Category Archives: Family

Weekly Reflections and The Sunday Parenting Party

Posted on by

6

Well here we are at the weekend already and it’s time for The Sunday Parenting Party. How did this week fly by so fast? It’s been awfully quiet around here lately, I’m so sorry. In fact, I haven’t posted anything since last week’s Sunday Parenting Party.

There’s been lots happening this week despite the lack of posts. I’ve been busy working with a fab designer on a new look for One Perfect Day. It will be a few more weeks before we are ready to launch the new design, but it’s looking wonderful and I can’t wait to share it with you all. On Monday I will be launching a new weekly series which I am SO excited about so be sure to stop by for that. This week I will also be guest posting at one of my favourite blogs Carrots Are Orange. I’m so honoured to be writing for Marnie. I’ll be sure to share the link with you all on my Facebook page and Pinterest so keep an eye out for it.

I’m also changing the way I introduce The Sunday Parenting Party – hence the “weekly reflections” title. I’ll be looking back at the week that was, sharing updates and happenings, or general musings. Lots of little changes happening around here and there’s more to come!

After a hectic week, we decided a day at the beach was in order today. It makes me smile so much when I see R (4 yrs) by the water. Not so long ago he was so reluctant to go anywhere near the water’s edge. Nowadays he challenges us to race with him to see who will be first into the water.

We love to search for treasures at the beach.  We always find something special to bring home and add to our collection shells, driftwood and sea glass. Usually it is just one or two small shells, or a beautiful pebble. Today though, we happened upon an absolute bounty of AMAZING shells, the size and beauty of which we’d never seen at our local beach. Our haul was so large and wonderous that I’ll be devoting an entire post to it later this week, but among the largest of the shells was this beautiful specimen.

This was another favourite. A gorgeous enormous sea snail shell.

Sorry these photos are a little out of focus. R was so excited, running along the shore making discoveries. I didn’t want to ask him to stand still so I could take photos. These snaps are the best I could manage. It was a beautiful afternoon and definitely helped us unwind from our hectic week.

How was your week? What discoveries did you make?

Now to this week’s linky. A huge THANK YOU to everyone who linked up last week. A few of my favourites from last week are listed below. It was REALLY difficult to choose just a few this week, as it is every week. If you haven’t already, pop back to last week’s posts and browse through them all.

Tone of Voice – Taming The Goblin
I Love You a Little Bit Purple – Art Mama Says
How To Be A More Patient Parent – Picklebums
Bedtime Stories – Happy Whimsical Hearts
 Beautiful Mess – Like Mama Like Daughter

If you’ve been featured, please help yourself to an “I’ve been featured at The Sunday Parenting Party” button from my sidebar.  Thanks again for linking up and I can’t wait to read this week’s posts.



The Bits In Between {and The Sunday Parenting Party linky}

Posted on by

4

Photo credit “D Sharon Pruitt”

Do you ever have those weeks that just fly by in a complete blur? The entire week is taken up with the endless to-do list, meals to prepare, beds to make, washing to fold, groceries to buy and the constant cries of “Mummy, Mummy, Muuuummmmyyy!” and somehow, at the end of the week, the to-do list is inexplicably longer than it was at the start of the week. One of my (many) goals for 2013 is to find something to appreciate  in every single day, even on the most mundane of days – *especially* on the mundane days.

I’m intentionally slowing down and looking for the bits in between – the beautiful moments in between all the chaos and craziness.  There is beauty in every day, some days I just need to look a little harder. It can be as simple as  hot coffee in the morning,  or as special as the feeling of a tiny hand slipping into mine. It could be the pride on my son’s face as he shows me his latest lego creation, the vase of Gerberas brightening up my living room that make me smile every time I look at them, or even the bounty of fresh vegetables grown in our own backyard.

To help keep me focused on finding those wonderful bits in between, I’m joining three creative projects.


