Thursday photo #244

I’ve never been one for routine, spontaneity makes me extremely happy. But there’s something about the school holidays that can get a little stressful, especially when you’re itching to put New Year’s plans into place. This year, the girls had quite a long Christmas break, only going back to school yesterday. It has been lovely spending that time with them but I was definitely craving routine by the time the holidays ended.

And just like that it was over

The girls slipped seamlessly back into their school routine yesterday, despite a rather hectic week. We spent the weekend camping in Wiltshire, meeting up with some old friends at Lacock Abbey on Saturday, then spending Sunday exploring beautiful Avebury.

When I was at university, I was involved in the University Air Squadron. This was an incredibly enjoyable experience that allowed me to learn to fly a plane (badly), drink ridiculously cheap alcohol and have some awesome experiences. But the main benefit of it was the social life, and meeting some lifelong friends.

I’m terrible at staying in touch with people, but it’s always lovely to meet up with old friends. The friend we caught up with on Saturday was someone I met at the University Air Squadron and we lived together for two out of the four years we were at University. The most amazing thing about getting together this weekend was seeing how naturally and instantly our children got along.

As soon as we arrived, they all ran off together and started playing and chatting. This continued for the entirety of our visit and made me wonder why it is that they got along so well? My friend’s children are absolutely lovely and were incredibly welcoming to my two. But it seemed to be more than that. How is it that children who haven’t seen each other since they were tiny act like old friends? Perhaps the same thing that made my friend and I get along so well at university has transferred to the next generation. Either way, we’ll definitely be catching up again soon.

New Glasses

Lia has always been jealous of Libby’s glasses. In fact, when we had a letter from school to say that Lia had been given an eye test and didn’t need glasses, she cried. So when Libby went for an eye test on Monday and it was confirmed that she’d be having some brand new glasses, Lia was outraged. She did do her best to be excited for Libby and offer some advice on which ones to choose (the pink ones, obviously). However, most of her time was taken up with pulling faces into the optician’s mirror and telling us her eyes hurt so she must need glasses.

Much as I do have some sympathy for Lia, who feels like she is missing out, it’s great to see that wearing glasses is something to aspire to these days. Libby has never complained about having to wear them or worried that they make her different. In fact, a trip to the opticians for a new pair is always the ultimate treat. When we were first told Libby needed glasses, I was worried. She’d look different, would she be picked on and would wearing glasses become an issue for her? In fact, the opposite has happened. They have become part of who she is and she adores them.

Thursday photo #244

I love this photo of the girls next to one of the ancient standing stones in Avebury. Standing sensibly and respectfully was clearly far too much to ask!