Category Archives: Parenting

Apr30

I’m A COOL Mum…Apparently!

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I’m A COOL Mum…Apparently!

Well, that’s according to two beauty bloggers I know. I have no idea what the definition of a “cool” mum really is to be perfectly honest and don’t get me wrong, I AM flattered! I know that I’m super strict when it comes to manners, chores and being responsible but I’m pretty relaxed when it comes to their studies and extra curricular activities. I put limits on certain things like playing on the Wii, going on the Internet and on their father’s old iPhone. So what makes a mum “cool”? I have no idea!

Is it because I let my girls play with my make-up (ok not really, just my nail polishes), or that I love going shopping with them? Ok, scrap that! I don’t really enjoy going shopping that much but when we go out on a “Girls Day Out”, I’m happy to say that we do have a blast, even if it’s just to window shop – yep, they know not to ask when I’ve said no. I listen to the songs they listen to, and we even watch certain shows together – Glee mainly. But still, what makes a “cool” mum? I would think that all I’ve been doing was pretty normal.

When I asked the girls if I was cool, their responses were, “Yes Mummy, you’re really cool…now can you take us to the One Direction concert?”  Thanks…that’s really reassuring! Mr. C laughed when I told him that I was termed a “cool” mum. Still, I have no idea what it is?!

Do YOU know what makes a mum “cool”?

Apr24

It’s When You Least Expect It

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It’s When You Least Expect It

Sometimes it takes a little tiny thing, something you wouldn’t have thought that would matter, that actually makes a difference to your day. And usually, it’s the things or people that you take for granted. What happened yesterday re-affirmed this and made me feel that little bit more appreciative of how that small gesture actually helped change situations.

Yesterday started off as a pretty ordinary day. Like any other Monday. There were a lot of things that happened, and emotionally, it rocked my world. Nothing major, just things like loyalty, friendship and trust. It made a downer of a day. To top it off, the weather in Melbourne started to turn – from a brilliantly sunny and beautiful weekend to a dreadful, wet, cold and dark day. Winter was definitely at our doorstep. While it was nice to get out of the house and go to work, get my mind off things, I knew that subconsciously the awful thoughts and feelings were still present. I was distracted. I definitely wasn’t in a positive mood.

3pm came and it was time to head out and pick the kids up from school. After the bell rang, and once I was greeted by my kids, there was the usual ramble of their day – yes, all 3 at the same time. All enthusiastic to share their stories. Once home I joined the kids for a scrumptious snack of nachos – something I haven’t done for a while – sitting and snacking with the kids after school. They shared their stories again, and I sat, listened and chatted with them. And you know what? It hit me. No matter what happens outside of the home, it shouldn’t matter, because this was what mattered. My kids. Such a cliché, I know. But it felt good. It felt amazing to just ignore whatever that was bothering me and just focus on the kids.  Focus on their day. Everything else just melted away. It’s lovely to have that unconditional love from people who don’t really care what you do because no matter what, you’re still their parent. And to them, that’s all that matters. As long as you’re there for them when they need you.

To them YOU’RE the superstar, YOU’RE their knight in shining armour – in my case the Queen of the House! It’s nice to feel loved. It’s nice to feel loved without trying too hard. So I thank my kids for having me and thank you for making me feel better when I’m down (ironically as I’m typing this, someone has just spilled something on the floor…I can hear it but I’m ignoring it). It’s such a blessing to have that kind of love and I do hope that I’m doing them justice with whatever it is that I do for them.

Apr12

The “Scheduled” Chores – An Update

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The “Scheduled” Chores – An Update

Remember how I finally succumbed to some kind of “strict” schedule with my 3 kids with regards to household chores? Well if you’re wondering what I’m talking about, you can check it out here.

So, now we’re on week 3 of this idea and so far, here’s how it has been.

Week 1 – FANTASTIC, kids were into their chores, Master 6 loved being responsible and he even started to appreciate that it takes time to make sure shoes were put away properly and the floor swept clean of crumbs – their own crumbs. Miss 10 loved the fact that she got to sit next to both parents. That’s another rule the kids imposed on themselves – the person that sets the table gets to sit in between both parents. It also meant she learned to stop being so calculative when it comes to putting away the spreads or snacks that are on the kitchen benchtop. No more, “I didn’t eat that so I won’t put it away”, type of attitude. Basically, just put everything that’s there because it’s her turn. Miss 8′s job of unloading the dishwasher helped a lot on the days that I’m working. That’s one less chore for me to do when I get back from work, easing the way for other more important things.

