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Hello!
I'm Debs, and you've found my little corner of the internet
I am a happily married mum of three.
Our house is home to me, my husband, three children and a huge variety of special educational needs and disabilities (ranging from severe visual impairment to autism, from speech and communication issues to dyspraxia and from osteoarthritis to vertigo). It's also home to one very nutty dog who fits in perfectly.
Having children with SEND has definitely given me a huge bag of tools to help me get back up, time and time again. Tools to help me keep the plates spinning and tools to help me know when I need to focus on self care.
I try to keep it real, I don't pretend I have the perfect Instagrammable home life, work/life balance or eating habits. Like you, I have good days and bad days.
Days when motivation comes easily and days when just getting out of bed is an achievement.
Days when anyone could pop round and I would be delighted to see them, and others when my house is in need of a bit of attention so unexpected drop ins leave me feeling overwhelmed.
Life isn't perfect for anyone but I can help you find that balance so the bad days don't outweigh the good ones.
Life is never ever dull!
I hope you enjoy reading my pearls of wisdom, please
feel free to leave your comments and thoughts.
Debs x
Happy Clients Have Said...
Latest Pearls of Wisdom
Putting it off – making an easy job a challenge
Why do we do it? We have these jobs we know we need to do but we keep putting them off. By doing this, we make the job appear even more difficult than it is. We give it a power and then even more amazingly, we start to believe the hype we have created.
Self care: Me too not Me First,
Self care isn’t about making you the number one priority and ignoring the needs of everyone around you. Self care means “me too”.
Recent Pearls of Wisdom
Eat the ugly Frog first
If we eat the frog, (ie get that awful job done out of the way), then the rest of the day has got to be a breeze but what if you have more than one frog item on your list?
Review – Teen Calm Box
The aim of Teen Calm is to help young adults develop a routine that builds self-regulation skills so they can cope with those annoying doubts and insecurities
To Do List, Planning and Scheduling
“a plan Is what, a schedule is when. It takes both to get things done” Pubilius Syrus Lists Are you a list writer? Do you have lists everywhere? Or maybe even lists organised in one lovely book – yes I’m talking about you – or maybe you have amazing mind maps that you’ve spent hours …
Incomplete Compassion
Compassion – a strong feeling of sympathy and sadness for the suffering or bad luck of others and a wish to help them” Cambridge English Dictionary Everyone, with the exception of perhaps some psychopaths, has the ability to feel compassion towards others. Studies have shown that some psychopaths have the ability to feel compassion but …
Focus, focus, focus
If you are anything like me, you are possibly involved in several projects. Maybe you’re not involved in lots of projects, but you are trying to juggle work, home, me-time, keeping fit, being a mum/dad, and somehow trying to find time to write that book or redecorate that room. or learn a new skill I …
Failure, then success
Fear of Failure Why are we so afraid of failure? Failure means different things to different people; due to our upbringing, beliefs, values and obviously the standards we set for ourselves. Failure for one person may not be a failure for someone else. First of all, you need to really be clear about what failure …
Do what you can
Start where you are Do you put things off because you are thinking of the end result too much and it seems so far away? Want to run a marathon? Want to lose a few stone? Want to start a podcast? Want to change career? You know what you have to do, don’t you? Start! …
Give the world the best of You
Self Care – Not a priority, sorry! How often do you put you first? How often do you do something that is just for your benefit and no one else’s? How often do you make time for yourself, to have a pamper, go for a run, meditate, write, read, watch a movie, paint, crochet, go …
I’m not a procrastinator, I’m just extremely productive at unimportant things.
Anyone relate to this? Busy days but nothing to show at the end of it? Busy being busy?
You are not alone.
What’s the least unimportant thing you did yesterday? Mine was pulling up some grass from between stones on my patio. It made me feel productive when I should have been sat at my desk writing another post (because it was overdue anyway)! I now have a lovely grass-free patio but had to stay up late to finish the post.
What about you?
#procrastinationqueen #busybeingbusy #procrastinateonpurpose
Comment on Facebook I’m not a ...
I productively …not ! Stared into space for about 10 minutes at my desk watching the world go by until the office phone broke my silence 🤨
Monday - a fresh start. If the beginning of June didn’t go to plan, maybe you’ve had half term and things didn’t get done or the sudden summer sunshine floored you, don’t worry.
Start again today.
My diary for June is fairly hectic so being organised is the only way I’ll get through it without having to clone myself. Being organised starts with my to do list (and of course I always add items to it after I’ve done them so I can cross them off).
