Milestones for Angus and Sean

A big day for Angus today as he graduated from pre-school nursery at Pentland then went on to spend the rest of the day at Fairmile Nursery, which was also his final day. He said he felt proud to be going on to P1 and certainly didn't seem in the least bit sad. He's enjoyed his time at Fairmile and made lots of friends there, as well as been very popular with the staff. Only last week though, he was climbing over the safety gate from the back garden when I went to collect him so it's fair to say he's outgrown Fairmile!

At Pentland he'll only be moving a short distance into the P1 corridor. There's a big intake this year and he'll be part of a "tag team" class of 40 which will have two teachers. His graduation today was attended by Sharon and Linda and Angus was reportedly very pleased with himself, his chest puffed out as he received his certificate dressed in his robe and mortar board. Sean saw him too outside, so the biggest and the smallest got to pose together before one leaves Pentland and the other starts.

Last week Sean had his three transition days up at Firrhill High School and loved it (apart from the one or two disruptive influences in his class, trying it on even in the three days they were attending). There's not many from Pentland in his class, 1A2, but he said he made friends with someone from Bonaly and someone from Craiglockhart so I'm sure he'll find peers of a similar mindset to his soon enough. He enjoyed the classes, especially making pizza in Home Economics! The earlier start is going to be a challenge however, and he's going to be tired after the later finish. He also had a busy Tuesday this week, with his P7 leavers' trip to bowling and to the cinema to see Godzilla, then to Mhairi's for an after-school party, then back to the schhol for the P7 leavers' disco and finally over to Portobello to join Finn for the last half hour of the gymnastics class. Finn was showing off his "front summies" into the foam pit while Sean was doing back somersaults off the vault and practising his walkovers. "Why walk when you can cartwheel?" seems to be Sean's motto at the moment.

Rowan got his 15m badge at swimming last Saturday (and was a bit miffed because the rest of his class got their 25m badges, but he doesn't work hard enough to be hones, he's more interested in mucking about) and Angus was delighted to get his 5m badge as he powered his way along the pool with no armbands. He's very close to being able to swim all the time without them. We did more swimming in the afternoon, as I took the four lads to Dunbar swimming pool where the slide (with timer) and wave machine are big favourites. Sitting in the shallow end where the waves were breaking was adjudged to be the best option. We picked Sharon up from doing a show in Ballencrieff and headed to the East Sands at North Berwick for the midsummer evening. It was dry but a little cloudy, but that didn't stop us having a fab time on the rocks, cooking up a barbecue tea and watching the tide come in and the sun slide down. It's great being able to take the whole family out later now that Angus is five and less reliant on an early bedtime (though he did have a nap to sustain him earlier in the day). The boys found a new sweetshop in Dunbar to rival Sugar Mountain in North Berwick and were pleased with a rare haul of sweets - as a rule Sharon and I don't buy them and to the boys' credit they don't usually pester us to. Sean does have a sweet tooth though!

So it's been a busy end to the summer term. I golfed with Scott and Steve at Braids last night, a definite blast from the past, before we had a drink in the rarified atmosphere of the (jacket and tie) New Club on Princes St. Steve is now a member. Far removed from when we first met at St. Andrews thirty years ago, but Caldwell always had the social-climbing pretensions!

A taste of independence

Sean was delighted with himself for walking four times on his own on Friday! He and Finn walked home from school as Sharon realised she didn't have enough space in the car (there were other friends being transported), he went round to the shop on his own and then he walked over to Emma Bruce's house for an afternoon play and tea. Finally, he and Callum walked up to Scouts at Fairmilehead Parish Church. Sean was in his (too small) cub uniform for this transition night and will start the Scouts properly next week. Of course, off the back of this, he is now pestering us for his own phone. He says he'll settle for a Samsung Galaxy. Aye right! I'll look out one of my old work "feature phones" and see if we can use that for a basic text and calls pay as you go package.

On Saturday we drove into town for a pleasant tapas lunch at La Tasca. The children's tapas were excellent and Sharon and I fairly filled ourselves. We then wandered into the west end to get Finn a new guitar, partly for his birthday and partly because he wants to start lessons. We'll see how well he perseveres, knowing his reluctance to do anything that resembles work. Finally we picked up a new Scout shirt and belt for Sean at the Guide shop in Coates Crescent.

Sharon was doing training all day on Sunday and the boys were a bit of a handful. I had the first of the homework battles with Finn. "I just don't like reading and writing!" he wailed, all teary, as he took an hour to write one sentence of notes for his British Sign Language poster. I have pointed out to him that that may be a hindrance to him in his future education.

