One more night with three under-5s
On the eve of W's birthday I feel like I am approaching a bit of a milestone as I will no longer have three under-5s. I don't know why 5 seems like a notable age - he has already been at school for nearly a year and I am not expecting parenting to magically become easier from tomorrow. But I feel like I will be able to complain a little less about the trials of looking after the three of them as they get older.
It is easy to forget how challenging it is having several children close together because it has very quickly become our normal.
Lots of people in the village have three or four children, as do my closest friends and family. But every so often someone stops me to ask about the boys, inevitably comments that I must have my hands full and reminds me that it isn't supposed to be easy and we are doing pretty well.
Watching W settle into school over the past year in some ways has been more challenging than looking after him 24/7 as I am not in control. He's starting to open up to people that I don't know, writing little notes to his friends, and I can do nothing about whether they are going to return the friendship. He has been really lucky with his teachers this year but we find about his Year 1 class soon and again I am worrying about whether he will be taught by someone who is gentle with him and takes the time to understand him. I guess all this is a taste of how parenting older children and teenagers might be less physically demanding but is going to be no less full on emotionally.
It has just dawned on me this evening that tomorrow will be the first birthday he has had that we haven't spent as a family. We're hosting some school friends tomorrow afternoon which I am a little nervous about and preparations for that have distracted me from thinking about having to drop him off at school as normal tomorrow. We've bought his badge to wear and I think he's excited about being able to sit in the middle at circle time but if I'm honest I feel a little sad. I know that we will have succeeded as parents if he heads off into the big wide world able to fend for himself and being resilient enough to deal with what comes his way but I am in no rush for that to happen.
It is easy to forget how challenging it is having several children close together because it has very quickly become our normal.
Lots of people in the village have three or four children, as do my closest friends and family. But every so often someone stops me to ask about the boys, inevitably comments that I must have my hands full and reminds me that it isn't supposed to be easy and we are doing pretty well.
Watching W settle into school over the past year in some ways has been more challenging than looking after him 24/7 as I am not in control. He's starting to open up to people that I don't know, writing little notes to his friends, and I can do nothing about whether they are going to return the friendship. He has been really lucky with his teachers this year but we find about his Year 1 class soon and again I am worrying about whether he will be taught by someone who is gentle with him and takes the time to understand him. I guess all this is a taste of how parenting older children and teenagers might be less physically demanding but is going to be no less full on emotionally.
It has just dawned on me this evening that tomorrow will be the first birthday he has had that we haven't spent as a family. We're hosting some school friends tomorrow afternoon which I am a little nervous about and preparations for that have distracted me from thinking about having to drop him off at school as normal tomorrow. We've bought his badge to wear and I think he's excited about being able to sit in the middle at circle time but if I'm honest I feel a little sad. I know that we will have succeeded as parents if he heads off into the big wide world able to fend for himself and being resilient enough to deal with what comes his way but I am in no rush for that to happen.
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