The importance of being ruthless.

I've been a bit off the air.  I'm sorry.  It's been a bit tricky around here.

There's been a few reasons.  We went to Brisbane.  Saw my Mum and Mike's family.  It was very lovely, but we stayed quiet.  Sorry Brisbane people who we love and didn't see.

When we returned, the renovation we have been threatening to start for about a year now, suddenly turned up in our immediate future instead of languishing in the distance.

So we ordered a skip.

When you have a skip you need to make the most of it.  You need to be ruthless.  But not too ruthless.

The dining room, aka our future kitchen.  

Even with a fine balance of ruthless we have managed to fill it.  We have thrown out many, many cubic metres of crap.

I've sorted through every toy, every piece of artwork, nearly every item of clothing.

I've spent much time over the last few days travelling down memory lane.  Much of it (especially the baby, child, travel and wedding related stuff) has been enjoyable, but other parts have been cringeworthy.

I've seriously questioned my fashion sense for most of my life.  And I've thrown out a lot of photos so I never have to question this again.


And at the moment, there are no Barbie shoes, Trashies, Polly Pocket furniture or hair elastics lying on any surface of our home.  This has not occurred in the House of Christensen since 2005.

Right now, everything has a place, and it's in it.  Right now.

The crazy pantry, cupboard fridge situation.  

It's clarifying, cathartic.  But it's bloody exhausting.  My brain is full of memories I thought I'd forgotten.  And fighting for space are all the things I have to do next.  Where I want to put things, or how I want to do them.

We have to live on our top floor for 6 months while the builders do their thing to the ground floor and basement.  We are very lucky to have such a comfortable set up.  It's our third reno and after the first one, where Mike and I lived/cooked/ate and slept in a 3m x 3m room for 3 months, this one is a piece of cake even with the added bonus of 3 children.  

So, the toy room has been made over into a temporary lounge room.  It now looks like this.

In the meantime, my email inbox has taken on a life of its own, bills are unpaid (but the filing is now done), we are surviving day to day via emergency trips to the IGA.

Last night: Mike- Violet crumbles.
This morning: Me- Milk and Weetbix.
This afternoon: Me- Wine and cleaning materials.
Tonight: Mike- Kettle chips.

It's all a bit out of control really.  I'm sure I'll get to a supermarket for a proper shop one of these days.

And as for copywriting.  Well, one day I'll write again.  I'm sure.  Seeing as I have deadlines next week I can't avoid, it's quite likely to be sooner rather than later.

Plus I really like writing.  It makes me happy.

And while we stay home, and pack and sort, and throw out, the weather is spectacular and it seems like all of our friends are spending every waking hour at the beach while we spend hours deciding whether we need our dishwasher during the renos or whether we can get our fridge up the stairs (update: we could but not the bbq).  It's a sad existence and the kids are suffering.

Our teeny kitchen.  

Not bad? 

Actually the kids are fine.  They're just watching a bit too much TV.  And I am in a foul mood (not with them but in general) and they are very forgiving, which just makes me feel guilty.

TV is still down in the old lounge.  Where I am writing this. Sitting on the cot mattress.  Nice. 

And I feel like ripping down our spare room curtains and making clothes for the Von Trapp children.  

The spare room.  Soon to be our formal lounge/dining, aka the Good Room.  

The builders are due on Monday.  They will rip our middle and basement level apart and form them into a stylish, modern oasis (or something) over the next six months.  Then we move into the oasis while they shred our top floor and reform it into enough beds and baths and wardrobes and modern contrivances to see the children into and through their teens and us into our dotage.

It's quite likely you will receive regular updates of this transformation.

Sorry.