The Abundant Mama e-course from the inspirational Shawn at Awesomely Awake, is a five week course all about intentional gratitude. I’ve just signed up and I can’t wait to begin. The e-course is designed to inspire Mamas to create their own daily gratitude practice — a new perspective on their life and family, a way to find beauty in the usual day to day routines, strengthen family bonds and provide support and comfort on those challenging days. Will you join me? There are two options for signing up to The Abundant Mama e-course.

OPTION A: The Abundant Mama E-Course.
This option will sign you up to receive the entire course in your inbox to do on your own and at your own pace. Each email includes an action step for both you and your family as well as the writing prompts to get you thinking more deeply about the goodness in your life.

OPTION B: The Abundant Mama Village
This option gives you access to a private and secure Facebook group where you can connect with other Abundant Mamas from around the world. This group is a place to share the goodness in your life — as well as your frustrations.  You’ll also receive support from Shawn to help you stay on track, bonus writing prompts and weekly inspirations.

The second project I’ve joined is Project 365 via Peas and Carrots Studio
Project 365 is a commitment to take a photo a day for an entire year. I’ve talked before about the many hundreds of photos I take every week. Why sign up for a photo a day project when I am already so snap happy? I’m basing my theme for the year on The Gift of an Ordinary Day. It’s keeping me focused. For me, this project is about finding that one moment that defines my day, the gift within that day, finding a moment I’m thankful for. So it’s more about being mindful about my day than the act of taking a photo. Even after just two weeks this project is already making me stop and think, and value what’s around me. I’m loving it. I began this project on January 1 and you can follow my photos on Instagram (@NessOnePerfectDay) or search the project’s hashtag #peascarrots365 . Many people choose a day of significance (like January 1, or their birthday) to begin their Project 365 but you can begin any time at all. If you want to play along visit the Peas and Carrots Studio Facebook page or sign up for their monthly newsletter.

Project 52 at Awesomely Awake
If a photo a day doesn’t suit your schedule, how about a photo a week? Project 52 is another fantastic offering from Shawn at Awesomely Awake. This is a year long photo-a-week project but it is so much more than that. It is all about mindful living – staying awake in mind, body and spirit. Each week Shawn posts a new prompt to get you thinking about your life, your family, your world. What  I’m loving so much about Project 52 is that the prompts are just enough to give me some focus and direction, but are still general enough for me to make this project my own. As Shawn herself says, “This is YOUR project, too … you get to make up your own rules.”

How do you find “the bits in between”? What are your tips for noticing the gift of an ordinary day?

Now to this week’s linky.

Thank you to everyone who linked up last week. Three of my favourites were:

All You Can Do Is Your Best – The Pleasantest Thing
10 Reasons To Play Outside With your Kids This Winter – My Nearest and Dearest
Don’t Ever Stop Being You – Kids*Stuff *World

If you’ve been featured this week, please feel free to grab a Sunday Parenting Party “Ive been featured” button from my sidebar. I’m looking forward to reading everyone’s posts again this week.

We invite you to link up your parenting posts, old or new, humorous or heartfelt, and as many as you like. We ask that you don’t link up kids activities. This linky is purely for posts about parenting. If you do have a kids activity to link up, pop on over to The Weekly Kids Co-op. We would love to see you link up there.



This post contains affiliate links.
Pin It

Prayers for Kerry {Multiple Mummy} #Healing4Kerry

Posted on by

6

Photo credit “D Sharon Pruitt”

This post is about hope and love. It is about the power of one small idea blossoming into a worldwide energy of healing. This post is devoted to Kerry, Mummy and wife, much loved friend, and award winning blogger.

When I heard the news of Kerry’s illness back in July, it just stunned me, and immediately so many seemingly important problems were brought sharply into perpsective. These things remind us of what really matters. Kerry hasn’t been far from my thoughts ever since. She pops into my mind every day – when I’m cooking a meal using a recipe I found on her blog Multiple Mummy, when I see my son using exactly the same green lego box as Kerry’s son BB with almost exactly the same treasures inside, when I’m having a not so great day and then I realise how very lucky I am to be having that bad day with all of it’s stresses and difficulties, and then I hug my son a little tighter.

