worry

What to do if your child doesn’t enjoy school

November 2, 2021 By Ellen

It’s not unusual for a bit of grumpiness in the morning and the occasional attempt to wriggle out of going to school but might be something to be concerned about if it’s becoming a habit. We have teamed up with a prep school in Hampton to share tips on what to do if your child […]

Coronavirus: Garnished with a fishfinger

March 24, 2020 By Ellen

Yesterday, as soon as we got wind of the new measures (or lockdown as they call it in Scotland) Boy Two came to the rescue and fetched his big brother (and all his stuff) back from uni. So now the Palace of Bundance is full to bursting. Here’s what I learned: If you’re going to […]

Self-isolation: Day three, things I learned

March 19, 2020 By Ellen

If it was Monday, it would be Blue Monday. It may well be… I’ve started to lose track of which day is which and feeling rising anxiety about how I’ll be able to tell if it’s the weekend or not. I’m not a cryer – the opposite in fact – but today there were tears. […]

Don’t worry, write a poem…

February 13, 2018 By Ellen

Sometimes you’ve got things to worry about and other times you worry even when there’s nothing much to worry about. It doesn’t make much difference in the end. My advice: Stop worrying and write a poem. Worry is a big black bird. It spends its hours on a wire. Waiting. And then at the slightest, […]

This has been a week for a little nasal gazing

October 15, 2017 By Ellen

Every flipping year. It’s the same. Just when I think I’ve avoided getting the back-to-school lurgy, I succumb. Wouldn’t it be good if the frequency of snot-storms reduced as you got older? A tiny bit of compensation maybe. This year’s version has been particularly horrible – snotty and bad-tempered. And far worse, of course, than […]