Outdoors

I absolutely love being Outdoors.

Outdoors defined as “in or into the open air; outside a building or shelter”, “outside in the fresh air”, “the natural world - the places outside where people can enjoy nature”.

I love being Outdoors, walking around my neighbourhood, going to the bush land park and walking around.

For years and years we had a treadmill in the loungeroom.  It took up a lot of room.  Yet my Hubby and I both like walking Outdoors over walking on the treadmill and so it was great when we decided to let go of our treadmill.  This gave us space for a new toybox set up for my son which has also brought me Joy.

I am a home body and sometimes have to push myself to get outside but the Joy I feel of going Outdoors each day, motivates me to put on my jogging shoes.

I am a nature lover.  Surprisingly I am enjoying the feeling of the brisk air as I go Outdoors.  I love looking up to the sky to see the artscapes from God. I love seeing the birds. I love seeing the beautiful flowers.  As I am out and about walking around Outdoors I love taking photos of flowers, of the sky, of birds - anything beautiful in nature - at these times I feel so Joyful.   

I love when people walk past and I say a friendly hello.  As I am walking near people approaching me, I think to myself, look up, and then I say hi.  When coronavirus first hit, I used to cross over the other side of the road as I was scared to walk past people.  I was most scared because I was worried about my children getting sick.  Now I am less worried and feel more confident being out and about Outdoors.

When my children and I were in isolation, I used to love getting Outdoors each day to exercise and be out in nature. 

At first I would take this time to talk to friends or family since I had been so busy during the day doing homeschooling and work. 

And now I love the quiet, being present, not thinking, just being. I love that during this time Outdoors, I am inspired with ideas - thank you God.  Being Outdoors definitely brings me Joy.

Washing

Since I’ve been home I’ve found Joy in the process of Washing.

Washing defined as “a method of cleaning, usually with water and often some kind of soap or detergent”, “the act of washing clothes, sheets”.

There’s Joy in being organised and getting washing done each day so that the basket doesn’t overload. There’s Joy in putting the Washing out on the clothes rack, out in the fresh air, and capturing the sunshine.

There’s Joy in Washing the sheets - firstly cleaning, dusting and vacuuming rooms so I can then put the sheets in the Washing machine.  I feel such a sense of achievement when our rooms are clean and the sheets are fresh. I love getting into a freshly made bed with clean sheets.

I like putting the Washing away too. I learnt the Marie Kondo way of folding clothes that are more like rolling clothing and I love that all of our clothing has a place.  Looking at the organised drawers of fresh Washing brings me Joy.

It’s been great working from home so that I can keep up-to-date with the Washing.  I’m due back at work on 6 July 2020, just over a week away, and I will miss being at home for many reasons, including being able to put on a load of Washing.

I love that a load of Washing fits perfectly on the clothes rack.  I don’t necessarily love the clothes racks in the our living room, yet It is handy on a cold day for the Washing to dry overnight. 

After I have been out and about, I feel better about getting all our clothes in the Washing.

I also feel so much better about getting the towels in the Washing and definitely when they are all folded and put organised in the linen press.

I also like having all of the teatowels and dish clothes in the Washing.

I am grateful that we have an appliance for Washing our clothes, sheets and linen.  In the old days the laundry was done by hand by soaking, beating and scrubbing and rinsing clothes and other textiles.  I certainly wouldn’t have time to soak, beat, scrub and then rinse my laundry while making all of my work calls.  I am grateful for my machine. 

The other day Emma was curious about who invented the Washing machine.  I thought it would be interesting to do some research and found that in 1874, William Blackstone of Indiana built a present for his wife for her birthday, a machine that removed and washed away dirt from clothes.  This was the first Washing machine suitable and convenient for use in the home.  Thank you William Blackstone, Inventor of the home Washing machine.

It’s the Joy in the small things, the every day, the ordinary, like the Washing.   

I find that in the process of the Washing, I am totally present, and this gives my mind a break from overthinking - and in the present, being in presence, I find peace. 

