I've said it many times before, but the last 12 months have been the hardest of my life. I don't know about you, but I can only cope with so much stress so I try to cut myself some slack when I'm going through something particularly busy. This can mean simple things like having more take aways, allowing myself to drink gallons of fizzy drinks or wine (depending on the time of day!) and eating lots of biscuits (which I don't normally do). Or it could mean cutting things out of my diary that I . . . Keep Reading
Review: Valentine’s gifts and artwork from Minted
When art website Minted* offered me some credit to spend on their website in return for a review, I picked this gorgeous picture to hang in my office as it went with the colour scheme so perfectly and it summed up my way of working...Only then I remembered it was coming up to Valentine's Day, and I still haven't had chance to buy anything for Husband. I decided instead to scour their seasonal Valentine's artwork for a gift for him instead (as I'm nice like that!) Luckily he doesn't read . . . Keep Reading
Where does a freelance travel writer work?
I know a travel writer can work from anywhere...a coffee shop, a beach, a hotel, a mountain top...but I like my own space.Moving into a 4-bed house has been amazing for me; it has finally given me back a space to work. My dedicated office in the UK became the boys' bedroom when they were born and I was relegated into the spare bedroom where I had to share my workspace with the guest bed and other junk. When E arrived, that became her room so I had to move to the dining room table. I've . . . Keep Reading
Travel with kids: How to survive long haul travel with three under five (including twins!)
The last time I travelled long haul, I found it really boring. I watched more movies than I thought possible and attempted to doze a few times. I read a book, drank wine, chatted to Husband and picked at the awful airline food. I obviously didn't have children at the time.Fast forward five years - and three children - later and I was terrified about flying from London to Brisbane with our 4yo boys (who never sit still) and our 2yo (who has serious control issues about being . . . Keep Reading
How we spent our Christmas Day in Australia
I was lucky enough to experience Christmas Day in Australia in 2008, pre-kids. We had a bbq breakfast at my cousin's house in Perth, we swam in the ocean, lay on the beach drinking beer and then came back to the house for turkey and all the trimmings. It was pretty blissful.This year was our first family Christmas in Brisbane. Here's how Christmas Day looked to me, represented in stats... . . . Keep Reading