Angus and the boys were going mad for the pianos in Rae Mackintosh, where we bought Finn's guitar. Admist the cacophony, Angus ran across to a stool and shouted, "Mummy! I'm ready to rock'n'roll!" before hammering away at the keys. The spirit of Jerry Lee Lewis (and my brother Billy) lives on. So taken with the pianos were the boys that they have decided to ask Santa for a combined present of one. Sharon had a conversation with Sean during the week about Santa not being real. He had got to the point where he had twigged it but he'll be a good lad and keep up the pretence for his brothers. It's Finn we have to worry about on that score.

England coasted to their 3-0 Ashes success over Australia with a lively draw (thanks to an attacking declaration from Aussie skipper Clarke) that brightened up an otherwise lacklustre series. My own cricket sputtered to a stop with our exit from competitions back in June and, given the lack of Standard Life staff involvement (we have been heavily reliant on Indian contractors this year and last), whether the team goes the way of the dodo remains to be seen. I haven't really missed having to organise teams and opposition and keep an eye on the weather and have preferred the ease with which I can arrange a round of golf - on my own if need be. I shot my best score of the year (82) round Broomieknowe on a warm, still Monday afternoon without seeming to play that well. My putting was decent and a 300 yard drive to the last green that annoyed a couple of members was a good hit. Shame I failed to convert for a birdie! My handicap is down to 16.3 now.

Big week for Sean

We are very proud of Sean. Today we drove down the A7 a short distance and, after a brief picnic with the wee three, we made our way down the winding road past Borthwick Castle to the scout camp tucked in a dale. As we drove in to the field, there was Sean looking taller and older, standing by the dying campfire with a long stick, flicking cans out of the ashes. In his green wellies and green cub top he looked as grown up as we have seen him, and handsome too, as he greeted us with a big smile.

Sean, and a few of his other cub buddies, had the chance to join the Scout camp this weekend. He hummed and hawed a little but we're delighted he took up the chance. It was cold and damp when I dropped him off on the Friday evening and they had to pitch tents (no bunks this time), finishing in the dark. Beyond that he seems to have had a great time, between activities and inspections and cooking and tidying up. He was close to nodding off as we returned home in the car after the closing ceremony. Rowan is desperate to get to Beavers and emulate his older brothers.

Earlier in the week, Sean also saw the culmination of his enterprise project which has consumed his attention for a few weeks. Along with two others, the plan was to make and sell key-rings using Hama beads to design a variety of fobs. They each got £5 from the parents' council, provided their presented plan passed muster (which it did) and had to use the capital to buy what was required and undertake their activity to try to make a profit. Their class organised a craft fair on Wednesday and had all the other classes visiting. The key-rings were a big hit, in fact the three boys made £100 profit, easily the biggest contributor to the £300 the class made. There's definitely an entrepreneurial gene in Sean - from his mother's side!

Cub Camp

Despite the prolonged bitterly cold spell, with flurries of snow stinging into our faces on a sharp easterly wind every time we leave the house, Sean and Finn were looking forward to cub camp up at Bonaly. For the last two weeks they have been at the planning stage, drawing up a list of what they needed to pack, looking out all their kit days ahead of schedule and checking online for "cheap sweets in Edinburgh" (Sean) to supplement their tuck boxes.

It has been especially pleasing to see Finn taking up the challenge after his aborted stay at Group camp in Fordell Firs last spring. He couldn't decide whether or not to go to camp this time, being the youngest of the 18 selected, but we asked him to consider the pros and cons and Sean was very good at selling the idea to him so he committed to go, partly because he didn't want to tell Simon, the leader, that he wasn't going. So, last Friday, after school broke up and Sean and Finn completed their skiing for the term, they packed up and headed up to bitter Bonaly as dusk fell. Rowan and Angus had a good look round too. Rowan would have been in the bunkhouse like a shot. The big two took their leave of us with nary a backward glance, reminiscent of first days at school and nursery.

Sharon was "away" for the weekend, holidaying in Edinburgh with Ruth and Susan who had flown in for their annual reunion. They were staying in an apartment in Jamaica St. Sharon was thinking a lot about Finn and how we was getting on. I was mildly concerned, when he said he was going to go, that I might get a late call asking to pick him up because he didn't want to stay, but once I saw him go in I wasn't worried. He was much less bothered than last year, plus, at Bonaly, the cubs were staying in the bunkhouse rather than under canvas. Even when he was split up from Sean and sharing a room with other cubs, he took it all in his stride. Inevitably they were up late both nights and were tired when we picked them up on the Sunday afternoon (Sean had lost his glasses and seemed more weary than Finn) but they had a great time doing various craft activities, sledging and playing a nocturnal wide game on the Friday.

