. 

The first two nights he slept in my bed, after that he went back to his own room. He didn't have much pain at all and wanted to be up running around. Keeping him quiet was a challenge, especially on the school holidays. 

He got his stitches out a week later and seems not to have any lingering side effects. 

That's my exciting news for the holidays. 

Have a wonderful weekend beautiful people.

Sunday 2 October 2022

Thoughts of the week

1. The first week of the holidays are done. It's not been as much fun as I hoped it would be, but things can only get better from here.
 
2. Chai got a head injury on Wednesday, it was awful. I'll post about it next week. Thankfully he's healing well, but it's meant that we're restricted in what activities we can do.
 
3. Lanolips have released another limited edition collaboration with Gelato Messina and it's a caramel flavoured balm! OMG! 
 
4. Christmas releases will start coming through soon. I wonder if they'll be as underwhelming as they were last year. 
 
5. In wonderful news for people who use the NDIS, Kurt Fearnley has been appointed as chair of the NDIA. About time they had a disabled person in the role!
 

Friday 30 September 2022

FFS Friday - Scarce

Hello lovelies. How are you all? Have you had a good week?
I have lots to whine about today so get a drink and settle in. 

I had my first negative experience using NDIS services. So far we've been lucky but recently we almost weren't. 

I've been looking for a physio for Chai for a while now. He's outgrown OT and needs a physio. I thought I'd found one, I found a company who had availability and they seemed really nice. I spoke to them on the phone, they said they could get Chai in within four weeks and said they'd send me some forms to fill out. 

I opened the forms and it was a service agreement for two years, for fortnightly OT and physiotherapy, with a total of $21,767.72. WTF?!
 
I wasn't willing to sign the agreement without having met the practitioners and discussed what Chai needs and what they can do for him, so I called them but they wouldn't make an appointment for me, they wanted me to email them. I didn't bother. 

I've had all our providers since before we had NDIS, so I wasn't sure if signing a service agreement was standard practise or not, so I asked Chai's old OT's receptionist. She checked and got back to me. It's not normal at all. Thankfully I checked with her! She gave me the name of a good physio who does not want me to lock myself in for two years.

Things like this make me so angry. Taking advantage of people with a disability is disgusting. Charging them ridiculous prices because the government covers it is also disgusting. Chai gets a set amount of funds for the two years and I have to make sure they last him that whole period. I'm certainly not going to waste the funds on services that he doesn't need. Once the funds are gone they're gone, which means Chai would go without the help he needs until the next plan starts. 
 
Added to that, he already has two different therapies and tutoring, so adding in two more would mean he was having therapy at least twice a week. I refuse to make his life all about therapy. He need to be able to be a kid and have fun.

I'm going to see if there is somewhere that I can report that company for dodgy practices.

A few weeks ago we had the boys school disco. As usual it was lots of fun. As usual it was the same people doing all the work. I've been on the school P&C for two years now and there's something I just don't understand. Why don't more parents get involved? I know everyone is busy, people have work and leisure commitments, but surely most people could spare a little bit of time every now and again to do something that will help their kids?

We always have the same few people helping out. There are four of us who do most of the work at events. It's a lot to do. Each year we struggle to get enough people to attend meetings and help with functions. I wish I could understand why parents hesitate to help. 
We have a really lovely group of parents, the events we run are a lot of fun, we have just as much fun as the kids do. Everyone is easy to get along with and it's just a great time. Plus, seeing the excitement of the kids is worth all the hard work. 

So why don't more people get involved? I just don't understand. Surely they want fun events for their kids? Don't they realise those events don't happen if parents don't organise them?

I haven't told you about our coffee machine saga.

Two weeks before the end of term 2 we took our coffee machine in to be serviced. It had been tripping our power so they said it'd take about a week to get fixed. Nearly four months later we still don't have it back. 

First up the technician told us that he couldn't turn the machine on. It had been working fine, it just tripped the power when I tried to descale it. He finally managed to turn it on, then told us the boiler was broken and needed to be replaced. He ordered a boiler and was waiting for it to arrive. Then the school holidays came and he doesn't work school holidays. 
When the holidays were over he said that the boiler still hadn't arrived (four weeks). The boiler arrived, he replaced it and told us we could pick up our machine, by this time he'd had the machine for six weeks. When I went in to pick it up he told me that it wasn't ready, he'd been descaling it and it'd tripped the power again, which is when he realised that a pipe was leaking onto the boiler. Naturally he didn't have one of those pipes so had to order one.

When I went to pick the machine up he took me out to his work room. It was a mess, there were machines in pieces all over the place, it was dirty and disorganised. We've been using this business for eight years and never had a problem, so I figured maybe he was just having a bad day.

