Family Update – April 2017

I love this time of the year! Doesn’t everything look brighter and warmer with longer evenings? Here is what my four little monkeys have been up to in the past month.

Wriggly (2 years 10 months)

· You are incredibly strong-willed. If you decide to have a shower and I tell you now is not the time to have a shower, you completely ignore me, take off all your clothes and your nappy. Before I have time to spot what you are up to, you are already in the shower! Luckily, you are too small to turn it on, but sometimes, you just appear in the cubicle as I am mid-shower…
· You, to me, laughing: “You’re pink Boo Boo Butt!” “Nah, You stinky monkey!” I am so glad you haven’t yet got a more elaborate way of being rude to me! I guess I have The Book with No Pictures to thank for this sort of mild abuse!
· Last week, as you were playing naked in the garden with a water spray (as you do), you started screaming, “Dat’s awesome!” Childhood at its very best!
· Your sister gave you a haircut. A very short haircut. Try to picture a monk’s hairdo gone really bad. Got it? Yep, that’s what your hair looks like now. Funny thing? You had your hair cut 3 days before your sister gave you a makeover! You were not remotely traumatised by the chopping, and when I got you to stand in front of a wall to take pictures, you were posing happily rather than looking sad or embarrassed. My new mantra is, “Who’s allowed to cut your hair?” To which you invariably reply, “weitchel!” (Our hairdresser is called Rachel).
· We have just spent a few days at your Poppy’s house (grandad) in Devon and you had a nap every afternoon. You stopped napping over a year ago so I could barely believe it. Is it the start of a new, sleepy phase? Fingers crossed!
· You are so independent. When we went to the beach one afternoon, you kept running away from us so you could splash in the water. Looking after you is a bit like trying to catch frogs!

Jumpy (4 years 5 months)

· You have taken part in your first ballet show and you were so incredibly cute I could not stop crying when you got on stage.
· As we were driving past a paddock, you shouted, “Oh look Mummy, a unicorn!”
Me: “Erm no sweetie, that’s a horse!”
You: “Are horses like unicorns?”
For some reason, unicorns are more real to you than horses….
· You are so enthusiastic about everything. I love it. Whether we ask you to tidy up your room or get ready for a trip to the park, you do a little hop and say, brightly, “Yay!” before you get on with what you have been asked to do.
· On Saturday morning, you decided to play hairdressers, using real scissors. You butchered Wriggly’s haircut and chopped half of your beautiful locks.
· You adore your grandad and keep saying sweet things like: “Poppy is my best friend!” or “After we pick Crevette and Beanie from school, we’ll pick up my Poppy!”
· We have been baking together quite a lot in the past few weeks, and you love making ‘special’ things.
· You have been having fun with my old camera taking photos of your brother and your sisters.

Beanie (6 years 6 months)

· You were worried about your ballet show. It was your first time going on stage, but in the end, you enjoyed every minute of it! You looked so beautiful in your tutu, big bun and tiny ballet shoes. I was bursting with pride!
· Your bed wetting is showing no sign of improvement. As you keep telling me you cannot feel anything and you have a wet nappy every morning, I finally managed to get referred for an appointment with a urologist.
· We had a whole afternoon to ourselves when we drove to Hampstead to watch Beauty and the Beast. What a film!
· You: “I want to be a rock star when I grow up. Or maybe I could be a teacher. Then I would get lots of money and I could teach as well! Or maybe I’ll be a shopkeeper.”
Good for you for keeping your options open!
· You have had a bit of a lump behind your ear, and after a few doctors’ appointments and trips to the dentist, it seems to be a lymph node that came out because your adult molars are pushing your milk teeth out of the way. Just to be on the safe side, you have a scan booked at the end of the month.

Crevette (8 years 8 months)

· A few weeks ago, you came to Sweet as a Button with me and used my old camera to take creative photos of sweets. After a bit of thought and a lot of sorting through the hundred or so photos you took, we chose three of your shots and entered them for the under 10 category of the prestigious Pink Lady Food Photographer of the Year. One of your photos has been shortlisted. I am so proud of you!
· You have just had a great few days with family and friends in Devon. You had a sleepover, played with your cousins, went to the beach and pretended to ride one of your Poppy’s motorbikes.
· You spent an entire afternoon with your older cousin burning pallets and bits of wood and loved every minute of it.