It was good to see Finn confident in a new situation and credit must go to Sean, as the big brother, for generating the excitement and fostering that confidence.

December downs

Angus hasn't been very well the last few days, barking his way through the night on Saturday as a bad chest cold took hold. Sharon kept him off pre-school yesterday and today, with the result that he missed his Christmas party and carol concert, which was a shame. He also had a nose bleed today, possibly as a result of all his coughing, and that freaked him out a bit, not being used to the sight of his own blood! Angus has fairly been singing recently, in the car and the house, and it has been lovely to hear. Little Donkey, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, I'm a Little Snowman and the Christmas nursery staple, When Santa Got Stuck Up The Chimney, have all been wheeled out again and again.

Sean learned a life lesson yesterday. He was taking part in a class bake-off with two of his classmates and had made a Yule log. I left him into school in the morning, really excited, sure he had a great chance of winning. When Sharon picked him up at home time he was utterly crestfallen. In a blind tasting he had only received two votes and was stung by some of the negative comments such as "sickly" and "I couldn't eat any more". Sean has a competitive streak, which is good, but doesn't take defeat well and struggles to take positives from criticism or feedback. There were some positive remarks such as "well presented" but Sean can't see past the brickbats. I had a chat with him on the drive back from gymnastics and reminded him he had to think why he did baking. Was it to be competitive or was it for the fun of picking a recipe, finding ingredients, learning the technique, eating the results and sharing them with his family? And to learn how to take on feedback. Not to react right away but to think about it and to consider later whether there was anything he could improve on. In 20 months' time Sean will be starting high school. It's important we arm him with the tools he needs to cope with life and make sure he feels he can talk to us. As someone said, if you want your children to talk to you about the big things when they grow up, make time for the small things when they're small, because to them they are big things.

Camping contrasts

As term ends there are many activities for the boys to take part in. Sean was looking forward to the Group Camp across in Fife, at Fordell Firs, for some time. Finn, on the other hand, had taken some persuading to sign up and was still apprehensive as I drove him across the bridge on the Saturday afternoon. It wasn't helped by the fact that he was a bit late, as a result of us having mixed up the times. Consequently, the beaver troop was already assembled and tent spaces had been allocated so Finn didn't get the place he wanted. I could tell he wasn't happy. He joined in the activities readily enough and I left him to it.

I passed a few words with Sean, who had arrived on the Friday evening and was tired, dirty and loving it! He was on his way to do some caving and had been having a great time with his pals. He hadn't got to sleep until some ungodly hour of the morning but didn't seem to care.

Predictably, once I was back in Edinburgh and had fed the wee two their dinner, I got a call to say Finn wasn't settling and was quite adamant he wanted to come home. So, back in the car and across the bridge to pick up Finn who wasn't upset at all, just quite clear he didn't want to spend the night in a sleeping bag in the corner of a tent inside a bigger marquee in a muddy field. I can't say I blamed him. At his age, I doubt I would have fancied it either and Finn is generally a bit of a homebird who likes to have his family and familiar comforts around him. Sharon was out for Anne Marie's birthday, at Castle Terrace restaurant, our new favourite haunt it seems, so I had to collect Finn with Angus and Rowan in their jammies, the former falling asleep and fortunately transferring to bed on our return.

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On the Sunday it was back across once more, this time to pick up Sean. He was sick the night before (apparently the "spaghetti with mince" was as appetising as it sounds) but was still running around and participating in the Highland Games that were on. Eventually we gather together his muddy gear and returned home. Not surprisingly, he was a little bit tired!

Sean is nine

The day after Sean's party was Halloween itself. Finn had a party at Beavers so went dressed up while Sean joined Lewis and others to go out guising down Lewis's way. Sean was playing his recorder. He's done well to learn a couple of tunes and can occasionally be heard tooting about the house. I still wouldn't class it as my favourite instrument though.

After Beavers, Sharon took Finn and Rowan out round a few "friendly" houses in Swanston. Rowan was a bit apprehensive going out in the dark, thinking people were going to leap out at him from behind hedges. Maybe I shouldn't have said to look out for witches and make sure he holds Mum's hand, but with Rowan you need to have some lever to stop him running off.

Finn told his jokes as did Rowan and when all guisers returned they were delighted with their glucose bounty. Fads may come and go but children will always love sweets. Needless to say we had a job calming them down and getting them to bed.

