Monday 9 March 2015

London baby...

I have just spent a fab weekend in the big smoke with my lovely mother and sister in law. Hubby and children free, we enjoyed some therapeutic girly time, taking in a show, a spot of shopping of course and a lovely meal Saturday night.


After a peaceful journey on the train we ditched our bags at the hotel and headed to Muriel's kitchen on Leicester Square for lunch. The fella behind was obviously very happy about it being lunch time.

     Muchos nachos

    Lunch eaten we then did a bit of shopping (the m&m shop first for the little uns of course)

  Leicester Square selfie. Is this how the celebs do it?

        Sunshine = cider time. 

On the terrace at the Prnce Edward theatre pre-show.

If you haven't seen Miss Saigon I absolutely insist you quickly put it on your list of things to save some pennies to do. It was sensational. I sobbed like a child at the end because of the massive rush of emotions the performances had envoked and because I simply did not want it to end.

After a bit more shopping and a time out at the hotel we found a great Greek restaurant called The Little Greek Kitchen. Great service, great food, great atmosphere.


Some quality time with the mum and sis was just what the doctor ordered. Christmas pressies well used!

 It's nice to remember I'm not just a Mummy all the time, but it was even nicer to see my favourite faces with big grins on them, waiting for me at the train station when we got home.


Wednesday 4 March 2015

Reality tv...

As I'm sure most of us have, I have been following the tragic news of the disappearance of Becky Watts in Bristol. Obviously my thoughts go out to her family and friends at this unimaginably difficult time. Today, I was reading the latest horrific headlines concerning her murder when a little face popped over my shoulder and started reading. I quickly closed the screen and blurted out that it was just a story Mummy was reading, not real.

Of course the tragedy is that the story could not be more real but the thought of our six year old son reading about it sends shivers down my spine. The constant stream of bad news that we see plastered all over the television and internet on a daily basis is enough to make any adult feel depressed and paranoid but how would a child react to it?

It is our responsibility as parents to protect our children from harm and this includes mentally as well as physically. Of course they are bound to hear us talking about bad news occasionally but I honestly believe that there is massive potential to scar them for life if we aren't cautious with the way we read/watch the latest stories.

I was 16 when terrorists attacked the Twin Towers in the USA and I will never forget my Mum's face or words when she picked me up from school...."there's going to be a war". I knew she would never say anything like that if she didn't mean it and that is what scared me. At home I sat with my family and watched the chaos unfold on the television. As a young adult it was important that I was able to watch and understand what was going on but the lasting impact my Mum's reaction has had on me makes me wonder what must go through a child's mind when they see such things.

I don't want my children to grow up frightened of everything. Never daring to step on an aeroplane for fear it may crash, being terrified if anyone coughs or sneezes next to them on the bus in case they have bird flu or any other fears that the moral panic inducing media companies create.

On the other hand I also don't want the boys growing up in an ignorant state of thinking that nothing bad happens in the world we live in. It comes down to age. Innocence is something we must cling to for dear life whilst we can with our children. Happiness is what childhoods should be about and I for one intend on making the most of the time with them when their biggest concern is which friends they should invite to their party or who they are going to marry when they are old (at ages 6 and 3 the oldest chose his best friend and the youngest his Grandpops).

They will have enough to worry about when they are older and have their own family.