Teenagers!!!

What a busy couple of weeks we've had...in case you didn't know this week my eldest daughter, Miss P became a teenager. It is simply beyond me how quick the time has gone since she was just a twinkle in her father and my eyes (a big twinkle at that).
I remember well the exact moment in which she was conceived (Oh yes!!! Don't worry won't share anything too graphic here!!) and the dreaded moment when I had to tell my father that I was pregnant....well it was all too obvious at that point that I was actually admitting to having had sex. I was 27 and had been with Tim for 7 years so it was probably quite obvious that such an act may have taken place but this was my first real confession. I also remember attending the antenatal clinic for the first time at 16 weeks and feeling like I had been a naughty girl!!
You'll be glad to hear that I am over such embarrassment now and three children on, consider myself 'old school' in the field of parenting. However, having a teenager some how makes me feel slightly old too. I look at my 'not so little' girl now and realise that she is becoming a young woman and with that her needs are changing. She is no longer so dependent on me in the same way. I'd like to think that we are friends and that she feels that she can talk and confide in me on any subject...let's see what happens.....

                                                          Out for a birthday treat
The Oxford Mail contacted us a little over a week ago to see if Miss P would like to be part of their Armistice day feature. Miss P (Poppy) was born on the 11/11 and obviously her name is significant. Having said that, she wasn't named Poppy due to being born on that day, it was just a name that we both liked.
They printed a lovely picture of her in three of their sister papers including half of the front page of The Oxford Times! What a lovely surprise. Thank you all for your lovely comments :-)

This birthday has been eagerly awaited and planning has been silently (and not so silently) been going on in the background for months...probably since the last birthday!
When the day arrived, Miss P still trundled into my room first thing to wake me insisting that I watch her opening her presents. I am always so tired in the Winter months and a rude 7am awakening is almost painful....but you have to show enthusiasm on such occasions, so from the comfort of my cosy bed, one eye open although mentally still away in Fairyland, I watched the whole procedure.
My gift was a pair of glossy, bright pink DM's......hehe.....tiny little legs with giant pink boots!!...They're pretty cool really!
The sharing of gifts always makes me chuckle. I've always brought the children up to feel it's OK to make gifts yourself, and it is the process of giving and the thought that is involved that is important. This year The Little Lady gave Miss P one of her handbags that Miss P particularly likes, on loan for two years!! Children are so funny!
To me entering the teenage years marks the official start of adolescence (although obvious signs can in reality begin much earlier), the period of change and growth that marks the journey from childhood to adulthood. The developing young person frequently resorts from one state (that of childhood) to another (adulthood) during this time of transition. I am glad that this year out family birthday traditions of balloons on the birthday person's chair and the setting of the birthday ring on the table, were still accepted and appreciated. I too have them out when it is my birthday, so let's hope that such traditions will remain alive and practised.

Last night was my lovely teenager's birthday party. An obvious sign of change was the fact that I didn't have to painstakingly plan out an amazing birthday party as has previously been expected (the world of birthday parties is really quite an eye opener as many of you will know. For me I have a reputation to uphold as I have given quite a lot of time and attention to such matters over the past years and have come up with some great ideas. I still have The Little Lady and Small Boy to keep the tradition going). Miss P planned out the whole event by herself including making invitations, planning games, writing a food list etc....of course I still had to cook the stuff and wait on her and her guests .....and clean up grrrrrr....(look forwards to the day when she takes over that bit too :-) although imagine it may be many years off yet!!).
Such a gathering of girls was the perfect opportunity for one Small Boy to create havoc, however, on this very rare occasion he managed to keep his horns under control and pretty much left the ladies to their socialising!
I found myself redundant by 9pm last night, so pootled off to bed to the sound of laughter and banging from downstairs *(the banging being the girls apparently jumping around in their sleeping bags pretending to be giant caterpillars!!!)...

This was our first attempt at using roll-on icing....well the cake itself wasn't straight which didn't help! The butterflies were 3D stickers....

All is quiet as I speak, the house resumes a state of calm (sort of) and my family unit is once again just us....until next year!!