Category: Motherhood
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Different Friends for Different Things – The 6 Types of Friends Every Woman Needs In Her Friendship Circle
Different Friends for Different Things – The 6 Types of Friends Every Woman Needs In Her Friendship Circle
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Autumn Update – YouTube DITL
It’s been a whole year! This September, join me for a chatty DITL where I show you what were up to and talk about how our family Unschools here in the UK. Also, exciting news… My latest book, a poetic memoir, is available now on Amazon. Watch for a “sneek peek” excerpt. © 2025 Juliette…
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The Love Remains
On Sunday, I finished writing a book that has taken me two years to complete. It was a labour of love. I am glad it is finished but equally proud of all the hours I’ve put into it. Never before has it taken me so long write a story. This one is a Poetic Memoir…
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Doing More
We’ve had an awesome couple of weeks. So much sunshine, visiting and playing with friends and rich conversations. These recent days have been a great example of doing more when you wonder if you’re doing enough! We went for a walk. With friends and chatted about metal detecting finds. We discovered Castle an Dinas, and…
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Doing Enough
I read a post by another unschooling parent this week and realised just how often this concern comes up in home education. I want to talk about it too so I’ve copied the title as it fits just right. Every home educating parent wonders if they are doing enough at least a few times during…
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POETRY – Today
Just as soon as I’ve cleaned.After we’ve played,Picked the toys up from the floor.Not until I’ve read aloud,While they eat,Following an abundance of hugs. Then, quite possibly,I’ll suggest the TV,Chance sitting down to write.The peace will come I’m sure.The inspiration, the words, the masterpiece.That brings home the bread. Realises the dream. Snatched moments here and…
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Looks Like Doing Nothing
When I was little my mother used to say it did me no harm to be bored from time to time. She was right because aside from learning to sit with the uncomfortable feeling, it really did help me to use my own imagination and find things to do. Sometimes I am busy with one…
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When You Know Things
Knowing leads to understanding. Getting the joke or the message. I love sharing books with my children but it’s the conversations – the communication and the doing that interests them and causes learning to happen. When I likened a dandelion to the girls, as being the sun (petals) the moon (gone to seed) and the…
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Set Me Free
Since I’m sharing this week, did you know that I find it hard to stay still in one place. Feeling stuck makes me very restless and frustrated. During the winter months I want to stay close to home and hibernate but mostly through the rest of the year I want to be away. On the…
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“Come In And Know Me Better, Man.”
I thought I’d share some of my less popular opinions and lesser known facts about myself, with you all over a few posts. Just for fun. I’m comfortable with the knowledge that you may feel differently. It’s OK. Did you know that I don’t like spending all my time with my children? Try as I…
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Trust
There are some days as a mother I find myself frustrated. Choosing change is never easy yet, I have changed. Things I once accepted, no longer feel right and as a parent I have evolved. My children were always at the front of my mind and considered in every decision I made and still are.…
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Intermission
There are times in my life when song leaves me in the same way I might find myself in a writers block.I still listen to music every day and sing the kind of songs mothers do to their children.But the spontaneous singing when the mood takes you, for nothing more than the love of it,…
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Adulthood
Are we preparing them for adulthood? Today my 5 year old asked if she could make her own hazelnut spread sandwich rather than wait for me to do it. Negotiating a step, cupboard, twisty lid, knife and bread bin while I got a lie in. My 10 year old debated the pros and cons of…
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MISSING OUT
16000+ hours of extra time with each other in this beautiful messy life! I love that we don’t miss out on that. When I watch my girls about their business around our home it makes me smile. How fortunate I have been to watch all my children over the years. I’ve watched them play, learn,…
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A Typical Day?