Winter

Winter “defined by meteorologists to be the three calendar months with the lowest average temperatures”, “the season between Autumn and Spring”.

In the years gone by Winter has not really made me happy.  In the past I have never looked forward to Winter, and then once in Winter, I have always counted down until Spring.  I hate the cold weather.

Yet this year, with my Intention of being Joyful, I brainstormed with my daughter about some great ideas about Winter - with the plan to come up with a list that will bring us Joy.

We came up with the following great things:

- Bedsheeets - I do love my Winter flannelette bedsheets - making us feel snug and cosy - I couldn’t wait to put them on our bed and love getting into bed each night – Joy

- Books - I definitely want us all to be reading more books - to take the time to relax and enjoy stories together - plus we had a win this week when my daughter found a book that she enjoyed and read for over an hour on her own - this definitely brought me a lot of Joy

- Beanies and Scarves - I was so happy and Joyful when my Hubby bought us beanies - a great one for my boy and matching ones for my daughter and I (in one of my favourite colours of rosebud pink) plus I really love scarves in Winter where my Hubby bought be a beautiful pink scarf and I am looking at buying one or two more to enjoy this Winter 

- Board Games - I love playing board games with my children and family - so much fun - and definitely Winter is the time to enjoy this time together - I loved playing Monopoly the other night and found this Joyful and loved seeing my two playing Snakes and Ladders with our friend and neighbour tonight

- Bedtime - We are definitely all looking forward to, and hoping for more sleep, and new bedtime routines

- Bake and Make and Give - I love baking with my children and so Winter will be a time of new recipes plus we want to bake and give these homemade treats to our friends, family and neighbours - plus I also want to make Winter about homemade and crafts and for this Winter I have suggested that my girl and I learn macramé and I can’t wait to make hanging pot holders for our home

- Bliss Balls - I love getting back to learning recipes and making healthy snacks for my children, where I have loved this week making nut-free bliss balls which will be great for my children to take school for recess - my children like them and so this brings me Joy

- Bike-riding - I am looking forward to taking the children out bike riding again and, plus I may get my bike out of the shed, give it a service and have a go too

- Birds - I love birds - I love walking and hearing and seeing the birds in our neighbourhood - I think I would love to have a birdwatching book and I can definitely appreciate why people love this as a hobby

- Business - I have loved more time and space to be inspired to create, where I have some business ideas that I want to put energy into over this time of Winter

- Boots - My friend came over and wore these great ugg boots where I used to have a pair of ugg boots that I loved and I would wear these to my Hubby’s unit when we were dating - perhaps this is the Winter to buy a great new pair

- Blankets - I love warm blankets in Winter where I am thinking I need to find a good storage place for my yellow blanket and I would like to find a new throw blanket for our lounge room too

- Breastfeeding - My breastfeeding journey is coming to an end and so I want to enjoy time with my little boy, cuddled up with him, a special time - I want my boy and I to both accept that this has been a special time yet that it is now time - and to take some special photos too and then it will be time to move my boy into his room, a new time and it will then be the time for me to focus on my health

- Bare Trees and Brisk Weather - As I walk around in the early evening, I love seeing the bare trees, a few with the last remaining Autumn leaves - yet the bare trees really represent the Winter - and I love the Brisk Weather too, the cool air making me feel alive

- Beauty - I love that beauty, beauty is everyone, God’s gifts to us - I love just being in the moment and enjoying the beauty that surrounds me - such Joy.

After writing this long list I am now excited about Winter where I have a great list to keep me positive and happy (and busy).

And yet I don’t want to be too busy or so busy that I miss this chance to have quiet and rest time too.  I have really loved staying home and loved not rushing around the last 3 months.

In the Hero’s Journey, Winter is the time for reflection and transformation and so I am definitely going to keep enjoying the quiet and then be ready to spring into Spring.

Kookaburras

I love Kookaburras - they definitely bring me so much Joy.

I love hearing Kookaburras laugh, seeing them, watching them, telling my children “quick come here and look at the Kookaburras”, taking photos of them.