About four weeks ago we contact him again (by then he'd had the machine for three months) to find out what was going on. He told us he was waiting for seals. We weren't aware there was a problem with seals but didn't bother questioning it.

Three weeks ago we phoned again and were told that the technician had left but there was one coming down from Perth. That afternoon we were told we could pick up the machine. When we picked it up the shop manager told us the technician had checked the machine, put it back together and it was working well.

We got it home, turned it on and could not make a coffee because the infuser was missing. The machine can't run without an infuser. We called the shop manager who waited at the shop for us to go back and pick up the infuser. She was immediately suspicious that the technician hadn't even checked the machine because if he had the infuser would not have been missing.

We got our infuser, went home, turned the machine on and made a coffee. The coffee turned out fine but the machine was making a really loud noise that it'd never made before. It was also scratched on the side and top and there were stains that won't come off all over the front and side of the machine.

We got to enjoy our machine for two days then I had to take it back to the shop. They had a technician look at it but ultimately it had to be taken to Perth for repair. They told us that could take up to three weeks. FFS.
 
So we still have no coffee machine. Luckily the weather is warming up and I've figured out how to make cold brew coffee.
 
That's it for my epic whinge session.
 
Have a wonderful weekend beautiful people. You are all awesome. 



Sunday 25 September 2022

Thoughts of the week

1. School holidays are here!

2. I'm sorting out our bedroom at the moment, tidying things up and decluttering. It's so satisfying to see things looking neater.

3. Do you know how easy it is to make cold brew coffee? I didn't until this week. 1 cup of coffee grounds to 4 cups of water, soak for 12 to 24 hours (depending on how strong you want it), strain and then keep in the fridge for up to a week. Easy.

4. Chai starts his transition to high school next term. I'm so worried about it.

5. I've decided that I need a job where I can work from home. I want to earn more money.

Friday 23 September 2022

FFS Friday - Tough

Hello beautiful people. How are you all? I hope you've had a good week. Ours has been rough. 
 
Tuesday was particularly tough. Tuesday mornings are my least favourite day of the week. Chai has online tutoring at 7am. Every single Tuesday morning he sleeps in. Every other day he's awake before 6am. Tuesdays he sleeps in. Every. Single. Time. 
 
I have the alarm set for 6.15am but if he wakes up because of the alarm it puts him in a bad mood and means he has a bad day at school. If I wake him up that puts him in a bad mood too. If I turn on a light or open the curtains that also puts him in a bad mood. So I usually just try to move around a bit (he's always in my bed) to wake him up naturally without him realising I've deliberately woken him up. 

Once he's awake he has to start getting ready. He hates it. He prefers to have a quiet, slow start to the day (don't we all). 

This Tuesday was particularly tough. As usual, Chai slept in. I managed to wake him up without him realising I'd woken him up. We got up and he went straight onto his tablet. I don't like him having screen time first thing in the morning but it's only way I can keep him calm. If he doesn't have screen time he's awful to Eljay, they fight and then everyone is upset. 

So, Chai was on his tablet. I had to remind him every five minutes that he needed to eat his breakfast and get dressed. He refused to get dressed so I asked him to have breakfast. 6.50am he wasn't dressed and was still eating his breakfast. Tutoring starts at 7am. 7am arrived and he was still eating, so then got annoyed that his tutor was waiting. 

He finished his lesson and was getting dressed. When he was nearly dressed I took all our things out to the car, checked that he was ready to leave and started the car up. 

A few minutes later he came out screaming at me because he couldn't find his socks and I wasn't helping. He'd gone from being fine to having an angry screaming fit in the space of two minutes. FFS.

I had no idea what the problem was so got out of the car to ask him and he screamed at me that I wasn't helping him find his socks. I couldn't help him as I had no idea where his socks were. 

I made a few suggestions whilst he screamed at every single suggestion. I gave up and got back into the car. After a while Chai came out. His clothes were all uncomfortable. His socks were wrong, his jumper was annoying, everything was irritating him. He was rude and abusive the whole car trip. He was awful to Eljay and awful to me. Nothing I tried calmed him down. 

By the time we got to school Eljay was in tears and I was ready to cry.

I wasn't working but had to do a few things at school for the P&C. I couldn't even think straight but managed to hold it together whilst I was there. 

Tuesday was busy. I felt really fragile all day. When I picked up the boys Chai started again, he'd had a rough day. When he's in one of those moods he's awful to everyone around. Poor Eljay cops it the worst. 

Just to top things off that afternoon Ejlay hurt himself on his scooter, got really upset about it and said that he wanted to kill himself. That's not something a child should be thinking.
I clarified that he didn't really mean it then booked a psych appointment for him.

