An eventful day

I'm about to juxtapose two incidents that could not be more different if I tried.......bear with me, it's worth it:)

Today was a special day for our oldest KAT. 

The Year 6 class were presented with their leadership badges at a special 'god bothering' ceremony (ie Mass for you non-Catholics out there).

Accompanying their 'buddies' in Kindy, the Year 6 class processed into the church to the tune of a lovely song "Welcome To The Family".  It has the makings of a tear-jerker if you're that way inclined when your little ones start school!

Oldest KAT was simply radiating happiness and the pride and sense of achievement that all the Year 6's possessed was palpable...it is definitely a big deal being the school leaders and having their moment up on the altar after all the years leading up to it where they were just observers.

Net result:  Happy child + proud parents (daddy even made the time to attend which is a HUGE ask given the pressure he's under at work) = a great morning :)

Fast forward to school pickup and I added to the 'eventfulness' quotient of the day by taking on a driver who propped at a T intersection at the bottom of the street near school.  She was attempting to turn right and enter the pickup line for the private school down and around the next corner....and was going nowhere fast whilst she held up a line of traffic who just wanted to get the hell out of there!

Instead of 'poking' her nose out to alert the other queue of cars that she wanted to get over (which is appropriate driving behaviour in the 'world' I inhabit) she just propped....

and propped.

AND.PROPPED.

Annnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnd propped!!!!!

After over five minutes of this I decided enough was enough. 

I leaped purposefully out of my car, ran up to her window (she was two cars in front of me) and insisted that she 'ENTER.THE.INTERSECTION' and stop holding up the traffic.

I did not swear.
I did not use inappropriate language.
I did NOT shout (although my capitals above may suggest I actually wanted to!!!)
In short I did NOT abuse her (even though I reeeeaaallly wanted to!!!!)

I was simply assertive in a bossy, 'get your stupid car out of the way' fashion.....................................

She advised me that I was "rude" and there was no need to speak to her "that way".  I felt like telling her 'lady you should count yourself lucky'!!!!

Instead I turned and bolted back to my car, ignoring the look of shock on the faces of the other drivers (who may or may not have been parents at the school we attend!!!)

Anyhoo, by the time I had my seatbelt on she had made a move, so my little piece of assertiveness had done the trick :)

Did I feel mortified and ashamed of my behaviour?  NO!!!!! 
Did I get a giggle out of the fact that a mother at school who is one of those passive-aggressive types who acts nice but in fact loves to look down her nose at me witnessed the incident................YES!!!!

Ladies who feel the need to bitch about my behaviour...................Bite my roomy butt :)) 

Life is too short for useless drivers and I've got too much to do than wait around whilst they get their act together!

An eventful day indeed!  Are you with me or against me peeps??

Tying up the loose ends

If I was a writer I think I'd be really crap at writing the endings to my books.

I know this because I've detected a bit of a 'trend' in my blogging.................leaving too many things hanging!

This is partly a result of my 'scattergun' approach to blogging - I don't plan the posts, I just blurt them out with my fingers on the keyboard....and then I may not think about them again once they're out there in blogworld.

So today, in the interests of resolving a few 'hanging' items, I thought I'd give you an update on my most recent post re our Oldest KAT and the perils of the school leadership contest.

As expected (and well prepared for) she didn't get the guernsey as School Captain....nor Vice Captain.  That honour went to a young lady who chose to do a 'rap' for her speech which apparently made her even more 'hip' and appealing than she already was (as she is a very nice girl with a lovely disposition).

The Vice Captain went to an all-round superstar, great at all sports (rep team this and rep team that) and a good student...to make it even better she's a really polite, unassuming girl who is impossible not to like.

In short, our oldest KAT was happy for both of them....even though she was a tad disappointed, she masked it well and kept a smile on her dial!

With the key positions out of the way, it has then evolved into a 'now who gets what' toss up of all the other 'leadership' jobs that give the kids a chance to shine in Year 6.  Today we found out that our gorgeous girl will be the Learning and Resource Captain which means she gets to be the spokesperson during Literacy, Library & Numeracy weeks next year.  Right up her alley!

Now, onto the second major thing that I've left hanging.......................what was the outcome of my 9 Week Challenge (ie did I win!!!!)

The short answer is YES!

I managed to blow the 'competition' away and was the overall winner for my centre with a total weight loss of 17.9kgs.

