Year 12 #2: Carols, commutes & a few stocking fillers

[Stickerrocks]

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/further_education/3410431-year-12-1-gcses-are-sooo-last-year

Stickerrocks as my username suggests, I have twins and DD. Twins in year 10.... - 2020 is going to be a 2 x GCSEs and 1 x A levels.

Today I’ve booked our summer holiday and joined Weight Watchers online... looking into flex now

You are good to start now, Twin. My plan is the same as every year - start on January 1st.
I can't start now-I've got a huge Christmas cake that I only iced yesterday to eat first!

Ouch. I wasn't sure if DD was the oldest or youngest. Don't forget that you can have Christmas treats. It's only when you're eating the same things in January, February and heading towards Easter that It's a problem.

DD & I iced two cakes last night. She has made one for her grandparents & it definitely looks better than mine, which caught around the edges.

Meanwhile she admitted today that she has asked her tutor at PPE club for help with some of the background topics as she isn't taking politics or economics. She has a stack of recommended reading now and was even open to looking at some of my own books. I'm so proud that she's shown some initiative.

Another one here planning a strict diet in the new year! Will start on Monday 7th January to give me a chance to consume all calorific Christmas goodies so there are no temptations left. My aim is to lose a stone by Easter ...

DC all done with school now. DS1 finished on a high with Head's Commendation and a postcard home from the music department with thanks for his contribution to music in school. DS2 on the other hand has been put on tracker for lack of effort in quite a few classes. The usual Year 9 and 'I know I'm not going to be doing this subject next year' bunk-off.

DS1 has been stressed with his PT job and asked to shorten his work hours (9am-5.30pm); has been told no today. He's been struggling with motivation to go to work every Saturday as he finds the work boring. Still, I am heartened that he took action himself to ask for shorter hours even if it wasn't granted. It seems to have been a watershed moment for him too as he seems happier today. He has made the decision to continue after weighing up pros and cons (he likes the money!) In the meantime, I'm trying to get him to crack open his UKCAT and BMAT books over Christmas.

Get him to stick with the job, 242mummy. I had a similar job at a similar age and wanted to give it up because it was boring too. My parents wouldn't let me, so I had to stick with it and I got the message loud and clear: that I could see with my own eyes that others did this full time for decades. So, if I didn't want to join then, then I needed to give myself other options by working hard at school/university. I still use it as a reference point today when I don't like doing something.

Ouch indeed stickerrocks well done to your DD

Join you on the lose a stone by Easter 242mummy

As regards boring PT jobs my DH regards this almost as a more postive thing than a week's work experience in his field (law) as it shows a commitment to something, reliability, the fact that they have had to be punctual etc rather the trainees who tip up never having worked a day in their life.

DS moaned a bit about his job in year 11 as he was one of the only ones who had one but now most of year 12 friends have one and on minimum wage where he is on £8.50 an hour he is a lot less whingey!

DD has had a job since 16 - currently in 2nd year of RG uni, self-financing. Best thing she ever did in terms of developing confidence and ability to manage time and money. Didn't stop her working for A levels or prevent her getting top grades- really helped in all areas of life.

DD has a paper round earns £10 a week all the 16/17 year olds round here work in the local supermarket or city centre and earn way more. As usual she won’t listen. She let it slip that she hardly has any money in her account and using Christmas money to boost her account not sure how much she thinks she will get from us and other relatives but it won’t fund her spending for long... wake up call coming soon ...

Well done 242's ds.

DS had a letter yesterday to say he had been made a Senior Prefect, so smiles all round here.

I will give all my Christmas wishes now, I' working tomorrow and the a double shift Boxing day. It's been so lovely to be part of the group of amazing women (hope no men feel offended) and I raise a glass to all of you and your families for a Happy Christmas.

Kilash on behalf of all families using your & your colleagues services over Christmas, a heartfelt thank you.

DS1 had a part-time job from half-way through Y12 (and still does occasional shifts in university holidays).

DS2 would like to do some tutoring at some point, but I'm not going to insist he gets a part-time job. He is doing four A-levels (and planning to continue with all four) does more independent study than most Y12s and has various music commitments too. For the course and career he wants, I think his time at this stage would be better spent doing what he is doing at the moment, i.e. lots of maths and physics.

