June 08 - 42 days til Christmas, and Deb is coming home!!

[KnittingisbetterthanTherapy]

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marking spot from the hell that is packing with a toddler in tow!

Now I have a small complaint here people, your sleep dances were clearly not enthusiastic enough! small person drifting around like a wraith every 1/2 hour till 11 here, shouting at her to stay in cot has now stopped working. Then she woke (everyone) up at ten to five.

Ah well, hope they got as far as Wales anyway, think Dewin's need is probably greater than mine.

Running out of ideas!! We are going to get her a bed and see if that helps - can't be any worse.

Deb I remember that hell, but it will be worth it!! Neenz enjoy your glamorous outing today

on the plus side though, just watched the best sunrise I've seen in months!

How's naptime System? S went through a stage a while bag of not settling till about 11pm. We cut back his day time sleep to one hour which helped. It took a week or two to work though.

The sleep dances didnt work for Luke either. He was up and down like a yoyo last night getting out of bed and then he banged into something 'cos it was dark and started crying. He had a bad dream at 2.45 and I couldn't sleep properly after that thinking he was going to get up again!! Typical that I have a busy day today. Dewin I hope you had more luck and systems I sympathise!!

Deb I also remember packing with a toddler but Luke was much younger then - exactly a year ago! It was crap then but I expect it's harder with yours trying to 'help'!

Dewin - not another work nightmare!!

Neenz - yes it's fee paying. It would be lovely if all schools were equal but alas they are not and touch wood we can pay the fees for Luke to go to this one we've picked out. I dunno - I know it's not fair but I don't have your morals Neenz! The scholarships are part/full payment yes. The majority are academic too not just sports!!

Have you been watching I'm a celeb? Gillian is now going to be picked for everything which will be really dull (just like Jordan). Seems very odd that she didn't realise there would be spiders and creatures living there and that the challenges would also involve them. She must have seen/heard about it before - put on?

PS - Neenz the school works out cheaper than Luke's nursery!

Yes all this talk of £9000 university fees, I realised I was paying nearly that for each child to be in full-time nursery last year ....

Her naptime is all over the place at the moment DGIT and I think you are right, she isn't quite ready to drop it yet but I hadn't thought of waking her after an hour (have never woken them from naps 'cos L needed a good 3 1/2 hours each weekend day but I now realise that is unusual!). Will discuss this with dp who will be the one responsible for waking her Thursday / Friday - he is even more reluctant to do this than me but if the payoff is getting evenings back it's worth a try! Nursery aren't allowed to wake her but are sensible enough to eg encourage other children to play noisily nearby at an appropriate time

Sympathies for the non-sleepers. T isn't sleeping well and I give in and bring her into our bed every night. Usually it means that I don't sleep very well but last night DH slept in the attic so although I missed him, I actually slept much better. We're all run down here so trying to pace ourselves and not get too tired.

The school chat is interesting. We have a v good RC 2ndary school here that lots of people chose over the private schools, so we are very lucky. So it means that a private education (for the local Catholics, at least!) is a choice made in a pretty fair market in that there is a very good education available in the state sector. So what does one's money buy in that sort of situation? I'm not interested at all in the snobby side of it (the reverse, actually). But even so, there's a little part of me that wishes we could send them to the private school. The state school is so enormous, it scares the socks off me. I'm very apprehensive about DS1 going next year.

DD1 has gone totally off her trolley. The walk to school is a walk of shame, as she yells and grouches her way there. Her teacher is very good, but likes her pupils to be good little soldiers and that is not really DD1's style! What's bugging me is that, whilst DD1 is the centre of attention a lot of the time, in a bad way, the teacher is also keeping her out of the dining room to try to persuade her to eat her sandwiches . DD1 eats well and is healthy, and I don't really mind if she doesn't eat her sandwiches. I don't want any more attention drawn to her than she already has. But the teacher is a bit difficult and I don't think she'll take kindly to me asking her to back off. And I need them on-side when DD1 is being so awkward. What to do?

How are you feeling today Dewin?. And you, Systems? How is the packing Deb?.

Feeling sick and miserable, and really worried about AND again. I cried all the way to work today and have been crying intermittently all morning. I don't know whether it's the stress though.
Work crisis in brief: I'm in a funded post, and the funding could be pulled this afternoon. (That's very brief, the politics leading up to this is extreme!) I won't lose my job as it's my head of school who has been misbehaving badly and misusing funds.
Plus, I've put in an application for permanence (which I'm entitled to) but my head of school isn't really playing, and wants me to state that I'm 100% committed to law, which he knows I'm not.
I then threw in my pg to the mix, so he's panicking slightly. I've also asked to have my teaching load lightened next semester (particularly as I won't be around to mark, hopefully maybe) and I'm not sure how I can manage to teach 12 hours per week. He said 'we'll let nature take its course'. (He's dead right, not stupid, father of 3, but the thought of things not working out made me all sad.)

