My SA Fashion Week favourites…

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Back in my old life before I had kids and cellulite I was a regular invited guest (media) to the SA Fashion Week shows. Mind you they didn’t stop inviting me because of my kids or my cellulite (that’s a little too “Devil wears Prada”) I changed jobs and that honor now goes to another lucky recipient. And although I’m happy with my job change, I wont lie and say I do not miss my front row privileges, VIP snacks or goodie bags (The lucky recipient actually gifted me a goodie bag this month, yeah me!)

That being said, I’m not completely out of the loop as the SAFW people still send me press releases and pictures to oooh and aaah over even though they know it’s pretty much for my own oohing and ahhing purposes these days.

Here are my top 10 oooh and aaahs from next  year’s Autumn/Winter collections.
 
I love the edgy yet feminine looks achieved with the use of prints and textures…even more reason for me to hit the gym HARD!
 
 
Click on pictures to go to www.safashion.co.za for more pictures…

www.safashionweek.co.za

When a toddler happens to your house…cleaning tips

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I’m not big on cleaning, no we do not live in absolute squalor, I clean, I just don’t list it on my top favourite things like some of my friends do, seriously I know people who clean to RELAX!
We on the other hand employ someone to clean twice a week and I like to make as little mess in between those visits as humanly possible, you know, so I only need to do the bare necessities.
I’m one of those, “can if I need to but would rather not need to” type people.
But seriously I work a full day then have freelance gigs at night, so cut a girl some slack, hehehe.
But alas Aidan is not about cutting this girl some slack!
The kid is clearly not in on my, “don’t move till the cleaning lady’s next visit” plan.
In fact he is quite destructive. The moment you put him down it’s like watching the Tasmanian devil ransack your home.
I’ve been making him help me clean up before bed everyday, but he is pretty much at the unpack while I pack in stage – but we are getting there…
He has created some serious cleaning conundrums in the last few weeks so I thought that it would be nice to share the list of cleaning tips I got from the interweb for those pesky toddler messes.

 

When a little someone gets play dough in your carpet

 – Remove as much as you can the moment you notice

– Let the rest dry

– Use a brush/fork to loosen the particles

-Vacuum up the rest

-Swear to yourself you will never let your kid play with play dough near a carpet again
 
 
 

How to get crayon masterpieces off the wall

 

Different methods

 
Baking Soda
 

– Dampen a cloth or sponge. – Sprinkle baking soda on the damp cloth or sponge.
– Scrub the crayon marks gently with the baking soda. Don’t press too hard or you risk scratching the paint. – Wipe the wall with a damp sponge to remove any remaining baking soda.
2     Erase
     – Rub lightly along the crayon marks with an eraser. You can use a standard pencil eraser, but do not press too hard or you can buff the finish off the paint. – Wash that area of the wall with a warm, soapy sponge. – Wipe the wall with a damp sponge to rinse.
3     Toothpaste
– Squeeze a small amount of non-gel toothpaste onto the crayon mark. – Scrub away the crayon wax gently with an old toothbrush. –Wipe the wall with a damp sponge to rinse. – 
 
 
 White Vinegar
 – Dip an old toothbrush into undiluted white vinegar. –Scrub gently along the crayon mark. –Wipe the wall with a damp sponge to rinse.
 

Cleaning stuffed animals that have become gross



Washing Machine Instructions – Place stuffed animal in a pillow case or mesh bag. – Wash in cold water. Do not use bleach. –Air-dry stuffed animals overnight or tumble dry with no heat.

2   Odor Removal

– Vacuum stuffed animals to remove dust and dirt. –Place the stuffed animals in sealed plastic bags with 1 cup of cornstarch or baking soda in each bag. Shake each bag vigorously to coat the toys. – Remove the stuffed animals from their bags and shake them off outside. –Leave the toys outside in the sun for at least two hours. This method is particularly effective for removal of moldy odors.

Read more : http://www.ehow.com/how_7669659_clean-disinfect-stuffed-animals.html

 

Set in finger paint on clothes 

 
Nail polish remover gives good results.
Also if you combine nail polish remover, Windex, and hair spray, and put it on the stains it should come out.
(have not tried this, but might have to since I have quite a stain on my jeans)
 

 Rice

 
… cover a paddle or your hand with tape sticky side out and press down

 
 
 

Welcome to a new week and whatever…yawn

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I woke up thinking it was Sunday, so you can only imagine the disappointment I felt!!!
WHAAAT how is it Monday, didn’t we just do the Monday thing?
Here are a few pictures of what we got up to the weekend, I don’t have much because my laptop, cellphone and tablet are all working together to make me insane…PS. I’m in a much better mood than last week.

