Category: Work

Categories
Bloxham Marketing momentous events More about me Random thoughts Work

Excited!

I love the anticipation of a journey!

Source: bing.com via Heidi on Pinterest

Not knowing where it will lead, or where it will take you in the process… as an optimist, the thought of where I could end up always makes me smile with the possibilities!

Tomorrow and Friday I’ll be at my first Lutheran Education Queensland (LEQ) conference. Possibly my first of many! (At the next one, on the 28th of February, I’m actually the presenter! It’s called ‘Harnessing the Power of Digital Marketing’, and I’m the ‘Professional Digital Marketing consultant’ that they’ve got addressing the LEQ Principals and Business Managers. Cool or what?!!)

So I feel as though I’m taking my first steps into a journey I’m very much looking forward to taking.

Wish me luck, dear readers!

Categories
momentous events More about me Technology University studies Work

A new ‘toy’

This coming Thursday and Friday, I will be attending a conference on iPad use in education, as the guest of Derek Bartels, Head of ICT at Lutheran Euducation, Queensland. Majorly cool stuff.
Unfortunately though, although for the past year I have been the proud owner of a MacBook Pro and an iPod Touch (last year’s “Back to Uni deal”) and for the last two months, the extremely proud owner of an iPhone 4S (the unfortunate loss of my LG Xenon meant that I needed a replacement, and what else was I meant to get – seriously??!) I had not extended my I-collection to include an iPad.

Owly Images

A difficult situation could therefore have arisen… but… I’ve managed to avoid it. I’m currently blogging from a $580 credit purchase. And loving it! LOL!!! (I’d say that maybe this is fairly appropriate for Valentine’s Day, but that may just give the wrong idea to my Hubby…!)

Categories
More about me Random thoughts teaching Work

On learning patience

I am not a patient person.

Source: google.com via Camille on Pinterest

Actually, I would consider myself a very impatient person. I dislike waiting. I dislike explaining myself over and over. I dislike being in a situation where I perceive my time to be ‘being wasted’.

I see this as a significant personality flaw, and try to be conscious of when I am being abrupt with others. But some days try me more than others.

On Tuesday of this week, I taught Prep. I repeated this yesterday. The same class – which made it easier as I knew some of their names. The kids, as a whole, were lovely children, and I did find the days enjoyable – although exhausting.

But what I found difficult to comprehend was the extremely poor level of “academic” knowledge of some of these children. Several of them, at 5 or even 6 years old, could not even identify their letters, and couldn’t answer what sound they made. Some would answer “nnnn” for the letter ‘P’ or would pronounce “S” with a ‘d’. And they seemed completely confused by the whole concept of letters, sounds, and words.

I was flabbergasted. As a mum of three young ones myself, and (I admit with major embarrassment) someone who only taught her eldest capital letters prior to her own entry to Prep 2 years ago, I realise now the importance of equipping your child – and doing it properly. Miss 7 had to “relearn” each letter, and that’s something I’m determined to rectify with my younger two cherubs. But as for these Prep children this week – it was as if the whole alphabet was a foreign concept! And that brings me back to the idea of patience.

I’m glad I’m a ‘High School’ teacher. I doubt I’d have the patience to teach younger children all day every day. But then again, it’s the constancy of the activity that has the most effect. It’s the pressure on the coal that turns it into a diamond; the regularity of a water drip that will form a trickle, then a stream, then the mighty waterfall.

Perhaps it’s not that I *need* to practice patience to be a better person, it’s that the situations I find myself in, where I must demonstrate patience, will form in me the traits that I desire.

Or perhaps I should not wish “patience” for myself – as there’s only one way that I will learn it!

Categories
family anecdotes Random thoughts Work

Exhaustion plus.

Source: flickr.com via Jessica on Pinterest

Ever had one of those weekends when you finally get there and just ‘stop’?! Where your week has been just SOOOOOO busy that you haven’t had time to just sit? And you haven’t really noticed if you’ve eaten, or slept? Well, that’s been my week this week.

