the fairy god-parent thing
I couldn’t keep torturing myself with questions of whether or not to do it. And I know there are no guarantees… I might end up with a devil-baby plagued by cholic, and post-natal depression induced by sleep deprivation… (of course it could all be a dreamy-easy second-time-confidence situation!) but, either way, I want people to be sharing it with. The good and the bad. Not just Rosie. Not just mum and dad.
So I invented ‘fairy god-parents’. They’re special trusted friends, both old and new… people I can lean on and who will be repaid in barrow-loads of love, appreciation and baby vomit.
When I first talked about it… people were flattered and then they asked ‘but what does it really mean?’. I think a few of them might have experienced the silent guilty thought - ‘what’s in it for me?’ (I still don’t know exactly…)
The fact is that I can’t see into the future and having a baby is sailing into unchartered waters. Anything could happen. But I made it clear that each individual could make whatever commitment they wish to… and that it should probably be an organic, variable one - as work commitments change, people have their own kids and lives… and baby’s needs evolve.
Simplest put… it’s an invitation to be part of our family… a pact to ‘come and play!’