WHEN you have a baby you might expect to feel an incredible rush of love the second you set eyes on your new bundle of joy.

SO HERE we are in the second week of the school term, and how bizarre and surreal it is.

It's surprising how we still learn new things about ourselves - even at the ripe old age of 42.

A NEW pop-up play-park has opened in Belfast city centre.

Q: MY SON will soon start university, and I’m already worrying about how he’ll cope as he’s never cooked a meal and is useless with money.

CHILDHOOD should be carefree and full of fun – but sadly that’s not always the case for modern kids, who can struggle with emotional issues they don’t have the experience to deal with.

MOST of our children will return to school this week and parents the land over will have a mixed array of feelings on the matter.

It just feels like it's all a big mess.

EVEN without the global pandemic 2020 was always going to be a watershed year for me.

Q: MY 10-year-old son is about to return to school for the first time since lockdown, and he’s already worrying he won’t be able to keep up with the work and he might catch coronavirus.

YOUR toddler has hit or bitten another child again, and you’re beginning to think he has a problem.

LAST week was a really tough one for our A-level students.

I can't believe some people are being so selfish - because that's what it comes down to.

IT'S been the longest educational break in living memory, and only now, after more than four months at home, is it time for most parents and children to start thinking about returning to school.

Q: I'M WORRIED my young child isn't learning anything over the summer holidays – what can I do to help her? A: Leonor Stjepic, chief executive of the Montessori Group, which offers education based on self-directed activity and hands-on learning in nurseries and schools, says: "With months of nursery and school closures, it's understandable parents may be concerned about disruption in learning.

SUMMER is almost over and, as it stands, all our children will return to school full time at the beginning of the new term as normal.

THERE’S one thing that amazes me – there is no manual for parenting.

Can you believe it's August already? Where is the time going? I know 2020 hasn't exactly turned out how we all expected but I feel like it's flying by at an astonishing speed.

BACK when we were growing up today’s fancy ‘staycations’ were just called summer holidays.

Q: I’M GOING to have my first baby soon – how can I prepare to recover well after the birth if there are no complications? A: Doula and perinatal educator Sophie Messager, author of Why Postnatal Recovery Matters, says: “The best way to ensure a positive postpartum recovery experience is to plan for it.