• Could this dance craze have you jumping for joy on the scales?

Could this dance craze have you jumping for joy on the scales?

It’s been around for about three years, but I first heard of it was when my friend Monica from school texted me the other day to see if I fancied doing BoogieBounce. I jumped at the chance (sorry, pun intended). If you can imagine an immersion heater with thick cladding,

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Tell your kids exam grades don’t matter

Tell your kids exam grades don’t matter

Yesterday’s most tragic story in the UK is of two brothers who took their own lives aged 20 and 15. Our prayers and thoughts are with their family, who are pleading with others to watch out for their mental health and that of those around them.  Read about it here. 

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  • Are your friends gritting their teeth today?

Are your friends gritting their teeth today?

Spare a thought for the mothers of teenagers who are going through a rough time. Mother’s Day might be a trial for them. They might even be your friends who are unable to tell you what’s really going on in their family. When I talk to parents, it’s clear that raising

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  • This book is Gin & Tonic for the soul

This book is Gin & Tonic for the soul

She’s 49 and she’s back! Allison Pearson’s new book How Hard Can it Be? brings character Kate Reddy to life again, and this time she’s got testosterone. Remember the book and film, I Don’t Know How She Does it?  This is the sequel. If you’re peri-menopausal and memory-challenged like the

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  • Why we should start teaching kids aged 4 about these creeps

Why we should start teaching kids aged 4 about these creeps

Most parents speak to their children about Stranger Danger at the age of 4. Following the recent Harvey Weinstein debacle, it’s time to talk to them about Power Danger. Power Danger is where one person does something to you because they know their position prevents you from rebuffing them or

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Five smart ways to halve your kids’ activities

Five smart ways to halve your kids’ activities

If you and your family have felt the strain last academic year of taking your kids to and from multiple activities, here are five ways to cut the number of things they do outside of school: Get curious – ask your kid why they want to at tend dance or

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  • Schools are cheating, and we have to do something

Schools are cheating, and we have to do something

Last week I highlighted what I’d been hearing from parents about schools forcing C-grade students to take their A-Levels privately so they don’t show up in their results, how children are being denied places at sixth forms or made to sit their GCSE year again. Lots of parents got in

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Don’t you want your babies back!?!?

Don’t you want your babies back!?!?

What’s best, having babies or teenagers? When are the best years to be a parent? If you have little kids, it seems like forever that you’ll again enjoy a lie-in, a quiet meal with nothing spilled or thrown, or a week day evening without driving someone to Scouts, Brownies or

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  • What is cutting? Should parents be worried?

What is cutting? Should parents be worried?

Self harm through cutting is a common and growing phenomenon. Having spoken to parents, a post-‘cutter’ teenage girl and others, I want to share what I’m hearing. Please share this and your experiences. How you’ll feel: Cutting is horrifying for parents, and we don’t have much experience of it from our

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Five Go Gluten Free: A review

Five Go Gluten Free: A review

Did you receive it or buy it? Anyone who’s unlucky enough to have had IBS, celiac (coeliac) disease or a persistent bloaty belly and has decided to no longer eat wheat, will have received this book ‘Enid Blyton Five Go Gluten Free’. They’ll get it for Christmas or Hanukkah, and

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