Funny how a baby changes things.
We had a visitor the other day. (Actually, we've had visitors every-bloody-day this week. I'm buggered, and the floor is officially sick of being cleaned. Today? No visitors. Peanut was still in her PJs at 11am. But I digress...)
I was a bit nervous about her coming. Her husband used to work with Mr Accident, and I had heard some horror stories. She was, apparently, the ultimate career woman. She had a spreadsheet for everything, a set plan for life, and was as cold as sashimi salmon.
When Mr A last saw them they were newly married and trying for a baby. She was planning on returning to work directly from the labour ward, give or take a week. Mr A and his mates used to tease her husband relentlessly. It was clear who "wore the pants".
And now she was coming to our home. I was worried. I used to do her job. I used to have a spreadsheet for everything. I used to have a plan! But now my world has shrunken to not much more than a irretrievably finger-marked couch, and two little devils who won't eat their eggs. What would we discuss?
Turns out, she's had a baby.
Turns out, she didn't go straight back to work.
Turns out, she's trying for another, and never wants to go back again.
Soul mates!
Well, close enough.
She agonizes over leaving her first born in care, while she works until number two, just like I did. She plan to breastfeed as long past first birthdays, same as me. She even has issues "civilianising" her hair, just like I do!
We had a lovely morning drinking tea and watching our children play.
I hope I see more of her.
I reckon she might like to borrow my apron pattern.
Tuesday, July 17, 2012
Sunday, July 15, 2012
The Housewife's Creed
When I was younger, I was in Guiding.
I can still remember the excitement as my Mum dropped me off for my first Brownie Meeting. I had just turned six, and I had been waiting for the day for four long years.
I loved the friendships, I loved the games and the crafts, I loved the uniform. But what made the biggest impression on me was the Promise and the Law. It gave me something to strive for. A concrete but simple set of rules I could hold myself against and see how I measured up.
I can still remember the excitement as my Mum dropped me off for my first Brownie Meeting. I had just turned six, and I had been waiting for the day for four long years.
I loved the friendships, I loved the games and the crafts, I loved the uniform. But what made the biggest impression on me was the Promise and the Law. It gave me something to strive for. A concrete but simple set of rules I could hold myself against and see how I measured up.
I still try and uphold these ideals daily, especially the good old motto, "Be Prepared", but I was thinking - what if I had a set of guidelines for my role as a housewife? A creed of sorts, one pertaining particularly to this point in my life? Forgive the cheese, but I had a crack:
The Housewife's Promise
I will strive to fill my home with peace, joy and contentment. I recognise the responsibility and privilege of my role, and I embrace my tasks with enthusiasm.
The Housewife's Creed
A Housewife is proud of her career
A Housewife maintains a positive outlook
A Housewife cares for herself
A Housewife takes responsibility for the well being of her family
A Housewife takes care of her home
A Housewife is productive
A Housewife improves her skills
A Housewife is thrifty
A Housewife creates traditions and memories
A Housewife serves in her communityAnd, not to forget, the Housewife's Motto: "Get on with it!"
You'll notice I capitalised the word Housewife. That's because anyone can technically be a housewife - you just need to be married and at home. But to be a proper Housewife takes work. Actual effort. Getting out of bed and having a goal. Having some pride!
So, what do you reckon? Want to join my Housewifely gang? And, way more importantly, what's our uniform going to be?
I reckon this probably needs a badge...
Friday, July 13, 2012
Clarity
I had an epiphany last night.
I've been stressing.
I don't stress often - my job as a mother and a housewife is not exactly taxing. Big day to day decisions include "what's for dinner?" and "is making pink sparkly play dough three times in a row imposing restrictive gender norms on my daughters?". You know, the big stuff.
But I have been mulling over a big question - what to do with the rest of my life? My professional life, obviously. My personal life is going to involve wiping weetbix and school runs for a long time to come, all hopefully with Mr A as my loyal sidekick. (What's that, darling? I'm the sidekick? Surely not...)
