The pressure of providing a healthy and yummy school lunch five days a week is starting to build. Squish and I are experimenting with some new presentation options.
Category: Spawn
There’s so much more to it than I ever thought possible.
The Wizard of Oz
Parramatta RSL is putting on a Wizard of Oz show on the 28th of September at 10:30am. It has audience participation, and tickets are $12. Inigo and I are going – care to join us?
On Fire!
Squish and I went to the Macquarie University open day yesterday. He volunteered to help the chemists doing the “Chemistry Magic Show”. I was cool with that until they set him on fire, that made both of us a little nervous.
The show was awesome though!
School Transition Program Two
On Friday, we went to the new school transition program run by the school. He went to an actual classroom, and met the woman who will most likely be his teacher next year, Mrs D. As we have chosen a small school, so far they only have enough enrollments for one kindy class, so chances are she will be his teacher. If there is a lot of enrollments between now and the first week of school there will also be a kindy/year one composite class.
He was a little nervous about being left in a new environment, and complained that he didn’t learn anything new yet, but so far, so good, and he’s looking forward to next week.
Today
Inigo decided a while ago that when he goes to university, he will study music, so he can be a singer.
Today, after I explained what the army is, and why they exist, he found out how comes the world is. I explained that there are people who think about complex problems all the time, who try to work out right from wrong, and who try to define grey areas.
He has changed his plan. Now, he wants to study music, and philosophy.
School Transition
I’m afraid this is going to be another one of those “I can’t believe how awesome my kid is, and I feel compelled to share him with the world” posts.
Last Friday we started transition to school. I say we, because one of the learning outcomes is a parent that doesn’t sob at the school gates on the first day of real school next year. And we all know I am in grave danger of that!
We convened in an adjacent room, and when everyone was ready, we walked together into the classroom. Inigo took off ahead of me, full of confidence, but at the door he turned around to wait for me and grab my hand. We walked in together, and a teacher greeted him and asked him to sit on a mat in the front of the classroom. Reluctantly, he let go of my hand after I assured him I wasn’t leaving.
The teachers had a laminated card with a picture of each child, and their name printed on another card. Each child in turn had to identify his or her picture and name, and then stick them on the wall so everyone could see. Inigo waited his turn, but quickly scanned the field so that he could be the fastest when it came to his turn. When his name was called, he was so eager and speedy that all the mums had a chuckle, clearly this was a kid that is ready to stretch his wings in an academic environment.
After that the parents had to go next door for our own lesson, and we left the kids to their own devices. After an hour or so I snuck back in to take a picture (you HAVE to take a picture of a kids first day of school!).
This program runs for 4 weeks with kids who are going to a variety of schools in the area. After this program the school runs another one, and after that there is another one we can choose to do – all up, it is 17 weeks of school prep, running from now until the end of the year. Hopefully, we’ll both be ready by then!
Another great weekend
We watched the olympic opening ceremony, this guy was a highlight for me 😉
Yesterday was Leapy’s second birthday, Karl’s fortieth, and Marks company half year party. Bev and Ted kept Squish overnight, so Mark and I had a lovely night. I am slowly getting to know some of his colleagues and their other halves, so the parties are a bit more fun now. Last night was amazing. I met the wife of one of the partners, and we bonded over cracking jokes and drinking cocktails. I solved the problems of the world with a young guy from Melbourne who described his recent Hindu wedding ceremony, and reconnected with Magda from Poland, who apparently was inspired by my story at the last party, and has decided on more study and a career change. I was really touched.
I’ve cooked up a storm, had a great nights sleep, and bought a new kitchen appliance. Life is good.
And I am completely unprepared to start uni tomorrow!
Mary had a little lamb…
…and a crocodile came and ate it.
Inigo singing in the bath this morning.
80%
I can swallow without painkillers, I can breathe, I can stay awake for more than an hour, and I can eat! I’m not feeling 100%, but after the past few months, 80% feels pretty damn good 🙂
Inigo and I took his paperwork up to school on Wednesday morning, and he is now on the road to being enrolled in big school. His school transition program starts next month, so we are gearing up for a big end of the year, and hopefully he is looking forward to the exciting elements of school rather than the scary ones. We’ve chosen a school that is just a bit further away than our local school, it’s just a bit smaller, a bit more diverse, and it has a school garden program, and no canteen. It’s still in easy cycling distance from home, and we’ve been attending playgroup and other activities there since before Inigo could walk, so he is very familiar with the environment.
I am trying super hard to be upbeat and positive, and not give in to the “he was only born about a week ago, and now I have to give his care over to the state, and he’s still my tiny baby” panic. He is sooo ready for the academic side of school life, and we are doing our best (with the help of his new preschool) to support his social interactions with kids his own age. He has no trouble holding long conversations with adults, but tends to find his peers pretty boring. Since that reminds me so much of me, I do worry, but I also know that we have made good choices for him, and that he will be well supported. And school for him will be worlds away from what I experienced in the mid 1970’s!
Uni is on a break for another week, so all I have to do is look after myself (and avoid getting sick again), and look after my lovely family. A new development that I would like to record for my own recollection is that in the past couple of weeks, bedtime has (touch wood) ceased to be a drama. After my very low point a few weeks ago, I’ve managed to institute a new routine that involves reading a long form story (starting with Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, and now James and the Giant Peach), after a few chapters of which he now snuggles in for a cuddle and drifts off to sleep in my arms. I hesitate to say that we have cracked the sleep problem, because it has been the bane of our existence for four and a half years, but the last two weeks have been great. Sleep time is now a time of loving connection and joy rather than a two hour screaming match that leaves everyone emotionally traumatised. Long may it last.
And tomorrow I am having friends over for a crafty morning. Mark has been going out on a Monday evening to follow his crazy hobbies, so I am co-opting Saturday mornings for mine. There is an open invitation to all, so if you are up for a bit of cake nibbling and yarn fondling, do pop over!
Relaxxxx…
Exam is over. Chest infection improving. Sore throat threatening, but I’ll pretend that isn’t happening.
I’ve applied for special consideration for my whole semester of work – hopefully my catalogue of pestilence is enough to melt the right hearts. And hell, even if I do only get a credit for this subject, I’ll know that I worked bloody hard for it, and there is no shame.
Tomorrow I am going to a birthday party for a much loved baby that was still born. Saturday night we’re having dinner with some friends we haven’t seen in ages, and on Sunday we are meeting up with my aunt and taking Inigo to the Norman Lindsay gallery at Springwood where they are having an exhibition about the models. We’ll be able to see lots of pictures of Nanna, and even some rare pencil drawings that we haven’t seen before. It will be a wonderful opportunity for Inigo to connect with a bit of family history.
All activities that seem very normal and healthy – I’m actually a little surprised that I can go back to being a (relatively) normal person after the last 2 months. And the few months before that. And… Well, you get the picture.
Touch wood, no more catastrophes for a while, m’kay?
Disco Knitter 