About

Who are you?

I’m Rachel, a journo, blogger and new mum living in Sydney with my husband and our baby, Charlie.

What’s The Mama Files?

It’s my diary of sorts, and a way of making sense of the parallel universe I’m now living in. I mean, it looks like my old life, but without the late nights out and cocktails and weekend sleep-ins and ability to leave the house without carting the contents of a Babyco shop with me. In addition, I puree (a lot). I know all the Teletubbies by name. I’m up with the birds and I’m down with the baby babble and there are hours and hours of bottom patting and cuddling and singing My Little Teapot and smooching my bubba’s fat chipmunk cheeks. Some days, I can’t imagine doing anything else, ever. Other days I just want to run screaming to the nearest bar and throw myself headfirst into a bucket of vodka.

What’s Up The Duff?

Up The Duff was my pregnancy diary, and of course that chapter closed when Charlie arrived. I’d always planned to leave it there, but couldn’t bear to. So The Mama Files was born three weeks after Charlie was, and I’ve posted (usually) every week since. Probably best to start with Up The Duff if you want to read from the beginning. It kicks off at Week 16 (because that’s when we announced the pregnancy) but it’s on my to-do list to go back and write the other weeks up at some point.

Who are your readers?

New mamas. Mamas with older kids. Friends. Family. Pregnant mamas-to-be. If you’re reading and it resonates, you’re going through the same thing, or you’re itching to give me some advice / a piece of your mind / a piece of cake, please leave a comment. I’d love to hear from you. Particularly if you bake a mean cake.

Is this your only blog?

Some days I wish fervently that were so, but no. I’m also fielding love life Q+As at my advice column Reality Chick, posting letters on RC’s sister site Letter To My Ex, and blogging about freelancing at Rachel’s List – a recruitment site that serves up media jobs to over 3500 journos, editors, subs, copywriters, graphic designers and other creative types. I also have a freelance portfolio website so if you’d like me to write for you, create a website for you or blog for your existing site, let’s talk.

Who’s Mr Chick?

He’s my husband, and Charlie’s father. He got the name because these columns originally ran on Reality Chick, and it stays because Mr Files kinda doesn’t have the same ring. Didn’t really think that one through, huh?

I have more questions!

No problemo. Drop me a line here.