Next, today was Sean's birthday. Nine years old! His last year in single digits! He was delighted to receive a fair bit of money as he has decided to save up for an iPod Touch. He also got a few books and Hagrid's Hut Lego, a Bruno Mars CD from Edel and a funny Canadian mug from Olivia. Add in his presents from his pals and he was very happy with his lot.

The down side of the week, however, was Sean losing his new winter coat at school on Monday. When you have four children, they have to take responsibility for their own belongings and tasks as much as possible, a point we've had to drum into Sean - again.

Sporting Sean

Sean has had more opportunities recently to try plenty things that neither Sharon nor I had when we were his age. Last Thursday, when we were in Italy, the cubs were orienteering up at Bonaly in the Pentlands Park. It was rather rainy but it sounds like they had a good run about in the trees. Last night, he was over at South Queensferry with the cubs for some water activities which mostly involved kayakig by the sounds of things. Again, he came home wet but happy. Credit to him for trying these things, but it would be good if he showed more of an interest in taking one or two sports or activities up, rather than Moshi Monsters (the current favourite website amongst his peers) or the DS.

He wasn't too pleased with his performance in his school sports day but enjoyed the cub sports evening down at Myreside. He's doing well at his skiing and seems to be enjoying his golf and has improved his cycling at school. It's difficult to build on this though, as Sharon has been working a lot at the weekends and I'm at work during the week, so when looking after all four you have to go with activities that involve the least complications.

Recently Sean was at Sporting Hearts, where the class is ferried to Tynecastle and has the opportunity to try a few things, not just sports related. He was playing the drums. Having badgered us to buy him a recorder a couple of months ago, his interest lasted no more than a day, with the recorder now in that great pile of largely ignored toys and purchases that is the playroom. Trying to keep stock of all the stuff that is in there and the boys' bedrooms is a full time, and increasingly futile, job as Angus and Rowan tend to drag bits and pieces all over the house, eventually depositing them far from their origin.

Sean's birthday party

Once again, we were fortunate with the weather for Sean's party at the house yesterday. Despite having been at a Halloween party at the FIshers' house on Saturday and a Halloween party at Beavers the night before that, Sean wanted a Halloween birthday party. Sharon bought him a new wizard's dress-up outfit as he had outgrown just about all of the other costumes.

His friends assembled at 4pm, which, with the clocks having gone back the night before, meant there was time for some outdoor play in the remaining daylight. I set them a treasure hunt which entailed solving a Halloween crossword and using key letters for grid references on a map of the back garden. They then had to find each clue in order to complete the grid reference of the next clue. Each clue also had a letter that, in the final assembled eleven clues, spelt out the location of the treasure. Confused? The children certainly were, although Sean seemed to be on my wavelength! Perhaps me reading "The Lost Symbol" before setting the treasure hunt wasn't a good idea!

The food was served up next, by pumpkin candlelight as darkness descended outside. Sharon made Sean a ghoulish lemon birthday cake decorated with a skull. Angus and Rowan joined the others at the table, but Rowan wasn't in the best of form, being very tired from the night before. Angus tucked into the food like a boy possessed and then had a ball with the bigger children out in the garden in the dark, running about very sure-footedly over the grass and windfall apples. Finn and Rowan took the telly option but most of the others were outside enjoying dodge the ball and chasing in the dark. I was fairly out of puff by 6pm, as the bigger lads decided I was to be brought down. They didn't get me down but I suspect next year I won't be able to hold them off!

After the party, Sharon took Sean and Finn round to the Powers, the Wilsons and the Fletchers for trick and treating while I had a shower with Angus (he could teach Rowan how to stand in a shower without having a wailing tantrum about soap and water getting in his eyes). Sean and Finn were delighted to add more goodies to their trick or treat bags. Sean was also very pleased with his presents, which he unwrapped before bedtime. It can be hard work hosting parties at home, but it's good to see Sean so happy so that makes it worthwhile.

12 trains and counting

I'm in London, staying in East Sheen as a guest of Ali and Gordon. Sean and Finn are on their October week's holiday from school and having a great time with Megan and Freya, which essentially involves a lot of silliness. The boys always seem to have good fun with girls and, similarly deprived of siblings of the opposite sex, the Barnes girls seem to revel in having boys to play off against.

We took the train down yesterday morning, the 0930 from Waverley which arrived at Kings Cross at 1410. It was a quick, smooth journey with the laptop an invaluable aid in keeping the boys entertained. The children had a good play in the local park to shake off the cobwebs of so much travelling (four trains yesterday).

