A - Z Challenge 2023 - A is for Adorable

Please check out the April Blogging from A to Z Challenge
#AtoZChallenge
a-to-zchallenge.com

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

Adorable

I am unashamedly besotted with all my grandchildren.   They are all adorable in their own way and I have been fortunate to have been very hands on with several of them, helping out with childcare while their parents worked.

I love being a grandparent but it is very different from being a parent.  For starters you get to give them back at the end of a babysitting stint!  You also worry far more about them when they’re in your care.  God forbid anything should happen to them on your watch!  Thankfully, so far, there have been no major incidents while I’ve been in charge.  Of course you’re never really in charge because these little demons angels have minds of their own.

It’s not always easy working out what is going on in their heads but they are all nearly talking now so it’s getting easier to understand them and if they’re having trouble getting what they want Miles, for example, will just take you by the hand and drag you to whatever it is he’s after.  Vinny on the other hand will just tell me – “Nanny don’t do that” or “Nanny do it” spring to mind.

We are Nanny and Grandpa to them.  This is a mixture of our own parents – mine were Nanny and Grandad and Hubby’s were Grandma and Grandpa.  I never wanted to be a Grandma but sometimes I wish calling myself Nanny didn’t make some people think I’m just a hired help.  For a while Nathan referred to me as Nana and it almost stuck but we all used Nanny so much that he stopped doing it.  Sometimes more recently he has even referred to me as Nan.

This is just one example of how things may change as they get older but at the moment they are all still young and yes, in my eyes, adorable.

Friday's Fave Five - 31/3/23

Thanks to our host Susanne for keeping us on our toes on Fridays and finding the blessings in our week.  Find out more here.

1)  Grandson Nathan is 6 today!

This was taken earlier this month on World Book Day and this was when he was about a week old.

He gave us all such a scare when he arrived so early (@ 29 weeks) and so tiny (just over 2 pounds) but he did so well and now he is 6 - where do the years go?  We're joining them after Nathan gets home from school today.

2)  A better babysit with Nathan and Ella last Friday - no screaming from Ella and we managed to get them both to bed and asleep before their Mummies came home.  

3)  A Knit and Natter session Wednesday evening - our organiser is housebound at the moment due to breaking her kneecap recently.  She is on the mend and can actually walk short distances in her leg brace but she can't bend her knee more than 30 degrees at the moment so sitting on ordinary chairs is a bit difficult.  Anyway she asked me to collect the door key for the venue and host in her place and at one point it looked as if there were going to be quite a lot of us there including some new people.  I was a bit concerned we might be tight for space as the venue is not very big, plus I was worried that some of the new people might be looking to learn to knit and I don't feel I'd be able to teach anyone.  As it turned out it was very wet and windy that evening so only 5 of us turned up but 2 of those were new.  One of them could knit and the other one brought a crochet project so it all turned out fine!

4)  A few breaks in the rain this week so I could get some walking done.  Nothing exciting but I do like to keep my step count up.  I've also found time to get some of my April A - Z blogging challenge posts prepared and scheduled to post.  You can find out more about this challenge here.

5)  Online grocery shopping.  I know this is a regular one here but I'm grateful at the moment that I seem to get everything I order in my delivery.  Some things, eggs in particular, have been in short supply recently and, even though there have been no eggs in the supermarket, they've been in my delivery each week so I'm thankful for that.

Have a good weekend all.

Friday's Fave Five - 17/3/23

And......It's Friday again!

Time to take a breath and look back on the good things of the last week and then link up here on Susanne's blog and check out other participants.

Apologies for not posting the link last week or responding to comments on my blog, although I think I did get around to visiting everyone that took part.

Anyway here are mine for this week:

1)  Lots of time with Grandkids.  We had the local 4 here (and their parents) for lunch on Sunday.  Totally chaotic but always lovely to see them all having fun together.  On Monday we had Ella here while her Mummy had lunch with her Dad.  An easier babysit this time as before Mummy left we walked down to the station together and Ella fell asleep.  Predictably she was a bit upset when she woke up but her other Mummy was working here so we soon got over that.  We spent quite a while playing with Playdoh.  I missed the opportunity to take pictures - Ella decided not to sit at the table while we played but ON the table lol.

Tuesday I spend a short time with both Ella and Nathan while their Mummies had a zoom call with Nathan's teacher - his school are still doing parent evenings remotely.  He's doing well.

Then on Wednesday I had to collect Rory from school as it was a strike day and he finished at 2pm.  I picked him up and took him home to his home and also got a bit of time with Vinny when he came back from nursery.

2)  A few walks this week although nowhere exciting.  It's been quite rainy on and off so it was a case of watching out for dry spells and also avoiding the very muddy forest areas.  Still good to get out for the fresh air and exercise.

3)  A knit and natter meet up on Wednesday evening.  There were only 5 of us but it's always a pleasant way to spend an evening.

4)  Reading time.  I've managed to get through 2 books this week but I'm still behind in my reading challenge thanks to taking so long to read A Prayer for Owen Meany.  Susanne asked if it was worth reading and I would say it is - Irving is a very talented writer but if you don't like long books or ones that are slow leading up to the finale then give it a miss.

5)  A surprise little payback from one of the mortgage companies we were with.  Apparently they calculated their charges incorrectly so we're due a refund.  Not a big amount but a nice surprise.

This was the only photo I took this week but it is cute.

Ella

Have a good weekend all.

A-Z Challenge 2023 - Theme Reveal

I was in two minds as to whether I would take part in this year’s A-Z challenge.  I found in February and this month that I lost my enthusiasm for blogging a bit.  Some days it felt almost like a chore to post a blog and many days I just didn’t post at all.  I also have the added complication of hosting guests during April so I know I will need to have as many posts prepared and scheduled to post in advance. 

But, I’ve always found that a challenge tends to reset my blogging rhythm so I’m in.  For the 9^th year in a row.  However, I’m being a bit lazy in that my theme doesn’t involve a lot of research or travelling around.  I’ve decided to simply write about something I love – Being a Grandparent.

I am blessed with 6 grandchildren who, at the time of writing are all under the age of 6.  Let me introduce them here briefly.  (Of course they will get their own posts when the appropriate letter arrives!)

Nathan is the eldest (he will turn 6 at the end of this month) and is the son of my daughter Rebecca and her wife Victoria.  He is also big brother to my youngest Grandchild, Ella.  Ella is 2 and the only girl amongst them.  I’m sure she will be a princess or a complete tomboy depending on her mood at the time.  They live about 3 miles away from us so we see a lot of them.

My elder son Matthew and his wife Amy have 2 boys.  Noah is 4, and Miles is 2.  They live in Nottingham so we don’t see quite so much of them as the others but they often come to visit for a few days at a time.

Our younger son Michael and his wife Elizabeth also have 2 boys, Rory and Vinny (Vincent).  They are also 4 and 2 respectively and live about 7 miles from us and again we see quite a lot of them.

Between the lot of them they keep me busy and, hopefully, young!

Noah, Nathan & Rory
Miles, Vinny & Ella
February 2023