"3" is a magical age.
I remember a bit of my own very early youth, and vividly the time when our son was 3, and now the triplets entered it with the first day of September.
Not being allowed to post photographs of the Three Graces I show you a postcard with a drawing by Cicely Mary Barker - it resembles amazingly a photograph of the unidentical triplet (the other two are monovular).
What I adore is their imagination, the surprising use of language - and that they do not care a fig what the world thinks of them - they express their feelings without pretence, laugh a lot, and are so easily bewitched by a situation and make the most of it that there is never a sign of boredom, but lots of energy (oh yes, I would like to have a third of that!).
Yesterday I went to my little breakfast table in front of the huge window with the view into the valley (I know I sound like Hyacinth Bucket from "Keeping up Appearances" :-).
It crunched under my slippers.
Lots of fine white salt. Each of the triplets had snatched the salt-shaker in an unobserved moment and scattered salt on my breakfast table where I have two little buddhas and a small candle and always a fresh tiny flower.
They do not like this assembly - sheer jealousy, if you ask me ("Good taste", Son would say). Ha!
They giggle with laughter when they mention "The salted Buddhas".
I take a deep calming breath, 4 - 7 - 8, and then I smile :-)
Sounds like they are going to be rather a handful in their own secret worldl, but lots of fun.
ReplyDeleteExactly, Tasker: they invent a world of their own (though of course they are in the real world too :-) - and even give themselves new names (not for a moment, no, since half a year they insist that you call them so).
Delete3 IS a magical age! No more mewling puking infancy, 3 year olds are busy little explorers who still love their parents warmly.
ReplyDeleteBeware, however, it may not last. The same children may become rude adolescents
Yes, they are full of love and curiosity, and sometimes tantrums too, and the world is so fresh and new! I hope that this view will last long, dear Helen!
Delete3 year old mischief. I'm sure they feel clever sprinkling the salt about.
ReplyDeleteIf it happens frequently, I might have them do a bit of cleaning up.. If made responsible for salt clean-up, it might not be as fun.
I think it is the joy of explorers, Susan. One of them - she is quite orderly - swept up the salt on the little table with a wonderful device I have found on a flea market - might show it in another blog. The others: yes, I do set limits when I see that it is mischief and not the scientific spirit of discoverers. :-)
DeleteThey sound like very happy triplets.
ReplyDeleteI think that too, Rachel. They have good conditions: a garden, nature around, a village with (strange) Bavarian traditions, which gets everybody together (everybody means 511 inhabitants) - and a farm where they are always welcome to pet calfs and cats and bunnies.
ReplyDeleteNever a dull moment around your house! Thanks for visiting my blog.
ReplyDeleteDear Boyd, I am glad to see you here! And you are right, it never is dull here. I had the luck to find a little flat very near to my family in Bavaria and normally see them from 14 - 18:00 pm at the moment (but Saturday and Sunday most often are Me-time) - and then there is still the time in my flat in Berlin - I do not see as often as I planned before coming here - but that is my decision and no complaint. :-)
DeleteThe triplets sound really interesting and what a joy they all must be to their parents and their grandmother.
ReplyDeleteSome of my favourite books when I was young were Cicely Mary Barker's. In her Flower Fairy Alphabet book the letter R, my initial, stood for the Ragged Robin fairy, so that then became my favourite wild flower.
From the moment they started to speak I am really happy, Rosemary - and they love books and these moments, sitting on my sofa and discussing with them what we see or think, nestling together, are sheer bliss.
DeleteThe uproar they sometimes make - they are lively children, and that is well - are compensated by that!
I have some books of Cicely, and a collection of 100 postcards of "Flower Fairies" (and, by the way, some very beautiful plates with motives of flower fairies - but those are "tabu" for little hands...) - and as we see so many flowers and trees here in the rural country I let them pick out the postcards of the ones they have seen on our long long walks.
As we all know the memory (as in the famous game) of children is excellent, and they are able to recognise and name a flower or tree in the cycle of the year.
The Ragged Robin has always fascinated me, I love the pink version (here we have lots of white ones, those I never have seen before).
What a fun age. It begins at the age of two. They learn that they can say no and people listen. Their imaginations kick in. I can only imagine what it must be like in triplicate.
ReplyDeleteDear Mimmylynn, I see you have experience!
ReplyDelete"The art of saying no" is something they exercise at the moment quite a lot - and that not only by throwing a tantrum - no, they also start to negotiate :-)
Their imagination is so interesting to observe - at the moment they give themselves new names (and stick to them!) - and as most children of their age they start role playing games.
What an adorable insight into the life you lead with the triplets in tow! It must be a very curious life to be surrounded by your siblings so intensely. School will be an interesting experience for them when they learn that not all children live as they do and might even be on their little lonesome own sometimes!
ReplyDeleteDear Pip, thank you! As a proud grandmother I would prefer to be allowed to show a few photos, which, understandably, I am not. (And I do NOT wear any photos of them in my wallet :-)
DeleteSchool in Germany starts with six, and their Kindergarten starts next year when they are four years old (in Germany parents decide when to enter - quite a lot of them put them into the Kinderkrippe with half a year, most others send them to Kindergarten with three years - four is quite unusual, but being the first years of life with their mother and father is certainly a treat. Of course they meet other children in the sport and dance group.
Interesting that you mention being on their own at school (or even in kindergarten) - some of these institutions divide the threesome, some don't.
I think at least when going to school they should have the chance to be "on their own" - no judgement of teachers between them and the chance to find different friends. We'll see! :-)
It's funny how we don't care a fig when little then worry all the time what others think in our teenage years and now I'm old, I'm back to not caring a fig !!!!!
ReplyDeleteHappy, happy birthday to the triplets ..... I'm sure they will test your patience lots more as ours do but, it's all worth it isn't it Britta ? XXXX
Haha, Jackie - I often think that we have a lot in common: not caring a fig now is what I experience and enjoy very much now - though have to confess that I cared very, very much (and in some fields, as I believe you do too, I am still "vain" - and think that this is a good thing.
DeleteThank you for your birthday greetings - from the Flying Dutchman I learned that in the Netherlands not only the birthday children but also the parents and grandparents are felicitated too - a very nice gesture I think, as we do quite a lot :-)
Learning patience (in many many field of life) seems to be the Big Lecture that Life is still trying to teach me...