Things I am loving right now ...

I haven't exactly been sick - but I'm not quite right. Low grade fever, constant headaches ... what it does mean is I'd rather be at home than out ... and I am loving pottering about my home ..

So a long overdue post ... things I am loving right now ...


Woodwick candles. For years I have loved how a scented candle can freshen up your home, and my husband has hated them. So I don't use them. Until I discovered THIS candle. It's soy based with a bamboo wick. And the scent reminds me of washing day at my gran's ... linen, cashmere and cotton flower (OK - now I know gran never had cashmere anything except unopened cashmere bouquet soap and powder .. but this candle SMELLS like her home.) And Paul can tolerate it :) And I'll take that. Love it!




I've rearranged my mantle about my fire and I am loving it ...



A lot ....



I really really wanted a family rules subway art poster. But we are on budget freeze due to a broken hot water system ...

Enter a wonderful giveaway at The Daily Dye an a $4 frame from the cheap shop. I'm very happy!

Wonder wht joy pottering can bring me tomorrow?

My happy place

Every morning lately ... this little space in my kitchen is making me a very happy lady.

You see - even Miss E knows how things work around here. You ask her what mummy likes and she answers "Mummy sure does like her coffee!"

However - I have struggled for years to make a cup of coffee I love at home.

Honestly - lately I've stuck to instant. It's quick. Makes a consistent cup (whether that's consistently good is debateable but it gets me through work). And it is no fuss.

In the past I have owned coffee machines. And I have hated them. There is a real skill in getting a good espresso. And I don't drink enough coffee that the beans stay fresh for us. Grinding them? Tried it - but more mess. And coffee machines lead to mess. Water on the bench. Clean up. Coffee grounds everywhere.

A plunger? Yep it works. But again I have to dispose of the grinds. And that means mess. And it's the frothy milk I love in a good coffee and the plunger doesn't do that.

But then I met this. The nespresso Citiz and Milk by deLonghi. Oh it is LOVE.

The coffee is good. Consistently good. Every time it is the same. And the coffee is hot.
The aerocinno makes perfect frothy milk. I mean look at it!


And no mess. It does it on it's own. I do not make it. All I do is pour the milk and press a button.

There is no mess. None at all. The secret you see are the pods. Each pod contains one serve of coffee grinds. You put it in the machine. It pierces it. Makes your coffee. And you throw it away. There is NO MESS at all.

Yes the coffee is dearer. But I don't care. It is in my budget and the price makes me limit how much I drink anyway. And it is cheaper than from a cafe coffee (and better too!)

This is definately a thing I love! Great coffee. Just as I like it. In less time than it takes to boil a jug. Happy day!

Things I love - reduce water bottles

These are my new favourite items!

Reduce water bottles - 5 water bottles + stand to store them in your fridge



I love these because they encourage me to drink more water. I start each day with one by my side, and then grab one whenever I need it. More water, less money spent on other drinks and better for my health.

I also love them because Miss E is drinking more, and is also learning to think for herself when we go out. She now grabs a bottle of water for her and for me. It is teaching her good habits, and independance.

Love them!

A big shout out ...

To my friend Robin!

She makes these gorgeous bows ... and they are so reasonable! Lots of fun and they stick in the finest finest hair!

I love my girl - and I love spoiling her ... so when this parcel arrived in the mail it made BOTH of us happy!

Go check out her etsy shop

Makes me SMILE:)

Gran always told me to count my blessings.
Problem is - I have so many!

So many things made me smile this week :)

Right now I am loving ...







The flowers from my bouquet from my sister's wedding. I love that the silk flowers will continue to brighten my home ...



Cackleberries (eggs) from our chooks! They taste so good and are so fresh! Our chookies sure earn their keep!



My nursing registration FINALLY through! And what a battle it was!



Reading books I loved as a child with my girl! She just soaks up the chapter books!



My new spice holder I bought at Aldi this week! No more searching through the cupboard for what I need! I just need to fill and label it!