Liska, at New Mum Online has come up with the wonderful idea for us all to say a coordinated prayer for Kerry at 10 p.m London time on Saturday 24th November. (This will be 9am Sunday Nov 5 in Australia EST and 5pm EST in the United States). Of course if you are not religious and do not pray, then medidate, or make a wish, or do what feels right for you.

Liska also asks that, please if you can, do a dedicated blog post to her on Saturday so that she has her own HEALING CORNER of the world wide web on Saturday. This post is part of that blog hop and you can read the others and link up below.

Let’s come together and use the power of positive thought and love to bring Kerry home to her family for Christmas.

Enough is a Feast – 21 Days of Gratitude

Posted on by

12

This post is Day 17 of the “21 Days of Gratitude – A Challenge for the Whole Family.” I am joining in a wonderful project, created by the lovely Mari of Inspired by Family, to spread the love in November for 21 Days of Contagious Gratitude. The idea is all about intentional gratitude – thinking about something for which you are grateful, every day in November leading up to Thanksgiving, and then tweeting, updating your Facebook status, blogging or sharing a pic on Instagram to show what you are feeling grateful for that day. Mari’s thought was that this would be contagious and seeing all of this gratitude would inspire others to consider what they are grateful for and the good feelings would spread around the globe. If you haven’t already joined in, it’s not too late! Head on over to the Inspired by Family Magazine blog and be inspired by the wonderful bloggers who are sharing a beautiful collection of 21 days of being thankful posts and start sharing your gratitude in whichever way you like.

I have so much to be grateful for, that when I sat down to write this post, I wasn’t sure where to begin. Should I write a list of 100 reasons to be grateful? Should I write about my family and the love they bring to my life every day, or my friends who support me through every moment and make me laugh even on the toughest days? I began to think about what lessons I needed to learn about gratitude and then I remembered the quote you see above. “Enough is a Feast”. This is a Buddhist proverb that stopped me in my tracks when I first heard it. (If you are a fan of Mary Poppins you’ll know she also espoused a version of this sentiment in the scene when she uses magic to clean Jane and Michael’s nursery!)

It is so easy to fall into the mindset that having more will make us happier. I’ve been so caught up lately with focusing on the negative and what I don’t have – things like not living in my dream home, not being able to take a family vacation, or the fact that our dishwasher is broken and we won’t be able to replace it for a few months. Will life be altered because I have to spend time washing the dishes by hand for a few months? Of course not. That dishwasher was a non-essential, and lamenting it’s loss isn’t going to help anyone. All this negativity is just holding me back from focusing on the wonderful things that I DO have in my life, things that really mater. Actually I should be ashamed for being upset about it – talk about first world problems! I am lucky to live in a part of the world where I can walk into my kitchen and turn on a tap with fresh running water instead of having to walk for miles to collect water for my family. So today I’m focusing on the sentiment that enough is a feast. Excess will bring no more happiness than just having enough. I am taking note of all that I do have, and reminding myself that it is already enough and I am already feasting.

I am so thankful for the ordinary and mundane, the every day events. Today, those moments were: making a meal for my family, and having access to fresh and healthy produce to make that meal. Tickles and cuddles on the sofa with my son. A quiet moment to have a cup of coffee in the backyard in the warm sunshine. Finding a drawing from my son tucked inside my handbag. A very loud house, filled with playful shouts and laughter. This is more than enough. This is my feast.

What are you grateful for today? Let’s share in the comments below.

This post is Day 17 of the “21 Days of Gratitude – A Challenge for the Whole Family.” Head on over to the Inspired by Family Magazine blog and be inspired by the wonderful bloggers who are sharing an inspiring collection of 21 days of being thankful posts.

