We’re on the last Friday of the (WHY SO LONG?) Easter Holidays and I must admit – I’ve finally gotten used to that holiday feeling.

Jacob and I woke this morning (Eva is still up having her beauty sleep at 8.30am), came down stairs and cleaned away the pizza box from our second-takeaway-in-a-row party last night and settled down together on the couch for Cheerios and Cartoons.

We’re both so relaxed, there’s no arguing about uniforms or school or the stress of getting out the door on time and I just thought to myself, “There’s a lot to be said for this”.

But that wasn’t how I felt at the start of the break. WAAAAAY back then (jesus, two weeks ago seems like forever doesn’t it?!), I was VERY nervous about how we were going to fill our days, when I was going to be able to get any work done and if we’d all get along ok.

I decided to go easy on myself with the activity planning and thought that if we had one day out and about, we should have the next day in to potter around the house and just go local for walks and runarounds.

So that first weekend, we headed to the Easter Train at Rathwood. They invited us down via the blog and with the promise of a meet-and-greet with the Easter bunny as well as complimentary choice eggs, who was I to turn that down?

It was a beautiful sunny day and the kids truly had a blast. Ass Monkey and I were beside ourselves at the cheap flowers and plants in the garden centre (PEAK oul wan status) and brought lots of nice stuff home for our garden.

After that, we kind of had NO plan for the next two weeks. I started kicking myself that I didn’t have a holiday home somewhere that I could relocate to with the kids on these kind of breaks and so started the process of looking into one (maybe next year).

Then I started cleaning – the shed got it in the neck, the laundry was attacked with full force, every cupboard in the kitchen has been pulled apart. Honestly, I’m even contemplating entering the playroom today – and seriously, you can’t even get through the door right now.

I kind of felt like it was a good opportunity to get a bit organised before going back to work next week when everything gets all bonkers again so I rather enjoyed all of that.

For Easter weekend, we took a trip to ‘Grandad’s Farm’ – a sort of traditional annual event now to Tulsk in Co. Roscommon where my dad has an old farmhouse that he likes to retreat to on weekends during the year.

The kids just love it because there are donkeys in the nearby field that they find when they arrive so that they can feed them the carrots and apples they bring with them. There is so much space for them to play in, a trampoline in the garden, an Easter egg hunt and of course, unlimited attention and affection from Granny and Grandad Hayden.

Jacob genuinely bawls crying when it’s time to go home. Every year. That is what’s known as SUCCESS, people.

We’ve had a few visitors over the two weeks but not too many so they’ve all been enjoyable and not too overwhelming.

We’ve read tonnes of story books and the drawing/painting levels are off the charts. There is also a LOT of paint on my kitchen chairs that I am currently ignoring.

There have been epic chocolate-induced meltdowns and more than a thousand sibling scraps. I have seen 2-year-old Eva defend herself with a move that any Wrestle Mania pro would be proud of so I no longer feel like I need to get involved. Score.

There have been major baking sessions involving the melting down of all rogue post-Easter chocolate. They’ll never know.

There have been big long sleeps after long days spent together. In our bed, obvs.

I’ve spent so much time one on one with the kids that I really do feel closer to them now.

Isn’t that a strange thing to say?

Perhaps when we’re so busy with work and schedules and phone calls and running around, we don’t get to spend REAL time together.

But this time together has been real. And I am getting a LOT of hugs and kisses and “I love you so much, Mammy” declarations to prove it.

Swoon x