#parenting reflections

I have two children — a daughter and a son. My daughter is 16 and has now left school, and my son is 7, so there are 9 years between them. This is quite a big gap for siblings and is down to circumstance rather than choice, and it has shaped their relationship in ways that are different to siblings closer in age. Add into that the fact my son splits his time between my house and his dad’s house,…

That’s not a rhetorical question. My son actually said that to me one day. I’d said something — something I thought was obviously not serious — and he stopped mid-conversation and asked if it was a joke. I said yes. He looked at me, completely done with the whole concept, and said… “Why is everybody obsessed with jokes?” And honestly? He has a point. Because a joke is almost never what it…

This is every child’s wish, isn’t it? To be a superhero and have a superpower. Even adults sometimes wonder what superpower would be best. The list is endless, but the most popular ones tend to be flying, invisibility, super strength, speed, or mind reading. But not my son. His answer was as unique as he is. It was something very specific. When he asked me this question, we had just had one of…

We were playing in the kitchen and my son asked: “Am I a fussy eater?” In that moment I wondered where on earth this had come from and so used my favourite tactic of answering a question with a question and asked why? He was non-committal with his answer and I knew him well enough by now to know he was astute enough to see people enjoying food and wondering why he didn’t. Because I know he…