From Frugal Foundations to Fortified Family Future

beanielou

So sorry to read this. Hopefully the school can resolve things. Let’s be honest being a parent is not easy but you are doing your utmost best for LG. 

maddiemay

Dear Greying I greatly admire you and all parents, having chosen the childless by choice route many decades ago I have seen siblings, friends and colleagues done wonderful jobs raising their offspring to maturity. I am sure there has not been a single one who has not doubted their abiliy at some time. Take care of you too. xx

badmemory

I agree with Nutcase, & you can still feel you are failing when they are in their 40s.  I think that those parents who think they may have failed at some aspects of parenting are actually the ones that have done well.

Greying_Pilgrim

Do you....ever feel....... you're being......... watched?

Go into a shop, you're on camera.  Walk down the high street, you're on CCTV.  Your PC may be filming you covertly, and for sure there may be a chance your feminine-named personal digital assistant will be rolling their digital eyes when they hear you admitting to double-carbing.............Which is all to say;  I took a couple of shrinkled shonky apples out of the fruit bowl this morning.  Had I got round to setting up the compost bin, they would have gone in there.  But as it was, I figured that there was something of the apples left that could feed the birds, so I took them outside and positioned them on a bush.  I walked back to the house and as I was washing my hands at the kitchen sink, first a Robin, quickly followed by a male blackbird, flew down onto the nearby fence, and then hopped to the bush to check out the apples........ How.did.they.know? How???  🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣#allseeingmothernature 🤣
___________________________________________________________________________

Thank you for your exceptionally kind responses to this morning's post.  Living here wouldn't have been my first choice if we had remained childless - although in some ways, it may have been better.  For sure the demographic is very mixed - not all homes are packed to the rafters with families.  There are homes and households of all shapes and sizes.

Perhaps choice is at the root of the challenges that we all face in one form or another - or perhaps the lack of it.  No-one chooses illness, redundancy, curtailing of income, passing away of loved ones, friends and family, much the same as it isn't our choice to be subjected to the negative behaviours of other children and their families, in school and beyond the school gates.  

Thank you for taking the time to post.  I am humbled by your words, your support for Fam. Greying and the recounting of your experiences within the child rearing 'village' that is society in general. 

Tea I think will be plant balls, HM tommie sauce and pasta.  LG had the last but one piece of pizza from the freezer in their snap box, so we can't have pizza for tea.  But I feel like something along the Italian vibe and will possibly pour a glass of red later to accompany.  

I did do a wash today - most of LG's school clothes.  In some ways it was utter madness, as it has remained (relatively) cold today, with next to no breeze and the sunshine has been weak (although we have seen the golden orb, so.....), but then the weather isn't forecast to get any better, and LG can't start the new school week without uniform, so I bit the bullet, did a wash, did an extra spin and the clothes are now on their second hour in front of the dehu on the laundry setting.  Naturally, the clothes are far from bone dry, but they are, slowly but surely, drying, so fingers crossed by the morrow the things will be dry.  It won't be cheap in terms of electrickery used, but then neither would a trip to the laundromat, so........

Ta - again - for popping in.  I'm so grateful you did.

Greying X

redofromstart

It was a really helpful post, and a reminder of what a supportive place this is.  

I deliberately buy the apples (on offer) knowing that at most two will get eaten, and then use the worst ones, cut in half, for the blackbirds.  

Greying_Pilgrim

Good Morning MFW'rs

Extremely slow start with us this morning.  Certainly for me - I've taken to being awake in the wee small hours of the morning, falling back asleep at around 4am/5am, and then not waking until 9am (as long as DH is around to look after LG - I just get up tired on a school day).  Blessed meno.

We had an icy night, but I think it wasn't much colder than previous nights, so around the -3 mark, which I'm sure is positively balmy compared to some places!

We've done homework with LG this morning.  They spend more time arguing that they shouldn't have to do it on the weekend than it takes to complete the tasks 🙄  Mind, we didn't have homework in primary school (until the last year, and then it was optional), when I was little, and I'm not sure I agree with how much the kids get assigned.  

Dh will take LG out for some exercise later.  And no stopping for sweeties on the way home this week - I have got the packet of m&$ blueberry muffins out of the freezer to have instead.  I rather think soup is in order for lunch.  Not sure what type - although it may well be the turnip, lemon and lentil soup - we all like it.  Did I mention that I bought another mahooosive swede from MrS on Thursday, so we'll not starve Tiny Tim....... 

I've just got the dehu on to clear the condensation from the windows - I don't think it's any worse than it would be (because of the cold), with having dried the washing in the house yesterday, although obviously it's not something i want to make a habit of.  I will sort through the airer just now to see what clothes of LG's can be put away.  

Can't think of anything particularly MSE to add at the mo.  So I'll push off.  Emilia Fox's sweater is jolly nice - she's on Saturday kitchen.  Wonder if it's shop bought or hand knit?

Greying X

Greying_Pilgrim

Good Morning MFW'rs

Had a reasonable night's sleep last night - woo hoo.  Makes a difference, doesn't it.

