Welcome

“Oh so you do the whole morning with the girls do you? That’s nice of you!” he says, peering down at me over his mask in an approving sort of way. 

I am making school-run small talk with another adult. We have both waved our children into the classroom and are making our way out of the playground. It’s been a normal day so far for me, and for many other 33 year old women like me. As usual I began by getting two little girls ready for school. 

There is the daily indecision over what to have for breakfast, though one nearly always has peanut butter on toast and the other porridge (on Mondays we have pancakes). There is the badgering for manners, occasional dance-parties in the kitchen, spooky stories told at the table as I try to ingest as much coffee as possible and the daily struggle to get out the door on time. 

I walk them the five minute trip down the road to school, sometimes leisurely, stopping to smell flowers or point at things we see, sometimes in a hurried march, clutching their hands to keep them from wandering off. There is a strict turn taking system over who gets dropped off at their classroom door first. The eldest always requires a loving hug before she leaves, whilst the youngest skips through the gates confidently, without saying goodbye. 
And sometimes I will end up talking to other adults doing the exact same thing as me. 

So far this is a story shared by millions of women.

This is where the story gets a little more unusual.

I do this everyday, yet neither of these little girls are my children. I am not their mother, I am not an aunt or blood relation of any kind to them. I am not a hired nanny nor do I have a particular affinity for children.

What I am though, is part of their family, and I play a role to them that doesn’t really have a designated label. 

This lack of easily recognisible role or title causes curiosity and often leads to many questions. 

I live as part of a formed family, a small group of adults brought together by friendship and committed to staying together as a unit, whilst co-raising children.
I am part of a collective “we”.

And this “we” are about to up sticks and move from London to Scotland together.

This is what we hope to unfold to you, gentle reader, in this blog.
We’d like to tell you the tale of our Scottish adventure as it happens, answer questions that we get asked, share the stories behind our choices, the challenges we face, the ups and downs of living as a formed family and the ways we hope to grow together.

We’d like the blog to reflect us, contributed to by a variety of people with their unique perspectives, some light hearted and fluffy, some more informative and reflective.  We’d like this blog to be a document and record of our endeavour, a way of sharing updates with loved ones as well as a way of connecting with new friends.

We would be thrilled if we could use this blog as a way of offering some honest insight into family life outside of a classic “nuclear family” unit. 

And this adventure begins soon! After over a year of planning and effort we are leaving London in a matter of weeks, the household is a heady mix of nerves, optimism and a little sadness.

But more of that to follow (including a more detailed introduction of who we all are), for now know that we are so excited to be sharing this with you all and we hope you’ll follow along with us!

Much love,
Sammi