Lightening Online

Princess Singstar and I are heading off in the morning on a mother-daughter road trip.

I have a meeting in Adelaide on Tuesday so Monday night we’re staying in a Motel on the edge of the city.

We’re only in Adelaide 24 hours but while we’re there we’ll hopefully be visiting a friend of hers as well as my grandparents (who are looking after her while I’m at my meeting).

Then we’re heading to the Yorke Peninsula to spend a couple of days with Farmboy’s brother and his wife.

They have twins and a toddler so we’re hoping a couple of extra pairs of hands will help.

Friday we’re meeting up with my parents for lunch (they also live on the YP) as it’s my birthday.

Friday afternoon, Farmboy arrives with the boys as we have a Cousin’s Birthday weekend (also on the Yorke Pen.).  We’ve booked a holiday house that will hold 3/4 families (the 4th family is the one with twins and a toddler so they’ll come for the day).

Saturday is the day of the cousin’s birthday party.

Sunday we’re going to stay with my parents before heading back home Monday.

So, a busy yet exciting week.  I can’t wait!

In other news, the Friday night just gone our netball club had a “pink slumber party” which was totally AWESOME and a lot of fun!  I was hoping to post some pics but may not get time before I go.  So, could be lots of catch up posting when I get back!

All of this is a very welcome break from my “rut”. 

I haven’t posted about netball yet this year.

It’s been a bit of an interesting year so far.

My first year without my original coach.

The new coach is a younger girl that I don’t know all that well.

At first I was a bit worried as she wasn’t doing a lot of “coaching” (in the sense of teaching me what to do).

She kept throwing me into positions I wasn’t really familiar with.  Without any training in the lead up to the match.

I felt a bit like a fish out of water from all directions.

BUT…

I think she was just taking a few weeks to find her feet and get her head around her team.

One of the hardest things about coaching our grade is that you don’t get to pick and choose based on positions.

You simply get the “leftovers” after the other teams have selected.  You could end up with all goalies or all centre-court players.  So it takes a bit of mixing and matching to try and figure out combinations of players that work well.

We have a really nice team this year.  There haven’t been as many changes in players as previous years so not sure if that’s why.  We just seem to all get along and encourage one another.  And one particular player who has returned after a few years off is an absolute character which stops us (okay, me) taking ourselves too seriously.

I still struggle with my lack of ability to play.

I’m not naturally sporty and I’m still really struggling to get my head around this game.

Although it did occur to me that while this is my 3rd season playing, my first 2 seasons were only half seasons so it’s really only my 2nd season.

Which does make me feel marginally better.  Unfortunately, only marginally (I’m my own worst enemy - I know).

I’ve been playing a mixture of the centre-court positions this year.  Mostly half a game in centre and a quarter in either wing-defense or wing-attack.

Last Saturday was a big milestone for me.

I played my first full game ever.

Not only that but I played 3 of the quarters in Centre.

And it was a very physical game too!

Surprisingly, I pulled up okay.

But I was pretty tired by the end of the game.

And what did the coach tell me?

I didn’t play a brilliant game but I did play a consistent one.

While I’d love to play a “brilliant” game, I think “consistent” is about all I can expect.

I’m currently involved in a joint venture between the Governing Council of the school and the Parents & Friends Association to revisit our Presentation Awards offered at the end of the year with the view to possibly making some changes/ filling in some gaps in the awards currently offered.

The plan is to involve staff, students and parents in the consultation process.

There have been a few issues raised in regard to our Presentation Awards.

One is that the kids just don’t care (or aren’t motivated by the current awards offered).

Another is that the book prizes are a certificate for a bookstore without books the kids are happy with (we’re a bit limited out here).

Another is that some kids avoid presentation morning IF they are getting an award (???? Guess changing the awards isn’t going to change that!!!). 

SO…

I need ideas, thoughts, feedback.  As much as you can give me.

What sort of things should a school be awarding at an end of year Presentation Morning?

What sort of “prizes” are appropriate AND appeal to kids (particularly secondary kids)?

How do we encourage kids to value learning more?

books, book prize

It’s 1am and I’m awake.

*sigh*

I’ve been doing so well with my sleeping patterns too.

