Today is the start of the new school year. Unfortunately my younger daughter had to go back to school with her arm still in a cast – she goes back to hospital on Friday for a second op to remove the wires (as explained in a previous post ‘The School Holidays are not going as Planned’). This was the cause of much anticipation on her behalf:

‘It’s so embarrassing,’ she said to me. ‘Everyone will be looking at me and asking me what happened. And what if they bump my arm?’

We all tried to reassure her that it would be fine and that the other children would only be asking her questions because they would be concerned about what happened to her. But I took her into school via the main reception and straight up to her classroom so that she could bypass everyone in the playground. I thought she was going to have a wobble before I left but she was fine.

For the next couple of days my daughter will have to stay in at breaks and lunchtimes and she will get to choose a friend to accompany her. Today, she asked for her sister to be there, which is testament to the fact that my older daughter has been by her sister’s side throughout the entire holiday and the pair have become close – not something I ever imagined happening, as before the accident the girls were barely on speaking terms. Something positive always comes out of a bad situation, or so they say.

My son and I are at home on our own now until next Thursday, when he starts school on half days. For some reason he woke up today in a cuddly mood and has remained that way since. It’s as if he knows that things are about to change and suddenly he needs me to be by his side.

I don’t mind though. I can put up with lots of cuddles if that’s what he needs. That’s certainly no hardship. The problem is, it will just make it that bit harder for me when he does start school next week. But I will try not to think about that and enjoy the last few days of having a little one at home, because after that it’s all change for both of us.

In the meantime we have to get my daughter through this next operation and then she sees a specialist next week to assess the nerve damage. I am hoping that with time the nerves will recover by themselves and she will have full use of her fingers again. I strongly believe that this will be the case, although I am prepared that the recovery time may be long.

It’s not a good start to the school year, but there’s nothing we can do about that now. Hopefully by the end of the year things will look a little different and we can look forward to what 2014 will bring.