FEB 2010 Proper threenagers now!!

[InmaculadaConcepcion]

Come on in, Chicas!

Dive into the bubbly and home-baking and take advantage of our deluxe creche....

[stoofadoof]

oh, we had the fire and the stove lit yesterday, twas proper chilly!

[JewelFairies]

Wow, stoof can I come and live with you please? We live close to the centre, surrounded by gorgeous parks, but the downside is our garden is the size of a postage stamp. Can I put in some orders for chard and kale and sprouts?

Sorry to hear your dd is still struggling. My dd1 is struggling to adapt to the workload of yr2 but her grumpyness is of course nothing compared to what your dd is going through.

[SurvivalOfTheUnfittest]

Little wave having dropped boys back off at school/per-school after holiday. Both being pretty unkind to me which I won't tolerate but can appreciate its basis. It's a fine line that I'm walking.
Ds2 starts gymnastics today. I'm hoping that it will help him strengthen his wobbly legs and give him an outlet for his physicality and need to jump/climb/balance.
As for me, I need to start my long list of phone calls as I start to try and get ds2 back on the straight and narrow health wise.
Ds2's room was at 21 degrees still last night as we have a fairly modern house. I was really hot! Usually like Autumn too, but have my dh's wedding and my birthday to get through before Christmas.

[LeMousquetaireAnonyme]

SoTU I hope you get help for your DS2 and that the gym help.

Cp glad I could help thanks for taking off me tired

DD2's preschool is going to ask for a SALT referral for her. They should come to see her at playschool and determine if she needs a proper referral or if we can wait and see...
She is making progress though, but dropping beginnings or endings of words: mato, nana, tuter (computer) but we have to-mango! (she knows there is a to somewhere it would seem)
We will see I don't believe it is the multilinguism and her teachers don't either, so a step forward ?

[stoofadoof]

JF you've not seen our house!!!! honestly, I'm quite ashamed some days!!! it's clean (mostly) but needs a shed load of work, the wallpaper's been off in the kitchen for 2.5 years whilst we deal with some damp, and it all needs decorating, we re-puttied the windows a couple of weeks ago (georgian sliding sash) and hoping we can get the paint on them before it gets too cold/wet… aside from the veg patch, the garden's barely tidy, but it's home! can't grow sprouts here - the rabbits fell them just as they're getting ready tried yellow beetroot this year, which i was really looking forward to, but the mice have had every single last one of them!

DD back to docs today, really don't want any of us relying on tablets to get her to sleep, but at end of tether…

sotu mous

[InmaculadaConcepcion]

Very impressed with all the harvesting and preserving going on in your house, stoof!

Sorry for being a bit quiet here - not much to report, really. I've booked to look round our two local primaries before I put in my application for DD. They were both oversubscribed last year, but we fall a few hundred metres inside the longest distance from which they took a pupil last year, so I don't think we should have a problem. And the one I'm currently favouring is only round the corner, anyway..

Survival lots of love to you - sorry the boys are being mean to you, but as you say, it's easy to understand where it's coming from (but still no fun). Good luck with the health research...

I'm starting to think about what I would like to do work-wise once the DC are both at school and I'm increasingly attracted to the idea of counselling, especially wrt anxiety-type disorders. Trouble is the amount of time to retrain...any words of wisdom from any of you?

Sorry mous you've probably got one of my periods - haven't really had any proper ones since the coil was fitted (no complaints here!)

[LeMousquetaireAnonyme]

IC I wish I had word of wisdom, I need to retrain too, I absolutely have no idea where to start at least you have an idea! I think I need an advisor/coach thingy but don't know where to start either...

good luck with the school!

[ClimbingPenguin]

Start scouting around now and when DS is in nursery you'll have time to do training

[SconesForTea]

Hi everyone I've been struggling to keep up but we have given ourselves a rare evening off our to-do list (apart from DH starting on some kitchen shelves earlier this evening. We should really be working for my local client, too tired).

We were in Cornwall at the same time as Survival and met up briefly, it was lovely. That was a rare sunny half-day, the rest of the week it mainly poured. It always does seem to when we are on holiday (probably because we always holiday in the UK ).

CP, how is DD's finger?

stoof I hope you get help for DD soon. She sounds in a terrible twist. I am in utter awe of your produce and your preserving. That is exactly how I see myself one day: eating my own veges for Christmas (and many other) dinner(s). Maybe when the girls are older.... That seems to be my answer to everything.

JF sorry you were feeling down, I must admit the prospect of living to advanced old age doesn't fill me with gladness. I have seen too many older relatives living very sad lives in old age to look forward to it.

IC well done for thinking about schools, I am aware that I have to do something about it but I haven't got as far as working out what. I suppose I am still waiting for someone to write to me to tell me what to do. But they don't?

Mous great news re the SALT referral. Any developments your end?

