Death of a Mid Life Mum

I don't know much about this lady Elizabeth Edwards but read about her over at Angel La Liberte's Flower Power Mom site.

It's a beautiful but sad story.  Check it out at http://flowerpowermom.com/elizabeth-edwards-older-mother/

A lovely Video for all mothers to watch

I found this on the Awesome Women Hub and just HAD to share...

http://www.reflectionsofmotherhood.com/

What do you think? Can you add anything?

December Update

I haven't updated in a while due to a myriad of things, one being a child ill with chicken pox and another being snowed in with my mother and son!

Since I last posted, Kelly Preston has given birth to a healthy baby boy, Benjamin, at the age of forty eight.

I also want to announce that my interview is featured today on The Casual Blogger Community website.  You can read it at the link below! Any comments here and also over there would be very much appreciated!

http://www.casualbloggercommunity.com/2010/12/forty-something-first-time-mum.html

Kelly Preston due to give birth at aged 48

http://flowerpowermom.com/america-waits-kelly-preston-give-birth-48/

Hope on over to the above link to read about Kelly Preston who is due to give birth shortly at the age of forty eight.

I am following the story with great interest as I am still hoping to have another baby even though I am forty four.

What do you think?

Working At Home

The other day, in the park I was talking to another mum.. We got to talking about our old life of working outside of the home. She explained that she had given up her job to look after her children. The cost of childcare was so high, it made no sense for her to keep at it.  I felt sorry for her because she actually wanted to work outside the home.

It's great to be able to stay at home with your children if it's something that you can do and something that you actually want to do.  I am lucky enough to be in that position and, for me, it's the right thing.  However, for that mum, it was the wrong thing and she was desperately unhappy in her stay at home mum role. She said that she was actually bored being at home even though she felt it was also a lot of work.  She didn't drive, had no hobbies for herself and her child didn't go to preschool or kindergarten.

In my case, I am on a career break from my job outside the home.  As I didn't have my son until I was nearly forty two I wanted to be able to spend as much time with him as possible.  I also wanted to be available to take my mother to her hospital and doctors appointments as she has COPD, chronic Asthma and arthritis.  When I worked for an organisation outside the home I had to use up holiday days and flexi days to do this.

Unlike that other mum, I find that I don't have time to be bored by being at home. I agree that housework etc can be mundane but that is why it is important to be doing something else too, paid or not.  A lot of the time I am not actually at home at all.  I am usually busy transporting my mother to shops, doctors, hospitals and entertaining my son and his friends. I also look after people's cats and dogs when they are away from home or out at work.  You could say I am a stay at home mum who looks after stay at home pets.  I also have hobbies such as reading and blogging that keep me occupied in my rare moments of leisure.

I really enjoyed working outside of the home and will probably return to that in the future.  However, for now I find that I am almost busier than I was when I did that.

I can't imagine how some people juggle both these things although I know that many people do. I think that mum that I met would have been happy to do both if, monetarily, it was possible.

What would I do today if I were Brave?

I am so so inspired by the wonderful song and video by Jana Stanfield.  I found it through Awesome Women Hub and Abby's Energy Healing Page.  Please check it out and  it think you  will get what I mean.

 'What step would I take today if I were brave?'  'What would I do today if I were brave?'  the song starts off with these words and then it ends with 'What WILL I do today, I AM brave?'

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UF5V2PEujqs

Thank you Jana Stanfield http://www.janastanfield.com/, Robin Rice http://www.awesomewomenhub.com/ and Abby Wynne http://www.facebook.com/AbbyEnergyHealing?v=info

I don't know about you all but I am braver these days than I have ever been.  Even more so since I became a fortysomething first time mum.

In the past few years I have learned how to drive, swim, overcome dental phobia, fear of motherhood and depression. I have also gone part time in my day job to care for my mother and run a small petsitting/dogwalking business.

In the past few months I have worked on personal development and spirituality, started to blog, restarted yoga,  and generally made more effort to do things for myself..

As I become braver, I am working on loving myself enough to shed excess weight and follow my dreams despite what others may think. I am developing relationships with like-minded people and extending understanding to the rest.  I realise not everyone has to agree or understand each other in order to maintain a relationship.  We are all brave and beautiful in our own way!

A recap of my interview with Flower Power Mom

http://flowerpowermom.com/over-40-mom-blogs-from-ireland/
Check out my interview at the wonderful Flower Power Mom Site.

