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How do people manage to get into work??????????

75 replies

fairyfly · 17/11/2004 09:06

I want to go to college, three days a week, thats it. Everything in the world stops me. All ready to go today, loads of work done and my son has a sore throat and can barely talk. My other one only got better yesterday so i have been off with him. Before that all sorts happened to prevent me going. How do you all do it withpout getting fired, it's a nightmare.

OP posts:
Jennisaurus · 17/11/2004 16:32

I just don't stop until I leave the house and I do EVERYTHING the night before. When I get up my clothes are ironed and ready and DD's bag for nursery is sorted. I only have one so its easier for me obviously.

If I have a 7am start I have to leave the house at 6.20 latest, so usually I get up at 5 and shower and get ready and eat breakfast. Then DD wakes up, or I wake her at 5.30ish and I bath her and give her her breakfast before I leave the house and try to cram in some play time. If I have time I also try to give the living room/kitchen the once over so its tidy when I get home.

I wake DH just before I leave the house and he takes over. Obviously I don't have the hassle of the journey to nursery, but I usually get DD ready on my own in the morning.

motherinferior · 17/11/2004 16:52

Lisalisa, can you have a deal whereby he cooks double/treble when he does cook, and you freeze it? And can he do a batch of babyfood at the weekend? And/or what about having a real 'cooking takes 30 mins no more' Slater-style deal for dinner?

The baked beans were provided by DP. I am as it happens on a Mission to get dd1 off sugary cereal, and have once performed the goddess-like feat of (microwaved) scrambled eggs for the three of us, when DP was away, but suspect I shall rest on that sole laurel till they leave home.

essbee · 17/11/2004 16:56

Message withdrawn

fairyfly · 17/11/2004 17:00

I thought you worked for your dad?

OP posts:
essbee · 17/11/2004 17:02

Message withdrawn

nikcola · 17/11/2004 17:06

dd has to be at nursery for 9am i have to start collage at 9.30 i have 30 mins study time every morning allthough i end up in the coffe shop i get up at 6.30 and i get dd up at 7.30 dp comes and pickes us up at 8.50 on his way to work (he lives with his mum and dad still 1!!!)
and he drops us off at nursery every morning it take me an hour to get dd dressed she is so stouburn

WideWebWitch · 17/11/2004 20:10

Good lord lisalisa, that sounds like HELL. MI, har har at you and remembering to put your jeans on before leaving house. Here's my contribution to less stressful mornings:

Lower your standards. Ds doesn't wash his face (has a bath every few nights or so)before we leave
Scrambled egg in microwave takes 50 seconds on high, while bread is toasting. That plus apple juice is a healthy breakfast and takes under a minute
DD watches cbeebies for at least an hour in the morning while we all get ready.
Lunches done night before.
Clothes ready night before
I have toast which I eat in the car
Good luck with your course ff.

tigermoth · 18/11/2004 06:58

know in advance what bits of your morning routine are strictly not necessary.

putting shoes on - necessary

BUT brushing teeth, brushing hair, taking in child's school bag - not necessary every single day.

If pushed, omit the not necessaries and get your children to eat quick breakfast (biscuit and milk for instance) on the way to school/ childminder.

clary · 18/11/2004 09:20

re getting everything ready the night before...I once said to a work colleague that she should put her make-up on theprevious evening! I could see her thinking seriously about it...

Fennel · 18/11/2004 09:27

if skimping on teeth cleaning then make sure you don't give them fruit juice for breakfast - dd1 now has 2 fillings due to this mistake. either clean teeth religiously or omit juice.

Fennel · 18/11/2004 09:29

tigermoth - it is embarrassing when child turns up at nursery shoeless and sockless. has happened to us several times!

motherinferior · 18/11/2004 09:36

This is a very consoling thread.

FF, I would personally also advocate building in a bit of slack time - the equivalent of tigermoth's necessary/essential split; as in 'it's a good idea to be out of the door by 7.50 but essential to be out of the door by 8.05'. If, therefore, you aim for 7.50 and your child requests a poo/nappy change or similar setback, all is not lost.

Having 'organised' (I use the term loosely) a departure today which ran with all the military precision of Network SouthEast (not poo-related, this time, but neither inferiorette would eat breakfast, I had major row with DP about money, DD1 insisted on eating an apple in front of the telly for ages, and so on) but managed to meet its targets eventually (hey, so not that like Network Southeast after all) I can strongly recommend.

Fennel · 18/11/2004 09:39

also use threats - if don't get dressed, clean teeth, put on shoes and socks quickly, then no Tv after school/nursery. it works for my dds age 3 and 4.

winnie1 · 18/11/2004 09:51

A couple of years ago ds had a childminder who was very scaithing of ds's odd socks... she didn't last

Bozza · 18/11/2004 10:02

MI I had one of those sort of mornings this morning. DS just won't go any quicker and will refuse to skip any bits as Tigermoth suggests. Took him a full five minutes to eat a vitamin tablet this morning. Wanted me to wait downstairs until he got to the top and shouted but due to the fact that I was already in my work suit and holding DD who was leaking poo from the top front (?) of her nappy I refused. Didn't go down well with him. Was doing really well at making up the time until I saw my neighbour putting his green bin out. Thanks DH for going away on the one day a month when its green bin day and not bothering to warn me. Abandoned the kids to drag the bin out of the shelter and down the steps at the side of the house and past the car. And was late!

