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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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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