I have a very very happy son, who beyond the cake and presents, spent time surrounded by loving family – his siblings, grampa, my sort of son in law kind of, (who is my apple partner in crime often), my brother and sister in law,(my brother spending most of the time showing my iPad to my sweet savvy decider of purchases sister in law…as they both are Apple users, and travel lots to Canberra in high level intense jobs, I think much easier than personal laptops for travel, or as adjunct/compliment, I see his point, but suspect is also shinyitis), and as usual, as he is most definitely family, my dearest first ex, (father of the first three, beloved friend, and adored second daddy to the younger two), and his utterly wonderful girlfriend, (who i am genuinely glad to see every time, and to be getting to know. She rocks, and i think of her as highly as all five of the kids do).
I also got time to talk/cuddle/just be close to my two youngest individually in a hectic day where patch change symptoms and lurgy recovery adds a challenge or ten. Those are to be ignored and overcome, kid time comes now, or as soon to now as I can manage. patience may be needed, but it always happens. I also got time with both teens, and even some snatched but all too brief time with my first gift, my beloved first born. Astonishing nails.
Of less fun, but almost importantly, my flu type lurgy is receding now that the fever has broken. While I am not sleeping properly, as is third day appropriate, I can enjoy those facts.
I can also contemplate the horror of HRH Princess almost 9 actually turning 9, which is lovely magic in and of itself, but it means a social event* in her mind, with her in her blissful center position, which is as it should be in her butterfly universe, (though she does have stiff competition in that belief of centre of universe from her eldest sibling, Ms 24). She is starting to demonstrate the focused intensity of her eldest sister even further, in the logistical, on an almost military level, detailed planning, to the nth degree, of party events. I loathe it all, myself.
Come to think of it, both eldest and youngest have spent formative years doing calisthenics, and generally seeking out the ongoing and cherished influence of the godmother of calisthenics costume and choreography planning genius. She starts her planning at the nth degree, and moves smoothly and rapidly to a dimension far beyond that! All of the kids, hell, my dad, and most of all me, are under her spell, so no surprise at how much this velvet wrapped around adamantium influences us all. If you have read my previous post, it takes little to deduce she is the one that I owe my life to. That is a mere beginning of all I owe her.
Their other godmother has also deeply influenced them in colour and creativity too – and has allowed me to finally concede, after helping me find my medium, that ok, yes, beyond writing, I am an actual artist in a more physical sense, and has truly mentored and guided previously mentioned fellow sister friend, myself, and all of the kidlets, in creative color, texture, and design. That is just the merest beginning of the gifts she has bought to all of us.
I often am struck by how much my beloved, wonderful family friends have raised my children too. I have been selective about which friends get how close and on what level to the kids – trust, over time, reliability, that kind of thing. I want those values in a friend, anyway:) I don’t know how i ended up with a fairly high number of magic friends around, hell, being a large part of my family. I am deeply conscious of how lucky I am for that – as are my offspring. Yet I digress.
Actually, I finish, with a seemingly rather meaningless, meandering, rambling post that features much more information and depth of feeling than that which is merely alluded to here. Icebergs. I have done this revealing stuff a bit more often lately, as I am working through several things, direction changes both personally and professionally. There is some looming sense of chapters about to close, always sad, and melancholic, yet it is time for this ending – but seeing exciting new chapters starting that will have incredible momentum, and even allowing for my physical limitations, will give me a chance to work in a field I am passionate about. That is still in development, watch this space in the next few weeks, trust me!
Now I will seek the half hour or so sleep I get in shifts these nights. (Yes, beloved daughter, I have the names of recommended medical aids to sleep, mentioned in your response to one of these third night posts, to discuss with my GP later in week).
*we seem to have firmed at sleepover, which ms 24 has agreed to attend, melted by the pleading of HRH, who sounded remarkably like someone of same age about, oh – 15 or 16 years ago, (or the lifespan of no 3 daughter, which is an odd perspective). Anyway, ten kids, 5 boys, 5 girls, PLUS mr 7 and HRH. Lions and tigers and bears, oh my!! Medic!!
