A - Z Challenge 2023 - Reflections

Hmm well I think I could just go back to a previous year's Reflection post and copy and paste it here.

Well not quite.

I've been blogging for years but there are often times when I need a challenge to get me back into the rhythm of regular blogging and the A-Z Challenge definitely serves that purpose.

Except it doesn't - well not always.  I start out with good intentions, usually before Christmas, thinking about what I might use as a theme etc and, I've usually got at least a few posts scheduled to post before the 1st April.  My aim being that, if my posts are already done,  I'll have time to visit lots of new blogs.

It never seems to turn out that way.  I often end up winging it and visiting new blogs becomes very sporadic.  I didn't even get to the A-Z homepage very often which I feel is a bit disrespectful to the wonderful team who put this challenge together year after year.  (Although I'm not sure having the lists on the A-Z page was helpful.  As long as the lists are available somewhere to be downloaded I'm happy.)

This year I did manage to have all my posts appear at the right time.  None of them were late so that's an improvement on last year.  But I feel I was lazy with my theme - Being a Grandparent.  I have 6 grandchildren and I love them all to bits so writing about them is really easy.  I certainly wasn't pushing any boundaries.

I don't consider myself a writer as such but I do like to write.  I need to have a good think about how I might approach next year's challenge.

Oh yes I expect to be back.

The links to all my posts for this year can be found here.

A - Z Challenge 2023 - Z is for Zany

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This year I'm writing about things connected with Being a Grandparent.  For an introduction to my grandchildren check out my theme reveal here.

One of the things I'm grateful for now I'm a grandparent is how easy it is for the parents to capture images of my grandchildren and send them to us.  Be it by WhatsApp, text, Instagram etc.  

Over the years I've been sent so many lovely photos, as well as the grumpy faced ones and of course lots of video clips.  The video clips are often hilarious, especially if the grandchildren are trying to sing or dance.  

We have some particularly good ones of Nathan, especially before he realises he's being filmed then he gets all cross and won't continue.

For that reason, plus once something's on the internet it can never be totally removed I'm not going to post any of the videos here.  But what I will say that when trying to describe their antics, ZANY is a good word.  (And ticks the final letter of the challenge!)

A - Z Challenge 2023 - Y is for Youthful

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This year I'm writing about things connected with Being a Grandparent.  For an introduction to my grandchildren check out my theme reveal here.

I'd like to think that spending so much time with my grandchildren will keep me youthful.  After all I've done lots of walking with them.  Lots of lifting and getting up and down from the floor.  Even chasing after them sometimes.

Unfortunately that's not the reality.  My legs in particular often refuse to play ball.  

We had Ella here on Monday.  She loves to play with playdoh at the moment but insists on sitting on the table with it.

My legs would complain at sitting like that.  She also spent quite a while in a squatting position.  Her bottom was almost touching the floor she was so low to the ground and then she just stands up with total ease.

I used to be able to do that.  I really could.  I could do the splits when I was younger.  Now everything protests at moving out of the bed in the mornings.

I like to think that even if my body isn't so youthful that my brain is but then I watch the kids using iPads and phones and think I'm losing the plot there too.  

So the grandchildren are not keeping me youthful, but they do make me happy.  I'll settle for that.

A - Z Challenge - 2023 - X is for Xylophones

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This year I'm writing about things connected with Being a Grandparent.  For an introduction to my grandchildren check out my theme reveal here.

X is for Xylophones - just one of the many instruments that can be found as toys for children.  Drums, keyboards, trumpets, tambourines, maracas etc etc.  

In my opinion these are not musical instruments, they are all just NOISY toys!  Put them together with noisy grandchildren and you need earplugs.  

Even the ones that play pre-programmed tunes are not great to listen to.  The quality of sound is just not great with most of them, unless of course you're prepared to spend a fortune on them.

Plus xylophones and drums for example come with sticks.  Children love sticks but not necessarily for making tunes on an instrument.  Sometimes sticks need to be confiscated.

Saucepans and wooden spoons work just as well.

A - Z Challenge 2023 - W is for Walking

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This year I'm writing about things connected with Being a Grandparent.  For an introduction to my grandchildren check out my theme reveal here.

Oh my goodness - I should rename this post winging it!  This is the first post I've done on the day so far in the challenge.  All my others have been pre-prepared and scheduled to post.  Ooops!

