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19 pieces of advice to my formerly pregnant self, on the eve of giving birth

September 26, 2013

What would you go back and tell yourself on the night before you gave birth, armed with what you know now? I was watching the BBC2 Midwives programme – responsible for a recent attack of the broods – and started thinking about both Eliza’s birth story and how the actual birth process is such a big focus…

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HELLO to a) Friday b) the weekend and c) anyone who’s main achievement this week was making it through to the end of the week. Life can be busy and overwhelming when you have small children, can’t it, when you’re juggling school runs and work and deadlines and keeping everyone smiling and fetching food and matching socks and wiping stuff up and wiping pen off the table and trying not to be submerged by the emotional load or the looming washing pile while remembering to do homework and all of the stuff, soundtracked by a million snack requests. So it’s OK not to have achieved anything major or shiny, today, this week or year. As getting everyone through the week happy and hugged is an achievement in itself. Here’s to slightly more relaxing weekends, though (My main aim for this one = drinking wine while watching Grand Designs, I reckon, you?)

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SO, has everyone with a new school starter started full time now? After our long phased start last week was the first full week (finally). How’s it all going? It’s all tentatively fine here so far, I think. Fingers crossed. And despite feeling sad that it had finally happened I’m kind of giddy about all the *time* it gives me. I caught up on work. I worked some more. I did a stereotypical September-sort of the house and made some charity shop trips. I went shopping without feeling guilty that I should be doing something else. I made many an Instagram scroll without hiding my phone behind a cushion. Silver linings, right? ⛅️ This week I’m even going to a gym class...wish me luck! I’m mildly terrified that I’ll be the reddest person ever to have graced the gym. (Also - this photo is what happens when people really, really match places, for @heyitsromeca and @georgina_patient #WhatMamaWoreMonday 👗)

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‘What are you going to do NOW?’ Is the question everyone asks me when I mention Flo going to school, usually followed by ‘will you go back to work?’ (does everyone who works freelance-type-jobs-from-home get this question?! Although someone did ask this to my friend who’s a doctor). While having my youngest at full-time school instead of part-time nursery means I’ll have more time to do more work, I am looking forward to having some actual breathing space to do amazing things. One of the school mums told the only way she got through the baby sleep deprivation was by telling herself she’d go back to bed every day for a week once her youngest was at school (how amazing?!) I also might listen to some podcasts (ten years behind everyone else!) and I also have loads of grand schemes and plans in mind.
I suspect the day-to-day reality will involve doing some work without feeling stressed, unloading the dishwasher and then messing around on Instagram before pick-up comes round really, really quickly. It’s nice to dream though, right? What’s everyone else going to do, now?!

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How are all the new school starters getting on (and the children?!) It’s been going suspiciously well over here but today we had our first case of the school run blues - or greys - this morning when Flo decided a third day at school was far too much and that she’d been in enough this week. She’s loved it when she’s there, but just...wanted to stay at home today (I can totally sympathise!) I was so worried about this as she was only in nursery for two days, and 😭. It’s hard, isn’t it? You can listen and acknowledge and address their fears, but then they’ll still have to go. Anyway, she went in then end and is still on a phased start so I’ll be picking her up shortly (Related...pre-children me: I’ll never bribe my kids! Post-kids me: 👀👀👀) PS new path is nearly done, we just need it not to rain today so we can have it grouted and finished ☔️

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Here’s to strong women, may we know them, may we be them, may we raise them and may we see them...It’s all change around here next week as school looms large so we had one last day out with just the two of us yesterday, that turned into a mini tour of inspiring women in one corner of London. Florence chose to go to the @florencemuseum (the clue’s in the name!) which we both really enjoyed - it’s small but very sweet, is beautifully presented and there’s lots of detail for children (although I think my 7-y-o who learned about this era at school could have spent ages in there). We also visited the Mary Seacole statue and park and headed over to Parliament Square to see the Millicent Fawcet statue, both of which are beautiful and powerful and incredibly moving. So yes, school next week then... PS here’s to all of us parents raising future strong women (and here’s the giant cup of soothing tea we all need 😂☕️)

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After a week of going arghhhh 😱(anyone / everyone else?!) we joined hundreds and thousands people in London and all across the UK to say #StopTheCoup 📢 Best sign from today: bus wanker. Who’s coming with me next time?

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