Childcare… it’s a minefield! Stay at home? Get a nanny? An au pair? Or choose a nursery?
There are pros and cons of all the options. We have chosen a nursery but Mr Small is yet to start to no validation as yet as to whether we have made the right choice!
So, why did we chose nursery?
Life throws up surprises and twists and turns when you don’t expect it…… due to a variety of reasons – we are staying in the city! Things have worked out remarkably well and I’ll be returning to work after 14 months maternity leave. I’ll be doing 3 days a week plus a bit of keeping in touch when not in the office. With two weeks to go until my first day back I feel very mixed emotions….
Following on from my previous post, this one is more location specific if anyone is heading to Santorini with a baby.
As I mentioned, at first glance it’s not necessarily the most baby friendly island with lots of hills, cobbles and narrow streets, and a distinct lack of changing facilities… However, we were invited to a wedding so there was no question of not going and together with some key bits of kit we 100% made it work – and had a fabulous trip.
This post is about some of the places we went and what worked well with having Mr Small as a Santorini travel companion at 10 months old.
There’s not much news on the getting ‘permanently out of town’ front but we’ve been making the most of my maternity leave (and friends organizing weddings abroad) and have just got back from a fabulous week in Santorini. Taking your baby on holiday can feel like a bit of a mission but it was 100% worth it and a few last minute purchases made life so much easier.
So, it is actually happening, I have officially resigned from my job and won’t be returning on a permanent contract at the end of maternity leave. This feels like such a huge decision and one that so many mothers end up facing.
I think one of the most stressful things is the sense of the unknown as there are so many moving parts…. Not knowing exactly where we’ll be living, so not being able to look at childcare options and therefore not being able to even start thinking about a job.
I’m writing this on the cusp of making what feels like a massive leap…..
I have a 10 year career in some of London’s top independent design agencies under my belt… and an 8 month old baby who I want to grow up in the countryside – something needs to change.
I should preface this with the fact that moving to London after graduating was never intended to be forever – in fact, during that first year I wanted to throw in the towel but somehow this wonderful, chaotic, cosmopolitan city got its claws in, and 10 years later I am still here.
I now find myself, halfway through maternity leave, faced with an exciting opportunity and a plethora of emotions….