#blogtober17 : Day 5 : Education

Published on by seasidesparkles4 Comments

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By a lovely coincidence, on World Teachers’ day, education is today’s theme on #Blogtober17.  First of all I am a teacher and I love my job. I believe in the power and good of education. I was one of the lucky ones to benefit from a free education system, a good comprehensive school and then university with no fees and a small maintenance grant which allowed me to become the first member of my family to graduate. It saddens me that if I were 18 today, I would not go to university, the cost would be too high. How many amazing potential teachers feel the same in a profession which is facing a recruitment crisis?

I suppose this will turn into a little manifesto today as I believe education can help our children all around the world to start to come out of poverty, to give them opportunities and to broaden their horizons. Knowledge excites and empowers us all. We need to make education stimulating, relevant and inclusive. Our curriculum needs to allow teachers to be autonomous and creative, to allow play, exploring and all types of learning, to emphasise creative subjects and to celebrate everyone’s strengths, academic and non-academic. It also needs fair funding.

Despite my concerns I can’t imagine doing another job and genuinely hope that teaching will be the sole profession in my working life. Children are amazing and it is a privilege to work with our young people and to teach, guide and support them.

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#Blogtober17 : Day 4 : A Date

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Its day 4 of #Blogtober17 and the word is date. I’m writing about Mr S’ and my first date, a November night in 1998. I met Mr S in Chicago’s nightclub in Bristol on Halloween and we met up a few days later in a local steak restaurant. The irony of the venue is that both of us were too polite to say we were vegetarian, so we both ended up with a very limited choice from the menu!

Our first date was the best first date, it was so relaxed and comfortable, we didn’t stop talking and both said far more than we would ever dream of to a new friend. The conversation was honest and open and I think we both had a feeling that this was going to be something special. By coincidence, a friend of Mr S was also in the restaurant with his family and being introduced was another sign that Mr S was as excited as I about a possible future. It was an evening full of anticipation and hope and as we left we agreed to see each other at the weekend, I still remember the butterflies in my stomach and the most amazing feeling that love was in the air…

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Thank you to all who have read or responded to my posts so far. The start of the week is busy work wise for me and tonight I’m on a night out with friends (I know on a weeknight!) but I’m looking forward to catching up with the #Blogtober17 posts from tomorrow. Happy writing peeps.

#blogtober17 : Day 3 : Cars

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Day 3 of #blogtober and the theme is cars. I have recently written a blog about my life in cars here

https://seasidesparkles.net/2017/07/15/baby-you-can-drive-my-car-x/

However I feel that I should write a few new words as part of the challenge, so here’s a little piece on Mr S’ sexy car!

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Mr S is a very sensible person and makes very considered purchases, especially around cars. He researches price, fuel economy, features etc.. and is very good at negotiating a price. This approach matches his life, sensible, family orientated and a planner.  Mr S bought a new car recently and after careful consideration he chose a Citroen C4. However despite all his research and negotiation it wasn’t until he had paid his deposit that he realised the number plate was SXY.  My sensible husband now looks like he is going through a midlife crisis with a personalised number plate and one which gets noticed a lot!  He’s learning to live with the plate and it’s one of those little things which I think will become a family joke for many years to come when Daddy had a sexy car!

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#Blogtober17 : Day 2 : Babies

Published on by seasidesparkles1 Comment

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I am a mum, I’ve been pregnant and I now have two amazing children but I’ve never had the joy of cuddling my new little baby as he or she gurgled and smiled in my arms. All I ever wanted in life was to be a mum, Mr S and I married and the plan was babies. We found out life doesn’t quite work out how you planned and after many years of fertility treatment, IUI, IVF and ICSI and a pregnancy which by the cruellest twist ended very sadly, we adopted two special children when they were toddlers.

As I’ve never been a mum to babies, I thought hard how to write about today’s prompt. #Blogtober17 day 2 is an open letter to mums-to-be on how to be pregnant around friends suffering from infertility. I’ve had friends who were amazing and so kind and these friendships are stronger than ever and there were some friendships which sadly didn’t last, I miss these friends but the friendship could never recover from the hurt.