Having one place where I can write down everything i need to do works well. I can categorise and prioritise later but just one place, be it a notebook or a note app, helps enormously. I’ve tried loads of to do apps but having to add deadlines etc is another task - so I go old-school and use a notebook and pen to just add an item so I’m not struggling to remember what it was.
Do you write to do lists?
#todolists #productivity #organised #notebooks #bujojunkie #getahead #juststart #listsarelife
PD - a blank to do list with check boxes
Was there anything we could use the puff pastry for today? Not when it’s National Sausage Roll day. Thankfully I took photos to show evidence because 5 minutes later they had disappeared.
Have you had your sausage roll today?
#nationalsausagerollday #sausagerolls
Comment on Facebook Was there anything ...
Hope you make some to bring home 😋😋
fresh out of the oven, fantastic. xx
My new office is decorated, now just waiting for flooring but I love the colours.
I’ve set up a temporary workspace so we can reclaim part of our dining table and it’s so nice to have space again. Also love that I am looking out to the garden.
The flooring will be about another 2 weeks so I can’t bring everything back in but in a way that’s good because the temporary layout has given me some ideas to change the layout I’d had planned.
#workfromhome #homeoffice #wfhlife ##wfhsetup #homedecor #valenciaorange #kallax
Comment on Facebook 1972950632965132_2876313895962130
This looks amazing Debs xxx
Love it 😍
Very nice debbie xx
My radishes have grown - rather large - and there’s lots of them. Time to google what I can do with them, can’t leave them in the ground as they’ll be the size of tennis balls - this one is already the size of my plan.
Any tips much appreciated. What are you growing this year?
#growathome #radishes #salad #oops
Comment on Facebook My radishes have ...
Cue and radish salad, I will send you the recipe x they are also fab in a stir fry, not only a salad x
They are lovely roasted.
Just planted beetroot courgettes pepper chilli kale squash sweet corn tomatoes mange tout beans lettuce and got potatoes onion rocket chives oregano thyme rosemary lemon balm mint spinach and raspberries blueberries physalis strawberries and blackberries and will be lucky if I get one meal from them Lol.
You are in luck radishes are so good for you! If you are hoping to keep long term then pickle & enjoy the others roasted, in salad & in stir fries then treat the pickle to some Japanese mooli style stuff - friend of Jeanette 🤪
Wow they look good. I’ve got radishes growing and a marrow. Need to get organised with other things. Fruit wise I’ve got raspberries gooseberries too but that’s my limit so far x
I’m growing loads again this year, most of my flowers started as seeds but I’m also growing garlic, strawberries, potatoes, coriander, basil, mint, parsley, basil, tomatoes and penis chilli 🤣
Updating my month ahead in my bullet journal, writing out plans for June and enjoying this gorgeous weather.
Been looking at different monthly spreads but this one with Dutch doors works well for me. One side of the Dutch doors for apptmts for the week and one side for weekly tasks.
The left hand side of the main page will have my daily to do’s - things like social media, #teamtomm tasks, etc (or as @myproplanner calls them, my non-negotiables) and the right hand side is where I add my word for the month or a quote to keep me motivated along with any National days.
How do you plan for the month ahead? #monthlyspread #bujoinspiration #bujoideas #planning #todolist #monthlyjournal
PD - Photo of a notebook open on a garden table with the garden in the background
Please join in today as we reflect on how, 10 years on, nothing has changed.
When Panorama brought Winterbourne View and the horrific action of some staff to everyone’s attention, we were all horrified and demanded change. 10 years on…….. the Government has once again failed the most vulnerable in our society.
Light a candle today to let the families know you support them and tell the Government that their inaction (except report after report) is unacceptable.
#winterbourne10 vigil video from #rightfullives is available on YouTube. I have such huge admiration for the families, I’ve heard their stories and one common theme - none of them believed it would happen to their loved one.
youtu.be/ftIwWjG7rGw
I have wanted an arched pagoda type thing for years so my face currently has the biggest smile as we’ve eventually got one and it fits perfectly.
We’ve spent the day at Kent Garden show - operated on time slots - and my feet are tired, my purse is empty but we all had a fun day with lots of laughs, great food and bumped into a few friends we’ve not seen for a while.
If anyone is venturing there this weekend, take cash as many stalls were cash only.
#kentgardenshow #archedpagoda #lovemygarden
Comment on Facebook I have wanted an ...
That’s lovely xx
Oh wow! I LOVE the arch! 💕💕💕
Looks fab x
It’s looking amazing 😍
Looks lovely x
A day of painting stairs - definitely needs some edges straightening with white gloss but I’m so happy with it. Swipe to see the progress.
#interiordesign #diy #paintedstairs #paintedstairsproject #colour
PD - white stair case with three alternating shades of teal on the risers.