I have 1 hour until the meeting with him. And that's separate to the funding meeting which he's having. Argh.

Iestyn did sleep through and was really good, but I'm seriously struggling with getting him ready in the morning what with puking every 15 minutes.

Sorry all miserable. Will try to pull myself together. I have made an appointment with my GP who does acupuncture, as I've heard that helps with m/s, so that's happening tomorrow.

Dewin. This job causes you so much grief doesn't it? I'm sure I've offered DH's services before for employment advice - the offer's still there .

Dewin - if only there was another job you could love as much so you could get out of this one. There's always something it seems - you really don't need it all at the moment I'm sure. Are you on the red alert list at the GPs for AND? Did it kick in this early before (not that we know how early it is). I can't imagine the work situation, trying to cope with a toddler and vommiting non stop would make you feel very happy

Sorry to hear of the non-sleepers. We didn't have a brilliant night here either. Maybe it's something to do with the moon

System is it nursery policy not to wake them from naps? We had to ask S's nursery to wake him and they were happy to do it. He went into the 2-3yrs room shortly after and they only allow for 1 1/2 hours 'quiet' time after lunch in there, so the timing for us was quite good.

Amber - I'm confused . If Luke goes to school in April won't he still be 2? Has he sat an entrance exam? I thought summer babies in England went to school at age 4? S won't go to school till he's five, but will go to pre-school (which is actually within his current nursery) from age 3 I think. Is Luke going into reception year (we don't have that up here)? Like Neenz I'm opposed to private schooling on idealogical grounds, but I appreciate that not everyone shares my views (about lots of things )and at the end of the day people are trying to do what's best for their children, so I'm glad that you've got him into the school that you wanted for him.

I think I'm quite glad that S won't be going to school till 5 (despite the extra year of nursery fees) - for me, I think he's got plenty of school years, and all that that brings, ahead anyway.

Dewin I'm so sorry to hear about your work woes. Every time you post it reminds me never to apply for an HR post in the academic sector!

I don't know if anyone looked at the link to the Thomas personalised books that I posted, but S's arrived today and it looks fab! Just like an ordinary Thomas book. He's going to be so excited by it, I don't know if I'll be able to hold out till Christmas!

Rolf i think you should tell the teacher you think it's up to DD1 if she wants to eat. You're right to not want her isolated for that cos I don;'t think the school should make food an issue. It has to be up to her to eat.

Systems, can you put a gate on C's door? I could not cope with the kids being up at 10pmn - I am getting them in bed by 6.30 these days cos they are not sleeping at naptime. I am shattered by then and need the rest!

Amber, I always think it's easy to believe in the state system when you live here which is very middle class and the state schools are all very good. In the SE where it is more hit and miss I would hope to still choose state but thankfully dont have to make that choice. Glad you got a school you like.

Dewin , is it all worth it? (The job) I had what I thought was a dream job when I was 21, but my boss was an arse and when I look back now I was depressed. I was loads happier when I left, in fact I didnb't realise you could be that happy in a job cos I'd been so ,miserable.

Potty training still going well - Esther is asking for the potty now so we have styarted with Theo - it is like going back to square one with all the sitting on the potty every hour with noting to show for it

Naps at nursery: We were told it was an Ofsted directive, related to the introduction of the Early Years Foundation Framework in September - fortunately they are fairly sensible in interpreting it. Don't know if this applies where you are, though.

Schools: There is a grammar school system here which I am very opposed to in principle - because of the effect it inevitably has on the other state schools in the area. At the same time, desperately hoping ds will get into the grammar when he hits 11, after spending my first 15 years here swearing I would have nothing to do with it. It is a very good school. And I am a hypocrite.

Dewin: thinking of you, that situation sounds utterly shite. Hope you get the permanence though - remember, saying at this point that you're 100% committed to law doesn't mean they will sue you if you get a history post somewhere else in the long run. It sounds like you have a lot on your plate. I don't know how much treatment you got for AND last time but as Amber said I hope your GP and midwives are looking out for you this time round. Do you have any feelings for / against taking medication for it?

Neenz I'd love a gate, but she'd just climb over it! She is like a spider monkey, you should see how fast and lightfooted she is at getting out of the cot, the side of which is actually higher than our stair gates were. No, it has to be mind games of some kind now ...

Just marking my spot. [waves]

I can join the no sleep club too. P and W seemed to hatch a plot last night to keep me up for as long as possible: 1.15 - 2.45 plus other wakings as well.

Infact P has gone a bit unsettled today. He has a cough and possibly a temperature although the thermometer says it's normal. DH and FIL took him to nursery school today and he threw a complete wobbly when he got there and eventually they brought him home. I can't tell whether they were being soft, but I don't think so. P has always trotted into nursery v happily even last week when I was in hospital. I'm a bit worried if only because he may have worked out that he can opt out of nursery.