When I told Tiger his exact words to Eljay were "That's no good bubba". So helpful. FFS.

Sometimes life is so tough, I wonder how much longer I'll be able to keep on going. Dealing with Chai can be impossible, nothing I do or say is right. I have no support, no-one to talk to about it so I just have to take a deep breath, put on a smile and pretend that everything is okay.

I look around at the people who know me and none of them have any idea what things are like at home. They have no idea what our mornings are like.

It reminds me to be kind to people because you just never know what they're going through.

I hope you all have a beautiful weekend. If things are tough, I hope they improve soon.

Sunday 18 September 2022

Thoughts of the week

1. Last week I finished the last of Robyn Carr's books and now I don't know what to do with myself.
 
2. The circus was amazing. The boys loved it and can't wait to go again next time the circus is in town.
 
3. One week until the school holidays.
 
4. With the price of everything going up lately, I've started thinking of ways to cut costs. One thing I've been doing that helps a lot is to fill out meat meals with lentils. I buy the canned lentils and add a can or two to our slow cooked meat meals. The lentils are undetectable after they've been cooked all day and we use a lot less meat. Winner winner chicken (or red meat) dinner.
 
5. I GOT INTO THE POOL RECRUITMENT FOR MY JOB!!!!! I'm so excited/relieved/happy.

Friday 16 September 2022

FFS Friday - When the singing stops

Hello beautiful people.

We're going to the circus tomorrow! I'm so excited! I haven't been to the circus since I was a kid. I have no idea what to expect, circus's are so different to what they used to be. I'm hoping it won't be too overwhelming for Chai. We're taking our sensory kit so hopefully he'll be able to enjoy himself. 
 
I read all I can on neurodiverse children like Chai. Most of the neurodiverse adults really don't like parents who identify themselves as parents of neurodiverse children and they say that parents shouldn't complain that it's difficult to raise neurodiverse children as it makes the children feel bad. 
 
I see where they're coming from, but the fact is that it is difficult raising children who are different, whether they're neurodiverse, have learning difficulties or any other disabilities. It's tough, really tough and in a lot of ways it does define you. You can't do things like other families do. 
 
Take the circus. If it was just Eljay we'd book tickets and go. Simple. 
Taking Chai makes it totally different. We've had discussions with him about what it will be like, how noisy it will be, that it might smell funny. When I booked the tickets I talked to them about how noisy it would be, if we can leave easily, if we can get back in if we do need to leave for a little while and made sure we got aisle seats. Before we go we'll visit the venue so Chai can have a look around. We'll take ear plugs, headphones, music, fidget toys, a soft toy and other things that comfort him. We'll choose a seat with easy access to the door in case we need to leave quickly. During the show we'll constantly be checking on Chai to make sure he's not overwhelmed. It's a lot. 
 
It gets exhausting and overwhelming. Having to be hyper vigilant all the time is very tiring. Sometimes it feels like it's all too hard. There are things that we just don't do because I don't have the energy. I hate being like that.
 
Some days I can't even sing because it upsets Chai. Every little noise could set him off.Those days are the worst. Chai can't eat at the dinner table with us unless he has noise cancelling headphones playing music to block out the sound of us eating. He usually sits at the bench whilst we sit at the table. I hate seeing him sitting there on his own.
 
What is his future going to look like? Who will care for him when I'm gone? How will he cope with high school? He's so vulnerable and easily lead, he could get into so much trouble at high school.  He desperately wants to fit in but he's one of those gorgeous kids who were meant to stand out. 

Parenting him is hard and getting harder. What's going to happen when the singing stops? When I'm not here to look after him and be his champion? When I can't shield him from the cruelties of the world? Will I have done enough to equip him to be able to take care of himself? Will the world all get too much for him and he'll decide to end things? I have so many fears for him. He's such a gentle soul and the world is so unkind. 
 
My greatest hope is that he'll find his people, he'll find his place and he'll be a happy, fulfilled man. That's what I want for him. 

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend.

Thursday 15 September 2022

Dr Ceuracle Vegan Kombucha Tea Lip Balm Review

A little while ago I was sent some Dr Ceuracle products to review. They're all lovely, today I'm chatting about the Vegan Kombucha Tea Lip Balm. 
 

It's no secret I'm a long time lip balm connoisseur. I'm always trying new balms and I'm fussy about what I use. I prefer balms without petrolatum as I find them more hydrating than balms with petrolatum.
 

There's a lot to like about the Dr Ceuracle Vegan Kombucha Tea Lip balm.

