Showing all posts tagged fun

In Funny, General, Parenting

Mystery blog swap

Author Nicki CawoodPosted on

Something different! I have a guest post on today, but I can’t tell you who it is. You have to guess! Sound confusing? Read this and it will all become clear. Can you work out who is blogging where? Author unknown, a fantastic post about the rollercoaster that is a Secondary school appeal!

IF ONLY I’d chosen a home 2 miles to the left! – Secondary School Appeal.

My daughter didn’t get into the secondary school of her choice. It’s been a disaster.  We knew it was a long shot as the school was oversubscribed and we live the furthest away but after relocating 2 years ago and my daughter settling in with a new group of friends, it’s become very stressful for her that she has to go to a different high school to them; a high school that she really doesn’t like.

Preparing for the appeal panel was tense. Finding reasons to justify that the stress to my daughter outweighs the logistical difficulties faced by the school for allowing her a place was a challenge. The Powerpoint presentation cover had lots of photos of my daughter with her arms around her pals (children that had all been allocated a place already) in the hope of tugging the heart strings.

The reasons where three-fold and very detailed, focusing on mostly emotional arguments. Presenting them to the panel last week, I battled throughout to maintain composure. 28 children are appealing and it seems that they usually allow 3 or 4 children in on appeal. Why does my daughter deserve a place over the other 27 children who are also heartbroken that they cannot attend the school of their choice?

I thought we had a strong case, drawing examples from our lives that have been a bit of a nightmare the past few years. I threw into the presentation a photocopy of a court order that could be used to support my argument and tried to wow the panel with my daughter’s high achieving school grades. I also mentioned my other daughter who was 12 months younger, also wanting to attend this school and how her life would be turned upside down if we were denied a place. The unique point I had was that my ex husband is a supply teacher in the area of the school that my daughter has been placed but not in the area of the school she wants to attend.

Turns out, after finding out a bit of gossip in the playground, everyone else seems to have a strong case too so I’ve started gently mentioning to my daughters that the appeal will not be successful.

We’ve had tears and tantrum while we wait for the results next week.

I’m pretty sure that we haven’t been successful with our appeal and I’m not sure how to deal with the consequences.

 

 

In General

What’s In YOUR Bag?

Author Nicki CawoodPosted on 11 Comments
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First of all I must say that I know I need a new handbag, this one is battered and out of shape, and just hideous! Does anyone have a personal connection with Orla Kiely? No? That’s a shame!

If you tipped your bag out onto the table right now, what would be in it? I’m quite impressed with my emptying actually, usually it’s full of scraps of paper and a variety of weird and wonderful things. Perhaps the fact I’ve been going out with the changing bag more recently than my handbag could account for the semi-grown up look it still has!

So, what have we got?

2 nappies and a half used pack of wipes. Well those speak for themselves really.

8 paracetamol & codeine, not because I have noisy kids (!) but because bright light, like that ball of fire-y stuff in the sky that has made some startling appearances of late, can give me headaches. Headaches make me narky. So it’s safer all round if I can nip one in the bud before it really takes hold.

Sansa MP3 Player thingy. Ok, it’s not an ipod but it does the same job and when I have Taylor in the Cabi and am doing some butt-wobbling power walking-cum-buggy pushing, I can enjoy tunes such as The Real McCoy, Runaway, KD Lang, Constant Craving, Phil Collins – You Can’t Hurry Love or some of the legendary Aretha who is giving some RESPECT! How can your day not be better listening to tunes such as these?

Fruit Flakes – Instant bribery. Or a fruity type snack.

Plasters – for scraped knees, a plaster and a magic Mummy kiss dries tears every time.

A notebook – I have a memory like a seive! I see a poster and think “That’d be a great day out”, promptly store it in that safe place in my mind, and it’s never thought about again. I also use it for ideas. We walk a lot (I don’t drive) and am a keener observer of everyday life when out and about (read as a nosy cow). Sometimes I see an exchange, an item, a scene and think… “Oooh, I could write about that!”. If it doesn’t get jotted, it gets forgotten!

A Ben10 keyring which hasn’t yet made it on my keys. Maybe later.

Cow & gate money off vouchers. Yup we are weaning. And I am tight.

My purse, full of shopping lists, receipts and moths.

Sunglasses, to avoid glare-headaches, and because they make me look cool. I think?

A badge thing for my bag which I nabbed from Natalie, the PreciousParcels owners and resident nutter. It is IN my bag because I haven’t yet worked out how to attach it. There isn’t a pin or anything Nat? Did you let me pinch it because it’s broken or am I being dim?

Suncream, because I like to think I live somewhere exotic. And I like my kids, well done, not crispy.

A bit boring really, lol! This isn’t a meme or anything like that, so no tagging – but I’m intrigued. Right now, what is in YOUR handbag? (I’m hoping some has something really obscure!).

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