Writing a random post because I can’t post this to pinterest!

Just want to remember this really cool idea

Bug Mansion

PS if this works I will be made up! How cool is an iPad and the internet for copying and pasting great info!

Here it is – the Wonderful Wheel of Life:

Exciting stuff!  So what does this tell me?

I’m a glutton for play, fun and relationships!  Sounds ok so far I guess.

Sounds true actually. The last few months have all been about a huge holiday and building and maintaining relationships with family and friends.  We have moved countries to build new relationships for us and our son, and yet also I really want to maintain my precious English friendships.  No wonder I feel so torn down the middle.  No wonder I have chopped a few of them very quickly, whilst working very hard (or worrying a lot) about maintaining several still.  Difficult stuff.

I have still been trying to prioritise having fun with Will, and for myself too.  It just seems to get us through the day a whole lot better.  But then overstimulated 3 year old is sometimes not fun and maybe we could both do with a bit of quiet and learning that the hard work does have to be done occassionally.  Still, pretty happy with play being a big part of my/our life.

Quite a bit to work on though!!!! The biggest one I have to work on is healthy choices.  My diet (too much), exercise (too little) and chronic lack of sleep are VERY telling right now.  Have signed up for ‘shake the quake weight’ (wish I could blame the earthquakes actually!).  Circuits, nutrition talks and pilates and all pretty cheap.  Good stuff.  Sleep.  Need to go to bed BEFORE midnight (22.42 as I type, 00.18 as I edit, whoops).  Hmmmm.  Big issue there.

Also work.  That is becoming a huge priority and coming to crunch time as there are lots of jobs advertised at the moment so that needs a good firm push at the moment and a lot of my energy.

Nature and Hope/Faith.  Feel that is where some magic might happen.  All feels a bit empty in there.  Still wondering where I am in all of this.    My work on this simplify project feels like a great start and the reason I gave personal development 3/5.  Happy with that.  Happy with the house at 3.  Have spent a lot of time on it lately, but have got as far as I can at the moment with that and that feels ok.

Getting there!  Really feel like I’m starting to get some clarity.  In summary, play and friendships/relationships are a huge part of my life.  But also need to take care of me, instead of running on empty.  Has just occurred to me that the answer to that might be less a prescription of diet and exercise and maybe more to do with the sunken wheel at the nature/balance and hope/faith categories.  Feels clearer but still a bit unknown.  Going to trust the slow process and stop thinking too much now and go to bed.

Good advice……I love Sark books.

Nice exercise.  Looking forward to reading more posts like I did last week (but not until 2 in the morning like last week as it is not worth it the next day – well last week it was but not again).   Great idea to have a catch up week – I got behind thanks to a girls weekend away (more play for which I am very grateful as has filled me to the brim with personal fun).  Thanks Deb for your fab series.  Thanks everyone who has posted comments.  I love them.

Our home is a place of playful good times, kindness, forgiveness and love.

We work together for a life that is balanced and secure, full of warmth and in harmony with nature and the seasons.

We value gentleness, gratitude, optimism, healthy choices and sleep.

We will travel, explore, relax, learn and love ourselves, each other, together, forever.

Much easier process than I thought it would be!

Great to get my husband involved.  Can’t wait to review and adjust as needed especially when Will can have input.

Would LOVE to do this in some arty form at some stage.

Just borrowed an idea from My Shoebox Life and did a word mash up of some of the key words.  Took AGES to get them in a pattern I kind of like – kept clicking and clicking to try and get Pearce Family in bigger letters!  But it didn’t like it.  Anyway here is one arty idea (I’m not a very arty girl, but hoping to learn):

Here are some of the great ideas that I’ve found too on pinterest:

Source: Imperfect People

Source: Etsy

Source: Wood you like to craft

Another great week of the challenge and so rewarding.  Feelings some clarity already!

What do I stand for?

The Process

I answered the questions (see Home Life Simplified) in a small moment of quiet.  At the end, I thought of a new question ‘which values do I most want to teach Will?’  I ended up with 8 values from that process.   Then I looked at the printable Deb had made and came up with another 20!  Whoops!  In the end I narrowed it down and 4 of them were on my initial list to teach Will and one was similar but a better word from the list.  So I think they are the most important things for me at this point in time.  I’m sure my values have changed, and perhaps will change again – will be interesting to review these in the years and decades to come.

