Next year I will have more kids in secondary school than I do in primary school. This blows my mind (and makes me feel old!). Yesterday I saw a mum with a …
7 tips for first time year 7 parents
Our second son enters year 7 this year. In Victoria, this is the first year of secondary / high school. When my first son went into year 7, I found the year …
10 Things I Have Learnt About Year 7 And Year 7 Boys This Year
Our son started secondary school this year, which in Victoria starts at year 7. This year has seen as big of a learning curve for me, as it has been for my …
this family life episode 75: on settling into the new school year
Welcome back to a new season of the this family life podcast! I am super excited to be back doing the podcast again and this season will have a mix of fabulous …
Yearly review 2017 – learning more about what brings me joy
My goal for 2017 was to invest in my relationships with family, friends and community to bring joy and connection. The goals I had set for the previous years had been more …
2017 half yearly review – what I need to change
Photo by Jens Lelie on Unsplash I went and read my review for this time last year and my end of year review from 2016 before writing this post. And while I am happy with …
10 Favourite Children’s Books – 7 Year Old’s Choice
During August we celebrate Children’s Book Week here in Australia. As I noted last week, each Tuesday in August I will be posting lists of favourite children’s books, as selected by my …
33 lessons from 25 years of parenting
I started writing on Planning With Kids all the way back on January 2, 2008. At that time we only had four kids aged 10, 7, 5, and 2. Our youngest was …
20 Christmas gift ideas for kids (5 – 12 years old)
I love Christmas gift idea posts! I love scrolling through with a particular person in mind and sizing up if the gift ideas in the post work for them. And when it …
Books for 15 – 18 year olds
Buying books for 15 – 18 year olds can be challenging. It is an age when they may not be spending much time reading so finding something that might entice them to …
Monthly review – half yearly review 2022
We are now half way through the year and time to take a look back and see how I am progressing toward my goal for 2022. My goal for this year is …
37 essential life skills for adulting
In no way does this list of 37 essential life skills for adulting cover all of the skills you need to manage as an adult in the world. It covers what I …
this family life episode 78: on thriving through perimenopause
Welcome back to a new season of the this family life podcast! I am super excited to be back doing the podcast again and this season will have a mix of fabulous …
this family life episode 77: on organising life admin
Welcome back to a new season of the this family life podcast! I am super excited to be back doing the podcast again and this season will have a mix of fabulous …
2021 yearly review – doing the inner work
2021 yearly review time! Regardless of how my year has been, I embrace the yearly review. Even if I haven’t achieved my goal for the year, if I go through what you …
Supporting your VCE student in a COVID interrupted year
Our daughter is our third child to work her way through the Victorian Certificate of Education (VCE). VCE is the certificate that the majority of students in Victoria receive on satisfactory completion …
7 truths about growing independent kids
Many reader questions I receive focus on getting kids to do more for themselves or more around the house. These are both activities that help kids grow their independence and are something …
Half yearly review: being honest with yourself
Now is the perfect time to be honest with yourself and take a hard look at how you are progressing towards your goal for the year. I embrace reviews. They give me …