2 down, 1 left!

Good Afternoon Company Girls - and anyone else that drops in!

Sorry I'm late with the coffee, but I've only just found the lead to download my picies from the phone! Blame Sprog 1 - she says she didn't hide it, but I think she just didn't want to show off her lovely new uniform! Lol!

Anyway, it's offical, 2/3rds of my family is now back at school!
Sprog 3 is due to start Nursery at the end of September, but I think we'll be hanging on until after October half term as we still haven't mastered the bathroom! ......Sigh!
But that's a post for another day!

So, Friday morning dawned bright (and far too early for me!) and Sprog 1, who had been full of plans to be up by 6.30am and out by 7.30, almost missed it!
The look on her face when I shook her awake and said "It's gone quart-to-7!" was a picture.....she hasn't been up much before 9am all holidays!

Give her her due, she was ready far more quickly than I expected - and unfortunately for her my other half (ocassionally 'D'H for dear husband, usually just OH!) was on a rare day off and ribbed her mercilessly about her new school outfit!

Ties don't bother her - she's worn one for school since she was 5, but normally she wears a jumper. The new school has created an "unusual" (for round here anyway!) uniform of baby blue tank top and blazer. Both of which are compulsory!

I think she looks quite smart! - She hates it! :-)

Mind you, I have to say that if my Dad could see her, he'd be shaking his head and tutting about the blazer that is FAR too big across the shoulders and threatening to take it away to be fixed!

But he's not, sadly, so she'll just have to grow into it!

Never one to miss an opportunity, here's all 3 sprogs, after 2 and 3 butted into the photo session!

And here's Sprogs 1 and 2 together so you can compare with last years picture!

So, here's to Sprog 3's departure to school in a few weeks. Although I must say I have mixed feelinga about that, I'm leaning towards Home Educating, but OH isn't keen and it would severly limit my ability to go back to work to buffer our coffers.

Ho hum, no one ever said parenting was easy did they?!

Have a good week everyone, see you next Friday!

One Down, Two to go!

Sprog 2 went off to school this morning, happy as Larry and excited about what she'll get to do.

She's gone into year 1 this year, and personally I think she's in for a bit of culture shock as she discovers that things are far more formal ....... and there are no toys! (Well there are, but they don't come out just yet! lol!)

Will she survive? Heck yes, Sprog 2 bounces back from just about everything, it's not in her nature to be down for long (she's a bit like me in that respect.......probably why we often rub each other up the wrong way!)
Will her Teacher survive?

Hmmmm. I still haven't decided about that! :-)

Sprog 2's teacher this year is a Lady I know very well and have an enormous amount of respect for. She's practically superhuman as far as I can see!
We go waaayyyyyyyy back (too many years to tell you about!) because we started as newly qualified teachers together, 1 Headteacher and several OFSTED inspections ago!

I've worked with her through many trials and tribulations and she's seen me through a wedding (when she and a fellow teacher hijacked my class and sent me home a day early to get ready for the ceremony!) and the birth of my 3 girls, the death of my Father and my difficult decision to give up my post and take up Supply work.

.........And how do I repay this friendship?

I've sent her Sprog 2! :-)

........Ooops! :-)

Outside the classroom

AM


Updated to add photos, Saturday 4th September!

Last year Sprog 2 came home covered in goodness knows what! This year she looked like this...........

Crikey! Smarter than she left home! Lol!

AM

Sometimes..........

My Darling Husband just doesn't "get" this parenting lark!

This weekend Sprog 1 has been away on Guide camp, and oh the peace! (I mean, yes we've missed her and everything, but 1 less person in our tiny space makes SUCH a difference! Especially when it means that Sprog 2 is no longer trying to decide which sister she is playing with!)
So, with DH away early on a trip out (he's a coach driver....... he has some really ridiculous schedules!) Sprog 2 decided she would step up and organise breakfast for herself and her sister without disturbing me. Lovely heh?!
I gradually came too as the sounds of "Fireman Sam" on endless repeat filtered through my foggy brain.
Stumbling downstairs I discovered that they had helped themselves to our Traditional "First Saturday of the Holidays" breakfast of Chocolate chip muffins. No problem there, they'd even managed to get the dirty plates to the kitchen sink! (Note to self, get Sprog 1 to go away more often Lol!)
Wonderful - and it was still only 8.30am!

It went downhill from there.

Half an hour later, while I had my hair full of soap and couldn't really hear much over the noise of the shower, along comes Sprog 2 - "Can we have a biscuit?"
What? Huh? - NO! You've only just had breakfast!

Another half an hour passes, and I'm busy sewing campblankets for the campfire we'd been invited to. Blankets and badges spread ALL over my bed (the largest uncluttered space in the house!). Up trundles Sprog 3 - clearly acting on orders from big sis! - "We're hungry, can we have a biscuit?"
No! You've only just had breakfast, we'll have elevenses in a bit!
........ It's now 9.45!


At 10.30 I wander into the kitchen to grab a drink and find out how things are...... and disover that the tops of all the muffins that were left are now missing! Picked over by little fingers!

Give her her due, Sprog 2 owned up immediately! - And was sent to clear up her bedroom floor as punishment.

So, I text DH (who is always complaining that I don't involve him with family discipline - on account of him never being around at "crunch time"!) and explain the situation.

.......... His suggestion??
..... to explain to Sprog 2 that the ONLY thing in the kitchen she can help herself to without asking is a drink!

...... Errrmmmmmmmm......... That's the rule anyway, which was the point of my asking for his input!

Arrggghhhhhh! :-)

Bless him!

And Sprog 2? Well she's been to apologise and has decided that her punishment should be "I won't have a muffin next time we have them" ..... so maybe I'm on the right track after all!
AM

Snow Day!

As everyone knows, we've had a ridiculous amount of snow over the last week - well, a ridiculous amount for round here anyway! (The picture above was taken on my phone at 6am as I got up on Thursday 5th)

Schools have been closed (much to DD12's disgust, she likes school more than playing with her little sister!) roads have been impassable (due to insufficient grit apparantly) and people have alternately moaned and thrown snowballs!

So, in an attempt to liven up my blog (because I'm an amature who sits in awe of all the fantastic all singing all dancing Blogs with downloads and fancy backgrounds I've been reading recently!) I thought I'd try and upload some of the photos we took of the kids enjoying the snow!

You'll have to bear with me here, it will be an extended intermission. you'll have time to boil the kettle ad make yourself a brew!

This is DD4 attempting the Cresta Run on big sisters 'spoon'!

Meanwhile DB (dear Baby!) 18mths, can't see what is so exciting. - I think she looks like a Jelly Baby dressed like this! lol!


Mind you, with performances like this to watch (DD12 landing in a heap!) I'm not suprized DB was nonplussed!

We all had fun though, and isn't that the main thing! Lol!