• It takes 20 mins to get her to school in the pram (me walking fast).  It takes 45 mins if we go by public transport.  And it takes an hour or more if she walks.  As we have to be there before 9.30, we would have to leave the house at 8.15…this is when i normally get her up!
• Luca does what she does.  So then i would have 2 trying to walk to school!
• She is a slooooowww walker.  Everything Alina does, she does at her own pace.  Running or rushing is out of the question…my daughter strolls!
• She is a bit lazy…she does not like walking.  Even when we dont have the pram, she will often try to get me to lift her!
• She is often tried, and will fall asleep in the pram a few times a week.

So here is the thing, at 3.5 (just) is she too old to be in the pram?  What is the age they should stop using one for longer distances? As of now, she walks the last bit (3 mins!) to school and walks home most days, and as far as I am concerned that is fine!

Firstly Sylvia (teacher) is very happy with how she is getting on.  Alina is relaxed and happy there, participates in all the activities, and is doing really well with German.  We asked if there was any favourite activity, and it seems to be singing, dancing, and reading.  While she is happy to paint and make things, having seen her artwork, my daughter is not “that way inclined”….like her mother and father before her!

Sylvia was very impressed with her German, she says that Alina is talking to her in German, even repeating phrases that she may have heard only once.  The Catalan teacher says she understands everything and is speaking well, and thought that Spanish was her first language!  Sylvia definitely felt that languages is Alina´s very strong point.  I am so impressed with how she has fitted into a school where they speak two languages she did not know (German fully in class, and 2 mornings of Catalan with another teacher).

Another thing Sylvia commented on is that she is perfectionist.  We also knew this.   She likes everything to be just so…including the helm of her tights.  She gets nervous around new situations, and but once she is familiar with it, she relaxes and enjoys it.  She likes plenty of encouragement…the Leo in her?

Alina is an observer….she takes everything in before she commits or passes her judgement.  She is very independent and likes to do things for herself.  This means she is also slow at doing things…and she will not be rushed.

She eats well, even things that she does not love, she will try to eat.  She likes to finish her food, but if she says she is done, she is done.

And then the area of concern….friends.  Alina, while fitting it (no bullying or being bullied),  is perfectly happy to play by herself.  All the time.  While there is one girl she plays with on occasion, she does not really have friends…and this does not bother her at all.   I knew this.  And yet i found it hard to hear.  My daughter is reserved.  Happier in the company of adults she knows, her baby brother, or just by herself.  Even kids she knows, she will not make a huge effort to integrate with.

There is no doubt she takes time to warm up…to all adults and new situations…but she does warm up.  She is quite shy initially, which given her aura of confidence, this can be seen as aloofness at times.  Sylvia said it was important for us to arrange more play dates and encourage her to hang out with kids.  She also said she needs alone time with us…something we also knew (i have a half day with her during the week while i leave luca at school),  but it is good to have it reinforced.

Sylvia said she has a strange mix…she is timid, but yet with a very strong character.

All in all, I think the above is very accurate.  My daughter is happy and kind, but also reserved and nervous.  She is gifted at languages and not so gifted creatively.  She is polite and does not misbehave, and is happy to toe the line unless it is something she is really uncomfortable doing.  Alina is a perfectionist, independent, and advanced but also really needing praise and encouragement.  She can be a bit of a loner, happy with her books.  She likes to be in her comfort zone, and needs time to warm up to new people and new situations, but will try anything (that does not seem scary!).  She can be self conscious.  She also loves having fun.

My Princess is nearly 3 and a half, and in many ways she really does remind me of my Granny Garvey at times.  I am so proud of my happy, independent, thoughtful, easy, little lady.  Of course there are always areas that we need to help and encourage her with, but overall the review went very well. We are incredibly lucky.

On Sunday we went to the beach. As we all know Alina is a cold creature, but there she was in short sleeves, tights and boots discarded nearby, rolling around in the sand! There were even people (probably Irish) sunbathing!! We sat there with a beer, while the kids made sandcastles. It was perfect. Days like that really make you want to stay in this lovely city.

This morning I got up late. Tim had not gotten Alina up so then we were all late. Getting dressed and ready went smoothly enough, but of there is one thing Alina does not respond well to it is being rushed. And so she balked at putting her jacket on. Then the meltdown arrived.   In the end I got angry, and then I forcibly put her into the pram. She was screaming, I was giving out, luca said not a peep as we rushed out the door. For half the journey she screamed and I lectured, while  at the same time running down the street (you cannot get to Alina’s school after 9.30 or the doors close until 10). Then I listened to myself, realized that the horrible drama was mine of the making, stopped the pram and asked her if she wanted a hug. She did. And showed me a sore finger that I really hope was not caused by me!! I apologized for shouting, she said “I dont like it when you get cross” as we hugged each other.  After a few minutes of hugs we continued on our way.

