We are the festive receptionists' mothers - we bring shepherds, aliens and travelling cribs to a nativity play near you

[mistletoemulledwinemoodlum]

This is our new festive thread ladies.

Phew. Another weekend. And only two more weeks until half term, I think.

Just realised I haven't looked in the bookbag yet this evening. I wonder what surprises await - more cakes? another dressing up day? another invitation for parents to come into school at 10.30 on a Tuesday morning to learn about what they're doing? (lovely, if I wasn't teaching year 10 at that time....)

Perhaps there will be a crumpled piece of paper with some marks on it and I have to figure out what it's a picture of before making appropriate noises - "ooh, that's a lovely dinosaur" "It's not a dinosaur mummy, it's a picture of you"

Maybe a new reading book?

As long as it isn't another bloody party invitation. I don't think I can afford to buy any more presents!

We got an email about about 3pm today telling us about an information evening from 6:30pm until 7:30pm where we get to learn about some new topic based learning thingy. And then go and do activities with our child.

Told DH who hoped the activity would be wrestling . I pointed out DS's Year 1 class are doing making a house. It mentioned an activity for DD's class but it was separate from the other classes and it also said something about not being suitable for younger children. Will have to ask about what that means. Also unless DH can come I can't be with two different children in two classrooms anyway so could only be at one.

My children aren't exactly at their best from 6:30 until 7:30pm. Hope school is prepared for some tired children the next day

6.30 until 7.30?

Are they crazy?

Boy is a mess by 6.30, slumps in front of the telly for a bit then bath and bed at 7.

Maybe the activity is having a tiredness induced meltdown?

lol at activity being a meltdown! Completely agree, it is bizarre. My dd1 needs to be in bed by 7, lights out about 7.30. If she was out doing activities at 7.30 she would be horrific in the morning.

DS and DD will probably be ok but I feel they are trying to combine parents learning whatever we have to learn with children having fun with parents a d they might be better separate. We shall see

DH will probably be still at work and so I will be having torture fun with DS and DD and building a house.

DH is away. Should really go to bed...

How odd about the 6.30 start.

Tree - I had that happen to my laptop last year - got a replacement adapter quite cheaply and quickly on Amazon for £18 and it was a proper branded one.

I did laugh yesterday as ds had a book from the next band up and I thought it would be quite difficult for him. He whizzed through it really well only needing help with three words and it was a longer book than the last stage. I was all gushing and impressed and then it came out that he had actually already read it once at school!! I was still impressed but before he had never read any of the reading books at school so it was always his first read. Anyway, it was good that the teacher actually heard him reading a book - the first time ever possibly as the other time it was with a volunteer.

On a different subject, does anyone else get freaked out by the socialising with other mums still. I can't help thinking I witter on too much and bore others and we're all stuck together for seven years and if I mess up now it'll be too late!

Morning all - its snowing here! And DS has been persuaded to do rugby training in the snow !

Grammer - I do still get freaked out by socialising with the other mums, and LOL at worrying if you witter on too much and bore them - that's my biggest worry. I think I get all silly and smiley and try hard . Its a balance though, and I think I worry too much. At ds' playdate last Monday me and the mum who invited us along had a good gossip about the other mums, and it turns out she felt the same way about a lot of them. It was such a relief to have a good gossip and to understand that someone else is on my wavelength. We also found out that the best man at her wedding married someone I went to school with, so it was nice to finally find some common ground on the school run.

Right I need to get out of PJ's and into something warm...

"I think I get all silly and smiley and try hard"

Me too. And I think I talk cr*p when nervous.

Sounds nice with the other mum. I imagine we are all at that stage where we're starting to form opinions of each other but many of us are too cautious to say anything. Well apart from one mum I had a playdate with the other week (well ds did) - she was very blunt about people. Was quite harsh really.

There are some really lovely mums from what I can tell and I think we couldn't have a nicer mix of people based on my impressions so far. I will eat my words when it all turns bitchy and cliquey

I don't see the other mums that often, even considering that two of them live next door to me (not together, one either side!)

Have made some tentative playdate arrangements for half term though, one mum has two boys the same age as mine (one reception, one nursery) so we are going to get all four of them together. Not sure this is wise.....

Grammer, my DD's friend's mum (who I often see) is quite bitchy about other mums. It spoils things a bit, in fact it's quite put me off her.

I wish DD would be doing some letter writing practice. They did at preschool! She's pretty good with her words (I'm amazed how quick she's picking it up really), she's writing stuff, but is getting into bad habits...starting some letters in the wrong place etc - and she does not want me showing her. I'm not even sure they're getting the children into the habit of holding the pencil correctly.
That cursive writing looks a pain - I can't believe it's not harder to learn that way.

Aren't the schools good now though, with the way they praise good work/effort? Giving out stickers, merits etc.
DD got an award in assembly for doing good stuff.
She's really pleased with herself and it's really encouraging her.
Actually, just now, he is as happy at school as I could hope for her to be It's taken all this time though and I'm sure there'll be many ups and downs.