Also why not pop over to the brilliant http://www.facebook.com/Parenthood.ie   I discovered it recently and I am loving it!

Mom Blogger of The Week

I am delighted and honoured to be named Mom Blogger of the week over at Apryl Duncan's About.com page.  You can take a look here http://stayathomemoms.about.com/b/2010/11/05/mom-blogger-of-the-week-forty-something-first-time-mum.htm

I will have a post all about what we can learn from our children over at http://www.thewmparentingconnection.com/ on Sunday.  If you have time, it would be great if you would read it and comment.

Just For Myself - yoga, me and the Law of Attraction

I may sound mad to some of you out there but I find that practicing the principles of the Law of Attraction (google it if you don't know what I mean) really works for me. At least, when I remember to practice it and not fall into old habits and ways. It's one of the things that I am determined to practice just for myself.  It seems to make everything better for me and in turn, that is better for my family too.

This very morning, I went to my weekly yoga class. It's something that I refuse to miss unless the circumstances are exceptional. It makes me feel positive, energetic and alive. It makes me feel like taking care of myself. This is something I need to do especially as I am a forty something first time mum.

My car is in the garage having repairs done before it's retest, which it failed a few weeks ago.  I got up, got my son ready, knowing we would have to walk to school in wind and rain and then I would have to take a bus to the yoga class. I wasn't looking forward to it but was viewing it in the most positive light. Exposure to nature and the elements and a little exercise too!  In the past, I would have complained and got lazy about it but not in my new frame of mind!

The positive vibes must have worked because as I was preparing to leave the house, my neighbour was going to the shopping centre. It is on the way to school and yoga and she was good enough to give us a lift to both places.  We not only got there but we got there early.  This gave me lots of time to have a lovely conversation with the yoga teacher and some of my classmates.

I had a stimulating class and was tingling all over with positive energy afterwards.  It really does have this kind of zinging effect on me. As I walked up the road in the wind and rain, I visualised a taxi cab coming towards me.  Believe it or not, a taxi cab stopped right in front of me to let a passenger out and I was able to get home in record time. He was a very pleasant driver and even let me off with two euro when I didn't have enough change.

I got home, in a relaxed state, had a nice cup of tea and then my wonderful neighbour called over.  She insisted on driving me to the school to pick my son up because the weather was so bad.  Then she invited us to her house so my son could play with her toddler grandson and we could chat over a coffee. I really couldn't ask for a better neighbour or friend.

I have the housework done and my son is now upstairs having a lovely nap. Everyone is safe and looked after now. This allows me to get on with blogging and writing which is something else that I do just for myself!  Bliss!

Someone Else's Dream

On a recent trip to Greece, I realised the life that I am living and often not appreciating as much as I could, is actually some else's dream!


I wrote about it over at The WM Parenting Connection http://www.thewmparentingconnection.com/2010/10/someone-elses-dream.html

It's worth remembering that each of us is living a life that someone else in the world can only dream of!

Brave or Selfish?

A little while I ago I wrote a post for The WM Parenting Connection titled 'Brave or Selfish?'.

I am delighted to see that quite a few people have commented on this particular post.  What a well balanced lot those people are!

You can read the post and the comments here http://www.thewmparentingconnection.com/2010/06/brave-and-selfish-by-claire-hegarty.html

Please feel free to leave a comment yourself, either on this blog or over at the comments page at the above site.

Much appreciated!  All the best to you.

Claire

Blog Schedule

The more I write the more I want to write. Writing regularly makes the compulsion stronger for me.  For this reason, and on the advice of Margo Dill of  http://margodill.com/blog/ I resolve to start a blogging schedule.

I intend to blog on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. I will not have specific things that I do on each of these days.  However, the posts will relate to my intention of  providing information, personal stories and resources for the forty something first time mother.

I will try to write my posts on Sunday and schedule them to publish during the week on the above days.

I intend to start this blogging schedule on the week of 25th October when I will  have carried out some improvements and updates on this blog. Meanwhile you can find my musings on Sundays at http://www.thewmparentingconnection.com/

Rare night out. Is it worth it?

I will try to update this later but at the moment I am suffering!

