I hate having my photo taken. I’m nearly always the one behind the camera. And then a post by Tina really struck a chord with me and then a few days later she started the #tgdmselfieaday idea. Posting a selfie everyday in August.
I’ll let Tina explain it herself….
“I started a little hashtag called #tgdmselfieaday I thought I would be on my own But my interweb friends came to play. It all began with Mrs Woog who wanted to know why women were bitches And then this post on TGDM because my fingers got the twitches.
In no time at all and with no delays we now have over 200 selfies taken over the August days.
Seeing the faces of interweb friends is one I think is fun And if I’ve helped someone pop their selfie cherry my job here is done.”
I managed to do a selfie every day in August except for 2, which I thought was pretty good actually. Think I’m inspired to do them more often. Thanks Tina, you’ve created a selfie monster LOL
The grand plans to use the Xbox more never happened. By the time Miss K had gone to bed and finally went to sleep neither hubby or I could be bothered. Yup lazy 😉
I’m still doing the AH Beard Sleep Challenge. So far, so good.
I have been taking time on Saturdays to be more spiritual. The Creative Goddess course lasted a week but I do have a plan for an awesome Goddess canvas. I just need to get motivated to finish it. I started the Goddess Haven e-course in the last week of the month so will continue it into September.
I have been keeping up with the artist date with myself on Sundays. Loving having quiet time to scrapbook or read or art journal. I’ve even spent some time creating during the day & Miss K loves spending time with her craft box and crafting with mum.
Oh I also took part in the #tgdmselfieaday but that’s another post.
Week 2 was all about cutting out the caffeine near bedtime. Pretty easy for me. Don’t drink coffee and I try not to drink coke near bedtime as I always end up feeling bloated and blah. Slept fairly well this week.
Week 3 was about gadgets. Keeping phones, TVs and computers out of the bedroom & not using them within 30 minutes of bedtime. I fail this one big time. My phone lives beside my bed. The charger lives beside the bed. And I’m usually reading books on my iPad when I get into bed as my wind down. We also have a TV in our room but it’s hardly ever on and I’ve have started making sure it’s not turned on at the power now before I go to bed. We had a bit of a crappy week this week too. Miss K got tonsillitis and Thursday night I spent the night stressing over stuff. Sleep was not good. I feel tired & yuck.
Overall though, apart from the last few days, I’m finding my sleep is slowly improving 🙂 Looking forward to the next 3 weeks!
Disclosure: I was given product or vouchers to trial the following products. All opinions are my own.
It’s been awhile since I’ve shared what we’ve been checking out so it’s a bit of a mish mash list
Table of plenty Hot or Cold Muesli
I’m a bit of fan of the Table of Plenty Nono’s bars and mini rice cakes (especially the Triple Berry ones) so when asked if I’d like to try Hot or Cold Muesli I said yes, especially with winter coming up (at the time). We’ve tried it hot and it is rather yum. It’s oats with honey and cinnamon sprinkled with pepitas and sultanas. Sweet but not over sweet. Miss K did pick out the pepitas though. Look forward to trying it out cold over summer with some yoghurt and fresh berries. RRP $5.99 for 350g box (eight 45g sachets).
Maggie Stir Fry Creations
Thanks to Kidspot we got the opportunity to try two of the Maggi Stir Fry Creations. Interesting idea. Your packet is an infusion paste that you marinade your meat in and a finishing sauce. The Honey, Soy & Garlic was pretty tasty. All in all, pretty easy to use and pretty quick.
Wemo
The lovely people at Belkin sent me one of their (relatively) new WeMo Switch. Oh how I love this little product. So what is WeMo?
You have the WeMo app on your phone and you plug your device into the WeMo switch. Then you can switch your device on or off from pretty much anywhere. We weren’t too sure where we’d use it but have plugged in a lamp in the lounge room. You can set up schedules – for example we’ve got our lamp to come on at 5pm. You can control your devices pretty much anywhere you have access to wifi or 3g (yet to try this bit ourselves though). I know we’ll be purchasing a few more, maybe even investing in a WeMo motion (it turns devices of your choice on or off as soon as movement is detected) and I really can’t wait til the WeMo light switch (currently only available in the US) arrives in Australia (October from what I’ve read). WeMo Switch RRP $60 and available from Officeworks, Harvey Norman and Dick Smith (check your local store for availability)
I read about the A.H. Beard sleep challenge over on Fat Mum Slim’s blog a few weeks ago and at the time wasn’t sleeping well. To tell the truth I haven’t been sleeping well since… before Miss K was born really.
