I remember it well, the summer holidays that is - and with four children to manage around my role as Finance Director, it took military precision.
Many parents reading this will be in the thick of it and most of the time, it's the mums who arrange it all. Not having a gripe here, that's just the way it is. With holiday childcare costs averaging 2.5x that of after school care and less than 30% of councils having sufficient provision of holiday childcare for 4 - 11 year olds, planning summer childcare is a nightmare for many. (Family and Childcare Trust, Holiday Childcare Survey 2017). So, if you are in the middle of what should be some of the happiest years of your life and instead you are stressed, tired and longing for the new term, I can totally empathise. I can also urge you to get together with other parents from your child's school and request that in future the school opens up and offers holiday childcare or let's another provider use the premises. This right to request was announced by government in October 2015 but only 4% of local authorities report it making any impact on holiday childcare provision. That's not going to help now though is it? So, when you're a woman who 'has it all' - job, children, partner etc etc and you're therefore supposed to be living the emancipated dream, what can you do to get through to September? Might I suggest one thing. Go up to bed 20 minutes early each night and write about the day - get it down on paper or on your tablet, the funny things the kids said when you picked them up from the Sports centre, what you made for tea, the fact that you were really miffed when husband came in and collapsed on the sofa with a beer and told you how rough his day had been, while you were throwing washing in the machine, feeding the dog and making tea all at the same time. Honestly, just get all the ordinary stuff that goes on every day, down in a journal. Get into the habit of it, it becomes your friend, your counsel, just let it all out onto the pages. I promise you, when the children have grown and you look back, it's all a blur. You'll only remember odd events, usually the big things, but believe you me, the real stuff is the never ending swimming lessons, the giggles at bedtime, the yelling "Get in the car, NOW!" I have approximately 40 journals under our spare bed and over the last 3 months I read 28 of them, one for each year of my son David's life. He's just got married and I made him a huge scrap-book filled with those everyday moments and photos and what was number 1 and what was in the news etc etc. He is totally overwhelmed by it, as I was reading all those pages of being a Mum. Honestly I'd forgotten how crazy life was back then but how I wish I could have bottled it. Reading the journals is the next best thing. Final suggestion, book onto our Women on the Up programme https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/women-on-the-up-blackburn-tickets-3578441916, a 6 month programme of coaching and mentoring support for female managers/business owners. It will keep you on track, resilient and hopefully sane as you navigate your way through the maze of everyday life.
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If you enjoy my blogs, you can read more of my work in my book available here www.amazon.co.uk/Words-Walks-Wisdom-Wendy-Bowers/dp/1671172353
AuthorWendy Bowers, Archives
June 2022
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