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Thank you for visiting! My name is Sophie and I am an academic researcher, a wife, and a mum of two gorgeous kids, living in sunny Queensland, Australia, and I write about navigating life, parenting, and career.

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February's recap and final FIGS

How did the month go so fast? I need to remind myself that this February EVERY year, because I have a feeling that every year its like this, and every year I'm somehow surprised. Its the start of the school year, its gearing up at work after the slower summer, its only 28 days long! At work I had A LOT of meetings on the calendar . It seemed like every team, committee, and seminar organisers had picked February for their first event of the year (of course, because no one sch

Feb 284 min read

First school week for 2026 complete! And some new routines.

This was a big week - O started school for the first time, and E started Grade 3. It was a short week because Monday was a public holiday, so school was Tuesday to Friday. First day at school together - E in big sister mode After being fairly excited for weeks about going to Big School , O declared on Tuesday morning when he woke up that he wasn’t QUITE big enough yet and would stay in kindy a bit while longer. We explained that wasn’t an option, and there were tears, and arg

Feb 15 min read

2025 Spending Review

Somehow its been two weeks since I last posted! These two weeks have been busy, chaotic, and fun. There's been juggling work and school holidays (so thankful to grandparents who have helped out 3 days per week!), there have been family birthdays with eating out and even a local waterway cruise for my mum's birthday which was really fun, there has been some entertaining - playdates and having our neighbours over for dinner. And I've been working on my writing too. E helped me

Jan 245 min read

The week that was

There has been some heavy news this week - both out in the world (the horrific news from Minneapolis, bushfires wreaking devastation in my home state of Victoria), and closer to home with a good friend having a really tough week. I'm reaching out to friends and family who are affected, and looking for ways to help, but I definitely felt a bit down about it all last night. BUT it was also a busy week back at work after 3 weeks off, with the kids still on summer holidays unti

Jan 105 min read

2026 Goals

I love setting goals. Over the last few weeks, I've spent quite a bit of time thinking about my intentions for 2026, and followed much of Sarah's method outlined in her new Best Laid Plans book! (The physical copy I pre-ordered has been delayed so I went ahead and bought the Kindle edition to get me started on the new year). What does 2026 look like for me and the family? Before creating my goals, I looked closely at 2026, and what to expect. A few features are: both kids a

Jan 45 min read

2025 reflection - highs and lows

Happy New Year! The blog is back! I've missed blogging the last few months, but its really only after a good break from work over these holidays that I feel refreshed and wanting to jump back in with posting again. I thought I'd post just a few highlights from the last few months (and a few lowlights to keep it real!). Highlights: O graduated from Kindy and is starting his first year of school next year (we call this Prep in QLD). He is so much more confident now in so many w

Jan 24 min read