She'll be apples

It's often said, punkin, that the apple falls not far from the tree. This is, in my opinion, a bit of a ridiculous thing to say. I mean, how far could the apple get? It's not like they have legs, or the keys to my car.

The truth of the saying, however, apparently, lies in the idea that ones children tend to be quite like oneself. Quite how this happens is a bizarre process, and one that I'm not yet entirely comfortable with. Every time you turn around and giggle at me with a particular glint in your eye, I see your mother. Often when you're stamping your foot and saying "No, Daddy, it's NOT bedtime it's morning time I want to watch Diego", I can see and recall my own frustration as a young child.

So we, as hip and groovy 21st century parents, try to work with you to come to some mutually agreeable solution (also because you're astonishingly stubborn - again with the apples) to achieve our goals. Which are goals that you would have too, if you had a bit more of a long range vision and, I dunno, an idea that maybe Mum and Dad would like to have a bit of a snooze too.

The strange thing is, that as we've progressed, we've noticed that this negotiation strategy actually works. That, f'rinstance, reading you "ThomasBook!" one..... more.... time... can result in immediate cessation of hostilities, and, subsequent to correct application of little blanket, big little blanket, blue blanket, green blanket and big blanket, in the correct order and permutation, actual sleep. Before 11pm. This concept is almost alien to your parents.

There is other news, although it's a little early to be bouncing around, but the issue around your dad being underemployed appears to have resolved itself, however, to beleaguer another well known phrase, it never rains. (This is Australia, that's the end of the phrase. It just never rains.)

Your dad now appears to be what's known as "overemployed", a situation that is taking a little getting used to, but should place us in a good position for our Next Major Purchase. More on that later, suffice to say that the relationship between the "real estate boom" and the "housing affordability crisis" appears to depend on how many houses one owns. In your parents' case, this figure is zero, hence we are firmly in the Crisis section of the populace, and seriously considering Whittlesea at this point in time.

Not really.

Epping is a chance, but.

Love you

Love you