Kookaburras - “a well-known symbol of Australia”, “a large Australian species of kingfisher”.  Kookaburras are famous for their laughter.

I love learning more about Kookaburras and have enjoyed Googling them.  Kookaburras are unique birds that “symbolise laughter, happiness, Joy, pleasure, amusement, the bright side of life, optimism, community, family, good parenting, help, fidelity, monogamy, team work, humour, unity, healing, cheekiness”.

Kookaburras are intelligent and social, mate for life and both care for their young.  Offspring remain and help care for new families.  Kookaburras encourage us to use laughter and also draw our attention to family, family relationships and family connections.  I also thought it was interesting that it is thought that if Kookaburras laugh in the middle of the day that rain is on its way.     

I’ve always loved Kookaburras, from a young age, as when I was young they would visit us on the balcony ledge at our holiday house at Shoal Bay.  It was very exciting and my Mum would cut up meat and we would feed them.  Very special memories where I look back and feel Joyful.

When Gareth and I were looking to buy a house and first visited our home, I saw it as a sign that the front door had stain glass with two Kookaburras on it.  I love our front door.  I also love hand towels and have had a hand towel for a long time that has a kookaburra machine embroidered on it.  Even when I get this hand towel out of my linen press, it brings me Joy.

And this door has definitely truly represented an accurate reality for us, as we are so often being visited by Kookaburras in our backyard.  I love seeing Kookaburras. Often we see two at a time, sometimes three. And I love just observing them and enjoying their beauty.

Some of my favourite moments are when Kookaburras visit us in our backyard or sit on the deck or on our fence or in the tree.  It was also very special the other morning when my daughter called me into her room, soon after she had woken up, and pointed out from her window that there were three Kookaburras on a distant tree.  Normally I am rushing around crazy in the morning, trying to get my children out of bed, trying to get ready for school - and yet this morning, I stopped in the moment, for a moment, to enjoy the beauty of the Kookaburras.  It was special sharing this moment, being present  in this moment, on this morning, with my girl.   

And then today I was in the kitchen and was delighted to see my favourite bird arrive in our neighbour’s tree.  Instant Joy for me!

Declutter

I have loved the time at home to Declutter - this step by step process has been an achievement for me and has definitely brought me Joy.

Declutter - defined as “remove unnecessary items from (an untidy or overcrowded place)”, “to remove clutter from a room, an area”, “to remove things you do not need from a place, in order to make it more pleasant and more useful”, “to simplify or get rid of mess, disorder”.

I have always wanted to Declutter our home, to clear every area of our home and clean every surface.  I have watched Marie Kondo’s series on Netflix and love how she talks about going item by item and seeing if it “sparks joy”.  I have also watched videos and read some Blogs.  And I was even trying to do a Course and I am on FB with a Group that share photos and their wins. 

When covid started I read somewhere that it was important to set and work towards goals.  And so I set a goal to Declutter my home and get rid of 500 items from my home by way of donating them at St Vincent de Paul, donating them to friends or throwing them out.

I am now excited that I have achieved 513 items, so far!  I feel like I am in a 500 Club!  Of these items 283 are for Vinnie’s, 90 items donated to other friends and 140 items in our rubbish.  I feel so Joyful achieving this goal.

During covid I kept clearing the items and kept packing them in my car and was so happy when I dropped the items off to Vinnie’s.  I love that the money made from the sale of goods is able to provide resources and support to help people in need. 

I loved clearing and folding the teatowels and tablecloths in the buffet - this was the first area and it made me feel Joyful.  It was great clearing books, my closet and the clothing of my children.  It was tough at times and emotional, clearing the clothing of my children, reflecting on how much they have grown.  Going through my clothing was difficult too, so many memories in my items, and after reflecting for a few minutes on each item, I was happy to let go and free up space.  It was good clearing out books from our bookshelves and dusting the shelves.  It was great clearing out the kitchen and finding a home for each item.  It was also good clearing out the bathroom cabinet and clearing out items I no longer need or that I have had for too long such as makeup brush cleaner, perfume, conditioner.

