MN Little Italy 17

[Rosa]

Starting schools, North vs South and books ...ci siamo !

He'll never answer to that question, I'm sure

We are very sad, as tomorrow morning pil's dog will most probably be put to sleep .

Oh yes that is sad.

Hello! I am back generally unscathed after a (long) week with the in-laws. DH actually bowed out on Tuesday due to some mysterious business trip, so I was left to fend off by myself yesterday and today.

It was a riot - DD was confused by having so many people around, but then she did play ball and came out with vaguely discernible English words, lots of cooing and smiling so everyone was happy.

I sooooo need a job - I miss my old career in London, and even if it would not be quite so high flying with DD around, I feel awful having to ask DH for money etc (he does not mind at all, but I still feel like a scrounger). I do not think I am made to be a SAHM.

Yes, the children will be devastated.

Minerva, glad you survived !

hello everyone! so so so shattered! I was soooo falling asleep this afternoon at work, plus had achey bones and muscles when I woke up, then I left a bit later as I wanted to finish s.thing, waited forever for the bus so I got even colder! so I have a bit of febbre, but think it's just the exhaustion. DP said DD slept for about 30mins today again!! really really need a good night's sleep, DP and I look like zombies!

anyway, with DS, we were on the pippi-time, but then we dealyed dinner to around 6-6.30 when I went back to work as I wouldn't be back til about 6. Summer is later though ("mummy, it's not night time yet, it's still light")- and here we have breakfast, lunch, tea (as in tea and biscuits for snack when DS gets back from school) and dinner. MI, I'd go insane if I had 2 days alone with PIL!!! actually, I'd have another massive argument discussion with FIL and would put a stone on with MIL as she's constantly "cup of tea?" with biscuits/chocs/cake (she might be italian but soooooooo yorkshire )

Morning all....
Franca- poor PIL and dog.....
Dd much better today, fever has gone, and she is eating "miel pops" She will undoubtedly reach that screechy better-but-not-quite-totally-well stage later today...I think I'll send her to school tomorrow if she carries on being OK, as going in for one day and then having Sunday will be easier than launching straight into a new full week....

Speaking on phone to BonkersMunchhausen's friend and telling her dd is delirious with a 39.7 febbre and she says "Oh yes, I'm very worried about my dd....in fact I told the maestra to ring me if she gets a febbre today" WTF? Like the maestra would say "Oh, this child has a febbre, let's NOT call the mother". And anyway, she didn't have one! Why waste all your life worrying and panicking about things before they happen! (she is back at the paed's today,"per controllare" (what, I do not know) it's the 3rd visit to the paed since last Friday and the child is absolutely fine.

BullyHormonal girl's mother is photocopying me the 49 schede (seems like) they have done since Tuesday....looks like we'll be busy on Sunday catching up!

I whipped dd's last nap away when she was bout 2 as she was awake still at 10pm. No way Giuseppe! We can't do dinner earlier than 7 as I want us all to eat together and that's what time dp gets home, but our evening routine is dinner with Gerri Scotti and then bed as soon as TG5 starts....

I do hope Gordy answers your Q Franca, he won't, but I bet it makes him laugh if he sees it. What with Berlusca, and Sarkozy-the-Garden-Gnome these G8 etc meetings are like a freakshow. (and just how many jackets with big buttons has Angela Merkel got????? I have become obsessed with her coloured jackets with big black buttons euuuuuuw- although dp is similarly obsessed with the fact she apparently lives in a tiny 100metre glat.)

Camo, how are you feeling today? I hope you had a good night sleep

Bucharest glad to hear dd is better... at your friend with Munchausen! Lol!

Yes, I'd love to get an answer from Gordon... it is after all an important question on foreign policy. Still I'm not sure he will

Have no energy to do anything this am... the flat is a mess. How do they manage (dh included) to make such a mess in less than an hr before going to school/work? socks, socks, socks everywhere.

I am impressed at everyone's early bed times (is this really Little Italy?)!!! I count myself lucky if Madam is in bed before 9. The problem is that DH comes home at about 7:30, and you literally have to peel her off him at 8:30 when we do bath, bed etc.

Buch - my sister (who works at the local A&E) hates the Munchausen mothers with a passion... They have a habit of showing up on saturday at 11pm carrying their children worrying about them having fractured something - and then it appears that the child fell over two weeks earlier, have seen their paed twice, but went to A&E "just to check".

Am very curious to see what Gordy says on anything actually...

Yes, I bloody tidied yesterday, and it's a mess again.....

Buch I urgently need your help, I have offered to give someone English lessons, his English is probably fair as he is working in it but obviously needs improvement. I have no idea where to start, do you know any good websites or maybe a workbook or something we can follow?
How do I assess him? Any pointers welcome!

The British Council site is good- gives you some lesson plans and suchlike.....I use that a fair bit.
For materials there are zillions of websites, some are free, I use esl.about.com a lot......also the MacMillan books site gives sample handouts......and then there is scribd.com which is kind of like filesharing for printed materials....loads of EFL textbooks on there in their entirety to pinch print out......

