Being a mother

In September Bebe started school into Reception (R) class and Lochie moved from Reception into Year 1 (Y1). Today was parents evening at school and I wanted to use my little old blog to shout from the roof tops about my amazing children and their achievements - rather than my own for a change!

Being a mother wasn't, and isn't what I thought it would be before I became a mother. I don't think I took to it like I thought I would. I envisaged lots of happy, waltons-esque time where I was allowed the space to be the mother I wanted to be. In my version, we would do lots of reading, baking, playing board games and spend huge amounts of time outside, at one with nature.
What I didn't bargain on was the whirl wind that being a mother of three is. Don't get me wrong, we bake and read and play games, but I realise more and more that I am not supposed to have the space to be the mother I want to be. I am supposed to be the mother THEY NEED me to be. Entirely different. Sometimes it's hugely stressful. Sometimes I shout when I shouldn't. But it's always amazing. I am still baffled by the trust and love that these small people share with me and Paul - how did we get so lucky?

The age gap between the biglets is small and they have always been lumped together as one. It has only been since Bebe started school really that I have started to see her in her own right. She has a wicked sense of humor, she is cheeky, she enjoys 'helping' me and she likes to draw. She has taught Niamh how to draw and they spend a lot of time together at the dining table. Her teachers raved about her tonight. What a lovely little girl she is, always polite. Great at role play and making sure to include everyone. Always one of the first to try something new. She is bang on for her reading and writing and they are very happy with her.

Lochie, in contrast, is more reserved than Bebe. He thinks about things and maybe takes them more to heart. He is more gentle (although this is hard to believe when you see him tussling with the other boys in the playground!) and giving. I was expecting a good report from school, but we got an outstanding one. Lochie is on the gifted and talented register because he is exceeding the requirements of Y1. We knew he could read well, and his writing is great and he is keen on maths, but I just assumed that all the children in his class were. He is having additional help twice a week to keep him challenged and enthused. I am so so proud of him.

In addition to school, their swimming lessons continue to amaze me. We spent so long going without progress that I had started to wonder if the lessons were any good. Suddenly though, they seem to got the hang of it and Lochie last night swam two breadths on his own, unaided. Bebe can dive underwater for huge amounts of time and they are both in love with the water.

That just leaves Niamh. Last but by no means least, my precious Niamhy New. She will be two in February and I tell you she is already going on three. Her words are coming on and she can do most things for herself now - from feeding herself soup to getting dressed. In a morning as we leave for school, she will do her own shoes and thrust her coat at everyone until someone helps her with it. She is feisty, she is funny and she is well aware of her own power - woe betide anyone trying to pull the wool over her eyes.

Being a mother isn't what I thought it would be. Its way, way, WAY better.