Career change, hmm.... Well I would need a career to change it. I am applying for a couple of part-time finance jobs this week but hold out little hope as I don't have the relevant experience. I am starting to wonder if the only way I will get a job is to go full time. Even then the salary won't be brilliant, but would at least cover childcare. I worry about the impact on the girls though. I know that some children are in childcare from an early age and seem fine; but going from being at home FT to being in childcare FT is a big step. So I do seem to find myself in the position of staying at home, for their benefit; or working, for mine. I have been SAH (obviously) but I am getting so stressed with them every day; would I and they be better off if I worked FT? Or is that a total delusion? I am not a morning person and am very tired every day as it is; and it would be very long days for them in childcare. I don't know what to do, but I am tired of being at home and tired of being so skint all the time. I have basically cancelled Christmas; can't afford it.

[stoofadoof]

IC it's free food (aside from the sugar and vinegar!) and makes a LOT of christmas gifts!!! i guess it's also what we both grew up with… career change? dunno… one of my besties career changed into counselling after her husband left her and two boys (when she was 40ish) - she started volunteering with relate… 20 years later she retired from senior position with NHS… so I guess her path was volunteer, train and then work based learning / day release…. another friend is currently career changing into occupational therapy, but no kids so has just chucked herself into FT uni course (though incredibly skint now!)

scones gtg sort breakfast for everyone now, but will be back later!

[InmaculadaConcepcion]

Volunteering is a good shout, stoof!
I could probably stretch to a 12-week OU Introduction To Counselling course (might get help with fees, in any case) which would be a good way to find out if it's truly want I want to do before throwing too much time and money at it. It would also set me up to continue with more focused courses subsequently.

Scones it's a dilemma, for sure. But the children are getting older now and I think you could really do with some time working for someone other than your own offspring. A decent nursery wouldn't do them any harm, as I'm sure other working mums on this thread will testify!

[ScienceRocks]

Doing dinner so can't say much but wanted to mark my place and will return soon to all.

[ClimbingPenguin]

well mine had had a full time parent while April, and they are doing really well.

[JewelFairies]

CP But your two were familiar with the nursery when you went back to work even if they hadn't been for a few weeks beforehand.

[ClimbingPenguin]

one afternoon a week and they hadn't been for a 4 months. They never really got used it as it was too infrequent (well DS was better than DD)

DD1 is already familiar and DD2 wouldn't take long doing full time exposure. I did a few weeks of 3 days and it was a lot harder than full time.

[JewelFairies]

I know, just meant to say your two had some exposure to nursery. I think it would be hard for a child to go from always at home to full time.

stoof Thought of you today when my six year old shouted in the park 'I hate this world!'

iC That OU course sounds good. As does volunteering. I did the same (sitting on a committee unpaid) and it has helped my return to work in terms of confidence as well as some cracking references. Having said that, I am not one to ask when it comes to changing career. I tried to change direction but ended up full circle back at what my initial interest was... .

Waving to everyone else. My bed is calling... Alarm will go off at 5.53. One drawback of early mornings is that cold air and rushing is not good for my asthma.

[ScienceRocks]

I know it's not the same thing at all as stoof, but my dd1 is a complete handful at the moment. So angry. Everything has to be on her terms, otherwise she goes into meltdown

[JewelFairies]

SR I wonder what is going on at that age because those of us with 6/7 year olds seem to report similar problems but different severity. I've had tantrums including lying on the floor kicking and screaming, with dd2 looking on in surprise.

[ClimbingPenguin]

My mother always insists there is a thing at 7 akin to terrible twos or teenagers

[ClimbingPenguin]

Dd has been discharged to GP now but still needs dressing changed twice a week. Well more as it falls apart a little but they have been giving me spare stuff. Have to say my last effort was better than some of the nurses.

[JewelFairies]

Come to think of it, I was a little pest at 7/8

[LeMousquetaireAnonyme]

Really? In France 7 is "l'age de raison" i.e when children start to behave and think. (reasoning age?) You get your 1st real watch because you are responsible enough (and usually can read the time) to take care of it.

All DD1's friends where lovely and polite even the ones tantruming like mad until 5/6. I like 6, 7 and 8 yo they are sweet, funny and have great ideas. They do start to have adult feelings and thoughts that they can't really express very well though.
DD1 is worse at home when something happen at school that she can't control and it can takes weeks of brewing before it comes out in words.

The clever ones also realise that the adults/parents and teachers, don't know everything and are not completely in control either, which scares them. You are normally suppose to realise that when you are in your teens and have the maturity and will to get on with it (and it is good for you to do it).

1 to 1 time with DD1 is always good, leave the lo with dad and a girls day out. Shopping mall, pizza, park, picnic, cinema (it is SO expensive in the UK ), museum... last one we took the bus to visit a castle. Time to talk, play and explore.

[LeMousquetaireAnonyme]

Actually hearing the tantrum going on with DH I swap your 6 yo for my 3 yo anytime

[ScienceRocks]

Mous, you are very wise. Thanks for the advice (and reasoning).

How are you?

[LeMousquetaireAnonyme]

SR
Not sure how I am. I do probably need help sorting my life. NOt sure where to start.

Shall I get on the school governing body (or at least try to be elected?) or is it pointless because I am "forrin"?