Sandra Ashenford reflects on the ups and downs of her week

THIS week I spent a day looking after my twin granddaughters all by myself for the very first time and, as this was quite a daunting prospect, I decided it would be a good idea to take them out for a bit.

I loaded them into their super-duper, very gorgeous, violet double pram and set off from their home in Stonehouse to the coffee bar in Ebley where daughter number three works.

These were my observations during our walk: 1. In some places, pavements are very dirty and gritty.

This can be an issue when you have been told not to wreck the wheels of the aforementioned super-duper pram.

2. People, generally, are absolutely lovely, from the workmen who carefully moved obstructions out of my way to the great grandmother who shared stories of her much-loved extended family, and the two young people who helped me up and down kerbs.

3. I should have known that at the point mid-way between home and our destination it would rain, because of course I had no rain-covers for the super-duper pram as it was sunny when I set out.

Still, we eventually arrived at our destination only a tiny bit damp and were rewarded with coffee or milk, according to our preferences.

The twins behaved impeccably and were cooed over by everyone present, and we eventually set off for home very pleased with our morning’s excursion.

Daughter number two arrived home in due course, relieved to see that the twins were still in one piece (and, indeed, sleeping peacefully) and was only a tiny bit stressed out by the state of her pram wheels.

Of course, the greatest joy of being a grandparent is that you get to have all the lovely time with your grandchildren, and then the parents step in to deal with all the less pleasant bits, like sleepless nights.

But, grandmotherly duty completed, I then had to whizz off to pick up ten-year-old daughter number four from school.

As her mum, I am still very much on 24-hour duty.