Entries by Shankari Chandran

To Read a Mockingbird

Hi guys, this one went up on MM a while back. It’s about my favourite novel and my favourite man: http://www.mamamia.com.au/social/my-husband-took-7-years-to-read-to-kill-a-mockingbird/   In 2010 Husband embarked on an important personal journey. He began to read To Kill A Mockingbird whilst we were on holiday. He’s not a prolific reader of fiction. It’s one of his […]

Did I marry my father?

Recently an old uni friend (Friend M) and I went bush walking in the Blue Mountains. The last time we tried this was in 1994 and it ended badly, so I don’t know what we were thinking. In an attempt to distract me from the physical pain of sustained exercise, Friend M put one of […]

This is not an entertaining anecdote about motherhood

My two and a half year old son Sid can be a real pain in the arse sometimes. He seems to be embracing both The Terrible Twos and The Threenager personas simultaneously and with enthusiasm. He can be heard saying regularly “I gonna beat you Poo Poo” followed by a triple sashay kick to the reproductive […]

Democracy and the downside of family

The really annoying thing about your family is that you’re stuck with them for life. You didn’t get to choose them but you do have to live with them. No offence but I wouldn’t want to be related to Julia Gillard or Tony Abbott. It’s nothing personal; they seem like decent people, I just wouldn’t […]

The Worst Thing About Kids’ Sport (Mamamia! Part 19)

http://www.mamamia.com.au/parenting/snatch-it-i-mean-catch-it-i-mean-snatch-it/ Hiya, This one is about the things parents say to their kids at sport. Sound like any one else’s Saturday morning? Thank you as always for reading, xx Shanks   “Snatch it Sophie, snatch it!” Sorry, did that parent just say “Snatch it?” Surely she meant “Catch it Sophie, catch it!”? It was a […]

Should the Primary Earner do housework? (Mamamia! Part 18)

http://www.mamamia.com.au/parenting/primary-earner-vs-secondary-earner/ Hi there,  This one was about the way being the Primary Earner, the Only Earner, the Secondary Earner or the NOn-Earner can change the housework dynamic. I hope you like it! xx Shanks   A friend of mine recently told me that her husband refused to do the early morning childrens’ sport because he […]

Go on, treat yourself…

Hiya, I wrote this for a friend who works for the Gastro-Intestinal Cancer Institute. It’s about their national healthy eating programme for children. I have four of them and I know I need to do more to teach them about healthy eating and living. Please do have a look if you have the time: http://www.mamamia.com.au/mamamia-cares/go-on-treat-yourself-to-the-gutsy-challenge/ […]

The Mothership and its Forcefield

Hi there, Our travels with termites continues. Apparently we need a forcefield. I’ve always wanted one of those.: http://www.rentokil.com/blog/the-mothership-and-its-forcefield/ I hope you like reading these as much as I enjoy writing them. Is it wrong that I’m enjoying writing about termites? Shankari

The Sealed Section – for Children

Hi guys, here is my latest for Mamamia – I hope you like it. This is an ongoing argument in our household about what movies the children are allowed to watch. I’d like to say a special thank you to my brother for allowing his son to watch anything at all. And for getting a […]

Confessions of a Co-Sleeper

I’ve decided to write a book about sleep training. It’s clearly all the rage or at the very least it drives people into a rage and it’s bound to sell more copies than the other book I’m writing. I’m going to call my sleep training book “Failing Asleep”. I think that sounds catchy and clever, […]