Tag Archives: parenting

How to talk to children about death: tips for parents

Talking to children about death is probably one of the hardest conversations you’ll ever have. Yet, it is a conversation most of us will be forced to have at some point in our lives. I certainly wasn’t prepared to tell my children their sister had died, and I quickly learned that the romantic way these...

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What on earth do I say to a bereaved mum? It’s simple, STALL

It can seem like there’s plenty of advice about what not to do when it comes to grief. I’ve written a number of emotional posts about how some people get it ‘wrong’ when talking (or not!) to a beavered parent, such as this one and this one. While my rants are only one element of...

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I can’t let go of my children’s toys!

We’ve been having a bit of a clear out, which we need to do fairly frequently with six of us in the house. Our boys’ bedroom had become very cluttered with toys, clothes, books and teddies. We tidied it up but decided that as the large buckets of teddies weren’t played with much at all...

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The hypervigilant mumma – will I ever switch off?

So we’ve been a bit ill again. Jake’s been the worst hit this autumn. Normally a very healthy child, he’s had a chest infection, sickness and now another cold virus that has brought him out in itchy hives. On Saturday, I was home alone with Jake and Naomi. Daddy and Joe were at the football,...

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Reinstating our children’s bedtime routine

The last time my hubby and I sat in front of the telly in the lounge with our children all in bed upstairs was around 4th February 2013, over three years ago. We always had a fairly reasonable bedtime routine for our three children. Upstairs around 8pm, get ready and then a story. As Abi and her...

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A grieving mother’s bucket list – catching frogs and drinking good coffee!

I recently bumped into an old friend, someone I’d not seen in around 20 years. We had a nice chat about the main aspects of what we’ve done with our lives, as you do, and we got onto the subject of fitness. My friend revealed she was entered into a marathon and was working out...

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Attending a first aid course as a grieving parent

This weekend was stressful and emotional, as well as coming down with the obligatory back-to-school cold. I finally plucked up the courage to attend a first aid course and it’s taken me some time to process what I learnt, and to deal with the memories and emotions that it stirred up. Continue reading → Share...

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Keeping memories of Abi close on holiday

While debating where to go on our first summer holiday without Abi, I posted about the memories we had of so many places we visited regularly with our ‘Abi family’. The Isle of Wight was one of them. Our last holiday together had been to Shanklin and we’d had a fabulous and very memorable time....

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Just a bunch of grapes

I’ve realised I’ve started buying grapes again, and not just buying them… eating them too! Abi loved grapes. She’d come in from school and devour a bunch easily while watching TV. Ever since she died, I’ve not been able to even look at grapes. I bought some once about a year ago, just to see...

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