the me and mine project {march}

Daddy is loving

* reunion with the uni boys in Edinburgh.

* seeing the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin

* Easter Monday's family day in London

* a good work night out in Kensington Roof Gardens.

* Easter eggs!

Mummy is loving

* a lovely spring day at the country park.

* a fun afternoon tea day out and a day of filming with Channel Mum.

* excited children on their Easter egg hunt.

* our Easter Monday adventures in London.

* avocados!

The beautiful boy is loving

* visiting the Science Museum. 

* making models of the solar system with playdoh.

* dressing as the dinosaur from The Dinosaur The Pooped A Planet for World Book Day. 

* hunting for Easter eggs. 

* meeting some gnomes and then making his own. 

The beautiful girl is loving

* her new ballerina jewellery box.

* pepperoni pizza. 

* mini My Little Ponies out of Kinder eggs.

* a day in London; riding the underground and making her own gnome.

* watching Blaze and the Monster Machines. 

The beautiful little lady is loving

* her Baby Bjorn bouncy chair.

* laughing at her big brother and sister in the bath.

* having her feet and armpits tickled.

* chewing on Sophie le Giraffe.

* smiling at everyone she meets.

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our easter bunny day

I wasn't sure that our Easter was going to be very exciting this year. Rich got called away to work in Germany for the Saturday and also the Sunday morning (so yes, the two days slap bang in the middle of the long weekend). I decided that keeping it quiet was probably our best bet, so we stayed home and hunkered down between the rainstorms. But it was our littlest lady's first ever Easter, so it did need to be at least a little bit special. And actually it ended up being a really lovely Easter Sunday (or Easter Bunny Day as my children renamed it), and Rich got home far earlier than we expected which is a bonus; it was simple and lazy and full of family and chocolate... which is what matters most.

So I made a little video of our day. It's more of a day in the life type video, documenting one day from start to finish... I used to do those all the time back when I first started filming things, and I realised it had been far too long since I've done one. It was nice to get back in the habit of capturing all the little details of our day.

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the siblings project {march}

It feels like I probably say this with each passing month, but it feels like this trio have really started finding their groove. I guess that over the coming months and years it will be a constant process of them settling into their roles with one another, constantly changing and adapting, pushing the boundaries and altering the rules. But I think that's possibly the best thing about getting to see these three grow up together, and about watching siblings together in general. It isn't a concrete thing, its fluid and changing all the time.

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the me and mine project {february}

Daddy is loving

* going to the National Space Centre

* the little man's face when they sang Happy Birthday to him in TGI Fridays.

* watching Deadpool.

* our littlest lady learning to roll over.

* a new found appreciation for sweet potato wedges.

Mummy is loving

* a fantastic weekend celebrating our five year old!

* how much the littlest one giggles when you sing to her.

* daffodils.

* new boots.

* that our big girl will do practically anything for a mini egg (just like her daddy!)

The beautiful boy is loving

* being five!

* telling the time.

* his birthday trip to the National Space Centre.

* reading his first proper chapter book with Mummy.

* making his own book about space.

The beautiful girl is loving

* mini eggs.

* kinder eggs.

* watch egg opening videos on YouTube.

* playing dressing up.

* bed time snuggles with her baby sis in her bed.

The beautiful little lady is loving

* bed time snuggles with her big brother and sister.

* being sung to.

* lying on her playmat and grabbing at her toys.

* sitting up in the bumbo.

* sleep.

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the siblings project {february}

I don't know why it is that seeing the bond between these three continues to surprise me. I kind of figured, that having watched a sibling bond develop and grow before between my oldest too, that it would all just be the same with three, that it wouldn't be anything especially unique or new. But it is unique and it is new and it is so so special to witness. Watching the love between your children is something that clearly just never gets old, in fact I think it gets better.

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the me and mine project {january}

Daddy is loving

* being back playing football.

* watching Mr Robot.

* eating Rowntrees Randoms.

* watching Narcos.

* Abokado rice pots for lunch.

Mummy is loving

* seeing the relationships grow between the children and all the smiles they share.

* a weekend with my baby bro home.

* having a new coat; just in time for the cold weather. 

* getting lovely new clothes for the littlest lady.

* the Urban Decay Naked Smokey palette.

The beautiful boy is loving

* a weekend to play horses with Uncle Matt.

* bouncing on the bouncy castle at his friend's superhero party.

* being back at football training

* playing AstroCat on the iPad.

* counting down the days to his birthday in February.

The beautiful girl is loving

* lots of family time with us all together at home. 

* watching Shimmer and Shine, and singing the songs too.

* spending time with Uncle Matt and Auntie Tiff.

* being bribed with mini eggs.

* drawing with her Aquadoodle.

The beautiful little lady is loving

* kicking and splashing in the bath.

* being cosy for walks in her new pram.

* when her big brother sings "You Are My Sunshine" to her.

* when her big sister sings "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" to her.

* sleep.

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the siblings project {january}

The extra dimension that a third child has added to the dynamics between our children just fascinates me. I made no secret of how much I always loved watching the bond and relationship at play between my oldest two, and adding another child into the mix just means that there are so many more bonds and relationships to enjoy.

While the biggest two remain thick as thieves and the absolute best of friends; as they are growing we are also seeing more of the pushing each other's buttons that is such an essential part of growing up with a sibling. I have to confess that I actually kind of enjoy watching them wind each other up, push each other a little too far, bicker over silly things and then find ways to resolve it. Because isn't that the big life lesson that you get from growing up with a brother or sister? You learn how to argue, how to problem solve, how to get your own way and how to come out the other side of negotiations and remain friends. And my biggest two are doing all of that in spades. They decide they want things only when they know the other one does, they deliberately annoy one another or tell the other to do something they know they shouldn't, but they also share and play together so nicely, and defend each other fiercely.

On the most part our baby girl she looks at her older sister like she can't decide what to make of her. Our biggest girl is loud, in her face and little bit of wild one; and I'm not entirely sure that she 'gets' her yet but my goodness does she find her funny. And our big girl doesn't half dote on her little sister though, constantly asking to talk to her, to cuddle her, to sing her a song and calling her "my gorgeous girl". She is the ultimate mini mummy, and I have no doubt that they will get closer and closer as they grow. I have a funny feeling that those girls might be a force to be reckoned with once the littlest has picked up all the biggest ones best tricks.

But the bond between my biggest and my littlest is very different and it simply melts my heart. Our little boy is so careful and gentle with his baby sister - the baby sister he so wanted and patiently waited for. He likes to help me with her, undoing her clothes at nappy changes, sponging her clean in the bath, and rocking her in the car seat when they wait to leave the house for school. He loves to sit on my bed and look into her crib in the mornings and sing "You are my sunshine" to her when she first wakes up in the morning... which just makes me want to cry with pride. And she absolutely lights up when she sees him, something about him just enchants her.

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