I'm Loving This.

So there's been a bit of a blogging slump for me... too much to say that I can't really say out here in blog world and yet the mundane is just so... mundane.

But today I read THIS POST from Mrs BC's House of Chaos and I thought, that's an awesome start.

A snap shot of ten things I'm loving right now.

1.RUNNING. It's freeing. It's empowering. It's bloody exhausting. But I love it. I love knowing that I've put a few kilometres under my feet. I love the endorphin rush. I love the fact that my butt is now smaller and that I'm not gasping for air when I have to chase the puppy. 

Most of all, I love the zone I get in, where I can't think about anything other than breathing in and out, and where my feet are heading. It's enforced meditation, a compulsory clearing of the mind. Breathe In Breathe Out. That is all.

2. MY IPAD MINI. At Christmas by a freakish but fortunate set of circumstances my husband brought home a brand new Ipad Mini. He already has an Ipad so I claimed it he very generously gifted it to me.

AWESOMENESS!

As a night shift nurse who often gets to work to discover I am destined spend the next 10 hrs sitting at the bedside of a delirious patient, this little gadget of wonder is my new night companion. From banking to games, to blogging and reading via the Kindle App, this little dude does everything except make me coffee. LOVE LOVE LOVE

3. BUNNY RABBITS. Oh yes, we are a newly converted bunny friendly household now. If you caught my post where we gave Miss 16 her rabbit, you'll know this was something she wanted for a REAAAALLLLLLLY long time. 

Like, forever. 

We already have 2 small puppydogs and a rather cross cat, but Gimli the bunny has settled in nicely and has made best buddies with Teddy. Teddy is taking his role of big brother and protector very seriously and his favourite thing to do in the whole wide world is to lick Gimli's ears til they flutter like a helicopter. So much cuteness.

4. CHERRY TOMATOES. They are tomatoes, they are like cherries. What is not to love? I'm snacking on a punnet a day. I could blarb on about the vitamin C boost, making healthy choices,  blarb...blarb...blarb  but you know what, I actually never think of those reasons. I just love the way the skin pops and the juice flows out. Tasty.

5.Re-READING. It's so easy to flop on the couch and let the Television take you and your brain cells on a little holiday, but since I started doing exclusively night shifts, I have lost touch with all those series that seemed so important before. I never watched the end of Offspring, I have no idea what happened in Homeland. I have only seen ads for the INXS story and for Love Child. The noise of the voices and constant harsh jarring advertising makes me cringe. 

So I read. I am re-reading my lovely Marian Keyes novels, And having a wander with Jodi Piccoult. I have read and reread Any McNabb's autobiographies. There is something truly blissful about opening the pages of a loved book. The familiarity and certainty of where the story will travel allows you to sink into the story fully and enjoy the journey. 

6. WALKING MY MUM'S DOG. I mentioned earlier that we have two small puppy dogs. Neither of them are particularly enthusiastic about walking. Teddy (laid back hippy cavoodle love child) humours me and waddles around the block. Abby ( paranoid schizo crazy poodle girl) spends every second of a walk trying to convince me she is dying a horridly painful death. She cries, yelps, lies down on her back and refuses to walk. She runs ahead and turns around trying to jump up into my arms. Anything she can do to get out of this crazy 'exercise' business.

My Mum and Dad have had to go away for a couple of weeks and I have been babysitting their dog Billy. He's a tough wiry boy, with some Jack Russell and a whole lot of bitza. He's strong as an ox, and he adores going for a walk. He grins as he leads the way, sniffing and weeing on every tree, stick and dainty flower he can get close to. He likes to say hello to every dog, cat or snail he discovers and he can walk for miles. Yesterday we got close to the little creek near their house and he took off racing along the bank, under the low hanging branches, through the reeds. He discovered some ducks and considered having a swim with them. He was so joyful and happy and In The Moment. 

7. J-MAN GOING TO WORK. I can't say much as it is early days. But.... J-man is trialling with a local builder/joiner with the idea that if all goes well he'll be taken on as an apprentice. Anyone who read my RANT about the stupid Unemployment system in Australia knows this is a big deal. Huge. Enormous.  Fingers, toes and eyeballs crossed that it continues.

8. WHITE GOODS. Weird choice perhaps but here's the thing, I am so bloody grateful for my washing machine and my dishwasher right now. Between J-man's dirty work gear, all the school uniforms, work uniforms, ballet/jazz/hiphop gear, teenage " I wore it for 5 minutes so now I need to change my outfit" clothes plus towels, sheets and underpants, I firmly believe that the washing machine, not diamonds, are a girls best friend. 

Second to that is the dishwasher. I know I am very lucky to have a dishwasher and yes, we can survive just fine doing our dishes by hand, but guys, it just makes mornings and evenings so much easier. 

9. COOLER EVENINGS. I can handle the heat in the middle of the day, but there is something exhausting about a hot night. You can't sleep well, you feel like you need a shower, even when you just got out of the shower, your pillow is too hot and for some reason all the animals can't respect personal space. Finally we have a few cooler nights, and we are all much better rested. Well rested means no grumpy teenagers in the morning (who am I kidding, one of them is always grumpy!) and energy to get through the next day.

10. BANJO KAZOOIE. Little secret I need to share with you. I'm a complete dork. A nerd. I am happily living in the 90's with my Nintendo 64. Yes blog readers. I love my games. I am the master of the early editions of Spyro The Dragon on Playstation and on Nintendo 64 I am quite partial to Banjo Kazooie. It's okay if you don't know the game. Just know that this weekend, I'll probably be kicking back with a glass of wine, a bowl of chips, control stick in hand showing my kids how to defeat Gruntilda like a boss. Because deep inside I'm actually twelve.

What are you loving right now? 

Linking up with Jess for I Blog On Tuesdays