The Sick Day Survival Guide: What Actually Helps When Your Child Is Home From School
The first day of being unwell is rarely the hard one… The hard day is the one after that. The fever's gone, the worst of it has passed, but they're still not quite right, still not well enough for school, and suddenly they have opinions again. They're bored. They want to run around, or they want twelve different things in the space of an hour, and you're trying to hold down a job, or a business, or the rest of the household, around a child who is neither poorly enough to rest nor well enough to properly play.
Why Bedtime Gets Harder as the Evenings Draw In (And What Actually Fixes It)
It's not your routine. It's not your child being difficult. It's daylight, and there's a genuinely simple fix, it's just not the one most bedtime advice points you towards.
You Don't Have to Have September Figured Out Yet
Routines, confidence and school-life transitions take time. It's still September — everyone is still finding their feet.
Why the First Two Weeks Back at School Are the Hardest (and 10 Calm Ways to Get Through Them)
By home time, the tank is empty. The people they trust most are the people they can afford to fall apart in front of. So they do.
10 Screen-Free Autumn Activities for Kids That Don't Need Much Setting Up
Late September - it's not quite cold enough for the heating to go on, it's dark by half past six, and somewhere between school pick-up and tea a small voice asks what they can do.
I spent a lot of years answering that question. What I learned is that the best autumn activities aren't the elaborate ones. They're the ones you can start in two minutes with what's already in the house — or already lying on the ground outside.
Here are ten that have always worked for me
First Day of School Photo Ideas Every Parent Can Actually Use (No Stress Required)
There's a particular kind of chaos that happens on the first morning of a new school year. Somewhere between finding the second shoe, remembering the packed lunch, and convincing someone that yes, the new jumper does have to go on today, you're also supposed to capture the photo. The one you'll look back on in ten years and go a bit teary about.
Contentment Isn't Something You Have to Earn
The children I looked after didn’t need more toys or bigger days out. They asked for the same story again, for someone to sit with them while they coloured in, for things to feel a bit predictable, a bit safe.
How to Teach Beginning Sounds at Home (Without Worksheets)
There's something about feeding a creature that makes children forget it's practice entirely.
How to Help a Nervous Child Feel Ready for School (Without Pressure)
Make an "All About Me" sheet they can take in to share with their new teacher — a little bridge between home and school
How to Keep Kids Happy on Long Journeys (Without Screens)
If you're setting off on a long car journey, train trip or airport queue this summer, you already know that question is coming — usually about eleven minutes in.
Little ones can be genuinely happy on a long journey without a screen — it just takes a bit of gentle planning.
How to Gently Get Kids Back into a Routine Before School Starts (Without the Battles)
Want calmer September mornings? Ease little ones back into a school routine gently — earlier bedtimes, quiet-time activities and rebuilt concentration, without tears.
Surviving the Six-Week Summer Holidays: 5 Simple Tricks That Actually Work
Six weeks of summer holidays ahead? A former nursery nurse shares 5 simple, screen-free ways to keep little ones happy — without expensive days out.
50 Screen-Free Summer Activities for Kids That Actually Work (And Keep Them Busy)
50 genuinely fun screen-free summer activities for kids — outdoor play, crafts, reading challenges, and printable ideas that keep little ones busy all holiday.
Why Laminating Your Printables Is a Game-Changer
A simple how-to for laminating and reusing printable activity sheets, turning a one-time-use page into a wipe-clean, reusable resource.
5 Screen-Free Activities for a Rainy Day
A roundup of simple, low-prep screen-free activities parents can pull together quickly when the weather (or the day) calls for indoor entertainment.