A change in the regularity of your cycle is definitely within the realm of normal as you get older. 19 days is short- maybe get a womens/ hormonal check up if it continues. My cycle was always long and irregular- nowadays its much shorter and much more regular, but its still never predictable.

I agree with the others that giving as much as you can now will pay off later. Kids need a lot at that age and some really need a lot. When they don't get their tank filled, it can set up needy patterns for life. But, as mother of one needy one, I can say that I am glad I went the way I went with him and allowed it as much as I could. It wasn't easy...and you do have to know your own limitations. Attachment parenting is based on the idea that little kids really need to feel completely secure when they are little...and independence will grow out of that sense of security and a knowing that needs will be met. I did the fmaily bed (to an extent) and long term breastfeeding and all that because it made sense to me, as well as homeschooling, and I can say I have 2 incredibly independent kids. Could be coincidence but they didnt inherit it form me! Ds was very, very needy though. But still, as Rosie says, no matter our intentions to give what we can, it can also be too much- I dont think we are meant to live such isolated lives and community is more natural to fill those needs in kids...but we jsut do our best and I had many a time I would just lose it and escape one way or another.

There is no right way. I am not a high protein/low carb advocate, or a high fat/low carb advocate, when the fats are coming from animal sources. Some people do well on 30/30/30%. My issue is that eating a lot of animal sourced foods is not so healthy- I believe- whether they are fats or proteins. So you might lose weight but it won't be healthy. My opinion, at this point, after a lot of research. Lots of evidence to say that a high animal diet is the cause of most western diseases. Some animal is ok though. If you can eat mostly fruits and vegies, and mostly plant sourced fats and proteins, then its fine to eat higher amounts of fats and proteins. In fact, in the China Study, he says that office worker Chinese, who are the most likely to have similar exercise levels to most westerners, eat many more calories (on average) than westerners and are still very slim. He suggests that plant based foods are processed differently from animal based foods, and that might well be why they can eat more and stay slim (their diets are mostly plant based). If you enjoy your foods and arent likely to really stick to a strict restrictive diet in the long term, Weight Watchers new diet system is very doable in the long term and gives you a good feel for the quantities of food that are needed. It shocked me because I was eating healthy but 2X more food than I actually needed. WW teaches how to eat better and healthier and is a sustainable lifestyle that you can individualise, and it is inherently very flexible.

Well, this mightnt mean much to non Aussies but Sir Joseph Banks, who was the botanist who came out to Australia with James Cook on the Endeavour, is my great great (not sure how many greats) Uncle. He had no kids. DH's infamous ancestor is I think in TWTM volume 4- Ned Kelly, the bushranger. It makes sense, if you know dh :) So the kids have notable ancestors but other than that we are just stock from England and Ireland- several convicts back there too. (That used to be something Aussies were ashamed of- you wouldnt admit to convict ancestors, but now its something people are proud of. )

I am reading The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin. Just seemed like a good one to start the year with- its an easy light read and I may well finish before the end of the week. It's making me think about what really makes me happy, and why I don't do those things more often or regularly! It talks about why it's not selfish to do what makes you happy. So I am giving myself the tast of making sure I do the things that make me happy that I am defining for myself just for starters- meditation, exercise, decluttering, spending more time outside- more diligently.

Yes, make sure you dont buy from multi network companies- they put such a huge profit margin on their products, even thought their products are often good quality. The other thing is- if you have a chance to compare several products- check out the quantity of the herb or mineral etc. It can vary widely- I was looking at cranberry supplements recently in a health food store and you could get anything from 500mg to 7000 mg of cranberry in a single capsule. And thirdly, you will usually, but not always, pay more for a better quality product.

I am sort of in that position now- both kids busy, I have finished homeschooling. I felt at first that i needed to "do something", and i was getting a bit stressed wondering what to do. Not for lack of ideas, but too many possibilities and no strong pull in any one direction. Dh has encouraged me to just wait and not rush into anything. While we could do with the money, he doesnt want me feeling I need to rush out and get a job just because i have finished homeschooling. I am pretty sure something will turn up that will feel like the right direction to follow, but in the meantime, I am happy to declutter, cook and read.

