This post could also have been called “What we did this summer so far”, or “Places I lost my youngest child this summer and needed help from strangers to find him” or simply “Brambles cafés we’ve been too, because they are EVERYWHERE now.” We were away for the heatwave and since we’ve
Long, long ago, on a campsite far, far away, I met a holiday friend called Claire. She had long brown hair and was from Ireland or England – I wasn’t old enough to distinguish accents. I had spent two days sitting on the steps of our mobile home looking across
“You’ve such a great colour!” said my friend. I was ten years old, and made an “ah not really” gesture, shrugging my shoulders, but secretly thrilled with the comment. Or let’s call it a compliment – it doesn’t really make sense that it’s a compliment – I hadn’t actually done anything
For five years in a row, we took the ferry to France, then last year, for the first time since having kids, we braved getting on a plane, and we did it again this year. Throughout the journey, I couldn’t help comparing flight and ferry in my head, so in
If I’d married someone just like me, we’d have gone on holidays to Italy (we did), to a campsite (we did), to drink Prosecco on the deck every night (we did). But being married to that person just like me would have meant quite a different holiday for the kids
June is mad. So says everyone. Teacher presents and end-of-term nights out and inductions for junior infants. Sports tournaments and school summer fairs – and barbecues every time it stops raining for more than six hours. I woke up this Monday morning and let out a long breath – another manic
My name is Andrea, I’m a yeller, and it’s been 163 days since I last shouted at my kids. By no coincidence, it’s precisely 163 days since I had a blow-out shouting match with my six-year-old. She is a chilled out child – my easy one. But unlike her siblings, who are
Once upon a time, when I worked a lot more hours than I do now, I felt like I never had quality time with my kids. Each night when they went to bed, I thought about how another day had slipped by without me noticing. I would try to think
I’ve never personally experienced any sexism. Or at least not as far as I can remember, which may mean it has happened, and I’ve brushed it off as a normal, unremarkable, everyday thing. And that’s exactly the point Laura Bates was making when she set up The Everyday Sexism Project in 2012, a
As I lay on my bed yesterday evening, my four-year-old suddenly bounced onto my rib-cage WWE style, and it struck me that parenting involves a fair amount of physical pain. And endurance. And sometimes bravery, while holding back tears. Today is just a regular day, but putting trousers on the wrestler involved
This really, really is the best chocolate cake in the world. So much so, it’s worth going through the drama of baking with kids, just to eat it. Announce that today’s activity is baking, then bask in the shrieks of joy and pronouncements that you’re the best mum ever. Tell
Two things happened yesterday within ten minutes that stopped me in my tracks – not in a world news, earth shattering way, just little things that made me stop and think. We were out on the green (that is where I live now) and my eight-year-old was running up and down the
Isn’t spring just brilliant. Whether you believe it starts on February 1st, March 1s or mid-March (I need guidance on this – my kids are asking every day on which date does summer start) it’s all good. Longer evenings, brighter, (theoretically) warmer weather, and a casting of clouts all about – or at
At midnight last night, I reached for the book on my bedside locker, then put it back. Before getting lost in the world of Upper-eastside Manhattan, I needed to have a think. To look back on the day, and trace where things went wrong. It wasn’t a terrible day, just
This article first appeared in maternity & infant, October/ November issue, and after watching Sugar Crash on RTÉ earlier this week, I thought I’d post it here. Why is dental decay in kids on the increase in Ireland, and why is nobody telling parents that waiting for primary school screening
Since switching to work-from-home life earlier this year, I’m re-learning being with my kids, and one thing I’ve noticed is that they lack self-sufficiency. It’s entirely my fault – only being off at weekends meant that my priority was spending quality time with them. Whether or not they knew how
Midterm break crept up on me this year, and I realised this morning that we have no plans at all – other than not getting dressed until as late as humanly possible every morning. The kids are here all week, so day-time working is suspended, but I forgot to come up with
When my eldest was two, I remember that she really disliked saying sorry. I remember because I found it fascinating that at such a young age, she instinctively recoiled from apologising. It seemed like a very adult reaction from someone too small to really understand the concept of right and
Whenever it all falls apart on the parenting front, I look to see the underlying cause and what I could have done differently. Like when the small boy had a meltdown on the way to school and I carried him screaming all the way, I knew it wouldn’t have happened
It’s after-school activity sign-up time, and I’m looking for some quite specific courses: 1. How to get through the day without changing your clothes fourteen times A course which isn’t necessary for anyone who has a diploma in “putting clothes back in the wardrobe” but is mandatory for everyone else. 2.