Some Things Are Not Meant to Happen

I don't work on a Friday, or to be more accurate I don't go to one of my jobs on a Friday, but instead I run around like a headless chicken trying to catch up with all the jobs that I haven't managed to fit in during the week. Last Friday was more chaotic than ever because I was getting everything ready for a weekend trip to Plymouth to deliver Christmas presents to my in laws and to my niece and nephew. So by the time I sank into bed I was so tired that could hardly stay awake long enough to set the alarm clock.

Saturday mornings are not designed for getting up early so when the alarm clock went off at 4.30am I found it very hard to drag myself out of bed and even harder to prod 'sleeping beauty' into action. By quarter past six or thereabouts (Robbie hates it when I am so vague about train times!) Robbie, my son and I were safely on board the train to Birmingham New Street ready to begin our journey to the South West. 


My son was idly looking through his film magazine when he looked up and informed me that he had something else to add to his Christmas list. He will be 17 just days before Christmas and he has a keen interest in clothes, fashion and grooming products. As I have mentioned in previous posts, he has his own particular style. He likes skinny chinos, polo shirts, bow ties, shoes of all kinds and just like Robbie he has a passion for bags, rucksacks and wallets. I thought that the new item for his wish list would be clothing of some sort but I was almost speechless when he told me that he wanted a onesie! I asked if he was serious and he patiently explained that they are very popular this year. He wants a black one with a skeleton design, he is tall and thin, but even so I can't imagine that a onesie will be very flattering. He told me about some of the other designs he has seen recently including one with a Superman theme, a tiger, a cat, a panda and a devil as well as some more 'ordinary' designs.


I was just getting used to the idea of a skeleton wandering around the house when Robbie dropped his bombshell. He had been listening to our conversation and he also wants a onesie! There are some things, such as me having my belly button pierced, that are just not meant to happen. Robbie in a onesie really has to be one of those things that should never happen. All sorts of images flashed through my mind from Dell Boy dressed as Batman to a middle aged Andy Pandy! Life is challenging enough already and having Robbie trotting around the house in a onesie (and no doubt attempting to go outside in it) is more than I can cope with!

All I Want for Christmas Is ................

Now that shopping and all the preparations for Christmas are in full swing I find myself thinking longingly of the days when I the children were little and shopping was so much easier. Back then money was still tight but almost everything wanted could be bought in one visit to Toys r Us, and when they woke up on Christmas morning their stockings were bulging. Now if their wish lists involve more effort in terms of shopping, have a bigger price tag and when the presents are wrapped and tucked under the tree they don't look very impressive, they certainly wouldn't fill a stocking! 

I still have younger children to buy for, three nephews and a niece and I have to admit that shopping for them has been the most enjoyable part of Christmas for me. My niece is 10, very grown up and very interested in fashion, so the main part of her present had a fashion design theme. She also loves reading, so I decided to buy her two books that I loved when I was young. It was hard to choose just two books, but it was very enjoyable to remember so many of the books that I enjoyed as a child. In the end I chose Charlotte Sometimes and Tom's Midnight Garden, both books had a similar theme, the connection between the past and the present. I hope she will enjoy them as much as I did.


My three year old nephew will be getting books as part of his present too. I bought him a set of Richard Scarry books and when Robbie saw them I thought he was going to burst with excitement. Apparently 'Cars, Trucks and Things That Go' was Robbie's favourite book when he was little, so I am sure he will enjoy reading the books with Oliver. The other part of his present also caused Robbie to reminisce, I bought him a Tonka truck. According to Robbie they were much better in the old days, but when he thought I wasn't looking I caught him admiring the new truck which makes realistic engine noises and has a special tool to change the tyres. 


I also caught my son looking longingly at my 5 year old nephew's present. I had chosen Transformers for him because he is car mad and I remembered how much my son liked Transformers. My son commented that it made him feel like adding a transformer toy to his own Christmas list - I wish he would, it would be a lot cheaper and less complicated than some of the things he wants!


It seems to me that part of the pleasure of Christmas comes from remembering the things and the people that made past Christmases special. I wonder what we will remember when we look back on this Christmas?

Trouble Afoot

I can't put it off any longer, I have to give serious consideration to buying Christmas presents. The girls are sorted now and most of the presents for the wider family have been bought, my main problems are Robbie and Sam. I made a big mistake in planning, Sam's birthday is on 20th December so that adds to my present buying problems, I have a few ideas but I am still not sure what he would like. Robbie knows exactly what he wants, but the thought terrifies me - he wants red tartan Dr Marten boots. What a vision, he would look like an ageing Bay City Roller! When I made it clear that there is no way that I am going to buy them, he suggested an alternative, Dr Martens with Union Jack toe caps - no way!! Why can't he just be normal?

A Kid in a Toy Shop!

We went to Toy R Us on Friday evening. Robbie was a bit subdued because he was worried about his friend who is ill, but it didn't take long before he was like a kid in a toy shop, in his case a very big kid! They now have a Lego themed feature wall with giant sized Lego men looking down on the shoppers. Robbie loves Lego and I was sure he would spot the digital camera made to look as if it was built from Lego bricks and the light that is like a pile of Lego bricks. He had passed the feature wall before he brightened up so he missed them, but I wouldn't be at all surprised if they find their way on to his Christmas list.

The real purpose of the visit was to buy Christmas and birthday presents for my nephew and niece rather than to provide a distraction for Robbie. Emily had come with us to help us to choose suitable gifts, it is surprising how soon you forget what sort of things interest suit a particular age group when your own children are well past that stage. Jack is four and the sort of child who never sits still, he loves cars but he has so many that choosing something that he didn't already have was almost impossible. There was a fire engine set with lots of accessories, it made three different siren noises, Jack would have loved it but my sister in law would never have forgiven me! Emily Led me to the back wall with a huge display of Playmobil, she eagerly pointed out all the sets that she used to have and declared that Playmobil was the best toy ever. After long discussion we decided on two different Playmobil sets, one for his birthday and one for for Christmas.

We noticed that we had mislaid Robbie somewhere in the store. He wasn't hard to find because he was wearing one of his more vivid tops. He had strayed to the other end of the back wall where every kind of Lego filled the shelves. A Lego Technic set had caught his attention and he was very reluctant to be dragged away. We didn't manage to drag him very far, he dug his heels in as we passed the Hornby section and we left him there while we went off to choose a present for a very bright and sophisticated nine year old. It proved very hard to choose, but Emily reminded me of how much she and Laura loved the kits that enabled them to make lotions and potions, soap making was a special favourite. I will not say exactly what we chose, but it was something along those lines.

Robbie was reluctant to leave, he had to check out the multi media section, then when I thought I would grow old waiting for him he went to look at bikes. The thought of Robbie on a bike fills me with horror, some people are not designed to wear lycra!!