Addiction?

We all know and love the genius invention that is the internet. And we probably all appreciate by now the dangers lurking therein. With the good comes the bad, and while life today can be elevated to incredible heights through the convenient access to valuable information which recent technological advances have brought us, of course, there are the flip sides too.

One of which is a tendency toward addiction. dun, Dun, DUN...

I've successfully steered clear of any "addictions" so far (incessantly checking Facebook/Twitter/email/blogs/technology in general) but I'm afraid I'm coming dangerously close to one: Pinterest.
 


Yes, I heard it all before and delayed intentionally, but last week I finally took a peek and man, that is some good stuff! Favorite thing about it? The simplified process of browsing, searching and storing the information most valuable to you. For those of you still new to this particularly brilliant sensation - it's an online pinboard that virtually eliminates the need to catalogue your "favorites" in other ways. No more clipping magazine or newspaper articles and pictures! No more endless online bookmarks! Hey, no more labeled file folders for all your great "to do someday" ideas! Just pin anything you find online, whether it's from a website, blog, news article, or random image/video. Then it's all there safely stored and accessible whenever/wherever - a series of individualized "boards" filled with compact, tidy pictures, properly linked to the original source or website for whenever you get around to following up. Plus the capability of sharing all those brilliant ideas with the world by the click of a mouse. Browse your boards, those of similar-styled friends, or search by topic/keyword for new ideas others have pinned already. What's not to love? Sure scales down those massive Google searches. It's like reading your favorite magazine without any ads or lame articles- just flipping through page after page, wanting to dogear every last one. That buzz you get from pinning image after image of lovely/brilliant/timesaver/clever ideas for everything from parenting to date nights to decorating to deliciousness. My brain's simply bursting with all the new tips, tricks and inspiration to enrich, beautify and yes, even simplify my life. It's beautiful and fun and ADDICTING.

So, you've been warned. (But I still highly recommend it!) Now if you'll excuse me while I go "pin" some more St. Patrick's Day crafts or genius educational activities for the kids or my favorite: amazing food recipes. Click HERE for my boards as an example of how it works. (It's okay, I'm giving myself one more week before I clamp down with some concrete limits.) Happy Pinning!

Snapshots

Captured moments I don't want to forget:

anything to get them to practice, right? sorry neighbors...

Will's immediately massive hematoma mid-wrestling match. The tears were more from a fear of "surgery" and "emergency rooms" than from the pain. Amazing to watch. And magically gone in the morning. (D was in disbelief that I would stop to capture the sunset during such a traumatic moment, but this was happening outside simultaneously...)

zucchini transformed into all kinds of glory thanks to Our Best Bites

our ward distributes day-old bakery bread after church, nuff said

"Hooligans" I'm sure that's what our neighbors think of us some days.

summer's not a fan of ogre feet: thanks to fresh cut lawn after a rainstorm

painful afternoon hailstorm

Multicultural Festival brings the Canberrans OUT!

First, only and favorite babysitter, Sydney who:

played with "our mice,"

cooked them dinner,
bathed them,

 did their hair, 

drew them pictures, 

told them all about her soccer star boyfriend 

and made them feel entirely special all night.

Closest substitute for an older-cousin sitter they can get :)

 Lazy Sunday mornings in the ever-adaptable living room. This day it was reading on thrones while Sum Sums danced to the piano demo reel.

GramB's extra large marshmallows expanded in the microwave.

Summer's sick day when she kept randomly falling asleep

animal fun at Kathryn's house

Those creative and dangerous games that only kids can come up with, especially when left alone.

 Impromptu biking jaunts to the park when Dad gets home.

Star Wars marathon movie nights (note the Storm Trooper pic)

Australianisms Update

 A few more I've caught lately:

slippery dip (slide - cutest 3 yr old was yelling "let's go down the slippery dip!" at the park)
windcheater (windbreaker)
lippie (lipstick)
rivulet (stream)
stubbies (short shorts)
kitchen bench (kitchen counter - this one throws me every time)
feral (wild/dirty)
dressing gown (nightgown)
lie low (pool float/air mattress)
wee (pee)
lost property (lost & found)
He tucked himself (committed suicide)
I didn't pick it (didn't predict that, didn't see that coming)
I didn't twig that (didn't catch/notice/figure that out)
Can I scab a ride? (snag/catch a ride)

And my cute friend Holly of Delightful Domestic Science forwarded this clever quiz to me. Give it a try - I'm embarrassed to admit I only got 11 right. What kind of Aussie am I??

(I'll put the answers below in the comment section tomorrow for those of you who must know - and let me know how you go!)

Back to School (Re-Do)

Apparently my bulky fingers on the tiny iphone screen deleted the contents of this post rather than published the updated original, so here's a second draft substitute of what I think I wrote (lame!) 

Despite being one of our shortest summers yet, the kids were thrilled to be back in school (albeit appropriately jittery the first day.) Love their school, love their teachers, love their friends, and while I'm not sure how well they're keeping up with their U.S. counterparts with all these Australian history/geography/animal lessons, at least they're loving it.

Which leaves me and Summer home solo again, where things like this happen:

"it's so boring around here without all those big kids around..."

Park play in pjs after morning drop-off

 And the two of us hit Questacon when she finally gets to be the one deciding when/where we go:

total melt down when the parachute went bye-bye

 Ahhhhh, welcome back, morning baths - we've missed you!

And literally as those photos were uploading, I turned around to a mysterious rustling sound to find this:

While I jest about keeping up with the kids, I don't miss the stress, strain and schedule of part/full time work. I do love staying home with them, but I recognize that it's not an opportunity that all women can afford or even desire. I respect those who so valiantly split their time, attention and energies between work/school/home. It's difficult it different ways. More scheduling, rushing, planning, and stress as opposed to so much picking up, calming down, tedium and insanity. Being a mom in both scenarios is difficult and crazy and should be respected and celebrated.

That being said, I'm definitely trying to soak in these last few months with our delightfully sweet Sum-Sums before baby bro enters the scene and shakes things up again. :)