My number one value – Learning

Everything kept coming back to this!  A lifelong habit of reading everything and anything, studying for many years at tertiary level to get two different undergraduate degrees (political science/history and Nursing) and being a generally inquisitive person.  I value learning, being full of wonder, and especially exploring new ideas, history, cultures and countries.  I also include teaching and coaching in this value, as it is something I really enjoy –  teaching and learning things again through Will’s eyes and professionally – teaching and coaching peers, students and patients/families.

Close runner up award – Freedom

Including political freedom, religious freedom, economic freedom and also a sense of justice.  I’ve always been a strong believer in choice and liberty when it comes to politics.  I would include ideas of community in this – freedom to participate fully in community life.   I also have quite socialist tendencies because I think economic freedom gives you greater choice and we need all levels of society free to participate in the life they want.

My third value – Hope

I’ve always tended towards a positive outlook.  Even when terrible things have happened to me, I have been able to look forward to a time when I would overcome them, a better time when my world would be more serene again.  I’ve always tried to make the best of a bad situation, and I particularly like to dream and imagine of great things in the near and distant future and how I’m going to make them happen.  I also think hope includes a belief in faith.  I don’t know what greater power there is out there, but the world feels incredibly spiritual and it is something I would like to explore more.  At the moment if I had to pinpoint one main spiritual mentor it would be John Lennon – his words are so wise and always ring true for me.

My fourth value – Harmony

Ideas about the importance of nature, the natural world, and our environment came up often when I reflected on this challenge and I think the word Harmony sums up an appreciation of the importance of the natural world for me.  Harmony also makes me think of balance which is something I am really striving for at the moment in all aspects of my life.

Finally, something vital in life and especially parenting – Playfulness

Nigel Latta (author of Politically Incorrect Parenting) highlighted for me the importance of playfulness in the relationship we build with our kids.  When all else fails having a good laugh, making a joke, lightening the mood can be the difference between a great or horrible day.  I realised when I read this last year that I have always tried to have a playful attitude – in my marriage, with my friends, and especially in my work.  When I used to work in the theatre reception to check patients in before their operations, I nearly always made them laugh with gentle jokes or playfulness – at a time of enormous stress for a lot of people I think they really appreciated lightening their mood just before going off to sleep.  Playfulness for me includes fun, laughter and love.  All vital ingredients in parenting, marriage and life in general.

Learning, Freedom, Hope, Harmony and Playfulness.

These are the things I stand for.

These are the important things in my life.

Image credit: Public Interest Research Centre.  Found using google images.  Hope I’m allowed to use it – not really sure how this all works or if I need permission!  eeeeek!

PS  This week on this new blog I have learnt how to do a hyperlink and put an image on.  Really, really want to learn more about the image process but don’t have time yet.  Also want to check out more blogs for the challenge, but am currently just clicking on people who click on mine as don’t have enough time yet!  So if you are reading please just say hi and I will go visit your page asap.  I love this challenge!  Thanks Deb.

The year of friendship

I learnt how many great friends I had made in England in our 7 years there and the value of great friendships.

I learnt that even if you can’t be around friends all the time, it is so valuable to have them in your life.  Friendships are so precious and give us strength, fun, connection and warmth.

I had several months of going to the gym and having precious ‘me time’ – both getting fit and sometimes relaxing in the spa.  I appreciated Will so much more after a break where I could just please myself for an hour or 2.  I felt incredibly fit, healthy, strong and energetic.  Marie was my inspiration and encouragement, not just for the gym but her positivity, strength of character and bubbly personality and our days in and out of the gym were always so happy, positive and fun.  Her apple (Arvid) and my Will had many happy times together too.

I felt so happy and lucky to see Will’s friendships bloom, alongside my own.  The most special was with Elliot (and Antonia).  We had so many magic days that I will never forget.  The most memorable, and poignant, was walking in the woods in Autumn just days before we left England.  Imogen and Caroline were there too and we picked blackberries, climbed trees and played in the ditches (clip, clop, who goes over MY bridge).  It was something I will never forget, and will happily welcome every Autumn remembering the perfect Autumn day of 2011.