Dear friend and mum-to-be

You’re pregnant, congratulations, this is fabulous news. You are my friend and therefore a truly wonderful person and I can’t wait to meet your baby. Please share the news with me when you do with others and don’t worry about upsetting me. I promise you it’s much worse when I hear the news from a ‘friend’ and if we don’t live in the same town please don’t try to keep the pregnancy secret and surprise me with the news the day you have the baby (this happened, on the worst day of my life and the friendship did not survive)

I am genuinely delighted that you are pregnant, I want people to get pregnant, it gives me hope and I promise to keep my tears hidden from you. I want to talk babies with you, share in your pregnancy, make sure you’re ok. You can text me to pick up a prescription when you’re too poorly, I will collect an older child to give you a rest, this is what friends do! I still love you, your pregnancy is a celebration.

When you have the baby, please don’t forget me. I know your time is totally focused with your new baby, I don’t want nights out, just a text message or invitation to pop around for a coffee and its fine to talk baby with me. I’m a great friend to keep, I’m not on maternity leave pay, so can treat us to posh biscuits or a lovely baby outfit from a shop I know you love. I won’t be around all the time, I know you need time to become a mum and you need new mum friends too, I’m a different friend now and this is ok with me.

I am fine to hold a baby, I won’t drop the baby and I promise I won’t sob hysterically, I’ll play and coo and assure you that he/she is just perfect. For me, it’s the practice I need and isn’t there an old wives tale that being around babies helps you conceive?

All is ask of you is to share your news with me, be kind and gentle and to be the amazing friend you always have been. I will be excited for you and can’t wait to meet your new little baby.

Love

Your friend x

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#Blogtober17 All about me

Published on by seasidesparkles2 Comments

So here goes, I’m stepping out of my comfort zone and trying a little blog project. I’ve chosen to try #Blogtober17 to be more disciplined with my writing and with the prompts I may write about something that I may not normally write about. So day 1, and phew its still October 1st (just) and the topic is about me. Firstly I have to admit that I’m questioning who I am at present. I think like so many mums we get caught up in the lives of our family and our other commitments and sometimes don’t have the time and energy to be ourselves.

So my basics, I am 44 years old (how did that happen?) and live with my husband of 14 years (together for 19) and 2 children in a small seaside town. My blog is anonymous as my children are adopted and we need to protect our identity, especially in a world dominated by social media where it can be so easy to find people online. Our children are a nine year old daughter whose life revolves around dancing, music and fashion, and an eight year old son who lives for sport and outdoor adventures.  They came to live with us seven years ago and are all our dreams come true. I work part time, I have a very fancy title which I think is a bit grand for my real role, but I work as a senior leader in a special needs school. I love my job but the work life balance is always a challenge. Like all mums, I spend most of my free time being mum, helping with homework, taking children to clubs and activities, cooking, cleaning and organising everyone, I always have a list!

My special time each week is spent running and I cherish the solitude of these runs.  At home, I like to read, write, do little projects and be creative in the home. I’m a real homebody these days and this is where I feel most comfortable.

I’m trying to quickly write this and publish before bed, perhaps I’ll come back with a Smash Hits quick fire quiz in the next few days, this makes me sound all so serious and I hope that there is a spirit, warmth and fun in me!

Late edit : I remembered I answered Vogue’s 73 questions on my blog, here’s a link to more about me

https://seasidesparkles.net/2016/02/24/vogues-73-questions/

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Yes Please, Sully and a Bike Ride #littleloves

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This is a two week special, as last week I was busy with a little project. We’ve had some lovely bright autumnal days in the last fortnight so lots of opportunities to be out and about.

READ

I think it was on one a Little Loves post that I read a recommendation of Amy Poeller’s book Yes Please and downloaded into my Kindle. I really enjoyed the read, I admit that I was not particularly familiar with her work but this book is so much more about a career in comedy, its about following your passion and it offers wise advice for women at all stages of your life and other chapters on random subjects which are engaging, thoughtful and funny.

I am now enjoying Marian Keye’s The Break. I’ve been a huge fan since Watermelon and eagerly wait for her new novels, she never disappoints. After seeing a campaign to celebrate female authors with The Jane Austen £10 note, I used my first to buy this book, a great idea and another example of how fun Twittter is.

WATCHED

I am actually watching more television than normal at present, Strictly and Cold Feet are my absolute faves, but there are some good dramas on tv too. In this period I have watched Sully, starring Tom Hanks, whom I just love. Its a film about the pilot of the flight which landed successfully on the Hudson. I read the book Inside the Black Box, in which this episode was a case study so knew that Sully was quite severely questioned about his role. It is a great film and thoroughly recommended.

