Lemonade anyone?

When life gives you lemons... some days I hope that life gave one of my friends vodka and we could sit in the sun and share our bounty. Other days, I make a big batch of lemonade and pour it into the conversations I have with my friends, family and anyone else who will listen.

Since leaping into my new blogging adventure, I am seeing the world in a new light and searching for the goodness of my daily grind. I am doing my best to hush the sarcastic voice in my head (hush not silence - I can't take sarcasm out of my vocabulary forever! It would be un-Australian!) I'm trying not to let my love affair with housework interfere with time with the Hedgehog. I guess you could say that I'm doing my best to 'Live what I Love'.

The beauty of the creation of this blog is that goodness is appearing in all shapes and sizes. An early morning with the Hedgehog gives me the chance to see the sunrise over the ocean and a rainy day provides my family with an opportunity to slow down and recover from our busy lives (and watch Ellen without feeling guilty about not being outside). There is a downside though. When you are spend your days and nights looking for the good, moments of 'bad' slap you in the face like a wet fish (I'm not sure that's even a saying but let's just go with it).

The other stars of the movie that is, My Life, will question my ramblings from time to time. The real life version of me doesn't smile knowingly as she puts on the third load of washing for the day, she doesn't think twice before speaking her mind in the sharpest of tones when her husband forgets to put his washing away and she certainly won't see the good in grocery shopping with a teething baby as her companion. And those little tidbits don't include the internal turmoils of my mind - self doubt with a side self esteem and self distruction please!

BUT! Amid all of the chaos in My Life, there is great and real beauty. For instance just one month ago my newest nephew was born and he is more than perfect. I may have left an incredible community of friends in WA but we're slowly building a village here in Kiama (including one very cute little Duck). Yes the Governor is away a lot but my oh my are the home comings amazing.

Embracing the goodness of your world is easy if you really really really try. Do we always have the energy to do so? No! Does searching for your 'happy' diminish the anguish of lost loves, difficult jobs, sleep deprivation, health battles and an endless stream of washing up? Absolutely not!

This blog isn't about building a world of make believe where everything is beautiful all of the time. What it is about is inspiring you to find your lemonade.

I found mine in a long coast walk to my favourite cafe today. One of my far away friends kept me company on my mobile and the Hedgehog slept the entire time. It was beautiful!

What did you do today to find yours?

Tell me why I don't like Mondays...

Monday, the 'eating your greens' of every week. The day where the universe collectively plunges into mourning of the weekend that was. If you're lucky, your grieving process will commence at the first blast from your alarm clock on Monday morning. If you're like me, the shadows of Monday will creep into your living room at around 4pm on Sunday afternoon. If you're my husband, they arrive on Saturday night.

What is it about Mondays? Why do we allow this one day to be the brussells sprout of our working week?

Now before the working audience of this blog roll their eyes and huff, "Goodness & Gracious - aren't you a stay at home mum? You don't know how we feel!" I beseech you to hear me out. I was a Monday to Friday gal for a lot longer than I've been in my new gig and let me tell you, Monday is Monday, no matter what you're doing! (roster workers, night shift workers and anyone else who doesn't work on a Monday - perhaps you replace the word 'Monday' with what ever day it is that your working week commences?)

When you live in the world of Childhood, days are irrelevant. Every day presents new adventures, new friends and new opportunities to add bumps and bruises to your little body as you take on the world head first. I witnessed this in fine detail this morning as I watched the Hedgehog stir from his nightly slumber. I woke up before him (the new definition of bliss) and slipped into his room to see if he was awake. The temptation of a cup of tea in the morning sun alone begged me to leave him to sleep but I'm a devout follower of routines (read - love a good running sheet) and I needed this baby up and at 'em so that the rest of the day didn't fly out the window. It only took a minute or two before he blinked his tired eyes and woke up. Within 30 seconds of the first blink he was wide awake, standing up and chatting away. If baby subtitles existed I am almost certain they would have read, "awesome, you're here, now get me up and let's get this party started!"

In the world of Being a Grown-up it's rare for any day to be met with such enthusiasm. Too many bubbly drinks on Friday night? One hour too long Facebook stalking on Tuesday night? Working to a deadline in the office and getting home at stupid o'clock on Wednesday night? No wonder we're all tired!

Anyone who has visited Pinterest or a Lorna Jane store will have read the slogan, "Live what you Love". Are you living what you love? If you're not, why?