Today we raised the tally with another eight trains! It's Sean and Finn's first experience of the London Underground and they've quickly grown used to the noise and hustle and bustle that seemed so alien to me when I first experienced it over 25 years ago. We went to the Science Museum this morning for a brief look round and some lunch. Museums can be rather ennervating so I don't want to overdo them, but the boys were happy enough with the various interactive exhibits that we looked at.

From there it was a trip across the city and a switch to the Docklands Light Railway to rattle past the multi-storey behemoths of Canary Wharf on our way out to Greenwich. Unfortunately the Cutty Sark is in the midst of repairs just now but we strolled past the impressive stretch of the Maritime Museum and climbed up the path through the park to the Royal Observatory. The boys were quite taken with the Meridian and the notion of standing astride the zero degree line or being in the western or eastern hemisphere. After that we went to a show, "We are Astronomers", in the newish Peter Harrison Planetarium. This was very impressive, like being close-up to an IMAX screen, with great depth to the images. Sean and Finn were a bit wary at first as it got so dark but enjoyed it nonetheless. And we all stayed awake!

We wandered back down to the station and then made our way back via Bank and Waterloo, just avoiding the worst of the rush hour. The boys have been very good so far at staying close by me and have probably enjoyed riding the massive escalators in the Tube most of all!

Sing lasagne to the king

Rowan is very quick to pick up a tune. I was getting him ready for bed this evening and he was singing "dum dum dum-dum, bam bam bam-bam" which I recognised as "Lonely Boy", one of the songs on his "list" on the iPod. Sharon said they'd heard it on the radio earlier today. However, he topped that two days ago with "sing lasagne, sing lasagne, sing lasagne to the king of kings!" Sean and Finn had been singing the correct version but he hadn't quite picked it up right! He's currently sporting a black eye from a collision at nursery. Given the speed and recklessness with which he rattles about the house he is forever rapping his head off door jambs, balustrades and the like. He gave the other two a run for their money at the Ratho soft play on Saturday afternoon.

Sharon took Finn out on his "date" on Saturday morning, to spend some time with him before he starts school this week. He chose to go swimming so they went to Bonnyrigg for a splash about then Sharon took him into Edinburgh for a tapas lunch at Cafe Andaluz. He was very much in his element and enjoyed calamari and prawns. They then went to get him some new shoes. When asked what he enjoyed most about his date he told Sharon it was getting to be with her on his own. We underestimate what it means to Finn to get that focus rather than be lumped in with his brothers all the time. No doubt it manifests itself in attention-seeking behaviour at times. Sadly, the opportunities to get one on one time with each of the boys is limited and it's often easier or more convenient for one of us to take them all away while the other gets on with some jobs. At least Finn enjoyed his date with his Mammy.

Sean finally got past the tears and tantrums yesterday evening - "I'll never be able to do this!" - and rode his bike, without stabilisers, 100 yards in Braidburn Valley park. I admit I was getting a bit fed up with his wailings as he kept careering off the path in comic/pathetic style, crashing into long grass and blaming Rowan for wandering in front of his hapless steering efforts, but he was delighted with himself when he finally got a long cycle in without coming to grief. Well done Sean. I won't admit it to you but you'll find out when you read this years later, but I was probably about 12 before I could go a bike, mainly because I never really had the opportunity.

Sharon has mostly recovered from her stay in hospital but is still feeling a little under the weather and, sadly for her, still doesn't have much of an appetite. But we have both been delighted with Angus, who, the last two nights, has slept through from midnight until after 7am. We know he can do it now, so any night feeds will be discouraged from now on.

Wobbly tooth

One of Sean's front teeth has finally advanced from being a little bit wobbly to bleeding a little and being a lot more wobbly. Another milestone is nigh: the loss of a first tooth by the Wallace children! Although Rowan pushed it close with his trolley-biting incident some time ago. It remains to be seen if Sean's tooth hangs on until after he has his weekend away with Ross, caravanning in St. Andrews, or if he returns home sporting a gap-toothed smile!

We had a very pleasant family dinner last night, which is rare enough to be noteworthy. Instead of becoming weary at the boys spouting nonsense and messing with their food (Sean excepted: he is by and large good at eating up) we all tucked into tasty meatballs in pitta breads with everybody chatting and in a good mood. We can only hope such mealtimes become more frequent, until we descend into a morass of moody long-haired teenagers mumbling and picking at their food while listening to their iPods.

Sharon hasn't been quite so sore over the last few days but is a long way short of dashing about the place. She is on the verge of promoting to Senior Director though and is delighted at her team's year-on-year performance so well done to my heavily pregnant wife. Here's hoping our children inherit your drive rather than my lassitude!

