I have written a lot about the challenges of motherhood – single motherhood especially. As I put up posts like missing in action and this shit just got real, I worry that should I, or my son, (or really anyone) look back on this blog in years to come and think that this is the whole…
Motherhood
Why Having No Routine Is Great For My Son
I’m pretty sure talking about toddler routines in the negative is sacrilege amongst the parenting population. So I’m readying myself for the backlash at this brazen statement, but I mean it when I say not having a routine for my son has been good for him and for me. Contrary to popular opinion, babies and toddlers*…
Keeping Mum: Why Do We Shush Mums?
It’s a strange thing isn’t it? That mum means, well, to be a mum, but to keep mum means being silent. How does that work? Mums are supposed to be silent? Granted, the origins of the two ‘mums’ are different, but it seems like a pretty neat coincident considering mums are being shushed wherever we go.…
Why I Hate Mum Work Travel
I wrote a while back about my love-hate relationship with work travel as a mum. Only now I’ve decided I actually just hate mum work travel. Last night I returned so exhausted every bone in my body ached and I had that fuzzy, not quite there feeling – like my brain was looking through some translucent…
Wanting Another Child
I’ve talked before about how it breaks me to think I won’t have another child, but what I haven’t talked about is why I feel that way. Like most things in life, it’s a complex set of emotions. Emotions that are trying to pull and push me towards a life that is currently very far from…
Mental Health Campaigns are Missing the Point
Mental health campaigns are all around us. In principle it seems like a great idea – raise awareness, lessen discrimination and increase support for those with mental health issues, right? But is that what’s happening? It might be controversial, but I don’t think so. There isn’t the equivalent campaign for ‘physical health’. Instead there are specific…
Top Ten Products for Parents
I know it may seem like the market for random crap for our little ones is somewhat saturated, but I’m pretty sure there is a massive gap in the market for these top ten products for parents (I have patents pending so don’t go stealing my ideas!). 1. The breakfast cereal for over energetic little…
Gender Stereotypes: Colour Coding Children
My son was barely a week old when I took him to a work gathering dressed in a cute little hungry caterpillar outfit (see photo). The guy I was chatting away to seemed to be slightly uncomfortable when he explained, ‘it’s difficult because you didn’t colour code the baby’. It took me a while to work out…
Why I Won’t Be Signing The Harambe Petition
Unless you’ve had your head in the sand over the last few days you’ve probably heard about Harambe – the Gorilla that was sadly killed to save a boy’s life in Cincinnati Zoo on Saturday. A Justice for Harambe petition has been set up with almost 400,000 signatures (and counting). The petition states, ” [T]he…
When Your Baby Becomes A Toddler
When your baby becomes a toddler it takes some serious adjustment. My baby became a toddler a little while ago, it’s just taken me a while to out what its all about! These are some of the changes I’ve been trying to get used to. 1. Sleep goes out the window. Yes I know i’s meant…