Mumsnet Little Italy 9

[Brangelina]

Aka le Patatine

Franca, no apparently you don't do sport for fun in this country, they take it very seriously. My German friend (here) was complaining about that.

DD refuses to do after school activities, and seeing as I had so much trouble just getting her to go to school in the first place I am leaving it for now.

Yes, I'm using amazon's wish list as my promemoria. Or rather their trolley page. Sophie's choice is good, read it ages ago in my post war N. American writers phase. It does have to be read before seeing the film, otherwise you'll continually have Meryl Streep's face popping up, which does somewhat ruin the effect.

DD keeps asking me to take her to the swimming pool. I'm not sure whether she understands what that actually entails, she just hears the 5yos going on about it and wants to try it too. I really should get my act together, get my bikini line topiarised and take her, but in this cold I just don't fancy it. She has ballet once a week, but only because it's literally behind my flat, had there been any trekking across town to do I'd probably have put her off.

So true Sputnik. DP told me that when his DS did football, other parents were offering the coach money to get their offspring into trials for Inter/Milan. The boys were 6/7yo at the time. DP's DS was quite crap apparently so both he and his parents were quickly alienated by other parents, so as not to taint their beloved sprog with general crapness. And this was in a not very affluent area of Milan.

Morning Alan and all . Brange have emailed you.
Franca well done at the gym I hope you were wearing co ordinated track suit and you did not sweat - its just not ' the' thing to do . .
Well minirosa managed to fool me ( again) last night she slept until 2am after feeding the last time at 7.30. She woke at 6am but had half a boob and then went back to sleep again. I was awake until midnight thinking she will wake soon. Then after the 2am feed I was awake again at 4 ( her usual time). However today is a lovely day ignored my filthy house and went for a walk in the sun. Then booked the batesimo pranzo ( GUILT).
Off to put dd1 to nap back later I hope but I have to do the ironing ( Blahh)

I know Sputnik, and I actually think that football is particularly competitive, what with all those awful serie a teams and aspirations to become an overpaid giocatore.

Nonononononono I have to go now . See? I hate activities. Sputnik, your dd is still very young. I wouldn't bother. The reason why dd is going is that she needs to do whaever her brother does .

. Of course not. ANd I bought very ugly, white trainers (at 14.90 euros in decathlon) and dh commented "veramente gine"

bye now a dopo

I loved activities when i was little, and my parents were quite good in letting me try what I wanted (everything organiside by the local sports association so reasonably preiced) and loved swimming, but nothing at prof level. I keep receiving football etc leaflets through school, but he's only 4.5, and he's really not interested, so money saved, when he'll ask, then maybe! but yes, everything has to be done "professionally" in MN world, like instruments, there was a thread on that some time ago where they asked "what's the point if not professional", and noticed that all non-UK people said it's also for pleasure/fun/self-achievement/social etc. I didn't do piano professionally, but though I never play for anyone, I love playing and especially during tough times at school it helped....

God, you're so good at reading. I love reading but no time now, and since DS I am such a wuss if it involves bad things happening to children/parents....

I also did a few things brownies, ballet, music , swimming and enjoyed most of them . Hated tennis !! I would like dd to try out a few things but here we are limited - ballet yes but its classical serious stuff ( tutu from the start - hair scraped back etc etc ) No jazz, tap stuff but have heard that the gym does hop hop from 6 yrs !
Swimmimg here is an essential and am going to see with another mum if we can have some private lessons as the group ones there is too much sitting round .
Then we have basket, volley, karate mmm well we will see.
Brange I was thinking about your court case you could always wear a wig and channel glasses then nobody would know it was you !
Reading - I read Annabel Karmels toddler cook book last night trying to get inspiration think I am going to order her fussy eaters book !As for anything intellegent not a hope for now !

LOL Rosa, the AK book is.... think in a cupboard in the kitchen, maybe.. TV guide gets a read at night, otherwise MN is all I manage

I'll check my email when I get back Rosa. Got to go now and get my new PIN number from the bank after they sent it to the wrong address TWICE. The same address I cancelled when I moved here, yet some bright spark must have dredged through old records going back years to come up with it. Why oh why?

Here the ballet is posh. Little pink leotards, white tights, regulation shoes and hair up. Of course I'm crap at putting DD's hair up so it's always all over the place after 10 mins but luckily the teacher's assistant is there to pick up the pieces.

I was thinking about the shades this morning. Shame my fake Chanel ones disintegrated completely last summer. I do have a silly pair of ski goggles, but they might look a bit silly in June (when the trial is).

I must admit my forays into the world of literature have drastically decreased since I discovered MN. I also have Sudoku on a DS which doesnt help. DD's reading habits are going to be adversely influenced I think, she hardly ever sees me with a book in my hands unless it's hers.

Really must dash now!

PML at "veramente gine" ! I laughed so loud that the carpenter looked at me a bit. everytime I read it I laugh . it is not somthing we say down my area.

