Getting inspiration for interiors, exteriors and landscaping.

There is nothing I love more than to wander through display homes. They are the best source of inspiration for everything from interiors (colour, texture, furniture, accessories, carpet etc) through to exteriors, extensions and low maintenance landscaping.

Next time you have a few hours and are looking for inspiration, take a wander through your nearest display home. But beware - you will come back full of ideas of what you can do to your house (or maybe even give you a good reason to move ;) )

p.s. Just a tip, if you can leave the kids at home / babysitter / neighbour, then you will enjoy the time a lot more. (well in my case it is anyhow). They just don't have the staying / attention span needed to absorb all the inspiration.

Where to buy land?

The hardest thing to decide (apart from which house you want to build) is where to buy land. This is the location that you and your family will reside for a reasonable length of time, so you want to ensure you get it right.

People Places the new website from Landcom, helps take some of the guess work out of the suburbs and communities in and around their projects. It is like the new take on the old fashioned 'knocking' on the door of the next door neighbour to check out what the local schools are like, the traffic, the transport etc.

check it out... www.peopleplaces.com.au and let me know what you think...

Boy vs Girl Rivalry

I read a post today about Boy vs Girl Rivalry and the classic fairytale of Rapunzel.

It reminded me of just how competitive both my husband and I are... so competitive we have often heard our kids say... but muuuum, but daaaad that toy is for US to play with... can't we have a go......

OOPS! :)

Ok so I bet you are after an example.

We have a toy which you throw plastic balls into a 'hoop' they then roll down a tunnel and back to you... sounds simple enough and the kids (both young and old) enjoy playing it...

now, onto the competitive part.

Hubby and I began sharing with the kids, and it soon became apparent that we are both very stubborn and both don't like to lose...

First came the small taunts... haha i got 4 in a row.. then it grew... well haha i got 10 in a row... until it became an all consuming, all encompasing, all out war... no kids were allowed to have a go. We had 'set' rules, you had to stand here, the toy had to be there, and you had to try and get as many in as possible without 'missing'.

It became clear that we are both pretty good at this kind of game... in the end I won (although I'm sure hubby will say differently)... we both felt bad for taking the toy off the kids... and allowed them a lot more 'play' time the next few days to make up for the "hogging" of the toy..

what did we learn from this... our kids are just as competitive!!!!

Regardless of whether it is mum vs dad, or brother vs sister.... we have all out gender wars... the girls vs the boys, mum vs dad, brother vs sister.... next thing you know we'll have the cats competing or the dogs... come to think of it, we are even numbers when it comes to everyone in our household... 4 girls (inc cat and dog) and 4 boys (inc cat and dog)...

now the fun can begin... where's that game again......

Halloween

I am glad to see Halloween is picking up as a tradition in Australia.

I have always been brought up trick or treating (having a father who is Canadian helps mind you), and it is something I have encouraged with my kids too.

Initially hubby was a bit apprehensive as he was never brought up with this tradition, but now, it is a 'family' outing and one that we all look forward to.

I say it is a family outing, as hubby and I both dress up and walk our kids around the neighbourhood. We are lucky to live in a neighbourhood with other kids around the same age, so Halloween is a good time to meet new kids / friends / neighbours... and have some good clean fun.


The houses around our area usually put out balloons on the letterbox if they want to participate in trick or treat, and most of the time, their houses are decorated with fake cob webs, witches, broomsticks and jack-o-lanterns.... it is really a treat for everyone.


What we learnt from previous years, is the following:

• wear comfy shoes - you do a LOT of walking
• don't wear plastic masks - they get too hot and sometimes too scary for some of the littler kids
• always ensure the kids know where you are and have one of the adults walk up to the door with them (this will give them the confidence to talk to the people, whilst still feeling safe)
• don't take too many kids per adult with you, especially true when you have other people's kids with you
• ensure your kids KNOW the road rules
• always smile and have a good time.

This is a day / night for the family and one that should hold 'happy' memories for the kids.. afterall, they get to do some exercise and candy all in one day... what more could they want.

 

What are you doing for Halloween?

thoughts for the day

Sitting here at my computer, reading through other peoples blogs, I am contemplating how much I'd like to start my own..  well why don't you, the little voice in my head said...

With what time I answered back, and I'm not a writer, just an ordinary mum of two with little or no time..

Just do it I said to myself.... and so I did...

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Here are some things about me you should know.....

I have a number of craft projects on the go at any one time... i have no problem in starting them.. just finding the time to finish them.


I love to plan things out and stick to schedules, but I'm married to a man who is the complete opposite... so my planning is a bit hit and miss..

I love to listen to music and redecorate when I can.... again when time and budget allows.