I'M a former editor of Tamba's Twins, Triplets & More magazine and have written for various newspapers, magazines and websites.
My blog You've got your hands full has received lovely feedback from parents, as well as being featured by publications including The Times Online and The Telegraph.
Practical Parenting, "What sent me into labour."
FORGET old wives' tales about curries, sex and raspberry leaf tea - these mums share their own real life stories about what really got things moving. Read more
Your Family magazine: Focus on bullying HOW can you nip bullying in the bud if your child is either the bully or the victim? Linda Jones reports. Read more. Take a Break: Dying to get onto the internet: The dangers of online tribute sites REPORT on the possible pitfalls of baring your soul on a tribute site for a loved-one, plus calls for a code of conduct.I enjoy writing on health and relationships and have seen work published in various printed and online titles.
New Woman: The Big Debate: Abortion
I interviewed women to be included in this in-depth report. Read about some of the issues this piece threw up here.
Allaboutyou.com: You're not the only one getting old.SO you thought you had it bad? Juggling the demands of home and career means given the chance, you could probably sleep for England. But you don't have to fret over going bald, cultivating a beer belly or the state of your swimmers - perhaps you should count yourself lucky? Read more.
Independent on Sunday: Stalked by text
Additional reporting (ie finding the woman to be interviewed) by me. Read more. Read an account of what was going on behind the scenes while the finishing touches were put to this piece here.
Independent on Sunday: Why it pays to be divorced (If you're a woman, that is)
THE BUSINESS BRAIN
'If you are determined, you can succeed'
Fiona Hudson-Kelly from Rugby, Warwickshire, is the director of an IT company. She split from her husband five years ago, and now earns £60,000 a year. She is a former NatWest Businesswoman of the Year and has been short-listed for this year's CBI Woman of the Year. She says it is no coincidence that she launched Silver Lining Solutions just a year after splitting from her husband of 16 years. Her customers include O2 and Orange.
Ms Hudson-Kelly, now 43 and the mother of four children, says: "After a divorce, of course you are looking for a new start. For some it will be a new look or a new social life, but for me it was my business. Being independent can be tougher as you have nobody at your side ... but the busier you are, the more energy you have - and the higher you can lift the bar for success.
"If you are determined, you can succeed even though people think of you as being 'on your own'."
Independent on Sunday: Overweight girls 'face lifetime of discrimination and low pay'
By Roger Dobson and Linda Jones
Teenage girls should prepare themselves for serious, long-lasting discrimination if they are overweight at the age of 16, according to new research.
A 14-year analysis of school- children and their eventual prospects has found that obese girls are likely to be trapped in low-earning jobs by the time they are 30. They also face health and relationship problems. Yet there was no similar discrimination against obese men as they entered the workforce, suggesting that women are judged more harshly on their looks than men.
The findings come amid concern that employers are increasingly looks-conscious. British law firms are already preparing to take on discrimination claims brought by overweight people who say they have been denied jobs and promotion.
The new study, published this week, found that 70 per cent of women who were overweight at 16 and 21 had working-class jobs by the age of 30, compared with 40 per cent of other women, even when family and economic background were taken into account.
The researchers who conducted the study, reported in the Journal of Social Science and Medicine this week, followed the fortunes of more than 1,000 European school- children. Jobs such as air hostess, clothes shop assistant or waitress could all be harder to obtain for overweight women, who may seek jobs where appearance matters less. "In trying to avoid exposing their bodies to other people, they may seek single-working jobs, like cleaner," the study said.
A study by the economist Barry Harper of London Metropolitan University found that "unattractive" people got paid less. The study of 11,000 employees found that short, fat female secretaries suffered most, collecting 15 per cent less than slimmer peers.
Rachael Morgan, 15, from Creetown, Dumfries and Galloway, agrees that girls are more likely to be bullied about their weight than boys. She is taunted every day about her size. Rachael, 14 stone, says the insults led to depression. She is writing songs to channel the emotion. "I feel sorry for the people who call me names. Just because I'm a bit bigger, that doesn't make me a bad person. I get a lot of stick, mainly from boys. I will lose weight - when it's right for me."
DollyMix: My breast check-up: It wasn't supposed to be like this
You reckon a visit to the doc's for a breast check-up is a sombre affair? Think again, says Linda Jones...Read more.
DollyMix: For your breasts I give you 10 out of 10
As worries rise over a reduced number of US women having mammograms, Linda Jones puts her "breast cancer scare" behind her...Read more.
Your family: The more the merrier
HAVING one baby is hard enough, but when you discover you're expecting two or three at the same time, it can be overwhelming. Linda Jones reports. Read more.
My Child: Telling off other people's kids
WE'VE all been there. Little Billy who has come round for tea is misbehaving.What would you do? Tell him off or leave him be? Read more.
DollyMix: Why I love the Brownies
WHEN I was seven or eight I joined The Brownies. I didn't last long, leaving amid a minor scandal which involved wantonly chewing gum. Read more
Twins, Triplets & More magazine: Post-natal depression in multiple birth families
"I DIDN'T want to get out of bed, I felt I'd let everyone down and just kept crying all the time," says Miranda. Read more
Babyworld: Is one child enough?
DOES an only child mean a lonely child? Not according to the mothers we spoke to, and they are tired of the bad press they get for being one child families. We explore the single child syndrome and take a look at the pros and cons...Read more (This was one of a series of articles commissioned when Babyworld was set up.)
Babyworld: Pregnancy or birth, which side are you on?
Babyworld: Together or apart?
Babyworld: How twins fit into the family
Babyworld: Who you looking at?
(With Lucy Laing and Gary Roberts photography) Double delight for brothers - as their twins are born within 72 hours of each other.
