Shower Schedule

Found on pixabay.

I never thought I would have to plan when I was going to shower but when you live with a busy family of 4 who is involved in sports, have sticky jobs, and like to shower 24/7, you better plan ahead or you’ll be taking a cold one.

During the week, my mom always get’s first dibs on the shower and she showers at the same time every morning so that makes it easy to plan around her. It’s my two sisters that make finding a time to shower a little challenging.

Sister 1

My youngest sister is a little easier to deal with then the other. She usually showers in the morning or at night and if you want to shower at the same time she is good with negotiating. We will either both shower at the same time and sacrifice a bit of the water pressure or she will offer to go second because she takes the longest out of the two of us.

Sister 2

My other sister makes finding a time to shower a bit more difficult. She refuses to shower at the same time as anyone or to wait to go second. She also showers at the most random times ever and if you ask her when she plans to shower she’ll say I don’t know. It’s a total guessing game with her.

Solution

I love it when they aren’t around because I have the freedom to shower whenever I want and not worry about how fast I need to go. When they are around though (mainly sister 2) I accept the fact that if I plan to shower and they don’t want to negotiate, I just have to wait a bit longer.  It saves me from moody sisters.

What’s Mine is Yours

 

I’ll start by saying that I don’t know if this is just something I have a problem with but it really bugs me when I purchase things for myself or receive them as a gift and they become something that everyone uses. I do not mind sharing at all but if there are other things exactly like it, why do you have to use mine?

It seems like a small thing but what really gets me is my coffee mugs. I have a love for coffee mugs and therefore a lot of mugs and I don’t want everyone using them. Strange thing to be protective over right? But what if someone breaks it or they get used too much and the colour fades? Normally when I have something that I don’t want everyone using I keep it in my room and either store it or use it as a decoration. Since these are dishes I am talking about in this situation though, none of these options really work. My mugs sit in the kitchen on display for everyone to use… sigh.

I guess in a family house it seems a little crazy to avoid the what’s mine is yours rule and I know I talked about mugs in this post which again might seem a bit strange but I am sure everyone has that one thing they don’t like to share. Right?

War-drobe

Do you ever have those days when you absolutely hate every piece of clothing you own? How about if you’re unsure weather to wear the black top or the white one? If you are by yourself these may seem like major dilemmas at the time but if you live with your family there is still some hope.

One perk of living at home and having sisters around the same size as you is that your wardrobe basically doubles. I don’t know how many times I’ve gone to my sister and asked to borrow one of her tops because I didn’t like any of mine at the time. Only thing is I have to be prepared to return the favour. I’m okay with that.

Another perk of living at home is that you always have a personal fashion consultant. If you are unsure of an outfit, it’s as easy as running upstairs and saying “does this look okay” to figure out if the outfit is a go or not.

Sometimes there is the issue of being home alone though (or in some people’s case, living alone) but have no fear. There are still some things you can do to avoid the wardrobe dilemmas.

1. If you know you are going to be going somewhere in advance, try to plan your wardrobe in advance. That way if you need to borrow something you aren’t scrambling.
2. If you are unsure of an outfit, snap a picture and send it to a friend. My friends have been pretty useful in situations like this.

I thought I had some more solutions but I guess I’ve really only used the two. So if you have any suggestions please share. When it comes to a girl and what she is going to wear, it is never a joke.

Why (in)dependent?

A Girl Looking At Landscape Nature by Viktor Hanacek found on Picjumbo

 

Some of you may be wondering why I have chosen to title my blog (in)dependent. Well, now that I have a few posts under my belt, I thought I’d take the chance to tell everyone about the inspiration behind it.

When brainstorming blog ideas, I was trying to think of something that would be easy and enjoyable for me to talk about. I wanted something that I had lots of experience with and that people could easily relate to. Then I thought, hey, why don’t I talk about life when you want to be independent but are still living in your family’s house.