Anyway, if I had a pound for all the miles I've walked with my grandchildren I think I'd be rich.  Having looked after Nathan, Rory and Vinny on a regular basis at various times, taking them for a walk was usually part of the daily routine unless the weather was really bad.

Of course it was a good way of getting them to sleep if they needed a nap and that gave me an often much needed break lol.

It also kept me reasonably fit especially when I had Nathan - the family were living in Muswell Hill at the time and the area is definitely hilly!  Oh my goodness pushing him up the hill to the shops was hard work.  Of course on the way back it was downhill but even that was challenging - I was glad of the hand strap on the handle of the buggy so that there was no risk of it running away from me.  Alexandra Palace was on the doorstep and there was a park nearby with a playground which was good if it wasn't nap time.

Rory and Vinny are just 5 minutes away from a lovely big park that as well as a playground has a lake with lots of ducks and swans to watch.  And the ground is much more level!

Nathan

Ella

Vinny

Rory

Couldn't find a pic of Rory asleep in the buggy but he was quite easy to get down for a nap in the cot so he often stayed awake when we were out walking, especially in the park as he was very interested in all the trees, squirrels etc.

Of course the bigger boys no longer use the buggies and it won't be long before the little ones won't want to be confined to them either.  Then taking them out for a walk will come with a whole new set of challenges!

A - Z Challenge 2023 - V is for Vinny

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This year I'm writing about things connected with Being a Grandparent.  For an introduction to my grandchildren check out my theme reveal here.

Vinny (Vincent) is Grandson #4 born on 22nd September 2020.  Another day we won't forget as it's also the day we moved house.  We had arrived at our new house and were beginning to try and make sense of everything when I had to down tools and go and look after big brother Rory.

Vinny was another one impatient to be here arriving early and weighing in at just under 6lb.  Unfortunately he was jaundiced and had an infection so he had to spend a few days in the NICU

It was actually a week before he made it home.

Grandpa enjoying his first cuddle.  You can see the bruising on Vinny's hand from the canula he had to have.

I'm so proud of all my kids though because having babies during lockdown was not easy.  Fortunately all the partners were able to be there for the births but they couldn't stay with them for the whole time of the labour so it was quite stressful for them.

I've spent a lot of time with Vinny as once his Mummy went back to work I looked after him 1 day a week to help with the cost of childcare.  They were lucky to find a good nursery a five minute walk from their flat which both boys attended.  

After we moved house I would often look after him here and he went through a spell where he was always definite about what he wanted for lunch - scrambled egg, baked beans and toast.  He was always good for me but he wasn't happy if I tried to vary the menu lol.

He's a really good talker now - he seemed to go from just using words to talking in whole sentences that make sense.  (His Daddy was the same.)  He also loves reading books with me.

I miss having him but I decided I didn't want to be tied down to a particular day each week so since January he has gone to nursery full time.  

Of course I'm still happy to help out where I can during the week and some weeks that means several days involving some form of childcare for one or other grandchild. 

Vinny loves roaring like a dinosaur, playing with playdough and spoiling his brother's games.  He's also becoming quite cheeky and slightly naughty at times but it's hard to be cross with him.

Most days he doesn't have a nap now, or just a short one but there are still times when it just gets too much lol.

This was after he'd had a haircut recently.  Looking very grown up!

A - Z Challenge 2023 - U is for Unexpected Surprise

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This year I'm writing about things connected with Being a Grandparent.  For an introduction to my grandchildren check out my theme reveal here.

I'm being creative here with the letter.  Some of you may have wondered why Nathan wasn't included with Noah for the letter N.  Well I didn't want to have 2 grandchildren on the same post, especially when the others all have their own letter.  So Nathan is here because he was our Unexpected Surprise.

In two ways really.  Regular readers will know he is the son of my daughter Rebecca and her wife Vicky.  Of course that meant a clinic being involved etc etc.  We had no idea they were going through the process (although I knew that they wanted children) so the first surprise was when they announced Rebecca was pregnant.  At only 6 weeks!  Vicky is particularly bad at keeping things secret.  Of course we were delighted.  We looked forward to a long wait for the baby's arrival.

That wasn't to be.  The day before Hubby and I were due to go on a cruise I got a frantic phone call from my daughter.  She was heading for the hospital as she thought she was going into labour - at 29 weeks.

Well she was in labour and the following day will be etched on my brain forever I think.  There was a bit of dithering initially as the hospital didn't have a NICU space available so they were suggesting that Rebecca would have to be moved to another hospital before baby arrived.  She and Vicky were not happy about that as the hospital they were at is one of the best in the country for NICU facilities.  However when a doctor came to check on her to see what was happening it was a case of "You're not going anywhere - the baby is coming!"  It was 31st March 2017.

