Big Brother

Tuesday 8.20pm

Take one 46 year old responsible adult, one 46 year old child, one 7 year old megalomaniac, one 17 year old who would rather live in a virtual world than the real one, and one 14 year old who just wants to sit and chat with his mates. Put them all in a house together and stir things up a bit by removing the television and computers so they have to talk to each other. Now just watch. On tv this would be called Big Brother, but we like to call it "Our Family Holiday". Seriously though we have just been away for the weekend and it was really good. I think it is modern living, and not just our family where we are all becoming more isolated. Computer games, televisions in bedrooms, we just do not talk much anymore. We try to get together at dinner time, even just on Sundays, but one child is usually glued to the tv, another is trying to squeeze the last few minutes out of the weekend with his friends and another is just "far too busy" to be interrogated by us at the table. So a holiday is good. We try new things, skiing this time, and most of all talk. All those minor irritations get washed out and you realise that your children are people just like you, a bit lazy perhaps but just people. And they are growing up, soon (hopefully!) they will not be here so now is the time to make the most of it. The old post office in Tokaanu, skiing on Mt Ruapehu, a good holiday, good company and at four days just long enough - don't want to overdo things now, do we.

Pic of us at Tokaanu geothermal pools by Nicola