Hello there... it’s been a long time!

After the excitement of my first 'Linked In' request, the phone rang for a field producing job. My head was spinning. Do I pass up what could be the start of a long relationship with a new company? After 15 years of jetting-off on location week after week it would have been a no brainer BC (before children). With two away dates of seven days straight each I just could not bring myself to up and leave the kids with a new (yet to be hired) nanny. Seven days was just two days to many.

Hello things we missed you

Having only lived in Australia 10 weeks, I'm half kicking myself for saying no. However our shipping only arrived one week ago and we had been camping out in our rental house on air beds and no personal items.

The past two weeks has seen emotional wobbles from all of us. The children have been questioning why we left the UK, stating they have no friends and they miss their old home, schools and friends. All this is normal and to be expected.  To be honest,  I have moments of feeling the same and think ‘what have we done’ leaving amazing friends to start over again.

But come Monday, the shoot date start I had happy kids having made more friends during the week and I started thinking that I should have just gone for it. But as a mum I was worrying about being away from them so early in the move.

Juggling family and work is never going to be easy, but all I can be is honest and hope the phone rings again.

Live outside the box

Don't knock it until you try it.

Two weeks ago I decided to try something new. Getting out of the house on a Monday night without kids or hubby and something even more wild... attending a local knitting group.

Yes shocking! I know! It's a far cry from hanging out with the who's who of the music world or flying business class to amazing locations or freezing my butt off doing interviews on the red carpet.

But life is what it is and after watching one to many "Location, Location, Locations" I find myself living in 'an idyllic village' just a short 45 minute commute to Waterloo, yet wanting to live in the city.

Stitch n bitch, as it's named, meets in a local pub (bonus) and half way through the night random amounts of musician turn up to jam at the pub's folk night.  So it is very cool in a geekish way.  The people are lovely, they don't want me to pay them for their knowledge and they are really and I mean really into knitting.   I on the other hand am very much a novice.

Now I'm not asking you to join me, but just to seek out new things to try, go on - be daring.. the world's your oyster.

The other woman aka the nanny

Once you have decided to go back to work what do you do?  Return to what you did, try something new or take anything you can get?  

My little body guard

I'm sure its a combination of all the above but no matter what you decided there is one thing a mother must do before she can change her status from stay-at-home-mum to working professional. Entrust her beloved children to the other woman (or man), aka the nanny.
  
It might be a live in au pair, child-minder, nanny or even granny, but unless someone else looks after your little treasures you're not going to get very far from the home.  With no family in the UK and only one kid in school my husband and I decided a full time live in au pair was our only option.
 
Now it's one thing to say that you're ready to go back to work and trust the kids to another woman's care but the reality is very strange.  You are basically looking for a lady to move into your home, look after the kids, cook for them, help with school work, play with them, make them laugh and well, do all the things mummy does and then pay her for it.
 

Japanese lunch in Soho

Now there are some adjustments in head space and lifestyle that come with the other woman in your home and a lot come as a pleasant surprise.  It's the before kids freedom that I have gained, the last minute mid-week dinners out in London, if I'm running late it's ok, there is always milk and bread in the house and I get the best of both worlds, freedom and family.

And after all I'll always be mummy.