Stress, BritMums Live and Awards - not necessarily in that order!!

I cannot believe it has been so long since I last posted. Life has been stressful to say the least recently so my blogging has taken a back seat. Usually I post about the things that stress me out, but these last weeks the 'stressful stuff' has been too hard to write about. I know that there are people these days who read my blog who actually know me in real life, and if you are one of those then please don't worry, but I have been preoccupied to say the least.

Still ... onwards and upwards. The good thing about the last few weeks is that I have been surrounded by very wonderful friends. Each dark cloud has a silver lining!!

I am very excited that, as the summer approaches, so does the BritMums Live conference! I have never been to any sort of conference, never mind a blogging one and I am so looking forward to it!! It is 2 days of seminars, speeches, networking ( that sounds professional doesn't it??!!) and general learning, all about blogging, blogs and everything connected to those topics.

The keynote speakers are Sarah Brown, Gordon Brown's wife and Ruby Wax. The days will be filled with cake, coffee, wine, (I hope), meeting new friends and learning how to make my blogging better!

I am quite a friendly type so I am looking forward to meeting new people!! I am starting to think about

• what to wear!!
• what to take.
• designing business cards ...
• finding a sponsor ...

I have never put adverts on my blog, but I am beginning to wonder if it might be an idea to place selective ads and links on in return for sponsorship. I am rather fussy though and I don't want my blog deluged with inappropriate rubbish. I have had a couple of offers, but they were not right for me - I just can't pretend to love something if I've never used it and never would!!

Another thing I am excited about is the fact that I have been put on the short list for the BiBs Video Blogger Award. Now I don't post my video blogs on here - they are a delight I save for the BritMums site, but I am thrilled to have been nominated at all and to reach the short list is a thrill!! If you have seen any of my vlogs and fancy voting for me - do feel free!! Just click on the link in the top right hand corner! I don't expect to win, but its really rather nice to have been voted for at all!

Well ... that's it for now. A little cryptic in places, but at least you know I'm still alive and kicking!!

A lucky escape ...

I had my hair done on Friday and had a very lucky escape ... I was sitting in the chair, chatting away to my lovely hairdresser, having my highlights done ( Yes ... I know its a shock, but I am not an entirely natural blonde ...)

Well, suddenly, from nowhere, the hairdresser's comb stabbed me in the eye lid. It was one of those long sharp spiky comb ends ...

One minute I was chatting, the next I was holding my eye .. well, not literally my eye ...  Luckily I have lightning reactions and managed to move out the way before it hit my actual eye ball. It glanced onto my eye bone socket thingy ...

I did feel a bit light headed for a second, but quickly recovered and was fine, apart from a tender eye socket, a small cut and the realisation that I had been very lucky.

My poor hairdresser was beside herself. She was so upset - pressing ice packs to my eye, glasses of water and cubes of fudge to my lips ... "30 years of hairdressing!!!" and she had never so much as cut anyone with her scissors, never mind stabbed somebody!!

Poor girl. It was just an accident and I am fine. In fact I am more than fine because she did my hair for no charge. Result! But I do shiver a bit when I think what might have happened ...

Hot flushes and night sweats ...

Ok - I know that this isn't one of my most glamorous posts ... after all nobody wants to admit that they wake up in the middle of the night feeling like a pig in a sauna, but sometimes you just have to share ...

Not me!!!

It started about two years ago now. I would go a bit red for no reason at all. Then I started to go really hot. It would come from nowhere and sweep up my body as if I was being squeezed through a red hot mangle in a sweaty laundry somewhere! One minute I was normal, the next I would be plunged into a volcano of seething hormones ...

My colleagues would give a nudge, nudge, wink, wink ... "Oooops! Having a flush are we Sarah?!" they would smirk as I opened all the windows in mid February.

To be honest, it doesn't bother me. I have learned that nobody else can actually tell if I am having a hot flush, unless I start opening all the windows and huffing and puffing. If I just pretend its not happening it goes away eventually. I have a friend who is going through a similar thing and she is quite upset by it all ... I suppose its because it signals the end of our youth ...

If I am going to be graphic I could say that its the start of us shrivelling up and getting OLD!!! Now, you're either devastated by that thought or you just get on with it. After all there's absolutely nothing we can do is there? Personally I think its quite funny that one minute I was in my twenties - slim, young and carefree - and the next minute here I am careering towards 50 with two teenage sons, an allotment and a penchant for Johnny Depp!