I’m also linking up with Real Life Wednesday over at Picklebums. Pop on over to see what real life looks like for others and share your random, beautiful, funny real life stories.
Real

If this is your first time visiting One Perfect Day – welcome! If you like what you have found, please join us on Facebook  or follow us on Pinterest. We are always sharing new ideas to play, learn, create and explore.

Pin It

10 simple ways to connect with your child ~ Week 2

Posted on by

26


Welcome to the second week in our series ~  10 simple things you can do today to connect with your child. I’ve been overwhelmed by your response to last week’s post. Thank you to everyone who left a comment here on the blog, joined me on Facebook or shared this on Pinterest. I’m so excited that we’re doing this together!

If you are joining us for the first time, you can read the post for WEEK 1 here, but don’t worry if you missed week 1. You can start right now with week 2. Each week for the next ten weeks, I’ll be sharing one simple idea that you can implement today to foster a more connected relationship with your child. It is my hope that by the end of the ten weeks we will be more present for our children, and more mindful of the type of parent we want to be. With each idea being so simple, and with only one intention to focus on each week, I know we can do this. Will you join me?

WEEK 2 – LISTEN

Listen earnestly to anything your children want to tell you, no matter what. 
If you don’t listen eagerly to the little stuff when they are little, 
then they won’t tell you the big stuff when they are big,
because to them, all of it has always been big stuff. 
~Catherine M. Wallace~

This quote from Catherine M. Wallace stopped me in my tracks the first time I read it. It’s certainly something I need to work on. More and more I’m noticing that I hear my son, R (3), but I’m not actively listening to him. I’ve become a master at interjecting with “Oh, really” and “that’s great honey” at just the right moment in a conversation, but my mind is so full of “stuff” lately ~ you know, all those really exciting things like deciding what to cook for dinner tonight, putting another load of washing in the machine, realising that DVD rental was due back at the store three days ago ~ that it’s not until R has finished talking that I realise I haven’t actually heard a single word he’s said. This has really caught me by surprise. I never used to be so distracted. If I don’t work on this now, eventually he’ll simply stop sharing with me. I want him to feel heard and valued.  I want him to know that he can always come to me and I’ll listen intently. Last week’s intention of making eye contact and smiling has really helped. It has ensured I’m present for him before he even begins to speak to me.

This week’s intention then, is to listen. Attentively.

 Let’s be mindful to show our children that we are genuinely interested in what they have to say. Let’s put aside distractions and truly hear our children.  Ask questions and then truly listen to the answers. This is how we can come to know who our children really are, what matters to them, and what they truly need from us. This is how we can encourage them to want to keep sharing with us as they grow older.

Below are some links to articles that I’ve found helpful in learning to becoming a better listener. You’ll also find lots more links on my Pinterest board “Inspiring blog posts and parenting inspiration“.

How will you make time to listen to your child? Let’s share our ideas in the comments.

 

Here are the links for all 10 weeks of this series.
Week 1 – See them.
Week 2 – Listen.
Week 3 – Say yes.
Week 4 – Begin each day with play.
Week 5 – Come from a place of love.
Week 6 – Believe in them.
Week 7 – Let them be themselves.
Week 8 – Switch off, tune in.
Week 9 – Be a real person. Share yourself.
Week 10 – Be kind to yourself. You are enough.

If this is your first time visiting One Perfect Day – welcome! If you like what you have found, please join us on our Facebook page. We are always sharing new ideas to play, learn, create and explore.

 

Pin It

10 simple ways to connect with your child ~ Week 1

Posted on by

66

I’m excited to be sharing with you the first post in a new series on the blog. 10 simple things you can do TODAY to connect with your child. Each week for the next ten weeks, I’ll be sharing one simple idea that you can implement right now, to foster a more connected relationship with your child. Each weekly post will take less than 5 minutes to read and the ideas shared will be simple enough to achieve on even the busiest of days. It is my hope that by the end of the ten weeks we will be more present for our children, and more mindful of the type of parent we want to be and that we know our children deserve. With each idea being so simple, and with only one intention to focus on each week, I know we can do this.  Will you join me?