Aidan had his first school event! A BigWalk followed by a Picnic

All laced up and ready to go, Aidan is very chuffed with his first pair of running shoes (thanx Ma Helen)
He kept showing people his shhush (shoes)
Walking with Ma Angie, you would never say I had to carry him 50% of the time
 
Not the most flattering picture of me, but love that you can see how much fun we were having

LOVE this picture, one of the teachers sent it to me, they just warm your heart these two
 

On Sunday we went to the Jeffries Bay to celebrate my brother’s birthday…

 Aidan loves the sand, roll in it, push face in it, love!!! water? not so much.
PS. I’m so body boarding at some point this summer, really miss it and don’t see why I can’t just because I’m not comfy in a bikini anymore…

What you can’t see in this picture is the fact that he just ate a mouth full of sand when I had my head turned…

Aidan with his mother and Godmother

And I bought him a fedora because it is just so stinking cute! oh and to protect him from the sun and whatever

Cheer up little one

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At 1.53m tall many a person has referred to me as “little one” throughout my life, even now when I’m staring 30 in the face and have put on more weight than I’d care to mention, I’m still “little one”
This is just an explanation of my headline, it has nothing to do with the post really….

I’m sad, I’m very sad, the kind of sad I haven’t experienced since I was about 16 and convinced “no one understood me” they really didn’t though, don’t think they do now. I’m very much a square peg trying to fit into the round hole that is my extended family.

My mom says I was a high maintenance emotional toddler and people just never knew how to respond to my questions that were far more Charles Dickens than Barney and Friends…

I questioned life and death and purpose and didn’t (don’t) crave physical touch or closeness quite as much as I crave understanding and knowledge. “I don’t need you to hug me I need you to understand where I’m coming from”

My dad reckoned I watched too much TV and got sucked into a emo phase by a hearty mixture of 7th Heaven and Dawson’s Creek – Actually I watched Love Boat and Documentaries…

My aunt who always “got me” is dead now, they lay her to rest as I lay in hospital praying for my son to breath on his own…ironically he  leaves me out of breath these days…

I miss her, I need her to tell me that it’s okay if people don’t get you. and help me understand why family agreeing to a phrase as simple as “Just because something is important to you, doesn’t mean it will be important to someone else” stings a little.

I said it trying to convince myself , I didn’t expect a sigh of “sheesh finally she gets it” relief.

I’m sad the kind of sad that mirrors the rain tapping at my window and I find myself drawing into myself, I hate that, I hate when the darkness threatens to overtake my emotions and depression rears it’s ugly head. I want to be happy in the here and now, I want to experience the exuberant joy spending time with my husband and son usually brought and not feel like that 11 year old girl reading a book on the back seat of her dads car watching her family party outside, just outside of reach. Too young for the adults and too old for the kids…

I feel cut off from my life and I just don’t know how to fix it. I know that wanting people to be there for me and my child as completely as I try to be there for them is unreasonable. Everyone has their own love language, their own priorities.

Sometimes just sometimes I’d like to be one of those people people bend over backwards for, not the agreeable whatever you want I will just fall in line person…

BLEUGH!!! Vent over! Here’s to that silver lining, that bright tomorrow and that chocolate in my bag.

If I was Oprah. . .

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You know how when Oprah had a full out show and not these televised empowerment meetings?
She used to do a list of her “Favourite Things” (Think they still have that in her magazine) then she would give everyone a gift bag or gift car (she is Oprah after all) with all the swag in it?
You know…”You’re alllllllll getting one” ? Well,  I’m not Oprah and I don’t have the power to grant you a bag of swag under your chair 🙁  Honestly the only thing under my chair is a half eaten bikie (biscuit) left by Aidan…

BUT if I did have that power, what would be in these bags? well here are my current favourite five, I used to do this monthly, here’s to bringing back a monthly list of my favs… because sometimes I find awesome things and need to share it with you because uhm IT’S AWESOME

If I was Oprah you would get….

