I sometimes feel sad on Fridays...

processing the passage of time.. when you have no time to yourself?

Friday.

Today, my feed is awash with mums with school age kids celebrating the end of one school year, the start of the 6 week summer hols here in the UK.

The end of eras, the passage of time.

Growth - both personal and in height, depth of experience, feelings of relief.

Being heart achingly proud and grateful to class teachers, head teachers and TAs, caretakers and school cooks.

I’m 7 years into this cycle now.

We are watching children are finished nursery or primary school. Some impossibly tall and cool.

Emotional social media posts pour through remembering their four year olds starting reception during covid lockdown. I’ve been deep in empathy in those conversations - my youngest was born at the end of 2020.

Parents promenade and carry chocolates, flowers, big boxes of cakes.

Others peacock and talk of summers to be spent with young hip Grandmas or in faraway second homes with a nanny.

✨

Some of our babies are finishing their first year of reception or getting ready to transition into middle or high school. (we have both routes here in Northumberland.)

Some of the kids at my daughter’s school are moving on to go to Private schools. (Both options we have are a 45 minute drive away in either direction). This hadn’t happened before but teachers have taken redundancy, birth rates have declined so the school is shrinking although not in spirit just in numbers and budget.

The school has pretty much halved since my son started 7 years back.

✨

It feels like one of the biggest changes I’ve seen and felt… and the kids will feel it too although of course it will become their normal.

Meanwhile government projects waste millions in incompetent systems and embezzle thousands in ridiculous private projects with their Oxford University mates. Embarrassing.

We’ll celebrate like we always do and lean into a new summery normal for 6 weeks then gears will shift again.

I won’t miss the drive or the extra executive function needed to manage what’s needed for two schools, processing the emails and holding my breath with teacher/ friendship dynamics.

We’ve gotten through this year relatively unscathed.

My 11 year old son has had one physical fight provoked by the haircut slapping trend and two detentions. He’s forgotten cookery ingredients twice and he has grown a gorgeous friendship group. His friends sent class photos to my whatsapp (he doesn’t have a phone) - they all look so big like teenagers compared to him.

Maybe I’m not looking at him properly.

My 5 year old daughter has been reported to a teacher (by a parent) for exploring her curiosity around the topic of death. Ever inquisitive - all because after the why, why, whys - I told her the old lady next door to us died because she’d had all her birthdays.

Boundaries, worlds colliding, values clashing, brand new shiny private reg cars that look like space ships, lost, smashed and re-found water bottles. Sneaky holidays, hair cuts, new shoes, forgotten PE kits, endless admin, school lunch money, packed lunch mix ups and we’ve managed it all.

I will miss the routine in some ways.

I’ll definitely miss an extra set of caregiver being involved in my children’s lives. I could never home educate - I’m literally in awe of people who do.

Sometimes it blows my mind that parents do this juggle every single school holiday for 18 years.

Honestly, it’s one of the main reasons Dave and I have stayed self employed.

Without any family support it would be impossible to be employed and live rurally so we designed something else instead - the young ones call it a flex.

And of course it is…

Downtime maxxing, literally…

I started taking Fridays off work last summer - to catch up on stuff at home (cleaning, gardening, being).

I feel like I finally had a day for life admin, the gym, the spa, a date with my husband.

I sometimes feel sad on Fridays.

I should be happy to spend a day doing as I please (I know) - my mentor calls it sparkle time but sometimes all that happens is..

…everything sort of catches up with me and I get caught in a sort of inertia…

a feeling that lingers like a grey cloud and tries to force me to be productive…

I look at the clock, force myself to do more of the things or to sit still and read my book.

Then it’s time to go again…

If you stop, there’s a lot to process…

Spilling onto the beach on the last day of term - no feeling like it… not pictured - the pup falling asleep standing up she was so tired.

It’s nearly time…

I’ll go again for the last time this term in 90 minutes so before I do I’m going to have a long shower with my favourite things, wash my hair, spritz some homemade essential oil, put on some warmer clothes (it’s freezing today) and have a couple of hours at the park with some mum friends to celebrate…

… another year of juggling kids who are young, vibrant and exploring a version of a world that includes 30 hours a week at school and a business that lets me be there for them in between times.

I feel like the luckiest mum in the world.

It was always supposed to look like this.

Here’s to the change of pace if you’re experiencing one too, may there be pockets of quiet, calm, delight and joy however you are spending your summer.

I’m going to steer my writing time to my book and take a break from being online.

I’ll be back mid September with more weekly emails about business, life and all that is in between in gratitude to you my audience and this wonderful tech we have right here and now in 2026.

The archive is always open,

Claire

♥️

P.S - one of my goals over summer is to print more pictures and set up more albums so I’ll have fun with that… if you missed my Digital Detox it’s free & open for another 3 weeks - all free. Making the analogue box is the most fun I’ve had when it comes to my phone use and bringing more conscious awareness to it. I’ve given my kids scrapbooks and my daughter’s is already half full. (It’s been a day) lol - Join us!?