Andrea Edwards

As a woman entering your 40s (which I’m well into at this stage) there is an impending gloom ahead – the unknown world of menopause. Chances are you’ve seen your mum go through it – which ain’t pretty – but otherwise, it’s the great mystery that will strike you when it’s good and ready.   Your only expectation on whenit’s going to happen is at approximately the same time it hit your mum. Which means I’ve still got a couple of years up my sleeve, if that’s the case.     Entering into this period of waiting, I’ve found myself asking women every chance I get – women who’ve been through it – what the hell happens? I figure I may as well gather knowledge of what to expect, but here’s where that got me.   Not a single woman I’ve spoken to has had the same experience as another.   Not a one!   The only piece of advice I’ve taken to heart is that those who are vegetarian seem to have an easier time of it than those who love their meat. Time to embrace my vegetarian days perhaps…   And then there are others who said they didn’t give it a second thought – it was over and done with in a day.   Or those who experienced the unpleasantness of breaking into hot sweats in the middle of important meetings, usually in front of a room full of men.   Some age rapidly after this time, while others look the same as always.   Some suffer creping in the neck and chest, never wearing an open shirt again. Others have skin as smooth as a babies’ bum.   Some speak of being cranky and flying off the handle, before becoming an even more awesome version of themselves when it’s all over.   Some gain weight and can never lose it again, no matter how hard they try, while others continue to be stick thin.   And some speak of a fog in the mind that makes it hard to operate in daily life. There is so much more these women have said. And you think, well then. That clears it all up… not!   So what can you do, other than wait and see what little pleasures are in store for you?   But there was one piece of advice I got recently, that I believe every expectant menopausal woman will appreciate and it is this: whatever you do, remember the date of your finale, because from this day forth, every single time you visit a doctor or a healthcare professional, you will be asked for that date!   Now that makes a whole lot of sense to me and on that, I can take action.   Would anyone like to share some menopausal insights? Or is this too public a place to do it? I know a lot of women who’d appreciate the insight. Me included.   Yours, without the bollocks Andrea Menopause image courtesy of Shutterstock.   Thank you for reading my ramblings. My brain and heart are a work in progress, always. I’d love a comment if it stirred any thoughts or feelings and of course, please feel free to share it with anyone you know who might be interested or entertained. I sure do appreciate it when you do. If you want to connect, I’m on Twitter here, Google+ here, Instagram here, and Facebook too. I share loads of stuff, not just my own xxxxx

A while ago I published a blog – Chaos is driving us apart, our collective humanity must bring us back together. My word did that little baby open me up to attack. I can tell you it’s hard putting yourself out there with your own points of view and it can be very challenging getting attacked by people you’ve never met and will never meet.   But you own that as a blogger, or why would you do it?     When you blog, you hope that maybe, just maybe, you can change a mind somewhere along the way, or offer an alternative idea to make people think differently. It certainly doesn’t always happen, but why not give it a try? You’re not saying hey I’m right, you’re just saying maybe we can think about things in a different way and have a discussion?   As is vastly apparent to anyone paying attention right now, the world is crazy – scarily crazy – so if I can help be one of the voices working stop the madness, I’ll take the abuse of strangers any day. Because I don’t want my boys fighting in a war I don’t believe in. I don’t want anyone fighting wars anymore.   Of course, that makes me a liberal nut case in this day and age. What a horrible thing to be! In my mind, a liberal nut case is a person who always expects or hopes for the best of humanity, and who believes we can overcome our current crisis’ and move forward together globally. If that’s the worst criticism cast my way, I say yes, I’m a Liberal Nut Case and proud of it!   Anyhoo, I watched a friend get attacked this week for offering an alternative point of view to something topical. I disagreed and said why – respectfully – as did many others in our community. But then I noticed people really insulting her and calling her names.   Hang on a minute. This is a good person. Why do you need to be like that? Isn’t there enough horrible stuff going on in the world? Don’t you see that by being horrible to her you’re adding to the greater horribleness in the world?   So it inspired me to share this Ted Talk – I grew up in the Westboro Baptist Church. Here’s why I left: Please watch this TED Talk – please.   