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Claire Upshall

@mysevenandi

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Just a Mama in an immensely tough situation, fighting hard for my family 🌼🌸🌻

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Reposting because I forgot to add music yesterday 🤦🏻‍♀️ & it is so much nicer to watch with music 😍.

Every family has a story, welcome to ours!

From as little as £5 per month you can sign up to my Patreon where I am writing my story in detail about how I came to Tanzania & became a mother of 7.

Follow the link in my bio to sign up today!!

@goodnews_movement

#patreon #patreoncreator #myblog #mystory #ourstory #blog #writing #signupnow #singlemum #motherofseven #mumlife #adoption #fostercare #lifestory #adoptionstory #adoptionjourney #lovemakesafamily #family by @mysevenandi

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3 years ago

Did you notice?

I went to school, then went somewhere for an hour with multiple different people. It wasn’t until I got home & Layla pointed it out!

My top is inside out 🫣 I guess that’s what you get when you sleep through your alarm then have to rush to get the girls to school on time!

#oopsmoment #reallife #mumlife by @mysevenandi

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5 days ago

My morning looks very different today to most school days.

I usually have 1.5 hours driving to two different schools. The traffic here is awful so I don’t enjoy it at all, in fact I must admit that most morning include some pretty strong language 🫣.

It is frustrating when my kids school holidays land on different dates because it means I don’t get a break from the exhausting driving.

This week however, our friends have offered to take the girls to school so I just have to take them 5 mins down the road to their house. I usually take said friends kids in the mornings & they bring my kids home in the afternoon!

I’m super grateful because for me it means a lot less driving, a lot less stress, a lot less fuel consumption, a lot less profanities & a little bit of me time!

Thankful to our lovely friends who have become part of our village 😍

I’ll spend most of today social media planning for @thepostnatalplanner, what are you up to today?

#schoolruns #metime #grateful #andrelax #ittakesavillage by @mysevenandi

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10 days ago

“Nimerudi!” = “I’m back!” 🇹🇿💛

After an unplanned break, Learn Swahili with Elsie is back! And judging by the giggles and silliness, someone is VERY happy to be teaching you again 😂🥰

We’re excited to share more Kiswahili with you, one word (and a few funny faces) at a time!

Give Elsie a little 👋 in the comments to welcome her back!

#learnswahiliwithelsie #learnswahili #kiswahili #lifeintanzania by @mysevenandi

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14 days ago

Hello, or hello again👋

It suddenly occurred to me that I haven’t introduced myself for a very long time. I can be a bit hit & miss with posting, I’m working on being more consistent😅.

I’m Claire & I grew up in the UK🇬🇧. I came to Tanzania in 2011 with the intent to stay one year.

15 years later & I am still here, although honestly, I’ve spent around 10 of those years trying to leave🫣. Living as an expat in Tanzania can be beautiful, complicated, frustrating and incredible, sometimes all those mixed into one day.

I am also a Mum of 7 amazing children. Life in our family is full, noisy, unpredictable, chaotic and always full of a lot of love💖.

But there is another side to my story too that I am only more recently able to talk about.

I have spent many years living in survival mode. I’ve been navigating trauma, CPTSD, ADHD and slowly trying to rebuild myself.

I also live with grief having lost my older brother when I was a child & sitting with my Dad when he passed whilst I was pregnant.

I don’t share these things because I want this space to feel heavy or for sympathy. I share them for others to relate, I share them because I know I am not the only one trying to hold grief, joy, motherhood, trauma, laughter & normal life all at once & I share them because they are topics that are so often not talked about.

Over the years I’ve shared parts of our life including a series of ‘Learn Swahili with Elsie’. If you remember & loved those videos you’ll be please to know we are bringing them back🇹🇿!

Here you’ll also find family life, Motherhood, Tanzania, expat life, honest conversations and my ongoing attempts to build a better life for us & to move beyond simply surviving & begin properly living again.

And there is something new coming too which has been a dream of mine for several years🎉.

Some of you know that I’m a Doula & I am super excited because I’m preparing to launch a business that has been in my heart for years. Watch this space for more 👀.

Tell me in the comments a little about yourself 👇🏼 by @mysevenandi

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16 days ago

Through my Ki-Fi account (link in bio), I sell my colouring books, soaps & personalised wall art.

Please follow the link to check out what is available.

Financially things are always a struggle & right now I have Jack’s football to pay (£41.95 for the term) plus a couple of birthdays, followed by Christmas. If I could sell some products it would really go a long way to helping reduce some of the financial stress I am under. Plus, honestly, when the products I have made sell it feels bloody amazing 🤩.

