What’s wrong with 365 days of school?

July 5, 2007 - 2:51 PM by Nicky

The school holidays have only just begun, and I’m already wishing they were over.

Every afternoon when my day at work finishes I go downstairs to find my three boys waiting for me. “We’re bored, what are we doing to do?” the two oldest cry.

As if they haven’t spent all morning at a ketena (holiday club), doing acrobatics, football, basketball, juggling, swimming, and goodness knows what else.

So we go the pool, or the mall, or a park, or a movie in the village, or I arrange for them to see friends.

Yesterday I got organized in advance and told them to invite friends over for a water pistol fight.

The action started at 4.30pm. Six children running round the garden, screaming and hurling water at each other. My one-year-old right in the middle, sat in his little pool, placidly pouring water from one cup to another, despite the all-out craziness around him.

There was water everywhere. God help the Kinneret next year.

Then they moved on to swing ball, and then hide and seek. In and out of the house, up and down the stairs, shrieking and yelling.

I fed them ice lollies, and then sweetcorn. Running hither and thither with towels, and cups, and plates; mopping up the floor, wiping down the windows.

Around 6.30pm they all disappeared upstairs to play on the playstation.

Daniel, my nine-year-old came to me in the kitchen where I was preparing dinner for seven hungry children.

“Mummy,” he said. “I’m bored. What can I do now?”

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