The Missing Bag

Sean has always had a tendency to daydream. More recently, this has developed into being easily distracted when asked to do something such as put on his shoes. Anything between him and the shoe cupboard can result in a series of tangents being taken, and his parents getting increasingly annoyed, before the task is done. Finn can often be the source of the distraction and is still fairly hopeless at doing what he is asked at the first or fifth time of asking. Rowan wilfully ignores us when we ask him not to do something like stand in his high chair but our expectations of him are still fairly low at the moment.

Sean also claims he does not have a good brain for remembering things, only for numbers. This is evident in the number of times he can't find his gloves or other items that have been in his posession. Yesterday, we were rushing into school across the ice as the bell had already gone. Sean only got in thanks to Blair opening the door for him. He dashed in and I took Finn round to pre-school. Later that evening, I was quizzed as to whether Sean's school-bag was in my car as he had "lost it" along with his homework and "hadded to have" (thanks Finn) a school dinner instead of his (missing) packed lunch. No, it was not in my car. We thought through the events of arriving at school and I was sure I had brought it out the car. Finn was jogging along behind us so I'm sure he would have seen either of us drop it. I couldn't remember whether or not Sean had it as he went through the door. There was a nagging feeling that I may still have had it...

Sure enough, Sharon recovered it this morning, hanging on Finn's peg at pre-school. It was me, I had forgotten to hand it over and took it with me. Sorry Sean!

From Sharon yesterday: Rowan basically talked from the moment you left, and I'm surprised he hasn't passed out from oxygen deprivation with all the blether. After shouting his way around Tesco, while inhaling half a bag of grapes, he had lunch and then asked for bed, currently sleeping in the spare room.

I feel all the aches and pains of pregnancy are finally kicking in. Absolutely zonked today. Don't know if it's the weekend catching up on me, or if the pregnancy is really registering with my body - seeing as I didnt get that tired at the start. Could easily put my head on my desk and sleep right now - which I am sure you are familiar with!

Hail to the king

Sean trod the boards yesterday (well, the end of the school gym) with his first speaking part in a play. He was the king with Phoebe playing Violetta, his daughter, who wanted to be a knight. Cara was the narrator and five more of his class filled other roles. His lines were written on the table (he had four lines). His costume was "like a dress with a crown and a kind of cloak that went over my head under the crown." Sean said he was speaking into a microphone and seems to have overcome his trepidation. "I'm feeling nervous" he had told us at breakfast, just before Sharon upped the ante by deciding that Monday was the morning to put Stop'N'Gro on his thumb in an attempt to stop him sucking it. All hell broke loose: had we decided to amputate his thumb we could not have caused a bigger disturbance. That aside, he seemed unscathed by his first real public performance which was part of his class's ongoing project on castles. The whole class got a certificate.

Sean also won a Christmas card competition. A winner was picked from each class and Sean clinched the melting chocolate decoration for his class. He ate it. We were at the school fayre on Saturday although by the time we got there it was mostly a second-hand toy sale. Rowan threw a massive tantrum when we had to leave as he was enjoying playing with all the toys and the other two didn't cover themselves in glory either.

Sean and Finn were introduced to Monopoly at the weekend and Sean especially is enjoying the challenge of a new game. It's a good children's version with a smaller board and stalls at a fairground rather than property but it's a new experience for them playing a longer game. Finn did well despite the obvious counting challenges (two dice, money). Sean got "Who's Who" at the fayre and him and Finn were absorbed playing that too although Finn is again disadvantaged on the boy/girl question as he can't read the names. He's trying though.

Rowan continues to boss the house, and anyone else in "shouting at" range. His pal Duncan got the treatment at nursery on Friday as he struggled to get into his chair for lunch. "Stop moaning Duncan!" was the reprimand from the bold blond boy. "Shush Finn!", "Eat up Finn!" and "Sit down Finn!" are regular scolds at the kitchen table. Not that Rowan observes his own rules. He was in perpetual motion yesterday and is occasionally missing his nap with few ill effects. When I arrived at swimming he was trouserless, having been intercepted trying to get down the steps to join Finn in the pool and then having sat in a puddle.

Sean is Six

Party season is in full swing. Sean and Finn were dressed up as a vampire and a skeleton respectively for Phoebe's Halloween party while Rowan toddled home from nursery with his face painted as a devil. The black goatee beard and dark eyebrows suited him. Finn looked especially good with his white face and dark eyes. They had a great time playing games and eating cake and getting to stay up late but we never got round to carving the pumpkin Sharon had bought.