At most times in my life I've lived what I loved. Not because I live a magical life with a money tree in my yard and endless spare time to frolic on private jets around the world but because I do my best to see the good in every day. Not in a "Julie Andrews in the Sound of Music" kind of way. More in a "you only live once so don't waste your taste buds on instant coffee" kind of way.

I'm not suggesting that the readers of this blog quit their day jobs and run off to join the circus because first of all, the life of a carney ain't what it used to be! There will be no Reece Witherspoon riding an elephant in the circus you join. I'm merely inviting you all to bring a bit of goodness to your Mondays.

You know that lunch you have booked for Friday at 1pm at Dragon Palace (yes my former KPMG friends I am talking to you)? Move it forward and go today!

You know how you've been dying to go to the movies and see Iron Man 3 (yes Roomie I'm talking to you)? Go and see it tonight!

It's not just lunch dates and movie trips that could soften the blow of Mondays. Burn that candle you've been saving, wear your favourite outfit, buy a new lip gloss, turn off the TV and listen to The Lumineers.

In order to prove that I am living what I love, today I will take an extra 10 minutes to get to baby playgroup and pick up a coffee on the way, I'll open up all the doors in my living room and let the sun shine in on my home and I will stop my housework and sit on the floor and play with the Hedgehog. After all, what will I remember tonight as I drift off to sleep? It sure as hell won't be how satisfied I felt when the washing basket was empty for all of 30 seconds.

In closing, a little over two years ago, I did the biggest act of goodness I could think of and married the Governor on a Monday. Best day of my life! Maybe there is a little hope for Monday's after all?

Have a great week everyone xx

Getting married on a Monday - the ultimate act of bringing goodness to the  brussells sprout of the working week. 

When I grow up I want to be a writer...

It all began when her Mum realised she could read. At the tender age of four, she would lay on the very edge of her bunk bed, arms outstretched to catch the light in the hallway, reaching for any light she could find. The books would pile up on the end of her bed. At first her Mum thought she simply liked the mess, sorry, I mean, pictures. Book after book after book would reach the end of her bed and night after night after night, she would read them.

Books and reading unlocked a little world called, Imagination. And what a world it was! Toys became real beings after the sun went down. So convinced of this, she would hold onto her raggedy teddy bear each night and whisper, "I believe in you Patch - I believe in you Patch" 10 times before closing her eyes on yet another big day.

Her first book was published by age 11. It was a riveting novel called, The Picasso Painting and along with writing it, she also illustrated, edited and published it herself. One copy was produced and sent off to her legion of fans for reading.

At her first reading, it appeared that her book was an instant success. "Write more!" they cried. "Are you sure you wrote this? It's brilliant", they said.

She looked at her audience (her parents and her Nan) and thought, when I grow up I want to be a writer.

Fast forward to the present day and (drum roll please) my childhood dream has come true. I have fulfilled my dream, I am a writer. As with my first novel, my writing is self-published, self-edited, self-illustrated and self-indulged. Yes readers, I am a blogger.

When I was little I loved writing and reading and drawing and playing dress ups. I believed that as an adult I would be either a writer or a world famous fashion designer. I launched my first fashion label around the same time as The Picasso Painting. It was called City Streets and featured a range of fabulous suits in the bright green and purple colour palette and had some serious shoulder padded features. Again, my legion of fans (my family) applauded my ideas and suggested I keep on drawing (in the other room so we can have an adult conversation thank you very much).

I don't know quite when or what happened but somewhere along the line I misplaced my creative whims. Writing stories became something I used to do. Fashion dreams were dashed when my high school guidance counselor told me that they were far fetched and perhaps I should focus on something more realistic. I let go of my balloons of hope and one by one let them drift away, only to be replaced by bubbles of responsibility, financial commitments and daily life.

Becoming a mother has bought me a million joys and unlocked parts of me that I didn't know existed. How could I know that I could sing Incy Wincy Spider several times a day and not get sick of doing so. I didn't know that I could memorise the words of all of the Hedgehogs favourite books and how important this would be on long journeys in the car when the Hedgehog decided to exercise his lungs. I discovered that I have the patience of a saint when I comes to meal times, important for those moments when you have spent hours in the kitchen creating deliciously healthy baby meals only to have them flung at you from chubby fingers.

Singing, reading and cooking has somehow allowed all of those creativity balloons to drift back down and firmly into my hands. It's reminded me of the younger version of myself who liked a good story and could tell one just as well. It's reminded me that I am much more than an Executive Assistant, Wife, Sister, Friend. I am actually my own person! Who knew?