Last Saturday I was presented with my prize which includes a bunch of 'goods & services' ranging from Beauty treatments, Runners, Photo Session, Car Wash & Detail and a few other bits and pieces.  Saint Mike hunted in the envelope for a cheque...............which was not forthcoming :)

In the end, the prize had become a tad insignificant as I'm now nearly 4 weeks post-challenge and am well along the road of trying to lose weight without the aid of my Siberian diet!  I'm adjusting to eating more food and managing the 'plan' myself without a daily regimen to follow and this has proved to be quite tricky for me. 

Added to this, my trainer decided to resign and disappear without so much as a good bye which has left me feeling like one of the people on Biggest Loser when the American kick-ass trainer says it's time to go back state-side...............devestated, lacking in confidence and like someone has chopped off my right arm!!!!

My new trainer is really lovely (funny way to describe someone who kicks my butt) but he's not the same as my old one.  It will take a bit of getting used to.

In the meantime, I am trying to give my head time to catch up with my body - I'm physically fitter than I've been in an eternity (definitely pre-youngest KAT fitness levels) but psychologically I'm really struggling with imposter syndrome and look in the mirror and still see a fat person.

I'm just keeping up my exercise and diet routine as best I can and focusing on stabilising myself between now and New Years so that I don't regress.  Then, it will be game on for 2012!!

It really is a journey and in the past I never admitted that and somehow acted like I could get a free ride...I've now accepted that it's a tough road and only hard work will get me there.

Image from here - I was hunting for an image depicting 'loose threads', couldn't find one...settled on this one as I really love the use of the ribbon!!!!

Channeling Tracy...or not!

The movie Election would be one of my favourite films.  I've always had a thing for Matthew Broderick and I am a big admirer of the talented Ms Witherspoon...she seems like a pretty ballsy chick.

We're in the midst of a bit of an election in our house.  Our oldest KAT had to prepare a speech for the school to convince them that she would make a great school captain.  As it's only a small school (19 of them will be in Year 6 next year) they all get to make a speech as the teachers and principal consider it a great opportunity to practise their public speaking and talk about their strengths.

I have been preparing myself all year for this event. 

Practising being magnanimous. 

Practising the "I don't care face". 

Practising the "Primary school is such a small part of your life" speech

............all in preparation for the eventual outcome that our gorgeous, intelligent, caring, generous, girl probably won't get the gig.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not being defeatist.  I'm being a realist and a pragmatist (quite unusual for me I might add!!!).  The reality is that if it's a popularity contest, our Oldest KAT wouldn't win...she's spent most of her school years on the outer and struggled at times to 'fit in'. 

She's her own person.  She doesn't go with the crowd and she's certainly no Queen Bee! 

I should also mention that her only resemblence to Ms. Flick is her intelligence and beauty...perhaps by Year 12 she may have her single-minded ambition!!

If it's decided by the principal and the teachers I'm sure she'll get a mention.  But if they have half a brain (and I know they do) they will not put this pressure on her as they know that it will only add to the weight of pressure she puts on herself and may bring out elements of her personality (the bossy bits) that we are working to tone down...not fuel!

In the unlikely event that she is chosen we will be suitably proud of her and totally supportive.  I have just reached the point though where I think it's best for her to NOT have this honour and deal with the possible thought in future years "was that my high point" (though I think she has it in her to be Prime Minister if the truth be known :))

I can also confidently say that I have no need to validate myself as a mother by geeing her on to get this job....I know I'm a great mum (and can also be a complete and utter psycho nut-case) and NOT getting school captain is not a vehicle I have ever coveted to reinforce my position in the world!

My only hope is that it goes to one of the quiet achievers in the class and not to one of the "shiny" kids....you know the ones, parents that hang with the 'right' crowd, always appearing to be cruising through life in the 'easy' lane.  I don't suffer fools gladly and if one of those smug little princesses (okay get a grip Elizabeth) gets the gig I may have to sit on my hands to stop from gagging!!!!! 

Oh, Oh....I think I need to practice the magnanimous face again!!!!

Putting Mum In Her Box

Undelivered note found on our Oldest KATs bookshelf.  Relates to an incident (one of many this week) where I refused to provide answers to her homework...instead suggesting she employ the power of Google to research the topic herself!


