7am on a Thursday morning, through spoonfuls of soggy cornflakes, Hugo breaks from his momentary pensive state to announce, "I'm going to build the highest ladder in the world and go up to the top of a mountain to get Seamus back home!" I had mistaken his morning zombie impression for tiredness... turns out he's pretty busy inside that head. 

Later on at tuck-in, our bedtime story is "Stick Man". Pia points to each of the three stick children in turn, proudly naming them "Hugo, Pia and Seamus!"

Our home life looks pretty normal from the outside, but normal life is occasionally punctuated by these interjections - giving our hearts a little squeeze. It's not as sad as it sounds - we've worked hard to give them a sense of their family, a knowledge of the brother who came before them... How we loved him as much as them, how sad we still are that he is gone, who he looked like. It's a relief to see them so accepting of a situation that most adults struggle with, and comforting to see Seamus nestle into their lives without question. They'll often ask to light a candle for him at dinner time, or point out where he would be sitting around a table in a restaurant, drop a coin into his charity piggy bank along with theirs.  

He's one of them, a part of our little tribe. 

From the moment we started training for our own 5 for 5 Challenges, they've had a million questions about what we were doing and why. And to our surprise, virtually from the outset, Hugo has taken it upon himself to tell everyone who will listen that he will be climbing mountains and cycling and all sorts "to help other babies not to die."

So, here is their challenge - we're not entirely sure what it will look like just yet - but there will be mountains (hills), cycling (with stabilisers) and an obstacle course will undoubtedly feature at some point too! They will do five new mini adventures in memory of their brother!   

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