Week in the life | Sunday – Catching the Magic

Our first ‘garage sale’ has been and gone, with lots of preparation and sorting out – but only a few customers (we only told friends). Nevertheless, it was an amusing exercise for Charlotte and Sophie – with long, detailed discussions on garage sale etiquette and how best to sell, a sharing out of the float so they could have equal responsibility for the cash flow, talks on who would be selling what, how and why… (there were many times I thought, ‘Why did I say *yes*?!’).

When 10am struck on the clock, and there was no sudden ‘rush’ of willing customers, the girls started to watch the clock, sitting at their posts waiting to sell, with guarded dedication. I decided my time would be better spent out of the way – with Alice removed from potentially disturbing the ‘display stands’ – so I set off to do the weekly food shop with my little helper instead.

Alice was the best helper she’s ever been at the supermarket. She hates sitting in the trolley seat, but loves to help (only, up until now her version of helping has been very different to mine).

This time round she actually stayed close to the trolley and I. She also *mostly* put only what she was asked to in the trolley. She even caught the attention of a few smiling ladies and even received a few comments of, ‘What a very good girl you are!’ (which she repeated to me several times, ‘That lady said I was a good girl…’). One lady stopped to admire Alice placing carrots in a bag. She told Alice that eating carrots made her hair curl. Alice replied, ‘Mmm, I like carrots and horses do too.’

When we got to the checkout I quickly made some space in the trolley for Alice to stand – so that she could assist in placing the contents on the conveyor belt. And when we’d done with loading up – and she wasn’t interested in waiting in the seat on the trolley – I asked her to stay close, whilst I loaded up the trolley with food bags, and she did (phew… this was a very pleasant change – I’m normally juggling bags and chasing Alice at sprint speed towards the exit door – with her looking over her shoulder back at me, giggling hilariously.).

By the time we got back home we’d missed seeing a couple of my friends – but they’d left my girls smiling by making a couple of purchases (thank you!). A lovely surprise was to return back to see the lovely Cyndi (Latte Junkie) and her son and husband. I made sure Dan made her a proper Latte (after he’d previously served her a plunger coffee).

By the afternoon, after our friends had left (and it was apparent no one else was going to turn up), I started to look forward to a nap with Alice – she eventually surrendered to sleep – lying down on the living room floor like a starfish. I took her upstairs to snuggle up (and read a bit more of the ‘Hunger Games’), whilst Dan took the girls out to Cuba Street for a little spend of their makings (they are now addicted to ‘Trashie Monsters’ – junk to me – but they played with them for four hours without an argument… though I can envisage some ‘trading’ disagreements in the near future!).

Alice and I met up with them after her nap and enjoyed a yummy pizza dinner, before heading home at dusk. Alice was so excited to see her friend ‘the moon’ out of the car window, squealing with delight and saying, ‘Hello moon!’. Later on she had a chat with Grandma and Granddad in England (on Skype) and asked, ‘How many moons do you have?’. They replied, ‘Only one. How many do you have?’. Alice said, ‘Many, many stars, but only one moon and a crescent moon’. So cute – love the way she adores the moon and marvels at it (just like her sisters did at that age).

I just wish Alice would stop waking up in the middle of the night to ‘party’ with the moon! She’s on a huge developmental learning curve – coupled with four molars yet to break through and getting ready to drop down her day nap.

Charlotte & Sophie got off to sleep well – after a few games with Daddy.