What has he specifically asked for? I tend to find everyone wants to speak, but doesn't want grammar.....well, unless their English is already, say, like Franca's, then they fecking well need grammar. And lots of pronunciation.

As far as assessing goes....I ask a series of questions ranging from "what's your name" to "what will you be doing this time next year" etc....I can do you a whole list if you like. That way, you get to see what grammar they need to polish up. Good grammar books are Murphy Grammar in Use (intermediate or higher level)

'I feel awful having to ask DH for money etc (he does not mind at all, but I still feel like a scrounger)

It took me a while to get used to it myself now I am a happy scrounger . No really now I have learnt that I do a very important job and I should not feel guilty, I do earn that money!

Dh did the school run with us this morning and bigpippi was beside herself with pride bless.

www.scribd.com/doc/17774263/Cambridge-English-Grammar-in-Use-Intermediate

That's a good solid (stultifyingly boring) grammar book. There's a higher level one as well.

Most coursebooks are for group lessons and involve lots of pair work and listening exercises, so with one-to-one lessons I tend to cherry pick from bits of them..Cutting Edge is a good series (all on scribd)as is English File.

Pippi, ooooh... So sweet. I know what you mean re: doing an important job and DH repeats it all the time, but I am not very rational at the moment.

I feel a bit isolated and not working is not helping my self confidence - I think that is the bottom line...

Oh don't worry Minerva, my ds (my first) used to go to bed very late at your dd's age, mostly due to the fact that he never looked tired and that we had bizarre routines as he had been such an unsettled baby. Gradually we managed to get him to bed earlier and earlier (also thanks to the arrival of his little sister who slept like a ghiro) until we got to 8 o'clock, which was perfect for us.
Bedtime is at 8.30 nowadays, but they are 7 and 5, I think it's fair enough.

Oh thanks Bucharest . I do have a Certificate of Proficiency in English !!!!

Ooooh minerva I know the feeling very well. Somehow I got the impression that you are now living near your family. Doesn't this help a little bit?

Have you started looking for a job?

Yes MI that's exactly how I felt for the first 2 years of bigpippi's life. Tbph I have started relaxing and enjoying this role as a mum, and housewife (still hate the word though) in the past year. I have got lots of mum-friends and life with two older children is busy and the organisation it entails often resembles that of a workplace. So I don't feel I am stuck on a playmat having to play with playdoh all day.
Before that I soooo longed for the office. I am sure I will again but now I feel content and happy.

PS: I have kept one of the cakes and will have it with tea in a minute. ;)

Not having a good network of friends to share your daily events with (a la MN) makes everyhting quite grim I find. Anything you can to get to know other people?

Not having a good network of friends to share your daily events with (a la MN) makes everyhting quite grim I find. Anything you can to get to know other people?

I agree Pippi, I think that life as a mum def improves as the little ones grow.
I felt so terribly miserable when ds was tiny and I didn't know anyone. The days were soooo long and boring.

"Not having a good network of friends to share your daily events with (a la MN) makes everyhting quite grim I find"

Absolutely.

Minerva, have you got a swimming pool nr where you live?
How about trying one of those mother and baby swimming courses? It's fun for your dd and you can chat with other mums?

Had friend in tears this am, off for work for stress. She cannot cope with work and the kids, feels like a failure, kids are getting to the age where they show resentment at not seeing her. She is also jealous of the aupair. I don't know how to help her, she has been given medication to improve her sleep and general anxiety.

And yesterday anothe friend also not sleeping, juggling job and kids, one of the kids has problems at school.

I don't know how to help them. Beside telling them to keep a sense of perspective. I feel so fortunate to be content with my life, but feel soooo guilty I cannot help.

Sorry missed other posts. Yes, definetely need group of like minded friends. I am lucky in my area from that point of view.

Don't feel like a scrounger from dp, I do 1 job, he does another, simple as that. And we have a joint account and budget, etc, so I don't have to ask for money. Now, I WOULD NOT BE HAPPY ABOUT THAT. [grim]

I do have a swimming pool - but I have a (thankfully mild) disability which makes it impossible for me to carry DD in and out of the pool safely, so DH goes. Perhaps I should go along though. In general, I find it hard to lift DD now so getting around on my own is becoming harder - stairs are almost impossible (this makes it sound a lot worse than it is, but I really struggle to lift her now).

I have family close but I am a rather independent gal (have not lived with my parents since I was 16), so although it's great to have them around I do not feel that is enough, iykwim.

There are plenty of young mothers here in the village, but they all go back to work fairly soon, which makes me feel even worse.

You are all right, I know I need to take action and look out for baby groups, activities etc. I have started sending CVs around in September, but HR depts in Italy seem to take sooooo long to do anything... I will start giving English lessons if nothing works out - after all I speak much better English than most of the laureate in lingue who normally offer the service.

I suppose I just need a rant and a moan... so thank everyone for the support