Dear Mum,

I should be able to get help from my mother, I need help and your reason not to help me is IRRELEVANT.

WHY WON'T YOU HELP ME!!!!!

I am not talking to you!!!!!

K

P.S. You scrunched up my homework!

Lessons to be learnt from this missive to me from our oldest KAT:

1. She needs a refresher on the perils of excessive use of exclamation marks
2. Her overuse of above mentioned exclamation marks indicates a strong genetic link to her mother!!!!!
3. Her future as a barrister is looking brighter every day :)
4. She has mastered the art of the 'persuasive text'....what's next when you're 11?
5. I am so going to get revenge when she has her own children and tells them to 'google it' (or the technological equivalent at that time)
6. Hang on why wait til then, I'll be whipping out this palm card (what the above was written on) at her 21st!

Have a great weekend :)

Unreliable tooth fairies

I think SM and I need to outsource our tooth fairy responsibilities.

For the second time in as many months, we have proven ourselves to be completely and utterly unreliable in this department.

Thankfully the way we have literally fallen asleep on the job has been in respect to lost teeth from the mouth of our oldest KAT...she finds the whole thing highly amusing as she is completely attuned to the fact that the 'tooth fairy' is just a euphanism for 'free money'!!

After the first instance of 'failure to deliver' which occurred whilst SM was overseas, I did what all self-respecting parents do.  I bribed her into silence...the 'tooth fairy' agreed to take it on the chin and double the contribution for her tardiness....in this way she kept quiet and didn't let the littlest KAT know what the tooth fairy can sometimes be guilty of unacceptable standards.

I blamed the first incident on SM, he has always been the one to masquerade as the tooth fairy...so when the baton was passed to me in his absence it was a given that I would forget to do it....but this time, SM was at home...so he has no excuse (don't you love the double standard!).

Tonight I will write him a coded message left on the bathroom mirror to remind him of his tooth fairy obligations...and this will hopefully avert a manky looking tooth remaining under the pillow for a third night running!!!

How do you approach the whole tooth fairy situation?  Do you have a special receptacle (a la the picture above...you can actually buy these on Etsy!!!!)...or do you just go with the tooth naked under the pillow? 

Oh and how much do you pay out per tooth (we are a gold coin family!)????

image from here

Our Oldest KAT - The Crash Test Dummy

Nature versus nurture?

If ever there was a perfect study for this debate, our oldest is it.  She is cursed with being the oldest which makes her our very own crash test dummy. 

Her eleventh birthday is looming and she is blossoming in front of our eyes.  She is bright, inquisitive, loving and an excellent conversationalist.  She is personable and empathetic.

She tells people that her aspiration in life is to be a historical novelist and own a fromagerie.

She wears her heart on her sleeve just like her mama and will be useless at card games as she is completely lacking a poker face.

We adore her.  But I also worry about her endlessly.  This may be the lot of a mother but for me it sometimes feels like it's all I do in regards to her.

You see she has what one might benignly describe as anxiety issues. 

A less tactful person may describe her as a completely neurotic psycho who drains her mother of her energy with the amount of 'worry' that she finds in the pursuit of daily life. 

As her mother, I naturally blame myself for her boundless anxiety levels and often ponder what I have done to 'nurture' this creature who still sucks her thumb going on 11 and on a bi-monthly basis has anxiety attacks about sleeping alone in her bedroom and has had one successful sleepover in her primary years to date.

Who knows if it was my overenthusiastic applications of the 'sleep nazi' techniques that I had assiduously learnt from an applied study of the Robyn Barker baby book. 

In retrospect, this could be one of those 'nurture' moments where mummy insisting that she go to bed and leaving her all alone in her bedroom in that enormous cot may have created insecurities virtually out of the womb.

Or maybe the toddler years...where still getting used to life with one child (her) we introduced another one into the mix who happened to hate sleep and refused to co operate with any of my well practiced settling techniques. 

I seem to recall being veeeeeery unhappy and overwhelmed...memories a bit vague as I did get diagnosed with post-natal depression and ended up on the happy drugs which helped immensely.

Was it during this phase that the anxieties bent started developing...pyscho mummy,  no one in charge of the plane...pilot asleep at the controls...oh oh!!

I'm buggered if I know.  We love her dearly, I just wish she would take a chill pill every now and then :)

Is it just me or are all oldest children neurotic...even if slightly less than mine?