After having three children i felt that i had made my contribution to society and that it was now someones elses turn to make sure the human race didn't die out. As a mother i still feel that you have a natural instinct that kicks in every now and again but for me personally as soon as i hear the arguments begin at 6am it soon fades.
However, after two years of pleading i finally gave in and took the next step to add an addition to our family. Lolly was born on the 20th August and came home to us on Saturday. As soon as i held her i knew that she was the one.She is jet black and so tiny you can just hold her in the palm of your hand.
I stood in the pet shop, frozen with fear.As a child i had grown up with every animal imaginable.A Goat,Chickens,Rabbits but never a 'normal' pet like a dog or a Cat. This feeling of panic came over me and it reminded me of the day Matthew was born.That familiar feeling of Oh, what now! . The feeling of responsibility and overwhelming love. It's funny because even after all these years i still question whether i am responsible enough to have a cat!. The children are delighted with her of course and want to shower her with love but i am still getting used to this tiny little Kitten that keeps squealing at me.
On the plus side atleast she is house trained and will be able to go outside in a number of weeks rather than years!. She won't grow up to answer me back and she can stay at home all on her own without the need of a babysitter!
"Maybe" Leah asked " when i am a little older we can get a dog?"
"No" came my reply. "Simply not".
Wednesday 14 October 2009
Monday 5 October 2009
Swimming with Sienna
I can't really remember swimming as a child but then what woman in their right mind would have taken four small children into a pool on their own ?. My father wouldn't have come out of fear of catching germs so we settled for swimming costumes and the garden hose!.Although this didn't help me gain any certificates or swimming medals!. Just a grazed knee from slipping on the slabs of concrete.
Anyhow, i took Sienna swimming this morning at our local health club. We were both really excited and as we got changed i tried hard not to stare at the range of women who were literally baring all. Sienna on the other hand, just stared and pointed. "Mummy, she has boobies" followed by her introducing herself to the women who were standing near us."hello, i'm Sienna Summers and my mummy has boobies to". I smiled sweetly and hurried Sienna along to the pool.
Once we were showered we walked through into the baby pool and as i lifted Sienna in she smiled with delight. Within the space of two minutes she was then announcing that she could 'do it on her own'. Little did she realise that i would infact have to hold her as her tiny little feet wouldn't be able to reach the ground without her head going underneath the water. As unimpressed as she was by this she was still fearless.Always wanting to go one better, asking to go in the big pool and even if she could lay on the sun lounger to 'relax'.
As cruel as it may sound, i was well aware that if she had been wearing arm bands she would have been able to float but i wanted to hold her, to help her, to show her how to kick her legs. To simply spend some time together without her going off to do it 'on her own'. She clung to me and laughed as i spun her round singing nursery rhymes.
Twenty minutes later she was threatening to take her swimming costume off as it was time to go!. Enough of mummy time i think!.
Overall,It was a wonderful morning and Sienna said she had a great time and asked when we were going to be returning.So next Monday, we will be returning for round two!!
Anyhow, i took Sienna swimming this morning at our local health club. We were both really excited and as we got changed i tried hard not to stare at the range of women who were literally baring all. Sienna on the other hand, just stared and pointed. "Mummy, she has boobies" followed by her introducing herself to the women who were standing near us."hello, i'm Sienna Summers and my mummy has boobies to". I smiled sweetly and hurried Sienna along to the pool.
Once we were showered we walked through into the baby pool and as i lifted Sienna in she smiled with delight. Within the space of two minutes she was then announcing that she could 'do it on her own'. Little did she realise that i would infact have to hold her as her tiny little feet wouldn't be able to reach the ground without her head going underneath the water. As unimpressed as she was by this she was still fearless.Always wanting to go one better, asking to go in the big pool and even if she could lay on the sun lounger to 'relax'.
As cruel as it may sound, i was well aware that if she had been wearing arm bands she would have been able to float but i wanted to hold her, to help her, to show her how to kick her legs. To simply spend some time together without her going off to do it 'on her own'. She clung to me and laughed as i spun her round singing nursery rhymes.
Twenty minutes later she was threatening to take her swimming costume off as it was time to go!. Enough of mummy time i think!.
Overall,It was a wonderful morning and Sienna said she had a great time and asked when we were going to be returning.So next Monday, we will be returning for round two!!
