Skin deep

I have been cursed with super sensitive skin. I get eczema, rosacea and urticaria. It's not fun, but something I rarely think about now as it's the way it's always been. Most products irritate my skin, so I always mainly just use boring old sorbolene or QV.

When I was a teen, I went to fancy facials using expensive French products which I was told was 'perfect for sensitive skin' and I would walk out with my face red and on fire. This would last for days. Eventually gave up my quest for 'grown up beauty' and stuck to the old boring stuff.

Even most natural products make my skin burn, especially if they have any kind of essential oil in it. So sweetly scented doesn't happen too much in this household.

Since my girls were born I haven't ever used much product on them besides some fragrance-free shampoo every now and then and Johnson's Fragrance-free wipes. At many times during my adult life, I have used Johnson's Baby Shampoo as it doesn't react with my scalp and when my scalp is irritated is generally the only one I can use. So when Kidspot Baby Club sent me a hamper of Johnson's Baby products to trial I was interested to check them out.

The three products in the hamper that I would feel confident purchasing were the Johnson's Baby Soothing Naturals Moisture-Rich Bath, it didn't react to my skin and the girls' skin was really moisturised after their bath. The Soothing Naturals Daily Moisturiser, it has an SPF 15 and was nice on my skin, I would actually use it on myself probably more often than my kids. The fragrance-free wipes have always been a staple in the house, I have always loved their texture and they never irritate the girls.

I still probably won't buy skin products for my girls that often as I think nothing beats sorbolene, but every once in a while it's nice. Though, I will still probably be washing my hair with Johnson's Baby Shampoo when I'm 80!

Do you suffer from sensitive skin? Do you struggle to find products that make you feel good?

Movie magic

Seeing Toy Story 3 at the movies and catching Storm Boy on the box (thanks to Beth at BabyMac) over the weekend had me thinking about all those films I have grown to love over the years. One of my favourite things to do with my girls is snuggle down to watch a movie with them, watching them as they stare at the screen in wonder.

I have a whole treasure trove of classics that I can't wait to share with them as they get older.

I started thinking about the movies I loved as a kid and came up with a few of my favourites:

Willy Wonka and The Chocolate Factory

Raggedy Ann and Andy

Bedknobs and Broomsticks

The Sound of Music

Anne of Green Gables

Grease

Annie

The Parent Trap

National Velvet

What were your favourite movies as a kid?

Sunday

Well the weekend is almost over and we survived, pretty nicely actually.

Friday night, I met Skip in town for sushi and a flick. An Aussie film, Animal Kingdom, a Melbourne crime movie that is said to be a work of fiction, but in my eyes was without a doubt based on the Pettingill family and the Walsh St murders. It was good, but very grim.

Saturday, Skip woke up sick, so the girls and I went to swimming and the park opening festivities without him.  We had a fun full-on day, being all community-minded having sausage sangas with the mayor and chatting with the neighbours. The girls ran around like lunatics playing with all the local kids.

At the last-minute, the girls went for a sleep-over with their Nan. Which meant pizza on the lounge, no bath-dinner-book-bed fiasco and, most importantly, a full night's sleep! I woke on my own steam and it was daylight outside! I can't remember the last time I woke after the sun was rising.

After a leisurely breakfast just the two of us, we took the girls to Toy Story 3, and the girls loved it. I was so impressed that they survived a half-hour of ads and the feature with little fuss. It's was Goosey's first ever trip to the movies and she was quite taken with the whole experience. The movie was great, though a little darker than the first two.

So, now it's Sunday night and for a change I feel rested, relaxed and ready to tackle the week.

Miscarriage is not a dirty word

Last week, I wrote up a story about my first pregnancy which I lost. When it happened the only thing I'd heard about miscarriages were whispers about friends of friends. No-one I knew (or as far as I was aware) had had a miscarriage. I knew about them, but I thought they happened to an unfortunate few.

So, when it happened to me I was devastated, terrified and convinced something was wrong with me. Skip and I wondered to each other if we'd ever have a baby. We'd pretty much told everyone that we were expecting, so everyone knew about the miscarriage and the way people reacted varied greatly, people were sad for us, of course, but there were those who ignored it and those who let us grieve. I discovered a lot about people at that time.

I was honest with everyone I came across about what had happened, which made some people uncomfortable and then there were the others who said: "Oh I/my wife/girlfriend, had a miscarriage too".

