One Hit Wonder

There are those who go about life with care and caution: considering all the options, weighing up the pros and cons, and making careful, rational decisions. So organised, considered and correct. Like the main character, Macon, from Anne Tyler’s An Accidental Tourist, these folk plan out every inch of their existence, and usually even possess … Continue reading One Hit Wonder

Sharp Reality

Students had a needle at school recently. What a production! I know they are young, I know it’s scary and I know there is the element of mass hysteria to consider. But seriously? It is a tiny little jab. A minute piercing of the outer layers of skin. So much drama. Not just from the … Continue reading Sharp Reality

The ‘Oven’

I’m often asked if how I feel about my eight year old Master M is any ‘different’ to how I feel about my biological kids. The answer is a resounding no. I carried him but he isn’t my child biologically. My partner at the time went through IVF and had her eggs removed, fertilised with … Continue reading The ‘Oven’

An Uphill Battle

Conceiving our first child was by no means a simple task. My polycystic ovaries meant it was always going to be an uphill battle. Not that I knew this at the time. The long and short of it was I was never going to just fall pregnant without specialist help, whether I was gay or … Continue reading An Uphill Battle

About a Boy

I was in London the day I learned I was expecting my first boy fifteen years ago. I was doing data entry at a dingy small scale factory style establishment near Croydon, walking distance from a hospital. Work was optional for me at this time, as my partner had been offered a contract working for … Continue reading About a Boy

Party of Five

  It’s 4am and I can’t sleep. Miss L, who is one, has had an unsettled night and is currently occupying my side of the bed. She is a terrible, restless sleeper and she has been ‘spoilt’ by being allowed to sleep against me since birth. I know, I know, I can sense the eye … Continue reading Party of Five