I also loved clearing and reorganising our linen press.  This was emotional too, in terms of making a decision to donate Emma’s sleeping bags.  I wish I could keep all of my children’s clothing for when they have children, yet it is best for other precious children and Mums to benefit and enjoy the clothing rather than me storing it in our cupboards taking up space

My goal is to simplify by decluttering our home - to have a clear and clean home that is easy to clean.  I love when our home is clean and ordered and organised for my family.  This definitely brings me Joy.  I want our home to be clean and well presented so that I am maintaining our home, where I am proud of our home, and my Hubby and I work hard paying off our home.  I want our home to be a peaceful place for our children too.

I also want our home to be a place where friends and family can visit or drop by and our place looks good.  I grew up in a culdesac and we had friends coming over all of the time and we would pop in and go to our friends’ houses too.  I want my children to enjoy having their friends over to our place and not have to plan playdates weeks in advance.

I also want to show my children how to care for our home and with the Declutter process it will help my children to be able to help maintain our home.

I love have a clear kitchen bench, a clean and clear kitchen table and having the top of the buffet clear too.

I am trying to have a place for everything so that it is easy to clean and maintain our home.

I am Joyful that I have made steps towards my Declutter goal.  I am now tackling some of the bigger projects, like the messy shelves on my bookshelf and paperwork and then there are the drawers in the buffet.

I have achieved 500 items and now I am setting another goal - 500 more items that I want to Declutter from our home!

This goal and my achievement so far have brought me much Joy! 

Cooking

Cooking definitely brings me Joy.

Cooking - “the practice or skill of preparing food by combining, mixing and heating ingredients”, “the art, technology, science and craft of preparing food for consumption”, “the activity of preparing or cooking food”.

I love the words in these definitions of practice, skill, preparing, art, craft, activity.

Towards the end of last year when I was working very long hours, I felt overwhelmed and highly anxious and felt I could never get all of my work done.  Work crept into all of the other areas of my life and so much of my waking hours was consumed by my work.  During these 6 months I was getting home late and didn’t have much time to cook and it was definitely about my hubby organising the meals or myself throwing something together for my family.  It was quick and stressful and a chore.  Just trying to think about what to make and making sure my children would eat the meal was a big deal in itself too.

I decided to start doing 'Marley Spoon', where I was getting a delivery once a week of 3 or 4 meal preparation kits and recipes.  I found this a great way to get back into Cooking and through 'Marley Spoon' (which I still do for 2 meals a week) I love the convenience of having food and ideas on hand and love learning new dishes.  Starting 'Marley Spoon' last year, reignited a love of Cooking, and definitely brought me Joy.

It was great for my hubby to make dishes for him yet not always so great for my children, where sometimes they loved the recipes and other times it was not a win.

Once Covid restrictions hit and we were isolated at home and with our regular delivery of our fruit and vegetable box, I have loved the opportunity to be more organised with planning meals and I love Cooking for my family.  I love the process of Cooking which brings me Joy - looking in the fridge to stocktake ingredients, Googling ideas and recipes, kindly asking my great hubby to pick up any extra items we might need and then getting the ingredients out on the counter, getting out my stainless steel bowls, chopping ingredients, using garlic which I love for flavour, cooking on the fry pan or putting the dish in the oven.

I love the final dish and love taking photos and feel a sense of pride at what I have achieved in my Cooking. 

I love serving the meals for my family and love when they are happy enjoying what I have prepared for them.  And I feel Joyful when I find my Cooking healthy and tasty too.

The clean up after the Cooking would not be my favourite part yet I think this is also an art and reflects and put into practice the skills of being organised and persistent to push through and get the job done.  And once the dishwasher starts (thank goodness for dishwashers), and the kitchen counter is clean, this definitely brings Joy.