Sean then had a party at Time Twister on the Saturday and Finn was at Zoe's party at Clambers on the Sunday morning. Marie and Michael had arrived by then to avoid us dragging the children everywhere for drop-offs and pick-ups. Sean's tiredness came to a head on his birthday morning when he threw a massive tantrum and accused us all of "ruining his birthday" because Finn wouldn't let him see a CD case. Fortunately he found a better mood in time for his party in the afternoon.

About 16 children attended Fairmilehead Church (some in fancy dress, as Sean had told some, but not all, that it was a dressing-up party) for his party which involved a lot of running about and a few games such as Dead Ant, a back-to-back balloon race and Musical Numbers, an elimination game featuring the hopscotch numbers strategically placed about the room. Sharon laid on the food which was eaten with gusto and the climax was a lights-out rendition of "Happy Birthday" as Sharon brought out Sean's volcanic birthday cake. He blew his six candles out in one go. Afterwards, Sharon held a talent competition then there was some balloon-popping and football before the parents arrived to collect their charges. It's a hard job. How many more such parties do we have to undertake?

Sean was pleased with his marble run and got lots of presents from his friends, with arts and crafts stuff featuring prominently. I played him at Downfall in the evening. We have a clever six-year old boy, well-mannered and obstinate in equal measures, a great big brother to Finn and Rowan, increasingly keen on reading, music and puzzles; when it seems like no time since he was placed in my arms, struggling to open his eyes to the world. Happy birthday Sean.

Autumn Picnic

Sean came a cropper on Friday morning, tripping down a couple of stairs as he raced around the perimeter of the school fence trying to beat Finn who was cutting across the playground. Given the nature of the fall, he was fortunate not to have hurt himself more, ending up with a bumped and scraped forehead and one or two other bruises. he was very upset though and had to be persuaded to go into school, where his teacher took him to the nurse. He got a sore scratch on the arm from Finn, by accident, as they were playing their "capture" game and banged the back of his head yesterday too, so there has been plenty of howling in the house. Finn got a very sore scrape and bruise on his leg when he jumped down off a wall on Friday, but was a bit more stoic about it than his elder brother.

Sharon had her usual busy morning on Friday, packing plenty in before 1130 then "went to school, picked up Zoe and Finn, played with them till 12.15 till Sean came out, home here, changed, walked to Swanston Golf Club, had lunch, walked (slowly!) back, and that has been today. Two boys sitting eating a few sweets and having hot chocolate to give them a wee bit of energy back. Finn very tired after all his exertions."

After a miserable day on Saturday of wind and rain, we had a glorious autumn day yesterday and went down to Peebles for a picnic at Kingsmeadows House. We had the run of the grounds and the playpark to ourselves after sitting eating our picnic of hot soup and sandwiches and corn on the cob and tortilla chips. The boys do well for picnics. They're probably into double figures for the year. We drove into Peebles after and had a leisurely stroll about, with ice-creams for Rowanand Finn and smarties for Sean and then a bit of running about and chasing. In future years these are the carefree times that we need to recall.

Sharon's chat with Lesley Robertson, the architect who drew up the plans for our extension work, confirmed our expectations that an extension to the rear would cost around £50-60k before we even consider the cost of a new kitchen and interior decorating. I can't imagine we'll be pursuing that unless a hitherto unknown wealthy benefactor steps forward with a bag of cash. Maybe we can get the boys singing together in an ABBA tribute band.

Brochs and things

Sean was telling us all about brochs and motte and bailey castles this morning at breakfast. He was telling us how brochs were built in Scotland and that they had no doors, with only the Scottish people who lived in the broch knowing how to remove the stones that concealed the entrance. In the motte and bailey castles, the lord and lady lived in a tower on top of the mound (the motte) and the peasants occupied the lower, flatter land (the bailey) within the walls. The peasants were paid nothing but received food and lodging for serving the lord and lady. Sometimes attackers shot flaming arrows into the compound and the palisades would catch fire. It was all very informative and it was good to see Sean concentrating hard to recollect what he had been learning at school, people and castles being one of his current topics. He was doing medieval castles yesterday, he said.

This rare insight into his day in the classroom (usual response to what did you do today is "I can't remember" or a vague description of literacy or maths or something he drew) was prompted by me attending an Open Night last night where I got to see his spacious classroom, talk to Mrs. Cameron-Mackintosh, his Dutch teacher, and see the types of work on the curriculum for this year. He's one of the best readers in his class (his recent test suggested a reading age of 9.4 years) and evidently doing well at maths too so it was reassuring to know that the more able children will be pushed to do more, moving on to more advanced texts and exercises once they are ready rather than progressing at the pace of the slowest learner. The facilities today have to be conducive to learning. The classroom has a laptop linked to a projector enabling much richer material to be displayed to the children. They are also able to access resources such as GridClub which the children see as games but which are actually helping them to learn. Undoubtedly our children will be digital natives or Generation Z or whatever social tag is designated to those for whom technology and the Internet have been ever-present in their lives.

