I think, at least in my own experience, dealing with others' criticisms, advice and opinions in relation to how I parent is one of the most difficult things in maintaining friendships. I lost a very good friend last year because I ended up no longer putting up with her underhanded attacks - her view is that an indication of a good mother is one who raises her child in a way so that her pre-mother life continues unchanged with no impact on friendships and activities.

I do believe you need to achieve a balance between maintaining your own individual identity, and being Mum. The difficulty is that we all have a completely different idea of just what that balance is. For me, the vast majority of my time devoted to my children and being a mother is what is right. Do I miss some aspects of my pre-mother life? Absolutely. Do I wish I had more time for me? Absolutely. But I wouldn't be comfortable sacrificing what I consider to be the most important aspect of my life now just so I could go and play a game of tennis. I do enough to keep me happy, and every now and then I'll do more than normal if I'm feeling a little hard done by as an individual, but I love that my life revolves around my kids. My kids will only be this young and this eager to be actively involved with me to such a huge extent for such a small period of time.