I was shocked and surprised. It was like there was this big dirty secret people couldn't or wouldn't share. Like it was something to be embarrassed about or something that wasn't appropriate to discuss. I felt outraged. I had lost a baby and I wasn't supposed to mention it in fear of upsetting people? All these people had had miscarriages and they too kept shush about it. Why? It seemed unfathomable to me to experience something that affects you so greatly and then deny it's happened.

Since then, unfortunately a large number of my friends have had miscarriages. I hope that my talking openly about mine helped them feel like they weren't alone, weren't a freak and it was possible to go on and have a healthy family. I wish that it was something that could be discussed more openly, instead of with hushed whispers.

When I fell pregnant again, we still told close family and friends before the 'magical 12th week'. I felt, that if it happened again, I'd want the support of friends and family. I know that not everyone is the same.

When I wrote my about my miscarriage here on my blog, I felt a brief flutter of worry about if I should post it in conjunction with Kidspot. Was I selling out a personal story? Then I realised the whole point of the Kidspot Baby Club is for woman to openly share their experiences, which I think is so, so important and why I agreed to support them in the first place. When I had my miscarriage it really helped to go online and read of others experiences on similar websites and know I wasn't alone, that it is a too common occurrence.  When I read the comments from those who came and told me about their miscarriages, I knew I'd made the right decision.

As the old cliche goes, knowledge is power and I think women should share their knowledge, their experiences – good and bad. I also know that a lot of women who have experienced miscarriage and stillbirth want their lost babies to be acknowledged and not thought of as a dirty secret.

Weekend watching

It's an exciting weekend in our household, for two reasons.

Firstly, the playground across the road is having it's grand opening. The mayor is throwing a sausage sizzle to mark the event. Finally, we have more to play on than an ancient swing set and creaky old see-saw.
My girls are ever so pleased.

Secondly, we are going to see Toy Story 3. My girls are OBSESSED with the Toy Story movies, so they are jumping out of their skins about seeing Buzz and the gang on the big screen. I'm kind of looking forward to it myself. Check out the clip below, they're so clever!




What are you doing this weekend?

Spreading the love

Recently, the always lovely Sharni from Sharnanigans asked if I would like to be a guest poster for her Friday Fertilizer. I was honoured to pick up the reins for her.

Each Friday, Sharni profiles a blog that she likes and this week she asked me to choose one of my favourites and write about it. I chose Pink Patent Mary Janes, one of my daily must-reads.

Go on over to Sharnanigans and have a read!

Weird moments

Isn't it funny how little points of references cross, memories and moments come back in a blurred muddle.

Yesterday, I wrote about my miscarriage and one of the strange little parts of the story I omitted was that at the hospital I shared the lift with a red-haired, suited woman. On that trip in the lift, I elbowed Skip and darted my eyes towards the woman who was chatting away with another man. It was a strange little high in a horrible moment.

It seems that this morning, that woman I shared the lift with will become Australia's first woman Prime Minister.

Loving moments

Almost five years ago, Skip and I decided it was time to start our family. We were newly married and were blissfully excited about having a little person in our lives.

Not long after, I discovered I was pregnant. We were ecstatic! So excited that we pretty much yelled the news from every mountain top. We planned, we dreamed and we chatted endlessly about the new bub. We booked into the hospital and did a tour and wondered what it would be like when we'd next be there (little did we know we'd be there sooner rather than later). Then 10-week mark came and we trotted off to our first obstetrician's appointment. After filling in all the forms, being poked, prodded, weighed and measured, it was time for an ultrasound.

The doctor made Skip wait outside for a moment. As he did the scan, I could tell things weren't right. He then took my hand and said: "I'm sorry, there's no heartbeat." I looked on the screen and saw the 'peanut', a grey, blurry blob on the screen.

Skip was called in and he came bounding in excited. As soon as he saw my face, his own face dropped. We sat in that ultrasound room for what felt like hours. I was booked into the hospital the following day for a D&C.

The next 24 hours were surreal. Pregnant, yet not. I don't remember much, except waking in the middle of the night sobbing. The pain in my heart made me realise one thing – I wanted a baby more than anything else.

Months passed and I nervously found I was pregnant again. There I was in that same room again. My heart was beating out of my chest. Every part of me tense, praying like hell that I wouldn't see that look on the doctor's face. The doctor turned and said: "There's the heartbeat." I'm sure I gasped out loud. I stared at that little 'peanut' with the flickering heart and I was filled with relief, joy and love.

