Childhood Phases

Things are changing in our house.

It's nothing drastic, but it's a real shift in childhood patterning and it's palpable.

This has often happened in my experience as a parent. Suddenly, things aren't the same any more. Nappies disappear. Babies are weaned. Four legs become two and eventually they even navigate stairs and start running.

But then there are more subtle shifts - and often these shifts hallmark the beginning of a whole new childhood/parenting era.

Take this morning, for example. The kids didn't come in to our room for their morning snuggle. At all. They instead charged straight out to the rabbits. I could hear them giggling on the divan outside as those little monkeys... er... rabbits, flipped and flopped Husband's crocs around.

I lay in bed next to dozing Husband and listened with tears in my eyes, longing for two wriggling, giggling worms to snuggle in beside me and talk about their dreams.

It didn't happen.

Husband makes an astronaut of baby Ella; dont worry, the ceiling fan wasn't on

My kids are growing up.

When we got back to Australia in January, baths went out the window. This was another huge leap in growing up. They both now take Big Kid showers. We also changed breakfast configuration, go-to-bed-times and chore responsibilities.

These changes have often happened when we've moved house or gone on holidays, and although it's natural for things to shift at stuch times, it's also a little disarming. Just when I am complaining that the kids never seem to grow up, I find myself desperately clinging to any semblence of babyness. Indeed, if I sniff hard enough, I can still find a trace of baby in the nook of Riley's neck, and when I stroke Ella's sleeping forehead, I can still feel her toddler hair.

Baby Riley melting some hearts and feasting on fists; as you do

Yes, things are changing. And I'm okay. No - really...