That time when, the exams that have been looming for the best part of the past three years, are literally just around the corner…….this is the first cohort of students since the start of the Pandemic to actually sit exams under exam conditions with no recourse to predicted or mock grades. Tomorrow DD has her Spanish speaking exam followed by DS1 exhibiting his German speaking skills on Friday. It feels like a language gauntlet has been laid and from here on out, it’s a countdown to the real deal of GCSE exams. The build up. The pressure. The school’s desire to produce excellent results for its ..read more

the exuberance of youth. it’s infectious. it’s bittersweet. two days ago, i watched dd and ds1 graduate from y11 even though they have not yet finished their gcse exams. many parents, like me and dh, questioned what we were celebrating. they are mid way through their middle educational exams and moving on to the next chapter in their educational journey. yet it was celebrated as if they had all received top honours from ivy league unis. from formal mocks last november i knew what to expect in terms of grades in the event the exams didn’t go ahead due to covid. it feels like they are on track i ..read more

In Dubai, many parents spend a ridiculous amount of time chauffeuring their bubs here, there and everywhere. School drop off, pick up, activities, play dates…..honestly, sometimes it feels endless and in an half attempt to catch 40 winks whilst parked in a dusty, gravelled school car park before before pick up, and preparing myself for the dreaded phone call demanding in that teen-post-school tone ‘WHERE ARE YOU????’ as I watch him (yeah, it’s usually one of the boys and not DD) saunter past my car, head down, eyes transfixed on the hypnotising lights of his phone……hardly even caring about oth ..read more

There are tears of joy and tears of sadness. There are tears of frustration and those that flow when I manage to construct a piece of IKEA furniture without regard to the so called simpleton instructions……but today’s tears were different; these were milestone tears. 16 year old DS1 confided in me that he has a girlfriend. There is talk of ‘Prom’ and all that comes with that….tux fittings, shoes, corsages and looking smart. How did my bubbly, blond curly locked blue eyed boy get to this stage??? I just blinked….and here I am…..mummy in law to potential girlfriends, many of whom, I imagine, will ..read more

Almost 14 years ago, when I first arrived in Dubai, I recall references being made to ‘Jumeira Jane’. In my greenness, I thought this was the name of a local brand of something: perhaps clothes, shoes, beachwear….which originated by the serene coastline of Dubai known as Jumeira. As I became more enmeshed in expat life it became clear that the term or ‘JJ’ for short was actually a term bestowed upon expat-kept wives or stay-at-home mums (who did not need or wish to work) whose husbands’ professions had dictated they be sent to the ‘hardship posting’ of the desert sands, as the UAE was once con ..read more

For weeks DD has been itching to get back on the netball court.  Her first love is netball.  To have that taken away hit hard.  After months of lockdown and continued, accepted precautionary measures, I could not tell what she was more excited about: playing a netball game without having to don surgical gloves and a mask; or seeing a handful of her girlfriends.  Judging by the wisps of hair plastered to her sweaty forehead after her first ‘live’ session on court, combined with the chitter chatter and giggles of a gaggle of girls getting back to what they love – I think the ..read more

People warn of world ending behaviour. I get scared. I get worried. How will I cope??? What do I tell my kids? Social media is ‘evil’, I am told (and what I secretly believe what ‘they’ say). COVID-19 has dug in its tentacles. It has tried to strangle life and put a stop to everything. In part, it is working. But Dubai will NOT be muted. It is the phoenix of the Middle East. Awaiting a re-birth. Every day my kids are up and ready for school (on site). My better half makes his way to his office. I wear my mask as required where ever I go. My 3 can participate in their rule abiding sports. A new ..read more

This evening I dropped DS1 and DS2 to football practice.  COVID-19 protocol regarding sports here is ‘drop and go’.  Temperature check once they reach the sports fields, masks on, sanitised footballs, gelled hands and social distancing. As I was just about to pull away having waved off my 2, another car pulled up and emptied its footie cargo – a team mate of DS2.  You could see the twitch of excitement when they saw each other; these days practically a novelty to see a peer outside of their own house. Reverting to type and induction they went in for the Club ‘fist pump’.  J ..read more

I can’t sleep.  That’s nothing unusual. Nothing different to most other nights.  I am of that certain age which has to expect sleepless nights when most others are deep in candy floss dreams; uneasy, uncomfortable and feeling a light sweat….. I don’t know why but my instinct is to scuttle downstairs as quietly as I can (which unfortunately, for my no-ballet figure, is a 7 on a scale of 1-10 as I trip over the slippery rug underfoot and bump into the stair wall that seems to move every time I try to quietly navigate the turn from the landing to the first step on the the stairs.  ..read more