1. Goat Bait
2. Candlemass
3. Brothers In Arms
The Man left at 3am on a Business Trip, so we collected Nanna and headed for The Bird Park. Son 2 aged 16m couldn’t get into the Baby Area fast enough. Ball Pool. Jet Bits. Sitting over one of the holes so the remaining air streams blew even stronger. The thin, four-inch wisps of his anyhow pre-haircut fringe blown up vertical. He waved at Nanna. “Eh-yo.” He concentrated as he threw balls overboard. He got down. We crawled up and around. Son 1 aged 4y 3m was cross. Growling. Clawing his hands. Pushing me away. He wanted his Best Friend. Only his Best Friend understands his game. I tried to get us all playing together and might have succeeded at times. He had a great time when Son 2 was sitting on the jets and throwing balls down at him. He liked it when we followed him over the Big Children’s Stuff. Son 2 slithered on his stomach and went down the baby slide on his own. He learned to go down steps the same way today. We went to see the otters and the owls. Son 2 was in his reins - he loves walking, we’re hoping that having him in them early will mean he accepts them later. When we know we’ll need them. We looked at the Guinea Pigs. £12 each. Son 1 and I looked at each other. If they’d sold hutches we’d've taken two. We fed the goats, Son 2 managing to hold the food so the goats licked it from his hands, giggling his head every time their tongues shot out over his fingers. The goats were standing in a quagmire, and everytime they leapt up their hooves spattered us. Slathered in mud and goat spit, we washed our hands and made for the penguins.
We went early (for us) because it was the Family Tea Service at The Church and I felt we should go. Son 2 didn’t wake up between car, house and street, and stayed asleep till we were at the bottom of the church steps. Son 1 was exhausted, but will fortunately do anything if promised a comic, so trudged down like a trooper. Numbers were few. The theme was “light.” The student priest put everyone under a tablecloth to show how Dark Things Were When God Forsook. “And then Simeon saw a little baby just like this one (Son 2, possibly about 15 months too old for the role), and said ‘here is the light that will save the world.’” We went back to our pews. “Is Son 2 Jesus?” asked Son 1. We sang “Shine Jesus Shine,” the words on a screen at the front. My eyes are dim, the light was poor. I so liked the idea of Kindly Brightness that I googled “Shine Jesus Shine, lyrics” when I got back. Ah.
And then they provided tea. Vegetable Bake, sausages, pizza, squash and cake. Brilliant. We zigzagged home across the main street - closed to traffic while they dig it up, Son 1 liked leading us from one side to the other. We bought a Shaun The Sheep comic. It was late and we were all whacked. The boys went in the bath. I insisted on washing their hair to remove goat saliva and hoof flecks. I washed Son 2’s. Then I washed Son 1’s, singing him his lullaby to keep him calm. Seeing him lying back on Mummy’s arm, being sung to, destroyed Son 2. He cried, stood up, grabbed the arm holding Son 1 and sat his little bare bottom down on Son 1’s face, sinking him under the water. Then he stamped his foot on his ear and slid off.
Tags: ball pool, bathtime, Bird Park, business trip, Candlemass, comic, Family Tea Service, goats, Guinea Pigs, hairwashing, jealousy, lullaby, Nanna, otters, owls, parenting, reins, Shaun The Sheep, Shine Jesus Shine, sibling rivalry, slide, The Church
