Reflection at a Garage Sale

Last weekend my neighbour decided to have a garage sale and she graciously offered to sell anything we wanted to get rid of. The offer could not have come at a more opportune moment as the Mauritian and I had decided we needed to make a few changes and de clutter a tad. With the Lollipop now officially potty trained and dry overnight she is out of the cot and in a bed. She of course thinks she is the bee’s knees now but that is another blog. In the process of buying the bed, the Butterfly brought up the subject of the two of them sharing a room. In the past when we had suggested it, the Butterfly had not seemed very enthralled by the idea of giving up her privacy so we were surprised when she broached the subject. During the course of the discussion, the Butterfly asked if we could move the Lollipop into her room and they can decide together if they like sharing or not. So, that is what we did, and within a few days it was quite clear that both girls were very comfortable and happy with the idea. So these past two weeks Butterfly and I have tidied out her bookshelves, toy boxes, cupboards and bedside tables and made room for her sister’s things. Then we attacked Lollipop’s room and we piled into the disused cot all the clothes and toys she no longer fitted or played with and moved most of her things into her new room.  With two children and two beds in one room the already limited space has shrunk so we converted Lollipop’s room into a storeroom/playroom.

My goodness did they take to the idea of a “playroom,” except for first thing in the morning and just before bed the sister’s have been dividing the day up between the “playroom,” bedroom and trampoline. Unfortunately with all the unused stuff being stored in the room it has not taken long for total disorganisation to take place. It had become necessary to rid ourselves of any stuff that was unused and gathering dust so Aunty E’s offer was readily accepted. So again the Butterfly and I repacked all the toys into their boxes, and set about cleaning and sorting out everything for sale. Friday evening we carried everything next door, the Butterfly was completely uninterested except for the fact that there was now loads more space in the “playroom.” The Lollipop was not so sure about the idea. She showed some concern when we moved out the changing table but only because she thought we were taking the toys that had been stored on it with us. She asked why we were moving her cot and seemed satisfied with the reply that we were giving it away because she did not need it any more. Her little sleeper couch was a different story she let out a heart broken wail of protest, until her sister said “We don’t need the couch any more silly Billy we have funky bean bags now!”

While we were helping the neighbours set things up we left the girls with electronic babysitters and told the Butterfly to come get us if they needed us. It was not long before one or both of them decided we were gone too long and they came looking for us. On seeing all her baby paraphernalia the Lollipop’s eyes lit up and she squeal with delight at having found her cot. When we left I told the girls’ to say goodbye and our little Lollipop went around the garden touching each item and saying goodbye. There were four weepy-eyed adults in that yard all sighing and saying, with hands over our hearts, how cute she was. This soon turned to sidesplitting laughter as she bid goodbye to the neighbours garden furniture, barbeque and garden gnomes.  Once we were home the Mauritian and I started discussing about how else we could put the room to use, providing of course that we were able to sell everything and didn’t need to move it all back  in. I walked into the room to get a sense of the space and I was suddenly aware of emptiness. Suddenly we no longer have a baby in the house and nothing to look at that represented my children’s babyhood. Oh my goodness, my babies are growing and slowly but surely the chapters of their childhood are opening and closing before our eyes.

It is at moments such as these that I am grateful to be able to be at home with my children. I have not missed any of their “firsts” or any of their worst. On reflection I have come to realise just how great a sacrifice the Mauritian makes every day so that his children want for nothing. He is missing so much of their growing up, so often he has to hear second hand about the funny little things that children do and say. Like most people he often wishes he could just stay at home and not have to work and he does complain often and sometimes bitterly about having to go to work, but he never does less than his best every day. So many times these holidays he has left me to sleep in while he gets ready for work and when I ask him why he didn’t wake me up he just says I looked like I needed to sleep in. On most mornings he is the first to arrive at work and is always the last to leave, yet if I need him at home in an emergency he will not hesitate to drop everything and come home. Recently I got up after lunch and sighing said something along the lines of putting away yet another load of laundry and picking up after the kids yet again. The Mauritian followed me down the passage and said “We all have our jobs to do babe, like it or not!” Well that pulled the soapbox right out from under me.

As it turned out the garage sale was not as much of a success as we had hoped and we had to move most of the paraphernalia back into the “playroom.” So yet again chaos rules as the girls fill what is left of the space with toys and books making it impossible to move. No room either for reflections or feeling sentimental, for now!