an update

I have to say that it's been a reflective week or so of blogging. We talked about multi-tasking. It seems just about all of us do this around the house. Multi-tasking to be more productive. To make housework more interesting. But I discovered that there is far more to this subject than meets the eye. Your comments made for very interesting reading, and really got me thinking. It seems there may be a darker side to this thing. The tendency to get obsessed with the list of the day (whether on a literal or subconscious level) as well as the balancing out of the needs of the house with the needs of the family. And do we really get more done or are we just left with a bunch of unfinished tasks? All things I know I'm guilty of. I've felt the need to be a little more conscious of it lately. Not to have too many things going on at the one time. To slow down just a little. And to try not to always have my mind on what is next. It may not be an easy thing to concentrate on the task at hand. I certainly don't think I'll ever be able to stop my mind drifting while doing the washing up. I know I will always multi-task to some extent. But I am trying to be a more present person and parent.

I think in my case, staying at home has been my chosen career, at least for the foreseeable future. In our careers, whether outside or inside the home, there is always room for growth. For learning more efficient ways of doing things as well of learning when to step back and when to step up.

One thing I do know for sure is that my days would not be the same without rewarding myself with the odd coffee, tea or a half hour of knitting or sewing. Sitting down to read a small child a book, no matter if halfway through something else, has to be time well spent. It has taken me three children and eight or so years to really embrace this.

Last week we talked about the link of weather and mood. Your support and kind comments were greatly appreciated in what was a bit of a down week. I soon discovered that many of you were in a similar place. I also received my first nasty comment. Which I soon deleted and have since stopped thinking about. I know that most of you know, that I don't write in this space to "whinge". But I think a blog with only positivity is not the truest reflection of a person's life. I've always wanted this to be an honest space. We all have our ups and downs, don't we?

So I sit here on this (sunny, thank goodness!) morning, coffee in hand, and still with a cold, but I can hear the sounds of my eldest (home sick, but not too sick) and youngest playing happily together. I'm listening to little conversations. I'm thinking about new projects and finishing off old ones. I'm dreaming about blue shades of wool and Liberty prints. I'm looking forward to the day.