Thanks everyone. I am joining because i feel inspired to read more widely, more than to read more quantity , but the challenge to read an average of a book a week might also inspire me to go and read my books rather than waste hours on the computer reading other stuff that may or may not be of any quality. I will do as others have said...basically, not sacrifice quality for quantity, and just do the best I can.

Yes and no. I believe that everyone has God living inside them because we are of the nature of God, not separate. Jesus Christ is one vehicle to recognise that, but not the only one. Grace is everywhere, all the time. Anyone can know that to the depths of their being, and one doesnt need to pledge loyalty to anyone or anything, only recognise the truth.

This is my first time....I am wondering, how do you manage when you want to read a heavy going classic or a longer book and one week would just mean you couldnt give it the attention and time it deserves? Most books- yes, a week is plenty. But some books deserve longer mastication, IFYWIM. Do you jsut read a lighter book alongside to keep your quantity up? I suppose I do read books in a day sometimes- or at least I skim read them to get the bits out of them that I am interested in. How do you handle it? The book I have in mind is the Mahabharata which is a hefty tome i have had on my shelves for a couple of years and would really like to get to one day, but no way would a week be enough. On the other hand, I am inspired by the whole book a week thing because it makes me feel I *will* get to many books I havent had time for.

I know what you mean but its an awful way to live, dont you think? To be measuring exercise by how much weight its burning up (or not), to feel guilt for everything you eat? I dont like living like that. I love to walk...but gees, not that much! I love to eat, too, but it doesn't take much to start stacking on the kilos/pounds. I have just done 3 months of Weight Watchers and it has taught me a lot. That I really dont need to eat as much as I think I do :) And I do enjoy being that bit lighter (especialyl for summer here). I like Weight Watchers because I can follow my reasonably healthy diet based on fruit and veg and wholegrains and some protein, and WW makes sure I am not eating too much of it. It's doable and it works.

Here is the one I use daily: This day onwards I shall be happy For nothing will prevent me. I shall walk and beauty will go before me. I shall walk and beauty will be behind me. I shall walk and beauty will be above me. I shall walk and beauty will be beneath me. I shall walk and beauty will surround me. I shall walk and speak of beauty. For the rest of my days I shall be whole, for all things are beautiful.

My experience is of some karate and some taekwondo, and I think either of those would be fine. But it is really totally dependent on the school and the teacher. There is a range out there. There are schools that really focus on teaching kids and adults to fight and you can graduate up to using some pretty nasty weapons. And there are others for whom the fighting is only ever self defence, if ever, and its all about the discipline and self control and awareness. A good teacher is a wonderful, wonderful asset to a child's life and it sounds like your son woudl benefit from it, to me. What is realyl wodnerful, though is if a parent (or both) also does the class. I did a class with both my kids for 6 months and it was great. (We were over committed though in other areas and decided karate was the thing to go.)

Rosie, I can relate to a lot of what you are saying. I was vegetarian before I had kids- for many years. I had my first at age 27 and the next at age 28. I have NEVER recovered my energy levels. I used to jog, run along the beach, really love long distance bike rides- ever since having kids, I have not had that sort of energy return. I hear about women in their 40s taking up marathon running, and I am really astonished....where do they get that sort of energy? I am not overweight. I eat well. My kids are 15 and 16, for goodness sakes! I have had a love/hate relationship with meat all my life. I was vegetarian for many years but not a healthy one. Once i was pregnant, my body would not let me stay vegetarian. Many times since then I have tried to go back to vegetarianism- including right now- but in the past, it didnt work. I have a constitution that seems to need meat. But I am trying again, and if I can just eat less, eat it ocasionally, eat just fish, or something like that, I will be happy. And it's not like I haven't done the research, the study. It's been a consuming passion of mine to research and play with my diet and lifestyle. I have felt better since playing with superfoods. Spirulina seems to be very good for me, and so does lot of greens. Grains are not so good. Legumes are fine. Bee Pollen, ginseng, maca, cacao, goji berries- these things resonate with me and especially help my mood. Sunshine is really important to me, too, as well as sleep. It's best I stay away from sugar, and that includes too much sweet fruit, especially dates. I think most of us run on marginal vitamin and mineral deficiencies most of the time- our soil is so depleted, our diets, even good ones, are deficient. I read a good article the other day about how meat eaters criticise vegetarians, especially vegans, for not having enough nutrition- but the truth is most meat eaters are deficient in certain things as well. That is why, as much as reading information is useful...it is my interest to also foster an intuitive sense of what the body needs. So when I crave something, I trust it is trying to tell me something. When I get a good feeling for spirulina, I trust it. January always seems to be a month for cleansing fo rme, so its less meat, more greens and raw foods. So here's to trusting ourselves more in 2011- trusting our inner guidance system as to how to restore full health.

