Author: Mumsgoneclimbing

Aunt Flo meet Cup and Cloth

~ Mumsgoneclimbing ~ 1 Comment

So ladies have you ever been pondering at a certain time of month whether there is a better way?? …”.Ahhh no Nell we don’t, what the hell are you on about now!?”

il_570xN.595355977_b6amThere are lots of modern day items that are disposable, but why?? Modern cloth nappies are making a big resurgence in society because they save money and the earth so what else in our lives could be reusable. What happened to the humble hanky for instance? And yup you guessed it, what about tampons and pads?

Disposable pads and tampons are usually made from bleached paper pulp and plastic. The packaging on these products is very wasteful, and the pads and tampons end up in landfill contributing to a huge amount of waste worldwide.

Personally the idea of another option never crossed my mind, even though I consider myself environmentally conscious, not to mention the fact I was spending about $15 a month on natural tampons that I didn’t react to with UTI’s. Then my dear friend says “Have you heard of a menstrual cup?”

My whole world turned upside down!!! There is other options!?? what?? holy cow why didn’t I consider that before? So here is the low down ladies. There are quite a few options around when it comes to cups I have a Mia Luna, then there is Lunette, JuJu (these ones are Aussie), DivaCup etc etc. I can only imagine that cloth pads have endless choice but I bought mine through Environmenstrual (I know… the name is ridiculous good).

IMG_0031The cups take some getting use to, no more then tampons would, but they are great and I won’t be going back (check out THIS blog post for trouble shooting). I have not been a pad wearer for years but I do use the cloth ones on really heavy flow days as “just incase”, they are WAY more comfortable then disposables, I would even go as far as saying plush!!

So in closing… if you are wondering how you will get past the icky factor try washing poo out of cloth nappies, PROBLEM SOLVED. But seriously we can grow up a bit and be okay with rinsing some of our own blood down the sink, saves our pockets, saves the planet and is honestly more convenient (no more last minute dashing to the store). Who is joining the revolution???

When did institutionalising our children become ESSENTIAL??

~ Mumsgoneclimbing ~ 4 Comments

Warning – This is going to be a slight rant. Also this is NOT an attack on anyone who has children in care or at school, everyone has different circumstances and desires, this is mine.

I am pretty well use to the blank look. Its the one I get when people ask what I do and I say ” I am full-time mum” (insert big grin). No one has ever insulted me or chastised me about it, but no one ever says “oh wow that is great, how very interesting.” As I said I am use to this, and to be honest it has taken me quite a while to accept myself in this role, to accept my natural wisdom that it is enough (I wrote a post about the struggle “Break out the aprons I AM A HOMEMAKER”). No this is the rant about what usually comes next.

The question about whether Boston goes to kindy or daycare at all, and the all concerned “because socialisation is very important”. It did not use to bother me, in fact I subscribed to this belief and had all intentions of placing Boston in daycare a couple of days a week once he hit two. But now I wonder when I got sold this idea, so to everyone who is worried about kids at home socialising I say… Boston socialises EVERYDAY! He comes with me for walks on the beach where he runs in the waves and delights elderly couples taking a stroll as he grins up at them covered in sand. He rides on my back at the markets, grabbing other market goers and eliciting giggles, peeking at farmers selling their produce. We visit his grandparents every other day, he loves them so much, their connection is one of the most special things in life. We meet big kids and little kids at the playground, they ask me questions about his eyes then he charms them and adopts yet another admirer. We go to an AMAZING playgroup every week, with other mums and kids who love what we do, he toddles around exploring and occasionally idolising one of the older kids or sits gooey eyed over a new born repeating “bubba, bubba, bubba”. There are the playdates with his cousin, or family friends and their children, these are very exciting because he has been connected with them from day one.

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Midweek socialisation with other beautiful stay at home family. Boston also met the cafe owner in the herb garden.

Then there is the big one. He socialises with me…his mum…when ever he needs to, whenever he is scared or confused or happy. I am there when he discovers new things and finds new places. I am there to offer love and support and the intimate knowledge I have learnt because I am his parent. I am not in the least bit worried about him becoming a mummys boy or that he won’t be independent enough or that he won’t be able to socialise if put in a big room with a group of children all the same age as him. I mean gosh darn when did we decide that proper ESSENTIAL socialisation meant grouping similar aged children together and having an adult watch over them??? I hate the fact we have formed a belief that we are not enough. It is not enough to stay home with our kids and we are not enough for them, even when they are still babies.

Woah!!! okay that was definitely a rant, sorry to any offended parties but I just had to get that out. I also think it is ESSENTIAL that this paradigm be questioned, hence I wrote this publicly. I know having a full-time parent is not achievable or desirable for some families, but I can only hope that those who wish it to be feel empowered in their role. YOU ARE SO MUCH MORE THEN ENOUGH! and life at home with you is the best socialisation model your child could hope for.

 

Breakups and Makeups…more on true love

~ Mumsgoneclimbing ~ 2 Comments

A few weeks back I wrote a post on The Truth about True love and how my relationship has taken a million twists and turns. A few readers were intrigued about how we got back together, to which I could say “what breakup are you referring to exactly?”.

One of my dearest girlfriends has a no going back rule, part of me can see why this is very wise and admires the strength it takes, the other part of me just freaking loves Steven so much I couldn’t give a toss what seems wise. This latter feeling was probably the core reason our twists and turns kept persisting, being drawn to someone so intensely that common sense gets thrown far out the window..hands up who can relate?!

The nitty gritty of our breakups and makeups is far more complex, yet also quite simple. It was not always his decision, I walked away twice in quite dramatic fashion. One of our splits lasted a mere 48 hours. We almost always maintained a close friendship, but it was too flecked with the past and the future and a whole truck load of chemistry. It was a middle ground we just never wanted to leave. I felt pain, fear, insecurity, hate, unworthiness… yet in all honesty never truly thought I would never go back. 

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAI hear you asking “so why exactly did you ever break up?”, simple…we weren’t happy. In my opinion the reasons we were not happy added complexity to the situation. Our relationship started when we were both young, I was particularly sheltered in my world, we were both still discovering what this thing called life meant now we were “adults”. I feel like my early 20’s held a warped time between childhood and adulthood where beliefs were questioned, ideals were squashed, the world became scary then beautiful again. It was a really bumpy ride, life was an ebb and flow of awesomeness and disaster. It was as if I had set out from the mother land in a little boat and the sea was battering me left right and centre. LIFE IS FULL ON. And maybe it is so full on and negative because of who I am with?…So I should leave them?

Each time we were apart we grew as individuals. I travelled quite a bit, Steve delved into new projects. When we came back together we had to face what had been left. We had to learn how to communicate on a deeper level as BIG emotions rose to the surface. We realised that whether we were by each others side or drifting alone, the sea would still batter us.

Often when we lose our way the person who cops the brunt of frustration is our partner, unfortunately they often get the blame as well. It is hard to admit you are your own worst enemy, that your happiness or unhappiness relies on your perspective and actions. Sometimes it is easier to blame someone else.

Finally….like years and years finally….. we realised that although we were not always happy in ourselves it did not mean we were with the wrong person. Greater communication healed past hurts, we learnt to express the bad stuff without heaping it onto each other (this is still a learning process). In essence we discovered tools to sail our boats through the rough seas and realised we were quite great at helping each other on the journey (too many metaphors?).

I hope this all makes sense and that it touches a nerve for some of you out there in cyber world 🙂 try not to have unreasonable expectations of your relationship, because I am yet to meet that perfect fairy tale couple. Respect, honesty and compassion will go a very long way.