*sigh*

Not sure if it’s because I went out to a meeting tonight (which I enjoyed but stimulated my brain PLUS being around people always mucks up my serotonin levels which are related to melatonin levels - even when I enjoy myself!  Go figure!).

Or, if it’s because I forgot my meds today and have taken them tonight (and they stimulate me a little too).

I’ve tried milk.

I’ve tried melatonin.

Now I’m just passing the time on the computer (exactly what they tell you NOT to do for insomnia).

So, what do you do when you just can’t sleep?

Now that the weather is a little cooler, I’ve been trying to give the kids a little more variety for their lunch boxes.  Sandwiches every day just gets way too boring.  In the summer months, I won’t let them take anything with meat in it.  Even with a freezer pack, I just can’t be sure that food will stay cool enough for the 5 hours it’s in the fridge.

So, recently, when we discovered the kids quite like sausage rolls cold, I thought that was something I could make periodically for them to take to school for lunch.

Of course, they are a perfect opportunity to sneak a few extra vegies into their day as well:

I usually add grated zucchini and carrot but last time I also added some mashed pumpkin.  I used Kent pumpkin which did make the sausage rolls a little sweet for my liking (the kids and Farmboy quite liked it though).

Sausage Rolls don’t have to be an exact science (in terms of quantities) but here’s an approximation of what I used:

2 carrots, grated

2 zucchini, grated

cup cooked, mashed pumpkin

500g mince

500g sausage meat

2 eggs

2 handfuls weetbix crumbs (can use breadcrumbs or whatever - I just find it a good way to use up the weetbix crumbs no-one eats)

2 beef stock cubes

onion to taste (some people like lots of chunky onion.  My family don’t so I tend to use onion flakes)

1 pkt (6 sheets) puff pastry

Mix everything (other than pastry) together.  I find using my hands works best to get it all properly mixed (squeeze between your fingers - it’s gross but effective):

Cut puff pastry squares in half and line up mixture in centre:

Roll pastry and cut into the size you desire.  I cut a roll like this into 6 which gives me 1 dozen (12) per sheet or pastry and 6 dozen small sausage rolls from a batch.

Brush the tops with beaten egg and bake in a moderately hot oven (180-200C) for around 20 minutes or until golden brown.

And I forgot to take a photograph of the finished product!!!!

Looks like I’ll just have to make another batch!

I’m feeling really flat at the moment.

I’m not exactly sure why.

Maybe the weather?

Maybe hormones?

Maybe another tragic death on our roads this week?

Maybe a little of all of the above.

I just feel really “stuck in a rut”.

Feeling like life is just “same old, same old…”

Which surprises me really as I’ve been doing some time on the tractor so it’s anything but “same old” at the moment.

The tractor driving has certainly been a welcome relief from staying at home doing the “same old, same old” though.

I don’t want to be at home but I don’t really want to be out either.

I’m thinking maybe I need to do a revamp at home.

Shift some furniture.

Get onto the painting I’ve been planning on doing for several years now (which is planned for after seeding but seeding is dragging out a bit this year).

Maybe that will help get me out of  my rut.

Or maybe not.

Wish there was a magic wand that could fix times like this.

Anyone have any solutions for getting out of a rut?

Life keeps trying to teach me an important lesson.

I’m not superwoman. 

Which is a bummer really as I’d LOVE to BE superwoman.

Not in the “save people” sense though.

More in the “able to do everything” sense.

Hands up who’s with me?

LOL.

I think most mum’s would like to have more energy, more time, more organisational skills at some point in their lives (or many points as the case may be).

So, one of my “not trying to do it all” moments came when I realised it’s okay to buy prepackaged snacks.

When I was a full-time stay at home mum I cooked a LOT from scratch.

It was a way I could contribute to the family finances by keeping our costs as low as possible.

Now that I’m working part-time (even if it is somewhat flexible, it all takes time) AND doing other things like being President of the Parents & Friends at school, running kids around to sport, music etc etc., I’m finding it increasingly more difficult to fit everything in.

So, the kids now have 1 prepackaged snack for their lunchboxes each day (well, most days).

And Farmboy and I have been using some when we need to grab something to take out on the tractor.