Check out my post over at The WM Parenting Connection.  Click on the link below:
http://www.thewmparentingconnection.com/2010/10/rare-night-out-but-is-it-worth-it.html

Mompetitors

I saw this hilarious video on a facebook page today.  It made me laugh so much and I especially love the term 'mompetitors'

I hadn't heard of this term before but I thought it was the funniest thing.  I guess we all know a few mothers who fit this category.  I am certainly not one of them.  Being a forty something first time mum, I don't even bother trying to compete or keep up with other mums.  It would be a losing battle as they all seem so much younger than me.

Check out the video and you will see what I mean!

http://www.xtranormal.com/watch/7148143/

Meningitis Advice

http://www.thewmparentingconnection.com/2010/09/misdiagnosis.html
I recently wrote a post over at The WM Parenting connection about misdiagnosis.(see the above link)  I mentioned a little girl who had been misdiagnosed with swine flu when she actually had meningitis.  She subsequently died as a result of this.   Meningitis is one of my greatest fears now that I am the mother of a young child.

My facebook friend Celine Blacow of  'Soaperstar' http://www.soaperstar.blogspot.com/ recently posted up the following link telling her amazing story of surviving meningitis, not once, not twice but FIVE times!
Check it out at http://www.meningitis.org/book-of-experience/celine-blacow-40217 

It's really worth checking this site out to increase your awareness of the disease.  You don't have to be a fortysomething first time mum like myself to worry about it!

Casual or Smart - My new post is up

Thanks for visiting today.  I will write more as soon as I get a minute. My toddler is having his nap at the moment so I am frantically trying to catch up on emails and blogs.

In the meantime why not pop over to the wonderful WM Parenting Connection site and read my latest article.   Feel free to add your comments whether you agree or disagree.

There is tons of fun and good advice to be had over there!

http://www.thewmparentingconnection.com/2010/10/casual-or-smart-anything-goes-these.html

You might also like to look at my other sites:

http://casquetofgems.blogspot.com/
http://www.everydayverses.blogspot.com

Our House for Our Son

There's a  lot to be said for having a brand new large house, with landscaped gardens and all mod cons. I often feel that this is what I should aspire to, especially after visiting relatives and friends in said types of homes.  But I have always wanted an old house, that has been lived in, that has character and that has neighbours that are a good mix of old and young.

I am happy to say that is exactly the type of house we live in now.  We bought it three years ago and then only because our baby was due. We wanted him to have his own room and a garden to play in. Otherwise we might still be living in our apartment and putting the move off.  As it was, we embarked on two huge things in life at the same time, having a baby and moving house.

I loved the house the minute I set foot in it. The neighbourhood is so quiet and the back garden so private you could almost be in the country.  Yet we are only a thirty minute walk or ten minute drive from the city and the beach.There are plenty of schools in the vicinity and quaint coffee shops to while away a free morning. It is also only a short drive to my mothers house.

When I was a kid I always loved to visit the older type houses where there was something to discover and explore. Where you didn't have to worry that you would spill something on the white carpet or the gleaming table tops. I remember my parents taking us to visit their friends in the countryside in Kildare.  We loved it because there was an old wreck of a car in the back field that we could pretend to drive.

Then there were the friends who lived in a big old house in the city. The back garden was full of wild flowers and old trees and long forgotten knickknacks. How I loved to play and explore there.  The landscaped gardens that most people have today, big or small, just do not hold the same kind of adventure.  At the end of our garden is a private lane that runs along the back of the houses.  We have put a swing up in the big old tree there and our son loves to play out there with his friends.  He calls it his secret garden.

Our son is almost three now and I feel that our house is a magical place for him to be. Sure, it needs renovating and that will be done in due course but it has all the elements that I found so appealing when I was a child myself. It has nooks and crannies, a secret garden and a storybook atmosphere.

And it is certainly where my heart is..

Change.org|Start Petition

Six Basic Needs - Article by Linda Milo

Six Basic Needs of Children, Adolescents and Adults
by Linda Milo


It doesn't matter what stage of life you are in, everyone has
the same basic needs. These needs are physical, emotional,
social, intellectual, spiritual, and creative. When all of these
needs are satisfied, you'll discover that your life is brimming
with joy and good feelings. You'll find your self-esteem at its
highest peak whenever you are fulfilled within your daily life
and activities.

Physical Needs: These needs are the basics. The need for air,
water, sleep, exercise, and sex.

Emotional Needs: This is the need for praise, love, trust,
security, feeling OK inside, and self-fulfilled.

Social Needs: This is the need for companionship and
friendship. This is usually gained from a peer group.