Skip came in, nervously looking at me to see if things are OK. I can see him visibly sigh in relief. We were going to have a baby.

This was my very first loving moment as a mother, one of my most wonderful, yet bittersweet, memories. Now, whenever things get hard or I question what it's all about, I remember the pain in my heart and that overwhelming desire to hold my baby, and I know.

I was asked to write this post by Kidspot Baby Club, an online space where mums and mums-to-be can tell stories, ask questions, share their knowledge and support each other – day or night. Something that is essential for all mums at some stage of motherhood. There are also chances to win prizes, now who doesn't like that? Check it out.

Sign up!

I don't often get political on my blog, but this morning I received an email that grabbed my attention.

Prof John Mendoza was the head advisor to the Federal Government on mental health. He resigned his position last Friday, citing years of inaction. He is now gathering public support through a petition that he and other top mental health professionals will to give to Parliament tomorrow.


As a quote from the petition says: "Mental ill-health is the leading killer of Australians under 45, and the leading cause of disability in Australia. It's time our governments stepped up and invested in mental health care to save lives."


Visit here to sign the petition.


Prof Mendoza says:
"I call on the governments of Australia to act urgently and effectively to reform mental healthcare in Australia so that:
- there is no longer inequality of access to effective treatments between physical health and mental health
- early intervention is the norm;
- community based treatments are the norm; and
- quality services are the norm"


I'm sure most of us know or have known someone who's suffered from mental health issues, so throw your support behind this!

Moan, whinge, moan

Warning: This blog post is a "Woe is me" one. Full of whinging, moaning and a little touch of whining.


I wasn't going to write this post. Instead I was going to use my blog as an outlet to focus on the positive and hope that made me look on the bright side. Yesterday, I was joking to a fellow blogger about what kind of blog post I could make about my days at the moment and she replied: "At least it's real".

That was floating around my head all night last night, after all, I spent most of it out of my bed so had plenty of time to think about it. I decided yes, maybe it was time to have a moan. Let it be an antidote to the horrid Facebook statuses I read along the lines of: "My two wonderful children slept soundly until 8.30am, got up and found the cure for cancer while cooking me a gourmet lunch. Gorgeous hubby then came home with French champagne and roses and gave me a foot massage. Does life get any better?"

No, that's not a real status, but when you've had a crap time, some of them may as well read like that and are a dagger to your self confidence.

As you may have gathered, I'm having a bit of a rough time at the moment. It's like someone flicked a switched and my girls suddenly turned into these full-on, crazy kids with no "off" button. They have been causing havoc non-stop from 5am until 7.30pm. To add to it, Lil-lil has developed an awful rash, that my GP has no idea about. When I called the dermatologist I was told: "Oh she has no more appointments this year, she'll be opening up her book for next year in August." Fabulous! The poor little thing gets to suffer while I'm told, it's not that serious.

Lil-lil has decided to bolt every time we go out in public, which is just delightful. Little blonde moppet diving under shopping trolleys, darting between old ladies, squealing with delight as I scream like a fishermonger's wife. An almost two-year-old in one arm, shopping in the other, chasing and yelling at the three-year-old who's having the best time ever.

A recent trip to the chemist to buy Lil-lil rash cream, ended as I went to pay. As I approached the register both kids bolt in opposite directions – Goosey with a box of pasta she's chewed open, fusili spirals spilling behind her; Lil-lil pulling sale tickets off the shelves, dragging boxes of lotions and potions to the ground. I'm trying to pay, grab them and get the hell out of there. Customers are looking on in disbelief at the chaos they are causing.

Things like this are happening constantly. The said rash cream ended up being later used as paint, the contents smeared over the wall as I attempted to wash up the breakfast dishes. Oh, was I pleased, I got to take the girls back to the chemist to buy the cream again! Joy!

I spend my whole day arguing, negotiating, cajoling, yelling, screaming. Yesterday, after an hour and a half of trying to get them dressed, I collapsed in tears. Fed up. Trying to get a screaming almost two-year-old into something that resembles clothes who then runs off and tears of any item of clothing I got on her. Dealing with a three-year-old in tears because she will only wear a skirt and there are no clean ones. When I attempt to put her in jeans, she yells: "But I'm not a BOOOOOYYYYY!"

