Sunday 27 March 2011

I may have lost an hour but I've gain 5 minutes

So was really impressed that the alarm clock I got for Christmas last year actually moved an hour forward this morning without me having to do anything.  Of course I had get out of bed to check which kind of defeated the "wow pleasant surprise feeling" but at least I know now. 

I was also happy to discover that the docking station had automatically gone forward to, oh yeah, for clever technology.  The only ones I have had to do manually are the cooker and microwave and with them I have set a sneaky plan in motion.  For some reason it doesn't matter what time I get up for school in the morning, I can't help always being a good 5 10 minutes late and its starting to drive me insane. So I have set the clocks in the kitchen 5 minutes fast in the vague hope that if I leave at the time I normally do, I will actually arrive in school at the correct time. Its a simple plan and one I hope will keep me slightly more organised in future.

I know the whole hour forwards backwards isn't suppose to be a big deal, I still find it sends me and the kids a bit doolally for a couple of days our moods, hunger and tiredness all seems out of whack. It might just be coincidence but somehow I don't think so.  At least this one means it the beginning of summertime, with long sunny days and bbqs in the garden.

I am really looking forward to summer this year, I think it will be the most fun one yet with lots of time for friends and good food.  Bring it on is all I can say....

Thursday 24 March 2011

Chocolate Muffins and Lucky Pants......

So the parental cracks are starting to show and the children being children are taking full advantage..The other morning the boys had arisen earlier than normal and rather than wake me they proceed to conspire to do their own thing. I can vaguely remember at points being disturbed in the half an hour between them sneaking out of bed and me jumping out panicking.  Suffice it to say I went in to their bedroom expecting them to have put the TV on and be sitting there like the perfect little angels they are.  What I was confronted with couldn't have been further from that image.  Empty chocolate muffin wraps, with remaining muffin spread all over the room, empty packets of crisps floating about and some extremely strong orange squashed spilt all over the floor. As my face reddened and the steam started pouring out my ears Ninja brightly looked at me with all innocence in his eyes and said "well I did ask you", "when did you ask me !" came my response through gritted teeth, "while you were asleep", he said a little less brightly than before "and did I respond when you asked me", teeth still gritted, "well you kinda grunted and I took that as a yes".  So I sat myself on the edge of his bed and tried to recall any kind of interaction I'd had with the kids in the last 1/2 hour.  I began to recall vague images and words..Like "Mummy open please" (which I must have done) and "can I have a chocolate muffin please".  I'd been had ! they had caught me at my most vulnerable 3/4 asleep still, totally incoherent and at their mercy.  They'd asked they'd got a response of some sort and I had even aided and abetted in the mischief having opened the crisps for them.  How pray tell me am I suppose to tell them off !   So I didn't, I had to much evidence stack against me to even consider it, and Ninja had a chocolate muffin for breakfast before school that day.....

Which brings me on to lucky pants.  I don't constantly go and buy new underwear for the kids, more a thing where only when you need it.  When I do, I buy good quality dark colours that will wash and wear and still look reasonable when changing for PE and such like.  Anyway I picked up 3 new pair of pants for Ninja the other day and some of his old ones were showing really signs of being had it and it was one of the new pair that I threw down the stairs for him to wear to school that day.  From the bottom of the stairs I hear the cry of "mum !!, these aren't my lucky pants" WHAT !! I didn't even know he had "lucky pants" why is my 6 year worrying about wearing lucky pants ! and how did they become lucky and what makes them lucky.  Close to school time as it was I decided now was not the time to discuss this whole new development of being superstitious. 

I spent the whole day worrying about this new aspect of his character, I didn't even think 6 year old could be superstitious , had I made him this way ? why has he decided his fate is not in his hands anymore and is being guided by forces outside his own doing? Is he watching to much TV?  how should I deal with this, should I just debunk it all or actually support him in his belief that if he does certain things it will make his life better in someway.  By pick up time I was really anxious to ask him why those pants were lucky pants and do you know what his answer was........"I dunno they just are" so another day to be chalked down as an unnecessary panic and guilt parenting day !!   

Thursday 17 March 2011

Can anything else go wrong ?....

How can so many things be breaking around the house all at the same time.  First it was the bed, which decided that now there is only me in it, that it should just fall apart.  Then the shower in the en suite packed up rendering the second bathroom almost completely useless, must call plumber but not quiet ready to take out a second mortgage just yet, then the best one of all Ninja managed to get himself completely twisted and stuck in the seat belt of the car. 

