The Return

We are now back in Wellington. Brendon and the children are on the deck enjoying the last of the afternoon sun. The trip home was relatively uneventful. This time, Aidan was sitting next to Brendon (with the aisle seat blocked off by the ground staff). I was in front of him alongside Isabelle. With the exception of a couple of "I want Mamas!", he was very well behaved and effectively distracted by the in-flight lollies and biscuits, and a Barney magazine. He was a bit grumpy on the way home though, asking where Grandad was as we turned to land in Wellington, and pouting as we drove into our driveway saying "I want Grandma's house". He is very happy now though, having had an afternoon sleep and an iced finger bun with his lunch. He also enjoyed seeing Nana Pam at the airport, who had very kindly picked us up in our car.

Both Brendon and I feel very rested. I was very lucky to be able to have a decent break over the last week, with the aid of the washing fairy, the housework fairy and plentiful loving adults (and cousins) around to spend time with the children. It is really nice to go into the last period before Christmas having had a holiday (and having done all my Christchurch-related Christmas shopping already).

Tomorrow it is back to Playcentre, the housework and the washing mountain. Despite the combined efforts of the Christchurch washing fairy, extra loads before we left and a load currently drying in the sun, dirty clothes are spilling out from the washing basket already. However, I suspect some of the clothes are not that dirty at all, as most seem to be Isabelle's. We had some success with our "Project Clean Room" sticker chart just before we left. I reminded her today that if her room was tidy tonight, she qualified for her first reward of chocolate. This reminder was swiftly followed by an unpacking frenzy. It is entirely rational to unpack most of your bag into the washing basket, thus avoiding the need to put it away and gaining your reward simultaneously.