I also popped into Finn's pre-school class. He did a fine painting of Sean (with teeth) that is on the wall and seems to have plenty of merit marks for good beahviour but we don't get the same sense of inclusion with the nursery as we did when Sean was based up at Fairmilehead church and we were taking him right into the hall. Finn seems to be enjoying it well enough and he is starting to take an interest in trying to write his letters and reading the odd word.

P2 Boy

Sean returned to school this morning, despite the threat of industrial action which has closed a number of schools in the Lothians. I took him down in the pouring rain, him looking all smart in his freshly pressed trousers, carrying his new black and grey rucksack. Still sucking his thumb though. Mrs Cameron-Mackintosh is his new teacher but I didn't see her today as he went straight to the dining hall because of the inclement weather. Cockmylane by the side of the school was like an open stream.

It's been the wettest August I can recall. All my cricket matches have been cancelled this month so the evening season has been rather abruptly curtailed and we only have a Saturday friendly left up at Largo in mid-September. No doubt we'll struggle to get the numbers for that game as everyone will have forgotten about playing by then. The garden has been a dead loss with the grass too wet to cut (admittedly I couldn't be bothered tackling it during a dry day on Sunday) and weeds running riot in every bed. The boys didn't have much chance to get out and about as the holidays drew to a close, Sharon having to resort to Clambers soft play and Dobbies for lunch to at least get some fresh air this week. Finn starts Gym Nippers today and is back to morning pre-school nursery tomorrow, so rampant Rowan will rule the roost for the morning for the next wee while.

Wall-E

I took Sean and Phoebe to see Wall-E last night at the Dominion. It's been about 18 months since my last attempt to take Sean and Finn to the cinema which wasn't particularly successful with Sean shouting loudly that he was hungry and when could he go home and Finn going daft becuse it was too dark and loud and he was scared. I was miffed last Frday when the boys turned down the opportunity to see Wall-E. You'd think I'd asked them to dig a latrine in the back garden, the look on their faces.

Anyway, Sean had a change of mind when I brought Phoebe into the equation but he still was asking how long until it finished and was generally fidgety until it was done. I'm not convinced he particularly enjoyed it. It wasn't quite as good as I'd hoped, falling between a number of stools: an entertaining cartoon; a science-fiction story; a love story. The animation is outstanding but the humour was perhaps too subtle, especially for a five year-old like Sean, when compared with other recent great animated films, such as Toy Story. As a character, Wall-E is endearing but very like ET in appearance.

As my nickname was Wally at school (like my peers, by contraction of surname as it was before Del-Boy's "what a wally" phrase gave it a more negative connotation) it only remains to be seen if Sean ends up picking up the nickname "Wall-E". Hopefully with it being the school holidays just now the connection between his name and the film will have passed his school mates by once P2 begins. He saw a few of them at a party at the weekend.

First report

Sean got his first school report today. Key for us was in his "Personal and Social Development" where he was rated excellent in all aspects and his teacher began by writing "Sean ... has been an absolute pleasure to teach." He was rated Skilled or Competent in all the aspects of the subject areas English Language, mathematics, Environmental Studies, Expressive Arts and Religious and Moral Education with his stand-outs being all aspects of reading, writing and language and his numbers and problem solving. Well done young lad on an excellent report! We might need to frame it!

Finn also got his pre-school Record of Achievement. He too has settled in well and had the note "Finn has a good sense of humour and is becoming more confident chatting to the other children." He sounds similar to Sean at that age, rather reluctant to take part but happy in himself and with those he knows well. I suspect he doesn't display the range of skills and knowledge we know he has but I'd agree that he's not the arts and crafts lover that his big brother is!

Rowan continues to amaze the girls at Fairmile with his stream of chat, jumping at the chance to repeat any simple words and phrases and remember them for later. He certainly knows how to demand attention however, being very insistent when he wants me, or more often Sharon, to play with him, get him something, take something away and so on. He's very definite in his requirements that boy. If he doesn't fancy a book it gets the swift "all done" treatment followed by an attempt to close it and cast it away. This is usually followed by a request for "choo-chew" or "baw-boos" (Thomas) instead.

Fortunately the efforts of Wednesday in securing a babysitter were worthwhile as we won our Parks Trophy tie. Sharon had a really good team meeting too so we were both in fine mood that evening. A rare event, us both feeling we've come out ahead by the end of the day!