MADE

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I’ve been busy with my upcycling project and am very proud of my new bureau. It’s great to have a little project and enjoy doing it.

In a burst of domesticity I made biscuits for the children coming in after school, I then froze half the mixture for freshly baked cookies on another night too. I still can’t get over that I did this!

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WORE

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I wore a cycling helmet for the first time in more than decade! Mr S and I used to cycle quite regularly when we lived in Bristol, where lots of the old local train lines were converted to cycle paths. However where we live now is not very bike friendly, with lots of steep hills and the country lanes and roads can be dangerous. So instead of scaring ourselves on roads, we went to our local forestry commission country park and hired bikes so we could ride as a family. We take the children cycling often in the park however now they are confident riders we decided it was our turn too! It was a perfect morning, the weather was warm and bright and we had so much fun riding through the woods, it reminded us that it really is the simple things which give so much pleasure. I was incredibly relieved that I could still ride after all these years and I really loved every second of our ride.

I’ve been shopping in big town today, this is a rare occurrence for me. It was good to potter around, all my favourite shops are there and there are department stores too! I got clothes for myself and the children, I discovered Zara Girls and Little Miss is made up with her new sequin colour changing jumper from the shop. I bought myself a new blouse and cardi from Fat Face and wore it tonight to the secondary school open evening with my skinny jeans. I’m a bit in denial that I have to start thinking about this but at least we have another year to make a decision as Little Miss is still in Year 5.

Photos from Fat Face website, the print is gorgeous!

HEARD

After a dance on Strictly this week, I found myself listening again to Harry Connick Junior’s Album, A Recipe for Love. I had this album as a teenager and I still love the big band style and songs.

And finally

It’s a relaxed time at present, I’ve been able to catch up with friends and potter around. I fancy a little project so will be trying #blogtober from Sunday, to me it’s a scary challenge writing daily on a variety of topics but October is a quiet month with only 12 working days so its the time to step out of my comfort zone. With all the writing, I may need to take a pause from #littleloves but will still be reading the excellent posts.

Happy week everyone and thanks to Morgana for hosting #Littleloves

 

 

 

My little corner

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Over this past week, I have been undertaking a little upcycling project to transform my bureau into something more in keeping with our newly decorated lounge.  The bureau was the first piece of furniture I bought for our new house when we moved in 13 years ago, it was second hand and I carefully, sanded, primed and varnished it to complement our lounge.  The bureau is the hub of my life and I sit at it daily to write, organise and plan.  It also contains so many treasures and memories, as well as every essential.

The upcycling was a simple job to undertake and a good distraction.  I chose a paint by Rust-Oleum, clotted cream, which didn’t need the bureau to be sanded or primed but simply painted and then finished with varnish.  The paint has a chalk like finish but must be stirred carefully or it can become quite lumpy in places. I used 2 coats all over the bureau.

The children were both keen to help me in this project so there are a couple of (hidden) places where the finish is not quite as precise as I would have hoped.  Its a compromise I was happy to make.  I took the children individually to the garage where we chatted and worked, simple pleasures and its lovely to see how proud they are of their work.  In addition to the paint and varnish, I also changed the handles for a slightly different look.

My bureau is a treasure trove of my special things, below is a small selection of some of the things I keep in it.  Firstly is the bag of chargers, I have them organised and neatly labelled.  Next to the bag is a postcard by Matisse, I saw this painting in L’Orangerie in Paris when I was 20 and loved it, I’ve had the postcard ever since.  I have quite a few special postcards of paintings, people, patterns, inspiring quotes etc.. in my bureau. Some I send to friends, often for no reason just to let them know I’m thinking of them, others I keep and others become book marks!  The plastic folder is full of articles in magazines or newspapers that I’ve enjoyed, cards from friends, tickets from special events, a little memory box to make me smile. My Filofax and Clipbook are the key to my organisation and used daily, I’ve tried to streamline into one but I prefer both, the Filofax is for dates and deadlines, the Clipbook for more creative projects. The small notebook computer is my daily computer for admin and bits and pieces.  Our family computer and accessories are elsewhere so this computer is simply mine for admin and it’s size makes it convenient and accessible. I cannot resist good stationery and I have a lot of pencil cases and pens and pencils, .  This is my favourite pencil case at the moment by Poppy Treffey which stays in my bureau, I also have a small pencil case in my bag (Cath Kidston) one for my work bag (gold Sparkles) etc.. I am addicted!  The small make up bag contains aromatherapy oils, as I often diffuse them at my desk. I bought this in Melbourne on our first trip to Australia, my family nickname is Skippy hence the design.  The bits and pieces bag does as it says, glue, sellotape, blue tac, scissors, tippex, stamps, small sewing kit etc.. The letter rack is for daily admin, cards to be sent, correspondence cards and even a cheque book for those really rare times when you have to pay by cheque. For some random reason I also keep the name labels here, I always seem to be labelling something. There are always lots of little me things in my bureau, pin badges, photos, stickers, candles etc..