Intellectual Needs: This is the need for challenging thoughts,
reading, learning something new, and mind stimulation.

Spiritual Needs: This is the quiet need inside that wants to
know and believe in a higher spiritual power than ourselves.
This need increases our awareness and sensitivity to the greater
aspects of life.

Creative Needs: This is the need to express yourself in any
manner you desire. This can include the arts, dancing, acting,
and writing - almost anything that allows you to feel
imaginative and inspired.

All of the above needs are usually a part of every human's
life. All of us want to have these needs met in life. Having
these needs met increases our enjoyment of living and creates a
healthy body and soul. So how do parents fulfil these needs in
their growing children? The first way is to become aware that
the needs of a child are the same as yours. Being empathetic to
your child at all times creates a bond that nurtures the needs
of your child. For example, whenever your child wants to create
or make something, allow your attention to center on your child
and give him whatever you think will help to inspire your
child's creativity.

My children loved to create drawings on large pieces of paper. I
helped them do this by supplying them with the all the paper,
crayons, paint, brushes, etc. necessary to stimulate their
minds. Then I let them go to it! It was exciting to watch my
child create a masterpiece of their imagination. Their artwork
was sweet, beautiful and full of ingenuity. I then posted the
artwork all around the house to show to their siblings and
guests. As a parent, it was my goal to communicate with my child
that I truly understood and valued his desires and feelings to
be creative. I empowered my child to become all that he can be
at that moment. This process immediately shows your child that
his opinions and thoughts are valued.

By empowering your child, you are allowing your child to take
ownership of their feelings, take responsibility for their
behavior, make decisions that help them grow, follow through
with commitments and most importantly, to become aware of the
needs and feelings of others. You are giving your child the
chance to experience success and understand his own uniqueness.
It's rewarding for a child, adolescent and adult to have
recognition and respect. By empowering yourself, as well as your
child, you are fostering basic needs that truly make you glow
inside and out.

At different times in our lives, we are capable of doing
certain things. Stay tuned to where your child's capabilities
are during his childhood and supply the above needs according to
his stage in life. In fact, developmental stages continue right
into old age. When a child's needs are met, his discomforts and
fears are quickly removed and he finds that his life is truly a
safe and fun place to be. This feeling leads to a child that
learns to trust his environment and each successive stage of
development.

Know that meeting these six needs in your child's life is not
hard to do at any stage. Getting involved in your child's
exploration of his life doesn't take money, but it does take
thoughtfulness and time. Providing these needs throughout your
child's lifetime allows your child to go through his stages of
life with a healthy regard for himself and for society. It
encourages your child's autonomy and capacity to do more with is
his lifetime. Who can ask for more?

Copyright © 2006 by Linda Milo and Empowering Parents Now. All
rights reserved.






Source: http://www.PopularArticles.com/article41299.html

Misdiagnosis

http://www.thewmparentingconnection.com/2010/09/misdiagnosis.html

This is my latest post on The WM Parenting Connection  It's about getting a second opinion when it comes to your family's health.

Instructions not included

Yet again, I have been looking back at old photos of my little boy and marvelling at how quickly he is growing.  From this little six pound (6lb) scrap of life to the  three stone (42lb) of toddler that he is today.  Even though I was three months shy of my forty second (42nd) birthday when I had him, I really hadn't a clue what to do. That's why I just love this photo as it was exactly how I felt at the time.  No real instructions apart from well meaning advice and books on this and that, none of which I could take in anyway.

I think that people assumed that because I was older and had nieces and nephews and friends with kids, that I should know about motherhood.  In actual fact, because I had put off motherhood so long and then got a shock when it actually happened, I really was clueless. I hadn't been as attentive to my nieces and nephews as an aunt should be, for various reasons. One, was that I loved animals and spent most of my time with them, running a dogwalking and petsitting business and another, was that the older I got and the more I thought it wouldn't happen for me, I wanted to avoid children and their parents who would ask awkward questions.  Not surprising then that everyone assumed I preferred animals to children!

Now I look at him and I marvel at how healthy and robust he is.  I am amazed that we have managed to get him this far already.  He is almost three years old now and I am forty four!  I  revel in the fact that motherhood came to me a lot more naturally than I ever would have thought. Of course, it has it's challenges especially on my energy levels but I wouldn't change anything about my situation for anything else in this world.

