The floor is scattered with debris - balls of shredded newspaper, discarded toys and half eaten cakes that have been trodden into the carpet. A popped balloon lies deflated on the floor, all its puff and promise destroyed by the events of the day. Sitting shell-shocked in a chair gazing around me, I feel much …
Continue reading The Party’s Over
I like naughty people. I just find myself drawn to them. I'm not an out-and-out rebel myself, but I enjoy lurking in their shadows. Usually too timid to be the first to break the rules, I'll merrily follow in the footsteps of a troublemaker and join in their revolution once it's got going. Goody two-shoes, …
Parenting certainly has its problems, and children can be complicated - to say the least. But it has occurred to me of late that perhaps I do not paint my child in the best light. In complaining about the difficulties I encounter in my daily life as a mother, I am always the victim and …
In almost every room in my house there is now a piece of paper hung or taped on the wall somewhere, documenting somebody's failure. Daddy's failure to make a decent Reward Chart. Mummy's failure to remember to stick the relevant stickers onto the chart. My daughter's failure to grasp that the purpose of the chart …
Here I am - airing my dirty laundry in public again. Rifling through the wardrobe I'm struggling to find anything for my daughter - and indeed myself - to wear that is not soiled. They've been through the wash - we're not going to smell - but every dress, every T-shirt, bears a blotch or …
Before I even fell pregnant I always said I didn't want a girl. "Because what if she's prettier than me?!" I would exclaim. What a life - doomed to be the wicked mother who gazes into her magic mirror at her wizened face, seething with jealousy at the enchanting young creature that gambles about behind …
My daughter has introduced me to a lot of new friends and for them all I am most grateful. But, just as I found at school or in the dating game, there are always a few elusive figures who I find myself admiring from afar. Mothers who I look up to or am quite simply …
“Go away!”, the writhing banshee screeches in my face. I back off and continue to watch the futile struggle to push her head through a sleeve. I reach forward once again, open my mouth to say something and then think better of it. Walk away. Just as I am ensconced in my chair with the …
It’s just before 3pm in the afternoon. I am sitting at my desk when my mobile goes off. It’s the childminder. My heart immediately starts beating a thousand times a minute and my mind can’t even focus in on imaginable disasters. Within two rings I have flicked the answer button and breathlessly, hesitantly, utter, “Hello?” …
A loud squeal drags me from the story in which I am deeply engrossed. I look over at my child but to my relief it is a squeal of laughter and not an altercation which I am required to referee. My gaze lingers for a moment as I pause briefly to consider if I should …