Starting last Saturday, I woke up sick. As in, the non-stop dry cough kind. Sunday, this became a back-ache so bad I could hardly move, and spent the day flat on my back. This is extremely unusual for me, a person who is often told that she ‘never stops’. I was actually really quite worried, because I knew how huge the coming week was, and I just didn’t know how I’d survive it all if I couldn’t even walk! But God is good, and I was able to stand by Sunday night, and walk again by Monday morning. Thankfully! But the upshot of a day in bed was that I read ‘People of Heaven’ by Beverly Harper, which was rather reminiscent of Bryce Courtenay’s writings about Peekay and Tandia. An interesting story, but I’m not sure whether the author should have included so much history ‘tacked on’ in places, without being directly relevant to the plot. Nevertheless, a good way to spend a day in which you can hardly move.

Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday were a blur of work, podiatry appointments, childcare, swimming lessons, driving, and non-stop rain. On Wednesday afternoon, I pulled Miss 7 out of school early, planning to buy school shoes at Athlete’s Foot, Morayfield… only to discover that their store had closed, and the closest was at Caloundra. So the kids played with my iPhone camera while we waited in line at BUPA, to get some of the huge amounts of money back from the Podiatry appointment. And be yet more disappointed, because our Health Cover didn’t do much covering. And yet again, it was a day of poor health choices food-wise.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thursday was Australia Day. A day of not ‘having’ to go anywhere. When asked that morning, I had told Hubby that I wanted to spend the day hanging pictures, now that I had finally bought myself a Wall Stud Finder. Instead, seeing as the rain had stopped, we took the kids to a crowded Kings Beach Pool, ate a fish-and-chips lunch, then took a lovely long drive. Mr 2 immediately fell asleep, and the girls played with home-made ‘helicopters’ made out of sandals and sunnies. Quite cute.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The rain returned that night, so on Friday morning I changed my plans and spent the day at home. It was splendiferous. Hubby and Miss 7 eventually made it to school, but not before being caught in the parking lot that was the Bruce Highway southbound, at Caboolture. And I caught up on work. Housework. Laundry. Dishes. Hanging those pictures. Filing. Blogging for Bloxham Marketing. Oh – and playing with iBooks Author, now that I’d upgraded to the Lion OS and lamented my touchpad now going backwards.

So. That was my week. Huge. And now I get to stop. Hooray!!!!!

Categories
#blog5daysAustenese Random thoughts Work

#blog5daysAustenese – Day Three

The dreaded parcel of educational books arrived yesterday morning, ending all my hopes for an uninterrupted day engaged in work. Time spent inspecting, naming, and covering was to be my unenviable and time-consuming morning duties. Little consolation lay in the fact that my book-covering efforts were being repeated the width and breadth of this great nation. Miss 6, the child for whom this book-covering process was centered around, was of some assistance when the decoration of same was called for, however her attention being ofttimes taken from her task by the variety of diverting activities of her younger siblings, her efforts proved to be rather a hindrance and an ineffectual aid.

Forced to remain indoors by the insistent rain, rather than take a turn about the garden, the children’s enthusiastic antics, when confined in the smallness of the house, were an added encumbrance. It is of no surprise, therefore, that my spirits were low and my thoughts were more maudlin than previously was my wont.

Indeed, my thoughts inevitably turned to the conundrum before me. The irony that lay in the circumstance being that, although I detest my annual chore that is the covering of my daughter’s school books, the chosen profession that I am currently studying for is that of Librarian. A profession, it can be reasonably assumed, owing to the large numbers of books a Librarian keeps custody over, which calls for the covering of a multitude of books, on a more regular basis than that of an annual chore.

Interesting, is it not? That one’s choice of profession often contains tasks for which we require payment, if we are to agree to endure said tasks with any degree of tolerance? It leads me to ponder what horrid tasks must my readers endure, and only because of the mostly-reasonable monetary compensation?