Like many people I know, I am horrified by the doctrine and ignorance of the Westboro Baptist Church, however, I do understand the indoctrination a person experiences when born into religious institutions, as well as how hard it is to step away from that completely. But this isn’t about my journey out of the Catholic Church.   By sharing this talk, I hope everyone can hear what it was that helped Megan change her mind and leave the church. It all came down to how people reached out to her on Twitter, gently speaking to her and listening to her. They communicated with respect, offering other perspectives, and when she was ready, she heard them.   These people on Twitter opened a door for Megan, a door she stepped through when she was ready. So when I look at the way many attack each other on social media, well it’s obvious, as soon as angry voices rise, the doors are all slammed shut. We all have to learn from Megan’s experience.   Obviously, it wasn’t an overnight change of heart for Megan, it happened over a period of time and eventually, she took the very brave decision to step away and leave everything she knew, including her family. Very tough. Very inspiring.   There is so much we can learn from Megan’s TED Talk, as well as Monica Lewinsky: The price of shame. But we can’t learn from each other when we are horrible to each other. No one is listening then. Why would you?   Disagree, offer alternative viewpoints, join in a heated discussion, but let’s not be assholes to each other huh? It makes us no better than all of the monsters in the world spewing hatred right now. Not only that, it makes you feel awful inside anyway.   I just reckon we can all be better than that. Are you with me? And if you’re not, tell me why, respectfully, so we can heareach other.   Yours, without the bollocks Andrea Thank you for reading my ramblings. My brain and heart are a work in progress, always. I’d love a comment if it stirred any thoughts or feelings and of course, please feel free to share it with anyone you know who might be interested or entertained. I sure do appreciate it when you do. If you want to connect, I’m on Twitter here, Google+ here, Instagram here, and Facebook too. I share loads of stuff, not just my own xxxxx

In the spirit of sharing cute fluffiness, as well as to get away from serious subjects, here’s a little story about our dog, Freddy – a six-month old Golden Retriever puppy.   We decided to take Freddy to a BBQ on East Coast Park in Singapore this weekend, to celebrate our great friend Amber’s birthday. It was our first beach outing with Freddy and I’ve got to say, it was delightful.   After everyone settled in, I took him down to the beach with the boys and Freddy absolutely shat himself. Throwing himself back from the waves, almost ripping my arm from its socket, he then decided there was nothing to be done but to bark at the ocean. He wasn’t having any of it, however he did enjoy all of the rubbish on the beach. That was a welcome distraction….   So much rubbish!   It didn’t take too long though and he was in! Awesome work Freddy. But it’s difficult to get the full experienceof the ocean when he was required to stay leashed. This is a common requirement in Singapore, as mainstream dog ownership is a very recent thing and culturally, many people just don’t like dogs at all. We have to respect that.   Anyhoo, Sunday morning it was time for Nippers in Singapore – yeah we’re not enjoying those early Sunday morning wake-ups let me tell you! But after the misery of getting up, it really is superb being out in nature with the boys, watching them learn a fabulous new skill – surf, lifesaving. ANZA is doing a superb job, as are the incredible volunteers.   Steve and I took it in turns with The Fredster while the boys worked their arses off, all the while keeping Freddy leashed so he wouldn’t jump into the kids’ lessons. A very strong possibility. At one point, I wandered down the beach a bit, away from the lesson and Freddy jumped in. He went out further, and discovered he could swim.   I was rather pleased with this photo – BBQ under a flight path It was a light-bulb moment for Freddy and I could see a new passion emerge in that instant. He couldn’t get enough of it and fur mumma was feeling super proud of our clever boy. Class over, kids in the ocean for free time, and Freddy was bloody delighted to be in there with them. The kids weren’t though. Both boys came out covered in scratches as Freddy swam up to them and tried to jump on board. My screaming at them on how to manage the situation was, of course, ignored.   Unfortunately, a little lad (not of my loins) got scratched as well. Sorry, sorry it’s his first swim, I said to the dad, who was more concerned his son would grow up scared of dogs – something he didn’t want to happen. I applaud that.   Steve probably had the best reaction though. His heart was in his mouth the whole time, worried about his little Freddy. I’ve got to tell you, watching a man fall in love with their first dog is a pretty special thing to see. Freddy is definitely Steve’s dog – no doubt about it.   Was that cute and fluffy enough for you?   Yours, without the bollocks Andrea     Thank you for reading my ramblings. My brain and heart are a work in progress, always. I’d love a comment if it stirred any thoughts or feelings and of course, please feel free to share it with anyone you know who might be interested or entertained. I sure do appreciate it when you do. If you want to connect, I’m on Twitter here, Google+ here, Instagram here, and Facebook too. I share loads of stuff, not just my own xxxxx

