It hit me at 2am yesterday that I'd driven to Lennox Head with two people and their luggage in the car, but would be returning to Sydney with four people and their luggage. And a pretty compact car at that. It was a fairly fitful night’s sleep after that. On the plus side, I got... Continue Reading →

I had a bit of a weep on the couch yesterday because I felt like such a holiday failure. I sent maudlin texts to DD and he reminded me that there were lots of good bits: Bluesfest, swims, sunrises ... That’s true, but it’s still a bit of a killer when your kids spend most... Continue Reading →

Family holidays are tricky at any age. I remember jamming a cot into a hotel bathroom in Singapore so we could watch a bit of tellie when the toddler went to sleep at 7pm and the night yawned ahead of us. Fast forward 14 years and I’ve gone road tripping to Byron Bay with teenagers.... Continue Reading →

Geez it’s a long way to Byron Bay, but we finally made it. We turned the key on one of the many, many locks at our temporary new home late yesterday afternoon. I spent 500 million hours listening to the youngest’s favourite music in the car on the way. It was a novelty at first,... Continue Reading →

I got loads of gift vouchers for my birthday, but I haven't spent yet because a) I haven't had enough time and b) I'm too fat. I've been thinking it would be awesome if you could buy weight loss with gift vouchers. I don't mean using them to sign up for Jenny Craig, I'm talking... Continue Reading →

You can't see it clearly in my photo, but there was a little rainbow over the headland at Bilgola Beach yesterday evening. I decided it was the universe sending me a sign that I’d made the right move to race up the coast for a last swim before winter arrives. It was so beautiful in... Continue Reading →

The hosts of my blog - WordPress - put  dodgy ads on my website to make a buck since I don’t pay them anything. In recent weeks they’ve been spruiking skin tag treatments to me. It’s like they’ve looked deep in my soul to discover what’s bothering me so they can exploit my fear. I’ve... Continue Reading →

There are heaps of snarky memes in cyber space along the lines of "Mum flu: like normal flu, except no one gives a shit" and "I'm sick, looks like I'll be sleeping and laying in bed all day. Oh wait, I'm a mum." It goes up a notch when you're a sick single mum because... Continue Reading →

The eldest is angling to change high schools again. My ex was a bit lairy about it, but we went to an open day at the new school last night and he was hooked. It’s just for year 11 and 12, with a strong focus on the creative and visual arts, which is part of... Continue Reading →

Every now and then I feel a sharp pang of longing to work in magazines again. Actually, there have been two pangs in the last week. The first one came during a three-hour brainstorm for a magazine that's produced for The Drinks Association. I loved talking to the publisher and editor about paper thickness, show... Continue Reading →