Shiny Happy Crepeys

[Blackduck]

Over here all........

69% is a B and almost an A - well that was the case when I was young.

I forgot to praise Stropps on her brilliant teeth, surpassed only by my FiL who is nearly 80 has all his own teeth and no cavities, despite a gap between dental checkups of about 30 years.

Have had double school run this morning after we pulled up in front of the college to find DS had forgotten his bag.. No more Scooby Doo in the morning for him!

That's nice than I'd be, Hattie...

I myself am really not the full ticket today, though am dosed up for backache etc (it's one of those feeling crappy things that manifests itself in backache, not a back issue per se IYSWIM). Ploughing through work. And have last singing practice tonight before Sat concert...

So, Polly, welcome again! Fringe aside, can we offer any (ha!) advice vaguely pertaining to style choices ? And/or are you too afflicted with teenagers? Most of us have them in some form or other, apart from NUFC who is into the delights of grandparenthood and Herbs whose lad is still in Reception.

The wish for a sunny day didn't materialise - grey, foggy and dismal - more like the season of mellow fruitfulness than anything else.

I am listening to Radio 5 which is talking about the latest thing from Ofsted about early learning. So awful that some children can't speak when they get to school at four. It's an interesting discussion: I think the problem is that those parents who are good will make more of an effort and those who are not, aren't bothered anyway, although that's a massive generalisation, I know. DSis used to be a nursery teacher and some of the tales she used to tell me were horrendous. I don't think it is purely a class thing, either; my DD has mentioned to me before about two middle class professionals who don't talk to their little one. And DSis mentioned one mother who didn't know it was ok to say "no" to the children.

The tv weather said earlier that the pollution is better today, so I hope that's true.

Outdoors smells very odd today. Kind of sulphorous. And it's the day DS's class is having a trip out to the local city farm, so I hope he doesn't end up with some kind of respiratory ailment.

Indoors my belly seems to have calmed down, and I generally feel a good deal more with-it than yesterday.

Talking of singing, MI, our choir is singing at the Royal Festival Hall on Sunday, as part of the Chorus festival! So, if you're passing, the particularly crepey collection in black, near the bar, at 5pm is us!

How lovely and welcoming you all are.

MI - I am afflicted with DS 14 and also DD 11. So am at GCSE choices stage with DS (thankfully done and dusted after weeks of angst - huge sympathies Tilly!) and DD is about to leave primary for year 7. Am not looking forward to a rerun of year 7 and 8 with DD - as far as I can see girls seem to struggle a lot with friendships in those years.

As far as style and beauty tips go - am in process of losing weight. Have another stone to lose so not buying too many clothes at the moment. But v interested in shoes! Especially work shoes - don't really do heels. Have been pondering brogues and like those office ones Herbs linked to. Also need to refresh work wardrobe a bit - am going to be apple shaped even when I have lost the rest of the weight so like dresses a lot.

Sympathies to all those feeling under the weather - I too am dosed up with dodgy back caused by commuting with laptop. So also in the market for a nice backpack.

I ascertained the SATs dates today. I should point out that Mr Inferior asked me a while back "oh, is DD2 doing SATs"...who was it who pointed out that DadGuilt is a rare, unicorn-like beast?

Polly, my DD1 hasn't found the friendship thing difficult in Y7 - and that is in all-girls school too (quite a few of the comps round here are single-sex). DD1 is however a bit hello-flowers-hello-trees . Most people like her, as she wafts through beaming at people and chuntering about unicorns. Even I do, most of the time

YY to the sulphurous Herbs....

That's good to hear MI. Some of DS's female friends have had a difficult time (from what their mums have told me) although all seems much better once they hit year 9. I have found year 9 with DS to be the trickiest year so far! Might be a maturity thing.

How is your DD feeling about sats?

I believe it was I who pointed out the absence of DadGuilt.

This reminds me of a conversation many years ago. Arse of a BiL said to DP: "I don't understand why on earth women go back to work after having children."

When DP replied: "Probably for the same reasons men do," BiL stared at him like he had two heads.

DD2 appears to be coping with SATs OK - though I think she may get more nervous nearer the dates. She has - erk - two grade 4 exams next term too (sax and trumpet).

Herbs, your BiL...

The weird smell has now wafted up the hill to me - not helped by the fact that I have people redoing one of the new windows (don't ask) today so there is a massive hole in the side of the house and they are busy doing welding-type stuff. We have then overlaid the sulphur and burning aluminium with the smell of fish, due to dh not disposing of fish wrapper from supper last night. It bloody reeks round here. Anyone want to come to my house for next Crepey meet up?