Now don't get me wrong seat belts are never a bad idea, but I never realised how much of a not very good idea they could be too.  It was an uneventful trip home from the school run as usual and as we pulled up home, Ninja started getting fidgety. I stopped the car in the drive and began unloading the tons of stuff I always manage to accumulate during the day to take in to the house. On my way back from the first offload I realised Ninja hadn't got out of the car and called to him in an impatient tone to get out, I was replied with a soft wimpery voice "I can't mum, I'm stuck". Of course, harsh as it may seem (other mums back me up here please) I didn't believe him and so went to the boot to grab the second load and take it in to the house.  As I turned around from the second off load I realised that Ninja still hadn't left the car, and I started to get really impatient.  So went to get youngest out of his chair with thoughts of just leaving Ninja in the car to get on with whatever silly game he thought he was playing, but as I bent down to open the straps on baby's seat and peered in to the car I found Ninja with the look of pure panic on his face, being squished up against the back of the car seat....."I can't move mummy, every time I do it just gets tighter"  Oh crap..!!  Now having finally realised that actually he was telling the truth and wasn't just trying to wind me up, I ran round to the other side of the car to where he was sitting and desperately tried to untangle him. It was useless, for every move I made it either hurt him or pulled the seat belt tighter. I took a deep breath, I'm either being stupid which is why I can't untangle him or I am in too much of a guilty flap, I know I'll grab mooki, she'll be clear headed and probably see what the problem is with out any difficulty.  Ran in to the house screamed her down from her bedroom and then tried to explain to her the problem while Ninja was still in the back of the car now crying "get me out get me out".  When she saw the mess he was in her first reaction was "you'll have to cut in out" ok great it wasn't me just being stupid he was well and truly stuck. At this point I seriously considered calling 999 fire and rescue (well 6 firemen turning up would probably have made a seat belt being ruined worth it :0)) but while I was uming and ahhring the pros and cons (ie wasting important fireman's time so I can simply oogling them) Mooki ran in to the house and grabbed the scissors.

The moment of his release was a precious one in my memory banks. His sister and him do not have the greatest of relationships at the best of time but the action of her "rescuing" him cemented something both in their hearts which will never be removed.  I watched with soaring pride and emotion both their responses to him being freed and they were as close as brother and sister can be at that moment, I don't think anything could have dragged them apart from the cuddle they gave each other. It was a horrible and amazingly wonderful five minutes of my life.  Only made slightly sweeter by littlest one pointing at the harness in his car seat saying "stuck stuck"

So now I have a missing seat belt at the back of my car, and it needs its first MOT this year so that's just another unnecessary bill to get sorted that's already been added to the pile of them sitting on my desk. Away though I am glad it happened because since then Ninja and Mooki have given each other alot more respect and the love within them for each other is deepening.

Silver lining and all that eh !!

Tuesday 8 March 2011

Sun is shining weather is sweet.........

I did it...for the last 2 school days I have actually walked to school for pick up time.  Helped by the glorious sunshine and the fact Humf has discovered a new love for sitting in his buggy, I was spurred into action.  Now you may think this is nothing to get excited about but if I tell you I haven't done the walking thing in over a year and its actually a mile up hill all the way back you might be slightly more impressed.  I had people stopping me on the street asking if they had been warped in to another dimension as they couldn't believe I was actually using my legs and it feels really good to be doing it with add bonus of avoiding the ice cream truck at the park and its toning flabby bum cheeks.

So other things on the change cards go that I am finally attempting to tackle my awful skin, I can't quiet believe I have gone from just washing my face with water to blackhead clearer, toner, spot cream and then a tinted moisturiser all in the vein attempt to claw back a little of the once ok skin I had.  Not sure if its working but that also certainly makes me feels more positive towards myself. (well at least I am able to bring myself to look in the mirror again) Anna very kindly tried to tame my eyebrows for me and has them at least looking slightly less bushy and I have requested a lady shaver as one of my birthday gifts (not sure which of the kids is planning to give it to me yet though lol)

Tomorrow will be the first birthday I have spent as a single woman in about 20 yrs so will probably feel alittle strange, but to be honest its not frightening me at all, in fact I am looking forward to just letting my kids wish me a happy birthday give me their personal handmade cards and not putting any pressure on. I think I might treat us all to takeaway tomorrow if mooki doesn't feel like cooking and I will promise myself not to do any housework for that one day.  Bless my eldest has really stressed over getting me my presents, not only because she has no access to money, travel or anything else but she is still only 13 and felt the responsibility of having to buy birthday presents from her and her brothers for me very much.  In the end she has been so happy with what she chose for me that she has been busting to tell me ever since she bought it and at times getting grumpy because she can't tell me lol.

Friday night the girls are coming over, I have bought 12 cans of red bull and I am planning to buy some vodka to go with it. I am not a drinker by any means I don't even have a hollow little finger but I thought sod it.  My friends have been amazing to me over the last couple of months and its just a chance of saying a small thank you in return.  So I plan to get them drunk and then play silly party games with them while taking lots of pictures then threaten to put them on the Internet if they ever piss me off. See I am a nice person honest..!!! May have to purchase Grease singstar as I quiet fancy belting out "hopelessly devoted to you" "and you're the one that I want" I'm sure the neighbours will be fine about it.

Saturday I am going to see a medium, who apparently is very good.  I am not entirely sure what being good is but I suppose I will find out.  The only other time I  have done something like this was when I was alot younger and then my Grandmother and Grandfather came through for me and the experience did leaving me feeling reassured if just a little disappointed that my dad hadn't "contacted" me.  I know this kind of thing people can have very strong views about negative and positive and to be honest I am still alittle on the fence about the whole thing myself but I have made a promise to me that from now on I am not going to just say no to things because they are new or I don't understand them. 

For now, "no" isn't really a word I want in my vocabulary while I absolutely refuse anything that could in any way harm the children or myself I am prepared to be more open minded and open hearted with new experiences. At 36 (aahh 37 tomorrow) I feel like I have barely scratched the surface in human experience and its time to cram some stuff in before I pop this mortal coil.