Amla Legend Rejuvenating Ritual Replenishing Hair Mask. If you have curly hair THIS will save your life, it is so slick and makes detangling a breeze. You know how when you put a conditioner on your hair and you notice the difference within SECONDS? well use this and you will do a happy dance in the shower… I use it as a conditioner instead of a mask because my hair has special needs 😉 but honestly it’s great and it’s a BARGAIN around R30 a tub and so worth it!

Jumpsuits I usually stay away from things that have the potential to make me look like a patterned Teletubby. But for some reason I fit one on while in MrP and LOVED it. I think it might be the fact that it is one design or one solid colour that works for me…you know how they are always telling short people to wear one shade from head to toe as to not cut themselves in half? I think this helps with that.  I love that with a jacket I can look all chic but they  still give me the freedom to pick up Aidan and play around without my bits and pieces hanging out…I actually own two now.
Leap Frog’s My Pal Scout Aidan loves this thing! I must admit that  I squinted at the price a little a lot but I am very pleased with my decision to get it. You program Scout with your kids name, favourite songs, favourite animal, favourite colour and so on and Scout interacts with him/her.
Scout even plays bedtime music which is great for kids who are into that sort of thing…Aidan just dances to the music…He has learnt to change songs till he finds his favourite which is a little diddy that plays in my mind constantly “me and my pal Aidan, we love to do everything together. . . .”  Scout then suggests actions and Aidan actually does it. I wonder if I could get Scout to tell him to eat. (Tried this and Aidan ended up feeding Scout instead ) Scout plays games, sings songs and asks for hugs and cuddles, much cuteness (they have Violet for girls)
Organic Coconut oil because this is a truly versatile product! I’m not usually for “jack of all trade” products. I just think if a product is shampooing and conditioning and acting as a body wash it’s doing a poor job of at least one of those things…But coconut oil is AWESOME, I use it as a daily hair treatment, mix it in with my body scrubs, use it as a moisturiser, do hot oil treatments, remove make-up and cook with it yes people it is THAT awesome.

Nescafe Cappucinno sticks  are a great midday pick-me-up. It’s low in calories but makes you feel like a fancy person having cappuccino at your desk. It’s also much cheaper than running down to your local coffee shop for a take-away and did I say it’s yummy? because it is

* This is not a sponsored posts, I bought these things with my own money and will continue to do so because. It’s cool like that 🙂

When your friend’s baby dies

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In honour of child loss month (October) and day (today) I thought I would share this resource I stumbled across… A website for that unthinkable moment when your friend losses their child and you don’t know what to say. Sadly (although I’m happy to help) I have been asked way to many times (one baby is to many, mind you) what to do in this situation…and honestly I don’t always know… so this free e-book might just help (click on the picture to go to the site)

From my personal experience (and I know everyone is different) these are things to keep in mind.

Remember

1. The child who passed away is important to your friend, as important as your living breathing (if you have any) one is to you, do not underplay that.
2. Whether it was miscarriage, still birth, neonatal death (like with Logan) or SIDS the pain is very real, do not under play it.
3. Allow your friend to talk about her child if she wants to or be quiet if she doesn’t, everyone grieves differently.
4. The loss is the father’s too, don’t forget that.
5. This is not something you “get over” don’t tell them they will, or expect them to, they will get through, yes, but getting over implies it was a little stumbling block, a child is not a stumbling block.
6. Years later (it’s going on three for me) the pain dulls but what happened never truly goes away. You had a baby, a living breathing child that died, parents are not supposed to bury their kids, that kind of pain hits you in the stomach every now and again, usually when you least expect it.
7. New children are not replacements!!! repeat after me, “I will not insinuate that my friend’s rainbow is a replacement”.
8. Remembering their child on his/her birthday or Christmas is not a nasty reminder, it shows you care, she/he remembers anyway so you are not opening wounds.
9. Put yourself in their shoes… if someone said that to you would you slap them? if yes, don’t say it.
10. Your friend could be a little over protective over their subsequent or remaining children…remember it comes from a good place
11. There is nothing wrong with a down day, down days are like recharge days so your friend can face the tomorrows without their child.

Please not that  I am not a grief counsellor, this is just from my heart as a grieving mom. I know everyone is different but this is what I found and I hope it helps