The Story

For my first two years of university I lived away from home and in a different city from my family. It took some time but I got the hang of being on my own and ended up enjoying it. I moved back home come third year and it was then I realized how independent I had become. I was so used to doing the simple things on my own such as doing my laundry and buying my groceries. It felt weird moving back home and adjusting to the family lifestyle again. Now I am about to go into fourth year and still living at home because I cannot afford to live on my own. Although I love my family very much, growing up and moving out is a part of life and after already getting a taste of it, its hard to forget about what it was like.

The Theme

So that’s my story about my inspiration for my posts and how I came up with the title of my blog. I want to be independent and got used to being independent but I am still living with my family and dependent on my parents in some ways.

 

House to Myself

Party! My family headed to the cottage for the week which means I have the house to myself for a few days. To be honest, I had all these ideas running through my head on what it would be like and what I would do and so far it’s been nothing like that.

I must admit that home is more relaxing than usual since my family left.

• It’s quiet.
• I can eat when I want and make what I want with no one complaining about the smell or me being in the way.
• I get permanent dibs on the tv and don’t have to agree with someone on what to watch.
• I can take as long as I want in the shower because I’m the only one who will be using the hot water.
• I can play my music as loud as I want.

I could seriously go on forever. My time alone so far has felt like a vacation from a vacation (since I am meeting my family at the cottage).

I was left with a few household chores like watering the flowers and taking out the garbage but those are no big deal. It’s only day two of four of me being by myself so maybe I am speaking to soon but this alone time has been lovely. Maybe it’s because I am so not used to it but I guess I’ll see when my four days are up.

reNO

 

 

If you’re anything like me, you enjoy watching the HGTV channel for hours on end and browsing Pinterest for home design and décor ideas. There is only one problem though… my ideas remain only a collection of pictures in a board because I don’t have my own place. I mean, my mom is an HGTV junkie as well but I could only imagine what would happen if she came home and something was different. Only thing I can get away with and not get in trouble for is rearranging the furniture in my bedroom. Other then that, it’s best I ask.

Pitching the Idea

One day I was in my bathroom in the basement and thought wow this place is dark. So I went to my mom and asked hey can I paint my bathroom and possibly do something with my cabinets? (I was thinking beach themed with light grey or beige walls and teal blue accents). She said yes I’ll just have to take a look before we do anything. Perfect I thought!

A couple months later…

Currently my bathroom is identical to when this conversation happened and my sister’s bedroom has been the new project taken on. I guess her answer was better then no but now I’m sitting here itching to get my creativity into the bathroom but I must wait. My  ideas will have to remain on Pinterest only for now.

What Do You Want for Dinner Tonight?

Close Up of Table Setting with Cutlery by Viktor Hanacek found on Picjumbo

 

What do you want for dinner tonight? It seems like a simple question right? Wrong! In my house it is probably one of the most dreaded questions for a few reasons.

1. Sometimes no one has any suggestions. You’d think with four people in the house someone would be able to come up with an idea but more often than not we ended up sitting there getting hungrier by the second.
2. Everyone has different eating habits and likes. Do you know how many times I have suggested something and I’ve gotten the response “Eww no. That’s gross.”
3. You come up with an idea just to find out we don’t have the right ingredients. This is a frustrating one. Everyone finally agrees on something then we check the fridge and freezer to find out we don’t have it.

My family has tried planning dinners ahead depending on who is home and what everyone likes but that always seems to fall through. Either someone ends up not being home or we don’t feel like having what we planned. Personally, I just want to be able to eat what I when I want but I guess that’s part of living at home.

Long Weekend Getaway

Aerial and Symmetric View of a Road in the Woods by Viktor Hanacek found on Picjumbo

 

How did you spend your long weekend? Did you hit the road and get away for the weekend? Did you get together with friends? Did you enjoy the beautiful weather? Well that’s what I did! This long weekend I headed to the cottage with my sister, boyfriend, and cousins where we also met up with a bunch of friends. I have been going to the cottage for as long as I remember and to me it has always been a place to ditch your everyday activities, let loose, and enjoy the company of the ones around you. That’s why the long weekends are always extra exciting to look forward too. It’s not that it’s an extra day to the weekend but it’s that it’s an extra day at the cottage!

