February was an immensely challenging month for various reasons.  A lot of my time was spent supporting a friend going through a crisis; all of my Dad’s anniversaries fall in February (his death, his birthday and the day of his funeral) and Lola started to really struggle with her sensory issues more than usual, which…

I find that I need to ease quietly into January, the way you might tentatively slip into a cold swimming pool – I’m not a fan of diving in head first and getting the shock over with.  It’s probably a good thing that I prefer to start slowly as January almost never goes according to…

I usually like to spend the first half of January reflecting on the year that has just passed: looking at what I’ve learnt; what I could have done better, whether I honoured my intention for the year and what mistakes I made, as well as what the highlights were; what I achieved; and what I…

I found December quite overwhelming.  I’m usually pretty good at managing all the festive madness (lists are my superpower!) but this year felt a little more challenging than usual. Juggling all the balls of work and home and school and Christmas and birthdays, alongside the additional and most important part of keeping everyone fully healthy…

November has felt chaotic, scattered and, frankly, a bit of a slog to get to the end of.  The intensity and volume of my work has increased and we’ve also had a decorator in, his work hours spreading out over various days and weeks rather than in one solid chunk of time with a definitive…

October has been busy in the very best of ways.  September was all about surviving the transition back to school and Neil and the girls recovering from Covid, whereas in contrast we’ve squeezed a LOT of fun things into the last thirty-one days. I really enjoyed October this year – I’m not usually a fan…

September is one of my most favourite months of the year.  It’s when summer and autumn collide and overlap – it’s still just about warm and sunny enough to be T-Shirt wearing weather but with the tantalising promise of the change in season hanging temptingly in the cooler morning air and the turning colours of…

August has felt like a very long, very slow month.  I normally love the summer holidays, filled with day trips and fun activities, but this year has felt different.  We’ve mostly stayed at home as Neil and I have both been working a lot, the girls didn’t really want to go anywhere and the weather…

July has felt a bit like a rollercoaster of highs and lows.  All three girls had to isolate from school, one after the other, like dominoes.  The return to home learning again was not something I’d anticipated this late in the school year.  Ella was first, when a student in her half of the year…