Bug hasn't been sleeping well (I think she's been getting a bit cold) and so I haven't, either. And the concerns of my undecided yet impending future have been magnified by my muddled, sleep deprived head. It's been worrying me.
Mr A and I have decided that I will get a paid job once the girls start school. (He's always careful to specify a "paid" job, he values the work I do at home very highly, thank goodness.) This means that I would need to start retraining at the end of this year.
But what to train into? I want more than a job, I want a career. One that fits in with my family while they are young. Something that, once the girls become increasingly independent, I can pour my energy into. Something I can be passionate about, that holds my interest. Something that pays a reliable wage. Something I will love!
I woke this morning after the first solid night's sleep in week. And I woke with a firm knowledge of what I want to do. It was clear in my mind soon as I lifted it off the pillow.
I will be a high school English teacher.
And now I feel a fresh burst of enthusiasm for my future. I love words. I love sharing knowledge. I have enough command presence to manage a class (but I might eat my words when faced with a class of year nine boys.)
The next step? Researching universities.
How exciting!
**EDIT ...or perhaps I'll be a geography teacher... Apparently my mind is not as made up as it could be!**
I've been stressing.
I don't stress often - my job as a mother and a housewife is not exactly taxing. Big day to day decisions include "what's for dinner?" and "is making pink sparkly play dough three times in a row imposing restrictive gender norms on my daughters?". You know, the big stuff.
But I have been mulling over a big question - what to do with the rest of my life? My professional life, obviously. My personal life is going to involve wiping weetbix and school runs for a long time to come, all hopefully with Mr A as my loyal sidekick. (What's that, darling? I'm the sidekick? Surely not...)
Bug hasn't been sleeping well (I think she's been getting a bit cold) and so I haven't, either. And the concerns of my undecided yet impending future have been magnified by my muddled, sleep deprived head. It's been worrying me.
Mr A and I have decided that I will get a paid job once the girls start school. (He's always careful to specify a "paid" job, he values the work I do at home very highly, thank goodness.) This means that I would need to start retraining at the end of this year.
But what to train into? I want more than a job, I want a career. One that fits in with my family while they are young. Something that, once the girls become increasingly independent, I can pour my energy into. Something I can be passionate about, that holds my interest. Something that pays a reliable wage. Something I will love!
I woke this morning after the first solid night's sleep in week. And I woke with a firm knowledge of what I want to do. It was clear in my mind soon as I lifted it off the pillow.
I will be a high school English teacher.
And now I feel a fresh burst of enthusiasm for my future. I love words. I love sharing knowledge. I have enough command presence to manage a class (but I might eat my words when faced with a class of year nine boys.)
The next step? Researching universities.
How exciting!
**EDIT ...or perhaps I'll be a geography teacher... Apparently my mind is not as made up as it could be!**
Thursday, July 12, 2012
Pumpkin Soup
Time for the second installment of Mrs Accident's patented Winter Warmers! Cheap and simple ingredients, easy to prepare, and guaranteed to infuse your home with an aroma that will leave you impatient for dinner time.
Now this comes with a warning - if you're after a fancy recipe with prepared with all the finesse of a French chef, you have Come To The Wrong Place. My crushed ginger comes from a tube, and my chicken stock comes in small cubes from the cupboard. But heck, if my soup tastes this delicious with basic ingredients, I can only imagine how amazing it would be with the fresh stuff! Lets get to it.
Pumpkin Soup
Ingredients:
50g butter
2 onions, diced
1 teaspoon crushed ginger
Salt and pepper
1.25kg pumpkin, peeled and chunked.
1/2 litre chicken stock
Method:
1) In a large, heavy based saucepan, melt the butter over low heat and stir in the onions until they have softened. Add the ginger and salt and pepper, and give it a good stir.
2) Add the stock, bring it to the boil, then add the pumpkin. I usually cut my pumpkin up into thin slices, so it cooks quickly, but if you've got all the time in the world I guess you could just chuck it in whole. You might even have soup by Christmas!
3) Simmer gently until the pumpkin is very soft, then puree the lot.
4) This serves up beautifully with a dollop of cream or natural yoghurt, and a sprinkle of coriander, but is just fine without. It freezes well!
