Mum's the world

Settling in Abu Dhabi three years ago, after my marriage, was a homecoming of sorts for me. I was born in England and my father worked in the construction industry. When I was very young, we moved to the Middle East. We lived in Sharjah, Dubai and Jordan. Even though I did return to England for secondary school, the UAE was like home to me.

Happy childhood memories and a love of the Arab people and culture meant that I knew I wanted to return here with my own children.

We had our fourth child here. We named her Zahra (rose) as we wanted to give her name an Arabic touch.

I think the UAE is the perfect place to raise your children. It's a safe country and offers freedom to work, relax and earn your livelihood.

My husband, Rob, works for a company called Morganti.

After my second child was born, I starteda baby-food company called Frozen Baby Food Company in Hertfordshire in 2002.

It was a home-managed business which sold organic baby food. Two products I made won the Soil Association Organic Food Awards (a UK-based organic food award) in 2003. It was exciting to win such a prestigious award for a very small home-produced product. Unfortunately, while it was a very successful product, I couldn't finda manufacturer who could produce it in bulk. So I had to wind it up sometime in 2004.

While operating, it was an exciting experience and it taught me a lot about what it meant to run a business.

I was also disappointed when it wound up because I felt I had failed in some way. However, my husband was very supportive and told me that the fact that I could start a company from scratch and win an award was in itself an achievement.

In the wake of the babyfood business, I worked for an internet company, after which I joined British Telecom as senior retention manager in 2005 (I specialised in telecom marketing). I left the company in 2007 when we moved to Abu Dhabi after my husband got a transfer here.

Keen not to waste my time, I did an intensive CELT (Centre for English Language Teaching) course with the intention of teaching English as a foreign language in Abu Dhabi but at the end of the course I realised that I did not want to be a teacher!

I intended to go back to work but was not sure where to start. Also, my children - a son and three daughters - were keeping me very busy at home. But I soon realised that if you are not working, it is very difficult to make friends and widen your social circle.

It was during this time that I meta woman named Barbara Van Reenan at a furniture store in Abu Dhabi. She was carrying a baby that was of a similar age to mine and I, who was desperate to make friends, promptly introduced myself to her and we got talking. She said she'd been herefor a few years and offered to introduce me to some of her friends who were part of a group called the Abu Dhabi Mums.

Initially I joined their Bumps and Babes group (this group is for pregnant women and new mums with babies who are not yet crawling) as my second daughter was only three months old then.

The group was very supportive and I learned a lot while making some good friends. Once at a general body meeting the discussion was about filling vacant positions in the group. They were looking for a replacement for the chairperson who had left.I volunteered... and they agreed! That is how I became chairperson of Abu Dhabi Mums.

Abu Dhabi Mums is a non-profit social networking group formed by and for women with children up to six years old.

We have about 25 groups based on the age groups of children that the mums have. The advantage of this grouping system is that every mother can assess their child's development and be reassured that their child is achieving the right development at the right age. Each group has a coordinator. My role is to manage all the coordinators.

We send out a monthly newsletter to all our members regarding our activities.

The organisation is not restricted to Western mums. We have many Arab and Asian mothers who have started their own language-speaking groups too. The only stipulation is that it should be for the interaction of mothers and their children, so no nannies or maids are allowed.

We also have a social support group for dads which began when the father of a child came for one meeting and suggested that dads too should have a group!

Most of our groups are age or development-stage specific.

Once a month we have an all-group get-together.

The most demanding role for a mother with a child who is below six years old is that of a disciplinarian.

You know you need to teach your children how to behave correctly, but there are times when you want to applaud them for their single- mindedness and creativity; usually about the same time you want tobeat them for drawing on your sitting room wall!

The main aim of Abu Dhabi Mums is to support and facilitate relationships between mothers and between mothers and children.

It provides a forum for mothers to meet and share ideas, thoughts, frustrations...

The biggest challenge is finding volunteers for our activities. Many people are reluctant to come forward as they think it is going to be a tiresome job.

At the end of last year, we had nearly 700 members.

My vision for Abu Dhabi Mums is for it to be a registered non-profit organisation. We are looking for a sponsor who would raise the level of the group to represent all the mums in Abu Dhabi. In a community with a majority of expatriates and where there isn't a lot of extended family support, Abu Dhabi Mums could help fill that void in the lives of many women who crave it.

For more information, visit www.abudhabimums.ae- Interviewed