relationships
Remember when ‘meeting the parents’ was the defining milestone of a new relationship? If a man suggested lunch with Mum and Dad, we were going places. It was also the ultimate test; the seal of approval from your lover’s creators. It was cause to swot up on world aairs and buy a dress with a longer hemline. Now, meeting the parents has been replaced with meeting the kids. Forget minding your Ps and Qs and find out who headlined Glastonbury because children, especially teenagers, can be harsh in their judgements if you’re not ‘on their wavelength’.
Eighteen months ago, I met a gorgeous man 10 years older than me (I was 39). Everything felt right except our timing. He had only recently separated from his wife and was in no emotional state to fall in love. I embraced our courtship cautiously. For six months, there was no question of me visiting his home, where his three teenage daughters stayed at weekends. Our dates were always midweek, and he always visited my flat, near to his place of work.