So, dear readers, what winter warmers do you like? Share, and we'll all get fat and warm together!
Now this comes with a warning - if you're after a fancy recipe with prepared with all the finesse of a French chef, you have Come To The Wrong Place. My crushed ginger comes from a tube, and my chicken stock comes in small cubes from the cupboard. But heck, if my soup tastes this delicious with basic ingredients, I can only imagine how amazing it would be with the fresh stuff! Lets get to it.
Pumpkin Soup
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| Image from here |
Ingredients:
50g butter
2 onions, diced
1 teaspoon crushed ginger
Salt and pepper
1.25kg pumpkin, peeled and chunked.
1/2 litre chicken stock
Method:
1) In a large, heavy based saucepan, melt the butter over low heat and stir in the onions until they have softened. Add the ginger and salt and pepper, and give it a good stir.
2) Add the stock, bring it to the boil, then add the pumpkin. I usually cut my pumpkin up into thin slices, so it cooks quickly, but if you've got all the time in the world I guess you could just chuck it in whole. You might even have soup by Christmas!
3) Simmer gently until the pumpkin is very soft, then puree the lot.
4) This serves up beautifully with a dollop of cream or natural yoghurt, and a sprinkle of coriander, but is just fine without. It freezes well!
So, dear readers, what winter warmers do you like? Share, and we'll all get fat and warm together!
Wednesday, July 11, 2012
Meatloaf
Ah winter.
Freezing, freezing winter.
It's time for blankets, knitted socks, beanies.... oh, who am I kidding. Its time for comfort food!
Prepare yourself for the first installment (of two) of Mrs Accident's patented Winter Warmers. Cheap and simple ingredients, easy to prepare, and guaranteed to infuse your home with an aroma that will leave you impatient for dinner time. Let's get started!
Mrs Accident's Best Ever Meatloaf
Mmmm, meatloaf.
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| No, not this one *shudder* (Image from here.) |
Let's try that again, before we lose our appetite...
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(Image from here.) |
Ah, there it is! Filling, cheap, and the flash point for many an Accidental marital argument about who gets the last slice. (This isn't a photo of my actual meatloaf. It is exceptionally hard to take an appetizing photo of a brown blob.)
Ingredients:
1/2 cup of milk
750g mince
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
2 tablespoons barbecue sauce (plus a bit more)
2 tablespoons tomato sauce
1 teaspoon salt
1 onion, diced
1 egg
Method:
Prepare yourself, there's six steps. And mixing! My three year can manage it, so you should be ok.
1) Set the oven to 180 degrees C. (Or, set my oven to 230C, because it's a lazy old sod.)
2) Soak the bread in the milk for about five minutes, until it's lovely and mushy. Be exceptionally thankful this is no longer considered a balanced and nutritious meal for children.
3) Stick everything in a bowl and mix it. Or get your kid to mix it. Or stick her fingers in and smoosh it about. Doubles as a sensory developmental activity! win!
4) Stick everything in a greased loaf tin. (22x12cm is about right, but any deep dish about that size will do. I use my bread tin. I line it with baking paper but I probably don't need to.)
5) Press the meat down firmly, and squeeze a hefty wallop of barbecue sauce over the top.
6) Bake for an hour. Yum!
This meatloaf is delicious hot, awesome cold, and makes fabulous leftovers.
Mr Accident loves it. LOVES it. He likes to make sure I'm making enough for a hefty serve at night, and lunch the next day. For both of us. Lest I am slightly late for lunch, and he eats the final gigantic serve and there isn't any for me.... I'm pretty sure people have divorced for less...
Tuesday, July 10, 2012
All my friends have nannies
Well, not all of them. But a fair few. The majority, in fact.
And, as always happens when all your friends are jumping off a bridge,I inevitably begin to question my path in life. As those who regularly hang around this neck of the woods know, I gave up a career to stay home with my daughters. And to raise them, too.
