Author: Amanda Viviers

Place: the couch

Poison: toothpaste

Favourite things: connect group

I want to stay awake till 3.30am, I want to, I want to…

I have a 5 month old. I can’t.

Olympic fever is growing and our world is starting to focus on groups of athletes who have given their all to represent their countries.

I love the Olympics. The flag ceremonies make me sing, the mums and the dads if the competitors make me cry, I love to see people excel.

I am sure gym memberships through Olympic seasons must soar. People become so motivated seeing and hearing the stories of the underdog succeeding.

I haven’t been to the gym all week and my body really feels jarred. It’s such a revolving circle. I don’t go to the gym because I feel exhausted, I feel exhausted because I have not gone to the gym, I feel guilty because I haven’t been exercising, so I eat comfort food to make me feel better, then I feel guilty for eating the comfort food and I declare I need to go to the gym.

How do I break this cycle? How do I achieve the heights that these athletes will in the coming days? How do I allow these games to motivate me once again to live a healthy life?

One step at a time.

One day at a time.

One great decision after another.

Get rid of the guilt, find strength again and make great choices.

Gym, tomorrow: you and me- a date!

A

Place: bed

Poison: water

Favourite things: my pjs

I now understand why sleep deprivation is a torture tool in war. Trying to teach Max to sleep without his swaddle is pure torture. (and I know he is actually a really chilled out dude, in comparison to other babies)

5 months of being a milk machine on tap, 5 months today of sleep in snippets no longer than a few hours long, 5 months of being unsure whether I have actually showered today being a valid question and 5 months I’m in love.

Max is definitely teething, he is trying to work out how to sleep unwrapped and he is trying our patience.

I am so in awe of mums with more than one child. Mums who work full time. Mums in general. You are warriors! You are marathon experts. You are unbelievably amazing. I am in awe.

If you know a mum today, encourage them. If you know a single mum, buy her flowers. What legends.

I feel far from legendary this evening when I realised I hadn’t showered for two days and with an offer from my mum to babysit so we could go on a date I chose my pjs.

My breasts feel like punching bags, my eyelids feel like lead, my head is swirling with advice, yet I still have a little smile on my face.

He is five months. Where did it go? Five months of writing everyday despite having a newborn! Five months of producing something that makes sense. Five months of making dinner for my family. Five months of pure unadulterated joy.

Woah!

I am still wearing my maternity jeans and my pre-pregnant ones make it only half way up my thighs but I am okay.

I have put makeup on less than a dozen times since Max has been hanging around but I am okay.

I put on a new top today that I wore for fifteen minutes before spew saturated it completely but I am okay.

I have whole new levels of multitasking capacity, especially as I sat at the car servicing department this morning at 8am in 2 degree temperatures.

Life as I know it will never be the same.

Just as it should.

We are okay.

How about you?

Love you all mummy’s!!!

Gee, I can’t believe how much washing a 5 month old produces…

(we’re still okay!)

Ps- whoever said that breastfeeding is an amazing, bonding, life changing, delightful experience; they lied! It bloody hurts…

A

As a new mum, it’s so easy to make our son the focus of our relationship. So I did some research and reminded myself with 101 things to do with my man!

