Learning lessons from your mum
Our readers tell us what important lessons they learned from their own mothers
Liz Neale, 35, from Brighton, 8 months pregnant and mum to Catherine, 2
Liz says of her mum, Sue Todd: “Maybe the most important thing she taught me was how to have fun together. We built sandcastles, baked cakes, had picnics and swung on swings - and we're still doing it after three decades!
She taught me that if I worked hard, I could achieve and be what I wanted to be, and she taught me to seize adventures that she could only have dreamed of.
She also taught me more common sense than I could use up in a lifetime and I know I can face the world equipped with her wisdom. Now she's a granny, she's teaching me how to pass all that on to my own daughter. I love you Mum!”
Katherine Connor, 32, from Caerphilly, South Wales, mum to Mollie, 1
Katherine says of her mum, Sue Fisher: “I feel really lucky that she lives around the corner. She is such a support, offers fantastic advice and is a good friend. When we got married, she looked after Mollie all day and for three nights when I went off on my honeymoon.
Mollie loves her Nonna as much as I do! Mum knits her cosy jumpers for the winter, spoils her with summer clothes, and knows what to do when we're both ill.
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I have learned nearly everything I know about raising a little baby from my mum, and it's so nice to hear stories about my past that mirror the experiences that I'm having with Mollie.”
Louise Britton, 29, from Leeds, mum to Oliver Harrison, 1
Louise says of her mum Heather Britton: “She gave me lots of amazing tips when I was pregnant with my little boy, but the one main piece of advice was that time goes so quickly and that I should make the most of my maternity leave.
Do as much as you can and enjoy every moment! That piece of advice from my mum was very crucial - had I gone back to work I would have missed out on all the important parts of his development and time spent with him that I now really cherish!”
Naz Lewis, 43, from Cobham, Surrey, mum to Jasmine, 16, and Rhiannon, 5
Naz says of her mum, Yasmin Duggan: “She always reassures me and says not to fret about the small stuff. Don’t worry if your kids are making a mess or watching too much TV.
Concentrate on the bigger bits, such as eating properly, sleeping well and cleaning their teeth. Only things that have a long-term effect are worth troubling yourself over.”
Stacey Hutchins, 24, from Worcestershire, is mum to Jack, 1
Stacey says of her mum, Julie Williams: “She taught me two things that have always stuck with me – ‘Do unto others as they do unto you’, and ‘Look after the pennies and the pounds will look after themselves’.”
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