In a recent blog, I talked about how hard it is to blog in the midst of all the global chaos we seem to be enduring – and nothing has changed.   It’s hard to think about anything else when our days and minds are consumed by the idiocy going on in the political sphere, as well as big business’ continuing negative impact on the environment, the massive increases in defence spending around the world, and the incessant talk of small men with smaller hands threatening war.   It’s the most demoralizing time of my life. The world seems caught up in a frenzy of fear, and we all know from our own lives that you can’t move forward in fear. It paralyzes you. The world can’t either – right?   I do believe the people who are spreading fear actually believe in what they are saying. They believe it’s as bad as they think it is. So I try to be empathetic to this. But this circus must stop, before it’s too late.   Obviously central to all the fear talk is Donald Trump – a man I am not a fan of – AT ALL! #DonaldTrumpisanAsshole   I want to highlight a piece published in the New York Times recently – I Ignored Trump News for a Week. Here’s What I Learned. Yeah I know, fake news right? The key points ·        He could find almost no Trump-free press •         “Coverage of Mr. Trump may eclipse that of any single human being ever” •         “He has taken up semipermanent residence on every outlet of any kind, political or not” •         It’s not just that Mr. Trump’s coverage beats anyone else’s. He is now beating pretty much everyone else put together – according to Paul Senatori, chief analytics officer, mediaQuant. Essentially, based on the paid value of media coverage on Trump, he is essentially surpassing the next 1,000 most covered people. Think about that! •         He’s 90% of the news but not 90% of news It’s crazy! So do I share my outrage every time something happens? No! Because I’d be a very boring social media pal if I did. Many people are completely over it and just don’t want to know. I can’t blame them, but I can’t hide from it. I’ve always been interested in world news and I care about our combined future. So I keep reading, I just don’t keep sharing. It’s all I’d be doing if I did. This about sums up my reactions (or stream of consciousness) since January 26th – Australia Day – another stalwart ally he’s managed to piss off!     (You might not want to read these bullets if you don’t like the f word. I’ve used it excessively) WTF? Fuck No really, What the Fuck? You’re fucking kidding me, right? Is there a place we can escape to right now? No. there isn’t, we’re all in this shit storm together Who says shit like that? Who says Fox is truth and the rest of the media are fucking fake news? In a democracy? You have studied Rupert Murdoch right? Of fucken terrific – here we go again and again. Banning Muslims is the right thing to do – not! Oh for fucks sake, you wanna a piss off China? Really? You think you can Make America Great Again without China? Good luck with that You assholes of humans, who the fuck do you think you are? You think you have the moral right to deliver a blanket ban on contraception/abortion in developing nations, fucking up millions of women and families around the world? You’re arseholes! Don’t you care about the fucking air we breathe, the water we drink, the earth we live on? You are unleashing environmental crime and to that I say FUCK YOU! Oh you’re not going to feed the elderly and impoverished kids? That doesn’t work, is that right? Nice one with Angela Merkel. Oh how I miss the beauty of diplomacy Oh you’re going to take on North Korea are you? Oh that’s not going nuclear, which means we’re all fucked you morons! No seriously, what the bloody fuck? All of this is why I can’t blog, because what is there to say other than what the bloody fuck! Everything else seems completely pointless and insignificant right now…. Everything.   I need to cleanse my mind and soul of this shite. It has consumed me more than anything else in my life, and it’s not a good place to be in. There is so much that is good in our world. But with the fear mongers dominating our social channels, telling us daily that all is fucked, it’s hard to be centred if that’s all you’re hearing.   All I know is we’ve got to fight back. Share the love people. Share the joy. Share the hope. Hey the Dutch gave us hope this week by rejecting the white supremacists. It can be done. These arseholes do not get to win this war of minds and hearts. They can only win if we let them.   