The pre challenge was to find out what type of sleeper you were. Me? Eventual Sleeper. Can take me AGES to go to sleep of a night.
Anywho, last Monday was the first day of the challenge and Week 1 was all about creating a sleep sanctuary.
I was interested to read about the effect of noise on sleeping. I often go to sleep listening to music or one of many relaxation apps I own (SleepStream 2 is great for that). I really struggle to sleep in total silence. I really, really struggle when I stay at my parents cause it is REALLY quite
I knew light could disrupt your sleep and I tend to wake as soon as light enters our room. I prefer to sleep in a totally dark room. This week I made sure our TV & the stereo was turned off at the power point before we went to sleep. I can’t see hubby’s alarm clock (which we never use now cause of our phones) and half the time he’s thrown clothes over it. Must say turning off these appliances did make a difference.
I checked the temperature in our room and it is around 18°C. Did have a giggle about wearing nothing to bed. Haven’t done that since before Miss K. Sleeping nude isn’t an option when you have a little one who likes to join you in bed of a morning, well in our house anyway. Do find I sleep better when wearing lighter sleepwear though.
Finally I know we need to replace our pillows. They are over 6 years old and pretty yuck. Must get onto that. Our mattress is still pretty new and damn comfy. So pillows are on the shopping list.
Looking forward to seeing what this week’s challenge brings.
Spiritual wise. Goddess Leonie’s Goddess Haven e-course. I’ll be blogging about it as I go. I’m also giving the Creative Goddess course a go as well. Taking time for my spiritual more every Saturday.
Craft wise – I’m making an ‘artist date’ with myself every Sunday. I might scrapbook. I might art journal. I might just read a photography book or mag but it’ll be something artistic.
So we’ll see how I go with all that. Some I’ll blog about frequently, others not so much.
One of the things on my 100 things list was to do Fat Mum Slim’s photo-a-day challenge everyday in 2013. So far so good. Past attempts at Project 365 and similar have been sporadic or I’ve done a couple of months then given up. This year I’ve managed to keep up, even if I’ve had to play catch up on a couple of weeks here & there. I seem to be more motivated this year and having the prompts seems to help. AND having the monthly prompt as my lock screen on my iPhone helps for sure cause it’s there every time I unlock my phone.
In case you’re wondering, I use Project 365 Pro to create the calendar of shots. I also upload all my photos to ShutterCal and I have the option to get my images printed at the end of the year in 12 mini books (or postcards of any of my images at the ShutterCal store). They also have a handy iPhone app but I’ve found a minor problem with it (& the website) is you’re uploading photos the day after – well if your in Australia anyways.
Looking forward to the last half of the year. Bring on August!!
I have bolded those I have done. Comments in italics
1. Started your own blog. now I’m back to just one
2. Slept under the stars. went camping a few times & ended up sleeping on the beach under the stars
3. Played in a band. played in the school concert band
4. Visited The Great Barrier Reef. loved it & want to go back there now I’m older
5. Stood under the stars in the outback, the real outback – think Uluru.
6. Given more than you can afford to charity.
7. Been to the Gold Coast’s theme parks – anyone, you take your pick. Movie World, DreamWorld & Sea World
8. Climbed a mountain. Have climbed a few different mountains when I used to go bush walking
9. Held a praying mantis.
10. Sung a solo.
11. Bungee jumped, jumped out of plane, been paragliding or hang-gliding, hot air ballooning – you get
the idea, you’ve been hundreds of metres about earth in a seemingly flimsy contraption.
12. Visited Melbourne. Lived (in 1988) and visited numerous times.
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea.
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch. Scrapbooking, drawing, cross stitch
15. Had a child. Raised a child. Worked with children.
16. Had food poisoning. OMG this was so unpleasant
17. Been to the Snowy Mountains.
18. Grown your own vegetables.
19. Visited the Brett Whitely studio in Surry Hills, Sydney.
20. Slept on an overnight train or bus.
21. Had a pillow fight.
22. Been backpacking.
23. Taken a mental health day. 24. Been buried in sand with just your head and toes sticking out.
25. Held a possum, kangaroo or koala – or any other native Australian animal.
26. Gone skinny dipping. & then got sunburnt all over (ouch) but ended up with a wicked full body tan
27. Been in a fun run.
28. Been on the Blue Mountains cableway.
29. Seen a total eclipse. 30. Watched a sunrise or sunset. Actually managed to see both in the same day one
31. Played, or watched, summer cricket.Watching on TV totally counts, right?
32. Sailed, kayaked or canoed our beautiful waterways.
33. Seen the Daintree.
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors.