The problem is, it’s not that easy to find prepackaged snacks that have some nutritional value and don’t completely break the bank AND that we like.

I’ve never been a huge fan of muesli bars.  I’m aware that they’ve had a bad rap in the press in regard to their nutritional value BUT the main reason I’m not a fan is because I don’t like them.

Anyway, when Zing asked me if I was interested in the NEW Be Natural Berry Trail Bars, I thought I’d give them a go.

I have to admit that they are quite nice.  I like Berry flavoured things so they appealed to me well.

So, what about the nutritional side of things?

According to the information I was sent, per bar they have:

Energy 462kj

Protein 2.6g

Fat 1.4g total (0.4 saturated)

Carbohydrate 19.7g (5.8g sugars)

Fibre 4.0g

Sodium 54mg

Plus they promote that they have no artificial colours, flavours or preservatives.

They also contain 5 whole grains, 3 of which we actually grow (that’s got to be a good thing yeah? )

I don’t know.  Healthy snack?  Treat only?  What do you think?

I’d also love to hear from you as to what kinds of prepackaged snacks you do and don’t buy and why.

P.S.  On a “less healthy” note, I wouldn’t mind trying the Macadamia & Honey or Nut Delight Nut Bars.  They’d be more healthy than a chocolate bar, yeah?

Just upon waking this morning our house started to rumble and shake.

I’ve never experienced an Earthquake before.

I must admit, I jumped out of bed pretty quickly.

Not because I was worried about the Earthquake but I was worried about what the kids were thinking (whether it was frightening them).

They actually thought it was pretty cool!

We had quite a shake and a rumble followed by an aftershock that rattled the windows.

I haven’t heard yet whether anyone closer to the epicentre experienced any damage.

As it turns out, it was really good timing for Lleyton.  They are studying Earthquakes at school at the moment.

So, that’s our exciting news for the week!!!

Oh, and we won netball yesterday, in the rain.  That was exciting too (albeit rather wet and squelchy).

Well, seeding is progressing rather slowly this year.

Some paddocks are too wet to get the machinery on to (not a bad problem to have).

Some paddocks are giving us grief with stubble issues from overzealous summer weeds (you have to stop frequently to pull it out from around the seeding tines).

And then there have been the grey drizzly days which mean we can’t work.

Still, in spite of the late start and the hold-ups, Farmboy seems to be pretty happy with our progress.

It’s seems to be working well, me being able to do 3-4 hours on the tractor a day.

Makes a BIG difference to our productivity.

Then today I did around 6 hours but with down time etc, I was out there close to 8 hours.

A MASSIVE day for me.

I certainly couldn’t do that every day.

But it does mean we’ll get over quite a few acres today.

And that Farmboy will get home a little earlier than he would if I hadn’t done the extra hours.

Earlier like around 1am instead of 3am. 

When you get the fine weather, you just have to go for it.

Only about 1000 acres to go now.

When I blog about something that helps promote a company, I prefer for it to have some benefit to ME and, where possible, to YOU, my readers.

However, when I heard about this particular promotion, I really wanted to be a part of spreading the news.

Why?

There’s something in it for YOU (the readers) AND something in it for struggling Australian families.  That’s not too bad a trade off.

Not that there’s much Curves could offer me anyway.  Unless they’d like to open up a branch a bit closer to me (hint!  hint!).

I like what they do.  I like the way they try to help busy women fit in some health and fitness with their 30 minute workouts.  And I’ve heard of people getting good results from their program.

Anyway, what this post is actually about is to let you know Curves have a promotion on at the moment where they’ll waive their initial service fee if you bring in a bag of groceries to be donated to a local charity.

Here’s what you have to gain by joining now:

YOU get healthier and fitter

YOU get to save yourself some money

YOU get good Karma^ by helping out someone in need (plus of course the wonderful feeling of knowing you’ve done something to help someone else in need)

So, what are you waiting for?

Go check out their Curves Food Drive for Charity and give it a go.  I know I would (if I could).

^ Thought I should point out I don’t actually believe in “Karma” per se BUT I do believe that “what comes around goes around” which is kind of the same thing without the name.