This discovery has resulted in the creation of this blog. If I want to bring more goodness to this world and learn to be more gracious, not only do I have to create these aspects of my life, I have to find a part of myself who is brave enough to share my venture with the wild and wonderful world (or world wide web as it may be).

I invite you to follow my adventure into finding the good and learning to be gracious. I would love to hear about your experiences and read about your journey to finding the real you.

A little reminder though, this blog is about goodness and graciousness. Haters and web trolls need not apply. If you don't like what I have to write, simply "unfollow" and go back to bullying another cause from the safety of your online persona. 

To the lovers of what is good in the world, welcome aboard! Please follow me on Facebook or sign up to my blog.

A little on labels

When you're a kid, labels come in all shapes and sizes. I, for instance, had some beauties! Tomboy, space cadet, moody, sullen, bright, bubbly. When you're a kid, labels are kind of necessary. I know lots of "energetic" (read - wild)  two year olds, I've met plenty of "chatty" four year olds (read - going through the why phase), I've spent numerous hours writing fairy letters to imaginative little girls (read - I sometimes wish fairies really did exist). Kids need labels to warn the adults in their lives of what's around the corner. I know that an hour with an energetic child means that I will be chasing them, stopping them from climbing furniture and  holding peace talks to coax them away from holding my make-up bag hostage.

Labels stop being as diverse somewhere around twelve or thirteen, after that, "teenager"  covers all manner of sins, err I mean, descriptions. As we coast towards adulthood however, they make a comeback. And in my experience of late, they're often negative.

Once upon a time my label read, Executive Assistant. This label involved working hard, smiling often (through sometimes grimaced teeth), keeping my ears and eyes open on behalf of my VIP boss, arranging fancy soirees, schmoozing with other amazingly talented (you know who you are ladies) EA's and other various forms of balancing on the corporate tightrope.

People knew how to make conversation with me during this phase of my life. I could hold my own in discussions about business (read - smile and nod and look very interested), I knew the best places for drinks, I had inside information on all kinds of office chatter (read - I knew when the good caterers were in the building and where I could get my hands on their pistachio macarons). Outside of work I was easy to chat to as well. People assumed I had interests and hobbies and asked me about my life in general.

One day, about 10 months ago, all of that changed. My label became, full time wife and mother ** insert sound of record coming to an abrupt halt here **

Mothers have been coping some serious flack of late. Perhaps they always did. Perhaps I'm simply more aware now that I've joined the team. Gone are the days of people asking my opinion on anything. Gone are the days when my voice seemed to be heard at a dinner party (in fact, gone are the days of being invited to a dinner party). As suddenly as I was awarded my new label, my interesting factor has dropped through the floor. People seem to assume that I have nothing interesting to offer by way of conversation and when I give my opinion, it seems to be glossed over.


I am the same person I was when the Hedgehog joined the world. I still enjoy the same things in life. I love reading, perusing the weekend newspapers is one of my most favourite pass times, I am interested in other peoples lives, I love to exercise and like to think that I love news programs but in reality I just wait for the feel-good story at the end of the news. The only thing that has changed since my label became full time wife and mother is my actual job.

• I no longer fuss about the needs of the man that I work for or the company he is running. 
• I no longer have the fabulous hours of the working world - 24/7 is where it's at!
• I no longer catch public transport. 
• I no longer eat lunch at my desk while holding a phone to my ear while simultaneously typing an email.

Sure my day consists of a myriad of baby related tasks. Of course my office gossip is somewhat limited to the actions of my growing baby. Yes I have a one track mind at times. But I'm still the same person.


I read an article last weekend and it claimed that social media participants (so basically all of mankind) are sick to death of Facebook, Twitter and Instagram updates and photos from parents. There is even a program that will allow you to remove all posts about babies and replace them with cats. Cats? You mean those fuzzballs that wee in your clean washing and scratch the bejesus out of your skin?

One woman featured in the article complained that her friend used to be interesting but since having children, she had lost her ways and could only talk about her children. Another person said that posting photos of your children via social media was exploiting them and asked how the children would feel about this exploitation in years to come. Well first of all, elated! I love nothing more than looking at photos of myself from my younger days!

The article really got under the skin of this blogger.

I am a lover of social media. I declare myself addicted to Facebook feeds and Instagram uploads. I hit the 'like' button dozens of times a day because I honestly 'like' that my friend started today with a beach run and I 'like' reading the plans of my friends as the excitement of their weekend looms. I don't particularly get that one of my Facebook friends does difficult and painful mountain bike riding but I 'like' that it's important to him. Social media is about sharing our lives. My life is currently devoted to helping my child grow into a healthy and happy person. Once upon a time it was okay to share my daily exploits, photos of my meals and selfies with the world. Now that my updates are 90% mummy related they're no longer acceptable?

