Week 25

This week started with a bank holiday Monday, which was a day of good weather so we took the boys for a walk along the beach, including some crabbing in the rock pools, followed by lunch at the marina. It was a good weekend with the boys, they behaved well and clearly enjoyed themselves.

It was back to work for me on Tuesday, but G was joined by sister and her two girls who stayed with us for a few nights, and my sister in law and her two also came down for a day of fun, all 6 cousins from my side together for a day of fun and laughter!

We visited friends for an early dinner with the boys on Friday night, and I was really pleased with their good behaviour and eating habits. Andrew had done curry and reassured me that it was mild for the boys, but Charlie was soon digging in to the lime pickle!

On Saturday I left G and the boys for the day, and returned to my voluntary job which I've been neglecting for six months. It was nice to have a day doing the things I used to do in my spare time, but I did find myself really missing them, and proudly showing off photos of the boys on my iPhone to anyone that cared to look! 

To make up for being absent all day Saturday, I took them off G's hands for the day on Sunday, and visited the local air show. I worked a 20 hour very busy shift on Saturday and only got 4 hours sleep, so taking them outdoors for 7 hours on my own on Sunday I felt was medal worthy!! We went off with a friend and his two children and the four boys all played well together.

On the way home we popped in to Next as I decided Joe needed new trainers. I soon got carried away and ended up buying plenty of cute outfits they don't really need, and then I took them for a drink in the cafe there. Charlie's button pressing found new levels when he managed to plunge the upstairs of Next in to darkness!

That being said, I think Charlie's behaviour has been better this week, or maybe we're handling it better, but there haven't been the strops that we had been having. Joe too has reduced his strops which had suddenly become a feature of the previous two weeks.

And suddenly we find ourselves at the end of the summer holidays. Joe starts back on Wednesday. We approached the holidays thinking that they seemed daunting and unending. But actually it's just gone so quickly and neither of us feel ready for him to go back to school. It really feels like the boys have further settled in to our family this last six weeks, I think we've all benefited from more time together and the boys feel more at home than ever before.