My relationship with my broadband!

Recently my telephone line went down due to a major fault on the line. This is no big deal in the scheme of things, first world problems and all that but it was off for around 10 days in total. Now lack of phone I can deal with - after all most of us have mobile phones these days even if we do live in the sticks with virtually no coverage - but lack of broadband connection? Uh-uh. 

When I realised my connection is down, a sort of panic set in. I know that's crazy talk but I rely on the internet so much. Alongside blogging and working from home (yes, I have a day job!) I manage my entire life through the internet - banking, recording tv programmes, shopping, booking holidays, arranging my social life...the whole shebang. If it can be done online, that's how I'm going to do it.

Recently I was asked - how has life changed for me with internet access and how would my everyday life as a mum be different without having it? My answer? Very - and here's some of the reasons why.

• Like many others, 'm a busy working mum and being able to do things like banking and grocery shopping online after the children have gone to bed is a complete godsend. There just isn't enough hours in the day so if I can save time by doing my supermarket shop online rather than driving the 40mins+ round trip, then it's a big plus.  

• Our school has an online payment system for things like school trips, dinners, extra-curricular lessons and all the other things you need to pay out for at school - including ordering school uniform. It's so handy to be able to log-on and pay for dinners rather than having to hunt around looking for cheque books, which are by and large quite obsolete these days!

• Birthday and Christmas shopping? All done online. Yes I am single-handedly responsible for the demise of the high street.  Looking for offers and the best value deals online means I can save money or choose to treat the children to something a little extra. Shopping online in the comfort of my own home is a blissful relaxing experience.

• Arranging the social calendar - not just for the children but also for me! I know people moan about Facebook however I have built relationships with other school parents on Facebook and got to know them much better because of it. We organise social events, drinks with the other mums, coffee and play dates, birthday parties... I feel I'd miss out on so much if I wasn't a part of it.

• Facebook has also also been great for finding out what homework there is, asking for advice, remembering it's non-uniform the next day and discussing important issues. It's not all Candy Crush Saga, honestly.

These are just the few ways in which having access to the internet helps me out in my daily activities and my role of mum! There are of course many many others, the internet is so ingrained into our day-to-day life I'm sure we don't realise and understand how much we'd truly miss it if we didn't have it anymore which is why I was pretty bereft when I was without it for so long.

Oh and one more thing. On the homework issue, and one I probably shouldn't admit in the public domain - the internet has been invaluable to me when I haven't been able to work out the maths problem in front of me. What?! Year 2 maths can be tricky!

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