The Cupboard

  The cupboard never got cleaned.

And it needed cleaning and tidying for sure.

Too many coats in there,too many hoodies,bags,scarfs,hats,

gloves,socks,too many everything's!!It needed sorting,a total declutter and a really good wipe out so we could use it properly again. It was not a life or death sort of job but it was on my to do list and it did need doing.

And the dishes needed doing and the washing and the dinner and I had a little boy around.

A little boy who is usually at school during the daytime. A little boy that I only get to spend time with after school,when he is tired and therefore grumpy. And in the short space between the school pick up and bedtime we have to fit in homework,dinner,bath time and the all important Xbox time.

I thought about the cupboard and I thought about the little boy,it was not really much of a choice.

And so we played.

We knocked skittles down and created a elaborate scoring system that made an ordinary skittle game into a challenge of the highest degree. Many post it notes were used as I tried to teach Chips about 'tallys'. Who needs maths homework that nobody understands when you have adding and calculating going on right before your very eyes. Teaching through play at its natural best.

We read a after dinner lunch about The Tobermory Cat and looked for our favourite cats,poring over the illustrations until our decisions were made. Mine were the slightly spooky singing black cats,Chips were the mischievous,chunky,fishing cats. It's good to have a opinion Chips,I love seeing you develop this.

We ate a chickeny soup lunch together,no sandwiches for us today - oh no,instead we had warm soup,a plate of buttery soldiers and each others company as we chit chattered our way through our late lunch. It was blissfully peaceful,slow and steady,no rush whatsoever.

Later that afternoon we played with the leftover birthday balloons. To the sounds of Queens Don't Stop Me Now we energetically bashed a balloon around the room,it was funny and many smiles and giggles were had.

As I prepared dinner that night Simon Mayo played his signature tune Enjoy Yourself and the words struck a chord with me.

"Enjoy yourself,it's later than you think,

Enjoy yourself,while you're still in the pink,

The years go by as quickly as a wink.

Enjoy yourself,enjoy yourself,it's later than you think."

I smiled to myself.

To this day the cupboard remains untidied.