I should have never given up t...

May 21, 2013 by

I should have never given up the recorder…

I recently read an article encouraging parents to teach their children to learn a musical instrument during the key ages of 6-8.  According to this study there is a small window when musical training interacts with motor development, producing long term changes to the brain.   Much like learning a language, starting your kid young while their brain is still in it’s developmental stage is important.   ‘Learning to play an instrument requires coordination between hands and with visual or...

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Where do you keep your memorie...

May 13, 2013 by

Where do you keep your memories?

Do you have a scrapbook? Do you even remember what those are?   Okay, I’m assuming that I am still speaking to a pre digital photography audience and I guess, while we’re at it a pre-internet audience   Shudder.   We’ve all had albums with its many pages of photographs stuck into chronological order.  We’ve all had those boxes of memories, those mixed tapes, those handwritten letters from friends and lovers.   And they all had their place, most likely in a box somewhere in...

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“Life’s a climb...

May 10, 2013 by

“Life’s a climb”

Thank you to Andrea Isiminger for writing this wonderful post about an amazing woman (Tanya Thompson) and the Madrid Parents Support Group.   There isn’t a parent alive who hasn’t wished at some point or other that children came with a handbook. The weight of being entirely responsible for another life is something that would keep you wide-eyed, staring at the bedroom ceiling in the middle of the night…if you weren’t already awake changing diapers and handling feedings. Perhaps you...

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A couple of seconds

May 6, 2013 by

A couple of seconds

  That’s all I’m asking for….   ..a couple of seconds to follow the below link and hit VOTE.   Okay, if all you had was a minute to read this post, forget the rest and VOTE now.  Don’t worry about what you are voting for.  Trust me J   http://internationalliving.com/2013/04/bill-and-nancy-mattox/   Still here?  Have you voted yet?  Okay, Okay, just checking.   So it’s safe to say that I’ve travelled to a few places. Ever wondered where I get it...

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Gratitude + Servitude = Succes...

May 3, 2013 by

Gratitude + Servitude = Success

How many years does it take you to learn that life lesson?   For me, it’s taken a lifetime.   I’m a competitive person by nature.  I think a lot of us are.   Blame it on culture, blame it on upbringing, blame it on society as a whole but most of us don’t want to see others succeed more than we do.  And because of that, we revert back to those little kids covering our test sheet with our arm so no one else can see our answers.   And why should they?  Why should someone else...

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One amazing lady!

Apr 30, 2013 by

One amazing lady!

Today my mother turned 66.  She celebrated by going zip-lining.   Last year it was target shooting.   Honestly I’m a bit scared to know what 67 will bring.   One thing is for sure, she’s not slowing down.   This is one of the many many MANY reasons why I admire her.  I don’t think I tell her that enough.   Lately, I have been doing a lot of self-reflecting.  Many of the qualities that we have today are formed from our childhood.  Our parents play a big role in...

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Mummy Interview: Jion Sheibani

Apr 25, 2013 by

Mummy Interview: Jion Sheibani

Today I was having coffee with a friend and trying to explain the in’s and out’s of writing children’s books.   Him: Do you ever test market your texts on children before you send them out? (He’s in consulting so I imagine they “test market” everything)   Me: No, the rule of thumb is if you can read a Picture Book text and understand it without the pictures, you’ve probably done something wrong.   Him: Why don’t you try and draw the pictures yourself?   I smiled and...

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