What do you reckon? Is your mind like mine, or have you managed to find some peace in it? Any tips or strategies you’d be happy to share with the rest of us?   Yours, without the bollocks Andrea   WTF graphic courtesy of Shutterstock   Thank you for reading my ramblings. My brain and heart are a work in progress, always. I’d love a comment if it stirred any thoughts or feelings and of course, please feel free to share it with anyone you know who might be interested or entertained. I sure do appreciate it when you do. If you want to connect, I’m on Twitter here, Google+ here, Instagram here, and Facebook too. I share loads of stuff, not just my own xxxxx

It’s great, so great. I love it when Steve is away for long periods of time, because I really get to relax, enjoying so much peace, solitude and silence you know. It’s a self-pampering time… Well except when we have three fire incidents in the boy’s bedroom. Lex! He’s obsessed with fire and I get it. That’s why we bought a fire bin so they could burn stuff if they asked permission first and a parent accompanied them. That is the deal. Fire is cool when you’re a kid – well all know that. But no, he doesn’t use the fire bin, because why would you when you can set things on fire in your bed? How do I handle it, after screaming obviously… I resort to showing him what a person looks like who has been burnt all over their body. He has NO idea of the danger he is playing with! Any suggestions? Before that third fire incident in a week, Jax decided it was a good idea to throw rocks down two floors, infuriating some dude below that almost got cracked in the skull. The worst thing for Jax – that man being angry with him. Totally unreasonable strange man, bloody hell. I didn’t dare show him a photo of what a rock in the skull from two floors looks like, because then my bedtime serenity would be disturbed by kids crying from bad dreams. I mean, I’m not stupid. But Jax!! Or the night before that. Taking Jax out for a birthday dinner and because they’re so BORED waiting for their food, they’re either running atop empty beer barrels – I see a night in ER with broken bones at this point – or when that wasn’t good enough, they decide to climb up a ramp with a two story drop off the side. It was so peaceful and such an amazing dinner. Seriously, when people criticize parent’s for bringing iPads out for dinner, THIS IS WHY PARENTS BRING IPADS OUT FOR DINNER! We’re trying to keep our kids alive. What else, what else? Another terrific moment was taking the boys to Ikea on a Sunday – great idea Andrea! But you know, sometimes you just really need to go to Ikea. It was so much fun watching the boys jump all over the carpets I was pondering, or jumping between mats and breaking the storage boxes while I was furiously trying to work out the numbering system of Ikea carpet storage – as logical as its printed instructions for me. And the reason I was looking for a rug in Ikea? So our newest family member – Freddy, the Golden Retriever – doesn’t have bad hips. My doggy trainer told me that slipping and sliding on marble isn’t such a great thing for puppy development. It was great bringing the carpet home, where Freddy promptly took a shit on it and later a piss. He LOVES it! Last count, six pisses. Awesome Freddy. My word that’s starting to stink and outside. Here’s a post cupcake photo – noice! My fourth child – Steve – has needs to. He was away during Jax’s birthday and this weekend will be away when Jax heads off to KL for rugby with his coach/team alone. I’m a little anxious about our little guy heading off on an international trip, but Steve is devastated. He wants to be there and he wanted to be there for Jax’s birthday too. Of course he does. It’s shit missing stuff like that. So I try to integrate Steve into our lives as best I can when he’s away – but more so this time – and my favourite integrationwas during the birthday cupcake baking session. Picture this – a pretty trashed Steve (big night in Phoenix) on speaker phone in the kitchen, with flour, sugar, eggs, chocolate, you name it, flying everywhere, a dog trying to get in on the action, me trying to deliver instructions, electric beaters whirling, hot stuff, sloppy stuff, etc, etc, etc… It was so peaceful and such a great call. I hope you loved it Steve? I am not a single mum and you know who I admire? Single mums. Bloody hell women – how do you do it? I cannot even imagine facing this stuff alone. Not being able to share the anxiety load on your kid’s safety for a start, let alone just getting a break from your kids sometimes…. Yes, I admire single mums tremendously. Hats off ladies. Right kids are back from school. Let the chaos continue. Anyone else have some lovely experiences or memories to share? Oh go on, I need the laugh when I’m missing my love. Yours, without the bollocks Andrea Playing with fire photo courtesy of Shutterstock. Other courtesy of my phone. Thank you for reading my ramblings. My brain and heart are a work in progress, always. I’d love a comment if it stirred any thoughts or feelings and of course, please feel free to share it with anyone you know who might be interested or entertained. I sure do appreciate it when you do. If you want to connect, I’m on Twitter here, Google+ here, Instagram here, and Facebook too. I share loads of stuff, not just my own xxxxx    

