Father's Day

I'm very lucky I have my Dad. He's great with all his grandkids, a chancer and a joker, as he was with them today. We talked wild beasts and animal behaviour, niece's prom dresses and nephew's sleeping arrangements, canal trips, castles and divining rods, Edinburgh and dungeons and wild crazy garden poppies.

The kids and I are very lucky we have Dave. (And we are very lucky to have the kids, particularly with Sam's uncertain entry into the world, while Tess was coming whether the world was ready or not). As usual I wasn't organised, apart from a card, so I cunningly got the kids to name three things they love about their Dad. Not so cunning after all. It completely backfired. Plan B. Guilt trip the kids into making him breakfast in bed, while I too remain in bed. A much better plan. Tess surpassed herself by giving us a bowl of strawberries for two.

Consistent parenting is important, so they tell us, so we guilt tripped them again tonight by strong arming them to join us on a long summer solstice walk, which they reluctantly agreed to on the grounds it was Father's Day. And here's them half way on the walk, looking like a family of super villains from an episode of The Avengers....the old school black and white Steed and Mrs Peel Avengers that is, not the big screen technicolor tight trousered Thor or cod pieced Iron Man.