Use What You Have

I'm not into the whole New Years Resolution thing, I don't try to make myself promises that I know I won't keep but I do use the start of a new year as a way to look at my life and look to see if I am happy with the way things are or is there something I want to focus on.

Lately I've been thinking about excesses, expectations, evaluations & using what you have.

Excess:
I went hunting for a ball of wool the other day and came across 4 bags of yarn that I had totally forgotten about!  I mean, I have a huge cupboard full of yarn and I still go out & buy more (& more & more & more). Naughty me.
I also found the same thing with fabric too
...and books
...and food in the pantry
...and seeds for the garden & then gave up looking as it was depressing me!

Expectations:
Why do I constantly care about what other people think about me or my family?  Why do I think that it is important to 'be seen' to do what they do, who says what they are doing is right or more important?

Evaluations:
Being a Stay-at-home-Mum doesn't mean that I shouldn't evaluate my work, I'm raising 2 children and that shouldn't be taken lightly! 
So how do I know that I am doing a good job? Well, let's see...  They are both growing (that is a good sign), they are both healthy, they smile, they laugh. Bubba Joe (who just turned three) has good manners, is almost 100% toilet trained, he eats vegetables (sometimes), he tries new food (with encouragement & ok, bribes), he tries to look after his baby sister too!  Joe is rarely told off, he has only been sent to his room three times (ever!) and has never been smacked - well ok, that was a fib, I did smack his hand once because he had a tantrum whilst we were walking across a busy road & tried to sit down in the middle of the friggin road - I pulled him across, told him off & he got a smack on his hand to emphasise my point - but apart from that I have never smacked him. 
Just recently, I received feedback when it came to me being a parent, it was nice & totally unexpected.  It was when we had to rush Joe over to our neighbours at 3am because I had gone into labour with baby Laney.  Joe woke up in a different house with different people - I mean, he knows our neighbours but we aren't best friends with them but Joe was nice, polite, played & laughed with them until his Dadda came & collected him. When I got home from the hospital, our neighbour came to me & told me what a wonderful boy Joe is and it is a credit to us (me & his Dadda) that we have raised such a polite, happy boy. Boy!  That is making me almost cry right now, thinking that someone appreciates my son & the effort that I have undertaken to raise him!  It makes my decision to quit work & be a stay at home mum worthwhile.

So anyway, after all of that dribble above, what I am trying to say is that I am sick of wasting money, sick of thinking other things (people & places) are better and want to Use What I Have.
I will look into my cupboards before shopping for excesss.
I will open & read my huge pile of cookbooks before claiming that there isn't anything for tea.
I will holiday at home - have you holidayed at home before?  We've already started, I went into Hobart (our closest city), we looked up, we looked down & we walked & walked & visited tourist destinations like Port Arthur.
I will not waste food. Let me repeat that, I Will Not Waste Food. I will empty the vegetable crisper out each week & either make a soup, omelette etc

So what about you, will you join me & Use What You Have too?  (or are you already doing it?!)
Oh & before I forget, Happy New Year! I hope that 2014 is full of laughter, good health & lots of creativity for you & your family!

Oh & if all you got out of this was that I smacked my child then ..bite me. My child, my rules and his safety came first & ever since he crosses the road beautifully.