Reflections on School Week 1

After positively counting down the days, or even seconds, until The Bratlings went to nursery (Littlest) and Infants (Mini), it was excitement that we all left the house at 8.30am on Tuesday.

THE GALLERY: Holiday

This week's theme at Sticky Fingers is HOLIDAY and what with this unusual British sunshine weather we are experiencing as a welcome change to the usual rain, its getting about the time we start thinking about our hols.

I don't have many holiday pics to be fair, almost none from when I was a kid, but here is one that I find funny.

Here I am, near on exactly nine years ago, on the first "outside of Kent" trip Elder and I had ever been on together. We had met a year before, so I am 19 in this, and he is 32. Although we both look scarily younger. You can see that the ends of my hair are blonde-thats the left overs of the pink and orange I had when I met him!

We are sitting in Elder's friends back garden in Berkshire, long before the move up here became permanent. It was the first time I met Elder's family, so I was really nervous!

But it was the first time that I saw what it was like up here, and began to question why I had never moved on from Kent when I had the chance.

I'm glad I did, although it took a few more years before it happened!

And here's one from 1993(!)

This was the year when my Dad decided to help show his friend how to pitch a tent on the local field, the Great Lines. 

That's him in the green shirt and I'm the one in the glasses and dodgy fringe and cycling shorts. I can't recall whether my Mum took it, or perhaps Gemma's Mum (she's the other girl in the photo). They lived opposite us in Copenhagen Road for years, and Gemma was in my class at school. Her Dad and elder brother are trying to look like they know what my Dad is going on about. Whilst my Dad (knowing he was about to be photographed) tries to look busy and knowledgeable. And yes, I do quote him directly from the time!

It reminds me of the trailer tent hols we had when I was a kid. I was really jealous of everyone else who was going not just to hotels, but abroad, while I would be stuck with the inevitable crap weather and museums trips. I do recall playing snap though, or when the hedgehog crawled in my Mum's Sleeping Bag. 

So there we are, two holidays! 1993 aged 11, and 2001, aged 19.

Oh and while you're here, thinking of booking your trips here, there and everywhere, think about giving about of your spends to a very worthwhile cause:
 

Denise Bryan is fundraising for Mind - The Mental Health Charity - JustGiving

 

Regular followers will know that I myself have suffered bouts of depression, so well done to Denise and Andy, who are walking a blister inducing 192 miles coast to coast. Good luck to them both, and you can follow more about their mission at their blog, Whitefriars Wanderings

Mini-Not Quite so Mini Anymore *sob

I am an emotional Mummy at the moment.

My Baby Girl, who has only been babysat for 3 times in under 3 years, and who the longest I have ever been away from was a week when I went into labour with Ed the Littler, is starting PLAYSCHOOL on Tuesday.

I know, its only one morning a week, but well, she's always there, singing, smiling and giving us her Mini Moments.

But I am worried.

She has been a little clingy of recent weeks. There hasn't been a reason for this, none that we can think of anyway. But as soon as I go out of a room I hear "Want to get up on Mummy", followed by sobbing, and then a full blown tantrum.

So the idea of leavng her from 9.30am to 1pm? Hmm, quite hesitant actually.

I am reliably informed by those in the know (the sisters in law) that this is the best time for her to go to Playgroup if she is starting to get overly reliant on me. They assure me that once she is around other kids her own age, she'll be fine.

Hmmm again.

Its still quite a hard thing to imagine, rocking up to a place she has never been, to be met by people she has never met, and walk out without her. Since she was born, practically within 1 minute of taking her first breath, she has been with me.

Don't get me wrong- I know she has to go and gain independence, but can't she wait until she's, I don't know, 16?

Ed the Elder thinks she'll be fine. He goes off to festivals and parties without even thinking about it, so is used to separating from the kids at random times.

And frankly, if it was Littlest going to playschool I would be over joyed- he has turned into the child from hell overnight. The bells chimed new year and he turned completely psycho!

All he does, from 5.30am (yes, that's 5.30am, when its still dark) until bedtime at 6pm is scream. He screams when he is happy, he screams when he's not. He screams because he has just screamed. Ridiculous.

He actually screamed so much on Saturday, that Mini stood next to him, burst into tears and through her sobs told him to shut up!

When Youngest Sister in law popped in to pick The Nephew up to go and see the Eldest Sister in law,(The Nephews Mum), I told her that Littlest was going through a mad stage, and she didn't believe me, as he was on best behavior in front of her. But The Nephew, when asked if I was exaggerating, mimicked the screeching so well that he started Littlest off again. He sounds like a baby dinosaur, or how I'd imagine one would sound, its earsplitting!

He woke up at 10pm on Sunday night (cheers Daddy for waking him up), and refused to go back to sleep for 4 hours. I was so tired all of Monday I needed matches to keep my eyes open!

But Mini is generally quite a well behaved child, and well, if I was being selfish I would prefer her never to leave my side, from playschool right up to leaving home!

Hopefully, she will do really well, and love playschool, and also it will mean more time for Littlest and I to do stuff together.

So come Tuesday, she'll have her little outfit on (we don't know if there's a uniform I forgot to check, but I hope so), and her new Night Garden rucksack, and off she'll go.

I'll let you know how she gets on. Fingers crossed!

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A BIG THANK YOU! To everyone who has followed the link on my last blog or on any of the other Mummy Bloggers pages to the Just Giving site and donated money to the #bloggersforHaiti campaign. Every penny helps towards providing much needed shelter and equipment to these people. At the time of posting this blog the total was a healthy THREE THOUSAND, THREE HUNDRED AND SIXTY TWO POUNDS! Thats a staggering 6 SHELTER BOXES so far!

Keep tweeting the links to all our blogs on Twitter, add #bloggersforHaiti to your tweets, and head on over and donate at the website!

THANK YOU !!!!!!!