Finally it is Sunday evening, the children are in bed, Half Term is over.
Strangely, after the initial panic of 'how will I entertain them?', it has been a really good one. We were lucky enough to be invited to stay with one of my best buddies in her parents' house in Aldeburgh - husbands left in London. For those of you who might not have been before, Aldeburgh is a seaside town in Suffolk (north east of London). It is a pain to get to from the Capital, as you have to pass through the City (the confusingly named business district of London for any foreign readers) and take A roads all the way there: a journey that is short in miles and long in hours. But boy is it worth it! A pretty town teeming with lovely little shops and wonderful art galleries, with the North Sea running parallel to the High Street and deliciously fresh air blustering around you. It also helps that the house we were staying in is beautiful: deceptively large with stunning views across marshland to the sea. Our children get on very well, being similar ages, and they had a whale of a time. We visited the local sports centre with children's play area, the local farm (wonderful!) with animals to feed, rabbits to cuddle, and tractors to pull you along and we went to the (pebbly) beach to paddle in the sea. In the evenings my friend and I sipped wine and put the world to right. It was great, but exhausting.
Returning to London late Thursday afternoon, the question in the back of the car arose 'What are we doing tomorrow?'... 'Play with your toys and do your homework!' I barked ... But actually we again had the good fortune of being invited to a Halloween party at a local gym with some of Leonora's friends. What is more, no parental guidance needed! (Don't get too excited, it means I got to do the washing.)
Friday slipped into Saturday, and bad behaviour from Johnny meant he missed biscuit decorating in fancy dress organised by a local shop (sometimes I love local shops!). Today entailed Church, checking out the local Farmer's Market, a fly by visit to the Fun Fair on the Green, me cooking a roast (sucker for punishment), pumpkin decorating ready for tomorrow, and a visit from uncles and aunts. I forget to mention that the clocks went back, so we had an extra hour in bed (theoretically. The reality is that the children wake up at the same time, and come and pester you to get up anyway). Fortuitous in my case, as I got to Skype my best friend in Australia, which was wonderful and a great reminder of the power of technology to cross Oceans and time.
So Sunday evening is here. However, I am feeling sad. We had a momentous moment at bed time. Leonora has her first wobbly tooth! She was so excited. Dancing around her bedroom like a maniac, and pulling all sorts of strange faces as she fiddled with the tooth with her tongue. But me, I feel like my baby is slipping away. Five and a quarter, as she likes to say (although more like a half) - she's growing up. And she's so desperate to be grown up, whereas I would love to reverse the years and do it all again. I know there will be many more special times to come, and I look forward to watching her grow into a fine adult, but I have a heavy heart today.
Mx
Not wanting to leave on a gloomy note, here are our pumpkins and my wobbly-toothed girl with her little sister at the fair today:
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