I have been really enjoying Cooking soups and frittatas and vegetable dishes and tonight I am looking forward to making a noodle and cabbage salad as part of our dinner.  Even though I do not eat meat, I do enjoy Cooking this for my hubby and making him feel loved and cared for by me.  I love Cooking and sharing where last night I made a frittata and will be taking some to my Parents’ home tomorrow.

Cooking has become enjoyable and a hobby for me now, and it definitely brings me Joy.  I also love that it offers the opportunity to bring others Joy too. 

Fresh

Fresh - "something recently harvested, recently produced or newly made", "(of food) recently made or obtained, not tinned, frozen, or otherwise preserved".

One thing I have loved and that has brought my Joy during the last few months is a focus on Fresh food for our family.

Back in 2015, when we were doing IVF and had finished our first round and waiting on results, we decided to switch to getting an organic fruit and vegetable box delivered to us plus installed a water filter - where we focused on doing something different, improving our health, to improve our chances.  We were blessed that our darling boy was born after doing just one round of IVF.  We have kept up the water filter yet after a while we stopped getting our fruit and vegetable box.

When we started homeschooling, we were blessed that my daughter’s school delivered a box of fruit and vegetables.  This was very generous and a wonderful surprise.  It was so great having the home filled with fruit and vegetables as normally my hubby just shops a few times a week and so the house is not normally overflowing with so much goodness, as we would normally buy and then cook or use the goods within a day or two.

We then decided to order the Fresh fruit and vegetable box each week and we love it - specifically I love it.  When I arrive and I hear the knock on the door I am very excited and I put it on the kitchen floor and can’t wait to open it and see what surprises await me.

I love that the contents of the box are different each week.  It is such good value at just $40 per week and I can’t believe how much we get in the box.  I love having two fruit bowls full with fruit always on hand for a healthy snack.  I love the fridge full of vegetables.  I love that I can give some of the produce to my neighbour where I gave her some bananas ready for baking and my neighbour made muffins and gave some to us.  I have also made soup and vegetable dishes and shared with my lovely neighbour too or when I have had too many beans or lettuce I didn’t get to use that week, my neighbour is always happy to be gifted with the vegetables.  It gives me such Joy to give and be generous to others. 

I also love knowing that the fruit and vegetables are Fresh from the markets that day.  I love knowing that we are getting fruit and vegetables that are in Season and not being stored in fridges at the major retailers.  I really love experimenting and creating recipes with the ingredients of the box.  I have made a lot of different soups and it is great that they are Fresh and homemade.  I also have made a few frittatas which my hubby and I enjoyed and where it was great to make some for my Parents too.  It has been wonderful that there is so much produce that I can make food for my Parents and neighbour and have plenty for us too.

It has also been very exciting and Joyful getting Fresh eggs from our neighbour.  This all started on Anzac Day when our other neighbour saw us out the front on our driveway paying our respects.  He then came over and offered us Fresh eggs and told us they have chickens.  Since homeschooling my daughter I was keen to learn how to make poached eggs and so we were excited to have Fresh eggs and my girl and I enjoyed poached eggs with avocado toast and feta cheese - this brought us Joy. 

From then on we have been buying Fresh eggs from our across the road neighbours.  We even got excited by the idea of buying our own pet chickens - we were all excited and were thinking of names and how good it would be to have Fresh eggs.  We then visited our neighbours who introduced us to their chickens which was really exciting except we realised that the chickens eat all of the grass so we decided to put on hold having our own pet chickens, decided to plan to buy a dog, and to just buy eggs from our neighbours.  And we do love our Fresh eggs - so fresh there is hay and chicken droppings on the eggs when we buy them and bring them home. 

We have also been enjoyed Fresh salmon and I am happy to be giving my family Fresh fish rather than frozen fish.  Although now I am keen to learn more about wild fish and the best fish for the environment as well - I plan to do some research.

I am also happy to have found a butcher that buys direct from the farmers and is free range.  I don’t eat chicken or red meat yet like buying good quality meat for my family. 