Every time I attempt to do something around the house, I have to rescue a toddler from the back of the lounge who's trying to fly like Buzz Lightyear; pull her out of the fridge as she eats butter by the handful; grab her as she's pulled a chair to the kitchen bench and trying to juggle the knives; ripping up books; drawing on walls; emptying the pots full of bulbs we've just planted, etc, etc, etc. While writing this I've had to break up two fights, clean up cream that was spilt as it was pulled out of the fridge and stop youngest child squishing avocado into the rug. Of course, this has all been soundtracked with a chorus of whining.

If my day involved one or two of these incidents, perhaps I could cope better. But when it's like this the whole day long, I can't cope. To make matters worse, I am up umpteen times a night to them too. Finding lost teddy bears, blankets, re-tucking, sitting in the freezing cold, gradually seeing any chance of getting some shut-eye disappear with the ticks of the clock. I'm so desperately tired. So desperately worn out. So desperately fed up.

I want to be a calm, happy, blissful mum. Instead I feel anger, resentment and exhaustion. I know that me being frazzled probably makes the kids worse. I have tried the walking out of the room, deep breaths, thing. I keep getting pushed to the parenting edge though. The past week I haven't had any respite at all. It's been me, me, me and it's not pretty. I haven't had a single minute without at least one child in days. Last night, I caught the last half hour of Shawshank Redemption before collapsing in bed, Morgan Freeman's character uttered: "Every man has a breaking point." and I thought "Amen! I think I'm close to mine.". Then when Tim Robbins character gets sent to a month of solitary confinement, I thought: "How nice. All that peace and quiet. Plenty of time to catch up on sleep. Meals brought to you. Sure it's just bread and water, but I often don't get a chance to eat more than that for lunch anyway."

I know that my life is not bad. In fact, I'm blessed. Still, it's exhausting, tiring and having a minute to myself just to sit and be seems like a luxury that is a long way off. Sometimes the few moments I grab to write on this blog are the only times I have to be me. Corinne. Not Muuuuuuuummmmmmmm, Mummy, Mama. It's a few moments to remember that I'm a person and not a house cleaning, child rearing, night nannying, meal making, nappy changing, bum wiping robot.

I'm hopeful that by getting all this out of my head, it will clear the way for a better, calmer me. A better, calmer household. Though, today is Tuesday and in about one hour I'm going to have to get a screaming three-year-old into her cossie for her swimming lessons. It ain't going to be pretty.

Point & shoot

12.45pm, Saturday, 19 June . Skip and Goosey check out the parade ring, Rosehill Racecourse.

Skip and I took the girls to the races on Saturday. It was a glorious winter's day, the sun shining and the sky a perfect shade of blue. The girls were a little overwrought from a week jam-packed full of excitement, so we didn't stay the whole day. It was a very nice way to spend the afternoon.

Click to take part in Fat Mum Slim's Point & Shoot.

Party perfection

The party was a great success! The 'Nam kids loved their first bites of fairy bread and chocolate crackles. The Aussie kids loved having their cousins around to scream, yell, dance and jump with. All in all, it was a blast. I think my mum especially liked seeing all her grandchildren together, a very rare occurrence.

There were a few 'Lord of the Flies' moments by the early evening, but that's not completely unexpected with the amount of sugar and pink food colouring consumed.

Today we're off to the zoo to see some koalas and kangaroos and enjoy the sunshine!

(Please excuse the dodgy pics that were taken on my phone and, no, unfortunately it wasn't me that made the fab cake. I have to give the honour to my friend Fiona. Who does make cakes professionally, if anyone in the Sydney region is keen!)

Three pink princesses

We survived our brush with concussion yesterday and things are relatively back to normal now. Though excitement is reaching fever pitch, as tomorrow is my Vietnamese niece's birthday and we're hosting a birthday party for her.

My girls are ultra-excited about having a girl cousin around to play with. They love their boy cousins, but having another pinky is just a bit spesh. So, today we're in party planning mode. We are going to make sure we have all those Aussie party staples, such as fairy bread and chocolate crackles, but the girls have insisted there is a princess theme. So, we have a princess Barbie cake being made, pink balloons and today I spotted tutu skirts on sale and I couldn't resist picking up three – in pale pink, dark pink and purple.