I don't think the Mummies even had a birth plan at that point but it would have been torn up and thrown away.  I never intended being in the delivery room for starters.  Hovering outside in a waiting area maybe but not in the room trying to support both of them but that's just the way it happened.  So many staff poured into the delivery room once it was apparent birth was imminent I don't think I could have escaped if I'd wanted to.

Nathan was born fairly soon after but of course quickly put in an incubator and transferred straight through to the NCIU where they somehow managed to find a cot. He weighed just over 2lb.

Those first few weeks that he spent in the NICU were challenging although he actually did really well.  He didn't have to be intubated  which was great but it did feel sometimes that it was 2 steps forward and then 1 step back.  And of course his Mummies had to leave him there every night as there were no facilities to stay.

Eventually, on 21st May I got my first cuddle - the day before he was allowed to go home.

Of course even though he was home there were still hurdles to overcome.  Initially he still had a feeding tube but thankfully he transitioned to breast feeding but of course there were lots of check ups to monitor his development, including eye tests because of his prematurity.

But now....he's just like any other 6 year old.

Who loves his sister - most of the time lol.

A - Z Challenge 2023 - T is for Television

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This year I'm writing about things connected with Being a Grandparent.  For an introduction to my grandchildren check out my theme reveal here.

Television programmes have changed so much during my lifetime.  My memories of children's TV are things like Watch with Mother and Bill and Ben the Flower Pot Men.  But then I can also remember the test card when programmes weren't on air.

This one was introduced in 1967 when I was 8, following the introduction of colour TVs.  

Now of course you can watch TV 24/7 and the choice of programmes is mind boggling.

Naturally children's TV has progressed too.  My kids had things like Thomas the Tank Engine, Rainbow and Playschool.

Thomas is still around but he's definitely had some work done! lol

Of course lots of the programmes claim to be educational but some are more so than others.  And some are just mind numbing.  One of Ella's favourites is Cocomelon which is about a family with 3 children.  Lots of songs and repetition.  But at least it's fairly normal.  Unlike In the Night Garden which has characters such as Igglepiggle, Makka Pakka and Upsy Daisy as well as the Ninky Nonk and Pinky Ponk!  It's a lot of nonsense but it is oddly calming and good at bedtimes.

Then of course there are lots of action programmes such as Paw Patrol and Octonauts.  And you can always find a programme with dinosaurs, trains or trucks.

But there are times when the television is useful:

Especially when you want 5 minutes peace!

A - Z Challenge 2023 - S is for Stories

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This year I'm writing about things connected with Being a Grandparent.  For an introduction to my grandchildren check out my theme reveal here.

Stories - all the Grandkids love having books read to them.

There are so many books available these day although I still have some here that I read to my children.  The younger ones still like the lift up flap ones but the older ones now prefer a longer story.

Going on a Bear Hunt is a favourite and they love The Gruffalo and the follow up.  One of my favourites is Peace at Last and Can't you Sleep Little Bear, both of which are great bedtime books.

Of course the kids often prefer the noisier books - Rory had a phase of always wanting a book about apes that involved making ape sounds and Vinny loves one that involves dinosaurs and roaring!  

Snuggling up with a grandchild (or two) with a book is one of my favourite activities.

Grandpa quite enjoys it too!

A - Z Challenge 2023 - R is for Rory

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This year I'm writing about things connected with Being a Grandparent.  For an introduction to my grandchildren check out my theme reveal here.

Rory is Grandchild #3 and arrived on 1st June 2018 so he is nearly 5!

Many first babies are often late but I don't think any of my Grandchildren have been.  There was supposed to have been about a month between Noah and Rory but it ended up being only 2 weeks between them.

He had to spend a few extra days in hospital because of an infection but this was in pre-pandemic times so we were able to go and visit.

Rory was another grandchild that I got to look after on a regular basis once his Mummy went back to work.  It's been so lovely being able to spend so much time with the Grandkids during their early years.  We did lots of walking in the nearby park.

Of course now he's at school so I don't see quite so much of him although I have had to collect him from school on a few occasions and he's always so pleased to see me.

He's another one that loves playing with cars and has just started to get into Lego.  He does not like it when his little brother tries to spoil his fun!

He's always loved having books read to him and now he's doing well with his own reading.

