November 9, 2017
Our horns were locked, my six year old and I. Once again we were fighting over food. I wanted her to just try the lentil soup. “I know you’d like it,” I cajoled, on edge. She physically turned away from the table. She’d said no and now she was flatly refusing to engage. I knew I was feeling triggered but…
This is part of a series called “4 steps to becoming a Parent Ally” The first in the series can be found right here. So, you’ve spent some time analysing the preconceptions you bring to your parenting. You’ve bought right into this idea that you want to modernise your parenting, raise empathetic children ‘cos that’s what the world needs. You’ve decided to shift…
October 4, 2017
Here in England we are three weeks into the new academic year. After a wonderfully relaxing summer of camping, festivals and family time we were all gearing up for the new term to begin. Just hours into the first day my phone is alight with emails and messages from the School Office, reminding me that the holidays are well and truly…
September 14, 2017
Welcome to the start of a series! The series is called “The first steps you need to take to become a parent ally” and it covers the crucial things we need to consider, change, plan for and tweak. The first thing we need to do is: Shift our preconceptions. It’s possible your beliefs about children and childhood have already begun to…
September 5, 2017
Just thinking about the morning routine on a school day creates a physical reaction in me. My head hurts slightly and I feel my body tense. Of all the transitions we regularly have in our family this is by far the hardest. Why is that? We have very few places we have to be at a particular time. When we…
August 22, 2017
We’re all familiar with feeling anxious. It’s not pleasant. Heart racing, butterflies in the tum, can’t think clearly. What if you lived like that most of the time? For months at a time. What if you lived with an impending sense of doom or low-level anxiety that has you checking the doors and windows are locked, repeatedly, on a hot…
August 6, 2017
A parent’s stress is like an emotional smoothie which has the potential to blow the lid off the jug and make a huge mess! Parental stress can be a blend of thoughts and emotions; from frustration to a child not doing what we want, to guilt because we blame ourselves for whatever is going on. There’s the bombardment of mental…
August 1, 2017
As a parent of children who go to school, one of the most stressful, daily occurrences is actually getting them there each day. If you also have children at school, you will know this is a tricky part of the day. One thing we, as parents, need to do is work on handling our own stress which is something I…
July 24, 2017
When your child is born with disabilities or complex medical needs, there are areas of your life and theirs where you will have to learn to fight. You will have to learn to speak up, sometimes to shout, to ensure your child’s needs are being met. One of those environments is with medical care. For those of us who have…
July 12, 2017
When my first daughter was born I slipped seamlessly into attachment parenting. I Instagrammed a photo of my daughter breastfeeding everyday for about 6 months. I would go to Sling Libraries just for fun! I was a proud, evangelistic attachment parent. But increasingly I find myself holding attachment parenting up to the light, peering at it as though seeing the tiny…