Second wash is on, currently having a second spin.  First wash is pegged out.  It's on the cusp of 'not being worth it' today, because there possibly might not be enough breeze.  Tomorrow's weather is looking better in terms of a breeze and dry conditions, but DH's workwear and other essentials have dwindled to low levels of 'spares', so I'm trying to catch up today, to have something pushing towards laundered for the start of the week.  There will be insufficient line space to wash 'everything' tomorrow anyway.  Needless to say, DH's additional uniform sets have not been forthcoming from his employer 🙄

Soup yesterday lunchtime was Mulligatawny.  Haven't made it for yonks.  Although there is no note, I am reasonably sure it originates from a recipe book by G0rd0n Ram$ay.  But as it's unlikely he would publish a wholly veggie recipe, I don't know if I substituted/left out ingredients when I wrote it down - for example, I wouldn't use chicken stock, just plain water, or with a veggie stock cube or whatever.  Anyway, there was plenty for everyone, and there was a portion leftover - not because the soup wasn't liked, but as promised, there was a blueberry muffin each for DH and LG as they had been out and about exercising and not visited the sweetie store.  I didn't have one, which means there are 2 left for DH and LG to have for another day.  I'm very glad I am able to overlook alot of sweet things, but crisps and anything savoury is quite another matter........  With the leftover portion of soup, it will be dished up again for lunch today 🤣 but I will probably take it in a different direction somehow, even if it becomes a liquidised base for a slightly different type of bean/vegetable or whatever.

DH is currently doing homework with LG it is not going well...... 🙄  Pity school don't teach the kids during the school day and leave it all to be done at home,

I don't know what to do for tea.  Pizza is high on the agenda, but a) i used the oven last night (burgers and chips), b) we haven't any oven chips left (not a deal breaker, but wedges take longer to cook).  Will give it some thought.  Hopefully we will be back in the routine of activity afterschool tomorrow, so it will be worthwhile thinking what to do for tea tomorrow, so there is no doubling up of pasta, or rice or potatoes or whatever.  Although having said that, we don't have that many potatoes left anyway, so if they get used as wedges, there won't be anything for tomorrow.  

I broke off half way through typing to peg out the second washing load.  The weather has 'warmed' (everything is relative) and the dew drops that were iced on the line before have now become water droplets - easier to get off with a quick flick of the line, whereas before they needed sweeping off with fingers.  

Not too sure what we will be doing today.  Going out anywhere is difficult because although the weather has improved immensely, it's still icy in places, on pavements, roads etc, but I realise we've still had "mild" conditions compared to many.

Right, can't think of anything wholly MSE to report at the mo, so I'll push off.

Ta for popping in.  Greying X

EssexHebridean

You’re doing well with washing GP - it’s been too cold and still here to bother trying to get anything dried outside at all, and with the Edward the Agile electric prices have been the dehumidifier best understand that it is currently in no danger of getting any activity!  I did manage to get a couple of loads done last week though, and those dried OK on the airer in front of the spare room rad, so that’s a win. The next load is in the machine waiting - and at the moment there just may be a window of opportunity for pegging out when MrEH is WFH on Tuesday… 

I’m glad the school are being proactive about sorting out the situation affecting LG - it’s just a shame that eyes aren’t out on stalks sufficiently to cut off unpleasant behaviour at the pass before it has a chance to wound and damage…  In fact I need to re-word the earlier statement don’t I - they are being REactive, Pro would have been better! 

Greying_Pilgrim

EssexHebridean said:

I’m glad the school are being proactive about sorting out the situation affecting LG - it’s just a shame that eyes aren’t out on stalks sufficiently to cut off unpleasant behaviour at the pass before it has a chance to wound and damage…  In fact I need to re-word the earlier statement don’t I - they are being REactive, Pro would have been better! 

I agree EH.  I mean if we were at the end of the first term of Reception Yr, and everyone was still getting to know each other, and their personalities and ways of being, well then I would say that the school would be well within their rights to play the waiting game.  But we're in Key Stage 2 now, and some of the children haven't developed on from when they started in the school.  I also realise that life events can happen at anytime, and affect children's outlook/behaviour (and it happens to adults, so there is no way we can expect better from young children), but there aren't any reasons in this particular case, just no one calling out the poor behaviour from the getgo. 

When this first started affecting us, I assumed that it was 'my' fault, in that being an older parent, we had a very, very different parenting outlook to the prevailing (younger) parental expectations of the school year.  However, over time, I have slowly but surely found that I am far from alone in my horror and exasperation over the displayed behaviour, and the lack of corrective guidance from 'significant adults', be they teachers, parents, relatives, 'friends' etc.  We are far from the first to say "enough" with this behaviour - which is possibly why the school has been more 'reactive' now.  One person can just be guilty of having a difference of opinion, but at the end of a raft of complaints from classrooms of families, and estates of households, there must be some issue. 

We have a slight bit of sunshine here now - the breeze hasn't really strengthened any.  I've just been out to see how the washing is getting on - not much progress 😕  which is a shame, as in terms of being outside, it's quite pleasant, but with no direct sunshine hitting the washing, and no breeze, no progress is being made really.  I knew I was taking a gamble, I suspect I'm the loser today.  

Right, I'd better shove orf and make something edible for lunch out of leftovers.  

Greying X

badmemory

Of course the reason LG has homework is because of those disruptive ones.  Too much time is having to be spent trying to get them to behave.