I watched the movie Queen of Katwe last night – a story of a girl from the slums of Uganda who goes on to become a Chess Master. An incredibly powerful story, it touched on so many deep subjects, but most importantly, I couldn’t believe anyone could make a movie about chess and it be brilliant! Please watch it if you can. Amazing. A powerful women’s story too.   But the moment that spoke to me most was at the end  – where the actor David Oyelowo (brilliant) shouts out – “you deserve to be here, you deserve to be here.” Of course, she went onto win and became a superstar in her local community, but that line, you deserve to be here resonated. I didn’t grow up in the slums of Uganda. I grew up in a working-class family in a town in Victoria, Australia, called Wodonga.  It was a great place to grow up. Free. Safe. In the beautiful country-side of Victoria. We did so much stuff growing up, had so many experiences. I loved my childhood – even if it was erratic in my family. But I never got exposed to professionals in my upbringing. My dad was a plumber, then an artist, then a cleaner when the artist gig wasn’t paying, and then a teacher for intellectually and physically disabled adults. My mum was a nurse and worked at the hospital across the road. They both worked hard, but money was always tight. Going to the girl’s Catholic School across the border in Albury was expensive for my family. Luckily my sister and I were good at music, so we got scholarships. Ahhh music, the thing that got me out of town, into the city and onto more opportunities. I loved music. So much so I studied music and ancient history at university, before joining the Army as a Musician, but it was after this that the world truly opened up. I travelled through Egypt, Jordan and Israel at this time, a time I was still able to read hieroglyphics. Life changer. I came home, never really settling, but started my PR career, still in the army. Then I jumped on a plane three years later (1995), traveling through Nepal, India, China, Hong Kong and a bit of Thailand, before landing in London and starting an amazing career in tech PR. I worked across Europe, and then to Boston, NYC, Sydney, Singapore, Phuket, back to Australia and back to Singapore. Travelling gave me the confidence to take care of myself in any situation. Landing on foreign soils and taking career chances with nothing lined up yet falling on my feet (with some pain and anxiety along the way) taught me to believe in fate and destiny. And meeting so many people from so many different walks of life, taught me that people are awesome and while you come across arseholes on the journey of life, the majority are superb. The other thing I learnt is just about everyone you meet has a little bit of brokenness inside that needs compassion to help them heal and become their best version of themselves. Being open to the brokenness we all carry inside is something I’ve learnt too. And yet that voice – you’re not worth it – was always taunting me You’re not good enough. Are you fucking kidding yourself thinking you can do that? You’re ugly. Why would anyone want you? You’re getting too old to dream like that. And on and on and on. Yes, that voice, it’s always been there, trying to sabotage me on the journey. Telling me I don’t deserve to be at the table I’m sitting at. Fucking with me. Always taunting me. So a few years ago I decided to tackle the inner dialogue. I realized if it wasn’t serving me, then it was time for it to fuck off. I’ve written about it before, but I still do it to this day. FUCK OFF. That girl, who grew up in Wodonga, had a mohawk and huge muscles because she loved body building and because she lugged a euphonium around everywhere (a French horn too)… well that girl deserves to sit at the table, because her collective experiences and intense curiosity got her there. She deserves it and she deserves to honour every dream she has. Her heart and soul spoke to her and helped her believe. That girl didn’t grow up in a wealthy family and she wasn’t exposed to the massive opportunities available to her. She didn’t know you could have jobs in those sorts of fields. She didn’t know those jobs existed. But she found out. She uncovered it. Just as Phiona Mutesi – the main character in the film – didn’t know that she could have a much bigger life, beyond any possible dream she had before the coachcame into her life and unlocked her incredible talent. How can you dream so big when your current world-view is so small? It’s the getting out and seeing the bigger, glorious world that makes the difference. And this is the gift for all of us. Get out and find what’s possible and then dream bigger than you think is even possible today. Dream it and believe it. Because if you have a unique gift to give to this world, if you know in the deepest part of your soul that you deserve to get there, then please, don’t ignore it. The world needs your gift, now more than ever. But we must shut out some voices first to hear another. I’ve discovered two voice demons and once voice angel so far, they are: The voice of other people’s fear. Please don’t take it on as your own. Just because someone else is fearful of what you dare to dream doesn’t make it a dream not worth pursuing. Drown their voice out with your belief that it’s right. If you’re wrong, you’ll get the greatest gift of all –