From Pet Mum to Real Mum

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sP90Y1i4mt0&feature=channel

Also check out my new facebook page

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Stay-At-Home-Pets/109399819117408?v=info#!/pages/Stay-At-Home-Pets/109399819117408?ref=ts

Three Generations

I recently heard that a girl I knew, in the place I grew up has become a grandmother.  I am forty-four.  She is a few years younger than me.  Her mother is also much younger than mine.  Her father is young too and still around.

I partied and careered my way through my twenties and most of my thirties. I shunned the idea of motherhood.  I felt that it was a poverty trap, a personality trap, and every kind of trap you could think of.  I had watched my mother struggle. I had watched some of my peers struggle.  I didn’t want that to happen in my life.

I didn’t believe I was maternal. I didn’t believe in the biological clock. But I was in for a huge shock.  At the age of thirty-eight it happened! It ticked loudly and constantly and I couldn’t ignore it.

Although I was twenty-nine when I met my husband and thirty-four when we married, having children was never on my mind. I assumed that if it ever did cross my mind, there would be no problem having them. I was wrong. 

When I hit forty and no children had come along, my husband and I decided that maybe parenthood just wasn’t destined for us. I decided to concentrate on other things and put it out of my mind. Then, out of the blue, at the age of forty-one I became pregnant.  We had our little son when I was three months off my forty-second birthday.

Because I waited such a long time to become a mother, my father never got to meet him.  He passed on when I was thirty-five and it was to be seven more years before my son was born. My mother is still around and they love each other a lot but she cannot do the same things a younger grandmother could do. His other grandparents are also in their seventies.

That new baby, grandchild of the girl I knew, will have young parents, grandparents and even great grandparents.  There will be three generations there to depend on. They can help with looking after the children while the parents have a break.

I never considered any of this in the past. It requires a lot of energy, strength and endeavour to raise children even if there is only one.  It can be challenging, pleasant and satisfying all at the same time.  Having a child or children in your forties makes it even more so.

I am so lucky to have been able to have my son in my forties and I am lucky that at least my mother is still around to get to know him. I wish I had done things a little differently sometimes and become a mother a little sooner, but I am mostly happy with the way things are.

http://www.thewmparentingconnection.com/2010/08/older-doesnt-mean-wiser-by-claire.html

http://www.thewmparentingconnection.com/2010/06/by-claire-hegarty-b.html

http://www.thewmparentingconnection.com/2010/06/guest-post-late-bloomers-fortysomething.html

http://www.thewmparentingconnection.com/2010/07/assumers-by-claire-hegarty.html

http://www.thewmparentingconnection.com/2010/08/real-world-by-claire-hegarty_08.html

http://www.thewmparentingconnection.com/2010/08/song-is-what-feelings-sound-like.html

http://www.thewmparentingconnection.com/2010/07/much-more-to-learn-by-claire-hegarty.html

http://www.thewmparentingconnection.com/2010/07/so-much-to-learn-claire-hegarty.html

http://www.thewmparentingconnection.com/2010/06/brave-and-selfish-by-claire-hegarty.html

Update

It would be great if you would pop over to the brilliant Angel La Liberte's blog. I am featured on her site.

http://flowerpowermom.com/wordpress/?p=2035

Pop over to the WM Parenting connection for my latest article

I have an article update over at the brilliant WM Parenting Connection site if you want to pop over and take a look ! Any comments or feedback would be very much appreciated on that site and of course, on my blog here.

Thanks so much!

http://www.thewmparentingconnection.com/2010/08/real-world-by-claire-hegarty_08.html

Everyday Gyaan

I will update soon! Meanwhile scoot on over to the brilliant Everyday Gyaan site.

http://www.everydaygyaan.com/2010/08/met-this-forty-something-first-time-mom.html

A Mum at last! (Reposted)

As you can guess from the title of this blog, I am a forty something first time mum. Or as we say here in Ireland 'Mam' or 'Mammy'. I decided to write this blog to reach out to other older mums and to indulge my love of the printed word.

It can be a lonely business being a forty something first time mum. After all, as someone kindly pointed out to me, people of my age usually have older and even fully grown children. The fact that some people think this hit me at a mother and toddler group that I went to recently. The leader asked me if I was my two year old son's 'nana' (grandmother)! 

