Here are the lastest going's on in our little life as captured through my 'big' camera...

We went to visit the lovely Lucy and her family one Sunday and the weather was nice and warm so we went to the park.  Mads loved these wibbly wobbly things that bounced around when she went on with her Daddy.

I wonder if this girl will ever grow out of sucking her fingers when she is sleepy?  I don't think I ever want her to.

We have an aspiring Doctor in the house.  LL always gets the treatments- generally a bandage round her leg and then she needs to have her toes amputated. ;)

I love how much my Mum loves my girls.  And how much my girls love their Grandma.

 I love her big blue eyes...

And little pouty lips.

I love that she stares so intently at me nowadays.

Playing in the early evening sun when we went to our first BBQ of the year at my Dad's house.

And sneaking some cake at the same BBQ!

My sister with LL- she really is an Auntie in a million to both my girls.

We have had a new little baby join our family- Teddy, my Mum's new puppy who is four days younger than LL.

When we found out we were having another little girl at my twenty week scan I must admit to imagining two little girls with pretty blondy brown curls running around hand in hand- sharing toys, sharing secrets and of course causing their Daddy a lot of strife!

I knew that Mads would take having a new baby in her stride, she isn't a particularly clingy toddler, in fact she is pretty independent, so I thought that while we might have a bit of jealousy, she would be pretty relaxed about a new sibling shaking up her world.

What I didn't bargain for was that from the very second Mads first clapped eyes on LL when she came to meet her for the first time, she stepped into her role as 'big sister' in more ways than I could ever have imagined.  

I have never been so proud of the way in which Mads has completely embraced LL into our family, and the way she is with her makes my heart melt at least ten times a day.  I have friends with siblings who had said to me that the older one, while not jealous or upset by the arrival of the new baby, just wasn't particularly bothered and didn't pay them much attention.  

This couldn't be further from the case with Mads.  Every morning she comes into our room and calls out for 'Baby LL'.  She asks to cuddle her, she asks me to put her next to her in bed so she can snuggle up next to her and she constantly says 'I love Baby LL- she's my sister,' or 'We are best friends.'

She lies next to her on the sofa and strokes her ear, which is her comfort.  There is nothing better when you are tired than stroking your baby sister's ear!  When she gets up from her nap she always asks to go and see Baby LL.  

She talks to her and includes her in the conversations, say for example we go out she will say 'We are going to the park, aren't we Baby LL?'  Or 'Shall we go home and have lunch Baby LL?'  When people coo over her, Mads will say 'That's my sister.'  

At night time she will always give her a kiss goodnight and say 'Love you Baby LL.'  

I can honestly say she has never shown one single ounce of jealousy or animosity towards her new sister.  The way she is with her is just so kind and caring, she really does love her and I am so proud of her for the way she is with her.  

LL is just starting to notice her now, and I can't wait to see how their bond develops as she starts to get more interactive.  She is starting to give her beaming smiles and Mads always says 'Look Mummy Baby LL is smiling at me.'

I know that as they get older they will fight like cat and dog, after all that's what sisters are for, but I do hope that they will always be the very best of friends.  I really hope that I have given each of them a friend and a companion that they can depend on always and I hope that as they grow up they will stay as close.

It truly is a joy watching them together.  

My gorgeous little ladies.

And my very special sisters.

 ********

Some recent iPhone photos of my lovely sister's.

 When I was little, I used to love the bluebell season.  I remember every year going on a walk to see if we could find them, and I even remember once my friend having a fairy party in the middle of a field of them.  As a young girl, I remember seeing the beautiful blanket of blue on the ground and thinking it was magical.  I always remember going out walking with my Mum and Dad, with our dog, searching for conkers or looking at wild mushrooms.

So this past weekend I told Mr E and Mads we were off on a hunt for bluebells in a nearby wood.  Mr E looked a little bit unimpressed as there weren't many blankets of bluebells for him being a boy growing up in Manchester city, but he humoured me and off we all went.

They were every bit as magical as I remembered as a little girl.  We went to the same wood about three weeks ago and there was no sign of them, but almost overnight they have grown, and actually are on their way out as they don't stick around for long.

Ok so our journey wasn't quite so magical, it was muddy, we all got covered from head to toe in dirt, we couldn't sit on the ground to take photos because it was so wet, and Mads needed a poo and two wee's and we didn't take a potty with us. (Cue me holding her legs while she did her business- that is a memory in itself!)

But they were worth the journey to go and see them.

I want my girls to have a childhood full of magic and make believe.  

I want us to go hunting for fairies, looking for treasure, make dens in the garden, write letters to Father Christmas and look for the beauty in the ordinary world we live in.

Children seem in such a hurry to grow up nowadays and I feel really sad when I see young girls strutting around town in makeup and aspring to be people like the cast from TOWIE or Katie Price.

While I know my girl's will grow up and while I know I can't keep them innocent forever, while they are little and while they are still so pure and unaffected by the not so nice things in the world, I want to make sure that I give them a childhood full of imagination, fun and make believe.

There will be a time when searching for bluebells with their Mummy and Daddy couldn't be less fun, so I am going to enjoy every single cold, muddy, wet walk that we take.  Even if we do end up covered in dirt and even if I have to hold Mad's while she does a number two!

Because that's what being a parent is all about.  Getting up and out the house at 9am on a Sunday morning to have a little adventure.  Even if we are a bit tired, or stressed, or can't really be bothered.  

It's about making memories, having adventures and making sure they have a childhood they can look back on and smile about.

Because my little girls aren't going to be little forever.

This long Bank Holiday Weekend we mostly have been...

Basking on blankets in the sunshine (or in the shade if your LL!)

Meeting my in-laws in Stamford for the day and going for lunch and playing in the park.

Going down slides with Daddy really fast!

Having a picnic in the back garden.

Mixing paints in order to create masterpieces.

Creating those masterpieces.

Been put in stupid sun hats that completely ruin our street cred.

We went to the park for a walk and of course had to stop for an ice cream.

And we found a 'jungle' that needed exploring.

We stopped for a nice long picnic in the sunshine.

And lay on a blanket and looked up at the sky.

We went to a family BBQ at Grandma's house.

And we shared a joke with the rest of the family.

All in all it has been a lovely, relaxed long bank holiday with a mixture of DIY and house sorting thrown in for good measure.  

Why can't all weekend's be three days long?