I have so much to say. Some of it is flippant – the funny life stuff we all laugh at. But more of it is outrage, incredulousness and horror. I’ve written to the latter many times, because I don’t believe that being silent is good during this time of chaos for our world. We need to speak up and fight for what we think is right.   But you’ve got to be ready to fight when you take on big issues, and sometimes, your heart just isn’t capable of doing it. When you really put yourself out there, it can cause a lot of anxiety, because you open yourself up to attack. It’s not fun and you’ve got to brace yourself for a bumpy ride. There are people out there who can be so horrible and it seems all they want to do is rip you apart. They don’t know you. They don’t know your heart. They couldn’t give two shits about you. They just want to have a go at you for having a different opinion, or for being a liberal, and they never stop. Besides, when the fuck did it become a crime to be a liberal anyway? What’s wrong with wanting to educate yourself on alternative viewpoints and to seek the best for all the world’s people? Another fallout of 2016… To change hearts and minds, to encourage people to be gentler and more loving, to plea with the world for more tolerance and love are, what I consider, good things. However right now, it leaves you open to horrible ugliness. If you haven’t experienced it, I have to tell you, it’s very unpleasant when you’re on the receiving end. Very very unpleasant. We’re going through a time when it feels like everyone is aligned to a side or an idea, and we’re incapable of having a discussion or hearing another perspective, without being offensive or horrible to those on the opposing side. This saddens me more than anything, because we are better than that. As a blogger of many years, it’s disheartening. My goal with my blogs has always been to do no harm. I hope to make people laugh, sometimes cry, but I don’t want to make people hate. Because, the truth is, I don’t hate anyone. How can I? The world is full of magnificent people. Oh sure there are arseholes too, but on my many adventures all over this fine planet, the majority of people are magnificent. Of that I can assure you. My only goal is to be one of the many voices trying to move our world forward to the next level of consciousness. A world where the barriers come down, the walls come down, fear stops being a dominant energy, and we all take responsibility and ask: what can we ALL do to stop this madness? Ultimately, I hope the world gets to the point quickly where we can say collectively: shit, that was close! New haircuts But even writing flippant blogs is tough right now. I wanted to share a story about the boys exercising their right to their own hairstyles for the first time, with both choosing a mohawk/Mohican. As baldness is typically inherited from the maternal side, and with every man in my family bald (plus Steve being a nude nut), we agreed that they can have whatever hairstyle they want, because soon there will be no hair to style. The interesting thing is, a couple of weeks in, they no longer want to spike their hair at all. We gave them the freedom of choice, they exercised it, and now they’re done. That’s been one of my greatest parent lessons. If you don’t resist their ideas and choices, they get over them very quickly. But you see, that little story feels so un-important right now. It is important though, because nice, easy, heart-warming stories have never been more important with the deluge of sickening world events we seem to be constantly facing.  