My young children were so caring-worried about whether we might accidentally tread on a passing ant, always showing concern to each other or animals in particular. But almost overnight, it seemed, they became 6- and 8-year-olds with a new favourite phrase: “I don’t care!” The empathy I cherished seemed to vanish, replaced by indifference andContinue reading “Breaking the “Don’t Care” Habit: Our Journey to Raising Caring Kids”
Tag Archives: family
Why Our Kids’ Freedom Means More Stress for Us
Have you ever felt torn between wanting your child to be independent and worrying about what might happen if you let go? You’re not alone. Autonomy is defined as “the ability to make your own decisions without being controlled by anyone else”. Thinking of our kids, the more control we give our children, the less stress they experience. As children gain autonomy, parents naturallyContinue reading “Why Our Kids’ Freedom Means More Stress for Us”
From Class to Kitchen: Mastering Delicious Family Dinners
Let’s say, before I became a Mum, I was capable of cooking about 3 meals. One was pasta with butter and raisins (it sounds awful! But it got me through the teenage years!). The other was sausage sandwiches (not healthy, but it was still classed as cooking in my book!). The final was the essentialContinue reading “From Class to Kitchen: Mastering Delicious Family Dinners”
Home Educating Poem: What The First Year Taught Us
Although I’m writing this in 2025, with over 3 years unschooling under the belt, I found all my old poems the other day. This is one I wrote when we reached the first year of home educating milestone. That first year taught me such a lot, so I guess you could say homeschooling is notContinue reading “Home Educating Poem: What The First Year Taught Us”
3 Years Since… We Started Unschooling
Wow! I’ve not done a blog post on this site for 3 years. This is pretty much the same period since my oldest daughter turned compulsory school age. My life, on the other hand, has been far from quiet. We now have two 6.5 year olds and an 8 year old, so in fact, itContinue reading “3 Years Since… We Started Unschooling”
Feeling Like a ‘Normal’ Family – Except, What’s Normal Anyway!
Wow, it’s only been since April this year that I first took the petrifying steps of taking my 3 toddlers out alone. Such a lot has changed in only 6 months. I have built my confidence so much in managing all 3 kids alone, that I have made several quite risky ventures with them inContinue reading “Feeling Like a ‘Normal’ Family – Except, What’s Normal Anyway!”
Gentle Parent 