Life’s Big Questions.

Life often throws big questions our way. ‘How are we going to save the planet from climate change?’ And ‘Will our mental health ever recover from 2020?’ are just some of the dilemmas facing us all at the moment. They are momentous, important, and worthy of deep discussion.  It is not, however, these questions that …

A Parent’s Guide to Inadequacy

How has your parenting been going lately? Are you feeling pretty pleased with yourself? Did your child manage to have some form of nourishment in the day and at least half an hours sleep in a vaguely clean bed in the night? Did they smile at least once? Did you remember to tell them you …

Crocs by the Back Door (and other signs of adulthood)

I don’t want to worry you but I think something serious is happening to me. It’s not a sudden emergency, more a slow-growing infection that has got out of hand before anyone has thought to diagnose it.  Adulthood.  It has taken over all of my organs with its heady mix of everyday organisation and mundane …

The Five Year Plan

Tomorrow my eldest daughter is turning five. Five years old. We have successfully(ish) raised a child for half a decade. It’s at the same time totally outrageous and incredibly normal, and that’s just the range of emotions felt before breakfast on any given school day. The past 5 years have seen a lot of changes …

I Am A Genius (And So Are You)

I have a good education. I did well at school, got a university degree and went on to a good and important vocation. Deep down, I know I’m not stupid. It’s just that lately I’ve been feeling a bit... dumb. Since having my second child and moving country I haven’t had a paid job in …

Why Don’t You Just…

Some phrases in the English language that should be avoided at all cost. They start sentences that are probably best unsaid or, at the very least, be phrased entirely differently. I’m sure everyone has their own personal favourites but here are my top three Number 1 - ‘I don’t mean to be rude but’. If …

It’s All Just So… French

Stereotypes are bad, we all know that. We learn as children that people are individuals and not to expect them to be only as the world portrays them. So when I got to France, I was ready to see new things and re-evaluate all my prior concepts of the country. The problem is, however, that …

Resolutions for the Realist

I have never understood why the world is so insistent that New Year Resolutions should start on January the 1st. I mean, apart from the obvious ‘it’s the start of the new year’ argument it really doesn’t make sense. The first thing you do after midnight? Drink champagne. The next morning? Stick the kids in …

No Sugar, No Sleep and No Showers* – The Week when Reality Returned

We have just ended a wonderful summer, my husband’s job at a holiday park meant two whole months of swimming, sun and friends - it’s been almost too good to be true. However, as everyone knows, all good things must come to an end. With this on mind, I decided that September was the month …

The Ministry of Support – A Lesson in Humility

‘And what are you going to be doing?’ For the past eight months this has been one question that I have been asked over and over again and every time has left me mumbling and embarrassed. When God called our family to France so my husband could work for a Christian holiday site we all …