Our Family Life 2021 (37/52)
Monday
It’s the last day of the school holidays. Belle starts in Year 6 and Freddie starts pre-school. We have no idea how Freddie is going to be when we drop him off tomorrow. Essentially we’ll be dropping him off with strangers as he hasn’t met any of them before. I don’t feel great about this, so today we’ve had extra cuddles and maybe a few extra treats.
Tuesday
Back to School! I’ve been a bag of nerves and didn’t sleep very well last night. Never mind kids getting separation anxiety, what about the parents! Freddie was very excited, and we hoped that the excitement would continue when it was time to leave him. Belle left us as soon as we got in the school gates to find her friends. We stood in the line waiting to drop Freddie off and he was absolutely fine. He found a ride-on police car and things were looking hopeful until it got to our turn and he had to go in the door. Parents aren’t allowed in the building, and it was really hard watching his face crumple when he realised we weren’t going in with him. I’m not even going to try and hide the fact that I had a little cry as we walked back through the school. I hated leaving him. They said they would ring us to let us know if he’d settled. I literally counted down the minutes until we could go and pick him up. He seemed fine as he was sat on the carpet with all the other kids. It was only when he spotted us that he started to sob. That cuddle was literally the best ever!
He was fine once we were back home, although he did look a bit worried when we went to pick Belle up thinking that I was going to leave him there.
Wednesday
It’s Belle’s 11th Birthday!
We always let the kids pick what they want for breakfast on their birthday. It’s usually pancakes with fruit and whipped cream, but Belle wanted doughnuts for brekkie so we had a tray of Krispy Kreme doughnuts which was a lovely treat. She opened her presents and was very pleased with what she’d got. She wanted money to go on a shopping spree, so we bought her a purse with some cash in, and then the rest was just bits and bobs that she likes such as face masks, make-up, a switch game, and some other trinket type bits.
It’s always a huge rush when a birthday lands on a school day, but the morning went smoothly until we got to school. Freddie was due to go back to pre-school and immediately started to cry and cling to me. He kept saying that he wanted to go back through the gate and that he’d been to school already. Today was far worse than yesterday. He was sobbing and clinging to me so much that I almost just took him home. The teacher convinced me to leave him since we’d have to do it all again tomorrow otherwise. After he was peeled off me, I left desperately trying to keep the tears in check which didn’t work at all. I stood around the corner for ages before I left to go home. They did phone me to say that he had settled after about half an hour, but you never know if they’re just saying that.
I was the first one there at pick-up. Freddie was so pleased to see me and we had a lovely walk home with him chattering away about the water that he’d played with. He was super clingy for the rest of the day, and again when we picked up Belle he was very worried that I was going to leave him there again.
The Grandparents came round to wish Belle a happy birthday and she got even more presents.
Belle chose Macdonalds for dinner. She had wanted to go out but we thought it would be too much for Freddie as Chris didn’t finish work until 6. She had a lovely day though so that’s all that mattered.
Thursday
A workday for me. Chris dropped Freddie off and he had a bit of a wobble but was happy to walk in the door. It’s so much easier when Dad’s drop the kids off. I’m not sure if that’s a man thing in general, but they don’t seem to have the emotional attachment when it comes to things like this, and the kids behave completely differently.
It was my Nephews birthday today so we went to a local pub for dinner. Freddie doesn’t really like sitting at the table and quickly found one of those sweetie machines that he preferred over the food we’d ordered. It was nice to all get together as the last time was at my Dad’s funeral back in May.
Friday
Freddie should have been at pre-school this morning, but we’ve decided that five mornings a week is just too much to and fro-ing from school, so we’ve changed it so that he can stay all day on a Monday with a packed lunch and miss the Friday off. Freddie heard the words ‘Paw Patrol lunchbox’ and was totally on board.
All in all, it was a knackering week for all of us!
Saturday
We had a family birthday party for Belle. Her two specifications were a balloon arch and a pinata. The balloons weren’t a problem at all, but finding a pinata was difficult. She wanted a flamingo which we weren’t able to track down. We found a flip flop which we were going with until at the last minute the party shop were able to get me a cactus.
The party started off as a bit of a disappointment as we had a lot of latecomers and then my brother came minus his four children who we’d been waiting for. I was really upset for Belle as it was looking like a washout, but we managed to salvage it and ended up having a good time. The pinata was a lot of fun. It’s amazing how hard kids can hit with a stick and the look on their faces when all the goodies fell out.
I think it’s fair to say that once everyone had gone and the tidying up had finished, that we all just flopped in front of the TV exhausted.
Sunday
No rest for the wicked as my Mum would say. All I wanted to do today was veg in front of the TV, but instead, Belle and I went on a birthday shopping spree. She ended up having almost £200 to spend. She thoroughly enjoyed it and spent the most part of her money in New Look where they have a great range for her age group. She bought loads and was still left with £60 which she wants to save for nearer to Christmas.
When we got home she put on a little fashion show for us which you can watch on our Instagram Reels.
What a week!
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