As we hit September, I have one child returning to school and one just about to start, meaning both boys will have moved on from those early years at home with me. With such a big adjustment looming for us all, I thought it was a good time to look back at this stage in… Continue reading Nan’s Diary: Starting school
In Nan’s era, it was assumed once you got married that you would give up work, have children and spend all your days on unpaid childcare and housework. Sounds like pandemic-era Britain! ‘Taking the children out every day, either in the morning or afternoon, didn’t leave much time during the day for washing, ironing and… Continue reading Nan’s Diary: Childcare
With everyone stuck at home, I’m enjoying the descriptions of domestic life in my Nan’s memoirs. She talks of many things in her daily life as she raised three boys under four. This excerpt is from the time when she was living in a flat within a large country house called Feldemore in Surrey, which… Continue reading Nan’s Diary: Life at Home
We went for a lovely walk today – the weather was great, the kids didn’t moan a bit and we came home refreshed and happy. ONLY JOKING!!! This is what really happened: We arrived at the country park. I’d told Rich I believe you have to pay for parking. He said that wasn’t the case… Continue reading A circular walk around…’why the hell do we keep doing this to ourselves?’
Herbie and I visited London just before Christmas to see the Marvellous and Mischievous: Literature’s Young Rebels exhibition at the British Library with my brother and his husband. It made me ponder just how tricky it is to teach our children to be rebellious yet respectful, to challenge authority yet understand boundaries and to stand… Continue reading Rebels with a cause
Understanding why our children sometimes act as they do, and what they are trying to tell us through this behaviour.
Why? Why is this such a fucking nightmare? Where does the inability to put your own pants on properly but happily wear them as a hat come from? Why has the skill of putting socks and shoes on suddenly vanished? And brushing hair? I currently have to do this as Herbie twiddles around the kitchen… Continue reading Getting out of the house
Our summer holiday this year was kept simple and we went for four nights to Sandy Balls Holiday Village in the New Forest. We’d been to Center Parcs before but as they ramp their rates up to extortionate proportions even for summer holiday prices, we thought we’d look for something along the same lines but… Continue reading Lodgings in the New Forest
Today’s burning topic: fussy eating We are currently on the cusp of Gus turning 2 and his eating is regressing like a chicken hatching back into its egg. He weaned pretty well, although took a while to master finger food. I put that down to lazy genes (husband’s obviously). He picked up a taste for… Continue reading Fussy McFusspants
This one is tough. I don’t really rationally believe that the boys prefer my husband but I sometimes can’t escape the feeling that they do. They are both daddy’s boys and despite me being the main caregiver, spending most of my time with them, planning their days and activities, worrying about what they should eat,… Continue reading When the kids prefer daddy
My Beautiful Diary of the Amazingly Mundane 