It isn’t often you click with people on so many levels that you barely have a disagreement and nearly always seem to be on the same page.  I am so lucky to have a great friend in Antonia.  It broke my heart to leave her just before her baby was due – I can’t be positive about that at all!

My other precious English friends all make me feel so lucky and grateful for brilliant years in England.  Mel and Charlie, Imogen and Caroline, Aimiel and Millie, Ruth, Sacha, Katie, Teresa and Hannah, Sheri and Mayah, Sarina and Ben, Alana and Daniel, Tasha and Sofia, Alex, Esme and Zach, Rachel, Cat and Hazel, Katherine and Jonny, Darren and Nic.  How lucky am I to have met so many wonderful people and had great times through mother and toddler groups, work, NCT and flatmates?

Babies!

There were so many beautiful new babies of 2011 – Frankie, Hamish, Arlo, Caitlin, Baby Boy Wilmot.  Welcome to the world!!!  What better blessing is there than new additions which fill homes with endless love and precious memories.

Adventures

We had amazing adventures with Will throughout the year – taking him to Rome, Thomasland, Manchester, America, Canada, Disneyland and back to New Zealand.  I could write a book on the great experiences those trips gave us.  The highlights: playing in water fountains in Rome, everything about the magic of Thomasland through a 2 year olds eyes, New York New York, ATVs and ice skating in snowy Canada, beautiful mother nature in Bryce Canyon and Monument Valley, Disneyland!  And the people – Aunty Sonya and Uncle John, Linda Marshall and her lovely family, and Sarah, Doug, Kian and Asher.    Again, so lucky to have such welcoming family and friends.  The weeks in Canada in particular opened our eyes to a whole new country we previously knew little about and want to return to.

Big decision – a new start and new goals

Finally I think, something that went right was a return to New Zealand and our extended families.  When the going got tough in England, we realised that true saying ‘there’s no place like home’.  We have been so lucky that we made a new home, a new place in our heart for England.  But it was time for a return to New Zealand to see what we have been missing and to spend time with our family and friends so that Will can know his Grandparents, Aunts, Uncles, cousins and our friends and their families.  We want to continue and start our own family traditions and routines, and make the most of the opportunities life in NZ has to offer.  I can’t deny the sadness and doubts of leaving England.  I hope we have made the right decision.  I think we made the best decision we could at the time, and am leaving the rest to fate.  The earthquakes in Christchurch have given us an opportunity to overcome fear and face the strength and wonder of mother nature head on.  We have so much admiration for our fellow Cantabrians who have lived for so long (9000 + earthquakes and aftershocks) with this unpredictable and scary reality.    The changes to Christchurch have been both horrific and full of hope and have bought out the good in so many people – family, friends, neighbours and strangers all in it together.

In our turmoil in England, I formulated some ideas for things I want to pursue in our life back in New Zealand.  These include exploring the outdoors more (forest walks, beach time, swimming in rivers, tramping).  Regular exercise.  Crafts such as embroidery and maybe sewing and patchwork and knitting – things I have dabbled in.  Gardening esp growing own veges.  Home preserves and baking.  And a brand new hobby such as learning to play a guitar or a language.  I am also intrigued as to where my career will go.  I have a real passion for nutrition and would like to explore how I can expand and develop my knowledge in this area. It is great to have goals!

2011 had its challenges, but it was a great year.  Leaving England was such a huge and difficult decision and clouded my thoughts of the year negatively.  But on reflection, many great and positive things occurred and I am thankful for the wonderful experiences and lessons learnt.

I’m starting this blog for the Home Life Simplified 52 week challenge.  I hope it can be a great record of a fun and challenging 52 weeks.  I have been working on simplifying my life for a while here and there, but always welcome a chance to look inwards and have a spring clean of my life.

I have a darling 3 year old boy, Will.  He is the hugest part of my world now, and is making me realise how fast life goes by.  I have achieved a lot so far in my life, but there is a lot more I want to do.  We have recently lived in England for 7 years, but have returned back to New Zealand so that has been the greatest adventure ever.  I have also recovered (and recovering?) from severe post natal depression, which was horrendous at the time, but actually I’ve come out the other side having learnt so much about myself and parenting, and it was kind of a blessing.   It is hard to get time to think and plan and prioritize with a small child around, and we are thinking about having another which will make life even more busy.  Time to get a simple life!