Our Girls

The Happy Jar 2020

On 1st January 2016 we began what has turned out to be a new family tradition: the Happy Jar. The Happy Jar started out as just a fun activity to do with the girls and, in truth, I wasn’t sure how long it would capture their attention for although I was hopeful it would last. …

Read More

Lola: Eleven

Exactly a month ago, at the beginning of January, Lola turned eleven years old.  Eleven!  I still can’t quite believe it – how is my baby eleven?  Looking back at her birthday blog post from last year I’m amazed at how much she’s changed and, well, grown up.  Of course this time last year none…

Read More

Mimi: Twelve

We had grand plans and high hopes for Mimi’s twelfth birthday.  We were supposed to be in Edinburgh in Scotland for the weekend and were intending to surprise her with an afternoon filled with exploring the Harry Potter trail and seeking out the best ice cream in the city (according to my friend Zoe, who…

Read More

Lola: Ten

Every year starts off in the very best of ways as we celebrate Lola’s birthday at the beginning of January.  This year she turned ten and I’m still finding it hard to believe that my littlest baby is now in double digits.  I think maybe that’s why I’ve taken so long to write her birthday…

Read More

The Happy Jar 2019

Four years ago, on the 1st January 2016, I spontaneously decided to start a Happy Jar.  The idea was loosely based on the concept of a ‘gratitude jar’ that I’d seen in a meme online a few weeks beforehand.  It seemed like a fun activity for the girls and I to do together and I…

Read More

Ella: Thirteen

At the start of December, amidst the chaos of moving house, we celebrated Ella’s birthday and somehow my firstborn is now a teenager.  Thirteen!  And only a few inches off being the same height as me!  I can’t believe it.  It honestly doesn’t feel like thirteen years ago that she entered the world, launched me…

Read More

Lola’s Lump

I’m fairly open about what’s going on in our little world most of the time.  But sometimes things happen behind the scenes that I choose to keep private for a while before I feel ready to share them.  Things that are deeply personal, things that tap into old fears and stories, things that need a…

Read More

Lola: Nine

The new year always begins in the most positive of ways for us as we celebrate our youngest girl’s birthday at the start of January.  I can’t think of a better way to bring colour and joy to the greyest of months.  This year, she turned nine years old.  Nine years of my little ray…

Read More

The Happy Jar 2018

We begin January 1st every year with an empty glass jar and a stack of brightly coloured scraps of paper.  They’re placed on the kitchen side together, easily accessible for all, and throughout the weeks and months that follow, whenever someone thinks of something that they’ve felt happy about (or proud of, or excited about)…

Read More