the boys' bedroom!

Presenting another (almost) complete room! My boys' bedroom has been a tricky one - and there are still numerous things in the wardrobe that I'm not sure what to do with, but I'm pleased with the massive progress that has been made. My aim was to create a more organised space to allow my boys to more easily do what they do best - play!

Here's what I started with:

I am extremely fortunate to have such a great space for our boys to play and (sometimes) sleep. It also helps to have the built in wardrobe - this was one of the first things we added when we moved in. But, I was not using the space well. The biggest issue was clothes! How a small person can have so many, I will never know. But, by storing outgrown clothes in large, sealed tubs in the garage, I managed to free up lots of space and start organising things better.

Check out what I've done so far:

Installing safety mesh on the window allowed us to adjust the room layout, but the major changes took place behind closed doors!

• I bought a pack of shelf plugs so that I could put the shelf back into the bookcase cupboard. This almost doubled the storage space and allowed easier access to the toys.
• To create more space for the boys' clothes, I bought an Ikea Jall clothes organiser and used large Ikea Kasset document boxes as makeshift shelves. I kept the lids underneath each one to add strength and protect the box. As you can see, they fit perfectly into the hanger and slide in and out really easily. It looks neat too! 
• I have also gathered bits and pieces from the top of the cupboard into a large Ikea Garnityr box with lid. These are the perfect size for the top of the wardrobe and can fit heaps in them.
• I have used cheap storage tubs under the single bed for storing extra linen and also different categories of toys. There is a 'car box', a 'Thomas set box' and a 'Duplo train set box'. Keeping the same kinds of toys together (or sets) in the one box or bag has made it easier to stay organised. The boys can find exactly what they want - and are able to help pack up again before we get something else out!

I want to share some organisational highlights with you too...

• Craft drawers: these plastic drawers from Bunnings, while not cheap, are a fantastic modular solution for storing craft things in almost any space. The different shelf options mean that almost anything can fit into them. The clear fronts mean that you can find what you're after at a glance. And, the drawers pull right out, so you can take the whole thing with you to the table.
• Shoe basket: after becoming fed up with only ever being able to find one of each shoe, I added a 'shoe basket' to the cupboard. The boys can put their shoes away in it - and also find them again!
• Pyjama bag: most mornings are a bit of a rush, so the pyjama tops and bottoms would end up wherever the owner happened to be when they were removed - and there they would stay until I had to search for them in the evening. But now, I spend a moment gathering all the pjs and putting them into the designated 'pyjama bag' which hangs on the back of the bedroom door. Pretty sure this one was my husband's idea. Yay!
• Laundry basket: not much to say about this. But, it helps for the boys to have their own place for dirty clothes. (Matchbox cars and the like also turn up in here from time to time - so it pays to check before I dump the lot into the washing machine.) This basket also becomes a fun toy on the odd occasion when it's empty.
• Compact toys: living in a two bedroom unit has heightened my radar for toys that can be folded down and put away. My latest find ($5 on ebay!!) is this multi-level matchbox car set that folds down into a wheel with a carry handle. (This one was fantastic to take on holidays too!) We also have a water play system, play tents and a tunnel that twist and fold back into compact storage bags that are all currently stored under the toddler bed. 

Things are about to change again as we soon welcome another child into our home. That will mean more clothes and toys in use - and another sleeping space to sort out. 

But, I'm confident that, with the organisational start I've made, we'll be just fine.

I can take rings off tubs just like that!

"Have no fear of that ring,"
Laughed the Cat in the Hat.
"Why, I can take cat rings 
Off tubs. Just like that!"

– The Cat in the Hat Comes Back by Dr Seuss

Finally removing that ruddy ring of grime that never comes off the bath became my mission today. I went at it with all of the cleaning products I could find but it barely budged. Ugh.
I decided to consult the interweb and came across eHow, which listed a number of home remedies to clean that pesky ring around the bath tub.

I'm glad to say they didn't advise using Mother's white dress. The remedy that immediately stood out to me was, in fact - SHAMPOO! Who'd have thought?

Well, I got out the cheap Aldi shampoo and squirted a line of it around the bath. I scrubbed at the shampoo with a damp brush which made it form a bit of a paste, and then worked my way around the bath. I wiped it over with a wet cloth and, to my delight, was staring back at a shiny, white, spotless - no, RINGless! - bath!
The shampoo left it so silky and smooth. And it smelt great too!


