«I sometimes hear that I'm the perfect mum»

Silas will be starting sixth form after the summer holidays, which will be a whole new chapter for all of us. I know every child and their parents in his old class, but that won't be the case in the new one. I think it's normal as a mum to worry about which new classmates your son will have. There's also a lot of talk about how strict the sixth form is. Until now, Silas has always found school very easy, but that could change.

I hope that he still has the chance to just be a kid in sixth form and that his everyday life doesn't just consist of school, learning and sport. I'm worried that the pressure on him could increase. It's important to me that my sons get through their school years well. I know what it means when their grades aren't always good. The pressure increases the older you get. I want to spare my children that. But I would never punish them for bad grades. You also have to learn how to deal with a drop-out.

I think it's important that I'm at home when Silas and Laurin come home. They should be able to talk about their day and feel the support. If possible, I organise myself around the children's schedule. The children need to feel their parents' presence even when they are no longer very small. I pick them up from the station when they come back from a school trip, for example. They appreciate that.

So far, no one has ever criticised me for wanting to be there for my «big» children as often as possible. It's more the other way round, people admire it, I even sometimes hear that I'm the perfect mum. Of course I'm honoured by that, but of course I'm not. Perhaps I simply find it more important to be present than other parents. But I'm not a cling-on, my children are often out and about on their own. They go to training on their scooters, for example, and Silas enjoys going to the swimming pool on his own. They are both very independent. There's a difference between being interested in the children and being in control.

When I think about alcohol, drugs and going out, I do worry. But I hope I won't be one of those people who stay awake until their teenage sons come home. Silas has a mobile phone but isn't on any social networks. I've downloaded Instagram and Snapchat and had the neighbour explain it to me so I understand it. At the moment, I don't allow them to use it yet. I want to delay this mobile phone addiction for as long as possible. But I don't want them to suffer from it.

If everyone is playing Fortnite, then I'll watch it. I think I can come to terms with the game - there's no point in banning it anyway, they'll just play at their friends' houses. My boys are allowed to play games and watch TV, but only at weekends during school hours, and I'm the kind of person who sometimes scrutinises things too much. If there's something going on with the children, I first ask myself what's going on with me. I don't claim to be perfect, but it's normal as a mum to want to do everything right - or do you know anyone who does something extra wrong when bringing up children?