WEEK 1 – SEE THEM

When your child enters the room, look up from what you are doing, look them in the eyes and smile.

It seems like such a simple thing to do but its impact can be huge. Acknowledge your child. Notice them. Do this every single time you see them throughout the day, even if you were speaking with them just minutes earlier. When they enter the room, look up. Look them in the eyes. Smile.

That’s it for week 1. Simple right? Will you join me on this 10 week journey? Please leave a comment and let me know. I’d love to hear how this week’s intention unfolds for you. Please feel free to grab our “10 Simple Ways to Connect With Your Child” button from the sidebar as well!


You can view WEEK 2 here

Here are the links for the entire series.
Week 1 – See them.
Week 2 – Listen.
Week 3 – Say yes.
Week 4 – Begin each day with play.
Week 5 – Come from a place of love.
Week 6 – Believe in them.
Week 7 – Let them be themselves.
Week 8 – Switch off, tune in.
Week 9 – Be a real person. Share yourself.
Week 10 – Be kind to yourself. You are enough.

If this is your first time visiting One Perfect Day – welcome! If you like what you have found, please join us on our Facebook page. We are always sharing new ideas to play, learn, create and explore.

 

5 ideas for a day out with the kids that are free, fun and educational!

Posted on by

6

All kids, and especially pre-schoolers, are enthralled by ordinary, every day experiences. The simplest of acts, like riding on a bus, can be a huge thrill for a child, especially when experienced for the first time. Their enthusiasm for learning, and eagerness to experience the world around them, means that a seemingly ordinary place can become a hugely exciting day out. Here’s a list of five places we’ve been to recently for a fun day out with R. All of them were a huge hit, they each offered lots of learning opportunites and they were all free!

Original Photo Credits: Isidro López Flickr (airport), Ed Gaillard Flickr (construction site), Otzberg Flickr (train station), Massmatt Flickr (docks)

Continue reading →

Pin It

{Ice-Skating in the Living Room}

Posted on by

12

One evening last week, R(3) watched a TV program, I’m not sure what it was exactly, where the main characters were skiing. He began sliding his feet around the living room pretending to ski and repeated over and over that he wanted to go to the snow. I immediately had an idea. I couldn’t make it snow in the living room. I could however, turn the carpet into an ice-rink! First, R would need a pair of ice skates.

I took a plastic shopping bag from the cupboard and used a pair of scissors to cut two large rectangles from the bag. I wrapped them around R’s feet, and used lots of adhesive tape to secure the plastic “ice-skates” in place.

I was working fast to keep the momentum of R’s imaginative play going so they were not fancy to look at. This was just about getting something happening quickly and making his feet sliiiiiide over the carpet like he was skating. He loved it!

Continue reading →

Screen Free Week – Set Achievable Goals and Make It Work For Your Family

Posted on by

6



So here we are, half way through Screen Free Week. If you’re not already familiar with Screen Free Week you can learn all about it at the official page. When I first heard about this event, I’ll admit I was a little nervous! No way could I go screen free for an entire week! Think about that for a moment - no TV, no internet, no smartphone, no iPad. Eek! Then I thought about it for a while and  decided that it didn’t have to be that extreme. I am always conscious of  our screen time anyway, it’s something that I’m constantly working on, and for the most part, I’m pretty satisfied that we don’t over do it. So instead, I took this week as a chance to set some specific goals and work towards those.  That’s the beauty of Screen Free Week - you can interpret it how you see fit, and find what works for your family.

Continue reading →

Rainy day fun – camping out in your living room!

Posted on by

14

What do you do with a sick little guy on a dreary rainy day? After reading THIS post from the lovely Zina at Let’s Lasso The Moon, it struck me that I had never made a fort or pitched a tent (either outside or indoors) with R. In three and a half years, it had never even occurred to me! It has been raining (and raining and raining) here for days. Ordinarily we’d head outside, even in the rain, but with R feeling unwell, I figured today was perfect fort-builing conditions.

Continue reading →

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...