I then had a thought. If shampoo works on the ring in the bath tub, would it work on the limescale on the shower door? I had tried everything on the glass of the shower door too but nothing worked. May as well give it a go!


Same method. Awesome results! Even though the photos are a bit blurry (it's hard to photograph glass), you can see the difference!

Now that you can actually see into the shower, I'd better get working on that hideous grout! I wonder if the shampoo will work on that too?

Ah, shampoo... my new must-have cleaning product.

speed cleaning

I'm the first to admit that I'm not a natural housekeeper. It takes a lot of thought and effort on my part to keep this place running somewhat smoothly.

Yes, I'm not always on top of things, and we still run out of clean undies on occasion, but I must say - I think I have improved dramatically from those early days. Newly married, first time living out of home, I'd find out we were to expect some surprise guests; "Oh, you'll be here in ten minutes? Great! See you soon!" Crap, crap, crap! A frenzy would ensue, normally consisting of shoving all of the stuff lying around the place into a cupboard and forcing the door shut.

Our guests would enter our 'tidy' home and we'd have an enjoyable time hanging out. I'd glance nervously at that cupboard every now and then, praying that the door wouldn't bust open at that very moment, revealing all the clutter I was so desperate to hide.

The other problem with my method of tidying was that I'd never actually get around to putting that stuff away properly. The cupboards would be filled to capacity with junk and we could never find anything!

I am finally getting a bit better at cleaning up as I go. Actually filing those papers rather than shoving them in a drawer, for example. However, as those of you with children (or nieces and nephews) would be aware of, lots of bits and pieces can easily accumulate around the house - the floor, mainly, at our place. Parts from toys and other things that "I'm just looking at, mum". Not much at first, but all of a sudden it's everywhere and out of control. (Actually, who am I kidding? I could create that kind of mess just by myself!) Most of the time I wouldn't even know where to start, so I'd just leave it.

But now, I've devised a way to save time and put things away properly. I'm certain this is nothing new. But I was excited about it and wanted to share. All you need is a washing basket! (...or a box if all the washing baskets are still filled with clothes needing to be folded and put away)

I will do a sweep through the whole house grabbing everything lying around on the floor and put it in a washing basket. I then take the washing basket full of random bits to a room in the house, packing away what belongs there before moving onto the next room.
And voila! Heaps of time is saved and you can see the floor! 

quinoa porridge and other detox discoveries

Well, we made it through our three-week detox (just!). It is one of the toughest things I've had to do. Not because of the food we were eating, but the extreme amount of effort involved. During the detox we had to avoid dairy, wheat, gluten, processed, packaged, and canned foods. Everything had to be made from scratch. The amount of pots, pans and plates we had to wash every day was ridiculous! It was truly exhausting.

What I enjoyed, though, was discovering some new tasty meals. My husband made a heap of Zucchini Fritters for us to heat up at breakfast time. They are really simple to make and so tasty. Mix two eggs with one grated zucchini and fry in olive oil. We also added grated carrot and some sliced mushrooms, served with a bit of sea salt and ground pepper.

I loved the fritters, but didn't really want to have them every morning for three weeks. So, we cooked up some Quinoa Porridge. Quinoa (pronounced keen-wa) is a seed that is very high in protein and is quite versatile. Boil it for 10-15 minutes, then you can make a risotto-style meal with it, or substitute for rice with a stir fry, or sweeten it up to make porridge. We blended up some berries (which gave it a spectacular colour!) and mixed it through, sprinkled some crushed nuts and sunflower seeds on top, then served with soy milk. It also tasted great with an apple puree that my husband made by boiling up some green apples. It certainly hit the spot as a 'breakfast cereal' substitute.

Another highlight was San Choy Bow. We've never made it from scratch before, but were able to make it easily with this recipe from the Metagenics website as our starting point.
Since we couldn't actually use mince during the detox, we cooked up some chicken breast cut up into small pieces in the fry pan, then used our Turbo Chef to 'mince' it. I was surprised how well it worked - I've never used it for meat before. We had no water chestnuts, but added finely chopped mushrooms, carrots, onion and whatever else we had (again, using the Turbo Chef to save time - best invention ever!). I couldn't believe that using only fresh ginger and gluten free soy sauce would give such a delicious flavour.

