Love

Can I Find Love After A Separation?

May 5, 2021 Jayne1 Comment

The pandemic has taught us a lot about ourselves. But it’s also been a revelation for a lot of couples. Some have seized the opportunities to fall back in love again. Others have discovered with horror that they’d grown too far apart to carry on with their dreams of a happy ever after. It’s no surprise that many relationships have emerged or dissolved during the many periods of lockdown.

Yet, when you’ve spent many years in a long-term relationship with your partner, it can be devastating to consider a separation. Thankfully, a lot of couples who have chosen to go separate ways during the pandemic have managed to do it on friendly terms. So there’s one less thing to stress about as you ask yourself the big question: Will I find love again after a separation?

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You are in charge of how you feel

There’s a big difference between finding love and being in a relationship. If you focus too much on finding someone to prove to yourself that you are worthy of love, you may end up settling down for something that doesn’t make you happy. There’s no secret: If you are insecure about it, you’ll struggle to find the confidence to hit the dating scene again, as per a previous article on http://www.mumstheword.me. When you start to find happiness in who you are, you find it easier to follow your heart than your fears. While it doesn’t mean that you can’t do some work on yourself. You may want to get fitter or stronger, and that’s great. However, make sure that you’re doing it for yourself and not to impress your future date. If you let self-esteem issues and self-doubts guide you, they will inevitably encourage a relationship for the wrong reasons. And that’s the last thing you want in your quest for love.

It doesn’t have to be something serious

Here’s the thing: You may be ready to have fun, but that doesn’t mean you want to jump into the next long-term relationship. When you’ve spent a lot of time in a relationship, sometimes, it’s good to enjoy your time alone before hitting back the dating scene. It’s a fantastic opportunity to figure out what you want and like. And ultimately, it doesn’t hurt to enjoy casual flirting without any engagement before you move onto more serious things. Get back into the flirting game with things such as https://www.freechatlines.com without any expectations. Or you could simply turn to chat-friendly platforms that let you reach out to people and find your voice again. Needless to say, when you’ve been on your best behaviour for years, it can be interesting to find out just how much fun talking to strangers can be.

Using it as an excuse to get back to your ex

Understandably, it’ll take some time to figure out who you are when you’re single again. We tend to define ourselves through our relationships, so it’s fair to say that you’ll have to update your social media presence after the separation. Your future partner will see your social media presence, so it’s about showing your true self rather than trying to get back at your ex.

Hoping for love after a separation is the dream of everyone. More often than not, your approach will be crucial in making room for a new relationship. Self-confidence is a game-changer, in your flirting game, in your worth, and in who you are.

Lockdown Stress and Ways to Deal With It

March 15, 2021December 13, 2022 JayneLeave a comment

How to Deal with Lockdown Stress — Photo by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash

For many of us, life has gone back to normal in many ways. The kids have gone back to school, places are slowly starting to reopen and there’s a sense that things are getting better. People are learning how to stop worrying about the future. However, when I say “many of us”, I don’t actually mean me! Both kids are still home from school; in fact neither has been since 12th March 2020 and we’re homeschooling Sausage permanently from now on. Lockdown stress is still looming large!

We still don’t leave the house for anything other than shopping and medical appointments, we still wash all groceries and parcels that come into the house, still wear masks, distance ourselves from other people. We’re missing family like mad, but we just don’t feel like it’s worth letting our guards down just yet. Imagine isolating ALL THIS TIME and then catching COVID at the eleventh hour? I doesn’t bear thinking about.

Being indoors all this time means we’ve all needed to find our own ways to entertain ourselves and cope with the situation so that the lockdown stress doesn’t completely engulf us. For Sausage, it’s been all about anime, reading fan fiction, drawing and chatting to her friends. Burrito Baby has found happiness in reading Harry Potter and creating some epic worlds in Minecraft. Husband plays Call of Duty online and I’ve been listening to audiobooks, cross-stitching and baking to keep my mind off of everything.

