Well it's the last day of 2022 and so of course I had to do the traditional #TopNine post showing my top nice posts of this year. . This year seems to have been a very eclectic year when it comes to which content has been enjoyed more. The most popular posts (on the right) were those giving an insight into my own personal story, featuring the Tiny Teacup and my career path to archaeology and where I am now. This makes sense - storytelling is of course the best way to connect - and I'm honoured that you're all so interested in my story! . The next in popularity (on the left) included some #MugshotMonday posts, so perhaps I'll try and continue something similar in the future seeing as you enjoyed them so much. And of course our lovely #DiggingArchaeology workshop that I ran with my amazing colleagues @bedouinsilver and @theoverdressedarcheologist (for those still waiting on the recorded sessions - they will be here I swear! Life just got very much in the way for all of us unfortunately...) . And finally the third rank of popularity (the middle column) is a lot more random, with insights into my fieldwork travel, weekends at Christmas markets, sharing of small businesses, and promoting my other platforms like YouTube. Hopefully this means that you enjoy a little bit of everything that I do! . As I've already mentioned in a few posts here, I'm be continuing to take a little break from more regular series and posts on here over the next few months, while I finish up this PhD. And then there may be a pause while the next teacup is brought into the world, but I have lots of exciting plans for the future of my online platforms so I hope that you stick around and continue to be a member of this lovely community that you've created. I'm so grateful for all of you, and so happy that I'm able to do what I love and people actually seem interested in it! . Happy New Year everyone! . #archaeology #ArchaeologistsOfInstagram #phdlife #PhD #TheLeveragedPhd #SciComm #Archaeologist #TeaDay #ArchaeologyLovers #ArchaeologyLife #NewYear https://www.instagram.com/p/Cm0sazHqnDE/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

Well today has been a crazy but extremely fun #WorkspaceWednesday because it was day one of our online workshop "Digging Archaeology through Social Media”. . To make sure it all ran smoothly, my co-hosts @theoverdressedarcheologist and @bedouinsilver and I decided that we would all physically be in the same place. Because she's still so dependent, I needed to bring the little one with me. . First off, i must say that this was only possible thanks to the incredible support of both my wonderful co-hosts, who provided baby entertainment whenever I was giving my talk etc (for visual proof see Sasja in action in picture 3, captured on camera by Sigrid). Also the people working at @sidestonepress who allowed us to use their workspace and were happy to have a baby bed and high chair set up. And to everyone participating who were very accommodating of the occasional squeal or shriek during the discussion sessions. . However, even knowing I would have the support of my co-hosts, I was still extremely anxious leading up to today, because even though I'm very lucky in that the little one is exceptionally well behaved for an 8-month-old baby, she's still an 8-month-old baby! But I'm so glad that I decided to do it this way, because I've had several comments already saying how great it is to see a mum with her baby running an event like this, and normalising bringing your baby with you to a workshop, and when I thought about it, I agree! . Of course, it would have been much easier if she hadn't been there, but I wanted to have a baby, and taking on that responsibility means accepting that she will be dependent on me for a long time. But that doesn't mean that I or any mums who want to continue with their work should have to compromise on the type of work that we can do. It requires a bit of extra work and planning, but it is possible. . So adding in to the topic of accessibility raised so well by several speakers today, let's normalise mums attending events with baby in tow! . #diggingarchaeology #archaeologylife #academicmama #workingmums #phdlife #academiclife #archaeologist #archaeologistsofinstagram https://www.instagram.com/p/CcldTn7rTzn/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=