Bike ride
Cook together
Go to the gym together
Playing scrabble on our IPads
Ban Facebook in bed
Plant a herb garden
Go see a play at a local theatre
Paint a room in your house that you’ve been meaning to re-do
Shopping for something new for you and for him
Monopoly
Find a local vineyard
Long walk along the beach
Picnic at the park; find the best ones locally
Wii or Xbox
A game of tennis
Put together a puzzle
Read a book together – discussing chapters
Sit outside and watch the sunset
Cooking class together
Head to a coffeeshop and chill out
Day trip to a special location nearby – the hills, down south, Fremantle.
Find a band you both like and see if they’re playing anytime soon or nearby. If not, head to a local bar who plays music.
Cafe crawl
Restaurant progressive dinner, entree one place, main next, dessert next one.
Ice/roller skating
Basketball game together – On beach Waikiki
Check out a local brewery
Bowling
House hunting online or by foot
Head to the zoo (you don’t always have to be with the kids!)
Fishing
Canoe ride
Paddle boarding
Roller blading
BBQ on the beach
Learn how to play Call of Duty on XBOX
Couple massages
Run a 5K, 10K, 1/2 marathon, marathon together
Volunteer together somewhere special
Create videos together
Whale watching
Mini golfing
Real golf at the park
Head to the beach and collect sea glass or shells
Recreate your very first date
Dance in the kitchen when the kids are in bed
Head to a market
Sit by the fire
Go camping
Learn to play an instrument together
Play frisbee
Redo your bedroom together – new sheets, new arrangement of furniture, hang photos, etc
When it’s raining, run outside and kiss in the rain!
Free movies in the park
Walk around the shops hand in hand
Have a fondue night
Make chocolate chip cookies from scratch together
Go-cart racing!
Head out on a boat ride
Head to a car dealer and test drive cars you’ve been dying to check out for you and your family
Strawberry/Apple picking – depending on the season down south
Op shopping
Movie night outside on an old school projector
Sit and watch your wedding video together
Make a family tree
Spend the night at a local B&B
Go walk the bibbleman track
Head to a local museum
Fitness class together
Make your own sundaes
Find a place where you can do a dinner boat or a dinner train!
Make your own sushi
Lay in your backyard and look up at the stars
Go horseback riding
Find a local art exhibit
Swim in the ocean
Go to the local pools
Head to adventure world
Create something for your kids and surprise them – blanket fort, pillow fortress, LEGO cave, etc!
Make a cake
Dress up all fancy and head out to dinner, it doesn’t matter if it’s just for the fun of it
Create a vision board of goals and dreams you both have for your lives ahead
Go snorkeling
Go to church together
Make breakfast and eat it in bed
Plant a tree
Create a special space outdoors for the summer
Go to a planetarium
Watch a fireworks display
Take a bubble bath together
Create a scavanger hunt for each other of clues that only the 2 of you would know and understand
Write a note and put it in a bottle and play message in a bottle
Visit a local animal shelter if you’re looking to adopt a new pet
Take a karate class
Whitewater rafting
Head to the casino
Walk to a cafe for coffee
Play some games at time zone
Hire a hotel for a lunchtime date
Grab a coffee and walk through bunnings/masters/ikea/freedom/empireand dream
Project a film on your roof and create a massive doona party
Gold class cinemas
Plan a holiday and savings plan
Hire a tennis court
Go to bingo
Grab a camera and go out and take photos
Look up farmers markets and go hang
Write a list of different countries cuisine and go through the list
Write letters to your compassion children
Go to a library and hire out DVDs, CDs, magazines and have a weekend holiday at home

That’s just the beginning…

Place: hairdressers

Poison: cup of tea

Favourite things: my dad babysitting

We live in a self obsessed society. Every second someone posts a ‘selfie’ of themselves on the Internet, every second people post photos of their food, their clothes, their moments.

We stand in queues wishing other consumers away. We watch daytime television marketing another product to make ourselves more beautiful, we lived consumed.

Consumed by ourselves.

No wonder we are so sad. No wonder society is imploding. No wonder we are losing touch with reality.

You see you were not created for the laws of this land. You were not essentially created to live selfishly, you were created in the image of a selfless Saviour.

A Saviour of sacrifice, one of humility, one consumed with others rather than himself.

Selfish pursuit is an epidemic in our world. Self obsession is rife in our families, workplace and churches.

Imagine if we spent more time thinking about others than ourselves. Imagine if we spent our energy, time and money on helping others pursue and achieve their dreams than our own. Imagine what our world would look like.

Imagine the beauty.

Life is beautiful.

Life is full of beauty.

Beauty is not contained in an inward approach to making ourselves famous. The kardashian flavor promoted unbecomingly proves this.

The most becoming people are those who serve others. The most attractive hearts are those consumed with life beyond themselves.

In the mire of self obsession you would be surprised at what humanity can create.

When Jesus was walked to his death, the downfall began with self obsession. Judas lost sight of his relationship in pursuit of gain for himself.

Matthew describes it this way…

For he knew it was out of self-interest that they had handed Jesus over to him. (Matthew 27:18 NIV)

A heart consumed with inward thoughts can only devise evil plans. A heart that leans outward can only embrace beauty.

How much are you thinking about yourself these days?

How long since you preferred another?

Screw this world and it’s self obsession! It continues to create havoc.

Live beyond dear friend. Our world needs some more kindness and love.

Kindness and love are based in an outward obsession.

A