Comment on Facebook 1972950632965132_2871164939810359
Looks great x
Look brilliant Deb. Worth all the hassle. Well done xx
Amazing x
We’re a house of #revision just now. Mocks are upon us after half term and everyone is feeling the pressure.
I want to put together some #studytips, ideas and hacks for the twins. Most of us will have sat exams at some point and some of us will have studied hard (some of us may have winged it and hoped for the best).
Thinking about studying, what are your top tips. What worked for you? Did you use a revision timetable? How did you come up with that timetable? Did you use highlighters? Did you use bullet points? Index Cards?
Many people recommend bullet points and #mindmaps but as one of my daughter’s friends said “everyone tells us to bullet point but I don’t know how to do that properly - I am always worried that I am writing too many bullet points and may as well write the whole thing out or missing out the points I really need”. I am looking for tips on how to bullet point/mindmap in a useful way (if anyone can point me at examples, that would be great).
Once I collate all the responses, I will happily send a copy to any other parent who wants one.
Comment on Facebook We’re a house of ...
It does depend on the subject, but I will say there’s no such thing as too many bullet points! My notes for school and uni were filled with them! I also found that reading out loud or explaining whatever the point is (eg mitosis for biology, or going through essays and reminding yourself of PEEL (point example explain link- www.studiosity.com/blog/how-to-structure-paragraphs-using-the-peel-method). Moving around where you’re studying and using voice memos while wandering about or even pacing your garden can help too! It’s all about having the info input in different ways to cement it. Also? Remember it doesn’t matter *how* you study - bullet points, Mindmaps, talking out loud - what matters is that you *are* studying. So don’t stress about if you’re doing it right. Everyone has their own way of learning, and they are all wildly different!
For me it was index cards started with longer notes then once I was remembering I then reduced it to key words xx but that was many many years ago! 😂🤣 I think taking regular breaks is really important too xx Big hugs to all who are doing exams x
Me
A timetable can help you feel organised and in control. Which really helped my son with his anxiety x
Most Popular Pearls of Wisdom
The Happy Diary Monday, 25th September 2017 It only takes 5 days and is not a diary you complete every evening, forever. You just do this for 5 days and then when you need a boost, you do it again. (146)- Incomplete Compassion Friday, 5th June 2020 If your compassion does not include yourself, it is incompleteJack Kornfield Compassion - a strong feeling of sympathy and sadness for the suffering or bad luck of others and a wish to help them"Cambridge English Dictionary Everyone, with the exception of perhaps some psychopaths, has the ability to feel compassion towards others. Studies have shown… (138)
- Visualising Success Monday, 19th February 2018 When I first heard about Vision Boards (aka Dream boards), I thought “oh that’s nice but I don’t have magazines and glue sticks lying around and I have no intention of buying them”. I moved on. (135)
- Review – Teen Calm Box Wednesday, 17th June 2020 The aim of Teen Calm is to help young adults develop a routine that builds self-regulation skills so they can cope with those annoying doubts and insecurities (125)
- Failure, then success Monday, 1st June 2020 Fear of Failure Why are we so afraid of failure? Failure means different things to different people; due to our upbringing, beliefs, values and obviously the standards we set for ourselves. Failure for one person may not be a failure for someone else. First of all, you need to really be clear about what failure… (110)
Most Popular Posts
- The Happy Diary Monday, 25th September 2017 It only takes 5 days and is not a diary you complete every evening, forever. You just do this for 5 days and then when you need a boost, you do it again. (146)
- Incomplete Compassion Friday, 5th June 2020 If your compassion does not include yourself, it is incompleteJack Kornfield Compassion - a strong feeling of sympathy and sadness for the suffering or bad luck of others and a wish to help them"Cambridge English Dictionary Everyone, with the exception of perhaps some psychopaths, has the ability to feel compassion towards others. Studies have shown… (138)
- Visualising Success Monday, 19th February 2018 When I first heard about Vision Boards (aka Dream boards), I thought “oh that’s nice but I don’t have magazines and glue sticks lying around and I have no intention of buying them”. I moved on. (135)
- Review – Teen Calm Box Wednesday, 17th June 2020 The aim of Teen Calm is to help young adults develop a routine that builds self-regulation skills so they can cope with those annoying doubts and insecurities (125)
- Failure, then success Monday, 1st June 2020 Fear of Failure Why are we so afraid of failure? Failure means different things to different people; due to our upbringing, beliefs, values and obviously the standards we set for ourselves. Failure for one person may not be a failure for someone else. First of all, you need to really be clear about what failure… (110)
