In fact she and her sister have come up with five points on "things you could do better" that they would like me to work on. You know the usual sort of things, like getting out of bed in the morning in time to get them to school, remembering to buy some food to put in their packed lunches etc, etc. Tedious stuff.

Some of us just aren't naturals at this game. And why on earth should we be? The children don't come with manuals. For goodness sake they don't even come in standard packages. My youngest is bewilderingly different from my eldest, just when I thought I had at least got the early years sussed.

No wonder, balancing life, let alone work, and parenting is such a struggle. This is the "me" generation where we've been mistakenly been led to believe that we can have it all. We only have to move a bit faster, and time manage more effectively and we should be able to cram our pre-parent world into our post-parent existence, without having to compromise on anything. Counselling is available if you can't.

The reality of course is that life is very different. It's a series of changes and choices over time. What works one week, might not the next. Let's face it, that's what it was like before the kids, so why should it be any different now? One week you love the job, a few months later you can't wait to leave. A wild night out can so easily be followed by an early morning row about putting the bins out. That's life. So why should children and parenting be any different?

As many of us know, the perfect nanny becomes the perfect nightmare the day she hands in her notice. The ideal au pair (if one ignores the legs up to her armpits and the way she finds your partner interesting) loses her charm after six months of queuing for the bathroom. And as soon as you've got over the childcare problems, you're on to schools. Now there's something you can worry about endlessly for the next thirteen years.

So what have I learnt through it all? Well my top ten survival tips for parents would be:

• Give yourself a break, you're only human
• Lighten up, they are only children
• Don't believe anyone who says they've got it sorted
• Choose your own path in parenthood, as in life
• Prioritize your partner if you have one
• Remember they'll soon be gone - the children, hopefully not the partner!?
• Forgive and forget, either you or they will get it wrong most days
• Live your own dreams, don't expect the kids to do it for you
• Good enough is OK at the end of the day in the real world
• Have fun - life's too short