*********************************

Dear reader, if this is the first time you have visited, the above is the third post (of five) that attempts to recreate my day’s activities using the writing style of Jane Austen. There are currently four others also completing this challenge, and their efforts are published below:

@jobeaz, blogging at Macaronic

@Girlwithshoess, blogging at Justgirlwithshoes

@kalgrl, blogging at Feral Librarian Tales

@jzgarnett, blogging at Randomly Yours, Julia

 

Categories
#blog12daysxmas Random thoughts teaching Technology

Oh, the joys!

On New Year’s Day, hubby and I took the kids to Bribie Island for the day, with some good friends and their three children. Afterwards, we ate at their place, and Miss 3 found Wall-E, a v-tech toy that belonged to the other family’s Mr 7. He was more than happy for her to borrow it for a little while, so for the past five days we’ve been regaled with all the sounds that accompany the dozen-odd educational games he plays.

I also instituted a new house *rule* recently, as I was completely and utterly OVER the wastage of food by my own three gorgeous cuties, at meal time. Miss 6 and Miss 3 currently earn pocket money (Mr 2 will start this as well, when he becomes Mr 3 in a couple of months) and they love spending it on whatever takes their fancy. But now, to teach them the value of food, if they leave any food – for example, crusts on their plate after their morning toast – then they *pay* me whatever amount equates to the amount that is left. Sometimes it’s 5 cents, sometimes 10 cents – and boy they learned to not eat a huge morning tea the day that they both left half their lunch, and had to pay back 25 cents each! Some might be horrified at me for my ruthlessness, but boy! it’s working! There’s a LOT less food wastage since they’ve learned that food costs money!

The thing is though, I’ve started paying them pocket money in 5 cent pieces, instead of 10 cent pieces. Which is no real biggie to Miss 6, but is quite the novelty to Miss 3. And her interest in all things ‘money’ led her to pretend that Wall-E was a short, kid’s version, of an ATM.

Long story sort, my friend’s Mr 7’s expensive v-tech Wall-E now has several 5 cent pieces floating around his insides.

Whoops!!!

 

Categories
#blog12daysxmas Work

Day “the number after that” of #blog12daysxmas

That’s abbreviated from Tigger. When he’s counting for Hide and Seek, he says “1, 2, the number after two…” And although I probably should go back and check what number #blogdays12xmas we’re up to, I honestly don’t have the energy. Please forgive me! But I’m pretty sure that we’re not up to (or past!) 12 yet, so I think I’m pretty safe. And I’ll check the number for tomorrow. I promise!

So today’s first thought was about Max, my Labrador who Hubby and I buried yesterday morning. But tweets from friends helped – and then it was straight into work before I even knew what was happening! And there, I’ve finally gotten off my rear end and set up a twitter account and facebook page for Bloxham Marketing. So now I’m feeling more “official” – and more able to look my clients in the eye when I talk about digital marketing. (I’ve been doing it for my clients, burt not for my own business! D’Oh!)

Today was also all about planning for the year ahead. The months ahead. The weeks ahead. The days this week. 

Boy, it’s good to get the ball rolling!

Categories
#blog12daysxmas Random thoughts Work

Day Two and I’m on track…

Well after a bit of a mixed-up start, it’s still Boxing Day for a few more hours, so I’m managing to blog Day 2 of #blog12daysxmas on the second day of Christmas. Which is cool – but I doubt I’ll be writing much. I’m exhausted, (courtesy Master Two and a 4.35am start,) but trying to stay awake by watching The Glades while waiting for Harry’s Law at 9.30. But it’s tough – I keep on yawning, nodding off etc and I’ve eaten too much.

Last year’s #blog12daysxmas, I wrote about the song. This year I plan on being more reflective – something I’m learning, though slowly, to enjoy. And today was a perfect day to reflect. The kids and I went Boxing Day shopping early, and left by 10 from a very full car park, to explore the wonders of “Wet Side” at Hervey Bay. For those of you who’ve been there, you know how fantastic it is for kids. For those of you who haven’t, it’s like a fountain. On steroids. Lots and lots and lots of steroids! Unfortunately though, Master Two took a bit of a stumble, and clonked the very base of his nose (as in, where it meets his upper lip) so hard that his nose kept bleeding for some time. Poor kid. So we retreated to the safety of the adjacent beach. Which started at low tide, and kept getting lower and lower and lower. So mud flats and rock pools kept the kids busy for the rest of the day. Leaving me time to crotchet. And think.

