I thought my mind was playing tricks when I heard the sobbing coming from his room. It took me a while to realise it was him – I’d never heard him cry like that before. “What’s wrong sweetheart?” I said as I sat next to the rocking lump in the doona.His tiny swollen face peered out from beneath his dark hideaway. He had been crying for much longer than I realised.Gulping for air he struggled to … [Read more...]
To chop or not to chop…
There is a debate currently taking place in my household: whether or not we should stop my husband’s sperm from entering his seminal stream*.Is it time for my Busy-And-Important-Husband to finally get the snip? Or the chop, as I like to lovingly call it.Now, Busy-And-Important-Husband wouldn’t have the greatest pain threshold I’ve ever seen. A bump or scrape usually results in howls worthy of an … [Read more...]
I’m not a troublemaker…I’m just a mum
Sometimes a little voice whispers in my head: “be careful what you write…you never know who could be reading.”And then I hit the publish button.Sometimes friends email me on the quiet, asking who some of my ‘characters’ are based on…especially those pieces about my experience in the corporate world. Of course I keep schtum. It’s never my intention to ridicule or disparage. Then there are times … [Read more...]
A case for religion?
I’m going to get shot down for this post. I know I will. I’ll probably be branded a hypocrite, naïve, or some kind of Holy Joe lunatic. Or I might dramatically change my mind in few months time. Either way, I have to write this if I am to remain true to myself. This is what’s going on in my head…I’ve had a pretty big change of heart about something lately. Something I once felt very strongly … [Read more...]
Moving on
Boy-Who-Asks-Questions starts school tomorrow. Tomorrow. His first day. He’s a confident and bright little guy. I know that no matter how much that oversized backpack hits the back of his legs, he will quite happily step-together-step-together his way up those school steps.And it’s not as if I’ve had him all to myself since he was born. I’ve shared him with carers at his day-care centre while I’ve … [Read more...]
I’m dreaming of a clutter-free Christmas
"BWOK!"Many things in my life have coincided with *ahem* ‘the start of my cycle’.New jobs. Long haul flights. Heck, even my wedding day. I’ve coped quite well on most occasions. Well, apart from a ‘little’ crankiness (choosing to ignore any scoffs and guffaws from Busy-And-Important-Husband at this point).A few days ago I realised I was heading for yet another ‘clash of dates’: Christmas Day. And … [Read more...]
A mumma bursting
Yesterday I had an eye-welling, heart-swelling, over-zealous proud mumma moment. Boy-Who-Asks-Questions is nearly five now. He’s a bright spark, which means he looks deeply into things. His big brown eyes often reveal more worry and concern than a child his age should. For the past three years, every Friday afternoon I’ve dragged him and his little sister to the pool for swimming lessons. My heart … [Read more...]
The chopper and me
If you follow me on Twitter you’ve been subjected to a barrage of tweets about my tropical island holiday. Sorry about that, but when I discovered Vomo island in Fiji, I just had to gloat share.Days spent swimming, snoozing and lazing in the sun. I was as relaxed as a bowl of jelly, until Busy-And-Important-Husband suggested the helicopter.“You can fly directly to Nadi airport in a helicopter from … [Read more...]
Fly like a bird
Last week four-year-old ‘Boy-Who-Asks-Questions’ proudly handed me a Father’s Day ‘book’ he made for his daddy at preschool. Inside was a tale about riding trains and slaying dinosaurs; a typical day in father and son land. But it was the last line of his story that made me catch my breath: “I love my dad because: he lifts me up on the top of the cupboards and then he flies me down like a … [Read more...]
Separation anxiety – the adult type
I have a confession to make (apart from just scoffing an entire block of Green and Black’s chocolate). I can’t fly away from my children. By that I mean, I can’t leave my children with someone, go to the airport and take a flight to another city, whether it be for work or pleasure. Until now, I’ve kept this as my own dark and guilty secret. Guilty because I think it makes me look … [Read more...]