35. Visited an Aboriginal settlement or mission.
36. Learned a new language.
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied.
38. Toured the Sydney Opera House.
39. Tried rock climbing (indoor or outdoor), abseiling or just simple bush walking.I’ve abseiled & been bush walking
40. Visit Queensland’s Gallery of Modern Art.
41. Been to the Tamworth Country Music Festival.
42. Sunbaked at Bondi. been to Bondi but it was cloudy
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant.
44. Visited Broome.
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight.
46. Been transported in an ambulance.
47. Had your portrait painted.
48. Gone fishing.
49. Seen Tasmania’s old growth forests. Would u believe no – still haven’t
50. Been to the top of Q1, on the Gold Coast.
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkelling.
52. Kissed in the rain.
53. Played in the mud.
54. Gone to a drive-in theatre. when I was younger
55. Been in a movie.
56. Driven the Great Ocean Road.yeah but I slept most of the way.
57. Started a business.Yup, I’ve stared two & they’re both still going. – only one going now
58. Taken a martial arts class.
59. Visited Norfolk Island.
60. Served at a soup kitchen.
61. Sold Girl Guide biscuits.
62. Gone whale watching.Get to do this regularly now when the whales are in the Tamar river
63. Got flowers for no reason. 64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma.
65. Gone jet boating.
66. Visited Port Arthur.
67. Bounced a cheque.
68. Flown in a helicopter.
69. Saved a favourite childhood toy. 70. Visited the Australian War Memorial.
71. Eaten Caviar.
72. Pieced a quilt.
73. Stood in Federation Square.
74. Been on the Murray River.
75. Been fired from a job.yeah but it was cause the business closed
76. Travelled, or climbed, over the Sydney Harbour Bridge.
77. Broken a bone.
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle.
79. Seen the Three Sisters at Echo Point, Katoomba.
80. Published a book.
81. Visited St Mary’s Cathedral, in Sydney.
82. Bought a brand new car.
83. Been to Hermannsburg.
84. Had your picture in the newspaper.
85. Read the entire Bible. Don’t think this one will happen
86. Visited Parliament House.yup both old & new
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating.
88. Had chickenpox.
89. Saved someone’s life.
90. Sat on a jury.Been called up for jury duty twice. Was exempt due to being a student
91. Met someone famous.Adam Brand, Paul McDermott, Miss Vanessa Wagner
92. Joined a book club.
93. Lost a loved one. 94. Saved a pet.
95. Been to the site of the Eureka Stockade.
96. Swum in The Whitsundays.
97. Been involved in a lawsuit.
98. Owned a mobile phone.
99. Been stung by a bee.
100. Read an entire book in one day.
It’s Kerri-Anne Kennerley talking about the Look Good…Feel Better workshops that are held around Australia.
The Look Good…Feel Better workshops are a free community service program for people undergoing cancer treatments to learn about ways to help manage appearance-related side-effects that may be caused by their treatment. Their mission is “to help improve the wellbeing and confidence of people undergoing treatment for any sort of cancer.
We do this by providing free Look Good…Feel Better workshops for women, men and teens to help manage the appearance-related side effects caused by cancer.”
I was lucky enough to get to attend one of these amazing workshops with my Mum, as her plus one, earlier this week at the local Cancer Centre. The workshop was run by a lovely group of volunteers who have all worked in the beauty industry. Workshop participants were walked through some basic skin care techniques and make up techniques to a) help manage the appearance-related changes caused by cancer treatment and b) make them feel better – cause we all know when we look good, we seem to feel a little better 🙂 Headwear (like scarves, hats, turbans and beanies) and wigs was also discussed and demonstrated.
I was totally blown away by the cosmetics and skin care that is so generously donated for these workshops, companies include Chanel, Elizabeth Arden, Estee Lauder and many more (current sponsors can be viewed on the LGFB website). Each workshop participant takes home an amazing Confidence kit containing an instruction booklet as well as the skincare and cosmetics used during the workshop.
After the workshop I saw the women who attended smiling, laughing and talking together. No one really discussed their cancer as the day was not about cancer but about looking good and feeling better. I’d say the women who attended looked good and many of them, I’m sure, felt better.
If you’d like to read more about the Look Good…Feel Better workshops have a look at the LGFB website, spread the word about this great service and maybe donate