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I am really pleased with my little upcycling project, the colour works well in the new lighter room and I feel back at home in my little corner.

A working day in my life …

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Last weekend, I wrote a day in the life of a typical Saturday in the Sparkles household. Today I am writing of a typical week day to illustrate my working week and the demands of trying to juggle family and a working life. I work in a special needs school as part of the senior management team, but have a flexible working agreement so my hours are 9 – 2.30, 3 days a week and until 5pm on our meeting night, I have one full day off a week normally a Thursday but I do change it depending on work demands.

6.15am        The alarm goes off and I get up. I’ll never be a morning person but once out of bed, I’m fine and simply get on with my day. The first job is always to put the kettle on, I need at least two cups of tea in the morning to make me feel myself, and whilst I wait for the kettle, I unload the dishwasher and start to set the table for breakfast. The radio has to be on and I’m a big Chris Evans fan, I grew up in my 20s listening to his radio 1 breakfast show and now in my 40s he’s still my breakfast dj.

6.30am       Shower time. My routine is quick and organised, I can shower, dress and put on basic make up in around 20 minutes. My hair is short and needs minimal styling so this helps. Little Man awakes around now but is happy to potter around in his bedroom or pop into the kitchen for a drink. I may have a cheeky glance at Twitter but that’s dangerous for my timings as I easily get drawn to blog posts.

6.50am        Now I’m dressed, I get the children organised. Little Man likes to talk to me in his bedroom as he gets dressed, I normally leave their uniforms ready the night before as every little thing counts in our morning routine.

7.00am        I wake up Little Miss, she’s not a morning person and there’s often a few groans as I open the curtains and air the room. We chat (okay I talk she grunts) for 5 minutes and then I leave her to get dressed and go to the kitchen.

7.10am       I make cup of tea number 2 and get breakfast ready, this is usually cereal and surprisingly we all like porridge so I often make it on the hob. We like it with lot of different fillings, honey, raisins, bananas etc…

7.20am        Breakfast for us all. We’re still getting used to Mr S being home as for the past 2 years he has been away working during the week. Little Man does his calendar and then we all sit down for breakfast.

7.35am       Whilst Mr S supervises teeth and hair brushing, I tidy up the kitchen and finish the lunches I prepped the night before. I make my lunch which is normally a salad as I’m not crazy on sandwiches. I then finish packing the school bags, it’s a busy day today as Little Man needs old clothes for forest school and his kit for football training. Fortunately most letters, permissions and payments are made through the Parentmail app now so there’s no letters to remember.

7.50am        The children play in the playroom whilst I brush my teeth and put a little lip gloss and perfume on. If Little Miss wants a fancy hair style, I help by plaiting her hair or pinning it up. Today’s hairstyle is simple so I’m not needed to help.

8.00am        I get my school bag ready, if everything is calm, I’ll take a quick look at work emails and may need to make a call to work about any urgent issues. This is my choice but by giving me flexible working conditions, I want to help things run smoothly in the department, a quick phone call now may stop my time being used later. I only needed to send a quick message today and there was nothing urgent in my emails.

8.15am        I get coats, bags and shoes ready and ask everyone to go to the toilet. We need to be ready to leave for 8.30am

8.30am        As Mr S is at home at present, I don’t need to do the school run so jump into my car and drive to work, this takes less than 5 minutes, by the time I park, sign in and walk to my office its around 8.40am

8.40 – 2.30pm           Work. Work is always a whirlwind of activity, today I lead our assembly, meet with a colleague from the LEA’s Virtual school to discuss progress and support, visit every class to see all our students and staff, meet with senior colleagues and try to catch up on my never ending list of things to do. It is a really positive day at work but not every day is like this, I have been in tears this week because of my utter frustration with budgets and staffing.  Sometimes its really difficult to leave on time and I often feel conflicted over my role as a senior leader and parent.

