In the beginning...

I'm writing this for me and my kids. I want a record for them of thier childhoods, what they were like, and what they mean to me. I wish I had started this a long time ago, they are now 6 and 3, but this will have to do.

First, an outline of what they are like now

Miss T, aged 6. The first thing you notice upon encountering her is that she is a remarkably good looking child. Not sure how this happened! Luckily, there is a lot more to her than that. I think her greatest strength is her social skills. Again, not sure how this happened, growing up with a mother with a mental illness, she didn't exactly have a good role model in this area.

Oh, she already has a steady boyfriend, they've been together for 9 months - seriously, they talk on the phone, go to each others houses, write love letters, give gifts, and.... so I'm told, frequently kiss. This worries me - what am I going to deal with at 15???

Miss T can make friends with anyone, within about 5 minutes. She adapts her games to thier interests, laughs easily, and doesn't boss people around. (cept for me of course). I think this is such an important skill and i'm really proud of her for it. On the down side, she doesn't do well on her own and needs constant input from others. This usually means me. This is slowly changing, and I have great hope for the future.

She is also quite a sensitive child, good and bad thing. She is loving and affectionate, and is just starting to understand how she can help others. But she doesn't cope well with criticism or rejection.

For a child who is constantly told how great she is, she actually has quite a lot of self doubt. She gives up on things quite easily, which really annoys me, cause I think in there is quite a brain. She remembers the most amazing things - if only she could apply this skill to her schoolwork.

There is of course a lot more to her than this, but I'm sure this will come out in the stories I tell over the years.

Ok, master Z. This one has two distinct personalities. Firstly he is the most gorgeous thing on the face of the planet. he randomly announces through the day that he loves me, his father, sister, grandparents etc etc. SO cute. He also loves attention. If you even crack a smile at something he does, he'll do it over and over trying to get a laugh.

Secondly, he's stubborn, and can throw the MOST impressive tantrums i've ever seen in my life. I mean, I've dealt with a fair few kids in my time and this is amazing! His stubborness comes out in many ways, but the one we are dealing with now is he refuses to go to the toilet. Don't get me wrong, the child is toilet trained. I think he's just on a power trip!

I realise I've written a lot more about my daughter than son. I think this is because a) she's older and b) he's just so much more simple to understand at this stage. what you see is what you get, i think a combination of age and gender.