5 ways to be happy
8 ways to get your toddler to stop throwing food
10 ways to promote your infographic (I did not make that up)
15 ways to prevent animal cruelty
25 healthy snacks
And my personal favourite... 50 ways to simplify your life. A real list. 50, seriously 50, ways to make your life less complicated. That sounds like a whole load of effort and things to do to just make life simpler!
Anyway, I read these lists and sometimes pick up some great little tips, but more often than not they overwhelm me. It's too much information, too much expectation and just makes me feel inadequate as a mother, or a woman, or in running a house. I try so hard, but there are days when getting out of bed, and getting my toddler dressed feels like an achievement as it's about all the energy I can muster. I think we all just need to cut ourselves some slack. I read a lot of blogs (mostly Americans who seem to be able to make a career from blogging) and people have it all sorted: they have carb free, gluten free, sugar free diets; they get up an hour earlier than their family to pray just like the woman in Proverbs 31; a household chore list than never runs behind schedule; zero clutter; a fit and healthy body; and 6 homeschooled, happy children.
I'm going to do a series on real life, in a three bed semi (yes, Americans and their massive houses may have more cleaning but clutter isn't really a problem when you've a basement, ten bedrooms and four acres of garden) with a busy career (albeit part time hours) and a child whose medical appointments in 20 months exceed mine for a lifetime. That's to come. For now, I'm just going to take comfort from the fact I have a roof over my head, enough money to enjoy life, and haven't appeared yet on 'The hoarder who lives next door and died under a seven foot high pile of newspapers from 1994'...
