January 2022 went slow and seemed to last forever! But February came and went in a flash! It’s always a busy month for us, with birthdays, Valentine’s Day, school holidays, appointments and the wait for baby number 4.

We celebrated Gavins birthday on 10th February with a caterpillar cake and a donut DIY kit. On the evening I cooked a lovely meal for us both to enjoy and that was all Gavin wanted really! Valentine’s Day was also marked with card swapping, which Gavin refused to open mine as he had previously asked to not have anything this year! In the end, I bought myself a bunch of flowers! I did buy each of the boys a chocolate rose each to enjoy, together with a red heart themed picnic tea. It was also Pancake Day recently, and not one to disappoint I kept up with my ‘created’ tradition of forgetting about it, until the last minute! Thankfully Gavins mum had all the necessary ingredients in stock and made up a batch for us all to enjoy together. All the boys loved the crepe style pancakes this year!

Seth started preschool in February 2022, the same one that Hamish (and Tobias previous to starting school) goes too, he didn’t have any trial days as i thought he would have his brother there each time with him for reassurance. Hamish now goes three days a week, whilst Seth is there for two mornings a week. Just like with Tobias and Hamish, I wanted Seth to be over a year old when he started (he’s now two (due to COVID) and I think this has had a big difference on him settling in compared to his brothers who started earlier) but I also wanted him to have started and settled into the routine before baby number four appeared. This hasn’t happened unfortunately, we’re six weeks in and he’s struggling to settle at drop offs but has a big smile at pick ups and I’m told he’s fine once he is there.

The preschool has fantastic facilities and the staff are all really lovely and super kind. The main reason I like my children to go to a setting, is for the socialising aspect and this also helps them to develop in other areas too, like communication and develop their independence, away from me. It’s got to aid their development and be more enjoyable for little ones to be around others their own age. I’m hoping soon Seth will be able to stay the full day, just like Hamish as I’m doing several trips back and forth on Wednesdays and Fridays. Every time he comes home, Seth is absolutely knackered so I know he’s done a lot when he’s been there and been fully stimulated.

I can’t tell you enough, how much I now appreciate that break from the older children, even if it is just for a couple of hours, where I can have some downtime to recharge and enjoy Jonas (baby number 4) on his own. You don’t realise how much you need and rely on something until it’s gone.

Much love Rebecca