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Mellow Monday.
Sometimes at the end of a hectic Monday you just need to sit on the sofa with your dog and close your eyes. Then gently rub your hands to give yourself some calm and comfort. When you’ve done that then...
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Round and round it goes.
It is Tuesday morning, the house is empty save for Rosie and I. I have time to savour some breakfast before getting on with the day. My mind, however cannot be still. Following a night of fitful sleep...
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Plans change
It’s pretty easy to make plans but sometimes you have to be open to them changing. This evening was supposed to be respite for our youngest, yesterday I received a call to tell me it would have to be...
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So I don’t always face it.
Yesterday when I went to get my youngest from the school bus, huddled into my coat, soaking wet and full of the self-pities due to my cold, I made the typically insightful British comment to the bus...
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Carers and caring.
The news this morning carried a story that general practitioners are calling for carers to be evaluated more frequently for depression. Today it is news that carers often neglect their own health as...
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Good things at the end of the week.
There is something indescribably lovely about walking out of work to see your son waiting for you in the car. I had that wonderful experience yesterday. University is over for another year and...
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Sleep, I remember that.
One of the most challenging aspects of parenting is lack of sleep. Those seemingly endless sleepless nights take a toll on our energy, our drive and clear-headedness. It can be pretty hard to think...
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Strengthening the connections.
As I wrote on Monday this is the Spring half-term holiday week in our area. Both my girls are home from school each day and my husband has taken a couple of days off to look after our youngest while I...
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Birthdays and parenting.
June has begun most gloriously here in South Wales. We have been bathed in warmth and sunshine, it could not be more different to the dreechtness of May. Yesterday my husband celebrated his birthday....
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Tears and singing.
Last night, from nowhere, tears appeared. They overran her eyes and streamed in rivulets down her cheeks. I sat beside her, upset to see her so distressed. Without thinking I, in mother mode said,...
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Never laugh off the sleep note.
I will admit it, yesterday I was more than a little blasé about the teacher’s note from school telling me my youngest had slept in the morning. I laughed it off as being nothing compared to how I...
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Ready for respite.
It is the most glorious Friday morning, the murk of yesterday has passed and already the promise of heat is building. My husband has gone off on one of his regular work trips to Aberystwyth. I have to...
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It’s Summer!
We are having Summer. I’m not sure the country knows how to deal with it but it has arrived. I absolutely adore it. I love the heat and the sunshine, the colourful blooms and the enticing hope of some...
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Some days the reality of your child’s Special Needs just hits you.
I was sailing along quite happily counting down the days to the end of the school year, thinking about what we could do during the Summer holiday. The first tiny jolt came a few days ago. While...
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Far away.
One irrefutable truth of school summer holidays, especially when you are caring for a child with special needs and behavioural problems is that there are limits to where you can go and what you can...
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The Friday feeling.
We have arrived at the penultimate Friday of the school summer holidays here in Wales. One more full week plus the Monday at home and then my youngest will be going back to school. I wonder what this...
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The nest is emptying.
The last few weeks have been a challenge for me. My two middle children have been home all summer but now that has ended it is time for them to move forward. Last Friday the older of my girls began...
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A sunny afternoon, a little outing.
Summer is mostly gone from South Wales, but not completely. We have been fortunate to still have warmth during the days. Nevertheless the summer seating in my in-laws’ garden has been tucked away for...
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First of 30.
Last night was all hustle, we had to take an unexpected trip to 15′s respite because I forgot to send one of her medications and then a mix up with our meal. Don’t ask, let’s just say we won’t be...
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We’re still on holiday?
The Christmas holidays linger at Tŷ Us. In much the same way as I was glad to take down the decorations some days ago I will be immensely pleased to see the return to normality on Wednesday. 15′s...
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