Wellington is known for its wind and it’s something that I have a love / hate relationship with. It can make me feel alive and refreshed, or knocked down and eroded like a well worn cliff-face. It takes stamina to live in Wellington and a mental strength that I don’t always have. Before we had […]
After twelve years of being a very full-time stay at home Mummy (including three and a half years homeschooling my middle daughter, whilst caring for my third born from home all her first five years, and fifteen months living in the USA, where all three daughters were homeschooled) I am now the very proud (and […]
Our 11 year old daughter has been awesome in supporting her 9 year old sister settling into a new school this week. Friends, family and regular readers will know that our 9 year old daughter has been homeschooled these past three years, due to school anxiety; but having made a lot of progress in overcoming […]
The ‘Me’ I am today, in 2015, as a forty year old parent to three daughters, is a very different ‘Me’ to who I was eleven year’s ago, before I became a parent. I wouldn’t have hesitated to head out the door then – for a run, a kayak, a night out, a weekend away – […]
I can’t say I run because I love it, but I run because I need it. I need how it makes me feel. I love the calm and mental clarity I feel after a run. I love the feeling of elation and satisfaction that I get from setting myself a goal and accomplishing it. I […]
It’s been a wonderful first week in our last rental home in California. We have one month in total here. It’s a beautiful home, with a lovely swimming pool, chickens in the garden, a great tree swing and in a friendly neighbourhood. A great place to finish up over a year of living in Santa […]
He’s Dad to three daughters. He gives his all to connect with them individually. They each have very different personalities, that take a lot of skill and energy to work with! They demand his energy, time, humour and patience – and, most of the time (!), he wouldn’t have it any other way. He gets home […]
I’m on my feet most of the day, with three active children unschooling this year and a house to keep in order. It would be easy to flop at any given moment, instead of pushing on and seeking out more physical activity – but it’s true what ‘they’ say, ‘Exercise gives you energy’. Besides, I […]
Every since I became a parent I felt grateful; grateful because as a couple we could afford for me to stay at home and be with our children in their early childhood. I have loved it, appreciated it, immersed myself in their world and learned so much from it. On the flip side – I’ve […]
When you get out of the habit of writing about the little slices of life, that make it worth living, it’s hard to know where to start. Everything I write, which means so much to me, will be trivial to others; but I share it all the same, as I’ve learned that there’s a wonderful […]
This week we’ve had so much spontaneous fun and physical action in the home that I thought it would be worth tying in this post with the ‘Becoming the Mama I Want to Be’ linkie, over at Miriam’s ‘Create Hope Inspire’ blog. The Mama I want to be is one that says ‘yes’, wherever possible, […]
This afternoon the man of the house flew to America on business for eight nights. My oldest daughter, who turns ten this year, was beside herself. She clung to his leg with all her strength, so hard that he couldn’t prise her off – and how could he – his heart was hurting too. How […]
How many grandparents would step off a plane, after travelling from the UK to Wellington, New Zealand, non-stop (two looooong international flights and one domestic) and handle a full day with three energetic granddaughters – with NO nano nap?! My grandchildren have SUPER Grandparents (but – they just don’t know it… yet!). One day, in […]
I’m sure it’s the same in other homes where there’s only one male – the behaviour of the females in the house changes when he’s home. In our house the energy levels are ramped up. There’s a lot more physical play, loud voices, movement (chaos) and laughter. There’s a little elbow pushing and jostling for […]