I am also happy to be making Fresh snacks for my family - today my girl and I made banana and apple muffins and tomorrow we are going to make bliss balls. 

I believe that Fresh is best and so I am glad that I am focused on healthy Fresh food for my family - this brings me Joy.

Exercise

Exercise has been really important to me over the last 3 months - it has definitely brought me Joy.

Exercise defined as "physical activity that you do to make your body strong and healthy", "a series of movements or actions which you do in order to get fit, remain healthy, or practise for a particular physical activity”. 

When I was in my twenties, in 1995, twenty-five years ago, I went overseas to Atlanta where I would go to the gym every day and loved it.  I absolutely loved the step classes.  I loved the whole gym scene.  When I came back to Australia I looked around at different gyms yet my love of gyms was short-lived until my late thirties when I started back at the gym again for a year or two. 

The main Exercise that I have loved and that has brought me so much Joy over my lifetime is running.  I have so many great memories of running where I got into running in 1997 when I started working as an Account Manager for Nestle and I decided to play touch football with some of the other staff at lunchtime.  One day we were jogging up to the field in the City and some other staff asked me to join a relay for a running event.  I said I couldn’t run yet they talked me into it, and so I started to train.  This experience and Relay got me hooked on running and then running became my Exercise and life for about ten years. 

I had a print which is now at my Parent’s house (and will soon make a comeback on my wall here in our home) that has a great quote that is so true for me “Running is a road to self-awareness and reliance. You can push yourself to extremes and learn the harsh reality of your physical and mental limitations or coast quietly down a solitary path watching the earth spin beneath your feet. But when you are through, exhilarated and exhausted, at least for a moment everything seems right with the world.” Doris Brown Heritage

Since being a Mum I have struggled to find the time to Exercise, apart from running around after my two.  I have enjoyed walking where I can, maybe once or twice a week, yet I have been really wanting to get back into Exercise, “at least three times a week” I kept telling myself and trying to plan how I could make this happen.  When I was into running I didn’t have children and I would get up super early and go running, yet with work and being a Mum I have struggled making the time. 

Since being in isolation, I have loved this opportunity to get out each day to Exercise in the fresh air, walking around the block, enjoying the warmth of the sun, and loved hearing the birds sing, and looking at the flowers and trees. 

When I first went into isolation with my children, I wanted to get us all out to Exercise.  One of the first things I did as part of Homeschooling was to do a Treasure Hunt with my children where we wrote lists of things to search for and we went walking around the block.  We had a great time together.

We also had a few walks around the block looking for teddy bears which was fun.  Yet the more times we walked around, and walked past people, I became worried that my children would get sick - and the thought of this scared me so much.  And so then getting out to Exercise has become my time again. 

Now I am setting the goal to get out five times a week.  I think if you “shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you'll land among the stars.” – and so I am happy if I can get out at least 3-4 times a week. 

I started walking yet I then set a goal to run around the block and really enjoy this as my Exercise.   I haven’t made it around the block yet, but I run a bit further each time, and I am really enjoying running.  I then walk for another 20-30 minutes and love being outside - this definitely brings me Joy.  On weekends, similar to before covid, I love going for a walk to a local park which offers a natural bushland and is so relaxing, offering a place where I feel peaceful.

When I get back from my walk I do some star jumps, jogging on the spot, skipping on the spot and jump from side to side - I find this a great way to finish off my Exercise where I feel Joyful and a great satisfaction that I am being active.

My goal for my Exercise is to keep running and walking and to incorporate some other activities including crunches and weights.  I am also keen to find some online dance based Exercise that I can do on the days it is raining.  I just love the call of the outside to Exercise where this will always be my preference - yet it is good to have a Plan B.

Sometimes it is cold and getting dark yet I go outside to Exercise since I know I will love the time doing the Exercise, and I always feel happy with myself and Joyful when I finish my Exercise. 

I also love hearing that my Brother is getting into Exercise and enjoying running with my Niece. 

And I also hope that by making Exercise a priority which is something that brings me Joy that I will also inspire my children through their lives too.