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Work at Home Mum. Free Range Parent. Mildly Amusing.

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Life with Babies and Toddlers

I found the baby years challenging to say the least. I had postnatal depression, struggled to bind with my babies and found the sleep deprivation very hard to cope with. Both of my babies had colic which meant hours of screaming every night and one was particularly sicky so I smelt of vomit for a good six months.

By the time they were toddlers I was coping a bit better but still found parenting relentless. As an introvert, I need a certain amount of alone time to function and unfortunately toddlers, who like to keep you company even on the toilet, don’t really allow for that.

Despite the challenges, we did have some good times. After my second was born I knew it was important for me to get out of the house so started attending a toddler group. I made friends and eventually ended up running the group which gave me a sense of purpose. 

Society still pushes the image of women who are happy and fulfilled simply because they have had a baby however this isn’t the case for most women. Motherhood manages somehow to be both the hardest thing I’ve done as well as being mind numbingly boring for much of the time.

There is a big difference between loving your baby and loving motherhood. While I did slowly fall in love with my babies, I’ve never fallen in love with motherhood, and that’s ok. There are a hundred different ways to be a good mum, finding parenthood so tough in the early years has taught me not to judge others and I hope people afford me the same courtesy.

I found that the best way to cope with motherhood was through honestly and humour so many of the posts in this section laugh at the challenges or give honest accounts of them along with some advice on how to cope.

What is a Danger Nap?

Written by Josie

Little girl having a danger nap on a blue sofa with a red pillow

If you move in parenting circles you may have heard the term danger nap uttered in whispered horror by mums and dads. You might even have experienced it for yourself. Personally, I was so frightened of them, I used to have nightmares that my toddler had taken a danger nap. But what is a danger […]

Filed Under: Toddlers

Early Morning Waking in Babies and Toddlers

Written by Josie

Early morning waking in babies and toddlers

When you’ve finally managed to get your baby or toddler sleep through the night, you’ll be overjoyed. Baby sleep is the holy grail of parenting. To start with, even if your baby wakes up at 5am, you’ll be over the moon if you get 6 hours hours of unbroken sleep. However, after a while, you’ll […]

Filed Under: Babies and Toddlers

The Transition to One Nap

Written by Josie

Toddler napping

Having spent months getting your child sleeping through the night and into a good napping routine, the thought of making changes can be horrifying. At some point your toddler will need to make the transition to one nap and getting them to sleep less can actually be as tricky as getting them to sleep more. How […]

Filed Under: Toddlers

Circle Time Activities for Toddlers – Ideas to Engage Large Groups

Written by Josie

Toddlers at circle time

Circle time activities are a great way to bring a group of children and adults together. Large group activities for toddlers need to be simpler than those you would use for preschoolers or school age children. These circle time ideas for toddlers will work well for toddler groups where children have a parent with them, […]

Filed Under: Toddler Groups

Choosing a Play Kitchen

Written by Josie

Girl playing with a play kitchen

Toddlers love play kitchens. It was always one of the most popular toys at toddler group and my children absolutely loved theirs. We kept it until they were 7 and 9 because until they age, it still got played with from time to time. If I’m honest, I was a bit jealous, I would have […]

Filed Under: Toddlers

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A blog about trying to raise independent kids while retaining a sense of humour. Me: I’m Josie, a 43 year old introvert and former librarian. Them: My husband Chris, Boy Child who is 11 and Girl Child who is 9. The others: Hera the cat and Baxter the dog. Read More…

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