I like being self-employed. I like being “Mistress of my own destiny”. I absolutely LOVE the fact that hubby has a brilliant, well-paying job that allows me to experiment like this. I’m enjoying the independence. The responsibility. The challenges. The learning curves. Thirty-seven-and-a-half and I feel like I’m finally “growing up”.

It’s taken a while!

Categories
#blog12daysxmas Uncategorized University studies Work

So it’s been a while…

I knew I hadn’t blogged in awhile. I just hadn’t realized that it was three months worth of ‘while’! I guess it’s a bit of an indication of how busy I’ve been. Busy with kids, with hubby, with growth in my business (which has its own name now, rather than being just part of my own personal ABN,) busy with the 7th (of 12) course in my Masters, and other general stuff at home – cubby house movement and garden bed rearranging being the main focus of the September school holidays.
On the work front, I’ve created a campaign for the St Paul’s Christmas holidays, a campaign for the expanded St James Kindy, and compiled a 2011 yearbook that was twice the size of its 2010 counterpart. And I’ve also started (almost daily) blogging for Bloxham Marketing, which has been fun. Phew! Nuff said.
And that brings us to the Christmas holidays, and the memory of last year’s #blog12daysxmas – which was my real foray into the world of blogging in the first place.
So now I’m wondering if I’m up for the challenge this year. Or even if there IS a #blog12daysxmas challenge this year!

Categories
Random thoughts Work

Catching up

So today I played catch up. I’ve been majorly neglecting sleeping, eating properly, and just the usual run-of-the-mill stuff that I always neglect, those of you who know me IRL. So today was catch up day. I washed clothes. I washed dishes. I shopped for food (and caught up on some sleep in the car while Hubby drove!) I cooked food. I cleaned various parts of the house. I even noticed a headache that didn’t want to shift. (It had probably been there for days, but I’ve been too busy to notice!) I started filing the never-ended mountain of paperwork that seems to be getting even bigger now I’ve scored the marketing consultancy at St James in Hervey Bay. (Absolutely BRILLIANT school, by the way!!! Really going places; it’s got an excellent team at the top – visionaries who also know how to successfully implement that vision. Which is pretty rare. And I’ve been in and around a LOT of schools! FYI, did you know that EVERY kid from Year 7 up has an iPod Touch which they use – in every curriculum area?! How cool is THAT?!!!)

And catching up on stuff today allowed me quite a bit of time for introspection. Which is cool. I’m starting to not mind the whole ‘figure out who I am’. And today’s thinking was in the context of my work life. Brought about courtesy of Craig Hewlett, President of 101.5 FM, who invited me to do a DJ-ing course at his station, yesterday. He seems to think that I’ve got a good voice for radio. (Poor guy had to listen to me for 6 hours straight at the St Paul’s Spring Fair Teen Space yesterday, and that probably addled his brains!) Anyway, he was pretty serious about the offer – it’s a paid course, and he offered to sponsor me to do it! How cool is that! Unfortunately, I had to say no (for the time being). Even though I’m always up for a challenge, even I think that adding something like that to my life would just be stupid. After all, I have 3 kids, and my eldest is 6; I run a website, a tutoring business and I’m the QLD distributor for another business; and then I’m working pretty much full-time as the Marketing consultant to two schools. Oh, and somewhere in there I’m also managing to find the time to study for my Masters in IT. (So stoked about finishing that 40%er last Thursday!!! And a HUGE thank you to Tony Wilson, QUT’s Marketing and Communication Director, for permission to use that awesome quote of his!!!) Which leads me to believe that, although working as a radio DJ would be such a cool thing to do, maybe now might not be the time to consider it. (Oh, and did I also mention I’ve been invited to join the Golden Key International Honour Society?! Pretty chuffed!)

So anyway, today I got stuff done. Not that I haven’t been getting stuff done recently, but today’s was different stuff. And that’s cool. By the way, I particularly dislike filing.