Welcome to my Mummy Blog – Big Little Men & Me. Musings of a Dorset Mum in her late 30’s and my adventures in parenthood.
My name is Emma and I am blessed to be a Mamma to two beautiful boys; William 3 1/2 and Elliot, just 7 weeks old.
My two little men. I say ‘little’, but both of them were anything but, weighing in at 9lb 9oz and 8lb 8oz! Not the largest babies ever born, and I’m sure some of you have given birth to bigger, but still big for my short 5 foot nothing stature! In both cases I gave birth via Caesarean section, but that’s a story for another time!
Becoming a Mum is by far the most glorious, satisfying thing I have ever done. Yes, it’s exhausting, challenging, even mildly terrifying at times, but by golly it’s the most incredible and rewarding adventure. For the first time in my life, I feel completely whole and I could never imagine my life without them. Even if it does mean a lot less sleep…! 😆
I’m joined on this crazy parenting adventure by my wonderful husband Ben, who is the most supportive, patient and loving Daddy to our boys. He’s also brilliant at fixing toys (and many other things), which comes in very handy with our pint-sized Gladiator-come Ninja almost 4 year old!
We live in Highcliffe in Dorset. Following years of living in London, working around the UK and a short stint in the UAE, we moved here to set up home two years ago and we love it. With the sea and The New Forest on the doorstep, it’s a great location for children and there are endless places to explore. I’ll be sharing some my experiences of the local area as part of my blog and highlighting things that are good for the kids and the family, as well as all important things for Mum, and Dad too.
Which brings me to the reason why I’ve decided to start Big Little Men & Me… Seven weeks postpartum, I am beginning the process of ‘putting myself back together’ after Elliot’s birth. Pregnancy, and the whole process of bringing a little mini-me into the world is an incredible thing. It blows my mind just what the body is capable of. But without a doubt it is testing, both physically and emotionally. When a bubba arrives, parents have to relearn how to be themselves in their new roles as ‘Mum’ or ‘Dad’ and as they so often say – there is no manual for raising little humans; they are all their own unique blend! It’s a huge, and often steep learning curve. You don’t just learn about the person you are bringing up, you learn everything about yourself too.
The last four years have been some of the best of my life. Some days I feel like a Super Woman, other days I don’t know what day it is! One thing I read time and time again though when talking about ‘good’ parenting is how important it is to make time for yourself. Easier said than done. Balancing Motherhood with that little bit of ‘me time’ is something I’m still working on. As I’m sure many of you will understand, it’s never long before the Mummy guilt kicks in. Whether you are a full time Mum or Dad or a working parent, when you have kids time just seems to vanish. It literally flys. And I don’t begrudge my boys one little bit of my time, but boy do they benefit from me taking five every now and again.
So this little blog is a little bit of that me time. I’ve always loved writing and I hope that you enjoy reading the musings of an almost 40 something Mum of two and her adventures by the sea.
Emma x
‘Parenting is as crazy as circumnavigating the globe without a map…but, oh, what a journey!’
Emily @isthisREALLYmylife