I'm not am - please tell me I'm not???

[BaroqueAroundTheClock]

I've just sent an email to the Sunday School (main) leader telling her that none of my boys will be at the dress rehearsal for the Sunday School Nativity (DS2 is Joseph, DS1 has a speaking part, DS3 is a shepherd......probably a wandering one ).

The reason - it's from 5.30-7pm on a Wednesday.

That's not too bad EXCEPT for the fact that we have our monthly after school service that day as well - straight after school until 4.15ish (and then we stay to tidy up/serve refreshments- as I help to organise it).

It's our Christmas one so probably going to go on for longer as we tend to make it a bit of a party. DS1 is in charge of the technical side of things for that service.

We don't usually leave the church until 5.15 at the earliest (often much closer to 6).

So if they stay for the rehearsal they'll be out doing stuff constantly all the way until 7pm - with just a handful of biscuits and grapes to keep them going.

I replied straight back to say - no - none of them will be there........because of the proximity in timing to our (booked months ago) Service.

But now I'm wondering if I'm being unreasonable and I should just make them stay on until 7........

I can only echo what others have said - its not as if it is a weekly/monthly occurrence. As a one off the children should be able to cope (they are more adaptable than we give them credit for at times) but you know your children best.

oh believe me - I know how adaptable they are - bedtime is usually 8pm for the 3 and 6yr olds - but I run choir practice (which DS1 and 2 sing in) until 8pm every Thursday (and that's without even going anywhere near how much they've had to adapt in recent months years)

LOL - I've got a supply of valium here, perhaps i should post them down - only joking !!

I know where you are coming from as I brought up four children on my own for many years and was secretary of the PTA for 7 or more years as they couldnt get anyone else to do the job (makes me laugh when people think they are hard done to when they only have one or two children to work around). Its easy when on the outside of the square looking in but not so easy when your inside the square.

Good luck whatever you decide. TC xx

ARGHH - pass me some of that valium please.

Think I'll have to email in the morning to say we'll do it.

God I really don't want to spent 1/2 my day in the church (have enough to do of that in the following 2 weeks or so) but with Joseph, and a speaking part I don't really have a choice.

WHY on earth have they decided a mid-week practice over dinner time is a clever thing to do GRRR. Instead I'm going to have a shitty weekend with grumpy kids instead of just taking 1 1/2hr out of a nice Saturday.

It's obviously a decision that's been made by the main Sunday school leader on her own - as I really can't see my BF having agreed that the Wednesday was a good day for it for her and her kids.

She begged me not to make choir practice on a Wednesday night (starting at 7 so at least enough time to pop home and eat) because of Leapfrog.

Might also be worth asking why it has been changed away from its 'normal' weekend slot and saying that you've had a christmas party scheduled on this day for the best part of a year...

There may well be others that have also expected it to be at its normal time, or maybe there was just one mum who wondered why it was always at a weekend or was worried because they were going to be away/whatever, and so the leader changed it for one person, without realising that lots of others were going to be inconvenienced by it.

If it is all the same church/church hall, will they be expecting to start the rehearsal while your first group is expecting to over run and have its christmas party? not quite sure from your posts if they will all be in the same place or close to each other; but if they are in the same place, you might find your first group is spoiled interrupted by people arriving early to set up for the dress rehearsal and then your party is going to be spoiled because they are champing at the bit to get going.

would have thought whoever is in charge of church bookings should have flagged it up when the bookings were made - assuming the nativity rehearsal was made after your booking.

might just be worth speaking to the leader to explain the situation and say that you will take the kids out after your service adn party to grab a quick bite to eat to give you a break from the place and some sustenance, but that you will be back.

Tricky though if your kids have big parts! Shame they were not able to give you more notice of the date of the dress rehearsal - not that you could have done much more than flag it up earlier that you would find it very difficult to go which might have meant different parts for your dc I suppose!

zipzap - yes it's all in the same space - we'll use the church for our service/party (will be more party like as it's the Christmas one) and then they'll use the same space for the dress rehearsal as the service that they'll do their Nativity thing in is in the church.

It's going to be manic trying to get the screen and stuff put away so they can use the front of the church. By the time they start coming in all the "extra" children that we've had had will have gone home and it'll just be our lot left helping to tidy up.

As they're both "church" events the person that does the church bookings wasn't involved (which makes a nice change as she's prone to letting the schools have their major services in there on the afternoons we hve our service as well ).

The leader has obviously decided this afternoon to do the rehearsal on that day (I'm 99.99% certain it wasn't arranged earlier than this afternoon as we were all at church this morning, I was one of the last to leave and nothing was said while I was there).

My DS's would probably have been given similar parts anyhow - not many boys in the Sunday school - though tbh I'm not bothered - what part they got. They're at church so often that they usually get something "important" to do on a regular basis anyhow

Just a little update on this.

I decided to let them go (after being told to either put up or shut up and that I was there when the discussion took place ). Turn out my BF did know and was railroaded into it - her DH is going to have dinner ready for when they get home and take a packed lunch for her dainty eaters to top them up?

Decision was made easier for me as I've had to cancel choir practice the following night so it won't be two late nights on the trot.

Anyhow, today get a letter home from school.......DS1 has a (compulsory) inter-schools cross country event on that Wednesday afternoon - he's going to be knackered. Never mind a smug angel - he'll be a sleepy angel.