Normally when I walk into work, I am so focused, so rushed, thinking about not losing any time, what I need to get for dinner, did I put the right school lunch into the right bag, what was on my desk the day before, damn I forgot the washing in the washing machine, you know how it goes! I have always been so focused on stuff, that I have never actually looked up to see what my surroundings look like. But the other day it was different, I had some kind of fever, battling a flu of sorts, and I knew I should have been at home snuggled up on the couch. As I walked towards our office, I wasn’t thinking, I wasn’t focused, I was in a daze, a fog of fever you might say! But something was different, for the first time in three years, I saw how beautiful my surroundings really were. I looked up and saw the soft, mystical fog, blanketing the lush, green hills, speckled with houses and winding roads. It looked magnificent, and I couldn’t believe I had never seen it before. I had looked at it, but I had never actually taken the time to see it.

When I got into work, I walked into the kitchen and saw the most beautiful bird, (pictured above), perched on a branch outside the window. It was standing on a burnt tree branch, (there had been a fire next door a few months back, and the trees are still burnt and black). But in the middle of the charred remains of this tree, stood this beautiful splash of colour, this gorgeous creature, which stood there and starred at me. I thought to myself, “Don’t move, it will fly away”, but I desperately wanted to go and get my phone so I could take a photo to show my kids. So I did. (The photo is a bit fuzzy but I took it through the flyscreen!). I rushed back, expecting that it would have flown away, but it hadn’t. It was still there looking at me. We shared a moment, the bird and I! I went closer to the window and it bounced on the branch and squawked, like it was talking to me! I thought, “If anyone walks in now or sees me, they will think I’m nuts for sure!” But I didn’t care. It suddenly dawned on me. I’m always carrying on, telling my kids to be a part of the moment, to live life, experience their surroundings, take them in and appreciate them and their beauty. But have I been doing that? No, I’ve been guilty of doing the exact opposite to what I have been telling them to do. I have been the one so caught up in life’s rush and expectations, that I have forgotten how to live in the moment, experience what it has to offer, appreciate it and be a part of it. I have forgotten how to see.

So thanks bird, you reminded me of something that has always been so important to me, but something that I had forgotten, to stop and appreciate life, to live it every day and love it, and to never take anything for granted.

We went to a birthday party the other day, and the traditional “lollibag” took on a whole new meaning. It was an oversized plastic “chuppa chup”, (pictured above), with mini lollipops inside it. Oh, and it doubles as a money box when all the sugar fixes on a stick are consumed! It came in an awesome oversized wrapper, in the same design as an actual “chuppa chup” wrapper. (Don’t know where that is right now!). To add to the delight, there was also a jar of jelly beans, just in case we didn’t quite get enough hyperactivity out of the first lot!

Wow, my friend whose daughter was also at the party, looked at the tag attached to the gigantic “chuppa chup”, and said, “Is there a warning not to use it as a weapon?” “Ha ha”, I laughed, I could just see some kid using it exactly like that!

Well, the day after, we had some friends pop in with their boys, one aged the same as my daughter, nine. He is young and very energetic, didn’t need the assistance of the lollipops to go nuts, so a combination of jelly beans and “chuppa chups” was a disaster waiting to happen! He grabbed my son while he was on the floor, by the leg and lifted his leg way above his head. My son, who to his credit, didn’t want to hurt the boy since he is younger, yelled at him to stop. The boy is quite tall and solid for his age, and so has a bit of strength behind him. He thought it was funny and pushed harder. Well, my daughter, in all her angelic wisdom, saw that her brother was being hurt by this boy and took it upon herself to put an end to it. She knew she didn’t have the physical strength to match him, (she is very petite), so she grabbed the oversized “chuppa chup” with both hands and swung it at him! He looked at her dumbfounded and said he was only joking, but she didn’t buy it, jokes are not supposed to hurt!

Well, there you go, the kid that thought of using it as a weapon, was mine! Granted, she did it for a good reason, to defend her brother, but gee, she did it! She is small and so so sweet, but hurt someone she loves, and there will be consequences! She didn’t hurt the boy, thankfully, but mission accomplished, he stopped! I didn’t even tell her off, she was protecting her own, and I have to say, I was a little bit proud!

Last night, there was an almighty battle between two arch rival teams in the game of AFL. Collingwood vs Carlton. Always packs out the ground, (except for last night because the game was at the odd time of 7.10 and it was raining and bitterly cold!), as they are two of the biggest teams in the AFL. As with most teams, their fans are fanatical, and bitter enemies until the end. (Except for my little girl who at the age of three went along to such a game wearing a Collingwood jumper, as we barrack for Collingwood, but waving a Carlton flag, as her cousins barrack for Carlton!) Last night’s game was a hell raiser, in our house anyway, as my husband and son screamed and yelled at the TV as free kicks were won and lost, (always lost unfairly), and goals were kicked and unfair umpire calls were retaliated against.