There was a time when women were simply labeled with the title of "homemakers". The world understood this title. A lot has changed since those days. Bras were burnt (although how they could afford to do this I'll never understand! Hello $60+ brassieres!), the glass ceiling was smashed and now women equal men in many modern cultures. However in my very humble and non-Germaine Greer world, with all that we have gained, the labels attached to women have become diverse, perverse and sometimes impossible.

No challenge this week. Simply a request for more 'like' button'ing the the lives of our friends and less time labeling. Oh and maybe talk about something un-mummy related with one of your mummy friends. Who knows, she may just be dying for it!

My new boss - the hours are long, the wage is woeful but the returns... incredible!

Kindness - it's the new black

Well it's 5 days since I renounced behaviour of the nasty-ambivalent-negative variety. Were you all on the edge of your seats, riveted to what might happen next? Just out of interest, what were your predictions for the outcome of this little project? I had a few of my own...

1. Little bluebirds would keep me company all day long. All the while, I would whistle a jolly tune and people in the street would wave joyfully back at me. Small children would begin calling me, Ma'am and my next door neighbours would drop by with homemade goodness for me to eat. This isn't so much as a prediction but a wish, my neighbours run a small business called Lucy Loves from their home kitchen. When we first moved in, they bought us chocolate salted biscuits. Those were the days ** sigh **. 
2. Where was I? Oh yes... if people and animals weren't drawn to my happiness then maybe they would be repelled by it. I would be known as that 'weird friendly girl'. People would avert my stare and sales for the iPhone S.O.S app would go through the roof!
3. This one is the worst prediction of all... my new attitude would go unnoticed. By me. By everyone. Not even bluebirds or small children would care for me new found way of being. 

So what happened?

It was pretty amazing actually. I didn't do anything over the top. I just greeted people when it was appropriate and responded when people asked me how I was. I thanked people who sold me things in shops. I congratulated the guy at Woolies when I asked for 200gms of prawns and he skillfully picked up 198gms in his first attempt. I was nice to the owner of my favourite cafe and asked how her day was going when she tried to disregard me.

So what happened? I hear you cry at your iPhone (please stop reading my blog on the loo, it's just weird). 

Well... people responded with the same warm and friendly demeanor I greeted them with. The seafood guy at Woolies laughed and told me my baby was cute (I'm not kidding, it was a completely unsolicited compliment). The cafe owner was her normal-self on the first day and then on day two, she asked how my day was going back! THEN (and I'm totally not kidding) she complimented me on my baby! She said he was getting big and that these early years should be treasured as her boys were in their 20's now and she felt like the time had flown by. Ironically, as she gave the Hedgehog his compliment, he was sitting on the floor next to me filling up his nappy with glee. If the strained look on his face didn't give it away, the waft of freshly filled nappy certainly did. I happened to be with my Mum at the time. We quickly finished our coffees and made for the door. I haven't been back since. 

Other than these small exchanges, I just felt that people accepted my friendliness without suspicion and responded in kind. Now I can't say that I was a joyful angel all week, it's kind of been a rough week to be honest. There were a few times when I was tempted to take out my sadness on total strangers but I didn't. On more than one occasion, I reminded myself that beeping my horn for a late indication or being gruff with the lady at the petrol station (while she chatted to every-single-person in the long line up to pay for fuel) wouldn't make me feel any better or fix the things that were making me sad. 

I'm going to do my best to keep going with this new attitude. It mightn't increase the number my Facebook friends but it will help me to be friendly with those people who make regular cameo appearances in my life. 

Try it for a few days and see what you think!

On that note, I'm off to have a quiet cup of tea and a chocolate biscuit. I've learned that a bikkie a day keeps the blues at bay. If only the bikkie was one of those amazing Lucy Loves specials. 

Over and out for now. 

A word on being kind...

As in Childhood, life as a grown up is marred with all sorts of nasty creatures. Where Childhood housed potential monsters beneath our beds, grown up life often plays host to puzzling and scary creatures. I came across one such being today.

It all began when...

My husband (affectionately known as The Governor), my baby (affectionately known as The Hedgehog) and I drove to a little town on the NSW South Coast called, Berry.