Thursday 3 September 2009
Family ties
I firmly believe that family and friends shape and influence our children and the way they will grow up to be. Matthew,Leah and Sienna are fortunate to have lots of family and friends that love and understand them. Each of my children remind me of one of my siblings.Leah is very artistic like one of my sisters, Matthew has the same temperament as my brother and Sienna looks and acts just like my other sister Effie.
During the school holidays Effie agreed to look after Sienna for four days. She had very kindly taken the time off work to spend with her and i knew that together they would have a massive adventure. As i phoned to speak to her Effie relayed tales of her finding Sienna straddling her dog whilst trying to clip clips into his hair and screams of 'Oh no Sienna, not the Ralph Lauren!'. Sienna hiding the cupboard key whilst playing shop which no amount of bribery would lead her to reveal it and the demands of 'i need to watch Fifi whilst i sleep'.
I laughed so much as i pictured Sienna doing all of these things and my heart warmed as i listened to Effie laugh and giggle calmly as she recited each story. It reminded me of times when we were younger when we would team up and lock my brother in the cupboard or convince him to lie down whilst we wrapped him in toilet roll as he could only ever be the 'sick' patient while my sisters and I were the doctors. Life was full of laughter and adventure back then. The only point to note is there were three of us up to mischief and only one of Sienna that weekend. She dosen't need any encouragement to be naughty, she can pre plan all on her own.
I do think i love my sister more as i have grown older. Life experiences bring you closer together. As an aunty i respect her greatly and as much as i wanted to divorce her when i was younger i wouldn't swap her for anyone else. She has always held the role of 'big sister' and i 'little sister' which i love and still feel has alot of mileage in!. I only hope that my children are as close as they get older.
Life through a Vacumn
Do you ever get that feeling that your constantly being pulled from one direction to the next?.
With 'Back to School' at the forefront of my agenda life has become a juggling act of lunchboxes, school uniform coats and shoes!. The past seven weeks have flown by and whilst I am looking forward to returning to 'normal' life routine I can't seem to get my head around the fact that another school year is about to begin. My life seems to be a series of threes. Three children, three of everything. I listen and smile as my friends tell me how their school labels have arrived thanks to the internet and hope that my children won't be disappointed with the fact that mummy has used a black marker instead. Perhaps they will be thankful that this year I have remembered the right teacher and class!.
Last year did not get off to the best start. We had hurried along and i was feeling ever so pleased with myself as we set off to school.The children looked smart and clean!, no term time stains! and as we approached the school gates I noticed that it was surprisingly empty. What could have happened you may ask?. Oh yes, inset day! so all of the excitement of school had to be carried over to the following day.
As Matthew stood in line a sick feeling washed over me as i realised that he was labelled right down to his underwear in the wrong class name!. How you may ask had this happened?. I had concentrated so hard on getting everything right that i had infact got it very wrong.
The look the children gave me needed no words to follow, it was one of complete understanding.
Last year did not get off to the best start. We had hurried along and i was feeling ever so pleased with myself as we set off to school.The children looked smart and clean!, no term time stains! and as we approached the school gates I noticed that it was surprisingly empty. What could have happened you may ask?. Oh yes, inset day! so all of the excitement of school had to be carried over to the following day.
As Matthew stood in line a sick feeling washed over me as i realised that he was labelled right down to his underwear in the wrong class name!. How you may ask had this happened?. I had concentrated so hard on getting everything right that i had infact got it very wrong.
The look the children gave me needed no words to follow, it was one of complete understanding.
Friday 7 August 2009
Cool Mummy
I have noticed that as Matthew and Leah are getting older they are beginning to have their own ideas on what is 'cool' and what is not.With mummy fitting into the 'not' part. Gone are the kisses at the school gate and the big waves and smiles when i arrive to collect them. Matthew would rather i don't call him any baby names or buy him any t-shirts with cartoon characters on.Preferring to go shopping with his father instead.
What i struggle to understand is how on earth the past nine years have gone past so quickly and where have my babies gone. I find myself trying to show them that i can be cool which seems to backfire almost everytime. Take yesterday for example, i decided to reinvent the Yoyo knowing how much i loved it as a child. Sienna dragged hers along the floor pretending it was a ladybird! and Matthew and Leah watched in awe as i explained how there was a great skill to playing with a Yoyo and so many 'cool' tricks to learn. In my defence i had not attempted any of the great tricks in over twenty years but simply thought it would be like riding a bike.How could i fail.
