Lying around to teach children

A week or so ago I eased up on my usual frenetic pace and sat around a bit more. (I've had a sinus infection - all gone now - this stuff is magic for sinus infections but only if it's been opened in the last two months or so. Better than antibiotics.)

Lying in bed, I become a magnet for my children (and the cat) who cosied up next to me and chatted. "I wonder what humans looked like while they were evolving?" "Could we make wool from the cat's fur?"

Last night I sat down after dinner to stroke and scratch the cat. "What does DNA look like?" asked Jack. (He'd been reading a New Scientist on the coffee table.) Then he asked about atoms and electrons and how many atoms would be in his bedroom.... (not infinite! Just extremely hard to count!).

Too much science in this house, probably! We talk about lots of other things, too. Due to the smoochiness of our darling cat it's often about how nice the cat makes us feel, what he might be up to on his outside adventures, etc. Maybe it doesn't matter what we talk about, and what matters is the feeling of closeness and the opportunity to bring things up in a relaxed fashion.

I first learnt this lesson when I was pregnant with Anna. Two-year-old Jack turned out to adore me lying in bed all day with terrible nausea. We discovered that bent Mama knees make a good slide, and little boys can be happy for hours on end with a constantly available mother.

Nearly nine years later I learn the lesson again... a slow learner, for sure!