Family, it means a lot to me and I believe over the years the concept of “family” has changed quite a bit. You ask my grandma what family meant to her when she was little it would have been immediate family, with the help of aunties and uncles possibly. Compare that to my family, right now in this modern day and age and it spreads over many seas and it’s not just my actual family.
Matalan have recently done a survey on what people think when you say family these days. One of the things that stood out to me, is that families nowadays are not just the 2.4 family. Families consist of multiple houses, combinations of state nurseries, day nurseries and school, friends and distant relatives as well as relatives that are physically thousands of miles away. Technology has made a lot of things possible, which as a modern family and being a modern Mummy I make the most out of it.
I am really lucky that I have the support of my family, both blood and in-laws, I am lucky that my work place allows me to work remotely so that I can flexibly work around childcare and travel arrangements. Also technology makes it possible to keep in touch with relatives over seas, display photos and FaceTime each other.
At the moment, a typical week for me and our modern family means:
- Monday – my mother in law looks after the children
- Tuesday A – my mum looks after the children
- Tuesday B – Noah goes to nursery for funded hours and I take Isla to my Grandma’s house, where I work and Grandma looks after Isla.
- Wednesday – Day nursery from 8am to 6pm for both children.
- Thursday – Day nursery from 8am to 6pm for both children.
- Friday – my mother in law has the children again.
This means that both hubby and I can work full time, around picking and dropping off the children at the various locations. It’s great that we have this support to help us do what suits us at the time, but it is completely exhausting and I suspect it is for mum, my mother in law and Grandma too! She is 83, that’s quite an age to be looking after a nearly 3 year old. But at the moment, this is what works for us and Grandma loves the company, even if a little energetic at times.
Join @MumsnetBloggers #MatalanModernFamilies Twitter party tomorrow, 1-2pm, and win Β£250 vouchers http://t.co/iXYGYDn9ok
β Sonia Constant (@mummyconstant) April 28, 2015
