Stop Mucking Around the Fountain!
I had a terrible night last night. Insomnia and horrendous nightmares. Heart-palpitating-drenched in sweat-angry at the world, nightmares. Needless to say, this morning I felt like I had slept with Gandhi's flip-flop in my mouth (thanks Jacks for that image!!), and was ready to take on any one who dared to irritate me in the slightest - including my innocent blue-eyed boy who needed the grip on his cricket bat changed before school today. I DARE you to find a more frustrating, patience-testing activity!! Thanks to lots of coffee and YouTube, I resumed my place as Cleverest-Mom-Ever just as the lift club arrived! But I digress...You know that feeling when there is no doubt in your mind that if there was ever a day you would follow through on some heinous "I will not hesitate to kill you if you look at me sideways" threat, that today was that day? That no amount of sweet talking, chocolate eating, wine consuming, random act of kindness would change your murderous mood? And then out the blue, you get an unexpected call from a friend, and BAM! Attitude adjusted! Thanks Ian Shaw, for phoning me to poke the bear this morning, and in educating me (and I use that term very loosely where this particular friend of mine is concerned!), on his quirky philosophy of the similarity between a goldfish and a goat*, gave me the kick in the rear I needed to jump start this Monday! (That's not to say that I won't be feeling disgustingly venomous by 4pm today, however!!).
SO here it is. Happy 2013 - my inaugural post for the new year!
I can't believe its been so long since I sat down to write! This fact is just testament to the absolute mania (and holiday bliss!), that has been my life since December. We are now well into January, and life seems to be settling into it's usual routine normalcy. Well, as normal as life with two hectically active, prepubescent (I kid you not!), 9 year olds can be! As exhausting and patience-testing as it is, however, I wouldn't change it for anything!
The start of a new year always has us thinking along the lines of New Years' Resolutions (NYR), and new starts, and clean pages (or new books - depending on just how bad the previous year had been for you!!). For me New Years Resolutions have never worked. In fact, they are guaranteed to set me up for disappointment and feelings of self loathing. In my mind, if I have fallen off that NYR waggon once by mid January (which inevitably I would have!), that's it for me. Instant failure!! So this year I have decided its all about making attitude changes, lifestyle changes, and habit changes. Resolving to run four times a week or else, has changed into resurrecting my running, and making it part of my life and daily routine. Resolving to stop eating chocolates forever has changed into making healthier diet choices, and grocery choices for my whole family. I would like to be more open to new opportunities, and less concerned by the small mindedness of others. I would like to focus more on the bigger picture, and sweat the small stuff less. I would like to embrace that popular adage Live, Love, Laugh, and be more grateful for my many blessings. So in a nutshell, no resolutions, just lots of positive life changes.
This year we are working towards goals. My poor kids have been forced to set goals by their cruel mother (in my son's words!), for their academics and sport. Both have set themselves achievable, and aspirational goals, which made me very proud! Lets see if this lasts as they get swallowed up by the mania of the school year!
They are destined for great things, these two gorgeous kids of mine. Their tenacity, their gumption, their lack of fear when presented with new challenges and adventures, is remarkable. Their open minds, their thirst for knowledge, their ability to adapt and be malleable puts me to shame! They have truly inspired me to change MY attitude this year. I am going to grab that bull by its proverbials, not take no for an answer, and jump into 2013 with both feet! No more mucking around that fountain!! So watch this space...I'm Just Saying...
*Life according to Ian... its a spoonerism. Goldfish tend to waste time mucking around the fountain, while goats tend to waste time.... No more being goldfish OR goats!! I'm Just Saying... ;)
The Last Big Push
School is almost over for the year. Two more weeks of waking up at sparrows, dragging the kids out of bed, fighting over who wants what for breakfast, fighting for breakfast to get eaten at a pace more suitable to a human than a snail, lunches to be made (not peanut butter sarmies AGAIN!!), fighting to get teeth brushed, uniforms on, hair brushed, etc etc ETC! Two weeks left of homework (lets face it, I'm as over my kids homework as they are at this point!), of extra mural activities, of the ballet run, cricket matches all the way down the hill on a Friday afternoon, of early morning traffic jams, of lunchtime traffic jams, of spending more time IN the car than actually WITH my kids. Two more weeks and its December, school holidays, sunshine, and CHRISTMAS!