We need the warm and fuzzys. What’s the point of life otherwise? Anyhoo, just wanted to share how I’ve been feeling if you’re wondering why I haven’t blogged for a while. This time is having a very big impact on me. I’m a happy, optimistic person most of the time. I believe goodness will win the day. I believe that if you have a dream and commit to it 100 per cent, you will get there. I believe humans are good essentially and we all want the same thing. I believe we can come out the other side of this time better and more loving. Basically, I do believe that love will win the day – as poxy as that may sound. However, we’ve got some complicated times to get through. This is not an easy time for planet earth and the challenges we face are not easy to overcome – especially when so many are so fearful of others. We can overcome though, and we all have a role to play in getting there. We have entered the Golden Age of true people power, so please, don’t think you can’t do anything to change the course of our future. Right now, our combined voice is the only thing that will make a difference. Tough times, but I am a believer, are you? Let me know how this time is impacting you? I know I’m not alone and perhaps if we can share with each other how we’re feeling, we can better support each other through this time? Yours, without the bollocks Andrea Planet Earth Apocalypse Concept. Elements of this image furnished by NASA. Courtesy of Shutterstock. BTW I’m on Twitter here, Google+ here, Instagram here, and Facebook too, if you’re interested in the other stuff I share. Feel free to share my blog if you think anyone you know will be interested or entertained. I sure do appreciate it when you do xxxxx

When I go on holiday, I like to get to the guts of a new place. If there’s something gritty to see, I’m in. I love to wander around, finding things I’ve never seen before and I savour the experience of newness. I suppose when I travel, I’m looking for the heart of a place, always. Travel is when I feel most alive. Steve – on the other hand – loves to kick back, lay on a sunbed, read a book and swim. That’s his bliss and something I rarely enjoy doing for long, not when there is a world to be discovered and new people to meet! So we’re always looking for compromises on holidays, to ensure both get what we need. And, of course, we must bring the boys into our planning today as well, and they need action, always action. We’ve learnt to keep ‘em busy to ensure they’re happy. Happy kids when travelling is a very good thing after all! Four people to please, all so different, it is never easy getting the formula right. But with Steve squirming around in bed for two days in gut ripping agony – we’ve all been there right? – I didn’t want to be too far away in case he needed me. So the choice was taken away, and I had to sit on the beach and learn to enjoy peace.   As I sit here, watching my boys throwing themselves into the waves on the Arabian Peninsula, I can tell you, they are in heaven! Beautiful azure water is a feature of the UAE, as is pristine white sand. If you want a beach break, this is a wonderful place to visit. I’m not in the ocean with the boys though, because it’s winter here (high 20s Celsius during the day so hardly cold) but the water just isn’t warm enough at this time of year – for me anyway! No worries for the boys though, and just about everyone else on this beach. Practically no one else seems to mind the colder temperatures…. Yeah, alright, I’m a wimp! By being forced to chill and just hang with the boys, I’m getting a glimpse into the magic of holidays for a diverse selection of people from across this gorgeous world. A fantastically pregnant woman in a bikini squats to take a selfie with her family frolicking in the waves behind her. I never braved a bikini when I was pregnant. I admire her. Then there are the families holidaying with toddlers who are building their first sandcastles together. That’s a special memory. We have fitness enthusiasts running along the beach. Couples enjoying romantic walks and cuddles. Teenagers enjoying their families, but getting to that stage of demanding more independence too. I most enjoy watching them sneak a pervat other teenagers when they feel brave enough. Remember those days? Bodies – all shapes and sizes. On display. Free. And a collective shout of excitement as a wild pod of dolphins swims in the ocean near us. How bloody amazing are dolphins? Gorgeous. My on-going challenge, since I became a parent, is finding the peace and quiet to get a clear head and ponder what’s next with life. That’s something I miss – quiet head time. So a sick husband has given me a little gift. He’s given me the opportunity to be still. To not do anything. To not think about anything. To just watch. Just appreciate. I had no choice but to do it with Steve out of action for two days and it’s been awesome. He’s hated it – serious guilt – but he’s missed out on some perfect holiday time for him too. Bless.   I’ve never been very good at this relaxing stuff, but maybe I should try a little harder. It’s not bad, not bad at all. Anyone else not good at switching off? Or am I the solo nutter here? Yours, without the bollocks Andrea If you want to stay in touch, I’m active in lots of places, including Twitter here, Google+ here, Instagram here, and Facebook too. I share lots of stuff about the things I care about, not just my own view. I’d also love it if you shared my blog, especially if you think anyone you know will be interested or entertained. That’s what it’s all about today – giving to and supporting each other xxxxx    