"Oh it's Berry nice to be here", we remarked as we drove into the tree lined town.  "I'm Berry hungry after that Berry long car trip", said The Governor as we sought out a place to park.

We had planned to dine at gorgeous little bakery called the Berry Sourdough Cafe. It's famous along this region and on a busy weekend, tables are considered hot property and hard to come by. We arrived at the Bakery to find that it wasn't busy, there were oodles of tables! As we patiently waited to be seated at the sign that said, Please wait patiently to be seated, I held the Hedgehog on my hip and absentmindedly stepped closer to the tables. I was mesmerised by the smells wafting from the kitchen, my heart sung as I saw the barista creating beautiful coffees and the sight of gorgeous golden croissants made me swoon. I was aware that another couple stood in front of us, also waiting to be seated and I stopped myself from nudging them as if to say, "We made it! How lucky are we? Just look at this place!" (all that from a nudge - I must have been planning some nudge!)

The couple in front of us appeared to be husband and wife. They appeared to be in their 50's. They appeared to be a normal, middle aged, hungry-for-delicious-food, kind of couple. I smiled at the wife (unaffectionately known as The Witch - I could use another word that rhymes with witch but I'm trying to be gracious) as she stepped towards me. In the split second before she spoke, I assumed she was going to say one of two things to me.

Assumed comment #1
"We made it! How lucky are we? Just look at this place!"

Assumed comment #2
"Oh my goodness! What a beautiful baby you have! Just look at those eyelashes! And those lips! He is utter perfection. Congratulations on creating such an incredible baby. Enjoy your lunch."

You can imagine my shock when she leered at me, "you won't push in, we were here first, we will be seated first!" I think she may have even waved a finger at me to emphasis her point.

Let's just sit on that for a moment shall we? I've been trying to understand her rationale all afternoon. We were standing in a mostly empty cafe, I was gazing glassy eyed at food, my baby was looking utterly gorgeous and my husband was eyeing the specials board with gay abandon. In my mind, my little family looked like a little bubble of happiness floating towards a delicious lunch in a beautiful venue in a quaint little village. What brings out such unnecessary rudeness on an otherwise perfect day?

One day soon I'll broach the topic of online trolls and road rage and passive aggressive behaviour. Today however is solely dedicated to being kind to one another. Ellen de Generes closes every single taping of her show by saying, "Be kind to one another". I love the simpleness of this. Be kind to one another. Be kind to one another. Simple! Yet for some people it's not.

To be clear, I am not the worlds nicest person. I do not have blue birds chirping on my shoulder as I flounce around my home singing in my apron and sprinkling star dust on my husbands nose. I can be a right pain when it's needed and appropriate and yes, there are times when it's needed and appropriate. I have never been embarrassed by the way that I've conducted myself to strangers, to waitresses, to retail staff, to bus drivers. Today however, I was stunned and embarrassed by this awful woman. My face prickled with anger. My smile turned to a scowl. I think I babbled a reply something similar to, "no of course not, we wouldn't do that, but hang on didn't you notice my beautiful baby?"

I WISH I had been smart enough to reply that of course I wouldn't take her table and draw her attention to the almost empty cafe. I WISH I had been witty enough to think of a clever way to question her rudeness. I WISH I had asked her why she felt the need to leer at me. I WISH I hadn't let her aggression get to me.

In Childhood we are taught to have good manners. Should a teacher visit our classrooms, we were taught to greet them gaily, "Good morning Mrs Niven and may god bless you". We were taught to say please and thank you, to respect each other and wait our turn in line. Somewhere along the express line to become an adult, we forget these little things. Are we too busy to be kind? Are we too important to show respect to others? Is our right to enjoy a roasted beetroot and quinoa salad first somehow more valid than the next person?

Since making the decision to write this blog embracing the goodness in the world and to be more gracious to others, my world has been lived in high definition. Just a week ago, my brief encounter with the Witch may have passed in a flash.  I feel like I'm seeing colours more brightly, I'm enjoying my surroundings more than ever and reminding myself how lucky I am to live in a home that overlooks the ocean, how incredible it is that the white noise sending me to sleep at night is from the sea crashing on the beach just a short distance from my front door. I'm noticing all sorts of murky behaviour in some and seeing the good in others.

My brief encounter with the Witch got me thinking (nice little nod to Carrie Bradshaw there) about being kinder to one another. I've set myself a challenge for this week - I'm going to be kinder to the people in my world. Join me?