With this in mind, I thought I’d share some tips for you to follow if you need help with avoiding stress, decompressing when you feel overwhelmed or just generally helping to pass the time if you’re still isolating at home:

Try a New Hobby

If you’re anything like me, there’s a list of things as long as your arm that you’ve said you’d like to try, but always punctuate it with “…but I never have the time!”. Well, I’ve never had MORE time than in the last 12 months and it shows – as well as the cross stitch and baking I mentioned above, I’ve done quilling, card making, sewing and a few other things besides. If there’s something you’ve been wanting to get into, there’s no time like the present!

Audiobooks

As well as taking full advantage of my free trial of Audible (which I promptly cancelled when my trial ran out!), my good friend Jeni recommended an app to me called BorrowBox. It’s available to anyone with a library card and allows you to borrow e-books and audiobooks, just like you would from your library, except it’s all digital. The app is absolutely free and there are no in-app purchases. The range of books can sometimes be limited, but I’ve managed HOURS of free audiobook listening with this app and I do love the escapism from lockdown stress that a good book can provide.

Declutter Your Life

Something I find INCREDIBLY cathartic and stress-relieving is decluttering, and this is one of those things that you can apply to various parts of your life. Whether it’s clearing out your kitchen drawers, tidying those cupboards that are just used for storing stuff you no longer use, organising the shed or garage or even going through your inbox and unsubscribing from all the newsletters and emails you never read. Clearing physical space is a really good way to help clear headspace and the knock-on effect of a declutter is huge for me.

Have you found something in the last year that has helped you through the isolation of lockdown? Are you like us and still doing your best to distance yourself from the world? Have you decided to permanently homeschool your kids once this is all over?

Leave me a comment below, I’d love to hear from you!

Lockdown

What Parents Need to Remember About Lockdown

December 16, 2020December 16, 2020 JayneLeave a comment

Credit – CCO Licence

If you are a parent, you have probably found this year to be a particularly stressful one to have kids during. Of course, everyone has been struggling in their own way this year with the global pandemic, but there are so many ways in which it has been especially tough on parents all over the world. If you are keen to make sure that you are dealing with it as well as possible, there are some essential things that you might want to bear in mind. Let’s take a look at some of the things parents should aim to remember about lockdown, in order to ensure that they are approaching it in the best possible way.

Knowing Your Local Rules

Every area is different, so the main thing to remember is that you need to be aware of the local rules when it comes to the effects of lockdown on your life. In particular, you need to ensure that you are looking out for the rules concerning your kids’ schools, if they are of that age, and anything else which might prove to be relevant – such as any parents’ groups you might usually go to, and whether or not they are likely to be able to meet. The more aware you are about all of this, the more likely it is that you will be sticking to the rules, and avoiding putting yourself or your child in any unnecessary danger.

Preparing Your Child For Post-Lockdown

It is almost time to start thinking about how to get ready for post-covid, or at least post-lockdown. There are many things to think about in this regard. One of the main ones is that you need to make sure you are aware of whether or not they can go back to their normal routines, as we briefly discussed above. But you also need to make sure that they are mentally ready to return, whether they are returning to nursery or school or wherever. The important thing is probably to have some kind of routine in place, so you can support your child as necessary. As long as you do that, it should be a lot easier on the both of you, and everyone else in the household too.

Being Safe & Healthy

Throughout all of it, the most important thing to remember is to try and keep safe and keep yourself and your family as healthy as possible. We know that covid is not necessarily too bad for children, but even so you don’t want to take any risks. And you also don’t want to put yourself in risk of catching the virus and then not being able to fully attend to caring for your child. So make sure that you are taking all of the necessary precautions which we are now all so used to, and you should be able to keep things going fairly smoothly that way. Then it’s just a case of hoping for the best and waiting for the whole pandemic to be over.

Entertainment · Family

4 Ways To Successfully Organize A Fun Family Movie Night In

July 6, 2020 JayneLeave a comment

Family time can either be fun or chaotic, depending on how much you prepare for it. Especially if you have kids around, you will have to factor in activities that will be appealing to all members of the family to engage them. A movie night is one of the more relaxing things to do with the family, and you can make it as enjoyable as you want with the following tips.

Pick a family movie ahead of time

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If you want members of your family to be interested in the movie from start to finish, then it should be one that everyone might be interested in. And the best way to do this is to take some time together to pick one. Consider everybody’s interest and choose a movie that meets all the expectations to some extent; after all, no one can have it their way. To make the experience even better, install streaming apps and add ons to your devices to give you access to countless movies for free. Troypoint has some of the best to make streaming movies smooth and stress-free.