I am not great with other parents but at least now am fine at doing small talk. Mainly about the weather .

The mum of one of DS's friends can be a little intense and does tend to talk and talk. But she is generally nice. I am on general talking terms with most mums and the odd dad and grandad .

With DD's class as most of them were at the same pre-school I do know most of them as well and am getting to be quite good friends with one of the mums. She is very nice (and does not go on and on ).

DD wants to make an animal out of scraps as she got this book out from the school library on Thursday. There is a pattern at the back but I am hoping to make something out of odd socks. I knew there had to be a point in them

I think I've run out of steam when it comes to making friends and influencing people. We didn't know anyone at school so I have done a lot of inane chatter and mindless smiling.

I have now one good mummy friend (dd's best friend's mummy - very convenient as long as they don't fall out . And I'm very friendly with a couple of neighbours but they have BOYS

I wish there was some way of locating your best potential friends among the parents without randomly sifting through everybody. Most people seem OK - not horrible - just different to me. I suspect that it's me that's a bit odd

It's all a bit like freshers week at university isn't it? The danger is you make the wrong friends too quickly and have to be careful.

Had a proud mummy moment today when a girl in ds's class, at picking up time, was waving her reading book about, looking at the first page and asked ds to read it to her as "you're so clever ". She said it really nicely. Bless.

Gosh, I hadn't even really thought about any 'issues' associated with the other parents. I hope I'm not inadvertently pissing everyone off or something. I just sort of thought everyone seemed quite nice and so have been nattering away cheerfully and trying to get people to come for coffees and toddler groups with their little ones. What is the danger of making the wrong friends too quickly?

I have to admit that my activities during freshers' week were rather more alcohol induced that my activities at the school gates .

DD and I made a creature out of old socks yesterday. Might even make a profile and stick it on there.

She suggested at the weekend that weekends could be one day and weeks all the rest as then she could go to school more. I took this to be a positive point about school rather than a negative one about weekends .

There is a new emoticon.

That is the the sadly lacking ingredient Noah

'citing that there is a new emoticon.

I've had a helluva day. I won't bore you with the details but enough said that I'm fine - hurray - and the NHS is wonderful. I shall now mainly be having a glass of wine.

Our Reception PTA rep has invited us all to go to a mexican restaurant for a reception mums night out. I do not want to go. The only consolation is that I really don't think that they all know each other as well as I thought they did.

just because I can..

Oh I'm so glad you are fine moodlum (I posted on your other thread).

I would not be happy about a mexican restaurant. We supposedly have class reps (idea brought in in September) but in neither DS's nor DD's class has anyone said anything about it. Wouldn't mind some sort of night out though.

What's happened, moodlum? Glad you are OK, whatever it was!

Do you not like mexican food, or is it the prospect of socialising with the other mums, moodlum? Plenty of tequila could help you all get to know each other!

Oof, moodlum, I just looked up your other thread in a stalkerish way. How completely terrifying. I am so glad to hear there is nothing wrong.

Last night was the least fun I have had in a while, and I always err on the side of trauma and drama so there was very little reasoning with me. Still, it was good to find out that I do have a brain and its still there, however little of it I now use

Thanks Noah - I appreciated your good vibes.

Re the mexican, its more the fact that I'll combine the being silly, with alcohol, and that's often a deadly combo for me. I'd rather stay home and watch Ice Road Truckers (or something else, but you get the drift...)

DH likes Ice Road Truckers. I tolerate it .

Evening. Boy got into trouble at school today. Details as usual are sketchy but the jist of it was he was messing around in PE and had to miss playtime as a punishment.

He's ever so sheepish!

Hello everyone
my first post on this thread but I had a difficult incident today I will try and summarise:
the school has lines before school and child at the front gets to hold teachers hand into class.
one parent is obcessed with her child being first, the child usually is early in the playground( and 90% gets to be front of the line) but sometimes she runs around while her mother chats to other mums. This sounds quite petty but the mother was very forceful:
my daughter arrived and excitedly ran to be the first. Child A then ran up and said I am first in the queue.
Anyway the mother then came over and insisted that her daughter was first in the queue. My duaghter was upset as she has never been front of the line. I said that I did not feel that this was right as you are either in the queue or not. I have seen this parent do this before even with children who do not have a parent with them. I told my daughter that it was not important ( so she lost her place) and she said the same to her child A. I then said that it seems to be more important to some people than others. The other mum took great offense at this and seemed to want an argument so I had to tell her that I was very cross and did not want to discuss this further at the moment.
Any advice as to how to deal with this as I will be standing with her twice a day for 6 years!!!

She sounds like a loon. I would maintain a polite distance and refuse to be drawn into an argument.

Also - a quiet word with the teacher about the line thing? If I was the teacher I'd have noticed that one child always seemed to be first and either change the system or instigate some sort of turn taking.