My dd does two things and that's because she seems to enjoy them and are very close. I'm secretely glad she did not want to do swimming anymore as was such a palaver. (now she's reading to dd2 [bless emoticon]).

anyway can anyone suggest some modern european writers or southamerican etc? it's not fair it's mostly american I read. I'd like some german, scandinavian, east european, not necessarily russians.

rosa I did quite a few activities but not having a bit of competitiveness in me I ususlly never went pass the 'just for fun stage'. so I'd say for a year or two top. skating and volleyball (thinking I was Mimi Ayuara) were my favourites. I loathed tennis but is the one I've been made to do the most. My gym now has got tennis courts and the smell and the noise makes me shiver.

sputnik happy birthday to you and dh. I know a few friends whose birthday is the same as their daughters but no one the same as their partners

ah hot that fotographer is coming tomorrow to my house so will let you know.

hi all - happy new year...sorry not been around. No excuses really. Still lots of snow. Bump developing nicely except feet down (32 weeks atm) - but no other news to write of quickly before I go to get DS1 from asilo.

Am v. interested reading about the seriousness with which we need to partake in sport here...so far I have only heard of 'dopo asilo gym' which one little girl was thrown out of for messing around... they are 3 for God's sake! Think DS1 would like it though, so will take a peak. Swimming doesn't start until Spring though as the Italian mothers don't want to take their children outside of the pool while it is still so cold outside . I had to buy a new travel hairdryer when I was taking DS swimming in Rome so as not to be an embarrassment taking my child outside with wet hair (I also had to buy new dressing gown, flip flops etc....it's a whole different culture!)

I think I need to read more as I notice my spelling has gone downhill but at times I think my fingers get going before my brain.
Tantik lovely to hear from you again we were wondering if you were snowed in / under !!
Oh how I was frowned upon when dd had a towel and not a towelling dressing gown - She was 8 mths FGS and a towel was much easier then !
Now I must bog off and do 10 mins on the Wii fit as after Francas gym this morning I am feeling very lazy and fatter than normal !Even dd1 has better balance than me !!!

must be the posh Romans tiktok, I always came out with my bum-length hair dripping, and friends too... and we went even in winter! only bought (no, actually, recycled my cousin's) costume e cuffia! I'm at the dopo asilo gym though! never heard of such thing! ok, I do understand the child-obesity problem, but really, surely a bouncy playgroup would be better than organised "gym"!?!

better go and visit Mr Wii Fit then, he hasn't seen me for over a week... will get told off by a virtual trainer, how embarassing!

sunflower dd goes to 'gymnastics' but if you'd see what they you'd call it a bouncy playgroup. except for a very cohordinated little ballerina girl all the other struggle even to do a capriola straight and half the time mess about on their mats (dd1 looks like the noughty girl of the ultimo banco!)

ciao tantik! God already 32 weeks. wow. bit jealous. how are ya? yes my mum always has an heart attack when sees dds coming out of the bath and not have hair dried with hairdrier. I must admit I use bathrobes for the dds and flip flops in public pools, because all that muddy squish squish makes me yak. I didn't when I was a teen - forst sign of middleage and resembling one's mother methink.

my shelves look lovely ... I cannot wait to put some books in it. ahhh finally we'll look like a 'cultured' family with books about not just a tv and biff-baff-boff dvds!

Hello Tantik, glad to hear you are well and that the bump is growing nicely

Dd used to go to gym club in Exeter, she started when she was 18 months, as she was really active and my wimpiness (made up word) with the british weather made trips to the park quite a rare occasion in the winter (but even spring ) months. It was really lovely going there together, jumping on the trampoline and it was really a special time for us. Ds was 3 already then, and so I couldn't go inside with him . But it was really informal (getting very competitive only afterwards, when the children grew much older) and it helped a lot with ds's coordination. That was the only activity they did in the UK.

Penthe how did the mortgage application go?

Pippi: Have you ever read Joseph Roth? "Fuga senza fine" "La marcia radetzky" "La cripta dei cappuccini". If not, do it, I love him. Another excellent book is Agota Kristoff "La trilogia della citta' di K".
Not Eastern Europan, but George Simenon's novels are always worth a read.
I'm not a great expert of Latin American literature, but I can also recommend Mario Vargas Llosa "La zia Julia e lo scribacchino".

Flip flops are worn religiously here, especially after I had to burn 2 verrucas when I was 12. Trust me, it makes you want to wear flip flops even in the water.

Hello all - and hi again Tantik - gosh 32 weeks!!!

Mortgage application went ok, thanks - hope we get it... Good rates, etc. We'll see. DD managed, however, to bump her head (cue tears) while rolling around on the floor as I went through the documents, so I felt like a bad mummy. She's now having a late nap after today's exertions.

Start a new thread, franca!!! We're nearly there!

It's true Alan, you are bossy

Ok will do new thread

It's n 10, can't believe it!