Here Goes: About the Life Loves & Learning Blog

Ok. Here goes. I’m doing it. I’m finally. Writing. A. Blog.

But what will you write about!?

Life

As with everything life is what has brought me here, to this point, where I am tap tap tapping away at my keys with a little (or a lot of) hope that I can share stories in an attempt to help others. 11 months ago I became a mum to a beautiful babe. Following the birth of my Daughter I became extremely ill with Postpartum Thyroiditis. A traumatic time followed, mainly because no one had heard of my condition – from Health Visitors, to Doctors or Endocrinologists. I felt abandoned and alone and scrabbled for months to connect with others, to find a story that made sense to me and when, after much searching I did, it kept me pushing, ploughing, moving, battling, questioning and finally…finding some resolve.

I have always been a sharer, in the kind of ‘too much information’ way, but sharing helps (I think). Being open and honest means that someone who is listening finds out what you need, might be able to help, could offer a new idea, put forward a useful contact, feels better themselves or simply says ‘TOO MUCH INFORMATION!’ Ok perhaps explaining that you’re not good following a recent break up, to the lady in the shop who greets you with ‘hi how are you?’ is too much information (or so my sister said at the time) but even learning to not share such thoughts in response to a casual greeting is useful, yes?!

Having said all this, when I initially thought about the idea of a blog, many moons ago the imagined content was teaching, learning & education. I thought about ‘my blog’, went to work, thought about it, moved house, thought about it, hoovered, went to the pub (where I talked about it), pulled up some weeds, then thought about it some more. It is life that has made me do it, an event, something happened and here I am writing ‘my blog!’ At least I am this second.

I am also a teacher and with this comes the terrible burden that no matter how hard you try to say ‘screw it I am not doing any work this holiday/evening/weekend’ it often fails when you ‘think of the children’ – damn the pesky little buggers. Having said this I have never lost sight of the simple fact that to be a good teacher you need a life. Without life experiences what would you teach? What would the children aspire to? What would be the bloody point!? Also to be a good teacher (and parent, and friend etc) you need to look after your own life and wellbeing first. Taking care of yourself is imperative to being able to support others – something, I often find, is more difficult than it sounds. So what would a teaching blog be if it did not include life?

Finally I am selfish. If I can turn this Thyroid fiasco into a catalyst to write it becomes positive and I will just feel a little better about the whole kerfuffle. Life forces us in different directions, helps us out in the strangest of ways. So I must thank life by acknowledging it in the title of my blog. Thank you life, it was utterly rubbish but now something good will come of it…yes? Life? Pleeease.

The blog will evolve and move with me (and hopefully you) so I am not entirely sure what I will be writing about in the future in regards to ‘life’ but I am hoping it wont always be thyroids.

Loves

A blog about life has to involve loves, those things that fill you up that make you smile, those often simple things that give you reason. I want to share my loves and hear about yours. I am not even sure what this ‘bit’ is yet. Productions I see, places I eat, feelings I have, things I hear. Let’s see where it goes! I do know one love I will be writing about (one of my favourite loves) and that is…

Learning

I write as a passionate and committed Reception teacher who, like many others I’m sure, observes the good, the bad and the ugly of our education system. The good motivates and inspires me, the bad makes me feel powerless. I often talk about ‘the bad’ in a desperate hope to resolve, change, understand and improve ‘it all’ thus, adding to my sense of powerlessness because It’s simply not possible for little old me to change ‘it all.’ Perhaps though, by writing I can change something tiny, someone’s mind, someone’s feelings, someone’s day, because lots of tiny things equal bigger things and these tiny things are what life is about (deep). I love to learn, hopefully for your sake and mine I will learn how to blog!

Join me for Life Loves and Learning

I’m going on a learning journey and I would like you to come on that journey with me and as my lovely WriteNow cards instructed me this morning…

I did it. I wrote my first post. Easier done than said. I mean it was genuinely easier to just do it than talk about it for three years!

I hope you love life and learn today.