Boys will be girls sometimes

On our trek to the Disney Store to purchase a special present for our girl who is now amazingly potty trained (honestly, could I be more proud, or Stevie happier that we've halved our subscription to Pampers) I pointed out to Stevie a poster in a card shop window advertising Mothers Day. I'd like to think I saw a look of shame coming across his face following the Valentines Lie debacle, but I fear it's wishful thinking. Anyway, I let him off the hook and said he can add the cost of his 'make-believe' present to my all-very-real expensive camera fund which I shall be cashing in in Germany.

I really want to be able to take nice photos and capture decent light without everything else going fuzzy. Admittedly my 40 photos of the kids a day habit is only going to get worse, but at least they'll hopefully be nicer then the 20,000 I've already taken.

Going back to our trip to the Disney Store, the surprise was how much Hamish liked it. I wouldn't say I am a particular Disney fan, so I think we have only been there maybe once since we've had the kids, but Hamish really loved it. Plus, it restored Stevie's faith that Hamish is not actually a girl in disguise watching him shouting 'car! car! car!' and 'Manny!' and showing great desire for all manner of boyish things. After a morning where they fought over who was wearing the pink sequinned beret on our walk round to the butcher's shop, this settled Stevie more than you could imagine.

We (I say 'we' but possibly mean 'I') have never had an issue with Hamish's love of girly things. Certainly Stevie is not at all bothered by Hamish playing with the little pink pushchair or sucking a pink floral dummy, or even wearing Orla's old pyjamas (unlike other parents we know who just would not tolerate it), but his forays into wanting to wear beads, clasps, hairbands, pink Peppa Pig socks, and wear mummy's make-up I think have him a little more concerned.

I don't think it is an issue at all. He just really admires Orla and wants to be like her, and he is so boyish in other ways and I see Orla wanting to be like him so what's the difference. As for wanting to 'help' with my make-up, he also likes to 'help' unload the dishwasher, and I am certainly not going to stop him from doing that! Or the hoovering which I have worked hard to make it seem like a coveted task. Ha ha!

Sex, Lies, and Valentines Day

It may be a few days since Valentines Day, but it's taken me this long to get over my gift. I have to say from the off that I did get a box of chocolates and a bottle of cava, so he's not that bad, but my main present, wait for it, was a lie about a hair appointment.

How crap is that? He told me he had booked me in to Tony and Guy at 3pm on Friday afternoon with someone called Rachel. I knew as soon as he said it that it was a lie, but he insisted that it wasn't. Why bother??? When I asked if I phoned them to check or if I turned up on Friday would I make a complete fool of myself he was adamant that I would not, but he started having to hide a smile, so that fully confirmed it as a lie. He just cannot keep a straight face when he is lying. The rotter.

So in fact I felt annoyed with him in the end, when really he should have just said nothing and things would have been much better.

I am going to get him a lie about a Porsche and an unbooked trip to New York for his birthday...