Having a baby in itself is a life-changing decision and I viewed it as the pinnacle when it came to focusing on what’s important. But as I’ve learned in recent months, buying a house also has a habit of sharpening your mind. Perhaps it was the depressingly serious life insurance chat, in which we explored…
What’s the first year of having a baby like? A new parent’s guide to the first 12 months of family life
A year ago today, I woke with a stiff back from a second consecutive night on the hospital floor, filled with a sense of trepidation and an inclination to go back to bed. Well, it was just after 6am after all! A little while later and I was decked out in ‘one-size-fits-all’ scrubs, which seemed…
Why pumpkin success comes back to haunt me on Halloween
When it comes to pumpkin carving and I, the phrase ‘peaking too soon’ hits the nail on the head. I was as good at art at school as Albie is at standing up currently without falling on the floor with a dramatic thud. But education failed to uncover my niche, instead trying to hone my…
The photography fails which prove things rarely go to plan…
They say never work with children – but that’s quite tricky to avoid if you’re a parent. When you’re a parent sharing your journey with the interweb, it’s tempting to pursue the perfect pictures. But like family life, things don’t always go to plan. Albie’s all-round charm and trademark smile will work wonders in later…
Making national news and finally cracking sleep after 11 months
Everyday life is pretty hectic at the moment – and that has impacted on how much I’ve been able to write recently. But even then, a lot has been achieved in blog terms. My last post leapt to the defence of pregnancy and parenthood company Bounty after it received a bit of a battering in…
Is it time to scrap Bounty reps in hospitals? Not if we have anything to do with it…
Every picture in this blog post was possible thanks to one woman: a Bounty rep. Each of them is a treasured, professional memento of the beginning of our little family’s life together, just a few hours after Albie was born. But there’s not been a lot of love for the Bounty reps in recent days,…
11 days away and Albie has changed in two pretty big ways
It’s eleven days since I last posted – and the break has shown just how much can happen – and change. Work began to get hectic, with Monday the start of our deputy editor’s two weeks of leave. Doing the job of two people, every day has seemed like one where I’ve started with a…
A golfing tribute to Gramp – and introducing the next generation
Despite his best efforts to introduce himself to us extremely early, Albie never made it to meet his great-Gramp. It was around the 31-week mark when I made the two-and-a-half-hour journey back to Swindon for my Gramp’s funeral. It was a risk, given just three weeks earlier we had been warned to expect Albie’s arrival…
An open letter to Daddy Pig
Dear Daddy Pig, My son recently returned from a day trip with his mother brandishing a crumpled carrier bag he informed me he obtained from Peppa Pig World. Inside said bag, by now discoloured from a couple of hours’ dribble and vomit, was a pair of socks emblazoned with your mugshot and the slogan ‘Stop:…
BBC’s Press: a drama to make us journalists cringe
The titles of new BBC journalism drama Press roll and it’s already irritating most of the journalists watching. There’s some fancy shots of notepads with lots of longhand. Where’s their shorthand? Did the reporter flunk their entry exams? Why are they being burned? Their owners must be pretty confident they won’t need to defend any…
