Yesterday we spent the entire day on the beach and it was beautiful, the water still and clear, a gentle breeze in the air and enough cloud cover to take the edge off the heat. Babe slept for nearly three hours with OH on a sun lounger in the middle of the day, and although I was really tired, as Babe is now waking four times p night, I was hugely relieved that his temperature had finally subsided and I was happy just to hold him and gaze at the water. I do so love to be by the sea.
All in all, it has been a pretty good holiday I guess, really. As good as it probably gets with kids, anyway. Much easier to be staying in a home environment than a hotel, and with the beach and promenade for evening jaunt just down the road, you can't really go wrong. Auntie Eleni has been hugely useful, holding New Babe so that I can attend to Babe or dip in the sea. We haven't had to cook a meal (although Babe hasn't eaten one...) and most of our clothes are washed ready to put in the suitcase. Along with more bottles of honey, olive oil and home-brewed booze than we can hope to make it back to Blighty unbroken.
Our soujourn hasn't been without its traumas, but when did we ever have a holiday that was? And although OH and I didn't really have time to connect, we have both managed to relax, and I saw glimpses of our old selves when he started to joke with me in front of his mum as he used to. How having kids changes your life completely! I didn't even consider feeling hacked off that we weren't getting off the beaten track to unspoilt beaches with them - it felt like a massive feat just to get to the beach with everything we needed to pass a couple of hours there in one piece. I guess things will be even harder next year (yes, I already realise the inevitability of these holidays...) with New Babe toddling around and putting everything within reach in his mouth.
Last night it rained heavily, and it's cool and cloudy today. Much better, this, than to be leaving on a beautiful beach day. I have come out as OH is trying to fix some electrical connections at home, it is muggy indoors, and Babe is crawling up the wall. Last night I had 'words' with my mother-in law when she let Babe scribble with a biro on some new bed sheets. I am close to losing my rag completely with her, and don't want to end the holiday on a bad note. I am preparing an entry on my mother-in-law, as she is a complex character, to say the least...
As things stand, I have been predicatably grumpy enough for them all to be quite relieved when we go. We're getting Auntie Eleni onto skype from a neighbour's house so that they can all see the kids between holidays.
I am very glad that we left the house clean and tidy, so we won't have lots to do when we get home, and can hopefully have a nice weekend together without OH moaning about the weather.
And I am already working on a new list of resolutions for when we get home that includes:
- Agreeing on how we discipline Babe so that he doesn't play us off against one another
- Agreeing on which second language - Greek or Albanian - we are going to teach both boys, and making this happen by scheduling a half hour per week for learning new words and phrases together
- Trying to hold my tongue when I start to feel angry
- Try and get New Babe to wake a bit less at night
- Try and ensure that OH deals with Babe in the night.
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