Like many mums I am trying to be on-hand pre-exams. Working home based makes this easier. I am glued to laptop and daughter is in her room studying hard for the first exam. We catch up for eats and screen/study breaks.

Last night I dreamed I was presented with a science exam to sit -panic set in having given up the science options at school decades ago. The ‘faceless’ exam adjudicator then saved me and said ‘no this one’s for your daughter -she knows it all’ – A huge sigh of relief.

Telling my daughter on wakening greatly amused her -she then had fun asking me difficult questions from a past exam paper! Said daughter also helped me last year with the biology elements of my Spiritual Healing Course.

Those that bother to analyse dreams will confirm that my parent anxiety slipped into my subconscious. I am certain the ‘adjudicator’ was my Mum sending positive messages that her hard work will pay off and she will do well.

We can take our children to the dentist…but they have to have the drill themselves…or, indeed sit an exam.

Good luck to all mums and students out there these coming weeks.

To all those writers out there that maybe agonizing about re-visiting their pride and joy after the editor’s harsh words…I know how you feel.

Enough putting of the inevitable…here goes…deep breath.

Be brave…I am doing likewise today.

Horse-on-back-get…rearrange these words.

Today’s rant has to be the overcharging of services by telephone companies that provide a telephone number or in my case that don’t!

Is it just me or do we feel that £7.50 for just over a two minute call (most of which I was just kept hanging) is a bit steep! Petrol to visit would have been cheaper!

Don’t use them, next time I will use snail mail, email or just accept that person doesn’t want me to keep in touch.

My latest article on bereavement can now be viewed on Innovate My School’s website.

http://www.innovatemyschool.com/industry-expert-articles/item/1414-bereavement-helping-pupils-and-towards-recovery.html

Mondays, I have often thought should be renamed to help some of us feel more motivated.

My life coach pal and I often book a long lunch meeting on a Monday, albeit indulgent on many counts it certainly works for us and gets the week off to a good start!

One of the benefits of being self-employed is we can torture ourselves even more by doing our sage accounts and the business chores, the latter that I am brilliant at telling my clients they ‘must do’…whilst my own is neglected.

So in the absence of a mini-me and with a touch of guilt I am off to market ‘my’ wares…just for a change.

Keep smiling fellow freelancers soon be Tuesday!!

It is so easy to focus on life’s tragedies and forgot the simple things that make us chuckle.

Thanks to my great nephew age three for parting with a duck sticker -I am now in the ‘quackers club’.

It may be raining outside but inside I try to be sunny.

I consider myself pretty lucky as I have always been able to write anywhere at any time but there’s nothing better than getting away from everything to just be…and write…and read!

Last year during a cultural visit to Italy having visited just about every beautiful church in Sicily I took time to rest my feet and read my ‘Writers News’.

This is me sitting outside the beautiful Convent where we stayed, feet up, ‘Writers News’ in hand…

Back from the study holiday…and just completed first lesson of my NLP course.

Here’s hoping my tutors are kind to me, the first assignment is always the hardest and a measure of one’s understanding of a new subject.

Hello to my fellow study buddies and chocolate scoffers!

Keeping the peace can be a difficult task -my mentor always instilled ‘blessed are the peacemakers….’

However, in reality it can of course open one up to be accused of being a softie/a pushover but I know which I would rather be. Being strong and confident does not mean that you are free from pain when others are tactless.

So what we must also remember is that the peacemakers are also sensitive and regular human beings so spare a thought for their feelings too.

Today’s mantra be kind, be kind and kinder still!

I am extremely fortunate to work alongside the psychology tutor/life coach Lorna Chiverton-Hunt who works passionately with young adults.

Please read her article on Innovate My School’s website with excellent tips and advice regarding ways to combat bullying.

http://www.innovatemyschool.com/industry-expert-articles/item/1418-how-to-combat-bullying-with-life-coaching-skills.html