Things I love - Organised mums!

Expect to see a few posts featuring products from Organised mums!

They seem to have gotten right inside my head and designed a range of diaries, calendars and stationary that works the way I do! Makes my heart sing!

One big issue we have in our home is making sure everyone is in the right place, at the right time with the right stuff. I am a part time stay at home mum, part time shift worker. Miss E is a busy 5 year old with a demanding school schedule already ;), and several after school activities. And daddy is working pretty full on days at the moment ... and sometimes needs a hand remembering what we have to take on what day and where.

Enter this! The Magnetic Family Organiser from organised mums!




I love that it sticks right onto my fridge (it is basically one huge magnet) and I love that I can change it every week depending what we have on. Life here is never the same, I work different days and the shifts I work vary. It helps to be able to be flexible.

It does come with magnets for reminders and events. This is my only complaint. There just does not seem to be enough variety of magnets. I would have loved to at least seen some for dance, sport, library, interest item ... the basic things that most families have going on.




At the moment I have the 5 columns set up as "Mum, dad, school, afterschool and menu planning"




However - I think I am going to change this by heading them "mum, dad, miss e, menu and exercise". That way Paul and I can each mark out when we want to work out and try to fit it in so we both get time and can work around Miss E and each other.

The size of this calendar is great - and it seems to be really good quality. What I intend to do is use a 3m Command hook to stick on the fridge for each of us to hang our keys on. This forces us to check the calendar as we are going to leave. It also means we can check what is for dinner that night and make sure *someone* has remembered to defrost the meat!

I think this is going to be a really useful tool. The Australian distributor is McMillan press. I believe they are available now.

Things I love - cloth serviettes

I am TRYING (really trying) to get everyone to use cloth serviettes in my home when they eat. This will not only save my tablecloths and table from sticky fingers - but hopefully save their clothes as well!

Problem is - I hate the waste that paper napkins give ... and I couldn't justify the cost of new cloth napkins! Some places wanted to charge $4 - $6 each!

Enter my new fave place - the op shop! I picked up three lots of great cloth serviettes for under $10! And the best bit is - they don't need ironing! Very happy indeed!

Things I love - the planet box!

We do our best to reduce the amount of plastic we use in our home. I know the use of plastic for food storage has a big question mark over it, and with some of the health problems I suffer I just like to reduce the amount we use, and especially for Miss E.

We also like to pack lunches without using a heap of cling wrap and plastic baggies. They cost a lot of money - they are wasteful - and contribute to our rubbish problems.

I was so excited to get to try the PLANET BOX




On their site they describe it as a "Lunch transportation system". The different sections encourage you to pack a balanced lunch (One for sandwich/pasta etc, one for fruit , one for vege, and the teeeny tiny centre one for the occasional treat)

The containers seal well, and as long as you don't pack liquid they seem to keep the food where it should be.

They also come with two sealable individual containers, for yogurt, dressing etc ...




Magnets on the front allow you to customize the planet box and are a fun gimmick for the little ones!




I love the concept so much, I am going to use it to pack my lunch for the next day, even though I stay at home most days. That way I can plan what I want to eat in advance, and it is easy to eat when I want to. Hey - now that the weather is beautiful I can even grab a book, my planet box and coffee and go outside or to the park!

So far I am thrilled with the planet box. It's a great organisational solution for lunch for us. I'll post pics how we use it as time goes on!

Oh Aldi ... how I *heart* you!

Sometimes you find the best storage solutions when you least expect it.

Laundry takes over my home every day. I just can't seem to help it!

On a GOOD day sorting laundry looks like this ...



with baskets on every available surface. (and trust me - this is a TIDY day!)

Which of course means the couch is out of comission until I put all the laundry away ... AND my laundry baskets are being used.

But today at Aldi I found THESE!


And they are fabulous! (shhh - I bought two!)
Two trolleys means four baskets - one for each of us and one for the linen closet.
They are strong, tidy, and can be wheeled from room to room.

