Winter has to be the hardest time of year for any parent.  The mornings are dark and the days are horribly short.  This means that our adorable little cherubs quickly turn into caged demons!

The lack of sunshine in the morning on the way to school means that, as parents, we fret that our children are safe. Can they be seen if it is foggy or misty as they cross roads to get to school.  You try getting a year 7 girl to wear a hi-vis jacket or arm band over her blaser! It’s just not going to happen.  It’ll be stuffed in a bag before she’s round the next corner.

There are problems at the other end of the day too.  When the children come home from school in summer, there are hours of daylight left for them to play outside and explore and generally get up to mischief without being under my feet!

In winter, by contrast, it is dark by the time the kids get home and too dark to call for friends or play outside. Besides which, it is usually too wet, or cold for outdoor play in the middle of January.  As a result we have bored children moping around the house, vegetating in front of computers and games consoles, flicking aimlessly through channel after channel but watching nothing.

The other outcome of course, where there is more than one child, is that they fight like cat and dog because they don’t have the space they need. Especially pre-teens!  Our house is a war zone at the moment.

Bring on the good weather (lets hope we have some this year!) and a chance for the kids to get some fresh air and excersise and for me to get my sanity back!

Useful and Interesting Items:
volantini
Gardeing Equipment
Garden Furniture www.blueworldgardener.co.uk
Slate Roof
Abbey Lawn Garden Products