We are BIG podcast fans in our house. I listen to podcasts everyday, and my kids most nights. As well as supplementing (or replacing…) a live human being reading a story at bedtime, we play them in the car, and just this week I had the genius idea of putting them on for each kid […]
There is a special kind of heartbreak a parent feels when the meal they have cooked is described as ‘yucky,’ or refused altogether. If you are struggling with the stress, sadness and discouragement of battling with picky eaters (of whatever age!), this post is here to reassure you and help you and your family relax and […]
There’s a longstanding joke among the residents of Nebraska. The Midwesterners claim that if you don’t like the weather, you only need to wait 10 minutes. In a state where you can experience the joy of snow and 80 degree weather within a 24 hour period, you can understand where this position originates. A positive […]
My green cleaning journey so far Me and my husband: It worked! I made dishwashing powder! Cool. No – I need a high five for this. I’m AMAZING! Yeah, well done. I’m not getting enough enthusiasm here. I think it’s amazing that you make dinner. Food that we can put in our mouths. That’s amazing. This […]
A warm welcome to a special guest! Jess Berentson-Shaw lives in on the side of a windswept Wellington hill. Jess has two kids, is a part time researcher and scientist, and runs (and blogs about) her social enterprise called muka kids. Muka kids is her plan to bring about a sustainability revolution in the […]
Being smug is such a treat. Not only do you get the warm glow of being right but if you add a smidge of righteous into the mix it goes all scrumptious. What fun to sneer at people and tell them how wrong they are! Smugness is shiveringly satisfying, but it’s also a cheap thrill, and I’d love […]
Stuck at the traffic lights? Is your honey at your side? Have a kiss. Every time! That’s a micro-tip, but the much more serious and important point it’s part of is this: take every opportunity for a positive, loving interaction. Small is fine. A recent study found that couples in thriving marriages have at least […]
A warm welcome to Rochelle Gribble, here with an insightful analysis of the recently-introduced, highly controversial ‘National Standards‘ that New Zealand primary schools are now required to report on twice a year. Rochelle is a once-was, sometimes-is, may-be-again secondary teacher. She has a Masters degree in Education and sometimes even gets to use it! However, […]
‘It is a tragedy when the human spirit dies before the body. But the answer is not to kill the body too, but to revive the spirit.’ So said Prof Margaret Somerville at a conference on euthanasia held in Wellington a couple of years ago. On Sunday I tried to canvass the arguments on both sides of […]
Some of you will know that I’m living with postnatal depression. It’s hard. What I said on Sunday about disability is stuff I believe both in my head and because of my own experience: We think life should be perfect and comfortable. But God comes to us in the imperfect and the uncomfortable. We think life is […]