Hello my dear friends – I hope you are sitting quite comfortably because I suspect this is going to be a very long update!
In the 4 months since I was last actively online, a lot has been going on in my life.
In August I had quite a few things going on and I felt totally overwhelmed, in too deep almost. I had a meltdown one day and it occurred to me that I was devoting as much time as I could to being online, to avoid actually dealing with the things that were going on in my life. So I snapped! I made a decision to not turn the computer on other than to do banking etc and to check emails in order to maintain contact with our Biochemist and some very close friends. And that’s exactly what I did…
It was quite a change and I’m pleased to report that the benefits of this break have been life changing.
Now, for some updates!
The Girls
Over the course of the past few months I have been able to finally sort out some of the more puzzling reactions the girls have had, and they have now had quite some time of being fairly stable with minimal reactions. I guess what we are doing now is “tweaking” the program and our lives to accommodate minor little changes that are producing great results.
Miss G (2y8m now!) appears to suffer hayfever and easily irritated nasal passages as much as her dad and I do. She has also been diagnosed with a Sensory Processing Disorder so we are now seeing an Occupational Therapist and have seen fantastic improvements.
Miss E (now 4y5m), however, has achieved an amazing milestone… At the end of November we flew to Brisbane and E had surgery to have her PEG removed! (Her gastrostomy button – or feeding tube surgically inserted into her stomach). This has been so significant because it has shown that all our very hard work this year teaching her to eat, and ensuring she has been eating enough to maintain, and increase, her weight has been totally worth it!! E recovered incredibly well and only 7 days after surgery was on stage at her end of year dance concert dancing her little heart out!
I’m so very proud of her because I know how hard she has worked at actually eating – its not something that has come naturally to her, and it makes me so incredibly happy every time she says “I’m Hungry!”
The House
Well, we finally came to a conclusion about what to do with regards to our living situation. We ended up renting a house out of town just near the school the girls will be going to. It’s a nice home in a lovely quiet area and has a lovely safe yard for the girls to play in with only a few neighbours who have no toxic habits. But best of all, it’s got a huge rumpus area downstairs that has enough room for an entire section to be devoted to my sewing machines! We decided to rent out our old house, but you’ll read more about that soon…
Family
As with every family, ours has its share of disputes and dramas. I have a family member who has hardly spoken to me for almost 3 years, and upon hearing that they were saying things about me (that weren't particularly nice), I made contact with them to try and resolve the situation. Unfortunately things didn’t go as I had hoped and it may be quite some time before we speak again, but I am at peace with myself now as I know what the problem was and that I have done my very best to help the situation – there is simply nothing more I can do.
The lesson I have learned though, is that irrespective of how you intend for something to be said online, the reader can interpret it however they choose. They can also interpret replies from other people however they choose as well. Three years ago when I first came across Internet Forums I thought I was quite reserved in everything I wrote as I was quite wary of privacy, however I was not reserved enough according to this person. I have been quite spooked by this and as a result am not sure if I’m up to participating in any public forums just yet, and even now I am second guessing everything I am writing today in case it might be construed in ways other than I am intending…
Marriage
I guess the biggest life changing experience has been that my husband and I have separated. We made the decision mid-November, and we both agree that it has been the right thing to do. We are both a lot happier, less stressed and just much more relaxed in general. Fortunately the tenant we had lined up for our old house fell through, so he moved back there and the girls and I have stayed at the house we rented.
I now feel so much lighter and more alive than I have in such a very long time and I’m feeling really good at the moment.
Lifestyle etc
Unfortunately, splitting one household into two has certainly not been great for our consumption challenge… We have simply had to make some significant purchases. But I am happy to report that whilst our consumption has increased dramatically over the past month, we are still, where possible, making the best decisions we can and trying to source the products that fit within our original purchasing pledge the best.
An advantage to being solely responsible for how the girls and I live is that I now feel COMPLETLEY free to be able to do as much as I want to be an aware consumer and reduce our ecological footprint.
I feel a renewed zest for taking charge of our lives and am planning on making 2009 my year to put as many practices into place as I can to help achieve my desire of treading gently on this Earth..
Even a simple little thing like our council finally providing recycling bins for the residents has been met with such great enthusiasm by me!
Other things that are a priority for me at the moment are to continue researching Ethical Superannuation – I may not have very much of it at the moment, but I want to know its being put to good use. I also am compiling a list of regular household items/purchases and researching the most ethical, environmentally friendly option for each of these things so that as I am needing to make a purchase, I have already done my research and can simply go out and make an informed purchase, or purchase ahead of time if I see a special. All too often I have been caught unprepared and needed something straight away so ended up purchasing what ever I could source at that moment, rather than purchasing the best option – I want to stop this cycle of disorganisation leading to unwise consumption.
Whilst in
The Garden
In recent weeks Miss E has become increasingly interested in gardening, and I have been spending some time working out which parts of my new yard would be suitable for vegie gardening. So over the past few weeks we have planted some herb seeds in pots for E to tend to, we have also dug one section of garden ready for our Sweet Potato that is sprouting nicely on my window sill, have unravelled the sprinkler system that was here but not working so well & found out which parts I need to repair it so it does work, and I have placed an order with Eden Seeds to get us started! For now our garden will not be very diverse – we can’t eat that many different vegie’s at this stage, so we’ll be sticking to the few things we do eat quite a lot of.
Christmas
Due to the events of the past few months I can honestly say that this Christmas was not as organised as I would have liked. I have not made all my purchases in the light I would have liked to, and I do feel an incredible sense of unease at the whole event.
However, a very close friend and I have decided to have sewing/crafting bee’s throughout next year so we can both be in control for the next festive season – she too felt like she wanted to achieve more this year. I’m really looking forward to our sessions and can’t wait to feel a greater sense of calm this time next year. Our little get togethers should also be great at satisfying our creative urges!
In keeping with my usual hyper-organised tendency, I have now written a list of every person who I expect may need a gift throughout 2009 and decided what I would like to give them – mostly homemade gits with small bought components. I have a great feeling about this new method!
And finally…
I truly do believe that organisation is the key to living a lifestyle that is ethical and sustainable.
And on that note, I am going to say thank you to everyone who took the time to read this, thank you to everyone who has sent me well wishes over the past few months, thank you to everyone who is there for me no matter what – you all mean so much to me and I know that I am never alone in this world. So, THANK YOU.
I wish you all a very safe and happy festive season and look forward to continuing our journey into 2009.
Love
Theresa