Add refreshing snacks or meals

It won’t be an enjoyable time without some snacks to go with the movie, so don’t be scared to go all out. Get some creative ideas for a variety of snacks and make it possible for everybody to customize theirs. The old school popcorn works very well (only those above four can have some), especially when it’s glazed. You can take it up a notch and add some pastries or drinks so that it becomes a mini-meal. Also, don’t forget the healthy options and special snacks for those who may have dietary issues. Movie night is the only time that you can eat together in front of the tv, so make it count for everybody.

Be comfortable

If you want to prevent fidgeting as much as possible during a good movie, then make sure everybody is as comfortable as possible. You can do this by making sure the couch or whatever you’re sitting on is spacious and soft enough for everyone. If possible, you can let family members create their little comfort zones in front of the tv. Those who will need extra pillows and blankets should get just that so that everyone’s attention will be on the movie and not discomfort. From time to time, you can ask around if everybody is comfortable but not too much that it becomes a distraction.

Make it a theme

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This tip works well with the kids because it makes them look forward to movie night. So consider giving them the opportunity to create costumes that they will wear while watching the movie – this makes them invested even before the time comes. It is also a great opportunity for you to combine entertainment with education as they strengthen their creativity skills. That way, they will be glued to the tv, and the chances of moving around are lowered. You can also ask them to help you decorate the viewing area before time so that they can feel like a part of the organisation process.

Adulting · Love · Relationships

Lockdown: Keeping Your Relationship Alive

May 7, 2020May 7, 2020 JayneLeave a comment

There’s no denying the fact that lockdown is making things feel pretty bizarre for most of us at the moment. Families are spending more time together than ever, thanks to school closures and isolation measures to protect us all during the coronavirus outbreak, and adult realtionships are being strained in many cases. Between spending 24 hours a day, 7 days a week in the same space and the kids being around ALL. THE. TIME, finding time to be intimate is one of the hardest things about “The Current Situation” (as it’s formally known in most households!).

With this in mind, I thought I’d share with you five tips for keeping the spark going in your relationship so that quarantine doesn’t have a negative effect on your intimate life:

Sexting

While whispering sweet nothings might be tricky when you’ve got little ears around all the time (what is with their hearing, as well? They’re like bats, until you mention tidying!), sending your partner a message containing some steamy content is the perfect solution. Install an encrypted app like Signal and reserve it solely for sexting with your other half. As well as helping to build tension, you’ll get a little jolt of excitement every time you see a message from your chosen private app.

Lockdown Lingerie

If you’re aything like us, you’re probably spending most of your time in pyjamas or loungewear, neither of which are known for their sexiness! Why not invest in some sexy lingerie sets from Steamy Genie? Even if you slip them on UNDER your comfies, a glance of something sexy and lacy underneath your flannel P.J.s will let your partner know you’re still thinking about your provate times.

Try to Have a Routine

Okay, so while I’m not suggesting a sex schedule (is there anything less sexy?!), having a proper routine can really help you to find time to be intimate. Lots of the people I know have thrown the normal routine to the wind and the kids are going to bed later, waking up late and not really sticking to any sort of timings. Make sure the kids eat dinner, have a bath and get to bed at a more reasonable time and you’ll find yourselves with much more time to dedicate to each other in the evenings.

Try Something New

I think we can all admit that everything is SO far from normal right now, so instead of bucking against this, why not go with it and try something new during lockdown? We all have those little curiosities that we’ve thought about trying but just haven’t got round to mentioning to our partners – well, there’s never been a better time to try it! Just don’t go TOO crazy, as now is really not the time to end up in A&E with a sex injury!

Tidy Up and Have a Date

We’re all probably quite sick of our surroundings at the moment, and our motivation for housework can be tested when it seems like no sooner do we tidy than the place is a mess again. Work together to get the house back to being spotless and then enjoy the spoils of your labour by having a date night. Cook a meal together, watch a movie and just spend some time enjoying each other, instead of sitting in front of the TV or games console while the other uses their smartphone!