Giving new meaning to the phrase ‘school run’

Determined not to join the ranks of parents driving their children to nursery and school, I was met with a challenge when I signed Alice up at a nursery in a neighbouring village. It’s only two miles away, but when you have to get on to work, you don’t have time to waste. I am lucky enough to work at home though, so one day, when the roadworks were getting stupid, I gave it a shot. Forty minutes to push her there in the buggy, twenty minutes running back. Even with a shower, I can be at my desk working by 9.30am. Three weeks in now, three days a week, and I am loving it. We stop to look at birds and fields full of blue flowers along the way, and getting back to my desk so as not to waste my working day is a good motivator to run faster!

I’m not saying I’ll do it when the mornings get darker and rainier, but even to do it some of the time is better than nothing. I’m on the hunt for a cheap, working bike (after I bust mine in an accident a while back), and a child seat to go on the back: hopefully that will be the plan when the autumn comes.

Start ’em young

Rudi was very pleased with the homemade burger he made for Alice. It went down a total storm. Check it out on the braai:















It's just finely diced onion, finely diced red and yellow peppers, minced beef and curry powder, shaped into patties. Leave out the salt for a baby's portion.

Adventures in thrift...

So here it is, the incipient blog.

A freelance editor, wife, and mother to a baby daughter, I have spent the last few years getting ever thriftier: finding ways to eat well at home on little money, to have fun with our little girl on a shoestring, to learn to cope with the commitment of a new allotment. My husband Rudi and I are starting this blog to share ideas and experiences, and offer nuggets of wisdom, if they ever emerge!