PicadillyCircus · 18/11/2004 10:05

After reading this thread I feel I am in admiration of all of you and also my DH

On the days when I'm working I leave by 7am so while DS is either still asleep, or is having his morning bottle with DH. The only organising I have to do is get me up - I get my clothes ready the night before and eat breakfast either on the way to work or at work.

DH manages to get up, get dressed, get shaved, eat breakfast, get DS dressed, change at least one stinky nappy, walk to nursery (15 min) walk and get his train at 8:38. It does help that DS gets fed at nursery and they supply nappies so they don't have to worry about that. I make sure that milk powder and water are ready for mixing and DH takes it along. He even manages to get DS dressed in clothes that match!

He really does not like mornings and I did worry about how having to get DS ready would work but it's been going fine for the last 2.5 months.

They've even left the house tidy all the time as we've been selling our house, so needed to be prepared for any sudden viewers.

And he sometimes picks DS up as well when I've had to work late.

I have no idea how I would cope on my own. I wouldn't, I'm sure. And the thought of more than one child to get ready is also scary...

princesspeahead · 18/11/2004 10:09

the one single thing which makes the mornings go much more smoothly and less stressfully is to put all the children's clothes for the next day down in the kitchen in neat piles just before I go to bed. then they eat breakfast in their pjs and can quickly get dressed one by one as they finish scoffing. mornings have become so much easier since we started doing this.

also, surprisingly, it is a huge stress/time saving to keep double toothbrushes and hairbrushes in kitchen for use in the mornings. it is so much easier to do that job in 30 seconds if you don't have to chivy children up stairs, into bathroom, and downstairs again (losing one or two on the way as they see/remember more interesting things to do)

TurnAgainCat · 18/11/2004 11:07

At this time of year my most effective strategy is reminding ds that Father Xmas's elves are watching him and he'd better hurry up ... however, that only works for a certain age group!

motherinferior · 18/11/2004 11:17

PPH, I am agog. What a very, very brilliant idea.
Must implement brush scenario pronto. Quite possibly clothes too.

Kayleigh · 18/11/2004 11:26

In our house when it all goes pear shaped I skip the breakfast bit and make them a sandwich to eat in the car on way to childminder. Is that very bad ?

jura · 18/11/2004 12:45

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

sandyballs · 18/11/2004 13:31

Some great ideas here - I'm impressed by the organisation of some of you.

This morning went like this - DH left home about 6.30am, after banging and crashing around the bedroom looking for clothes, waking me up and also our twin DDs (3.9) who had nodded off in our bed after climbing in at about 5.00am. Stumbled downstairs to find caffeine while girls argued over whether to watch Cbeebies or Milkshake.

Eventually got them downstairs at the breakfast table, floods of tears from one because her sister had the Noddy plate and it was her turn today. Sister responded with a smack to her head, whilst hanging onto Noddy plate for dear life - must get new Noddy plate today.

Finally got breakfast over and tried to dress them, greeted with more tears because they didn't like the trousers I had chosen - told them to quickly run upstairs and choose some more as I couldn't be arsed to argue with them. One came down dressed in a pair of bright pink shorts, a purple roll neck and her witches hat from halloween. More tears as I insisted she couldn't possibly go to nursery looking like that.

Both eventually dressed in suitable clothing, I noticed one had hideously greasy hair due to being smothered in olive oil the night before to help her cradle cup. Ummmed and aaahhhhed about leaving it but decided she looked poor and neglected so stripped her off and shoved her in the shower, more tears.

Girls ready - 8.45am, me still in minging pyjamas so quick shower, face on, suit on (doesn't need ironing!). Can't find girls trainers anywhere, decide on ankle boots but covered in dog muck from park, settle on wellie boots and hope to avoid bollocking at nursery for leaving them in wellies all morning.

Dash to car, girls argue over whose turn it is to sit behind mummy - I mediate, hyperventilate and screech off down the road, reversing at top speed 1 minute later to check I have shut the front door. I had, so off again.

Girls safely in nursery, I dash out avoiding eye contact with any teachers or mummies as I have approx 10 minutes to drive 2 miles to get 9.30 train to London. Screech into station car park, sprint into ticket office for a travel card and a car park ticket, 9.29 so doing OK. Jobsworth behind the desk sighs, shakes his head, and stares at the clock behind him .... then slowly informs me that I cannot park until 9.30, as it is reserved for season ticket holders. I take deep breaths while politely telling him "IT IS 9.29 FFS - 1 MINUTE FFS. THERE ARE 100 SPACES LEFT FFS" by which time his clock says 9.30, the train has arrived, he gives me a ticket ..... I sprint to the car, back to the platform and just managed to wrench a door open before it goes.

Sink into a seat, completely exhausted .... mobile phone goes ... it's DH "Morning darling, how's it all going".

sandyballs · 18/11/2004 13:31

Sorry, got carried away there

lisalisa · 23/11/2004 13:30

Message withdrawn

beachyhead · 23/11/2004 13:48

I love this thread - I don't why anyone would employ me. DS3 has croup and went to sleep at 2.30am and was awake at 6am....so I am hugely productive today!!!!! dd 7 has lost all the buttons on her school coat and has to clasp it together to keep out the cold - all the sewing stuff is still in storage - and yes, we are still living in a building site, so we are all smeared with builders dust from head to toe,by the time we leave the house. Will smarten up my act in new year, or when I have carpets (Whichever is sooner!!!!!)

why we couldn't have a light gray school uniform to match the dust I don't know - navy blue with white splodges is so obvious......

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