As well as introducing new meals to our repertoir, this detox certainly made us more aware of what goes into the food that we buy and has lead us to make better day to day decisions in that regard. But, more about that later, I reckon.

algae in a glass - detox time!

I mentioned that I was feeling bloated in a status update on Facebook several weeks ago. I was surprised when my whinge about rice crackers generated a huge response from different friends who have had similar issues. It's more common than I thought and there are so many different causes for bloating and other symptoms. I was convinced to go and get some proper advice in order to get to the bottom of my health issues.

So, I booked myself in to see a local Naturopath. In my initial consult, Susan asked me about everything. Every aspect of my life. Diet, work, hobbies, nearby electrical equipment. (At least she'll never be accused of not being thorough.) She then sent me off for a stack of blood tests. These tests revealed vitamin deficiencies, the main ones being protein and iron, and a couple of other unusual things. Also, my digestive system is all out of whack; "not enough of the good guys", I was told. This explains so many things!

That is how I ended up here. Deviating from my mission to organise the house and, instead, doing a 'command-delete' on my insides: detox!

Yep, I'm now one of those "weirdos" on a restricted diet. I never in a million years thought that person could be me. And my lovely husband is coming along for the ride. What a good guy.

The aim of this special diet is to remove toxin exposure, remove bad bacteria from the digestive system, renew and improve digestive function and release existing toxins. Mostly, it's avoiding gluten and dairy, as well as processed and packaged foods for three weeks. (This is called an 'express' detox). There are actually a lot of things on the "allowable foods" list, so the food has been quite good. It's just breakfast that has been the major challenge. But, more about the food another time.

We have just completed day 3 of our 21 day detox. And if it was just the change of diet that we had to deal with we would be cheering. But, and I believe this to be a fairly big BUT, we have been given some powdered supplements to "assist" with our detox. Morning and night we have to drink this stuff. The first, Thermo Phase Detox, is "vanilla flavoured" which I think is a very generous description. I guess it wouldn't be so bad if it weren't for the texture. It's quite gritty and hard to swallow.

You should have seen us both. Standing over the sink, gagging, trying to get the stuff down. Urrggh.

Now, for the even bigger B-U-T: this "vanilla flavoured" powder is actually really enjoyable compared to powder number two. G-Tox Express curiously hasn't been labelled with a flavour. We soon found out why. Have you ever drunk a glass of pond water? No? Me either. But, if I ever did, I imagine this is what it would taste like. (And feel like, for that matter). Even my eldest son said "Yeah, it looks like algae. Like the algae in the Octonauts Algae Cleanup!" Awesome.

Check it out:

It's the most torturous thing I can ever remember doing to myself. And probably the thing that will make my husband hate me.

I just keep remembering that in a couple of weeks we'll be feeling awesome!

(And keep not remembering that we have 18 more days to go.)

the crusts

Most of the time, my children just will not eat their crusts! And it seems that this is a common problem for most parents.

The boys would make their requests for "peanut butter and buzz butter" on sandwiches. I would make the sandwiches and cut them into squares (another special request). My eldest (3.5) would gobble up everything at great speed - except the crusts - and my youngest (1.5) would eat the toppings off and leave all of the bread behind. Sigh.

Scraping all of that yummy bread into the compost was beginning to wear thin. What a waste!

I had attempted to make other things for lunch that weren't sandwiches. Especially for the little one. I served up lovingly prepared sticks of cheese, carrot, cucumber and ham, after which he ate all of the ham, took one bite from each stick and threw the rest on the floor.

Both of them keep insisting that they really do want sandwiches, so I came up with a way of making sure that every last bit of those darned sandwiches got eaten.

When the boys have 'finished' their lunch and leave the table, I grab their plates and take them to the kitchen. There, I have two small containers labelled with each of their names. I put their leftovers into the corresponding container.

After rest time, when the boys are hungry, I produce the creatively named "special containers" and make a big deal about presenting each boy with his own container that has his name on it. They choose a place to sit and then eat up all of the contents of their container.

The first time I tried this, I was amazed that it actually worked! And I didn't have to force them or anything. (Not that I was planning to force them, I just expected more of a fight about it!) After they finish the leftovers, they can then choose a piece of fruit (or whatever) to complete their afternoon tea. Woo!

(If there is still a little bit left after that, I just throw it out.)

For a little while, I was doubting myself. "Am I being too mean?"

But I soon realised that they were happy and the bread wasn't going to waste. Everyone wins!