Plus they don't look too bad!

Makes me smile!

(and if you like them ... rush to aldi! I bought the last two at our store! )

Shout out to READING EGGS! - Things I LOVE

We LOVE love LOVE !reading eggs!
This is an online program of games, phonics learning, sight words and FUN for ages 4-8.
Miss E loves it - and is on the last map. My school teacher sister loves it too.

Reading eggs rocks and really has helped my girl be a better reader!

Right now the annual "Great literacy challenge" is on, and you can try FIVE weeks reading eggs for free! No credit card needed to register.

I really recommend it - give it a go!

(and how does this relate to organising? Well - miss e is allowed a game a day ... and while she is playing it I am attacking our clutter box of a garage/office

Things I love! Aprons!

I loves me a cute apron!

Point one - I am messy - I cannot bake without wiping my hands on my shirt at least twice!

Point two - they are CUTE!

Point three - they have pockets ... or if they don't I can use the apron to carry things as I go room to room

Point four ... I guess I've never grown out of loving dressing up!

And this was a BARGAIN! $9.99 at aldi! and it came with a tea towel and pot holder too. (maybe I should have gotten more than one)

Things I love! My cupcake carrier

On Monday Miss E is FIVE! Since Monday is a public holiday - she celebrated at school on Friday.

CUPCAKES!!!



Sometimes it is worth investing in items that only have one use. Normally, something large like this cupcake carrier would not stay in my home - especially since it doesn't have multiple uses.

But with school celebrations, and the ease this carrier makes taking cupcakes to school/parties/the park etc it has been an excellent investment! Best thing was it was only $10 at coles/bilo.




And cupcakes are great for school celebrations. No need for a knife, no need for plates and easy for the teacher to serve and distribute.

I have my recipe down pat now. These are a celebration staple around here!

Things I love - Tefal toast n egg

I needed a new toaster.

I splurged and bought this.

(after reading a LOT of reviews)

I. Love. It.

I can poach an egg and toast a muffin with no mess, little cleanup and go about other things while I am waiting.

In the time my egg is cooking I can have lunches done. Or the fridge cleaned of feral foods. Or get ready for work if I am late.

Happy!

Things I like! Bless the man (or woman) who invented these!

I don't know if this happens in your house, but it sure does in mine.

You have dinner/lunch/snack whatever.

You have leftovers.



You store them nicely in your fridge with the full intention that one day soon .. you will eat them.

Life goes on. One day runs into the next. Then you can't remember what day you opened it and if it is still safe to eat.

Enter the daysago digital day counter.

The come in either magnetic, suction cap or with a band attached to wrap around products.

Take counter.
Set it.

Attach to leftovers.



And the counter counts UP, telling you how many days ago you opened suspect food item.




Love it!

It suits the nerd in me, the gadget freak, and the woman who hates leftovers festering in her fridge!

I got mine from www.jespo.com.au

Service was fast and prompt.

I *heart* my timer!

This is the best cleaning invention ever.

Don't want to clean? set the timer for 5 minutes and clean till it goes off. If you want to stop then you can. Normally by then I'm in the groove.

Too busy doing other stuff? Set the timer for 10 minutes. Allow yourself that time guilt free on the net/reading/craft ... whatever. When it goes off. You clean.

Whole house messy? 10 minutes in each room. By the end of am hour we are looking pretty good.

Too hot, too tired, too something else to clean? Timer for 5 minutes. Clean for 5, rest for 5. Repeat. A lot.

I love my timer! Do you?
Let me know how you use yours!

Socks. The bane of my existance. And the solution.

Seriously. Does any house have as many odd socks as us? It is beyond the ridiculous.

I have in part made this easier by being fussy with what socks I buy. I only buy Paul the exact same black work socks. Never changes. So I don't need to bother matching pairs. Pity I didn't do the same with his sports socks.