But as I watch my mates pop out babies and then head back to work within months, I must admit I feel a twinge of jealousy. I want what she has, dammit! I want to earn that money, wear those clothes, and have an allocated time to exercise while it's still daylight. I want the buzz that comes with doing a great job at my job.
And a nanny who does the laundry, and gets up to the night squalls, and knows what's for dinner wouldn't hurt, either. I could join all my friends for their impromptu girls-only-no-kids coffee dates. Heck, Mr Accident and I could go on dates!
Sounds lovely.
This morning I scolded Peanut for opening the front door. She was letting out the heat, and the cold damp day was washing in around our ankles. If she wanted to watch the rain, she should look out the window! "But Mama, I want to HEAR the rain." So I made a cup of chai tea and grabbed a blanket, and Peanut and I snuggled on the freezing front step, her warming her hands on my mug, as we watched the rain fall into puddles on the path. And I was glad I wasn't at work. And I was glad it was me freezing on that step and not another woman, paid a pittance to love someone else's children. And I wouldn't swap times like that for all the coffee dates in creation.
Nannies are a godsend for some families. But a nanny 'aint right for me.
Monday, July 9, 2012
50 things to teach your daughters
Yesterday I was sewing, and while I sew, I think. And curse. And seam rip, and eat half a custard bun, but mostly think.
This particular day, I was considering what a monumental responsibility it is to raise up two daughters to be thriving adults, able to make their way safely and competently in the world outside our home.
And since I like both a solid set of goal posts and a good list, I started to jot down my ideas on what I want my girls to know by the time they leave home. Soon I was doing more writing than sewing, and I had a list as long as my receipt from the sewing shop. Which was, incidentally, what I was writing on.
Now, this list is just my own opinion, forged from my experiences as a daughter and a mother, a Scout and a soldier. Hopefully half the things on here will never be needed, but, then again... what kind of boring old life would that be, hey?
So here's the list:
50 things daughters should know before leaving home
How to:
1) Plan, shop and cook a week of healthy meals
2) Choose fresh fruit and vegetables
3) Grow a vegetable and flower garden
4) Bake bread from scratch
5) Bake and ice a birthday cake
6) Cook an impressive dinner
7) Set the table for a dinner party
8) Write thank you notes and conversational letters
9) Touch type
10) Write legibly and neatly
11) Study and take effective notes
12) Use basic spelled sign language
13) Talk confidently in public
14) Read and play music
15) Walk in heels
16) Apply makeup
17) Put together suitable outfits for a formal dinner, and business interview
18) Balance a basic budget
19) Understand simple and compound interest
20) Run a hard copy and computer filing system
21) Develop and follow an exercise routine
22) Clean a house
23) Correctly wash, dry and iron clothes
24) Mend clothes - buttons, tear and replacing zippers
25) Make a dress
26) Wash basic clothes without a machine
27) Call the emergency services
28) Identify and use a fire extinguisher and fire blanket
29) How to signal for help in morse code, semaphore and with a flare
30) CPR and First aid
31) Drive a manual
32) Reverse and parallel park
33) Change a tire on a car and a bike
34) Check the oil and fluid in a car
35) Jump start a car
36) Use a road map and a topographical map and compass
37) Find North without a compass, by day and by night
38) Walk a straight line in the bush or forest
39) Abseil and rock climb
40) Find and purify water
41) Catch a fish, prepare and eat it
42) Row and sail
43) Swim
44) Walk long distances
45) Build a camp fire and use a flint
46) Use a mattock, shovel, hammer, drill, saw, axe and chainsaw
47) Load, aim, fire, make safe and carry a pistol and rifle
48) Self defence
49) Fill sandbags and build a wall
50) Hold, change and feed a baby
What do you think. Did I miss anything?
{The winner of our giveaway is VANESSA! Contact me via email (theaccidentalhousewife(at)live.com) with your postal address, and I'll send you your prize. Congratulations!
Also, the LINKLOVE link party will be open all week. Don't forget to add in your housewifely posts!}
Additional images from here and here.
Also, the LINKLOVE link party will be open all week. Don't forget to add in your housewifely posts!}
Additional images from here and here.
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