Posts Tagged "programmes"

Mummy in Need

Posted by cafebebemama on Nov 24, 2009 in Motherhood | 30 comments

Little Miss trying to find something to do!

I am a Mummy in Need of inspiration for things to do with my gorgeous Little Miss!  I’ve hit a rut in the last few months and it makes me a bit sad.  You see, last year, around September time, Little Miss was just a wee 3 months old.  She was starting to sit up on her own and was very alert and active and I wanted to be a good Mummy.  I found out about our local Sure Start Children’s Centre in Market Deeping from the Health Visitor.  I picked up a brochure and found an exciting list of classes and programmes and opportunities to crawl out of the hole we were living in.  I enrolled in a Baby Massage Class and a music class called JellyBeans.  I went to our first class, JellyBeans, with a bit of nervousness but found it to be the best thing we had done up to that point.  I met some amazing (and some scary) Mums and got out of the house on a regular basis.

We became regulars at the Children’s Centre.  Attending classes, events, walking groups…Little Miss and I were there for them all!  We found 5 or 6 other Mummies who had all had Baby Girls within 2 weeks of Little Miss’ birthday.  We became a lovely group- having coffee mornings, play dates, walking outings, evenings “off”…the lot.  And then summer came.  Our girls had their birthdays and became Toddlers!  Two of the mummies returned to work and for the most part, we’ve drifted apart.  Our lives have gone in slightly different directions mainly because none of us are attending programmes at the Children’s Centre any longer.  And that’s part of what makes me sad.  Our local Sure Start Children’s Centre doesn’t have any programmes for “our age” girls any more.  They have infant and baby/mummy programmes and things for nursery age and school age children but there’s a gap in the programming for 1-3 year olds.  Right smack dab where we are!  I’m also sad because our Mummy group has drifted apart as well.  It’s bound to happen as your children get older but it still makes me a bit wistful for the days gone by!

We still have our best mates to pal about with and I’m ever so grateful for them but I’m getting stuck in a rut!  We stay indoors a lot of the time because the weather has been rubbish lately and I’m a bit of a fair-weather person.  I don’t mind a bit of drizzle as Little Miss is always snug as a bug in a rug but when it comes to the driving rain and gale force winds of late, inside is where I want to be.  There doesn’t seem to be a plethora of child friendly places to take your child when the weather is British and I fear that I have become a bit too comfortable staying in the house.  Little Miss has her toys and Cbeebies while Mummy has the computer and the kitchen.  I don’t know what to do in my area (Cambridgeshire/Lincolnshire borders- Peterborough is the nearest “big” city) and I am out of ideas for what to do with Little Miss when we’re at home.

So, what I’m asking for is ideas…suggestions…kicks in the butt…projects…all geared around a nearly 18month old Little Miss and a stuck-in-a-rut-needing-a-kick-in-the-butt Mummy.  How do you fill the hours of your day?  When you stay at home, how do you do “it all”?  Housework, entertaining Little Miss/Mister, remembering who you are?  I’m open for suggestion people…within reason mind you.  So here are some things to bear in mind:

• 18 month old Little Miss, rather precocious, loves animals, dancing and talking
• Late 30-something Mummy, rather out of ideas, loves music & blogging & Little Miss (and hubby too!)
• Living in Cambridgeshire/Lincolnshire- near P’boro
• Can drive but moderately terrified of tackling London or other major cities by automobile
• Money IS an object…classes that cost money are probably not a possibililty but fares or fees to do one-off adventures would be ok on a once-a-week basis

I am ready for your ideas and will publish them in a follow up post and let you know how we get on!  Put on your thinking caps…Cafe Bebe is open for business.  Ready…steady…go…  (Thank you!)