Plus I like cute socks! I don't want my socks all the same!

Enter Sockodiles into my life.
http://footcareinternational.com/sockodiles_footcare.asp

With these little pegs, as soon as you take your socks off you clip them together with sockodiles. Then you throw them in the laundry just like that. All clipped together in a MATCHING pair!


THEN (to make things better) you LEAVE them like that! All clipped together and MATCHING!

The sockodile has a little hook on it to hang it off your clothesline. No need to muck with pegs.


Then when you are done - leave the sockodile on, and store in the drawer.

No folding, no matching, no sorting, no. lost. socks. Ever.

All I need to do is find some cute little containers to store the sockodiles where we take our socks off. Easy.

Now why didn't I think of that first?

THIS is what I love! Spring clean all year round!

This is the cutest cleaning system I ever did see.

Yes - I could make it myself. But no - I probably would leave it on my to do list ... and plus I know the time that I would spend creating it would be far better off cleaning and tidying!

This sweet little box is designed to take the spring cleaning tasks and spread them out over the year.

Inside the box are two sets of index cards ... one ranging from one - 31 for the days of the month. And one with the months of the year.



Each task card has a job that needs doing on it. It also lists the tools you need, and how often they suggest the job is done. Jobs are listed from twice weekly all the way up to annual jobs.






You simply file each job in the month you wish to perform it. The cards that are less than monthly (eg weekly and bi-weekly) you file under the date of the current month that you wish to perfom it.

Suggestions are also made as to a suggested age that children can help perform each task (train a child up in the way he should go, anyone?)

I love this set. It is pretty - that helps for me! It is very detailed and covers a large range of the jobs I would have chosen.

And it works. Even my husband is learning to check there (as she cleverly details outdoor jobs and service tasks for the car that need completing as well!)

The website is http://springcleanyearround.blogspot.com/
Delivery was prompt - even to Australia. (and did I mention how pretty it is??)

I have a few tips and tweaks to show you ... plus I want to show you how this is working for us! So keep popping back for updates! I love to share the things I love!

How I organise my project life

I am doing Project Life this year by Becky Higgins. It's a photo 365 project - one photo a day for 365 days.

I know me - I love big ideas ... the follow through ... not so great.

But in this I am determined.

I'm still waiting on the kit to arrive, but until then ... this is how I am keeping organised.

Step one - rememeber to take the daily photo. This is helped by me taking my camera with me ... and if push comes to shove there is always an organising photo lately ...

Step two - to keep me acountable I have a photo blog and I update it daily. This also helps me record my journalling while I wait for the kit.

http://365downunder.blogspot.com/

Step three - I have a separate project life folder on my computer. I copy each day's photo here ready for printing ... so they are easy to find again.

I know I will have more to add - especially as the kit arrives. Look out for project life updates ... I'm very excited about this!

Things I love ...Sneak preview ...

Over the next few days I intend to bring you a review of this pretty little box.

It arrived today and I'm in love !

Come back often - I can't WAIT to share it with you!

I'll show you step by step how I set mine up - and then will share how it is working for us.

Plus I have a few other tips and tweaks to share with you about it.

Definately something I LOVE

Miss E's bedroom - the shelf unit

Miss E's bedroom needs some serious decluttering.

She is past the toddler stage ... and moving onto big girl toys (my girl starts prep soon!) so we really need to re-evaluate what we are keeping.

Plus we have a stack of baby things hidden in her wardrobe, and with no sibling so far we only want to keep the bare minimum just in case.

Step one was this expedit unit (from ikea - we love this unit by the way - have used it in so many rooms in so many ways!)

Before (top of unit)



Before



After



I love how by turning it sideways she now has a home for her gorgeous dollhouses. The dolls you see to the right now live in one of the pink boxes so they are no longer there. Her school bags will have a home in one of the boxes.

So far so good. I'm much happier!
And one garbage bag of toys/clothes/baby stuff to sell, and one in the bin!