Night Shift

We have 18, 20, 26, 26, 27 at the moment. That will be 18, 21, 26, 26, 28 by the end of August, but the eldest is married and no longer at home.

One of the twins is marrying later in the year.

I lived in Tennant Creek as a child. I remember visiting garnet fields either towards Darwin, or Katherine. I was too young to remember. What I do remember clearly was having to wear fly nets over our heads and faces, made of stiff, green material, elasticated at the neck, or you ended up with a bung eye.

Wow @Faith-and-Hope 5 kids in less than 10 years. No wonder you are so strong! Getting ready for a wedding can be a challenge too but it's worth it isn't it? My adult child is 27 and married just over 4 years ago.

I don't know where the garnet fields you refer to are. Haven't heard of them before. Tenant Creek probably hasn't changed much since then. I've been there a couple of times and it was dry and dusty. I wonder where you were that the flies were seen as such a danger. The only time I've used one of those fly nets was in archery contests up here and in Alice Springs to make sure nothing could put me off my shot.

@eth - It was 5 kids in less than 10 years, a workaholic husband, a fledgling business, a passively-aggressive hostile MIL, no local extended family of my own, and one of the twins is special needs - multiple health and physical disability issues, VSD repair at 7 months saved her life, but she didn't initially re-start from heart-lung bypass. (I think you said you are a nurse ?)

I have grown strong, as we do when we face big challenges ongoing. One of those challenges is to resist becoming angry and bitter with the perceived unfairnesses some of us are faced with.

One of my favourite adages is: "Success is the best antidote". I don't like the word revenge, which some choose to leave in there. Answering a negative with a positive has become a way of life for me. Lemonade out of lemons is the same principle. It takes work, but I believe it is worth it.

And nobody is perfect. We make mistakes. It all feels too hard sometimes, but as @plasmo quipped the other night, "there's got to be a morning after ..."

The rest of the line is, "to help me make it through the night ..." We have to keep looking to the new dawn, and rest ahead of it too.

@Former-Member I hope the CT scan results are what you hope for and that the op-shop job is enjoyable for you. I have a friend who does it 3 mornings a week and loves it. And gets really good cheap stuff too.

Good to hear you were able to enjoy a talk with your mother tonight.

@Faith-and-Hope I love your attitude 🙂 No I'm not a nurse. I was a massage therapist and herbalist before my own health took priority. I also raised a legally blind (3month premmie) champion archer if you can believe it! So I completely get what you are saying.

@Hi @Former-Member 😊

That does sound like a pretty good day. Friends help sustain me. It's wonderful the friend from way back was in touch. A good day for your mum too. Bonus !

If you're struggling with the little things, there's a thread going here that might be of interest to you:

"Looking after our wellbeing - Making your bed - a little challenge"

It's under the Lived Experience Forum

This is something my mother taught me. If you make your bed, do the dishes, and sweep the kitchen floor, the house looks made, even if other things are a bit scattered around. Even if you just do one of those things in the day, it brings a sense of stability and achievement.

We are waiting to hear how your scans come out. Good luck with those. It's a bit intimidating, but that's life. Keep distracted with happy thoughts in the meantime. We will try to help you with those 💐

All the best with the op shop. If you know you are afraid of being judged, and fear others talking about you, practice recognising those thoughts quickly and pushing them out of your way. Politeness generally gets you everywhere you want to go, and most people are welcoming Try not to worry, and just focus on finding new and interesting things to enjoy.

❤️

Hi @Former-Member don't worry I forget bits here and there too. I don't have a son. I raised a girl child who is now transgender but not planning to be either female or male. It's complicated and I am still learning about what it means, what language to use, and so much more.