This week, I'm going to respond when the check-out chick (is there a more PC term? Let me know if there is) asks me how my day is going. I'm going to make conversation when the owner of my favourite cafe dismisses me as she always does, even though I'm there every day, supporting her small business with my love of coffee. I'm going to stop and think before jumping to a conclusion about someone or something I know little about.

It's going to be hard! I left childhood 18 or so years ago, seeing the good in all things and all people won't come easily but hey, it's worth a shot.

I'll report back this weekend and let you all know how I get on. Wish me luck!

In the meantime, as Ellen says, be kind to one another. 

The Hedgehog & The Governor 

Pork belly goodness

Beetroot and quinoa salad love

A place called Childhood...

Once upon a time, but not very long ago, there was a place called Childhood.

In Childhood, little people reigned supreme. Days were long and nights were short. Sunrise welcomed endless adventures and sunset was met with warm pajamas and good night kiss.

Life was special in Childhood. Puddles were for jumping, paper was for drawing and mud was for playing. You could do whatever you liked in Childhood. If you felt like crying in the middle of the (not so) enchanted aisle of a Supermarket, you could! If you felt like throwing food at the Queen of Childhood, a beautiful lady called 'Mummy' (that's me), then you could. So long as you did something uber-cute like laugh so hard that holding your head off your highchair was no longer possible.

As special as life was in Childhood, it was also simple. So simple in fact that 'Bill' was a friend who lived next door, not something scary that arrived in the mail every day (seriously - EVERY day), 'weight' wasn't spelled like that, it was spelled 'wait' and it was something that people in Childhood hated to do. 'Sleep' was an enemy and bouncing out of the bed before sunrise was considered a mammoth victory.

Over time, the colours of Childhood began to fade. It was a subtle change at first. The vibrancy of the playgrounds started to wilt and appear silly. The luminosity of books began to dull and words became smaller and stories became longer until there were no pictures left in books at all, just words. The little people of Childhood tried hard to hold onto their childish ways until the big people of Childhood began scolding them for being childish... something that not so long ago had been a special thing.

Eventually the little people of Childhood began to change too. Their once fresh faces wore little red dots and their shoulders became slouched. The little boys voices grew deeper and the little girls bodies began to curve. The big people of Childhood grew fearful as the once adorable little people became... teenagers (insert jaws score here).

As Childhood grew darker, the once little people put down their treasures. They boxed away their rosy cheeks and left their wild imaginations underneath their beds where they softened and became memories. Overtime, the once little people would visit their special memories and hope that one day soon, their new worlds would once again be as simple and happy as they had been in Childhood...

Welcome to that very day.

This blog is a return to the goodness of our youth. This blog is written by a former resident of Childhood who still believes in the goodness of those days. In this post-apocolyptic world of puberty, our 20s and now my 30s, this blog is all about celebrating the goodness and being gracious to the other inhabitants of this big, wild and beautiful world.

Over the next few months, visit this site as you sit on your evening commute unable to see the good in your crowded and smelly tram, have a quick read as your boss (who incidentally reeks of garlic today) berates you for no reason at all, stop by for a visit as you wake in the middle of the night to feed your crying baby... again... for the third time that night... when will this growth spurt ever end?! Sorry, off on a tangent there!

With a little bit of luck, the words from this mere blog will bring a little bit of goodness back to the simple things in our lives and herald the return of the once popular, rose coloured glasses.

Until next time, a challenge. As you hurry out the door to work, rush to the front gates of your children's school, or race to make your gym class on time, try something new. Keep rushing by all means but as you do, recall five beautiful things that happened to you today. I'll share mine, I'm a good sharer, I learned how to do that in Childhood...

1. My 10 month old slept through the night last night, I actually woke up before him! I know! I woke up and the sun was peeking through my windows and I lay in bed for 7 minutes before the familiar call of my little boy drifted into my room. 
2. I straightened my hair last night and it looks Pantene-commercial-good today. I've been flicking my luscious locks all day long! I have to make the most of it as they're likely to be encrusted with a baby rusk by sunset. 
3. My daily regular weak skinny latte (don't judge me for ordering weak coffee Melbourne readers - my cafe makes REALLY strong coffee okay) was made by my favourite barista. Enough said. 
4. It's the most amazing Autumn day here on the NSW South Coast. The sun is shining, the birds are chirping, the grass is green and the ocean, luminous. 
5. My husband gets home tonight! He's been away all week and I've missed him. Noted that this beautiful thing hasn't happened yet BUT there's nothing wrong with a little optimism right?!

Over and out dear readers - err, sorry, I mean Nick.