There are times during your home educating journey as a parent, when you wonder if what you’re doing, is what others do. Not that it troubles you in your sleep but you do wonder. Whether you’re new to everything or your child has reached a new phase in their life, as they grow and change…
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Tentatively
We’ve begun to wake up from the “Slow.”We’re still in the middle of winter but we are starting to find our rhythm and flow again. No one is rushing however we are doing a little bit more, discovering new things. We’ve watched a film about Mikkelsen and Iverson in the Arctic. We’ve watched David Attenborough…
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Christmas Traditions
Traditions are a wonderful part of being. They are there to remind us, to comfort us and to bring us continued joy as we smile on, watching our families recreate them. But…They are not rules.They can be left where they are, in our hearts and memories. Fondly residing in tales from when we were young.…
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Unschooled Teens
Teenagers are wonderful and awkward and frustrating and amazing. They are impatient, emotional and kind. Still just as in need of us parents as ever before but in ways we couldn’t have prepared for. They no longer hang on our every word or think us super heroes. They need more sleep, more space and less…
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Being Fun
Sometimes as a parent I find myself sitting on the sofa almost unable to move because a) I feel depleted and b) because I have no inspiration. It comes and passes in phases. There and then not there. It can truly be hard at times to find the “Gee-up” button. Sandra Dodd’s words of encouragement…
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In The Real World
“How will your children learn to cope in the Real World?” is a question that many home educators get asked at some point. “How will they learn to deal with problems, pressures or bullies?” This is a problem for people with a school mindset and home educators need spend no more time trying to construct…
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Real Life Learning
Real life learning happens in sporadic, choppy bursts. An idea or interest builds steadily and is discovered time and time again. Passion and knowledge take time and can be revisited and indulged in between anything and everything else that life gives us to play with and wonder at. Learning is not confined to boxes, unit…
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It All Counts
Learning is so much easier for people to enjoy when they see it as living life fully. It doesn’t have to “be on the test” or completed during a set time, by a certain age. Over the past weeks I have heard several (yes, several) young adults talk about feeling like they will have “wasted…
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Tend To
Recently, I took myself off on a long writing weekend . It was lovely to be able to think peacefully without any interruptions or responsibilities. I got to eat one of my sourdough loaves to myself and drink as much hot tea as I could! That, along with walking the wild shoreline and people watching…
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Hard Change
Recently, a friend used the word “ challenging” when telling me about their week and this past few days have felt challenging for my heart with one thing and another too. I was trying to put it into words when telling Mr Lemon and settled on the following. I thought I’d share with you in…
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Adding Value
Hearing what we say and observing it’s impact is worthwhile and insightful. Sometimes we don’t need to speak if what we have to say adds nothing of value. Silence can shape a moment in time. Speak carefully and thoughtfully so that you communicate exactly what you intend to leave behind. Juliette Proffitt I read so…
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Typical Day
People who are new to or considering home education often have the same concerns. What does a typical day look like?What about socialisation?What about exams? These questions are reasonable and valid. What they are really asking though is “How?” How do you do it and why? Why do they do it differently to you? How…
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Unschooling & Freedom
We have to be careful with the word “freedom” and how it is interpreted. I use it in context often, when I say things like; “We choose to home educate our children because it offers our family more freedom.” What I’m referring to are choices. Values. Options and flexibility. I am not saying that there…
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Unhelpful
The days can sometimes be long as adults and all sorts of things can leave us weary. I could easily forgive you for being short a time or two with people when perhaps the only real reason is that you’re tired. It does us all good to ponder on how insignificant all the fault finding…
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Un/Homeschooling Teens
I was going to write about my thoughts on unschooling teens so far…as in, this is relatively new to me! Then I realised the answer need not be complicated. If you are a parent with teenagers you’ll know that there are times they don’t communicate with you in the way they used to. There may…
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Guilty
The truth is, I don’t always give enough of my attention to each of my children. It’s a horrible feeling when you know you’ve not filled their bucket. There are times it’s perfectly ok to say “Not right now love.” When you’ve been on all day entertaining their every whim or you’re taking a quiet…
Beautiful Messy Life 