Where the Deer and the Antelope Play - Living in the USA (visitors welcome)

[SuperBunny]

East Coast
MaNanny - Boston
Twinmommytobe - Boston
MuminCT - CT
Greatgooglymoogly - NY State
Yesthereare4ofthem - NY State
Brooklynmom - NYC
alarkaspree - NYC
MKG - New Jersey
Mummimamma - PA
Poetmum - PA
Twirl - MD

South
Earlybird - TN
jabberwocky - AR
Sunchowder - Florida
Marls001 - Bentonville, AR
Tinpot - NC
MadameDeathStare- AL

Midwest
SuperBunny- Chicago
Dodgykeeper - Dayton, OH
Chocchipcookie - Ohio
MonkeyLover
KickAssAngel - Ann Arbor, MI

Rockies
Alipiggie - Boulder, CO
Ribena

Northwest
AnnieLaurie - Seattle, WA
Dooneygirl - Oregon City, OR

California
SittingBull - nr San Francisco
Califrau - Milpitas
loopsngeorge - Brentwood, LA
Syd - Manhattan Beach, LA
SofiaAmes - LA
LATyke - Redondo Beach

Texas
Texan - Dallas
Tiggyhop - Houston
Vixie78 - Houston
BananaPudding - Austin
Cosmicdust - East Texas

Canada
Hellish - Ottawa
Shouldlistenedtomymum - Hamilton
Nooka - BC
Jacksmama - Langley

Exotic Islands
Anorak - Bermuda
cp - Trinidad
Barefeete - BVI

Brazil
Albert

Hmm, thanks for the comment. I think my 7yo will be up for a discussion about it but I don't think my 5yo will see it as anything more than learning a nursery rhyme or something, which I don't think is right.

I'm reminded of the story my grandmother told me of learning 'Hail Mary' during the war and coming home from school saying 'Heil Mary' (like Heil Hitler) and her father flipping out because the school weren't explaining what they were actually learning

Aww, Cali. You sound like you do loads of stuff for your school. Buying the flag was a lovely thing to do.

I really need to work on my 'mom' skills. The one they're at at the moment sends out emails every day, asking for cookies for this, or car rides for that or money for something else. Yesterday, we got a letter inviting us to 'underwrite' various things for their Beatles evening - $500 for wine, $2000 for Hors D'Oeuvres and $3000 for karma cocktails. It seems like they ask for so much (time and money) that I'm struggling to keep up to a point that I just feel resentful and like giving up.

The irony is, none of the parents seem to work, yet they all have plenty of money to throw about.

I've finally decided I'm out of my league there, and the children just aren't happy anyway. The older one is bored and the younger one is struggling. When I go to the school, it's always chaos with kids barging into each other and everyone yelling.

The Montessori options seem a bit gentler - on the children and on me. So I can bake the occasional cookies and make the odd donation without the constant influx of begging letters. And they can go back to what they know which I think they deserve after such an unsettled year.

I promise that I will do my best.. to not drive like a maniac when my children get enrolled there. Having now adapted to the Californian approved way of driving with my Starbucks propped in one hand and my phone in the other, steering with my elbows

I plan on letting them do afterschool programmes so I can pick them up after the rush. Muahahaha.

my dd says the pledge each day, with full american accent & no understanding. i decided that as she's having probs with fitting in, a little, that i would just go with the flow, and when she's old enough to ask Qs about it, i'd say the americans say it cos they're american, and she says it cos they're letting her go to school there, so it's polite to join in. if she ever objects, i'd talk that through & would be willing to make the stand for her so she doesn't have to say it.

i'm amazed at how many people i see STILL driving with cell phones, it's like the law saya you HAVE to do it.

spent nearly an hour on the phone to the accountant today, have an appt for next week, now just have to collect together enough paperwork to fill a truck, and we may get a $50 tax rebate.

Cali, my DS's school cooks for the teachers too. I had parents evening today and the cafeteria was full of food cooked by the parents. I did'nt give them any of my sausages though

The sausages, by the way, were a great hit. I would certainly buy from them again. Big, fat and juicy. We just had them with a slice of bread and ketchup. Toad in the hole will be back on the menu!!! I had to stop DH from cooking the lot, they were that good.

