What Real Life Looks Like

It is so easy to create a false world in cyberspace. It can seem like everyone else is coping well with life and raising picture-perfect families. Well, I'm here to put up my hand and say I'm not picture-perfect. Here are just a few examples of what real life looks like for us:

We have had frequent unpleasant incidents relating to free-range (not wearing a nappy) babies/toddlers and bowel movements. No, I will not go into detail.

My children sometimes pick their noses.

I lose my temper. That doesn't make it OK - it's something I'm working on overcoming.

My interpretation of the terms "regularly and efficiently" in regard to how we cover the eight key learning areas in our state's curriculum is very loose. Mostly, we do maths and english and survive... just. No fabulous science experiments (we've done one this year - putting a container of salt water on a window sill to evaporate - yay for me!), no delving passionately into history, no incredible art programs. Truly. Just maths and english.

My children often stare blankly at people who speak to them. I am teaching them that the polite thing to do when someone asks "how are you?" is to answer them.

Large expanses of my ceiling are covered in fly spots.

I often feed my children bread and butter for lunch. In fact, that and a piece of fruit is our staple diet for lunches.

My eating habits are often terrible - involving copious amounts of carbohydrates and nowhere near enough fruit. I'm seriously working on this one too.

I have had to ring the poisons hotline many times. So far we have escaped serious consequences.

We don't always wash our hands when we should.

Some days I just don't want to be touched.

And there's plenty of other stuff that I'm just not willing to write in such a public "place"...

The point is, real life is often dirty and messy and loud and uncomfortable. Real character comes from real life, though, not glossy magazines. Reading about other people's lives often makes me feel pathetic and inadequate, but that's OK, because I need to centre my life around growing through Christ, not living up to arbitrary standards that I make up based on other people's lives.

So that's me, keeping it real.