Special Time

Having had some 'turbulent' times with my 11 year old daughter recently, probably because she has suddenly started displaying signs of 'teenageritis' (even though only 11), I felt that because of our disagreements we had grown apart recently, and was having difficulty finding a way for us to get back together and rekindle the closeness we had before.

But this weekend I took her to Camden Market in London, just her and myself, for Special Time together. We went by train and spent the day wandering around, looking at and commenting on all the weird and wonderful stalls, not to mention the people walking around! It's real Goth country. We chose our own lunch at the food stalls, and I let her lead the way for the day. I made it her day. She chose where we went, and she bought a few things for herself. I refrained from starting up conversations where I thought it might open up old disagreements, and instead made lots of jokes and we had lots of fun.

The day was immensely influential in bringing us back together in that she really appreciated not only the treat, but the pleasure of having me all to herself, and how that made her feel special.

I really recommend having special time as a way of strengthening your relationship with your child.

http://www.camdenmarkets.org/