She got into school on time.  But then started saying that today she did not look nice though, and I realized that part of the problem this morning was not just that I was rushing her, but that I had got her to put jeans on for the first time in months (she really only wants to wear dresses). After a promise that I would collect her with a change of clothes (a pink dress and purple tights to be exact), she gave me a kiss and walked in happily. Next dropped off a happy luca and headed for home. It was then, having realised how much I am failing on my first new year resolution (patience) and judging from the sad feeling in my chest, that the guilt set in. And right now, I feel like the worst mother in the world.

So now i am brushing for 2+ minutes every time, and i swear it makes a big difference!  I tried to do the same for the kids (was thinking that if i got to 1-1.5 minutes it would be successful as they have fewer teeth), but i now realise that with Luca i would have as much hope of climbing mount Everest without oxygen as getting him to allow me to brush his teeth for that length of time.  But we live in hope

Get focused

Be present

Be more patient

Be proactive

Live healthier

Connect more

Be responsible

Be more aware

Be positive

Be thankful

Yesterday was easy, i was full of determination. Today i really missed my morning coffee! And my barry´s tea with milk when i felt cold. Can honestly say i am not feeling more energetic, healthier, or thinner. But then again it is only day 2…many more days to go!!

Both kids had to be woken up at 8, and while luca only cared about getting his milk, Alina had real trouble getting out of bed. She spent 5 minutes trying to convince me it was still nighttime, and then I got the “I don’t want to go to school”. Dressing was also not that easy, but nor was it too hard.  Getting the clothes out with her the night before has definitely made things easier, but i slipped in a pair of tights into the pile – tights that are a bit big, so they wrinkle, so she wont wear them.  Luckily other pink tights were found and we moved onto the kitchen. Alina ate breakie, luca said “um, yummy porridge”, and ate nothing much.  Washing teeth was hard work…alina does not like the floride toothpaste, so we had some tears and luca would not open his mouth.  But we prevailed.  Then It was putting on coat time and the fun really started! While tim was getting the pram downstairs I was running after luca, and Alina was sitting in the coach, shoe and coat less, insisting on watching something…by now we were nearly late. With both in tears, 1 feeding off the other, we got them strapped in and out the door. Just outside Alina realized she was actually excited about going back and seeing her teacher and friends. And luca realized what was happening and the crocodile tears came, interrupted with pleading sounds of “papa?” and “home?”.

Alina walked in fine, no problem saying goodbye, although it was still too early to get much smiles or chat from her! Luca was sad, but also happy to see his teacher coco, and his friend Todd. He had stopped the tears before I left. In fact I got a big kiss and hug from both.

All that was left was for me to walk home and get into bed for a while! It was a nearly unimagineable luxury!

I admit that around lunchtime the house felt a little too quiet, and by 3.30 i was really looking forward to collecting them, but I was also rested and ready for action. Now lets see what the rest of the week brings.

• Be more patient, esp to the people closest to me.. specifically think before i speak when annoyed, try to breath and count to 3 before responding and go for empathy as first emotion!
• Find a job that i like
• Manage money more effectively
• Smile more….especially in the morning when i find it hardest
• Give 6pm to 8pm to kid time….no computers or phones (unless it is an emergency)
• Learn to cook one delicious meal
• Stay better in touch with my family, particularly my parents…call at least one a week and text each parent twice a week
• Be more consistent with the kids…and yes this does mean put in more of a routine
• Be healthier – specifically:
• Drink more water and less toxins!!,
• Exercise…i know i always say it, and i am not going to commit to the gym, but i need to exercise 4 days a week (the school run counts)
• Stay off the cigs
• Eat healthier….much less in-betweens (this is for all the family!)
• Loose the last baby kilos!
• Visit my godson
• Write in the now-non-existent blog at least once a month
• Stress less about things i cannot change, and be responsible fot the things that i can improve
• Be less lazy…push myself to do the unpleasant things more
• Keep the house cleaner
• Connect with a far away friend every month
• Be there for my friends. Listen more, talk less. Awareness, awareness awareness.
• Have a nature outing once a month…may just be me sitting on the beach with a book
• Stay in Barcelona
• Have a date night once a week (with my hubby!!)
• Get us all to the dentist twice this year!
• Have a family outing every week
• Sign the kids up for a course they love…would like to take luca swimming and alina dancing
• Take a class or do an activity that i have not done before
• Try not to put things on the long finger as much …new mantra “do it now!”
• Travel to a new place (a new country is the real aim)
• Set a better example for my kids.
• Appreciate more all that i have….especially appreciate my husband more