It has been a long summer holiday! My children have had seven weeks off school, and I am ready for a break. We have enjoyed daytrips, time with family, a short holiday and welcomed our kittens into the household. Now we need a fresh start.

The past three weeks have been challenging. My younger daughter contracted Impetigo and needed penicillin and antibiotic treatment. The medicine schedule was exhausting, as was the constant washing and cleaning to ensure our environment didn’t spread germs. All this while settling kittens into the house! I believe she may have contracted the infection from an amusement arcade in Blackpool as her symptoms developed a few days after we got home, and they worsened about five days after visiting the venue. It was very busy in there and I am curious as to how we avoided contracting Covid, but my children were susceptible to childhood illness, and one that I have never experienced.

Aside from playing Nurse Mummy for the past three weeks I have been working from home, trying to manage the household maintenance, and still planning to redecorate and refurnish my elder daughter’s bedroom. That never really got started so is on my to-do list for September. I think it will be easier to strip wallpaper and demolish built-in wardrobes when they are at school!

And, finally, the big news for September: We need to choose a high school! It is a daunting prospect as my elder daughter begins her final year in primary school. We are lucky to have three very good schools within commuting distance, although two of those are in other towns. We will most probably choose the local “feeder” high school because we like it, and it is convenient to attend. But we will consider the other schools and try to visit them before we apply so that we feel prepared and certain of the environment that my children will experience for most of their teenage years. When I was a child there was really only one option for schools that I knew of and looking back I realise that my old high school was not very good at all. I never felt part of the school community, I was always alone even though I had friends, and I still feel anxious when I think about those days. I don’t want that for my children, so I am determined to be positive, to encourage them to enjoy new adventures, and remember that society is changing and has changed. They will have a much better high school experience than I did.

Which leads me to the point of this article. I need some alone time! The past few months have been all about work and childcare with very little left for me as a person. I am planning some social events with friends to celebrate upcoming birthdays, and I am super excited to have booked a ghost hunting event in October, my first event in almost ten years. SpookyMrsGreen is finding herself again, hooray!

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