DS is similar TheFirst - he does the odd bit of babysitting or cat feeding for extra pennies, though.
Kilash you are amazing and I wish you a very merry Christmas and happy new year!

Yes indeed Kilash, may your Christmas Eve and Boxing Day be low on stress.

DS has purchased all his presents (with a little bit of financial subbing), he has played in 3 carol services (1 to go) and he has cheerfully helped his Granny decorate her tree. When we started this thread at Christmas ‘16 he would not have managed to do all this without a major sense of humour failure. Could they be growing up?

Happy Christmas to all you thread types.

So DM is coming for Christmas and I've been shopping, baking and cleaning for the last 5 days in preparation.
Today, just as I was taking the last of the stuff out of the oven and DH was putting the vacuum cleaner away, and DM should have been putting her coat on to go to the airport, she rang to say she wasn't coming because she doesn't like traveling and she thinks she may be unwell
Then she rang again to say she didn't want to be a burden.
Then she rang to say she might give it a go after all (suddenly the croaky choice had magically disappeared).
I think she's in the air now.

This is shaping up to be a long 3 days. Its like having a child who wants a bit more attention

Feel your pain Whistl I been cleaning today ready for the arrival of DM on Christmas Day. Anyone else forced to watch Queen’s speech to keep DM happy, pass the

Merry Christmas, Kilash and to everyone else, of course, but I’ll still be here over Christmas. It’s just lovely to have all 3 DSs home with me. We’ve finished the first tub of chocolates so I really should be joining you in your 1 stone by Easter but I probably won’t.

Got any suggestions for a Christmas film tomorrow? Might do Love Actually if I can persuade them. We watched Die Hard last year. They won’t countenance anything too corny and we’ve done Home Alone, Muppet Christmas Carol, Miracle on 34th Street, It’s a Wonderful Life, Elf etc.

"The Holiday"??

Ah, DS2 is a Rotten Tomatoes snob, The Holiday only got 48%.

Love Actually is only 63%, hmm...

You could watch the original White Christmas, that's quite good. (The one they made before the war with Bing Crosby but not Danny Kaye. I think it's called Holiday Inn, though I may be confusing that with a hotel chain!)
I like Shop Around the Corner. I think that's considered a Christmas film.

Tbh, good luck finding a film that appeals to 3 generations. Its a struggle here. Casino Royale is about the only film that we'll all watch here.
DH says MIL likes to watch Disney films with everyone and he wants the boys to commit to it for when we visit at the end of the week. The DSes just looked appalled at the prospect of doing something so babyish. Its hard pleasing an octogenarian woman and two teenage boys at the same moment.

Whistl I am sending although a bit early in the day as I think you may need it!
They're showing It's a Wonderful Life here at the cinema - DS had offered to go with me but I suspect he'll backtrack!
DH went down to visit his parents yesterday. MiL is pretty immobile but at least home from hospital. DH did the shopping and they have masses of food to last them until Boxing Day, when we go down to visit, bearing more food!

It's not a Christmas film but we all watched Toy Story this weekend. Age range 6-71. Dd even looked up from her phone occasionally

I read recently that Gremlins is set at Christmas. We've also declared the first harry potter film a Christmas film. And Return of the Jedi if you really want to stretch it.

Happy Christmas all from me too! We are safely at my Dad's having visited cousins yesterday, and will be spreading ourselves round both sides of the family for the next 4 days.

Kilash and all your colleagues, I hope work is not too busy for you, thank you!
Whistl, oh my goodness! Hope your mum isn't as demanding when she gets to you!

Happy Christmas from me as well - especially to those having to entertain difficult relatives!

Christmas is proving a bit more tricky this year as DS has told us that it is a time when he always feels depressed. It seems to be a combination of cold, dark days, everyone being happy when he isn't and lots of joint family activities which he doesn't enjoy. Hard to know how much to encourage him to join in without making it worse - but not just leaving him to wallow in his own inner cave! He is enjoying having DD home from uni though, despite her being the embodiment of the joy of Christmas!