Well, come three quarter time, my husband, who turns into some crazy football freak as soon as the siren blows, got out of his chair in a huff. He went over to the kitchen bench and grabbed his loom bracelet our daughter had made him (see picture above). It sports the black and white Collingwood colours, what else! He proudly wrapped it around his wrist and declared, “Now we have the power!”. What! When it comes to his team, this super intelligent, level headed engineer becomes a proud one eyed supporter, who has no room for rationality and believes that his input of positive thinking will help his team magically get up and win the game!

Well, guess what? We won! It was a close one towards the end, but thanks to my husband and the power of the loom bracelet, we walked away with the four points, and a sense of pride that fills the heart of every Collingwood supporter across the land.

So, to all you Carlton fans, please accept my commiserations, not only did the best team win on the night, but there was a lesson to be learnt in the midst of all this craziness. We learnt that with the power of positive thinking and a casual loom bracelet, we can change the world, or at the very least who wins a football game!

Ohhhh nooooo! I had gone to school with two different shoes on! I had been in such a hurry to leave, because I was running late again, that I grabbed the shoes from the shoe rack and just put them on without looking! I have always had this image of one day going to school and forgetting to change my shoes and looking down to see my slippers! I never thought it would be this! I’m still wiping away the tears from laughter! Oh well, for those of you who didn’t notice, now you have! It’s always good to have a laugh, even better when it can be at yourself!

The other day my son came home from school after completing a maths test. “How was the test?” I asked him as he walked through the front door, dropping his blazer, tie, belt, socks at different intervals in a line down the corridor, like a working man eager to leave his busy day behind him. “Great”, he said, “I finished it early”. “Awesome”, I said, “Did you review it?” “Well, kind of”, he replied, “I made sure I finished every question, but I didn’t check every answer, I had just done it mum, I didn’t want to do it again! But I made a paper crane out of my working out sheet!” (See photo above). Gee, I thought, typical Year 7 kid, can’t do too much work now can we! “But”, he said, “the teacher supervising saw my paper crane, screwed it up and threw it in the bin!” I asked him what he did and he said, “I told her that it had a life to live and its legacy will live on! And then I did a “bin dive” into the bin and saved it!” He pulled the paper crane out of his school bag and showed it to me with pride. I laughed, I knew he had not been disrespectful, and I told him I was glad he had saved the crane.

On the same day, my daughter came home from school and told me that they had been asked in class, to write about their wonderings of Australia. She said a little boy had written “I wonder what would happen if cows ruled Australia!” I thought that was funny and had a giggle, but her substitute teacher thought it was not, and so he got into trouble!

Don’t you think that sometimes it would be great to see the lighter side of life and not always be so precious and proper? We get so caught up in the dos and don’ts that we forget to have fun. A child’s imagination is bursting with innocent, creative thoughts and perceptions that are yet to be suppressed. Let’s nurture that and teach them that as long as we are always respectful towards others, it’s ok to have fun and laugh, after all laughter and happiness are the keys to a healthy and happy mind and soul, am I right?

]]> http://www.blogitmum.com/?feed=rss2&p=129 0 http://www.blogitmum.com/?p=100 http://www.blogitmum.com/?p=100#comments Fri, 16 May 2014 03:42:21 +0000 http://www.blogitmum.com/?p=100

My son came home from school the other day and showed me this photo. “Look mum”, he said “I took this photo on my way into school this morning, it reminds me of the path to life!” Wow, I thought great photo, but how can a Year 7 kid think of something so deep?

It’s the path that leads to the school when you enter from the back gates, and instead of playing on his phone or on his iPad, he was in touch with his surroundings and appreciating life. I think that sometimes we can all learn from our kids, take a moment, stop rushing and remember what it’s like to look at the the world through the innocent eyes of a child. Remember how we used to think before our opinions and thoughts became tainted by the expectations of society. Maybe then we will remember that it is the simple things in life that matter the most!

(If you can’t read it just double click on the image, it’s the best photo of the card I could get!)

My husband and my kids got me this card for Mother’s Day. I laughed when they gave it to me, because it sums up the constant battle us mums have to deal with! I’m always running around carrying on about how I have to do this and clean that, but you know what, I think we can all take something from this card. It really doesn’t matter if our house isn’t sparkling clean all the time, before you know it it will be dirty again! I cleaned the house 2 days ago, from top to bottom like a psychopathic clean freak, but today those blasted little dust balls are back. Damn the sun for shinning on my coffee table and showing off the dust particles dancing around in all their glory, again! Did we really have to walk on the freshly vacuumed carpet, now all the straight lines that tell that I had vacuumed are gone! And hey, how long did it take the bathroom to look like the toothpaste monster has just had a party or two in there?

It just doesn’t stop, there is always something to do, so let’s stop looking! We have to stand back sometimes (me included, I’m the biggest culprit), and just let things go. We will get around to them at some stage, we always do, but for now, I might just grab that cappuccino I have been waiting for!