Tea Room The 24th - San Francisco Painted Lady!

[Tee2072]

Welcome to the 24th incarnation of the One-Child Tea Room. Not that you only have to have one! Just so long as you enjoy chat, tea, coffee, cake!!

The usual rules apply - no bunfighting. If you like that sort of thing, go elsewhere.
Other rules: bring . Or .

Our ongoing voyage take us to one of San Francisco's Painted Ladies!

We've brought the Aga over, it's in the back in the cosy kitchen overlooking the back garden. The chintz sofa is in the front room, under the bow window! All of the pillows and duvets have come along as well!

What's that? The Priest Hole? It's just over there --> behind the bookcase!

Mellors is upstairs, preparing the bedrooms for naps and such.

The aspidistras are thriving as they overlook Nob Hill! The horses have found themselves stabled in the Garden, which is much larger than these places usually are in this city!

So come in and have a seat!

::tea hurries off to Powell Street to catch the Cable Car to Ghirardelli Square::

Yes please :)

JM it seemed to take LCT forever to settle at daycare. I was just getting ready to pull him when BAM he settled.

Can you maybe add a half day or something so it's not only once a week?

Here you are. and twiglets. That's about as good as it gets, methinks.

Lots of sympathy, JM. Wriggle still not at all happy and it gets us both down on Monday mornings. The long negotiations, pleading, bribery, quite often still tears ... all that and then she had a temperature this morning and couldn't go after all! Was only slightly tempted to give her a double dose of calpol and send her anyway.

Second idea of another short session if possible. Once a week is not the best for Wriggle, but that's all there was, due to very popular wonderful small outdoorsy totally free-choice child-led place being over subscribed and Wriggle unbearably unhappy at local very busy crowded pseudo-school, with timetable, rules, uniform, lots of sitting down.

Sympathy from me here too, JM, and for you Serpent. It really is hard.

Sboy started at nursery school in January - it's attached to our local primary and have to say I feel we've been very lucky, as they were very relaxed about the settling in, and are generally very relaxed about most things. ie not going to the full five (short) sessions a week, like most of the other kids do - I think you said once JM that five a week seemed too many to you? I feel that anyway - he just goes three times a week for now. And we're nearly always late. And there's no attitude or pressure about that at all; it's all child-led and free play and he actually settled in much more quickly than I thought he would.

Although we do still have the days of "I don't want to go today" - like today - complete with tears too. I really didn't know how I was going to persuade him and I really did want him to go today, but fortunately we did get there in the end and he seemed fine once we got there, and bounced out again very tiggerishly when I picked him up.

Really wanted him to go today as Mothers' Day always takes a bit of a toll on me. It's bittersweet - on the one hand of course it's wonderful to be celebrating it as a mother myself these days; but on the other it's very painful as I'm estranged from my own mother, and no amount of rational reasoning takes that pain away. Yesterday was very full on - we went to MIL's which is a four hour round trip so we were all exhausted by the end of it and today I just needed some space to regroup, time to have a bit of a sniffle and get over it. Back in the saddle now.

Maud and Tea and others - curry night sounds very enticing, if that invitation is open to all!

Agent, how sad about your mother. Is it irreparable? Your local school sounds lovely. How long can he go part time?

Hello, Secret!

I'm sorry your Mothers Day was a curate's egg.

Sticking with the food theme. Of course the curry night is open to all. I wouldn't suggest it on an open thread otherwise, as that would be mean and rude! I admit I was being rather whimsical when I suggested it - it was a flight of fancy - and I only mentioned by name those tea roomers who are out and proud as Londoners, as I didn't expect people would want to travel hours for the sake of a curry with me and my cardboard cutout of George Clooney, but if we're really going to do it then of course it's an open invitation.

Would you like some ?

Thank you Maud, I'll have a wee sip before bed.

Serpent, yes the nursery school is great like that - I think he could go part time for as long as we wanted in theory, but I guess we will start upping the sessions in the autumn to get him ready for Reception the following year, if we are going to go down the full time school route eventually. The staff are all really warm and friendly too, so we struck lucky there.

