Back to School

The summer is winding down and a new school year is fast approaching. The start of a new school year comes with a whole new set of hopes and expectations for the coming months. It's exciting, it's a little bit daunting, and it's a fresh start for a new year.

One of the things my kids always loved about this time of year was shopping for new school supplies. Pristine notebooks, shiny new rulers, not-yet-gnawed-on pencils... It's almost like an early practice run for Christmas! 

As always it got me thinking about what it was like to start a new school year in the past, and what it could have been like for the characters from A Girl for All Time.

I did a little digging and turned up some interesting facts I did not know before. For example, even Tudor children would have had new school supplies in the form of a newly carved hornbook . That oldest one dates back to 1450 discovered in England  and they were usually horn paddles ( or books ) that were covered with letters of the alphabet or numbers or perhaps a specific verse. 

Victorian school children would have had chalk, slates, and maybe a few books that were carried all bundled together in a leather strap or - if they were lucky-  in a leather satchel.  Instead of notebooks like we have today, paper to practice writing on would have been pages of newspaper with plenty of space in between the print to practice your penmanship. 

Mid-century American school children would have been reading Dick and Jane books while school children in the UK would have been reading Janet and John 

Paper notebooks were really not affordable until the 1960s when they became readily available and were at a price most people could afford. Some of the designs produced during that time are still in use today. If you've ever had the black and white composition books, then you know the ones I am talking about! 

School supplies may have changed over the years, but I don't think the excitement and anticipation about the new school year is any different today than it was centuries ago. 

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National Cancer Survivors Day is celebration of life after cancer diagnosis held on the first Sunday in June.

Cancer is a scary word. I don’t think I will ever forget the moment I heard my own diagnosis. It was the week that I launched A Girl for All Time® at the London Toy Fair in 2012. I was running on adrenaline that whole week, excited about finally launching the biz after 2 long years of development and hard work.

The day after the Toy Fair ended I found myself in the doctor’s office, hearing words I never thought I’d hear.

It’s hard to describe what it felt like to be told you have cancer. To me, it felt like being caught in a tidal wave. I knew I did not want to be there, and I knew I wanted to get out of there – quick - but I just couldn’t seem to escape the undertow that was dragging at me…

Everyone reacts differently to a cancer diagnosis. I know people who have gone onto extreme cleanses or trained for marathons. Others have thrown themselves into work or big house projects. And I know others who have quietly retreated from the whirlwind that can surround you once diagnosed, opting for a bit of respite and healing time to cope with what can often be an overwhelming situation.

For me, getting stuck into the new business was relief from the stress of treatment and the worry about diagnosis. It took my mind off all the things I was struggling to cope with in the present and helped me focus on what the future might hold.

There is no ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ way to cope with cancer – every situation is different and everyone’s reaction will be unique. Moving forward at your own pace and in a way that feels right for you is the best way to deal with a diagnosis, whether it’s your own or that of a loved one.

For me, National Cancer Survivor’s day is about celebrating the amazing progress in cancer research and celebrating all of the lives positively affected by that. Hopefully one day, everyone who is diagnosed with cancer will be a survivor.

xFrances

St. Patrick's day is one of those holidays that everyone loves but might not be quite sure how it all started.

Lá Fhéile Pádraig - or the Day of the Festival of St. Patrick - is a cultural or religious celebration which is on the 17th of March, which is the date notes as the traditional death date of St. Patrick (ad 385-461) , the foremost patron saint of Ireland. But the day not only celebrates the arrival of Christianity into Ireland, but celebrates Irish culture and heritage in general.

St. Patrick's Day in London emerged after the end of World War II and it was through St. Patrick's day that members of the Irish Country Associations would meet up with their fellow county ex-pats and walk behind their county banners, celebrating their Irish identity.  So it's very likely that Clementine would have enjoyed the first of the St. Patrick's day parades, or even Sam as a toddler!

It's from this tradition that our Irish Day Parades today have evolved. I am from Chicago originally, and the city dyes the Chicago River green to celebrate the day. It's the one day of the year when we are all a little Irish !

Happy St. Patrick's Day !

x

I was lucky enough to get a piece posted on the Huffington Post recently about how our children are already learning about gender equality - or sometimes the lack of it, as the case may be  - through their toys. I do feel strongly that the toys children play with can send a strong if subtle message to them about their perceived place in the world. Which is why we want to tell our girls - and our boys - that being a girl is not 'second best' , despite what today's pay gap tells us...

Anyway, have a read - the link is here.

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