Me. Lately.

Well hello! *taps the screen the see if anyone is still here*

Things have been rather crazy of late and so this lovely corner of the internet has been a bit quiet. This time of year is always busy but this year seems to have been the craziest of them all. I have been juggling so many balls that by 9 pm in the evening, I don’t even have the energy to lift the lid of my laptop, let alone actually write anything.

I am hopeful that the next week or so will see the start of things calming down.  Although, who am I kidding?  The last few weeks of the summer term are the absolute worst, filled with so many extra things to think about and remember.  I think I am getting far too old for all this parenting stress. I always sigh a huge sigh of relief on the last day of term when we can pack away the school stuff and switch off the alarm clocks for a few weeks but then, of course, the holidays can be just as hectic as term time.

So why have things been so hectic, I hear you ask?  Well, you might not be asking but I am going to tell you anyway.  The main reason is the usual insanity of being a mum with three kids at home.  Things most definitely don’t get easier as they get older, so if anyone ever says that, they are lying.  The challenge of being chief cook, cleaner, organiser continues with the added joy of also being personal chauffeur, counsellor, screen time monitor, along with the absolute joy of having to stay up and wait for them to come home from a night out with their friends just adds to the fun of it all. And what is it with the last few weeks of the summer term?  I always think that there might be a wind-down.  No chance.  More of a wind-up.

It is tiring. Good.  But tiring.

Add to mum duties, throw in 135 A level oral exams to mark. I do enjoy exam marking,  I have done it for so many years now and it pays for our summer holiday, but it does rather take over your life for a few weeks.  My husband also did marking this year so that meant that over the last few weeks of term, the house was rather in need of some serious TLC.  Well actually it still is. For now, I will have to add that job to my never-ending ‘to-do’ list.

Then there is normal work.  I work as a French tutor which is a fantastic job which I love as I get to work with a variety of different people and currently they range from a four-year-old through to a 78-year-old, so it is certainly never dull.  Business is booming, I have lots of adult students which is great and things don’t look to be slowing down anytime soon.  This year I am also working during the holidays which is nice as it means I am earning some money but it does mean that we are limited on the things we can do as I am working most days.

We spent the first week of the summer holidays in Center Parcs which was amazing.  It has been a few years since our last visit and I chose to go to Elveden Forest this year.  Suffolk is a bit of a trek for us but I am going to be honest and say that I chose Elveden as it is the flattest of the Center Parcs in the UK and if I am going to get my oversized backside onto a bike, there need to be no hills.  There weren’t and apart from the small heatwave we had, it really was a lovely week that was enjoyed by all.

The biggest news is the arrival of Liberty, our black labrador puppy.  She is simply gorgeous.  But let me tell you, having a puppy is hard work.  HArder than I imagined. It is a bit like having a baby again.  But it is all worth it as she is amazing and we have all fallen in love with her.  It wasn’t a decision taken lightly but it was a good one and we are looking forward to having her join in on our adventures.

The rest of the summer holidays are going to be spent with our new addition, helping her to settle into life with us as she can’t go out for a few weeks until she has had her vaccinations, so there will be lots of puppy play in the garden. Life could be worse couldn’t it?