I am a wanna be minimalist. A few months back I went through a massive decluttering and it really was great. The only thing I remember missing is...I know I used to have more knitting needles and supplies and a cable stitch holder, but not any more. I must have been ruthless! Oh well, it only cost me a few $ to get what I needed. I love minimalist blogs like zenhabits.net. They help remind and redirect me when I lose the minimalist urge. They seem to give me a kick, a bust of energy. I have had some conflict with my packrat dh and kids, for sure. They are not on board at all. I even wonder if dh has a bit of a psychological issue, really. But...I have plenty of stuff that is "mine" to declutter, and I consider the kitchen "mostly mine" so I am happy to zen that out too, altohugh there are certain things (I learned!) that dh considers his and very important to have in the kitchen. So there is defintiely compromise. We have always been 2nd hand people- all our furniture and household stuff is 2nd hand, even our many computers. The thing is, we love a bargain and we love to shop 2nd hand...you never know what you will find!- so that results in bringing home more stuff. DH doesnt seem to understand you just cant keep adding nice bargain pieces of furniture to a house, no matter how big it is, without at some stage letting some of it go as well. We sort of have zones now. Some zones are mine, and I get to have them the way I want them- clear and uncluttered. Some zones are his and i dont touch them...at all...any more. (I learned!) Ds15 sometimes lets me declutter for him- mainly clothes he has outgrown, but dd16 does her own decluttering at times. It does rub off on them. It is an endless task, really, because I too havent stopped going to garage sales and markets- its an activity dh and i love to do together, and we always have. I have stopped picking up stuff off the edge of the road, but dh hasnt! This year I let go of 75% of my wardrobe- it felt great! But it didnt take long to collect more clothes- however, they are more suited to the up to date me than the outdated me. They notice. I have my own bedroom ANd my own study (very lucky me)- they are clear and uncluttered although my study is my processing space for clutter and I do have some piles of books in here at the moment, ready to be sold. I used to have my desk in the schoolroom- but I took it out and now that is the teenagers living area and not a "schoolroom". Its funny because when dh and I first got together and for several years, he was the neat and tidy one, the born organised one and I really didnt have a clue- I was very messy. Now I am the organised and tidy one. I would say..enjoy the process, enjoy the results- have fun with it. CLear your own stuff and stuff you know wont upset others particularly. If your kids are young, zen their stuff or pack it into boxes and rotate them. I find there is always so much more to do, I dont need to even worry about their stuff yet- and i have spent weeks and weeks decluttering. The linen cupboard is bursting at the seams again. I suspect one day dh will get on board. But its not happening yet, so its just my thing, and that's ok. I will probably get to the point when my own personal possessions are quite minimal- maybe in the next month or so - but the household stuff is another matter altogether.

I think it helps not to take it personally when things go wrong, or to add self recriminaiton and guilt on top of mistakes and failings. Forgive ourselves, realise its not "just us" and move on. There is the stuff that is hard, that is challenging, because that is the nature of life. Theres nothing we can do about it and life isnt supposed to be easy all the time. But..then, how do we respond to difficulties? Often by making them harder again, by getting angry or upset, by feeling sorry for ourselves, by giving ourselves a hard time, and generally getting ourselves into a big grey tizz. So...we make it much harder than the original situation ever warranted. THAT is the bit we can control...our attitude...not what actually happens. Focus on the blessings. Make an intention to pay attention and be grateful, every day. And notice the beauty around us every single day...it is there in the midst of it all. My spiritual teacher gave her students the task of awakening and reciting the Beauty Way prayer every morning, and focusing on the beauty in our lives, every day. It has been an immense blessing to me to actually follow through and do that. Its amazing how problems make me fixate and only see the world through a very dark and narrow focus, and when I remember to notice the beauty- the small things, the flower, the bird, the smile, the light, the sunshine...it expands my focus and the problem is more in perspective rather than taking up all my attention.