On the positive side I sucessfully took both children to Tescos today on my own. DH had to go into London for an interview so I had a mini run on looking after 2 children. I managed to supress my panic just about.

Dewin - sorry about your woes. Morning sickness alone is enough to make me feel miserable with out your other worries.

Amber don't feel bad about fee paying schools! We moved catchments to get in a good school district and really there's not that much difference (yes there's some council housing etc in the area so it's more mixed but it's still a bit of a bubble compared with the real world). Moving house was wayyy cheaper than private school though for us - our catchment is the 4th best state secondary in scotland.

However, the local primary is the most overcrowded in the area and falling apart and the new school building we've been promised for 2013 (just in time for Fraser to start P1) just got its funding pulled. Apparently it's worse than a delay too - we've been bumped down the list of priorities as our attainment rates are too high. Nevermind the kids are wearing their winter jackets in class, there's not enough toilets, no staff room etc. There's a local meeting tomorrow night which I expect will be quite emotional.

rolf that's not easy re: lunches. My kids will only eat when they're hungry - do you think she's just not? can you send a smaller/different lunch?

Dewin my lovely boss from my old job (father of six!) also didn't want to make any changes until I was well past the first trimester. His thought was partially to protect me in case anything went wrong and then I had no work to do etc. But horribly crap about the funding...

waves to everyone else...

Feeling better now! Ate pasta - carbs seem to help - and played a bit with Iestyn. He weed in three places in his bedroom. (Luckily nobody has mentioned potty training on here...)
Work - well, can't do anything, and the funding won't affect me really because it's my head of dept's dodgy dealings. I'm with an Union as well. I know quite a lot of you wonder why I even persevere, but there is a reason - several, actually! One is financial - if I don't work, it's bye bye Anglesey. I have a huge passion for my subject - medieval history - but politics and other issues have meant that I'm landed in a strange position, and there's something very strange indeed going on at the history dept. But, I do have a little plan on that one. It's just when I'm sick and struggling it's hard to be patient.

Anyway, too much about me. Spider well done on the Tesco trip - that's a huge achievement. I still struggle with one... Abdn hope things can be done about the school - it sounds hellish. I also agree with you - and am in support of Amber - that paying for education comes in many different forms. So, I can sit around being smug (well, I don't really, but YKWIM) because I don't have strife over schools - there is no choice here, but luckily the local school(s) are good and there's no question of Iestyn not getting a place or anything like that - but I'm still paying for it - 2 mortgages and an absent husband. Schools and Welsh medium education are both big reasons for being here and not living a normal life with my husband!

There's a couple near me just got engaged. Read it on the bbc news. (I so would not want Diana's ring...)

dewin I think my two will be okay with the crumbly school because they're pretty hardy and don't mind the cold - but if I had a less robust child I'd be very upset.

very not cool re: Diana's ring. I wear my grandmother's wedding ring but that to me is a both a reminder of her and a bit of hoping her 60 years of happy marriage will rub off...

Is it even bigger news in your part of Wales since they're "local"?

Marking spot - hi all - full of cold so watching I am a celeb with wine.

Re engagement no that fussed but when saw the ring , must agree that what would have been a nice idea in other circs (like ah gran) seemed a bit creepy

If you see me on here before Friday evening kick me off, as by then all our worldy possessions should be trucking it's way to the UK and we follow on Monday.Until then I have too much to do for MN!! Bye

Desperate plea for help - does anyone have the Ikea Mammut children's table (round or square plastic one). If so, how on earth did you get the legs on. We're having no luck getting the screws in at all!

good luck Deb!!!

no ideas DGIT - no ikea up here :(

Domestic - those bloody Ikea things are usually a nightmare. We have an ikea table but I don't know what it's called and it was ages ago that we put it together so sorry for no help! Also on your previous question about the shcool, it would be for lower kindergarten which is pre school. No need for an entrance exam for that, it's only at reception they do the assessments.

H&S - hope the wine has helped! I HATE GMcK on Celebrity - good job they are merging today otherwise the women would have starved!

Systems - I always get them to wake Luke at nursery after 1.5 hours. It's hard enough to get him to go to bed as it is! He had no nap on Sunday as we had people round and it was awful. There was another kid a few months older and they ended up fighting all afternoon because they were both tired and grumpy. Luke fell asleep on the sofa at 6.45 though and slept till 6.15am. I'd rather he had a nap and was normal though!

Spider - well done on looking after both kiddies. I am dreading the day when I have to hvae all three - actually petrified!

Dewin - glad the carbs helped - when is your first MW app? Will you be able to find out gestation?

I always loved Diana's ring when I was a kid and drew pictures of it. I think Kate must feel under enormous pressure to be the new Diana though and the ring doesn't help.