A Holiday with Sprat

I miss Sprat.  Before he started school we spent so much time together. Since starting school we don't spend anywhere near the amount of time together as we used to, and I feel like there is a bit of a gap in our life together.  Its not anything I can specifically identify, but there have been changes since he started school and I felt like I needed to capture some one on one time with him, to re-connect, have some special bonding time, observation time (for me, on him) and to just have some fun together.  Just the two of us.

So we flew to the Gold Coast for a week.  Just Sprat and I.

We got to sleep uninterrupted by little sisters who like to turn on lights and play in the early hours of the morning, disrupting the whole house.

We spent a-lot of time together in the pool, Sprat learning to trust me and me learning to stay on my toes.

Sprat learnt about travelling - mainly the patience of waiting on public transport, transfers and delayed planes.

I got to observe him while he played alone, reminding me that first thing in the morning he likes to play alone until he 'wakes' up properly, which is why we often have tantrums in the morning as little brothers often don't comply to his alone time.  It also reminded me of how much he enjoys playing by his own rules and why he leads so much in playtime with Danger Mouse and The Girl.

I learnt just how far I can push and encourage him and I also learnt where the boundaries are before I push him too far, and the consequences of that.

We talked a-lot, again with no interruptions, and I was able to encourage him to talk to me about his frustrations, his likes and dislikes, about courage and trying new things.

I've come home feeling totally reconnected to him and so blessed that we were able to spend that rare time together.  Its definitely something I am going to do with Danger Mouse and The Girl when they turn 6 as well.