Thursday photo #293
Christmas holidays are in sight. Between them in the past week, the girls have done a nativity play, four ballet shows and a carol concert. We’ve all watched one pantomime and Libby has watched two. They’ve both been swimming twice and had a piano lesson. They’ve both auditioned for their school end of term concert and been chosen to sing on their own. School Christmas jumper day and Christmas lunch somehow slotted in there and today is their Christmas party. Even by our standards, it’s been a busy week.
New year’s resolutions
At this time of year, I always start to think about what I want to change. The new year is a fresh start so it’s a great time to reflect on how I can do things better. I’m pleased to say that 2019 has been quite a good one for us. I’ve reached the end of the year feeling a lot more relaxed about life and work. That said, it’s very clear what I need to change in 2020. I need to do less, and say no more.
As work has slowed down before Christmas, I’ve been trying to decorate Lia’s bedroom. It has been quite a big job because I had to empty the room first. However it took even longer because I had so many other things going on. Next year, work will be picking up because I’ve taken on an extra role. I’ll be continuing to decorate the rest of the house and there’s the small matter of training for the Brighton marathon. So, I’m going to be dropping a few of my commitments. I need to make sure I have at least four full days a week to split between work and decorating. The challenge now is to maintain my position of saying no.
Developing confidence
A year ago, Lia did her first ever nativity play. She had one line, with another little girl. She didn’t say it. Lia was very low in confidence back then. She has always somewhat lived in Libby’s shadow and it showed. She wasn’t ready to stick her neck out and do something on her own.
Fast forward 12 months and we’re in a very different position. Within the past few weeks, Lia has sung on stage five times in a group and once completely on her own. She’s sung alone to her class and been asked to sing to the school. She didn’t have a speaking role in her school play, but she still managed to make everyone laugh with her dancing and facial expressions. She’s not as confident as Libby, but not many people are. That said, she’s come such a long way in the last 12 months that there’s definitely a light at the end of the tunnel when it comes to living in her sister’s shadow.
Thursday photo #293
I took this photo of the girls before we went to watch Aladdin pantomime at Malvern Theatres. I often question whether I do too much with them but seeing them so excited about it all makes me realise that they wouldn’t change a thing.
