Size (doesn't) Matter

This post has been rattling around in my head for awhile now. That's because I've had many of these moments. The moments I'm talking about, are the moments of shocked surprise whenever I reveal my dress size.


This is a post about body image.


Everyday you're seen by others. And you're seen through eyes holding onto any number of personal baggage items. I have found, if your personal body gripe is your big butt, every other woman is looked at and seen for the shape of her butt (be it bigger, smaller, shapelier etc than yours). One of mine is as a blonde, the most stunning people I see are brunettes. It's all about wanting what you don't have. Straight haired girls are always telling me how fantastic my curls are and how they wish they had half the volume I do. You know what I'm talking about.


So what are these moments I'm talking about? Well let me explain. Firstly know that I consider myself in the realm of "normal". BMI does not. But in my opinion the people behind the BMI are bloody minded idiots. I'm not a size 6, nor am I a 26. I'm somewhere in between. And while I would love to lose a few kilos (ok a lot of kilos) I'm working on highlighting the areas I'm pleased with and hiding the ones I'm not.


Wearing skin tight clothing does not suit my shape. Wearing clothes that draws attention to the areas I love about myself makes me feel beautiful. Especially if commented on those areas. So that's what I do.


Tips from my mother:

• Don't get hung up on the size. Sizing is just a number. Wear what you're comfortable in that suits your shape. One size in one store is completely different in another.
• If half a size bigger looks better, do it!
• Don't wear the latest fashion if it doesn't suit you. Know what flatters your shape and embrace your beauty

Enjoy your body. Embrace your beauty. Know that the thing about yourself you hate, someone else loves. This is know to be true. I have always hated my nose. Not in a "must do something to fix it NOW!" way, but in a "meh" kinda way. My husband doesn't believe there is anything to hate about my nose and when both our girls were born wasted no time in telling my that our perfect baby angels did indeed have the same nose as me. A nose, which looks delightfully button like on their adorable little faces.


Of all the posts I've written, I hope this is one of the ones that my daughters find when they google me in the future. If it is, I have this message for them:


Ava & Lily - Believe in yourselves! Love yourself first and others will love you in return. You are both beautiful, amazing, curious and intelligent. The world is yours to explore and discover and I love you both endlessly xx

Loving Life... In the most mundane ways

This is my year to love life. The embrace those people around me who love me for me. I've been working on the compelling need to do huge spring cleans before visitors drop by, instead deciding that this is my filthy castle and I'll live here happily if I want to (I still do a mini spring clean before guests come by but I'm getting there). I've been spending time with people who want to spend time with me, and still there are people who know I'm thinking of them and who I know are thinking of me that I haven't caught up with yet. 

I've been trying not to bring home any bad vibes from work. Work this year has been stressful and trying and at time, utterly unbelievable, but for the most part work stays at work. To balance the stress at work I've been doing more school drop offs. Enjoying the more relaxed mornings and spending more time with my girls.

When the girls are in bed and the prep for tomorrow is done, you could find me reading or knitting or doing a cross stitch (geez I'm hardcore). But in my own ways I'm loving life and that is this years mission.

Hope you're loving life too

xx

Man Land, Reborn

The History of Man Land:

We moved into our house about 5 years ago. At that time, it was November, it was the hottest Summer on record and I was very pregnant with our first child. We had previously lived in a 1.5 bedroom flat. Perfect for our life back then, but not where we wanted to raise our child. So we found the house. It was big! It had bedrooms, a double garage, a rumpus room and a shed. A very big shed.

Not being boats or caravan people (and having previously come from a very tiny flat) we didn’t have much to put in the shed but over time that changed. In the beginning we used it as storage. Anything that didn’t fit in the house went in the shed. Anything useful or potentially useful went in the shed. And anything friends or family couldn’t store went in the shed.

Shortly after our daughter was born, Patrick realised his life long dream of owning a pool table. We had discussions where the table should go. In the shed and start the creation of Man Land? Or in the rumpus room and start a “pool room”? Both were good options but hindsight is a marvelous thing. I was a new mum, I was sleep deprived and I was mentally in love with my tiny daughter. There was no way I was going to leave her sleeping in the house while I went out to the shed to shoot some pool. Patrick’s motives were slightly more concerned with his new “baby”. He couldn’t even think of putting the pool table out in the shed. It belonged in the rumpus room/pool room and that was the final word. And so the pool room was born.

Years passed with BBQ’s and pool games. Lily was born and Ava was growing fast. Baby items were stored in the shed, along with 2nd hand furniture that might come in handy and furniture of friends/family moving house. And there were toys. Lots of toys! As the girls grew up, pool games stopped being so frequent. Patrick was concerned that they would damage the table unintentionally and it was getting harder to play a proper game around all the toys. At different times we discussed moving the pool table into the shed, but Patrick wouldn’t hear of it.

Until one day, frustrated with all the dolls, prams, Barbie’s and little girls toys taking over the lounge room, Patrick declared “This is ridiculous! The girls need a play room!!”

And so Man Land was reborn.

It took some time, and a lot of orginisation but we are well on our way. And if anyone ever asks you to help them move a pool table, say no! It took 5 adults and not just a few cross words & eye rolling moments to move the table from the rumpus into the shed. I’ve set the goal to be completed by Christmas and I’m pretty certain we’ll make it. Man Land will be an ongoing process though. Continually adding extra bits here and tweaking things there. But it will be a fun ride.