I suppose it could be worse ... waking up in the middle of the night feeling hotter than a nylon shirt in a tumble dryer certainly saves on heating bills ...

I'm not sure how other people cope with ... duh, duh, duuuuhhhh "the change", but I am fine about it. I have had my children, certainly don't want any more and apart from the temporary inconvenience of being a bit hot and clammy there don't seem to be any other problems. I think my friend finds the emotional side upsetting. The whole "end of an era " thing. But to me you just have to get on with life. If this is the worst condition I have to cope with then lucky old me!

I don't feel old - age has always been just a number to me - and I don't plan on letting this whole "change" doo dah effect me. If anything I find it really interesting, watching my body decay transform before my very eyes. And it is pretty amazing what a good foundation, some powder and an industrial strength deodorant can do for a girl ...

Life is rosy, but needs to be CLEANER!!!

My house is currently filled with the soft scent of fresh paint. My decorator is an absolute star and I am so glad that I managed to persuade my husband to get someone in to decorate rather than do it himself. You will be relieved to know that since I last wrote life is looking much rosier!

• My essay is done dusted and sent off!!
• My holiday is nearly sorted in spite of a bumpy ride trying to organise it.
• My decorator is brilliant.
• My house is starting to look gorgeous.
• My course is finished
• I am back to work tomorrow & can't wait to see my colleagues.

All this painting and decorating has made me think though. I need to get my head round keeping this place clean and tidy. My decorator's wife, poor love, has OCD and cleans twice a day, every day. That, I think, is too much for anyone, but I have to be more organised so that it doesn't get into the mess it was in when we prepared for the painting.

But how to do this? I am NOT a great housewife. I have so many other things I would rather be doing, like reading, running, skiing, gardening, working, cooking, running a family, blogging, studying ... see what I mean??

So how can I go about it? Maybe a room a day? Maybe have my husband and two boys move out and wrap everything in cellophane?

I do not want to spend all my time cleaning, but its no good waiting for someone to visit before I spring clean frantically. Now ... don't get me wrong ... the house is not disgustingly dirty. Its dusty and untidy because there are 4 of us in a tiny house and we have gathered lots of clutter over the years. This decorating thing has forced us to consider and the plan is to get rid of LOTS of 'stuff '.

I think I may have to draw up a rota for myself so I can put it next to my running rota and be organised ... Perhaps I need to buy some essential cleaning tools... What are your essentials? Am I missing something vital?? I have vacuum cleaner, sprays, brooms ... is there something missing??

Oh Good Grief!! I can't believe I am actually writing a post about cleaning ... But its one of those things I was never really 'taught' and I think I am a combination of lazy/occupied in other things/ignorant of technique ... Is there a cleaning technique??

Help me!!! Maybe I should just hire a cleaner??? EUREKA!!!!

Older Children & getting your life back.

I have just got home from a morning's campaigning at a local shopping parade. Part of having older children now means that I have got my life back. I don't mean that in a horrible way, but really ... how lovely is it to be able to say "I'm just off up to the allotment for an hour" or "I'm going out to get people to sign the petition"  - and be able to pop out leaving the 2 boys happily in the house by themselves?

I remember when I couldn't leave the house without a small trailer attached to my back pack carrying nappies, spare clothes, food, drink, wet wipes ... My life revolved around their meal times and bed times. Now I am free again to indulge in life as I used to know it.

This morning I was part of a team campaigning against a massive new development by a major supermarket chain who I refuse to even name on here. We set up our stall outside a local shopping parade and asked people to sign our petition. I absolutely love doing it. I enjoy meeting new people and, strangely, saying "Good Morning!" to a complete stranger and then getting them to join the campaign is a real pleasure.

I would never have thought a few years ago that I would have the nerve to do that, but now I do. Obviously not everybody says yes to us, but that's fine isn't it? Each to their own. I do find though that when people are given the facts of the matter they tend to be a) shocked and b) willing to fight.

I feel so fortunate to be in this situation now. Not only do I have 2 lovely boys with whom I love spending time, but I also have the chance to do my own thing. When I was struggling in the dark days of PND I never thought that I would get out the other side and bathe in the light of this sort of happiness again. It just shows you that there is life after such things.

Right now my life is so full of 'stuff' ... be it the allotment, study, work, campaigning, family life ... Yes, there are days when I wonder quite why I do so much, but most of the time I count myself so very lucky to have the chance to do it.