First Holiday away from Alex - in Tokyo !!

Alex is 7 months old next week, and already Fab and I are planning their get-away weekend away from both kids. We've already spent time together away from Sophie, so I think Sophie isn't too fussed about it. But I wonder how Alex will react?

It's great because my mom will come to baby sit just before we dash off. Definitely one of the benefits of being close by to the grandparents !

I am actually really glad that I work. It sometimes is stressful because of course Murphy's law says that the urgent deadlines always come up when the kids have a stomach bug and one parent is traveling. That's also part of the fun I think.

And I actually think that being a parent has helped me a lot in dealing with difficult people at work, because when somebody is throwing a tantrum, I find that many methods which work with toddlers also work with adults !

The day I traded my dad for a yogurt

We don't eat refined sugar at home. Ever. That's how paranoid we are as parents. It's not so much the sugar and coloring that I am worried about as the fact that I see what happens whenever she goes to children's birthday parties and all the children run amok, loaded up with artificial sugars and chocolate.

Sophie does get desert on weekends at home with her parents, but even then it's limited to yogurt with some raisins stirred in.

The story that has to go down into our family books is this one (translated from French)

"Sophie, it's bedtime for you and Alex. We only have time for one thing so you have to choose. Either you have another yogurt with Mama or else, Papa can tell you a story."

Sophie thinks about it for all of 30 seconds and then says "Yogurt. Please."

"So no story with Papa?"

"No, it's okay Papa, just yogurt, no story"

"okay - Good night Sophie"

Clearly the way to this girl's heart is via the stomach. She really meant it when she said she wanted the yogurt instead of Papa. There she is with the fruit loop necklace made in school.