Cottage weekends consist of 3 things:

1. Beach days
2. Card games
3. Lots of food (and drinks).

You would think you would get bored from doing the same thing all the time but let me tell you… there is never a dull moment at the cottage. Between the pranks, the jokes, the dancing that happens to the classic rock playing, and everything else that happens at the cottage, there is always something making you laugh.

This weekend had a bit of a bonus too—no parents (for two days)! It’s not that the parents ruin the cottage activities. I must admit they are actually pretty fun to have around when we are there. It’s just that it was nice to have a weekend away with us “kids” only. You always hear of parent weekend getaways anyways. Why can’t us “kids” have them too? Besides, minus the sunburns we all managed to get home in one piece.

I definitely had a pretty memorable long weekend so again I ask you… how did you spend yours?

To Do Your Own Laundry or To Not Do Your Own Laundry?

 

Ahhh smell that fresh laundry! I don’t mind doing my laundry but I also don’t mind when someone else offers to do it. It doesn’t make sense to wait to do mine when it can be added into a load with everyone else’s clothes anyways. That’s why all I do is have my dirty clothes in the hamper ready to go for the next load. Even better then this though… my clothes are folded and put on my bed after they are cleaned. Or are they?

You see, when I walk in my room and see my clean clothes I think no problem, this will only take a few minutes to get them put away. But nope! As I begin to put my clothes away I find stuff that isn’t mine or I think hey what happened to that top that I put in the hamper to get washed? This happens all the time. Especially with socks and underwear. My family has tried things like each person has a different brand of socks. Or it just so happens that each person is a different size of underwear. You would think this would stop the confusion but you could also think again.

When you see something in your laundry pile that isn’t yours, the right thing to do would be to return it to the right person. This is what I do. Not everyone else in the house does the same thing though. Usually when I notice something of mine is missing one of two things happen.

1. I ask my sister if she has something of mine. She says yes. I think to myself and ask her, why didn’t you give it to me? Her reply is I don’t know. So I have to ask, can I have my top back?
2. I ask my sister if she has something of mine. She says no. I go to my other sister and ask if she has it. She says no. I ask my mom if she has it. Guess what she says? No. This is when I start to go through people’s drawers and closet even though I would hate it if someone did that to me because a) I know one of them has it and b) I want my top back.

So here I am thinking to myself, wow I’m really lucky that someone else cleans and folds my laundry. I am also thinking, if I just did my own laundry I wouldn’t end up with other people’s clothes or on a hunt for my own.

What are you thinking? Do you like doing laundry? Are you the person who mixes peoples clothes up? Do you wonder where your clothes will end up after they leave the hamper?

Questions You Hate to Hear

When do you work this week? Where are you? Will you be home for dinner? Do you know how many times I get asked these questions and a million others a week? Too many is the answer!  I just want to be able to go out and not have to report to someone 24/7 or make a decision on Monday for the weekend. Sometimes I think it would be easier to put a GPS on myself that way no one has to ask and they can just look for themselves. That would also be super creepy though and leave no room for privacy what so ever.

Do not get me wrong, it is nice to have someone checking up on you once in a while but all the time? Holy does it get annoying. Especially if you already told your parents your plans 5 times and they still forget. Do you know what’s even more annoying than this though? When your siblings are texting you too asking the same questions. Now you have two or more people texting you the same thing from the same place. And do you think they tell each other… NOPE! Never rely on two people in the same house to communicate the whereabouts of where you are. Even if you ask one person to tell the other, chances are it will not happen.

Tips to End the Frustration

If you are like me and cannot stand the questions and repeating yourself over and over again, here are two tips.

1. Write your work schedule, appointments, and any other plans on the family calendar. State the location and time if possible. Now your family knows where you are and for how long.

2. Use group chats! One text to five people covers telling everyone and makes up for the lack of communication between them.

I must say that although these tips are helpful, I cannot promise that they will end the frustration (sometimes they do not for me). So if anyone else has a way or two on how they get through the millions of questions they get asked on a regular basis do us all a favour and please share!