Sarah is mum of the month - congratulations!
16 October 2019
Hi Sarah! First of all, congratulations on being Mum-of-the-month! You’re a mum of two – tell me, how old are your kiddies?
Rose is 4 and Josh is 4 and a half months
What aspects of motherhood do you most enjoy?
Without being cheesy, that's a really hard question because there's so much. Cuddles. However low you might be feeling, a cuddle from my girl or boy will always cheer me up. Seeing them develop is amazing too, Josh is at such a lovely age where he is changing all the time and learning new things, like chattering away and how to chew his feet! Now Rose is growing up we enjoy hobbies together too, like baking - and she loves to watch the Bake Off together - she likes to guess who will be star baker!
And the not-such-fun bits?
Probably dealing with temper tantrums!
What’s your favourite gadget in motherhood, the one you can’t live without?
I'd probably have to say my Perfect Prep machine. When I had Rose, we didn't get on too well with breast feeding and changed to formula after a couple of weeks because she was still losing weight. I was very upset about it, as I had always intended to breastfeed and never really gave much thought to the possibility that it wouldn't pan out. I didn't even know how to prepare a bottle! This makes it super easy and even gets it to the right temperature so you're not worrying about it being too hot. Second time around with Josh, things went better and I am combination feeding, as I still didn't seem to be making enough milk to solely breastfeed. So I'm again using my faithful Perfect Prep. Josh prefers to be breastfed though, which is nice, although I sometimes have to talk him in to accepting that bottle to make sure he is getting enough! In all seriousness, there is a lot of pressure on mums to breastfeed and it can be heartbreaking when it doesn't work out for you. It can feel like people are judging you, but I've learned that there's no point beating yourself up about it.
You do postnatal fitness with me but tell me a bit about your fitness story Sarah – you know the one I mean!
At school I was the stereotypical nerd, pretty much straight As in everything except for the dreaded PE. I would do anything to get out of sports day! One of my PE teachers used to call me EV, which stood for Entertainment Value! I actually got on well with her and I know she didn't mean it in a nasty way, but I think sometimes these things can sink into your psyche! Nowadays, I enjoy cycling and walking. Daniel (my husband) and I like to walk in the Peaks and Lakes, etc, when we can and we have climbed Snowdon (several times), Ben Nevis and Scarfell Pike. Daniel even carried Rose up Snowdon in the carrier on his back when she was 2!
Are you into healthy eating? What’s your all-time favourite dish?
We try to cook healthy meals. Daniel is the main cook, but I get by! I really like our coq au vin, we use a Slimming World recipe, with a few tweaks. I make a nice pasta bake and fajitas. I mix up the spice mix myself, as I find the ready made packets very salty.
I know you’re a teacher, because I am nosy but tell me a bit about your work:
I am Head of Chemistry at an independent school. I particularly enjoy teaching A level, and chemistry is always a popular subject. I also have responsibility for our careers programme, which I really enjoy and recently took on the role of Assistant Head of Sixth Form, which I will be able to get my teeth into when I go back to work after maternity leave.
We all need a bit of “me time” when we’re mums. What’s your favourite “mummy me time” activity?
I really enjoy going to the cinema. I sometimes go with a friend or even by myself for a bit of chillout time. My favourite movie this year has been Rocketman.
Will you catch the fitness bug? It’s my mission!
I don't know! I've always found things like squats and lunges hard - I'm just not very coordinated! But I feel like I'm getting better. I'm enjoying the classes too, and the other mums are really nice and easy to get along with. I've also been to see a women's health physio, recommended by you (thanks!) for a bit of a mummy-MOT, which I have found really useful, and she has given me some simple personalised advice on things I can do to improve my posture too.