Re my mother - well, yes, it probably is irreparable by now. God knows, I spent long enough trying to repair it, and have now learnt that trying to do so just leaves me open to being hurt and let down even more, so for the sake of self preservation and DS needing a relatively sane mother, best not to. But yes, it is and always will be sad; life really is something of a curate's egg as you so aptly put it, Maud!

And I do think it's a nice idea, the curry night, however whimsical it was to start - and of course I know you wouldn't dream of being mean and rude! Lke the idea of your cardboard cutout too. Is he still our Paed in chief? Mind you, the littlies all seem to have got better lately. Must be his doing. Although he was perhaps a little wasted on the small ones. Might do more good ministering to the needs of sick mothers...ahem....

Right, I'll just glug back a bit more of that and then better slope off to bed.

G'night all.

Well, mother's day is certainly over!!

Daughter driving me mental with her attitude and lack of care lately!! She has gotten so much worse in the last few months!! Can't moan on facebook as she wil see it!!

I can't wait for a cuzza night, but, of course, George will be sitting next to me
"heh buddy, can I check your blood gas level"

sorry for ambivalent mother's days
CMOT - is tomorrow your Dr Day? Good luck

Oxboy being particularly delicious today - anyone listening to Mothers & Sons on R4?

Oh dear, PKM. Feel free to vent here!

The cardboard cutout of George Clooney has been a feature of the tea room since its earliest days, Secret. He was originally stolen from outside an Odeon and he used to be in the the room window, to lure in more customers. He gets packed up every time we move premises and occasionally Oxeye and I squabble over who gets to prop him up at their end of the distressed chintz sofa, although I think we might have been neglecting him a bit lately. Oh yes, look, there he is in the cupboard under the stairs with all the tea chests and other detritus of our move to the Painted Lady. It was only recently that it occurred to me ::smacks forehead:: that as well as being pin-up in chief, Mr Clooney could, in one of his guises, be our Paediatric specialist.

Good night all!

Ha! What did I say about Oxeye using her wiles to entice Cardboard George to her side? Q E D.

No, I missed Mothers and Sons. I also missed the Suburban Garden. I must investigate podcasts.

::Cutting-edge emoticon::

::Returns briefly to clasp Oxeye to her ample bosom::

::Uses this distraction to place Cardboard George at her end of the distressed chintz sofa::

Not all littlies are better; Wriggle, having made a triumphant recovery from chicken pox, has now been brought low by cough and fever.

Curry night is a lovely -sadly unattainable- idea; will join in in a virtual way. Actually, tonight we had a rather nice collection of left overs from the fridge spinach and lamb curry.

Oxeye, was meaning to catch mothers and sons, but was at work marking RE books. It made a welcome break from CBeebies with languishing child. [Brain bleeding out of ears emoticon]

See George does nothing for me so you can have him!!

She is just such a moody stroppy little madam. She has apparently done a geography homework thing and put it all on a memory stick, but this cannot be found! She doesn't think to look after things, and takes no responsibility for her words or actions. Apparently all her behaviour is normal, but it isn't. Advised to take her to the doctor and blood going back to the doctor on Thursday

She then whips out a memory stick from the 'big' computer (I didn't even know it was a memory stick, just knew it was important and never touched it! Not very technical me!) and is trying to use that, but as the work wasn't backed up, so god knows how she even did the homework anyway, using the other stick wouldn't have helped

It needs to be in tomorrow and only started farting about with this at about 9pm.

sorry to moan!

Thanks oxeye, the Triple P starts 3 weeks on wednesday, not that I am counting!! My husband is going to do that one as there is something a bit more local that apparently I will get more out of and I don't think I can do the two, will be hard enough to sort out getting time off work

this is just the latest, she just loves to defy us. When we sense things are a bit tense we tell her to just go to her room for 5-10 mins for us all to calm down, but she won't go. The other week she stuck her fingers up at me. Then she says later she doesn't remember arguing with us for about 30 mins (which is worrying)

Poor Serpent...hope he is feeling better! I managed to get chicken pox when 8 and a half months pregnant!