I swung the Yoyo round up in the air expecting it to swing back and loop just like it used to. Matthew and Leah ran for cover as i explained it was my warm up attempt. The next twenty minutes pretty much went along the same way. Seeing that i looked rather deflated Leah assured me that it did not matter as i had given it a good try and i could always buy a book from which they could learn.
I sat up last night thinking about the Yoyo incident and came to the conclusion that i may not be an expert at Yoyo anymore and i may not get everything right all the time but my children will learn that trying is the most important thing. They may grow away from me slightly at certain points in their lives but they will come back.That i am sure. If i continue to love them and encourage them to grow i can't fail.
When i kiss them goodnight every night and their little eyes look up at me and tell me that they love me who needs 'Cool'.
What i struggle to understand is how on earth the past nine years have gone past so quickly and where have my babies gone. I find myself trying to show them that i can be cool which seems to backfire almost everytime. Take yesterday for example, i decided to reinvent the Yoyo knowing how much i loved it as a child. Sienna dragged hers along the floor pretending it was a ladybird! and Matthew and Leah watched in awe as i explained how there was a great skill to playing with a Yoyo and so many 'cool' tricks to learn. In my defence i had not attempted any of the great tricks in over twenty years but simply thought it would be like riding a bike.How could i fail.
I swung the Yoyo round up in the air expecting it to swing back and loop just like it used to. Matthew and Leah ran for cover as i explained it was my warm up attempt. The next twenty minutes pretty much went along the same way. Seeing that i looked rather deflated Leah assured me that it did not matter as i had given it a good try and i could always buy a book from which they could learn.
I sat up last night thinking about the Yoyo incident and came to the conclusion that i may not be an expert at Yoyo anymore and i may not get everything right all the time but my children will learn that trying is the most important thing. They may grow away from me slightly at certain points in their lives but they will come back.That i am sure. If i continue to love them and encourage them to grow i can't fail.
When i kiss them goodnight every night and their little eyes look up at me and tell me that they love me who needs 'Cool'.
Tuesday 21 July 2009
Tooth Fairy
Matthew (9) and Leah (7) both lost a tooth yesterday and normally the Tooth Fairy is so organised that they wake up the following morning with a nicely written note and a shiny fifty pence under their pillows!. However i have it on good authority that the Tooth Fairy could not have visited last night as after a very exhausting day trip she had fallen asleep on the sofa after a much needed glass of wine.
The children woke up this morning to find their polished teeth still in the same places they had left them the night before .Then followed the discussion as to why she hadn't come. Did they not wrap their teeth in enough tissue (they had already used half a toilet roll each!), had they been forgotten about? and then the golden moment.. "Mummy,do you think the Tooth Fairy has come down with Swine Flu" Leah asked with a very concerned look. I tried very hard not to giggle but Matthew replied very swiftly with " Leah,everyone knows the Tooth Fairy can't get Swine Flu, she gets fairy flu!".
And so tonight the teeth have gone back underneath their pillows accompanied with two letters asking a number of very important questions! Let's hope the Tooth Fairy remembers tonight or who knows what tomorrow may bring!..
The magic of little minds!
The children woke up this morning to find their polished teeth still in the same places they had left them the night before .Then followed the discussion as to why she hadn't come. Did they not wrap their teeth in enough tissue (they had already used half a toilet roll each!), had they been forgotten about? and then the golden moment.. "Mummy,do you think the Tooth Fairy has come down with Swine Flu" Leah asked with a very concerned look. I tried very hard not to giggle but Matthew replied very swiftly with " Leah,everyone knows the Tooth Fairy can't get Swine Flu, she gets fairy flu!".
And so tonight the teeth have gone back underneath their pillows accompanied with two letters asking a number of very important questions! Let's hope the Tooth Fairy remembers tonight or who knows what tomorrow may bring!..
The magic of little minds!
Thursday 16 July 2009
Sienna Summers
Watching Super-nanny the other night my mind was mentally taking notes. If only painting flower pots and calmly talking to our toddler would restore order in our household. At the moment it feels like we have become a family of one child instead of four. She simply rules the roost and at times you can feel so many different emotions running through your body as you speak to her you know that if you don’t laugh you will simply cry.
Feeling like a parent pro the realisation of having a third child was so different to how i pictured it in my mind and to look back and think that at the time i was worried about how her older siblings would react to her arrival.
For a two year toddler her conversational levels are quite impressive, to look at her she is ever so beautiful and as she sits in her push chair singing, people comment on how adorable she is and i can only push and hope that nothing untoward will come out of her mouth.
