Family Update – December 2015 

Is it me or is time speeding up at the moment? It seems like yesterday I heard the first mention of Christmas back in September (why do you do that, people?) and here we are, only a couple of weeks away from food heaven!

Wriggly (1 year 6 months)

• If we bring our face too close to yours and you are not in the mood for a cuddle, you give us a slap. Nice! (Not!)
• Your sleeping has gone from bad to worse. One night, your Daddy told me he needed a sleep one night as you were crying in our bed. I could not put you in your cot bed without causing screams that were louder than a car alarm so I climbed into bed with you. I had never done that before. Never again!
• I wish you would sleep more. Are you one of these people who need no more than 4 or 5 hours’ sleep every 24 hours?
• You have finally started accepting a bottle before bed every day (thank goodness!), but you still ask for a feed two or three times a day (and night!).
• You love dancing! The minute you hear some music, you start boogieing.
• You are such a chatterbox! Favourite words include, “sit down,” “stopit,” “no,” “Peppi,” (Peppa Pig), “Dada” (feed me breast milk NOW!).
• You used to eat any food I was giving you, but all of a sudden, you have become incredibly fussy.
• You drink a lot of water (a lot!).
• You have only just started walking and your waddling is just too cute! Now you have mastered the two-legged way of getting from A to B, you are reluctant to be strapped into the pushchair. You want to walk around and explore. Holding your tiny hand and walking along with you is one of my favourite things.

Jumpy (3 years 1 month)

• You respond more and more when I speak to you in French.
• You are so ticklish! Whenever I blow raspberries on your neck or tummy, you start laughing uncontrollably and I love your little face looking so full of joy.
• You want to run everywhere.
• You are loving preschool and keep saying you have to do your homework!
• You have the worst meltdowns ever in the morning. I wonder where you get that from! (I really wish I were a morning person…)
• We made wheat-free vegan pancakes for you last weekend, but we all ended up devouring them!
• Now you are three you think you are thirteen and you keep sneaking into my make-up drawer and putting on my favourite lipsticks and blushers. You have also been seen (and heard) walking around with my heels on.

Beanie (5 years 2 months)

• The night before you took part in an Art competition, you shouted from the top of the stairs, “Crevette is giving me a hairdo for tomorrow.” You sounded excited. I had no idea the hairdo included using my nail scissors. Not a good look!
• One of the shoe shops in our shopping centre has a monkey on a trapeze. We always stop to look at it for a few minutes.
  One afternoon, you declared: “It’s a bit like Poppy that monkey!”
  Me: “Why?”
  You: “Because it does a lot of exercise and Poppy does a lot of exercise too!”
• You are fascinated by teenagers and what they are allowed to do. You have been asking me lots of questions, like: “When I’m a teenager, will I be allowed to go out on my own?” (not until you are 30, young lady!)
• You have been borrowing my handbags, watch, jewellery and pretty shoes to pretend you are a mummy. Role play is definitely one of your favourite things and you are pretty good at playing a part.
• Your future plans are changing. A few months ago, you wanted to become a chicken. Now: “When I grow up, I want to be a teacher and I want to be a cleaner.”
• A couple of weeks later: “When I’m a grown up I want to live in France. I’ll teach them English but I don’t want to go up a school where they’re bossy.”
• Last week’s announcement, as you were bouncing your head on my stomach: “You have a big fat baby in your tummy!” (No I don’t!)
• You have been learning about the solar system at school and telling us all about Pluto, the biggest planet, about the moon not being a planet and on Monday, you started wondering where your granny came from: “Which planet was Mama Mimi born?” Your Daddy found that hilarious… so did I! Wait till I tell your granny!

Crevette (7 years 4 months)

• You gave your sister a haircut. The day before she attended a competition with five or six other schools. We were not impressed…
• You have started learning the violin at school and you are incredibly conscientious when bringing the school violin home. Practising is never a chore: you love it!
• You are always really keen to go to your swimming lessons on Sundays.
• You have had a Mummy Day and a Daddy Day in the past few weeks. You and I spent a Saturday together in London eating, walking around and enjoying each other’s company. For your day out with Daddy, you asked to go to his school, to the RAF museum and you came home with a bin for your future bedroom after a quick trip in town (living the life, boys!).

Us

• We got Netflix. I know, we must be the last people on the planet to get it, but since the work started on the house, our aerials have stopped working (probably because of the scaffolding, who knows?). It is great to watch what we want without adverts getting in the way!
• Poppy (grandad) spent a weekend with us, to the children’s utter delight.
• Our loft conversion is still under way and although I am sure it will be finished one day, it feels like it is dragging on and on (and on) and I am not really seeing the light at the end of the tunnel at the moment to be honest.
• We had a great night with friends eating, having our hair cut and getting treated to massages.
• We went to see Father Christmas last week.