Interesting, I hadn't considered this at all. I take issue with it too, Carmen, and for the same reasons. I always feel a bit awkward when the National Anthem is sung before a concert/ sporting event. I always stand but hang my head and feel odd.

Cali, how lovely of you to buy the flag

The constant requests is a bot strange too, coming from the UK where schools are pretty well provided for, even ones that don't have much spare cash.

Hooray for decent sausages!

we don't get so many requests, never heard of teachers getting food for a parents' eve - uk teachers are def the poor relations in that respect.

when the parent/teacher group meets in the mornings, the pledge is done, and we discussed whether or not to do it, decided yes, but then realised the office, teacher snot with a class etc don't. i just stood quietly, felt rude to sit there, but haven't a clue what the words are.

yes, but it was a little while ago, and i may inadvertantly do the funny 3 finger salute thing!

also, kinda wanted to show respect but not look like i was joining in, as i'm not american.iyswim.

one mum put her hand on her chest and spoke loud & proud, the others kinda went from just saying it very unemeotionally to roughly mumbling along, obviously not quite sure if they knew the words/were too embarrassed by the whole thing.

so, who DOES know the words to brownie/american pledge?

i promise to do my best, to do my duty to god, serve the queen & to keep the brownie guide code, or something like that.

I am in line to be a Cali in training.

I've been looking around here for some sport to get Colin into. I can't find anything. So today I was talking to one of the moms at Caitlin's school, and she told me that t-ball sign ups had already closed a few weeks ago. So I was bummed. She went home and talked to the registrar (who happened to live next door to her) and he said if I could get the form completed before tonight, that he would get Colin in. They were having the meeting tonight to make up the teams. How's that for timing?

So we went over after lunch, I filled out the forms, and the kids played and played until 4:30. And Colin is in. And while I will never be banner mom, as I don't have that ability, I am now snack mom.

I promise to do my best
to do my duty to god
to serve the queen
and help one another
and to keep the brownie guide law

iirc

Good news, Dooney.

Does anyone else goo to a playgroup with super-competitive snack bringing? Ours is from 10 - 12 and we always used to bring raisins or pretzels and then go home for lunch. Then people started bringing goldfish so I had to do that too otherwise DS would eat everyone else's. This has now progressed to:

peanut butter and nutella sandwiches
pizza
macaroni cheese
yoghurts
granola bars or cereal bars

and all of this means that my offering of apple, homemade muffin and other snacks look paltry compared to everyone else's elaborate spreads.

What is the guide one?

sb, get a fortnum & mason wicker hamper, check table cloth (not plaid), champagne flutes, cucumber sandwiches, cream tea, china plates etc etc.
just your 'typica' english picninc (maybe pimms, i prefer champagne) and spread it out on the floor. call your ds 'Wills' for the morning & dress in 1980s laura ashley.
then look round innocently, and say, 'oh how terribly rude, the butler only packed one tea cup, would anyone care to share?'

your food sounds scrummy btw, i think goldfish look hideous & dd refuses to eat them

Cali. I don't do crafty things. I have inherited not only the inability do do even the slightest crafty thing gene, but also the extreme boredom and lack of interest once anything is put in front of me that is crafty. I'll stick with what I know and like.

It doesn't start here until May. This is Oregon. It might as well be London here in terms of rain amount.

I loved my playgroup, SB. I think we never had any of the problems other ones seemed to have had. But I think I'm the only person who's ever had a happy one. For the record, I'd be much happier with your snacks than with theirs.

Love it, Kickass!

Oh, it's those coloured goldfish that terrify me! What on earth was the thought process behind "Let's make crackers. Shaped like FISH! Rainbow coloured fish!"

Errrggghhh

and let's put a huge amount of salt in them and pretend the orange ones are cheese flavoured even though they taste like cardboard. And we'll put a magic addictive ingredient in so that toddlers insist one eating them wherever they go

I have nothing useful to add but I am back in town after having to leave my conference a day early due to ds1 becoming quite ill Poor baby...he's in bed now and completely bewildered about the whole thing since he's very rarely sick.