We have tried the naughty step,the naughty corner and removal of her favorite toys to combat her swearing and demanding behaviour but she still continues. All 2 ft of her standing in front of us with her hands on her hips telling us that she is in charge and that we must listen to her. She is shockingly intimidating for a small child.
Feeling like a parent pro the realisation of having a third child was so different to how i pictured it in my mind and to look back and think that at the time i was worried about how her older siblings would react to her arrival.
For a two year toddler her conversational levels are quite impressive, to look at her she is ever so beautiful and as she sits in her push chair singing, people comment on how adorable she is and i can only push and hope that nothing untoward will come out of her mouth.
We have tried the naughty step,the naughty corner and removal of her favorite toys to combat her swearing and demanding behaviour but she still continues. All 2 ft of her standing in front of us with her hands on her hips telling us that she is in charge and that we must listen to her. She is shockingly intimidating for a small child.
I can do it on my own!
I clearly remember the day Sienna entered the world. She was conveniently one week late and i had resigned myself to the fact that she simply did not want to come out of my tummy and they would have to go in there and fetch her using any means possible.She was a big baby and had a beautiful mop of thick black hair.Much to my shock she did not make much noise just simply latched onto my breast and happily fed for the next hour and half.
Fast forward two and a half years and my big baby is now a rather tall outspoken little girl who has her own ideas on not only how the world works but how she would like the world to work for her. She believes she can do everything on her own from dressing herself, using her body as an art easel and even dictating to her older siblings.
Having taken longer than normal to get ready this morning we were running late for school.Which amazes me as we have been doing the same routine for the last six years and still i hear myself reciting the same words over and over again like a parrot.
Sienna decided to grab her older sisters bag which held all of Leah's prize possessions and make a run for it into the garden. Leah can then be heard screaming after Sienna to return her belongings and Sienna replying with a delayed "But Leah,it's soo bootiful". meanwhile with butter all over my hands and partly on the bread i am longing for Friday to come already.
Fast forward two and a half years and my big baby is now a rather tall outspoken little girl who has her own ideas on not only how the world works but how she would like the world to work for her. She believes she can do everything on her own from dressing herself, using her body as an art easel and even dictating to her older siblings.
Having taken longer than normal to get ready this morning we were running late for school.Which amazes me as we have been doing the same routine for the last six years and still i hear myself reciting the same words over and over again like a parrot.
Sienna decided to grab her older sisters bag which held all of Leah's prize possessions and make a run for it into the garden. Leah can then be heard screaming after Sienna to return her belongings and Sienna replying with a delayed "But Leah,it's soo bootiful". meanwhile with butter all over my hands and partly on the bread i am longing for Friday to come already.
Hello World!
Hello everyone,
Lovedbyparents.com is a site for families. We aimed to create a site that would be easy to use and provide a wealth of information on anything and everything that parents love. We hope you will use the site on a regular basis and share with us your experiences as parents.
This is my story....
I can still picture myself as a six year old girl playing Libraries with my older sisters and thinking i was the most important person in the world as i stamped our books with a Post Office stamp which our mother had purchased earlier that week.
Even as the next twenty years passed by i never imagined becoming a mother and daydreamed my way through school planning my adventures and thinking i would happily live a life of freedom. 'A free spirit' is what my parents referred to me as and i would smile sweetly.
Little did i realise that real life has a funny way of taking over, i never planned to fall in love and before i knew it i was a mother of three, failing as a domestic goddess and clinging on to the hope that our youngest daughter (2)was pushing normal boundaries and didn't need psychological help!.
Welcome to my world!
Lovedbyparents.com is a site for families. We aimed to create a site that would be easy to use and provide a wealth of information on anything and everything that parents love. We hope you will use the site on a regular basis and share with us your experiences as parents.
This is my story....
I can still picture myself as a six year old girl playing Libraries with my older sisters and thinking i was the most important person in the world as i stamped our books with a Post Office stamp which our mother had purchased earlier that week.
Even as the next twenty years passed by i never imagined becoming a mother and daydreamed my way through school planning my adventures and thinking i would happily live a life of freedom. 'A free spirit' is what my parents referred to me as and i would smile sweetly.
Little did i realise that real life has a funny way of taking over, i never planned to fall in love and before i knew it i was a mother of three, failing as a domestic goddess and clinging on to the hope that our youngest daughter (2)was pushing normal boundaries and didn't need psychological help!.
Welcome to my world!
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