It's no easy ride. A site for parenting teens.
There is a saying in my family, “Those who are flexible are not easily broken”. Whenever life has dished out circumstances I didn’t anticipate, my natural instinct has been to react negatively; getting upset at the change of plan, or frustrated with the person who didn’t behave in a way I expected them to. So…
Read More
This week, I had the most embarrassing and challenging experience I’ve had for a while; one which reminded me a little of my parenting experience. It’s been a number of years since I went regularly to an exercise class, but with my recent flare up of back pain I thought it time to be more…
Read More
I had a day recently where my youngest came home from school very upset and adamant he never wanted to go back; never wanting to see a particular person again. A previous painful memory of being reprimanded at school bought back strong emotions, and when he was accused once more of doing something wrong (this…
Read More
Let me introduce Jan. She is a mother of two adult children and six grandchildren. She began her motherhood journey in the Deep South of America where her husband was a pastor; moving back to Australia when their eldest boy was to begin school. During the years of her children’s schooling she juggled the roles…
Read More
To my observing children, I was my usual self; physically a little weary but fairly happy and chatty. What was unobserved to them, was the business inside my head. The conversation cogs that turned slowly, mulling over a particular issue I had with one of them. There was a talk I knew I needed to…
Read More
Kids returning to school is great. It gets them out of the house and back into routine. There are friends to see, interesting things to learn and lots to do! However, term time is intense. 10 weeks of school commitments and the pressure points of time management and social interactions can leave you aching for…
Read More
Holidays are great. It’s important to have time to unwind and rest. To make happy memories and to nurture relationships through recreation and play. There is pleasure and freedom in having no time pressure; things to do and places to be. To step off the treadmill of school term and cruise at your own pace.…
Read More
It’s 11 days to Christmas, which for most mothers, means you’re completely immersed in the festive commitments. When I’m fully immersed I find it hard to pause from the business, however in my rare moments of quiet, I can’t help but think back on the year that has been. As children finish their schooling year,…
Read More
I’ve been learning a new skill of late: the skill of practicing mindfulness. It’s a skill that helps to focus a mind that is overly busy and distracted. For someone like myself, someone who thinks about a million things at once, (often ruminating about worries and fears or mentally trying to solve all of life’s…
Read More
To quote Oscar Wilde’s most excellent character Lord Goring, “To love oneself is the beginning of a lifelong romance” is to unashamedly declare a wholehearted enjoyment of oneself. But is it okay to do so? In a moment of self indulgent adulation, Lord Goring the epitome of vanity, takes great pleasure in stating how wonderful…
Read More