For a long time we didn't know what his hair colour was going to be - he had no hair for quite a long time

now he definitely takes after his Daddy.  Although he sleeps better than his Daddy did.  Babysitting Rory (and Vinny) during the evening is very easy as usually they are in bed by 7.30 and we often don't hear a peep out of them.  (Not sure that stays the same once their parents are home lol)

A - Z Challenge 2023 - Q is for Questions

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This year I'm writing about things connected with Being a Grandparent.  For an introduction to my grandchildren check out my theme reveal here.

Questions, questions and more questions......

We long for our children and Grandchildren to be able to talk but of course once they can, we start to regret what we wished for because then the questions start.

Mostly they're easy to answer.  But as they get a bit older they can start to get tricky and, add another layer between you and the Grandchildren and it can get even harder.  I mean it's fine if you're sure about what their parents would say but if you're not I've found it's best to dodge the tricky questions such as:

Is Santa real?

Why didn't the Tooth Fairy come? (Oops somebody's Mummy/Daddy must have been busy lol)

What happens when we die?

Nanny, are you really really old?

And that's before we get on to the response to any of your answers with Why?

My middle child always wanted to know Why?  He drove me nuts!  However I think he might get some payback from his son Noah.  I think he'll be a Why? child too lol.

A - Z Challenge 2023 - P is for Parenting V Grandparenting

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This year I'm writing about things connected with Being a Grandparent.  For an introduction to my grandchildren check out my theme reveal here.

I find being a Grandparent is very different to being a parent.

There are lots of advantages for example you get to give them back when you've had enough and usually, because you're not constantly tired due to sleep deprivation, you have more patience with them.  Also because we're retired we have more time.  We're not constantly worrying about all the chores that might need doing.  They can wait until tomorrow.

But you do worry about them more, especially when you're looking after them and are responsible for them.  The last thing you want to be doing when their parents return is to be explaining why there's a bump on their head or a bruise on the leg and so on.  I tend to be hyper vigilant but of course accidents will happen.

Parenting styles are different now too but of course we have to follow the parent's lead on how to deal with things which can be challenging at times.  Especially when they don't always want to hear about how we did things when our children were little.

Fortunately I have good relationships with all my DILs and hopefully I don't step out of line too often.  Clearly they're all happy to leave their children in my care so I must be doing something right!

A - Z Challenge 2023 - O is for Outbursts

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This year I'm writing about things connected with Being a Grandparent.  For an introduction to my grandchildren check out my theme reveal here.

Thankfully, being their Grandparent, I don't get many outbursts or tantrums when I'm looking after my Grandchildren but of course I have witnessed many outbursts between them and their parents.

Getting ready to go home is often a trigger, especially if they're not ready to leave.  Most of the parents are good at giving their children warnings and a countdown to when it will be time to put their shoes and coats etc on.  This often works but not always.  Especially if you get the timings wrong.

Vinny is usually really good for me, especially when I have him on his own but one day fairly recently I got the timings wrong.  I warned him that when the TV episode he was watching finished it would be time to get ready to go home.  Seemed reasonable to me but what I didn't realise was that each "episode" contained 2 stories.  So Vinny thought he was going to watch 2 stories.  After the first story finished and the credits rolled I turned off the TV.

Well it was like his worst nightmare had come true.  He was so upset and angry.  He took himself to the other end of the room and threw himself on the floor heartbroken.  There was no pacifying him and of course I couldn't work out what the problem was until his Mummy enlightened me when I finally got him home.  Took me ages to get his coat on he was struggling so much.  I gave up with his shoes until I'd got him safely buckled into his car seat and was out of range of his feet!  I won't make that mistake again.

Another trigger for outbursts is when the younger ones spoil the older one's games although they react quite differently.  Nathan will get very angry and sometimes lash out, Rory and Noah just tend to get very upset.

Not winning a game can also cause outbursts if we don't get in quick and suggest another game or an alternative distraction.

I think the hardest outbursts though have been when Ella has not wanted to be left with us while her Mummies go out.  She went through a phase when she was not happy about this and would proceed to scream.  And scream and scream and......  More with anger than upset too.  There was no way of pacifying her when she was like that - if you tried to cuddle her she would just push you away.

The best way was just to ignore her and start playing with some of the toys, building a tower or something else that eventually she would come and join in with.  But she could scream for a looooooong time.  Thankfully none of the neighbours have reported me to child services....yet and the last couple of babysitting stints have been easier.

