I am trying to keep life pretty low key at the moment so that child 4 can become accustomed to his new home and family. However, for my sanity we cannot stay stuck within our four walls. So after dropping child 3 into school we headed off to visit the ducks and the swans a short walk away. After detouring via the corner shop to buy milk and the chemist for those much needed everyday essentials - headache tablets, we took a stroll along the waters edge. Child 4 called to the many ducks and we watched the swans glide so elegantly up and down their waterway. The cygnets that not so long ago were grey and fluffy are now maturing into adults their grey feathers now intermingled with the white that will soon coat their bodies, they followed their parents single file, causing child 4 to chuckle delightedly when they dived down hunting in the water depths, their bottoms stuck up high into the air.
When the cygnets reach about six months old their parents encourage them to fly the nest, and off they will soar seeking out other adolescent swans to hang out with for about 4 years until they reach full maturity. Sounds a bit like our teenagers heading out to university.
We have another 16 years before our new and youngest addition can consider leaving home, should he decide that University is the way forward for him, he may not, it maybe an apprenticeship or employment which inevitably means that leaving home may not be an option. I can't see us encouraging our children to fly the nest as such, I am not saying that I intend to hold onto them but I will not banish them either.
Our children will always be welcome here,this is their home but at some point they need to spread their wings and fly, exploring their world on their own.
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