Like many people, school holidays makes me a bit, well, sweaty. The shops are more crowded. Activity centres are packed and usually I can't get one ever loving minute to myself.
What has been a HUGE lesson to me these holidays is realising what's actually meaningful for me and my family.
For Christmas this year we gave our eldest son (Mr Large) a very expensive electronic gadget. He's been asking for it ALL year. We had ascertained that it "could" be educational. My husband had edited all the settings so that he can only do limited things with it. And, most importantly, we got it on special. Because quite frankly, paying full price for it made me break out in hives. If I'm not getting a designer handbag for Christmas, then he wasn't getting that. I worried about the influence the gadget might have on him. I worried that he would have access to things that really, I'm not ready for him to be exposed to.
Oh yes, I was filled with the "true" spirit of Christmas.
Anyway.
I also worried that Mr Large would be obsessed with the gadget. That his every waking hour would be dominated by it, or thoughts of it.
Instead, his first words every morning after the requisite kiss and cuddle have been: "Are we going to the beach today?" or "Do we have swimming lessons today?"
Because Sweet Husband has been home the past two weeks, that's where we have spent alot of time.
Doing this:


Or this:



Whilst he has certainly enjoyed playing with "the gadget that COULD have been my nice handbag," he hasn't been overly interested in it at all. And it makes me realise the wisdom of children, and the stupidity of, well, me. If I spent a little less time worrying about what could be and instead put my focus on what "is" it would be so much more enjoyable.
I've learned that children need three basic things to keep them occupied:

water + sand + spade = nirvana
It also equals lots of showering, extra laundry and slathering of suncreen, but that's a whole other blog post.