It's going to be a prissy, pink, princessy party and they are going to love it!

Falling flat

Well, I know it's normal for people to fall flat after a long, relaxing weekend, but my little Goosey decided to literally fall flat. Straight after she awoke this morning she tried to run and fell flat on her face, not even breaking her fall.

We then had a drowsy, woozy, vomiting toddler on our hands, so it was straight to emergency, where we spent the next six hours where she was kept under observation. The poor little thing stumbled round like a drunk, vomited again and slept – she fit in with a lot of the other patients at RPA.

Thankfully, we had a wonderful doctor who was concerned about her and was amazed when the irritable, woozy child turned into a happy, cheeky girl within a few hours.

Not the greatest start to the week, but thankfully our gorgeous girl is OK.

Time flies

You know you're old when life starts racing past you like a steam train. Over the past couple of days, I've been reminded just how fast time seems to be flying past me. Sixteen years since I finished school, surely not. Five years since I last saw my sister-in-law and nephew, not possible. Almost two years since my baby was born, can't be true, but at least it does explains the back-chatting little person wandering round my house.

When you're a kid time is endless. It's a bounty of endless wonder. Summer holidays last a lifetime and it's always an age between Christmas and your birthday. Nowadays, weeks fly past like days and years are over before you know it. Whoosh, what was that? Oh, it was May flying over my shoulder and most of June whooshing past my ear.

Once upon a time, time was like sand in the Sahara, truly more than enough of it and it didn't matter if it got blown away in the wind. Now it's a precious commodity that I want to bottle, not waste a precious drop.

This weekend is a lovely long weekend, with barely any dates scheduled. So, it's a luxury to watch the hands of the clock tick by, snuggle with my girls, laugh with my husband, get to know my niece and nephew, catch up with old friends. Mostly it's a chance to catch my breath and take note of the minutes, hours, days, weeks, months and years that are whizzing past.

A family affair

I'm a little excited tonight, tomorrow my brother and his family are jetting in from Vietnam. My big brother has lived there for about 8 years now and added a wife and two kids along the way.

It's going to be an extra exciting reunion as it will be the first time my girls have met their Vietnamese cousins and the first time that I have met my niece (who happens to have the same name as a particularly diva-ish super model).

They will be here for around a month, but will be travelling around the country to visit friends for some of the time. We'll be having a special break away down the south coast though,  my mum, two of my brothers and their wives and all six cousins will get to frolic, talk, chat, laugh, eat, drink. I can't wait, it's going to be a blast.

Do you have family who live a long way away?

There's something strange afoot at the Circle K

Do you ever have the feeling that things are about to change? Things are going to get shaken up?
That the rut is about to get broken?

I have that feeling today. I don't know why or how, I just feel like there's something afoot. There are some small, interesting things happening in my life at the moment (which I'll tell you about very soon), but I feel like there's something major on the horizon. Which I must admit I'm a little excited about as the rut has been there for too long.

Who knows, I could be completely wrong. Let's just hope that if it does happen it's all good stuff.

Buyster 200 posts winner

Well, it's time to announce the winner of my Buyster giveaway.

And the winner is...... (drumroll, please)

mum/toddler/babe

Congratulations, if you'd like to email me your details, I will organise your prize.

Thanks to everyone for reading and entering!


Image by Kriss Szkurlatowski.

Magic Monday morning

This morning the girls and I were up early, as usual. We headed up to the Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park where my dad lives. After a warming cuppa, we stepped out on his boat and chugged around the Hawkesbury. The sun was shining, the sky was blue – a rarity in Sydney at the moment. It was so nice to just potter around and be, waving to the odd boat that passed on a quiet Monday morning.

The girls begged Grandpa to: "Go faster!" So we went faster, the wind blowing our hair and the cobwebs away. We stopped at Brooklyn for coffee, babycinos and scones and lounged in the sun. We then fanged back and the girls promptly fell asleep in my arms, despite the bumpy waters, icy winds and bulky life jackets. 

After we arrived back to the house and we recharged with vegemite sangas, Grandpa entertained the girls with some clarinet playing. They giggled in delight, twirled and skipped. When his serenade was over, Lil-lil remarked: "That was so beautiful, Grandpa."

A nicer Monday morning, I can't imagine.

PS – Don't forget to enter my giveaway that ends at midnight tonight. 