Take a look through my page & make an order if you can, you can also message me directly if you’d prefer to order that way. Then go ahead & share, share, share 🙏🏻

Thanks everyone, I’m truly grateful 🫶🏽✨

Ps: I apologise it is a bit jumpy at times, I had to edit out lots of uhhmming & ahhing & tripping on my words 🫣

#supportsmallbuisness #grateful #buyfromme #supportmyfamily #kofi by @mysevenandi

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a month ago

The schools have just reopened after 8 weeks!

We had lots of fun, some adventures & a lot of quality family time but 8 weeks is long & these kiddos are ready to be back into routine.

As for me I’ve got mixed feelings, I’m grateful they are all in school, a little sad that Elsie (my last little baby) is now in school full time, happy to be back in routine but not really enjoying the long school run that is chaos!

I must admit, it felt so weird in the house today. I had a coffee in peace 😱

More than anything I am so thankful my children get to be in school & continue their education!

#backtoschool #feelingthankful by @mysevenandi

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2 months ago

On Wednesday we celebrated Betty turning 8!

How is my sweet chubby cheeked, crazy hair little girl 8? It is so true what they say, the days go slow but the years go fast, too fast 🥺

You are such a beautiful little girl both inside & out. Having you as my daughter is such a truly special gift.

I hope you grow up believing in yourself, being brave enough to follow your dreams & never being afraid to be different ✨

I hope you always know that wherever you go, whatever you do & whoever you grow up to be, you will always be loved more than you could ever imagine.

Happy birthday Betty, I love you to the moon, the stars & everywhere in between 💞

Keep being you because you are amazing! 🫶🏽

#birthdaygirl #happybirthday by @mysevenandi

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2 months ago

Yesterday we celebrated our lovely Layla’s birthday 🎈

At 17 you are almost an adult, though in my eyes you’ll always be my little girl 🥹

Layla, NEVER make yourself smaller to fit into somebody else’s world. Be curious, be brave, be kind, make mistakes, change your mind, laugh loudly, love deeply, chase your dreams & build a life that feels like yours.

Happy birthday my beautiful girl, I’m so incredibly proud of you💖

You are a true gift to me & I’ll always be grateful that I get to call you my daughter.

It is a privilege raising you, I love being your Mum & somewhere over the years my little girl has also become my bestie & for that I’ll always be grateful 💕🌻

Never stop being you because you are wonderful!

Watch until the end to see a super cute little Layla …

@laylee.135 by @mysevenandi

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2 months ago

We made it to the beach & my heart is so full of gratitude 💖 I cannot even express how needed this little getaway is 🏝️.

https://gogetfunding.com/blog-single-update/114874/8852024/

I packed up & came here with faith in my heart & belief that everything we needed would come together & it almost has. However, there are a few more expenses that we need to cover so any further support would be wonderful.

You can give through the fundraiser or directly through my PayPal - claire_upshall@hotmail.com

Thank you, from the bottom of my heart 🙏🏻 🫶🏽✨💖 by @mysevenandi

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3 months ago

There was a time in my life when being sick meant there was no backup plan.

No village. No community. No one to call.

As a single parent, that can feel incredibly lonely 😞

The last couple of weeks have been tough health-wise and this weekend the older children had plans that I simply wouldn’t have been able to manage on my own.

But instead of cancelling, something beautiful happened. People stepped in, helped, they cared. They made sure the children could still enjoy what they’d been looking forward to & they cared for me too.

It reminded me how much life has changed 💖

We often talk about independence as something to strive for, but the truth is that humans were never meant to do everything alone. We were made for community.

So tonight, as I sit by the fire (yes it does get cold enough here to enjoy a fire), I’m not focusing on being unwell or the stress of life. Instead I’m choosing to focus on gratitude 🙏🏻

Gratitude for every person who has become part of our village, gratitude for my beautiful children and for the reminder that sometimes the greatest gift isn’t doing it all yourself, it’s knowing you’re not alone ❤️

#ittakesavillage #gratitude #community #friendship #singleparenting by @mysevenandi

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4 months ago

Today’s Swahili word is Kitanda 🇹🇿It means bed 🛏️

After an unexpected break over half-term, we’re finally back with our Swahili lessons 🤍

Elsie was feeling a little shy today, but she still wanted to help teach today’s word 😄

Getting into bed at night is one of the best parts of the day, would you agree? 👇🏼

#learnswahili #lifeintanzania #languagelearning #familylife #everyday by @mysevenandi

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4 months ago