First Day Blues
So I have a daughter who started school two days ago. She’s been to school before, but this is big school, real school, school where I can’t say “I’ll pick you up early” or “It doesn’t matter if we’re...
View ArticleNature vs. Nurture
“They fuck you up, your mum and dad.” I’m not being profane. I’m quoting the well-respected poet, Philip Larkin. You knew that, right? But it’s a line that’s been coming back to me lately. But it’s not...
View ArticleStarting School: Being an Involved Parent
My second child started school this September, and I finally feel like I know what’s going on. You should have seen me on the evening when we met the teacher and saw the classroom, putting up my hand...
View ArticleOne Crazy Internet
It’s been a while, and my Internet is just bubbling over with ridiculous crazy. Those people in the stock photos they use in parenting articles? They’re so very realistic, don’t you think? It’s like...
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Book Review: Irish Fairy Tales
You might tend to assume that your child will absorb Celtic mythology and Irish folk tales without any particular help on your part – at school, on telly, around about, they’re bound to be bombarded...
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Knitting for Begin-again-ers
When I was in first class, all the girls learned to knit. Because it was 1980, the boys did not, though I think they were offered the choice. We girls had no choice in the matter, and we knitted our...
View ArticleAnatomy of a Tantrum: the Two-Headed Monster
In an ideal world, your child would have a tantrum in a bubble. Okay, fine, not a bubble, exactly, but you know what I mean. Everything else would be fine, you’d be at home, you’d be feeling strong and...
View ArticleSwallowing a Bitter Pill (No, That's Not a Metaphor)
There comes a day in every parent’s life when the doctor looks at you and says “Do you think he (she) could swallow a pill?” And out of some sort of misguided desire to please the authority figure –...
View ArticleOne Crazy Internet – Ryan Gosling and Playgrounds
The evenings are drawing in. Pick up another bale of briquettes when you’re down the shops, would you? I need to check out some crazy Internet sites by cosy firelight. ————- Sometimes you want a guide...
View ArticleThe Homework Wars
Ah, the great homework debate. How much, how often, how big, how small…? Let’s start at the very beginning. It’s a very good place to start. Junior infants, then. Should they get homework? …. I really...
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