Ahhhh warm days, bright futures – I hope summer is renewing your energies for 2025
From our home to yours, how is your summer going? Have you been able to enjoy a holiday somewhere? We’re just getting ready for our annual pilgrimage to the beach, and each year it feels like all of western NSW heads to the same spot! I see more people at the beach, six hours from downtown Trangie, than I do at home. I know it’s the same for my Victorian and Queensland friends.
Anyway, welcome to 2025. It’s got a ring to it, 2025, don’t you think? Though I’m pretty sure I say that every year. A neat and tidy quarter of a century since the Y2K bug threatened to crash global economies, Sydney 2000 Olympics (I loved that our postcode was the same as the year – marketers dream), the GST was introduced and for any of us running the farm books our lives were forever changed …. and the world, as was so vehemently predicted, did not end. We made it and here we are a beautiful 25 years later. Hello 😊
If you’ve got a couple of weeks left before normal proceedings resume then I’ve popped two of my summer recommendations down below. I’d love you to share yours with me. Send them over.
Do you know anyone heading off to boarding school this year? Or a boarder that continues to struggle settling in at the beginning of the school year? Are you a boarder parent that lives in dread of the drop off ? We’ve got some podcast episodes for you and your boarder that will wrap you in a bit of cotton wool for the coming weeks.
Our Nailing Homesickness series that runs throughout the summer holidays is essential listening for any new boarder. We talk to current boarder students about all the ways they managed those feelings of grief and loss when they began at boarding school. They’re short 15 minute chats ideal for the drive to town when your new boarder is sitting right next to you. (You can also go back and listen to our first two series of Nailing Homesickness if you feel your new boarder could benefit from a few more.)
And this week I sat down, across screens, with my friend and boarder parent, Kirsty Wiggins to discuss the emotional challenges faced by parents during the transition of their children to boarding school. A very special episode of Destination Boarding, the podcast. Through many personal anecdotes, we highlight the shared experiences of homesickness and the strategies that can help both parents and children cope with these feelings. We explore themes of grief, the transition to empty nesting, and the importance of finding support systems. Our conversation highlights coping strategies for parents, the significance of routines, and the evolving dynamics of family life as children grow and leave home. I hope that it can help you, or someone you know over the coming weeks.
Thinking of all of our returning boarder families as you get ready for the new year. Wishing you a year filled to the brim with moments you’ll want to remember.
DESTINATION BOARDING THE PODCAST AN EPISODE TO SHARE
Are you following our podcast ?Grief and the boarder family.
This week we drop our very special episode on grief. The very real emotional state felt by boarding families right across the country. My chat with Mum of four, Kirsty Wiggins, aims to give voice to these emotions and some ideas for a more gentle transition. Please share with families beginning their boarding school years.
THE ULTIMATE PACKING LIST
Pack with us for your child’s year at boarding school.
We know your school will have given you a list of essential items, along with a few suggestions…. but here’s our ULTIMATE PACKING LIST compiled over 21 years, with plenty of input from parents that run their prep’ and packing like a well-oiled machine – we’re here for you. And heads up, it’s ok to use a laundry marker Texta 😉
BUILDING CONFIDENCE IN YOUR NEW BOARDER
Listen to Nailing Homesickness on Destination Boarding
For many kids the transition to boarding school can be incredibly challenging. Leaving home, learning new routines, making new friends, missing the family dog, surrounded by so many people…. these are just some of the challenges that contribute to feelings (shared or hidden) that can overwhelm our newest boarders.
Our 3rd Summer Series of Nailing Homesickness is here. Short chats with seasoned boarders about all of those big feelings and how they worked through them.
Here are the things we’re loving right now… Summer Edition
A DIFFERENT TYPE OF THRILL FROM NEW ZEALAND
My Latest Glue To TV Watch from Netflix
Nothing like a story of an already skewed friendship going south at a rate of knots to put a chill into your summer afternoon. I am only half way through this 6 Episode series about a surrogacy deal gone terribly wrong.
I haven’t quite worked out if I’m glued because of the picture postcard setting that is New Zealand or if I’m hooked on the story. If I’m honest, I’m a bit uncomfortable with this fictional friendship… anyhoo it’s a goodie so far. Not sure how it ends. Netflix.
WAS DEFINITELY MY MONKEY AND I FELL FOR THE CIRCUS
Robbie Williams Bio Pic is Epic Can & Will Recommend
I am a huge fan of Mr Robbie Williams. He is an extraordinary entertainer, but even I had reservations about parting with my $17 to sit down and watch him portrayed as a monkey… the weirdest concept I know. Please believe me when I say, I absolutely LOVED this film. I recommend it without reservation. There is a scene shot in Regent Street London… so good you want to grab an uber to the airport and head over to give it a crack. Fall in love with the monkey.
(side note: Aussie director + the exceptionally good Aussie, Kate Mulvany as Monkey Rob’s Mum)
Have you finished your boarding school journey ? Share our news…. tell your friends and family who might be on their way. Our website provides almost 20 years of resources and experience to families and students considering their options and beginning their days at boarding school.
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