Lonesome but wholesome

This summer vacation is little different for 'J', at least from the last two ones.

In last two years, in her summer vacations she had to cope up with a working mother and a faraway father. Her summer vacations were mostly spend in holiday clubs and in friend's house. Some days I took off. Some days her father managed  to come to visit us. We managed few short trips to nearby places. 

Overall they were action packed days and not the real summer holidays we remember from our childhood. 

She did not like that most days she needed to get up early in the morning, get ready and go to holiday club. She wanted to stay at home like many of her friends. She wanted to have lazy days, watch TV and not action packed days in holiday club.

Anyway we tried to find a balance and now sometimes she remembers those time in after school club or holiday club with great delight.

This summer with me staying at home, she knew her summer vacation will be like the ones she wanted.

More fun factor added when we decided to spend the whole summer in a rented apartment and not in her everyday living space. 

She started dreaming of holidays full of watching TV in her pyjamas, having her mum for all her needs, playing with NintendoDS,  reading storybooks, doing tiny-weany home-works and some bits of travelling. Perfect for her!

I could see the same horridness in her face like Horrid Henry.

On arriving to the selected apartment we figured that there is no TV. The internet connection we have got has limited download capacity so watching you tube is not working for 'J'. It is a non English speaking country so finding new storybooks is also a challenge. Only rescue can be some DVDs she has brought and the DS games. Her dreams got bursted one by one.

I was also little concerned as over the years of parenting, TV or internet have become my helping hands, at times. 

'J'  never desired her holidays to be like this. She started to get irritated. The fantasy of having mamma all the time was not that fantastic anymore.

But then, to adapt, is human nature and after a day or two of hanging face, she figured out that the apartment is funny one with a curved staircase and a small room in attic.

The staircase became a place for 'J' to play with her stuffed play mates and to read.

In the attic she made a world of her own. Role play in pyjamas is now her main amusement, she did not do that for long. She started drawing and colouring nice themes sitting in her room in attic. Some real ones  and mostly imaginary phone calls to her friends keeps her happy. On weekends we travel to nearby places. 'J' wants to open a boutique with her friend in future (her latest obsession) so she is seriously collecting ideas for designing new dresses while travelling through these places. We talk and plan a lot about this boutique of hers. She has started writing e-mails to her friend recently and I like the way she impatiently waits for the reply. 

In the afternoon she watches her DVDs or plays with her game, but the affinity is not that strong as they are getting boring upon repetition. 

We go for walk most evenings.

We have finally found a rhythm in our daily routine and I don't miss the faithful babysitters of mine. 

Just now 'J' is highly irritated by two flies humming near her ears. She is trying to work on the school home-works  and she is learning how to keep her calm in the middle of two buzzing flies.