The other side

We are having a wonderful time. But those things that make up the majority of parenting hours play as big a role as ever. There are nappies to be changed and toilet training happening, often in the most challenging and diverse of environments. There are constantly changing hazards and boundaries. There are disagreements. There is getting lost. There is illness and visits to the doctor. There is broken sleep and musical beds.

It is tiring. And much as we're loving being here, we are now looking forward to being in one place for more days than the fingers on your hands. The almost weekly packing of this family involves a number of stages. Firstly, there is the gathering of the items from all over where ever we may be. For this one must keep your eye on all those, sometimes tiny, precious items that are used and dropped or tucked away 'safely'. The sorting of these items and then the packing. We travel with the standard young family paraphernalia; cot, high-chair, pram, nappies. But we also travel with a toy bag, wet sheets, a medical kit, laundry kit, small pantry and dress-ups. We are becoming quite good at packing at the same time as becoming ready to stop doing so. 

And we miss our family and friends.

The only constant for the past few months, other than ourselves, has been the car. We've spent a fair share of this holiday in the car. Everybody has become very good at this travel. when everything is settled in the back and I'm not twisting my body in strange ways to feed, entertain or settle children, I knit. This car time is good talking time too. We smile at each other when we hear 'Wow, look at that view!' come from the back seat. A favourite car game is 'See that? Oh, doesn't matter it's gone now.' Because although the kids have never seen The Castle they know that Darryl Kerrigan says 'The faster you go the more you see.' Oh, how we laugh when this cry comes from the back unprompted.

And there are more moves ahead of us. 

This thought of packing does not excite me but....

...the thought of the fairy lights on the boulevards in Paris does....