Week 2- I purposely got Miss 10 to do the dishes this time. I knew it was the first week of the holidays, and so she can take her time when unloading the dishwasher – she’s not an early riser when it comes to school days. Miss 8 was in charge of the floor. She loathed that and even threw a tantrum when there were too many crumbs on the floor after everyone had eaten some French rolls for lunch. But, she still did it. Master 6 needed some guidance with cleaning the tables and benchtops. His clean isn’t necessarily very clean but still, better than nothing. But he improved by day 3, and even started getting serious about it. This is not to say that we nearly didn’t make it to week 2. Master 6 and Miss 10 tried to get out of their duties by trying to convince me that we should change the chores monthly instead of weekly. Smart – but no…didn’t happen.

Week 3 – So far so good. Master 6 is now in charge of the dishes. He LOVES unloading them – of which I have to help put them away because the cupboards are too high for him – and he loves putting in the dishwashing tablet and turning the thing on. It’s like a toy to him – for now. Miss 8 is going a bit overboard with cleaning the table – once over spraying the benchtops with the anti-bacterial spray. Miss 10 is finding that sweeping is no fun – not surprisingly. But, she’s still doing it.

School starts next week and Miss 8 will be in charge of the dishes again – thank goodness! Yes, that was planned of course. So here’s hoping that they keep at it and learn more about responsibilities…while making my life easier! ;)

 

Apr2

Creating (some sort of) Order Amongst the Chaos

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Creating (some sort of) Order Amongst the Chaos

While I can be called a relatively strict parent – yes I can but funnily enough I’m not so much into strict routines – except for bedtime. That is MUST as that is an indication of my “down time” for the day. I am what you would call so NOT a Tiger Mummy – very un Asian in some ways but very Asian in others. While my kids do go for their piano lessons, I’m not one to force them to practice. I just use my voice to remind them and leave the piano lid (is that what it’s called? lid?) open, for whomever that wants to practice on it. And so far that has sometimes worked. I don’t force my kids to do any extra homework except for their usual nightly reading.

With chores, I usually ask any of the three to help me out when I need to. This has sometimes worked, but, a few things had been driving me nuts lately. The fact that nobody wants to volunteer to set up the table when I ask them to – no not ask, well, it usually starts off as me asking then begging then escalates to me screaming for someone to do it. Another factor that has since driven me up the wall is the fact that sometimes the kids just leave their plates on the kitchen benchtop instead of putting them away in the sink or dishwasher – more so Master 6. No idea why, but must be that “male” gene that rubbed off on him from his father. Who knows really. It was that one Saturday, late afternoon, when I work up from a not so great nana nap to find my kitchen a HUGE mess, the house in a HUGE mess, and the bin FILLED to the brim! It didn’t help that I had a massive headache either. So I made up my mind that this had to stop. I was sick of telling people what to do, asking for help that I now have came up with a new solution – a Chore Chart. Basically, it’s a weekly chore duty type of thing that each child is assigned to. For example, Week 1:

  • Miss 10 is in charge of the table & benchtops – meaning she sets the table for dinner, wipes them clean and puts everything away after breakfast, snack and dinner.
  • Miss 8 is in charge of the dishes – unloading the clean dishes from the dishwasher, loading whatever that needs to be loaded into the dishwasher; although we all do this ourselves anyway.
  • Master 6 is in charge of the floors – sweeping the floors once everyone has finished their meals in the kitchen (breakfast and snack time). This also includes arranging the shoes at our entrance nicely.

This will go on rotation and I’ve written it down on the school planner on our board. I am not normally into such strict routines, giving each a specific chore. I normally just ask them when I need help, so the past week definitely has been pretty interesting. Master 6 has learned a lot about taking responsibility and appreciate what it takes to do chores. It was funny to hear him say, “Please put your shoes away nicely, I’ve taken a lot of time to make it all look nice”. Miss 10 hasn’t complained about setting up the table just because it’s her turn and Miss 8 has been incredibly great at making sure everything is stacked up in the dishwasher and taken out afterwards. But the best thing is….it makes my daily job as a mum so much easier! Hahaha…yes, there definitely is a bonus for me in all this. How long will this last? I don’t really know but I’m enjoying it at the moment. And this week, it’s Miss 10′s turn to do the dishes, Miss 8 the floors and Master 6 the table. This week will definitely be an interesting one with the roles reversed.

Have you got any sort of methods in place to get the kids to chip in on the chores?