Allot has happened in 12 months since my last post that it is difficult to know exactly where to begin...
A new baby, a wild hearted "threenager" and blonde haired Viking with a chipped tooth who has turn two. Throw in a renovation, more responsibilities at work and life has been busy to say the least. Sometimes it all seems a blur and I feel overwhelmed with the responsibility of being mummy to three little people desperate for my love and attention, if not physically, hanging onto my every word, closely watching how I respond to every situation and acting accordingly. The other day in a moment where I felt my patience wearing thin as I attempted to peel my daughter off the windowsill on which she was dangerously performing yoga poses in her underpants (refusing to wear clothes) she put her hands in a prayer position and said " Relax Darling, Namaste". A sign from the Universe perhaps? Something so ridiculously cute that I couldn't help break the tenseness I was feeling with a laugh and everything seemed to reset.
Sometimes I long for a moment of peace where I can press the pause button in the motion picture that I call "Life" and simply breathe. A time where I do not have to listen to Justin Clarke on repeat in the car, continuously remove the various unidentifiable stains off my clothes, go to the toilet without company, not have to use dry shampoo due to the lack of time to actually wash my hair and put my head on the pillow and sleep deeply without anxiety about what the night will bring.
Shortly after Mr had returned back to work after the birth of our Little Miss I felt the need to get out of tracksuit pants and leave the house feeling that it was time to tackle taking the whole tribe out on play dates alone. Whether it was the hormones or the need to connect with others above the age of four I was delusional enough to think it was a good idea. What could go wrong, I said. I had this! As Beyoncé once sang "Who runs the world, Girls".
I was air high fiving myself as I prepared to leave my friend's house with three children who had not had a melt down, played relatively well together, remained in clean clothes and were willing to get back in the car to pick up their Dad from work. As I was buckling Little Miss into the capsule from the corner of my eye I spotted not one but two children dashing down a steep hill as if they were competing in an Olympic event. As they share my genetic makeup with all guts and no coordination both tumbled in different directions. Mr Viking landing in an ant nest, madly dusting off the hundreds of little critters who were marching through his blonde hair. Add in a blood lip and dirty clothes and he was a real sight. Wild Heart felt left out and gave an Academy Award winning performance in the car acting as if she was being attacked by ants. Perhaps she was going down in sympathy of her little brother? Perhaps Not. So, what was I to do with a hungry baby, child with a blood lip and another who was acting out a scene from a horror movie on the way to pick up Daddy? Thank the Lord for Red Rooster drive through Paddle Pops. As the car door opened and Mr viewed the sight for sore eyes better know as his family he knew it had been a particularly successful day. Shall I go to the bottle shop and pick us up a drink? Good Man. The stuff you couldn't write about, that will become part of the family narrative.
Amongst never ending chaos, there are moments when I feel completely in awe of the little beings that we have created and amazed at the people they are developing into. Whether it is hearing Wild Heart sing all the lyrics to Charlie Puth "One Call Away" as part of her self imposed bedtime routine, Mr Viking shaking his bottom and performing a dance show dressed in a bright yellow tutu in the living room or sharing a smile with Little Miss, these are the moments that make my heart sing and remind me that it is going to be okay.
Parenthood is a wild ride, one not for the faint hearted and even though I feel like I am on a never ending rollercoaster of emotions, laugh or cry moments and have developed an unhealthy need for a never ending supply of wet ones , I wouldn't change it for the world.
Much Love
Grace