I asked my boys what’s in store for 2017 and my charming eight year old son, Jax, said simply: it’s going to be epic mum. I don’t know where he gets his words from, but I reckon he could be onto something. While we can’t afford to stand idly by as the world teeters on the brink of who-knows-what, I am grateful we all got a massive kick in the ass in 2016, because now is the time to fight for the world we want together. I’m ready for battle – you?   So today, on my 47th birthday (shit, that sounds so old!!!), which co-incides with a new chapter for all of us, I am looking forward to an amazing year. And that amazing stuff always starts at home, with my loves. My youngest, Jax, is going into big boy grade three this year and while I will continue to be poopy mumma, and told regularly that I’m the worst mum eva, that I ruin everything, and you know, continue to receive the incredible love that spews out of the sweet mouths of babes, I reckon this is going to be an epic year for the Jaxster. He’s finally getting focused. Then there is Lex, who is going into full time therapy this year to deal with the auditory processing issues that have evolved since his tonsils and adenoids were removed in 2010. I know this is it. This is the final thing we need to do to get Lex caught up and on track for the best life ever. He’s a remarkable dude our Lexy, but the journey has been a grinding one for all of us, and if there’s one lesson I want to share with any parent dealing with issues that no one seems to be able to put a finger on, it is this: believe in yourself and leave no stone unturned. And my darling Steve. Travelling so much last year and expecting more in 2017. But he’s remarkable at what he does and has enjoyed great success in 2016 – I’m so proud of him and don’t tell him that enough. I’m also incredibly thankful because his success has given me the space and freedom to pursue my dreams. How can you thank someone enough for that? I will definitely repay him with success, so he too can have a period of freedom to do whatever he wants to do – if that’s playing golf every day and being the main parent, awesome. He’s a great man Steve. Understated in his talents, generous and excessive to a fault, I love this man of mine and thank my lucky stars every day we found each other. Then looking ahead to my year. I need to slow things down. It got too chaotic and too crazy last year, mainly because I’m really shit at saying no to people. So I need to learn to say no, and I also must learn how to manage all of the different communication channels coming at me. I’ve got about 12 different social messaging inboxes (plus the normal ones like email, sms, etc..) and they’re all like Twitter feeds in their ferocity. An important tip for 2017: if you really want to get in touch with me 1. Nag me and 2. Communicate across multiple channels. Believe me, I like being nagged by people I care about, because it really is amazing how quickly messages disappear into the bowels of inboxes these days, especially when you have a whole lot of spam in the mix too. My word, the spam! But it’s going to be an amazing year. I’ve picked up incredible opportunities as The Digital Conversationalist, and 2017 is all about refining my offering and continuing to focus on the most important things – working with great people and doing work I love. I’m ready. It’s going to be fast and furious, but it’s going to be awesome. I must say, if you want an example of persistence paying off, I hope I can be that example for you. Never ever give up, no matter how long it takes. I really do encourage everyone to identify that dream you have for yourself and then relentlessly pursue it, no matter the barriers that come your way. I have constantly faced barriers, but I ignored them, jumped them, side-stepped them, etc.. and kept my eyes on the goal, even when I was the only one who believed in where I was going. Persistence and stubbornness are positive qualities sometimes… It works, it really does. Moving on, another thing I expect in 2017 is for firsts to be in abundance again. I did a bunch of firsts last year – things that made me squirm with embarrassment and general uncomfortable-ness, but you don’t make progress doing the same things right? My first videos, my first webinar, and so much more. Definitely a lot of firsts. And firsts will continue and I’ll continue to squirm, but I’m going to do them anyway. I have a goal to achieve (to make the world a better place), so being brave enough to step into the unknown is a critical part of succeeding. I hope you realize I don’t do anything from an arrogant point of view. I never think I’m right. I know I have much to learn. I’m just trying to do my bit to make the world around me a better place. That’s all that motivates me to do what I do. I hope that comes across. Travel is big on the list this year too. I will get to the US in 2017, as there are so many pals to catch up with – too many I haven’t seen since I left Boston and NYC in 2001! That needs to change and we need to compare wrinkles, because it’s been long enough for us to get a few of those. Europe too – I have a long overdue date in Marrakech