I have offended their delicate sensibilities!

The girls are mad at me - all three of them. My new job - will from time to time mean that I have to be away from home for a few nights once in a while. This week I was away for two nights and I missed my family terribly. This is something I am just going to have to get used to. They on the other hand are not so willing. Amy is mad at me, as I quote she did not like life as a single parent. At least I know that I contribute and am appreciated. All I can say is - think of the money my lovely! Lucy was mad at me whilst I was away and would not talk to me on the phone. I have been home for 24hrs and Anna will still not give me a hug. Child number two looks like she may bear grudges as she grows up! Anna has had a rotten week, complete with coughing and sleepless nights with her teeth. Thankfully these sleepless nights happened while I was in Oxford. To all three of you, I know you are mad at me, but I do love you and I did miss you very much.....

She's a talkative and assertive little soul...

Anna is finding her voice. Day by day she is increasing her repertoire of words and at times getting louder and definitely more assertive. Her 'NO' may yet become famous in this parts! She is mastering words from bubble to yellow and her personality is shining through. She can convey her needs and her dislike, oh boy can she convey her dislike. She can tell me she needs a cuddle and when she has had a poo - two essential parts of life. Best of all she can now tell her sister off, so it will be really interesting to watch how the sibling dynamic develops. Lucy has been top dog for so long now, but there is a new order in town. Let the battle begin.

Thank god somebody can cook....

There is one very real weakness in my parenting skills that really needs discussion and that is my complete lack of ability to feed my girls anything other than a cheese and mayo sandwich and a packet of crisps. The healthy diet that they eat is something that I only Amy can take the credit for. The reason I bring this up today is that I came to the harsh realisation that Lucy is a more skilled cook than I will ever be. A four year old, for god's sake! Armed and dangerous, with Lucy in her chef's getup, Lucy and Amy concocted the most amazing meringue today, complete with blueberries, strawberries and lashing of cream. Ummmmmm! I am simply a consumer, not a creator and that's the way it is going to stay. Anna, who has had a really difficult week with her teeth, chilled out on the sofa on a lazy Sunday morning whilst this culinary genius took place in the kitchen. Anna, when fit and well has probably got more skill in the kitchen than I have as well.....

They do make presumptions....

Got a new job this week. Am really delighted. I have been appointed an acting regional manager and have been given the opportunity to prove myself over a period of months. I am so proud of this and if I can do well it will have such a positive impact on our lives as a family if I can secure a permanent contract. Fact: I am am smoker and a non driver. Now Lucy has now made the association that all smokers can't drive. As well as the constant nagging she inflicts on me about my smoking, she also thinks I am a non driving Muppet. Right then Lucy Hammond, the battle is on on two fronts. Firstly I am going to learn to drive, then I will give up smoking. I am deeply proud of this new work opportunity, but if I can do these two things they will be so important to my family. So watch this space and here I go, if only to prove Lucy wrong! Lucy - tip about your Daddy - as the years go by you will learn. Never lay down the gauntlet to me, as then I will get stubborn and have a go to prove you wrong and that's a promise....She looks a bit worried doesn't she?

Half term goes on without me...

I am, to say the least, a little bit envious as the delectable Mrs H is having a fantastic half term with the girls full of new experiences now the sickness has subsided and I am stuck at work.One more day and then I have a few days with them. Today Lucy has had a cracker with two firsts, one of which I am gutted that I did not witness. Lucy had her first trip to the cinema today to watch the 'Princess and the Frog' and thought it was amazing. Amy says she was such a good girl, although she did ask lots of questions usually involving the word why! The other experience was her first trip to the dentist for a check up - Mrs H can keep that one all to herself. Every thing that Lucy does day by day changes as she grows and develops and I just want to see it all. Even small things as watching her now being able to colour within the lines are great to watch. Can't wait to take her to our first film together.....Toy Story 3 in the summer here we come....

The holiday jinx goes on and on...

Whenever we look forward to time with the girls and it's the school holidays or half term the dreaded Hammond curse strikes again and one of them is poorly. Anna's turn this time, it took a matter of hours on Saturday as we headed to Lucy's swimming lesson for her to throw up in the car and us to head straight back home again! She did recover sufficiently to bring out her 'Hetty Hoover' and help out her old Daddy with the housework. Now, bless her, today she is suffering with conjunctivitis and screams with her eye drops. It's all good fun. Don't you just love that thing they called sods law. Oh for a half term free from illness for the family Hammond.......PLEASE!

P.S thank you to all my girls for my lovely valentines pictures and my jacket. Pictures proudly displayed on office wall at work already...

I do wonder how they are doing...

I believe my girls are doing well and that they are developing as they should, but a source of constant worry to me is and always has been whether they are bright and have skills. I don't want them to struggle in any way and any parent you ask that does not want their children to be the best or the quickest to learn something would be blatantly lying to you. With Lucy, she is the oldest and I never know things that a four year old should be able to achieve and what the benchmark is for learning to read and write for example. As Anna grows up, you would think that I would be able to use what I learnt from Lucy when she was Anna's age, but they are so different in their skills that for a novice such as me it is hard to use them as a comparison. Take problem solving for instance. Anna is far more patient and methodical than Lucy will ever be. Lucy has great imagination and is very social with a fantastic memory for things. I suppose I am just hoping for a pair of good all rounders that will be able to make their way in the world. What has set me off on this parental analytic neurosis is that when I dropped off the girls off at nursery this morning Lucy revealed a few things that I did not know she knew - for example she expertly sang me the alphabet song 'ABCDEFG etc' and reeled off facts about food, vegetables, sugar contents and what we should and should not eat. I was very impressed and it just got me thinking whether this was a sign of intelligence or normal? Whatever the answer I know I was proud...