Signs of spring to combat the viruses

Back to back viruses continue to plague us, but nothing too severe – just enough to keep one or both children home from school and kindi. We’re into week 3 of term 3 and I’ve had either Charlotte, Sophie, or both the girls home, whilst not feeling great myself with a persistent sore throat and headache that waxes and wanes.

On Friday both the girls were at home and I decided that a dose of Vitamin D was called for and so we headed to the Botanical Gardens. Neither of the girls were up to walking far, but they lit up being in the fresh air and surrounded by nature. Tulip bulbs were just peeking above the earth and daffodils starting to bloom.

When Sophie was a baby and Charlotte a toddler I used to visit the gardens at least once a fortnight. It was such a joy to have them home with me, even with them not being A1. Sophie skipped along saying, ‘This is the life for me! Can I come here everyday?’.

Charlotte stopped to admire droplets of water balanced on leaves, twinkling in the sunshine, and took this photograph on my iPhone:

Sophie asked Charlotte to read the names of the rose bushes, even though they were all in their winter ‘hibernation’. I thought, ‘I can’t wait to bring them here in the summer so they can run amongst the fragrant petals of colour and play hide and seek with Alice.’

Alice didn’t get to see much of the gardens, as she had a mammoth nap snuggled up warmly in the front pack. The girls were saying, ‘Come on Alice, wake up!’

Whilst we waited the girls and I enjoyed the warmth of the Begonia House and had fun trying to read the latin names of all the plants. Charlotte was fascinated by the Venus fly-trap. We bought ‘The Wonky Donkey‘ book and CD in the little shop there – Charlotte’s been wanting that book for a very long time.

With Alice still asleep we strolled back towards the car to listen to the CD, with Sophie stopping to ask lots of questions about the memorial plaques on the benches…

‘Who is this one for?’
‘When were they born and when did they die?
‘Both of those people have the same second name. Who died first? The lady or the man?’
‘Sometimes people die from sadness don’t they Mummy?’
‘How many more years did the lady live after the man died?’

When Alice finally woke I gave her a quick feed and back home we headed. I felt a bit mean plonking her straight into her car-seat, but I made up for it when we got home – giving her some floor time without the constrictions of a nappy so she could happily reach for her toes to suck on (who needs toys when toes have just been discovered!).

The girls were pretty wiped out and settled down for different movies. Charlotte, being ill with a virus, had enjoyed a stay at home week of Harry Potter DVD viewing, mixed with nature documentaries, so she continued on that theme (!), whilst Sophie watched Toy Story 2. They were both asleep by 7.30pm (nice!). I knew they would be out like lights so I’d already phoned Dan to give him the green card to have a few extra beers, which he took like any red-blooded man and accepted.