Polly - I also have a dd moving to Y7 this September. She has one very good friend going to the same school as her, but she will miss her other girls a lot as they are a great crowd. Plus she has a brother either side of her, so her friends are very important to her. She is quiet and serious on first impression, but I hope that she will get to know they new people in her class quite quickly. Agree that I have heard some stories about cliques with 12/13 yr old girls (and experienced it myself at that age) but I'm hoping the novelty of a new school and lunch card (dd is tremendously excited about the lunch card) will keep them occupied for a bit. The school certainly try and keep the Y7s and 8s busy, from what I can see.

Dentist with ds1 went fine yesterday. He was very brave, I was very brave (nothing quite like seeing someone come at your pfb with a pair of pliers). Tooth was a baby molar with mercifully shallow roots, so now he has a socking great hole in his gum, but is otherwise fine.

Oh, and Boden. I ordered one t-shirt with my £10 off voucher, a little treat as I am not supposed to be buying anything. T-shirt came in my usual size but was HUGE. Sent it back for smaller size and have just received replacement, IN A DIFFERENT COLOUR. So crap and annoying. I realise this is a first world middle class problem "My Boden order was wrong" but following the great unravelling dress saga, I haven't ordered anything from them since, except occasional JohnnieB stuff for dcs. And now I have to send back again. Grrrr.

Oooh Wilbur the mention of pliers....

My dd didn't get bogged down in clique hell either in yr 7/8 (thought she was mostly friendly with boys then). Worth talking to dc about so they can have parachutes ready in the form of activities that only they out of their group of friends do or whatever....never hurts to shake things up a little? I agree about lunch cards. Addle and I looked round a school where they fingerprinted the dc for lunch and library purposes (taking prints of three fingers "just in case", which was slightly alarming). Very cool.

We don't seem to have any odd smells. Are we doing something wrong?

No sulphurous pong here. Well, no worse than usual in my vicinity anyway

CBT is throwing up some interesting insights. Had a v. positive session today following various "behaviour experiments" last week. Feel as though I might be making progress.

I did not assume responsibility for ICT teacher/dd's cock-ups and get anything other than annoyed about it. Dd has seen the emails to and from the teacher, seen her grades and put her side of the story re: teacher's failings whilst also admitting that she needs to sort the whole issue out, seeing as its her grades. She was affable and grown-up about the whole thing. I shall follow up the issue with the teacher, but dd knows she needs to pull her finger out too. I'm happy with that result, frankly. My responsibility to highlight the issue, not to sort it out, I reckon.

Round here Y7 is a non-issue because everyone moves schools in Y5 and Y9. Y9 is always a crisis-ridden year. SATs also happen in the middle of middle school, so don't seem quite so anxiety-ridden and you don't hear so much about them.

Gah, "it's". Bad poofreading again.

Ds came home seething because in SATS practise Bob (who is Y5) got 5A - this is NOT ON as he is not Y6 :)

Other than this ds seems remarkably sanguine about the whole thing (but then I did put him through private school entrance exam so I suspect he thinks nothing can be worse than that....)

I have just suggested that IF DD1's school goes over to a house system (of which I thoroughly disapprove as it smacks of Team Spirit and other things I don't really do) they're called after Mary Shelley, Elizabeth Garrett Anderson, Millicent Fawcett and possibly Radclyffe Hall.

Love the proofreading, Stropps...

Poofreading, yet

< parp >

I've got an interview for my PGCE place! It's going to be for THREE HOURS! And I've got to give a FIVE-MINUTE PRESENTATION! And answer this baffling question in my one-to-one...

"Give an example of how you reflect on your practice in your current role."

WTF?

When our girls' grammar school went comprehensive and got a new head in the 70s she ill advisedly introduced a new house system and rashly renamed them after the planets, including "Uranus"???!!! Oh the fun we had.

No sulphorous pong here but a strange slightly foggy atmosphere which is rather oppressive and horrid.

I promise you all that if you hold your nerve the whole school thing does get better as it becomes more your dcs responsibility and less yours! Am I allowed to say that mine both got FANTASTIC reports in the post this morning. I am so impressed by them as I was just a hopeless stroppy mess at their age. No, really. Thank God they have their father's work ethic not mine.

Welcome Polly!

Herbs CONGRATS!

QQ - good on them..... And I don't believe you re your work ethic, you clearly pulled your socks up at some point ;)

Dd's school changed to a house or "college" system last summer - s'all the rage these days. Apparently the college names they chose originally had the initial letters C U N T and no one registered this until just before it all "went live". Still got the N and T, but C and U were swopped for others. Anyway, I'm off to spend the afternoon in that establishment now.

Herbs, congrats on the interview. The interviews for teaching jobs are fairly full-on all-day performances these days, so 3 hours is quite restrained :)

Well done (a) Herbs (b) Queenprinces.