Me & Mine: A Family Portrait Project 2015 - September

The highlight of September was travelling to my hometown of Portland, Oregon. People ask me what I miss most about the USA and my answer is always my family. My loving parents, siblings and close friends.

I feel very blessed to live in this moment in history when you can video conference with your loves ones from around the world with just a push of the button. My children heard the sound of their grandparents' voice within days of being born but the first hugs took a little longer. From the time we woke in the early hours in England until we went to sleep in the USA it was almost 24 hours but it was worth it. My parents got to hug their grandson for the first time and see how much their granddaughter had grown. It had been almost a year since I had hugged my mother and father.

My children got to play with their auntie and uncle. Visit with their Great-Grandmother and also spend a fun afternoon with my very special friends.  There was lots of yummy food, a colourful cake to celebrate my son's monthly birthday, and toy stores to explore.

The best part of the trip was just being together as a family and just relaxing. We spent a couple days at the beach and it was so refreshing to listen to the ocean and just to breathe fresh air. It is wonderful to have two grandparents around to take some of the "parenting" pressure off. It was amazing to have a washer and dryer to do quick washes of clothes. There is nothing like a kitchen and fridge filled with your favourite treats. 

I often come back from my trip to see my family in Oregon and want to book the next flight but life is not that simple. I am just so blessed to have a supportive loving husband, parents and in-laws that are healthy and well. 

What is the on agenda for October? I have decided to make a couple changes in my self-employment work. I will be finishing my work with a current business, focusing more on this blog, and looking at a couple new professional opportunities. The "big family" project that we are working on is focused on our home. Recently, I have decided that most my anxiety in life comes from a home that is unorganised and uninspiring. We spend to much of our days looking for items that we have misplaced. My daughter loves to create bags of random items on go on imaginary adventures but sometimes items get lost for months. I have a list of tasks for each room and looking forward to doing a little decorating. My husband's main contribution is watching the children while I finish off my day's task and listening to my ideas. This week's task is clothes. I will probably cry but it is time to give away the majority of my daughter's baby/toddler clothes. Don't worry too much because my daughter's dolls and teddies need some clothes so not all the outgrown clothes will be going to a new homes. The truth is that majority of the items in my home I would not miss if they disappeared tomorrow. I truly only need my children and husband to feel at home. 

Thank you for visiting and Happy October!