Many children are still off school but the holidays are over in our house. Thankfully.
Don’t get me wrong, I love spending time with my girls but there comes a point when I am reduced to little more then a prisoner in my own home. Anchored amongst the rapids with a ferocious tide of barefoot children racing past. Laughing, dancing and singing, leaving a trail of destruction - and sweet wrappers - behind them.
All I can do is wait for the boredom to set in, the giggles to subside and the kettle to boil (again) before their next game starts up with a flurry of excitement as I stare out of the window, palms against the glass mouthing “HELP” to the birds outside.
I have also been attempting to work from home which any mum in my situation will know is akin to plonking your office in the monkey enclosure at feeding time. Not easy by any stretch.
People often say how lovely it must be to work from home, which it is. Sometimes. Personally, I must have a clean, tidy house before I can embark on anything remotely productive. If not, I am prone to being too easily distracted by a basket of ironing here, or a sink full of dishes there.
So I’m sure you will appreciate that during these past couple of weeks I have had to muster the mental strength of ten men to block out my peripheral vision. It’s amazing what a stray sock poking out from under the sofa can do to my concentration. Not to mention 20,000 children re-enacting ‘Wicked’ in my kitchen.
Anyway, now they have dispersed and I have my home back again, I am on a crusade. You see, what started out as a quick dart round with the hoover, quickly evolved into a full-scale clean up operation. After blitzing the HSL (hall, stairs and landing to all those lucky enough not to know) I entered the children’s rooms and was met with a sight that could not be ignored.
It was a now or never situation. So I set about organising, tidying, separating, sorting, restructuring, folding, alphabetising...ok no, I didn't go that far but you get the picture.
I raided the Little Lucy Willow showroom for storage bags of any description and have proudly created a couple of picture perfect bedrooms! For now.
Right. Onto the rest of the house. If I get a wriggle on it should just be done in time for half term...