The children returned to school today and with me being there too for a next few days I know I won’t be far behind them so I thought I’d try and get on top of the housework while the house is quiet. All started well, hoovering downstairs done, dog walked and the ironing I did at the weekend ready to be put away in piles. Then came the trouble!
Hpops had made an obstacle course of the stairs up to her room consisting of a variety of shoes, books and relics from the sleep over she had last week. Things were not much better in her room. The bag she had taken for her sleepover was on the floor with all the things that had been in it spread around it, various pieces of washing hadn’t made it to the washing basket and then there were the books and pens and two bowls that had over the weekend held easter eggs. Oh well, seems she has morphed into a teenager overnight without me noticing.
Perhaps things would be better in the rooms of the other two – forlorn hope it proves! In Imp’s room there was evidence of an attempt to put some of the bits away but not much. The curtains were firmly closed so I had to negotiate the little mountains of Lego and books that were waiting to inflict pain on my feet before i could even attempt to get to the clothes. In his case however we know we need to reduce the overall number of clothes in his drawers as he has far too many and we are helping with this -so at least there is some optimism there.
Finally Pixie, surely with the brand new dressing table she got for her birthday and the big tidy up we had as a result of making a space for that and then putting all her bits and bobs on it her room would be tidy? Of course not! Again washing has failed to throw itself into the washing basket preferring instead to decorate the floor, accompanied by a yoga mat, a set of uno cards and a variety of stuffed toys!
However, I am fighting back, the children all love their devices but on a school night they are not allowed to have them before dinner, and then only if they have completed their homework to a good standard, their reading and music practice have to be done and any other essential chores! They then have a curfew for devices to ensure that they have an opportunity to read before they go to sleep. So in an attempt to try and train them and help them appreciate that as much as I love washing and ironing their clothes for them to just leave them lying about, change their beds so they can cover them with half their possessions so it takes me three times as long as it should or driving them all over the place to their friends so they can then leave all their bits and bobs lying about, I would appreciate it if they could fill their washing baskets, clear their floors and make their beds. Where the can’t manage that they will lose their precious device time! I am hoping that a few round of this will show them that I mean it and make some of these simple jobs second nature so we don’t have the same boring conversation over and over again.
In better news Hpops managed to pass both her piano grade 2 and violin grade 3 with merit. LAMDA exams approach for all three at the end of the summer term. Imp is rehearsing for his end of Year 6 play, I cannot believe that he is going to be in senior school in September of this year! I am still teaching on a supply basis and am looking forward to trying to get some writing done this summmer. I think I have managed to get comfortable with myself, and have decided that it doesn’t matter if anyone else likes my writing, it just is an outlet for me any success it brings is a bonus. Equally I really enjoy teaching and do want to progress that but I also understand that family first means no full time until Pixie is another couple of years down the line, and I should be grateful for that opportunity. I get to see all the shows and sports day and assemblies without having to worry, but I have realised that as soon as the transition to senior school is complete parental involvement nosedives. Shows and parent evenings take place in the evening and therefore I will be able to work, the children will all be able to get themselves home and so for the next couple of year or so I can enjoy the teaching I get in, the writing and I get in, oh and of course collecting various pieces of washing from around the house!