Use the bad experiences to grow and learn, make compost with them, fertilise your garden and then plant flowers :)

The herbs are good, but generally speaking with herbs, you often need to double or triple the dose on the bottle to get enough power in them. You could try...if it seems to work a little, but not much, you could double the dose. Those herbs are the right ones, but I wouldnt be relying on them alone- I would be examining diet, lifestyle etc Bad habits like coffee can make a big difference- often its what you cut out, rather than what you add in, that makes a difference.

My first is The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin. I have heard good things about it but it has been sitting on my shelf for a few weeks now- along with several others. I figure its a good book to start off a new year with. I have decided I would like to make sure I read one fiction book per month, because I tend to only read non fiction. My first will probably be The Dragon Keeper by Robbin Hobb, whose books make me so obsessive that all life stops until I finish them, which is why I rarely read fiction. But being it is summer holidays here and all and I dont even have a homeschooling year to plan, and I havent worked out what I am going to do with the rest of my life yet :) , why not read a novel?

What I have heard is that it has already happened in some countries of Europe such as Germany. And I thought it has gone through in Canada recently? It is insidious and horrible, but it does seem to be happening. I think it IS hard for people to really know until its too late...the information is out there, but there is SO much information out there that important stuff, that should cause huge public outcries, gets drowned in advertising and hoaxes. There is denial by the Australian government that it will happen here, but we already are suffering from restrictions. I cant get organic goji berries any more- they insist on irradiating them before they come in, which immediately nullifies the organic status...and who wants to eat irradiated food anyway? It's a mess. Food will be a big issue this century- just the right to grow your own, to obtain viable hairloom seeds rather than having to buy hybridized ones that can't reproduce, is such a human rights issue yet it is happening. The right to buy nutitional supplements is surely a real right in a democratic country? Well, we are losing it. Along with many other things we take for granted. On the other hand, the way dh and I see it is....all those bottles are not actually teh best way to get our nutrition, anyway. Much better to work with the herbs themselves, to eat well etc. So if it goes that way, so be it...we will find a way.

Lol, in Australia apparently we are either heathens or we dont spill much food, because we don't use anything most of the time. They come out(whether paper of cotton) on special ocasions and parties only. I think its a cultural thing.

We eat uncooked food a lot. It's summer here. Fruit for breakfast for me (or cereal for ds, dh likes eggs, dd likes eggs or cereal). Lunch- salad with all sorts of things in it including protein. If we ate bread, that would be easy. Dinner- cooked foods with salad. That's my pattern at this time. It's just not necessary, and probably pretty healthy, not to apply heat to all your food. It's so much easier to eat a fair amount of your food in a fairly unprocessed, raw state, or at least in very simple form.

I am naturally optimistic and it's not really dependent on outside circumstances. We are in some financial hot water at the moment but we are optimistic. For all the problems happening in the world, there are also a lot of really cool amazing things happening. The economic system NEEDS restructuring. There needs to be change. I am heartened by all the new things happening.

OK Astrid, I am going to do it. Last night I spent a couple of hours looking on Ravelry and elsewhere for a cardigan pattern that doesnt use circulars....no luck! So many lovely patterns...none on straights. ANd whileI can knit up a decent pair of socks, I dont feel competent to use straights on a circular pattern...yet. So I went to You Tube and watched a demo of how to use circulars. Duh. Not exactly difficult, are they? It is just a mental block, and the fact I know no other knitters in my real life other than my mother on the other side of Australia. So today I am going to go and find myself a pair of circulars at the knitting shop- the right size, and overcome my circular inhibitions.

Can I half join? Cos I don't want to knit blocks. But as you know my mum spun me some beautiful merino /silk and I want to do something with it. In fact I found a pattern on Ravelry and bought everything- on the front page it said size 4 needles....didnt say i needed circular needles, did it? So there I was sitting watching TV and ready to start, then realised i needed circular needles which I have never used and dont really want to cos I like my bamboo straight ones. SO now I have to go find another pattern. But I would like to be part of a knitting club and maybe this could be it?