Mummy at the School Gate

This morning I was preparing the shopping list for the last foray into town (in the hope that the shelves haven't been cleared) when Mimi peered over my shoulder. "What's that?" she asked. "The food list for Christmas." BH laughed scathingly. "When have you ever gone out with a shopping list?  You normally walk around the store chucking random items in your trolley in the hope they'll be enough for a weeks worth of dinners.  Have you ever used those Black Beluga Lentils?  Or that tin of artichokes that's been nestling behind the anchovies?"

I found this poem in my son's english book, this morning.  I thought I'd share it here because I think it's funny.  I'm not sure that's what kids normally write about their mums (this poem is totally not true!) and I'm sure his teacher has a very bad impression of me now!! My Mum My mum is very ugly She has big warts on her nose She shouts when it's time for bed She always wears the same clothes My mum is very funny She smiles when she is sad She shouts when it's time for dinner Her breath smells really bad My mum is really rude sometimes She says bad words that are naughty She shouts when we are playing Because she thinks we are very noisy My mum is kind to everyone She likes to cook them dinner She shouts at them on the telephone But I think my mums the winner.

'Tis the season to be jolly....and all that, but apart from the kids there's not much cheer around!  I've been stuck in doors with the kids and dogs for the past few days along with a moaning Au-pair who just wants to go home to Slovakia for Christmas but like the thousands of others is stranded. She, however, is stranded in relative comfort unlike those camping out at Heathrow!  But she likes to remind me that she is here under sufferance and would never in a million years choose to remain here with my "dysfunctional family" adding "Zere is somesing not right about you all".  Which means that she now has to spend Christmas with us, as it will be unlikely that she will be able to get home...unfortunately! "But I vont to go home" "I know...but you can't" "But if I have to stay stuck in here with you...I sink I vill go crazy"

I'm sitting in my office (as usual) l ooking out of the window, and it looks like the world has stopped.  Saturday morning and one week before Chrsitmas and the roads are as dead as a dodo!  The postman has just knocked at the door with a parcel so it seems that some services are well worth the money!  I certainly didn't expect anyone to rock up to my door today.  The road outside is unusually quite ( apart from the fact that the road hasn't been gritted) and the few cars that pass by are driving incredibly carefully, although there are the odd one or two which whizz by...guess they have snow chains as is their confidence. The kids and the dogs are playing madly (particularly the dogs) in the garden building igloo's and snowmen!  At the moment we have around four snowmen of varying sizes, we did have six but Peewee decided to urinate on one causing it to collapse and Mimi kicked the other one to death!! Mimi is now sitting in the kitchen moaning that she can no longe

I always love being  centre stage and am a bit of an attention seeker (as Jude will testify as during a recent disagreement she accused me of "wanting to be the centre of attention"! True, because I always am! ), so why is it that my kids try to hide in the shadows if the focus is shone on them?  I want them to be confident, well-rounded individuals, and if that means taking to the boards and strutting their stuff while being a donkey or a star, then so be it.  I want them to do it without the fear of making a fool of themselves. There is nothing  wrong with laughing at yourself, and everything wrong about taking yourself too seriously! I'm not a pushy mother (unlike Marion, who forces her kids into delivering a word perfect performance) , and I'm not a competitive mother (unlike Stella, who'll force her poor babes onto the running track at 6 am because "they show a talent") , but base my methods on  more of  the nurturing, encouraging school of thought

I belong to a forum and have spent the last couple of years contributing my fivepee's worth.  I know I don't always get it right but try to be as diplomatic as possible without ruffling any feathers, and I think I've done not a bad job even if I say so myself.  I hope I've been supportive and looked at all angles of the picture before I throw my words into the circle. Without doubt, the forum has saved my sanity if not my life.  I'm not exaggerating when I say that "stuff" has been bad in the past year, but without the my "daily fix", I'm not sure I would've come out the other end.  I've made friends with people I've never met, and they have offered my words of support and comfort.  Some of them I have now met ( we've been going through the same stuff ), and I can say, hand on heart that they will always be a friend. However, there are some on this forum that will never be my friend.  Some that ruffle the feathers of others

I love new technology and am the first to embrace new methods of communication, but Facebook?  It is the absolute limit!! I spend hours and hours each day (when do I ever have time to work, you say?) , playing stupid games, looking at friends profiles and finding out what they're doing, and trying to find old friends who probably wouldn't add me, as they would've kept in touch with me anyway!  Hand on heart, I can honestly say, that I find it an absolute waste of my time. A few months ago, one of my "friends" kept sending me "gifts" from Frontierville. I was intrigued as she seemed to be having a better time than me and I don't like being left out. So I started with Frontierville, which was fun for a while.  I then had to install a "pit" which meant I had to join in with other games, which also meant that I had to play other games to get the gifts I needed for my pit.  So Cafe world, Mafia Wars, and Farmville joined the ever growing lis