Right, need to head off to bed, up at 6am for work tomorrow!

Trying out new nickname in honour of having started the yoga teacher training this past weekend. I need more shanti (peace) in my life :o

Good morning Tea Room!

Jack...oooommmmm

Sorry not advice PKM. I only have the one and he's only 21 months. Have you tried the teenager boards on here?

Serpent I hope Wriggle feels better soon.

Big shock around here as LCT slept for 11.5 hours! Without a peep. Granted, not in his own bed, but I really can't be bothered to care since he slept! It's been, I think, a year or more since he hasn't either woken in the night or woken at 5am or so. Maybe 2 is our magic number...

::tee places celebratory scones, jam, clotted cream, fresh butter, tea, coffee and hot chocolate on sideboard::

I don't get on here as much as I used to, but do sometimes read the teenage bits. Feel we are being told the same things, it's normal, they all do it, choose your battles

I never behaved like this nor did any of my friends and the only people I know that have kids that do behave like this are in internet world!

Well, I don't want to scare you, but I behaved like that and turned out to have some fairly serious mental health issues. Has she been to the GP? I wish I had been given the meds I have now when I was your daughter's age. I'd have had a much easier time growing up.

Morning all! It's raining here, thwarting my gardening plans. Anyone for a hot chocolate and a cinnamon pastry?

PKM - I wish I could suggest something that you haven't heard a hundred times before. GP and possible onward referral to CAMHS is beginning to sound like a good idea. Just try and hold on until the course starts but remember this is not your fault.

Tee - Yay to the sleep.

And now, for Jack who has quit her mania, .

::Maud attempts the Bollywood Workout::

Doctor!

Much sympathy PKM. Has she got it done? Cant remember if you've said how old she is?

I have to admit, that curry was cooked to a T . Om nom nom. Would anyone like some eggy bread I've just cooked up? Not had that in years, but its really nice and soft for a sore throat...

Milk: I am too ill to go to school.

Me: I have a cold too. (Imagines a painful drag to school). Let's just stay in bed and go to school this afternoon. (Gives Milk calpol for breakfast and myself a water soluble asprine and vit c cocktail.)

Beer: Grrrrr... baaaah... huffff! YOU are lazy and unseless (stomps around in pants and bangs in kitchen a lot) etc etc

Milk: Boo hooo I just remembered we are going to the Bagatelle for our school trip today (beautiful park just outside Paris) today. I want to go to school now.

Me: SHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHIT!!! You are right... grrrrr!!!

(Phoned school. Dragged myself and Milk out of bed. Poppped Milk on her bike and (because park is in walking distance of our place) rushed to park and played find thirty children in a massive park as quickly as you can... luckily the park keepers with walkie-talkies were on our side.)

Permission to flop??????????

Yes, Tea, you have permission to flop. That was a very evocative description of Beer - you said a lot in very few words!

Would you like some hot chocolate?

Here's a cuppa Tea - sounds as though you need it.

PKM - just out of interest, I presume you've looked at what she's eating and made sure that there's not a tie up between diet and attitude? I say that because Chocolate does just that to me - the last time I ate any (half a thornton's truffle, so not exactly loads of chocolate) the bit that's me retired to the back of my mind and watched with horror as someone else took over - completely out of my control. Before it was worked out, my parents would send a lovely little girl to a birthday party and come back with a complete monster - completely out of character.

Birthday party went well - and the best thing about it is that mistlechick, who had been worrying about it, said it was the best party ever, and lots of parents said now good it was. Flying saucer was admired (will have to try to download picture to somewhere) and yoga went well.

Birthday tomorrow.... Can't believe he's going to be six.

Amber - sorry to hear about your arm - is it where they've been putting in drip? Would you like a cup of tea and a bun to keep you going?