These last two weeks are already jam packed. No time to ease into the festive season! With swimming gala's, Carol Services, Market Days, Speech Days, Parents information evenings, parents end of year get-together's, there is literally no room to breathe before now and the end. And the end this time signals the end of Junior Primary for my kids. Next year is Senior Primary - and they are back to being those proverbial little fishes in the huge pond of Big School. Life changes for them (and me) next year. I have this impending sense that it all gets more serious from here on. Big subjects are introduced at school - history, biology, science and technology, as well as the usual maths, English, Afrikaans and Zulu (I see exciting homework sessions in my future!). Tests and assessments become more formal, and exams loom in the not too distant future. Its a lot to take in for a parent. I think I am more apprehensive than my kids!
One of the biggest changes next year (again, more frightening (read: shattering!) for us parents than for our kids), is the introduction of i pads at my son's school for Grade 4's. Each child has to have his own before the school term next year. There has been much back-and-forthing between the school and the parents, but the bottom line is - it's happening. Gulp!! The school will be going above and beyond to provide as safe and secure an environment for the introduction of this new, expensive piece of school stationary as possible, but I am still seriously dubious as to how I can expect my son not to lose / drop / misplace / stand on / damage / abuse his i pad, when I am overjoyed just to see him returning from school with TWO school shoes (with two laces - I have no idea how, but he seems to manage to lose one lace out of his school shoes at least every second week!) and a full PE kit!! I see inflated insurance costs in my future!!
Homework next year poses more challenges for us parents once again, than for our little darlings. Brushing up on maths, science and history will be child's play compared to making sure we are all as technologically up to speed as our kids! At this stage, they are already far superior with our phones and computers and i pads than we are. Now we give them their own, plus dedicated lesson time with them at school.... another cause for eye-rolling kids at mom (and dad's!) ineptness!! But just as calculators and computer lessons at school during our day was frightening for our parents, it was inevitable. We are going to have to up the bond to buy them for our kids, and embrace this technological teaching aid. Gulp!!
Before we even get there, though, this time of year is always a sad time for saying goodbye to those who have made such a difference in our kids lives on the school front. It is even more poignant this year for us, leaving Junior Primary behind. My kids have both been blessed with outstanding Heads of Primary, ladies who have really taken the time to get to know all the kids under their care, and to use their positions to motivate and inspire. They have both enthused a culture of genuine caring and love, not only for traditional learning, but also igniting in our kids a passion for the environment, and their responsibility thereof. Both Mrs Lane (Highbury) and Mrs Cuthbertson (St. Marys) have been wonderful role models for my kids. Saying thank you and goodbye will be hard. Again, both my kids have been fortunate enough to have had outstanding class teachers - from Grade R right through to Grade 3. Each one being so different, yet all leaving my kids with their own unique take on life and the world. Being a teacher must be the most challenging, rewarding, frustrating career for any one to chose. Having friends in this profession (Ashleigh, Terryn - two of the most amazing teachers I know), I have seen how much a teacher has to give of herself in order to have successful pupils. SO I am grateful to those my kids have been fortunate enough to have been taught by during the foundation phase of their lives.
Its almost time to turn off the morning alarm, haul out the advent calendar, start my Christmas shopping and holiday preparations. Almost. Its almost time to buy the tree from the Christmas Tree Farm in Gillits (one of my favorite family traditions!), to book tickets to the Beauty and the Beast Pantomime, to find my Carol playlists on my ipod, and to embrace the end of the year. Almost. Before we run out of steam, however, we have to take a deep breath and not lose focus. It's the Last Big Push... I'm Just Saying...
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