Hits and misses

Well, isn't it amazing how quickly good news can often turn to bad. You may remember I recently told you of the good fortune that arrived in my inbox. I haven't even received the cash yet and misfortune has arrived in the very same inbox.

A hired assassin has contacted me to let me know that there is a contract out on my life. Yes, someone is trying to kill me. All I have to do is give this hitman $30,000 and he'll spare my life. Apparently he has been watching me and decided that I'm innocent of the charges my would-be killer accuses me of. Goodness, who would've thought that someone would want to kill a blogging mother of two. Thankfully for me, the person who wants to rub me out hired a hitman with a conscience. He's told me not to tell anyone (I'm sure he won't mind if I tell you guys) and I'm not allowed after 7.30pm.

Now I don't have $30,000, but I have won a bit on the blogosphere lately, do you think he'd accept a cookbook, some movie tickets and a book voucher? Here's hoping.

Have a good weekend!

Sister madly

Look at this gorgeous pic of my two girls. I didn't really know what to expect when I had two girls, especially ones just 20 months apart. I only have brothers who are 10 and 7 years older and 12 years younger than me. So my daughters' world and relationship is completely foreign to me.

I'd seen the sisterly relationships others had and it was always pretty special. A built-in best friend, who you could share secrets and clothes with, giggle at bedtime with, gossip with, bicker with.

The relationship my two have has exceeded all my hopes a million fold. They simply adore each other. Sure they fight, they pinch and hair pull, they wrestle and screech, but most of the time they just want to be together. They drive me mad when they fight and I try to break it up as I usually get a: "Don't be mean to my sister!". They are at their happiest when they are together.

Every morning, when they wake they give each other the biggest hug – ready to start the day's adventures together. On the rare occasions when they're not together, they pine for each other. When they're reunited they have the most hilarious conversations: "How was the park?" "Good, how was swimming?" "Good, I saw my friends." "Oh wow! That's great"

I'm envious of their closeness, but it makes me so happy to know that for the rest of their lives they will have each other and are going to share so many moments together. I was reminded of this when I read BabyMac's gorgeous post about her sister.

I can't wait to see what their future holds together. A whole bundle of girly, twirly fun I'm sure!

At the art of the matter

I'm a very lucky person. I'm surrounded by intelligent, interesting and creative people who make my existence a very enjoyable one. So many of my friends and family have great lives where they are able to watch their dreams blossom. I'm often knocked off my feet at what these wonderful folk achieve.

One such friend is someone I've known for many, many years, in fact, we started school together. Her name is Michele and at that time, I never imagined that 28 years later she would be a fully fledged artist, creating beautiful work and displaying it often. Michele has been passionate about art for as long as I've known her and she had an incredible opportunity this year when she took up an artist residency for six months. Yes, six months to spend in a gorgeous studio and simply paint and draw. It's been a once-in-a-lifetime experience for her and one she has relished.

Unfortunately for her, her residency is coming to an end. Fortunately for the rest of us, we get to see what she's created over the past six months in her upcoming exhibition.

Here are some images from her studio that Michele has kindly shared with me.

So if you happen to be in Sydney in early June, I urge you to go and see Michele's work. I'm certain you won't be disappointed, plus the gallery at Primose Park will introduce you to a wonderful little part of Sydney most people don't know about.

Spirit of Place

June 5 - 11; 9am-5pm

Primose Park Gallery

Matora Lane (off Young St) Cremorne

Visit Michele's blog tiny trappings 

Happy 200 posts to me! A little something for you

Wow, 200 posts who would have though it? Who would believe there are still people reading!

It's been quite a ride, there has been posts on everything from cups of tea to AC/DC. There have been moments of quiet contemplation and moments of pure silliness. Still you lovely people have been there commenting and encouraging. In the words of a great Australian bogan Jeff Fenech (people he did name his son after Beau Brady in Days of our Lives): I love youse all!

So to celebrate and to thank you I have a little surprise for one of my readers. The lovely people at Buyster will give one of my readers a $50 voucher for their online store. If you don't know about Buyster, it's an online homeware shop where you can purchase rugs, lighting, indoor and outdoor furniture, entertainment stands and lots more. So if you're thinking of giving your home an update, then this prize is for you! Unfortunately, this giveaway is only available to Australian residents.

To enter, tell me below how A Day in the Life makes [or breaks] your day.
Entries close 11.59pm, Monday, June 7, 2010.