Hmm – well work is busy & I guess that’s to be expected after things have mounted up while I was away over Christmas & New Year… and I’ll have too much to do because of the month start jobs as well. So… well… there’s nothing unusual there.

Not been typing for a while so I guess I have the freedom to write about quite a few bits & bats. It’s not like this is a diary or anything where I’m beholden to detail my daily musings… In a way that would be better n a way that would be worse. It would be better ‘picture’ if I was stricter with my jottings, but I would rebel soon enough resentful of the ‘duty’ beholden on me by the act of writing. At least I have a level of documentation here that is just about sustainable. Besides I’m not setting time aside to specifically mutter – where would I find that time?

That said I do feel a little guilty that I did not manage to get a little more detail in over the festive period as my detail of the Christmas period & what the kids were up to is going to be a little blurred & I think that my parents at least (for whom this is often pitched) will want to know more detail. Anyone who’s called the Schroeder house on the phone to speak to me will know that my attention is not so great as to be able to have an in depth conversation without many interruptions. Mind you it’s probably more sensible that the kids take over the phone conversations anyway as they’re certainly more entertaining. I was a little annoyed at Jude shouting rudely at me in the background when Jack was on the phone to my dad when they called on Christmas day, but as Louise pointed out, it was a little late in the day for a boy who’d been up as early as he dare (& he has a brass neck). Still – such detail may have been missed & I’m a fool for pointing out my own embarrassment. Can’t recall why I was considered idiotic at the time… probably something minor in the way of peacekeeping.

Christmas day? Well it went OK this year. Louise got a bit cross at .. um… Hm… I forget now. It was after lunch though & she was peeved for a bit. Got over it soon enough & it was probably my fault. Hey look at me I’m moaning on about bad things! I’ve already said I thought that the day went well (glossing?). I’ve no idea now when the kids were awake this year, Jude & Eve would have been first & they were noisy enough n their excitement to wake up Jack & Esme. Jack was a bit put out when he couldn’t find his Santa stocking & went back to bed, but I’d had to keep that back as I was sure he was still awake at midnight when I dropped them off with the others; Jack’s sleeping habits go awry during holidays – staying up late reading & ligging in bed in the mornings.

With them all up & Santa’s offerings demolished there’s no point in keeping them un suspense for more presents (as they just get all cranky with the anticipation) so I dragged down all the presents from us & the wider family. Mum & dad did well (ahem) with the remote control copter for Jack, the scooter for Jude, the shopping trolley for Esme & the Brats stuff for Eve as they enjoyed these things greatly. The shopping trolley was the centre of a few Eve, Jude, Esme games during the next few days. Jack broke the copter, unfortunately but we now have a replacement unit from the manufacturers. He did spend a deal of time attempting to fix it using blue-tack which was largely unsuccessful but it got off the ground… it was just a little .. erratic.