The Juggling Act

This past month has been such a time of conflicted emotions, but now I seem to have found myself settling somewhere between panic and denial. And of course there's now a name for that - panial. It’s got a ring to it right?! It totally sums up how I’m feeling. But it turns out we don't need to feel that way and we actually have more control over this situation than we think.  

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Now that we’re around each other 24:7 and facing a whole different kind of stress and pressure than we were PP (pre-pandemic), it can be difficult to stay calm with our kids. I don’t know about you, but my shoulders and back are constantly tight, I’m drinking more wine than I should be, and my fuse, if I get interrupted while I’m trying to work, can be pretty damn short. So I reached out to Beth Borowsky, teacher and founder of The Karma Class, for some tips to help us keep calm and carry on during Corona.  

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Isolation has been a great eye-opener for my husband and I on this topic, because we have been throwing new toys and games at our eldest child almost on a daily basis to try and keep him entertained. He usually does a few days a week at daycare, where the set-up is exceptional, whereas at home, mum and dad are exhausted and trying to sneak in a few minutes of work whenever possible. Enter the influx of toys. So is it ok to make a problem disappear by giving our kids what they want? We got some tips from financial guru and father-of-two Scott Pape.  

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This Easter break is the time to stop and think. When you’re feeling like the whole thing is an inconvenience and you’re totally over it, which we all are, try to remember how privileged we are to spend this holiday period in a nice home, reading, eating, drinking and chatting to friends. It might not be what we had planned, but the alternative is much worse.  

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As parents, we are suddenly supposed to have vast medical knowledge and be able to diagnose ALL of our kid's ailments. Not to the point of prescription medication, but in essence, we are supposed to be able to fix everything. I still ask Mum what to do about an illness, rather than Dad (who actually has the medical degree)… And it’s nothing to do with his ability. It’s just some instinctual desire to ask mum and an innate belief that she will ALWAYS have the right answer on hand, medical or otherwise.  

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Hey Jugglers, this is our final pre recorded weekly ep for a while, but Mel Wilson will be with you on the daily eps for the next little while. In this episode our old friend Cassie Hamer pops by to tell us all about her new book, and why she believes parenting is the art of letting go. Stay safe everyone!  

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Gone are the regular hair and waxing appointments, and in their place is... nothing. Just regrowth and um, more growth. I rang fellow working mumma and host of the So I Quit My Day Job podcast, Cath Mahoney, to find out how she's faring during these minimalist times (hint: it's not pretty).  

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At the risk of sounding all 'woo woo', I can't help thinking that this has all happened because we've forgotten to take care of each other AND the planet. That somehow it's the Universe's way of making us check ourselves and to 'try' and remind us what's really important in life. I've also found a poem that's a beautiful reminder to make sure that we continue to take care of the world and ALL the people in it, once this is over.  

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How have your kids been coping with this strange situation we find ourselves in? Our routine is a bit out of whack and I've noticed my youngest has become quite clingy? I reached out to some other kids to ask how they're feeling about Covid-19 and got some advice from a psychotherapist on how to talk to them about the big 'C' word.  

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Have you been made redundant at work? Or even while you're on maternity leave? I'm joined again by Alison Dutton from Labour Pains Legal to explain what you can do about it and what you're entitled to.  

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