It can be a bit tricky when all of them are together, especially with the older ones, two's company three's a crowd definitely happens here at times and of course at nearly 5 and just 6 their negotiating skills still need a lot of work.  We need to keep a close eye on them and try and intervene before there's trouble.

Grandparenting is never dull and never be fooled by the "butter wouldn't melt" look.

A - Z Challenge 2023 - N is for Noah

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This year I'm writing about things connected with Being a Grandparent.  For an introduction to my grandchildren check out my theme reveal here.

Noah is Grandchild #2 and is the eldest of my elder son's 2 boys.

He was another slightly early arrival on 17th May 2018.

Noah and his parents live in Nottingham (we're in London) so several hours away by car.  But of course we wanted to see him as soon as possible.

Now he's nearly 5 and already at school.

He loves playing with trains!

He mostly likes his younger brother - except when he's spoiling his train tracks.  

He also definitely has a Nottingham/Derbyshire accent - he's lucky to have his other Grandparents close by and he spends a lot of time with them.  He's also an expert on dinosaurs!

A - Z Challenge 2023 - M is for Miles

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This year I'm writing about things connected with Being a Grandparent.  For an introduction to my grandchildren check out my theme reveal here.

Miles is grandchild #5, the last of the boys. (So far of course lol)

He arrived, slightly early in September 2020, another lockdown baby.  He's Noah's younger brother and he's really smiley.  

I know we don't usually take pictures of children when they're miserable but Miles isn't often grumpy, at least not when we see him, although his parents might disagree.

I'm sure there have been many times when he's been upset.  He's had Covid and spent a couple of nights in hospital.  Fortunately he recovered quite quickly.  He's also currently got chicken pox so he's probably not too happy at the moment.

Like most younger siblings he can also be a torment to his older brother but it's hard to get cross with him when he can beam like this:

We don't see as much of Miles and his brother Noah as the other grandchildren but they are always pleased to see us and I know that they have a smashing pair of grandparents living close to them who take great care of them when needed.

And thankfully technology makes it even easier to stay in touch these days.

A - Z Challenge 2023 - L is for Love

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This year I'm writing about things connected with Being a Grandparent.  For an introduction to my grandchildren check out my theme reveal here.

Our capacity to love is a wonderful thing.

Having gone from 1 grandchild in 2017 to having 3 by mid 2018 and then 6 by the end of 2020 I am amazed at my ability to love them all.

Of course there are times when they frustrate me, same as my own kids did.  There are also times when they make me angry but always the love is there.  And it's unconditional.  

I've been asked if I feel the same love for Ella as there is no biological link with her (my daughter carried Nathan, her wife carried Ella) and my response was of course I do - she's my granddaughter! Why would I not love her?  Or love her any less?  I liken that to would I love their children if they were adopted?  Of course I would.

There are no limits on our ability to love.

A - Z Challenge 2023 - K is for Knitting

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This year I'm writing about things connected with Being a Grandparent.  For an introduction to my grandchildren check out my theme reveal here.

I haven't done a lot of knitting for my Grandchildren but they have all had a blanket made for them.

This tradition started when I knew my daughter was expecting Nathan.  I decided to knit a blanket for the baby.  Of course I didn't choose an easy granny square crochet blanket I chose a complicated knitted blanket.  

The centre square was fairly straightforward

But the panels around the edge were very hard.  I was glad to discover the use of a lifeline row in knitting because there were lots of mistakes made and I had to keep going back over the work.

And then of course Nathan decided to make an early appearance so the blanket wasn't even finished when he was born but I finished it fairly soon after.

Having made a blanket for Nathan it started the tradition but of course next time around I had two blankets to make.  Matt and Amy announced they were expecting and then Michael and Elizabeth announced they were expecting too and the babies were due within a few weeks of each other.  As it turned out there is only 2 weeks between Noah and Rory.

I opted for a slightly easier blanket but it still took a while to get them done especially when I realised that the edging was going to take almost as long as the main part of the blanket to knit!

By the time I was on my third round of blankets and needing 3 blankets as there are only 2 months between Vinny, Miles and Ella I'd opted for a much simpler design and they're not as big!

This is Miles with his blanket.  I couldn't find pictures of the ones I did for Vinny and Ella but hers was in different shades of pink - we knew she was going to be a girl.

My latest project, a knitted pig for Ella, is almost finished and I do have another blanket on the go.  Not sure who will get that one but with our extended family there are bound to be more babies coming along at some point.