iBlog Friday - our weekly roundup of Aussie bloggers

At iVillage we’re passionate about supporting Australian bloggers. That’s why we’ve created iBlog Friday.

It's a chance for bloggers to introduce their favourite post of the week to iVillage readers and for our community to read what Aussie writers are up to.

Here are the bloggers who have sent their submissions this week. Happy reading and have a great weekend.

Naomi Cotterill of (Not) Just A Mummy talks about her attempt to reconnect to the concepts of thankfulness and gratitude amidst the whirlwind of marriage and motherhood.

The general idea behind consciously expressing thankfulness or gratitude for the super sweet stuff in your life is rooted in the positive thinking school of thought and the concept that our thoughts help to reinforce not just what we do and how we feel, but the kind of life we attract. As someone who’s had her fair share of dalliances with very scary, very negative thought patterns,I can attest to the impact that this kind of thinking has on every facet of life.

Read the rest of Naomi’s post here.

I work part-time as a freelance editor. I work full-time as a mother. Yes, I realise that doesn’t seem to add up and now I’m going to throw another factor into the mix. Somewhere between marking-up other writers’ creative works, and the million small and large things three children between the ages of nine and almost-two require, I attempt to claw back some time for my own writing.

You can read the rest of Irma’s post here.

Tracey Groombridge of Parents Wisdom deals with the dilemma of taking regular time out from your children for yourself, without feeling selfish.

Here’s the thing I don’t think I’m a selfish person or a terrible parent (well at least not most days), but every time I bring up that I take a week or so each year away from my family as a “mummy sabbatical” to recharge my batteries, family and friends look at me with combination of surprise and disgust. They splutter things like “you’re doing what”? Anyone would have thought I had told them I was running off to have an affair with Prince Charles!

Read the rest of Tracey’s post here.

Caitlin Dyer of Mother Down Under remembers the first time she reached breaking point when her son was seven months old and teething.

For the first time since becoming a mother, I cried myself to sleep.

I think it is mostly pure exhaustion. Although I have dropped Baby C's afternoon breast feed, so maybe there are some hormones leaving my system. But I am fairly convinced it is the lack of sleep combined with the lack of hope of ever getting sleep.

Read the rest of Caitlin’s post here.

Fiona Purcell of My Mummy Daze shares her attempt to correct a tense week in her house with the perfect Sunday roast, only to have it go horribly wrong.

It was last Sunday night and I had decided to make a lamb roast. It's Mr D's favourite and mine too.

It's a little extra effort, but so worth it for those rich flavours, and tasty, comfort foods. Things had been a little tense between the two of us so I thought we deserved something a little extra special. Roast lamb sure beats baked beans on toast on a Sunday night. I felt happiness radiate from my body as I prepared our special family meal.

Read the rest of Fiona’s post here.

Louisa Simmonds of My Midlife Mayhem nails it with these amazing chocolate cake recipes. Hungry anyone?

These two recipes are better than sex, and almost as good as shopping. So if you’re married and not getting any, or single and still not getting any, whip up either (or both) of these cakes and you’ll be sated.

Read the rest of Louisa’s post here.

Keri Arkell of Awesomely Unprepared impresses us with her attempt to shoe shop for herself with a cranky toddler in tow. The fact the shoes were for a funeral just made it even worse.

My mum took care of the Little Mister while I sat on one of those cushioned, seat thingys that are made just for trying on shoes. You know the ones. I stuck a black, suede wedge on my stumpy little foot and as I went to wiggle my toes around to check the comfort factor, I stacked it. I didn’t just fall over like a normal person. I wasn’t even in a standing position when the … incident… happened. I somehow slid off of the seat, right on over the corner. It was a padded corner – totally foolproof, right? Wrong. I was a disaster waiting to happen. It was the perfect storm. A couple of weeks of grief, tiredness, a packed schedule and a long day in public appearing to be a normal person (you get it – I know you do), and my clumsy body decided it was time to shut this thing down.

Read the rest of Keri’s post here.

Nikki Boswell of The Kids Menu Nutrition and Fitness sorts through the confusion when it comes to sugar for our children.

Moderation is the key here, with the Australian Dietary Guidelinesrecommending “free” or “added” sugar be kept to less than 10% of energy requirements and the same allowance of 10% of energy for saturated fat. It is certainly not necessary to cut out sugar or saturated fat completely, but follow this ‘diet’ and meet these recommendations by predominately choosing whole foods.

Read the rest of Nikki’s post here.

Shannon Meyerkort of From Mum to Me faces the lies she and many mums tell themselves in their efforts to toilet train their toddlers.

It's only been six days, yet I am already beginning to forget the months of begging her to consider using the potty, the toilet, the garden… wherever. The memory of my cheeks burning as I changed nappies on her three year old bottom at playgroup while kids less than two trekked in and out of the toilet. The false start.

The frustration and anger at how she would agree to wear knickers, but then refuse to use the toilet and hold it all in, for hours and hours, before wailing for her night-time nappy to release it all. Just to do it all the again the next day.

Read the rest of Shannon’s post here.

Rachel of The Housewives shares her awareness that no matter how boring and mundane motherhood gets, she knows that one day she’ll miss those times.

I know that at some point in the future i will actually miss this time, when the kids are more independent and they no longer need me, and for the most part i do enjoy being a mum. But i also find it hard to wear the different hats that i feel is expected of me, wife, mum, worker,housewife, friend.. and i fail a lot also trying to live up to what i think is expected of me. My husband asked me this morning“How are we going to stop you being bored” then he suggested i go and stay in a hotel room by myself for the night… (is he hinting he wants his boring housewife to beat it for a night?!)

Read the rest of Rachel’s post here.

Anna Welford of Maeday Me confesses that she finds she’s becoming her mum, now that she herself is a mum.

I remember my Mum rushing in the door after work and making chocolate muffins with her coat still on in her efforts to be a “proper mother” (like I’d once told her my friend Sally’s mother was). I go back to work after maternity leave in four weeks’ time, and I’m already feeling guilty about the time I am spending imagining my impending guilt. Watch this space for more in four weeks.

Read the rest of Anna’s post here.

Alisha Lynch of Naughty Naturopath Mum expresses her gratitude, even amidst the terrifying ordeal of a sick child.

I held the phone up to his mouth and the nurse on the other end said very calmly, “stay on the line, I’m calling you an ambulance”.  From there, a whirlwind of awfulness ensued and I now just want to say thank you and write what I’m grateful for.  I don’t want to go into all the details of what went wrong as Sammy’s procedures and follow up’s are still ongoing, I just want to express a lot of thanks.

Read the rest of Alisha’s post here.

Janine Fitzpatrick from Shambolic Living talks about the lumps and bumps, the aches and creaks of aging.

Tomorrow I’m back to the optometrist to pick up my MULTIFOCAL glasses.  It wasn’t bad enough that whoever is running this joint gave me my father’s longsightedness at 14 but now they have decided that as part of the natural ageing process I’m to be shortsighted as well.

Read the rest of Janine’s post here.