Mamma Kerr

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Are you the Mom you thought you would be?

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The One-Minute Writer: Today's Writing Prompt: Control freak

I am a control freak. Period.  I have difficulty in delegating work tasks to others, as I always fear that they will not do it as well as I would do myself.  I fear that I will end up having to re-do it myself!  This, of course, is ridiculous, as the tasks are never that difficult.  I just find it hard to hand over the reins and feel that I will lose control over the whole situation if I do not keep a close involvement in everything!

My daughters are off school today, as it is an inset (AKA in-service) day, when the schools are closed to pupils to allow the teachers to participate in training workshops. These days are a major pain in the butt for working parents like me, as we have to either take the day off or arrange childcare cover.

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• Do you have any hobbies? What do you do for “me” time?

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I was standing at the checkout at Sainsbury's on my lunch break today, with my basketful of shopping all laid out on the conveyor belt when, out of the blue, a grey-haired old man steps in front of me and places four tins of soup in front of my groceries.

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1.What do you do and what kind of hours do you work?

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I just came across this great blog called Work Wife Mom Life today, and I spotted that the author hosts a meme which is most definitely right up my street – Working Mommy Wednesday.

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 A Future of Choices

In celebration of International Women’s Day, I thought I’d write about my hopes and aspirations for my twin daughters’ future, while reflecting on my own life and that of my mother.

 At just five years old, my daughters are growing up in a world different to that of my childhood, and significantly different to that of my own mother’s childhood.  They are growing up in a fast-paced world of technology, with computers and gadgets controlling almost every aspect of our lives.  They are growing up in a world of consumerism, where we have a multitude of choices for food, clothing, household goods, toys, gadgets, and luxury items.  It is a throw-away culture, with people opting to replace items that are still in working order, just so they can upgrade to the latest model or keep up with fashion.  It is a world of celebrity, with reality stars and WAGS, who are famous without having any discernable talent. It is a world of terrorism, where travel is an ever-increasing risk.

I want my girls to enjoy their school days, and will encourage them to progress to further or higher education.  As an advocate of lifelong learning, I am teaching my girls that education is an important privilege.  They should take advantage of the educational resources available to them, because there are many girls in other countries who cannot access even the most basic education.  I firmly believe that education is never wasted.  Therefore, if they change their mind halfway through their studies, or go on to do something completely different after graduating, their time spent learning will still be a positive contribution to their lives.

My own mother reluctantly left school at fifteen to start a job.  A talented artist, she really wanted to go to Glasgow School of Art.  Unfortunately, this wasn’t an option for her.  She was expected to start earning and contribute to the household.  Although she had been a good scholar at school, my mother was never encouraged to pursue her education, simply because she was a girl.  She had no choice.  This was in 1960.  Her brother, a few years younger, went on to study at university.

My parents always offered support and encouragement to my sister and I, throughout our educational years.  I hope to offer the same level of encouragement to my daughters.  I will support them with their educational choices, such as choosing their subjects for third year, choosing which course to study after school, and what college or university to go to.  (more…)

I’ve decided to start a new meme – Thankful Thursday - where participants blog about what they are thankful for in the current day / week.

First thing this morning, I wasn’t feeling very thankful. I was feeling very tired and in desperate need of a long lie. When I eventually dragged myself out of my bed and peered outside, all I could see was a swirling white blizzard!

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Regular readers of MammaKerr will have noticed that I LOVE memes.  Last night I came across a new meme, while hopping onto a blog on the Friday Follow blog hop.

The Mama Guilt Mondays meme is the brainchild of Cop Mama.  Cop Mama thought it would be a good idea to share our Mama Guilt so that we know that we are NOT alone.  She says, “We all struggle in this wonderful, chaotic, ever-challenging thing call motherhood!”

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I’ve just read an article in todays Daily Mail, outlining plans by Womens Minister, Harriet Harman, to introduce paid carers leave.

Here’s a little snippet from the article:

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Further to my recent post on reciprocal childcare arrangements, I have received a response from the Government regarding the No10 petition I signed. Please read my previous post here.

It would appear that OFSTED have misinterpreted the rules, and they should never have banned the two friends from babysitting each other’s daughters. Here is a snippet from the official Government response:

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I was dismayed at yesterday’s news report which stated that children of working mothers are less healthy than those of stay at home mums.  A study claims that children whose mothers work are less likely to lead healthy lives than those with “stay at home” mothers.

Findings of the Institute of Child Health study of more than 12,500 five-year-olds include:

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I read an article in this morning’s edition of the Daily Mail, which made me really angry.

The article was about two working mothers, close friends who work at the same firm. The two friends gave birth to their daughters around the same time, and decide to return to work part-time once their children had turned one years old. They agreed to job share and to watch each others child, while the other was at work, thus negating the need to pay for childcare.

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