First up, the packaging. It's sleek, simple and sophisticated. I like that it's a lipstick style case, I think it looks fancy.

The balm itself is lovely. It's smooth, hydrating and gives a light sheen to my lips. It has no flavour or fragrance. As well as slathering this on all day, I find it works really well as a lip primer. I apply a light layer when I'm doing my skin care and by the time I'm putting my make-up on it's absorbed.
 


At night I apply several (about 10) layers so that I wake up with soft, smooth lips. 

Kombucha Tea Lip Balm contains lots of skin loving ingredients such a shea butter, candelilla wax, carnauba wax, morninga, squalene and ceramides.
 
You can purchase Dr Ceuracle Vegan Kombucha Tea Lip Balm from various stores (such as Yes Style, Stylevana and Beauty Amora) for around $15 for a 3.7g/0.13oz tube. 

Ingredients: Polyglyceryl-2 Triisostearate, Squalane, Bis-Diglyceryl Polyacyladipate-2, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Octyldodecanol, Phytosteryl/Isostearyl/Cetyl/Stearyl/Behenyl Dimer Dilinoleate, Synthetic Wax, Octyldodecyl Stearoyl Stearate, Polyhydroxystearic Acid, Shea Butter, Ethylene/Propylene Copolymer, Carnauba Wax, Eclipta Prostrata Extract, Eclipta Prostrata Leaf Extract, Candelilla Wax, Moringa Oleifera Seed Oil, Water, Melia Azadirachta Leaf Extract, Melia Azadirachta Flower Extract, Butylene Glycol, Anemarrhena Asphodeloides Root Extract, Ceramide NP, Citric Acid, Ocimum Sanctum Leaf Extract, Candida Bombicola/Glucose/Methyl Rapeseedate Ferment, Corallina Officinalis Extract, Rice Germ Oil, Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract, Saccharomyces Ferment Filtrate, Schisandra Chinensis Fruit Extract, 1,2-Hexanediol, Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract.
 
Note: This product was provided to me for review. 

Sunday 11 September 2022

Thoughts of the week

1. I never thought I'd say this, but I'm a laptop person now. 
A few months ago Tiger broke my desktop computer so I've been using his laptop. It's nothing like my old laptop was. It's light, the keyboard is good and being able to move it around is very convenient. I'm converted.
 
2. I also love the idea of being one of those people sitting in a coffee shop writing on my computer. No idea what I'd write about or why I couldn't do said writing at home, but I just like the idea.
 
3. This week I ordered one of the Makeup by Mario lip balms. Can't wait for it to arrive.
 
4. How good is coffee!
 
5. Josh Langley's new book is out. If you have kids, or even if you don't, check it out!

Friday 9 September 2022

FFS Friday - Winner winner chicken dinner

Hello beautiful people. How are you all? Have you had a good week?

The countdown to the school holidays is on. Two weeks to go. I am so looking forward to lazy mornings and not having to be organised. I really don't like having to be organised. I like lazy days with my boys. Hopefully it won't be too wet so we'll be able to get out and do things.  

For some reason I'm unable to reply to comments, sorry about that! I can post a comment underneath but can't reply to comments. Strange.
 
After nearly three months and around twenty emails, I finally got the letter of diagnosis for Chai's new condition. Whilst I knew about it, seeing it in writing is tough. Really tough. It's one thing to know about the condition, but to see it confirmed in writing feels bad. I grieve for the life I wanted him to have. I don't want to change him, I want to change the world so that life isn't so difficult for him. 
I feel so sad for all the challenges my baby faces. Life isn't easy for him and I can't see it ever being easy. That makes me really sad.
He's going to high school next year. I am not expecting it to be an easy transition. 
 
The world isn't kind to people who are different. If only we could recognise that their differences are beautiful.
 
To add to the excitement, Wednesday morning at 4.30am Tiger decided it'd be fun to have a fight with the garage door. He did not win. He was going to work at 4.30am, pressed the button to make the garage door go up and started reversing. He didn't bother looking behind him, at his reversing camera or in the rear view mirror so smashed straight in to the garage door as it was going up. Somehow he was going fast enough that he buckled the door, popped it off the rollers and it landed on the top of his car. 
 
By some miracle the boys and I slept through all the noise. I got up at 5.30am and the garage looked like this...
 
 
Luckily my car is little so I was able to get it out to go to work and take the boys to school.
Tiger had to take the day off work to wait for the repair man. We were expecting bad news but were really pleased that he was able to fix it! We thought we'd be up for a new door considering how buckled it was. 
 
Maybe next time he'll look before he starts reversing. IMO it's always a good idea. 
 
Have a wonderful weekend lovelies.