I was horrified and I am sure my face dropped even further than it obviously looked. I had thought that I actually looked pretty ok for my forty four years. I went into the toilets with my son and gazed in the mirror asking myself questions.  Did I have what I recently saw termed  as 'age orexia?  When I looked in the mirror I saw a reasonably young face looking back at me!! Was I deluding myself?  I had enjoyed the group up until that point but as my little boy didn't seem to want to join in either,(hows that for solidarity?) we
left. I had begun to see the group as a whole different generation to me. Most of the other parents were at least ten years younger than me and they only reminded me that I am indeed a bit of an oldie. 

You may wonder, if I am so worried about being an older mum, why I left it so late? The answer  is, there were many reasons, mostly to do with insecurities and wrong perspective on life. I did not want to be poor, trapped and miserable. After all, that's what had happened to a lot of older women around me, not to mention some of my peers who had children at a young age. And so, I spent my twenties and thirties in a partying haze, pushing kids to the bottom of my list. In fact, they really were not on my list at all!

Even when I married at age 34, I wasn't that interested in having children. Luckily, my other half did not pressurise me or seem to mind too much. In fact, he once said he thought I was too immature to have kids! The pot and the kettle come to mind in that regard! We both had good full time jobs and enjoyed going away, drinking and going out for meals. I didn't believe in the biological clock either or that it would ever tick for me. 

That's why, at around age 38 , when I suddenly started to take a big interest in my nieces and nephews, everyone was surprised.  Although I loved them, I really didn't connect with them that much. My brothers never asked me to babysit much and everyone said I preferred animals to kids. I guess, in hindsight, it would have seemed that way, but deep down I think I was just trying to avoid the whole issue. I had so many issues around childbirth and motherhood, it pains me to think of it now.

I couldn't bear to hear about pregnancies or see childbirth scenes on the television. I felt it was a humiliating and degrading experience for the woman and that as usual the man got off scot free.So, with this attitude, It really scared me when I started to ogle babies in their prams, and wonder what it would be like to have a child of my own! What was happening to me? Had I been wrong about the biological clock because it sure seemed to have started ticking for me, however late!

I really started to feel I wanted a child and my husband felt the same. We tried, but unfortunately nothing happened for a long time. Then I had my first miscarriage. I didn't even realise that was what it was at the time so ignorant of all things of that ilk was I. 

As time went on and I hit the age of forty, I decided to forget about the whole idea. By that stage I felt that it was probably my own fault that I could not conceive. I had spent the best part of 38 years saying I did not want children. Now it seemed as if my body was responding in kind. I felt as if I had willed it into not wanting them and it was just complying with my wishes. I remember someone saying to me at that time, that since I was forty, I might as well face the fact I would never have kids. I was sad but decided to get on with life and not think about it. Parenthood is not the path for everyone and it is not in everyone's life journey. I thought that was probably the case with me. I went part time in my day job and set up my own dogwalking and petsitting business and felt, for the most part content with my life.

Then, at the age of 41, it happened! I was pregnant! And whats more I was over three months gone before I even realised. I had lost track of my cycle because I had put it out of my mind. I was not sick and had no other symptoms. I felt terrific with boundless energy.It was only my husband said he hadn't heard me complaining about period pain for a while, that it even crossed my mind. I was soooooooooo happy when the test came up positive. I did two more just to be sure and the result was the same. Positive. Positive. Positive!

Some people were shocked and urged me to have all manner of tests done because of my age. I went for some private counselling just to be sure it was something we could handle. We then decided that we would forego the tests and just accept whatever and whoever was sent to us. I just knew then, that even if those tests had showed up any abnormalities we were ready for it. Thankfully, all was perfect and in November 2007 our beautiful son was born. It really was the best day of my life! Now I knew what people meant.

If I had known before what I found out that day and what I know now, I would have tried to have children a lot earlier. I realise now that even if it did cause me to be trapped, that having a child is a wonderful, beautiful blessing. In fact, parenthood has not trapped or frightened me in any way. So far, it is a bonus and an enhancement to my life and I think I can speak for my husband there too.

Since then, I have wanted another child really badly. I have a strong longing for that but I also wanted it for my little son. I would like him to have a sibling so that having older parents won't be a burden to him in later life. Sadly, I had a miscarriage last year age 43 and it was devastating. We are so so so thankful for the child we have and I am so grateful my body clock ticked loudly and woke me up before it really was too late!

In my wildest dreams, I never thought I would become a forty something first time mum but here I am!!! Yippee!!