As the last of the corflutes are packed away and the campaign coffee carts disappear, Kiama takes a collective breath.

The Bugle extends congratulations to Fiona Phillips, who returns to Canberra as the Member for Gilmore.

Regardless of where your vote landed, it's no small feat to stand for public office, and a major job to represent a region as passionate and complex as ours.

Meanwhile, post-election debriefs are happening around dinner tables and across pillows.

Political opposites may attract, but tensions can run high when one half of a couple cheers for a candidate the other swears never to trust with a compost bin, let alone a policy portfolio.

If things got heated in your household, may we suggest a diplomatic walk along the Kiama coastal path – ideally in silence until feelings thaw, much like the weather.

A heartfelt cheer to all the mums this week– biological, bonus, grand, step, adoptive, foster and otherwise – who somehow keep their families stitched together while managing to find matching socks and lost permission slips.

Whether you're being spoiled with breakfast in bed or just hoping someone else loads the dishwasher, you deserve more than a scented candle and a rushed card.

Until next time, keep warm, be kind to each other (especially across the political divide), and ring your mum.