2.40pm        Back home and I catch up with Mr S who had to go to school earlier as Little Miss had an accident at lunch time. She fell over and has a nasty deep cut on her foot, he brought new socks and shoes to school for her but decided she was well enough to stay the afternoon. Whilst I always try to walk the school run, we take the car as her foot was heavily bandaged and if it’s still bad we may take her to the local cottage hospital after school.

3.20pm        We’re at school for pick up, Little Miss seems to be ok so we drive home. Little Man is staying at school for football training so I run to his classroom to say hello!

3.30pm        Home and it’s time for a snack and drink. A family friend comes around to see us, she used to babysit the children when they were little and they love her. She married a few weeks ago and has brought around photos and her dress for us to see. Little Miss is allowed to try on the dress which is beautiful and her and the bride dance around and do twirls, it’s just lovely. The bride’s mum is a good family friend and has come round too, it’s a perfect way to end the week. Mr S collects Little Man from football whilst our visitors are here but he is suitably unimpressed by the wedding dress and photos and after saying hello heads to the play room to play Wii U with Mr S. Whilst we have had visitors today, this is the time we either do clubs, have friends around, pop in to see neighbours or play in the garden or inside.

5.30pm        Time to prepare for tea, as its Friday, it’s a very simple tea of fresh pasta,  sauce and garlic bread.

6.00pm        Its teatime and a catch up for the 4 of us, it was the first forest school so Little Man is very chatty and Little Miss is keen to talk to about weddings.

6.30pm        Tidy up time in the kitchen and a little bit of kitchen dancing for me. Fortunately, it’s just loading the dishwasher, washing a few pots and then emptying lunch boxes today, I love Fridays no packed lunches to make! I put in a wash of very muddy forest school clothes as Little Man will need them again tomorrow as he has a forest birthday party.

7pm       I settle down with the rest of the family to watch the end of the Lego Master final.

7.20pm Mr S does Little Man’s bedtime routine whilst I do some jobs at my desk, sorting out lifts for tomorrow’s party, sending a few emails etc.. Little Miss reads quietly on the sofa.

8pm       I take Little Miss up to bed and listen to her read before tucking her in and kissing her good night.

8.30pm At this time, I might read a book or blog, tonight I start typing up this post but stop for ..

9pm       Cold Feet, its one of my favourite tv programmes and makes my Friday night!

10pm     I continue to write this post for another 30 minutes and switch off the tv to listen to Sounds of the 80s on the radio, I’m an 80s girl and love the Friday night nostalgia.

10.30pm     A final quick tidy up, clothes into the dryer, switch on the dishwasher and then it’s up to bed, I check that both children are sleeping peacefully in their beds.

10.45pm     After a wash, change and a quick game of Scrabble on my phone, I settle down to sleep for around 11pm.

This was a pretty good day, but I was very grateful for Mr S being around and being able to do the school run, go back to the school when Little Miss hurt herself and then collect Little Man from football. If I had to do those things which I quite often do, it would have made the day much more demanding and stressful. For me there is no easy way to juggle work, family and running a house, I simply rely on lists and being incredibly organised. It would be nice to have more time in my day but I’m sure all mums feel like this and it’s a matter of making the best of the situation you are in. It would be interesting to complete this exercise in another 5 years to see what a day in my life looks like when the children are both in secondary school. I’m sure I’ll be missing those precious times such as the school run, cuddles on the sofa etc..

Lykke, Strictly and Muffins #littleloves

Published on by seasidesparkles7 Comments

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I’m finishing this week feeling a little sad, it’s been a tough week for Little Man at school which I wrote about here https://seasidesparkles.net/2017/09/14/sometimes-your-heart-breaks-when-youre-a-mum/ However it has reminded me of the importance for looking for the joys and sparkles in every day, there always special things if you look.

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Last year I enjoyed the Little Book of Hygge so I have bought the follow up The Little Book of Lykke. Like Hygge I think that much of the content is perhaps things that we already know, do or aspire to do but it’s a nice read with inspiring case studies.

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I’ve been read some of the World’s Worst Children 2 this week, it’s not only me Little Miss reads to, her toys are all lined up in bed to listen attentively too.

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I also read a lovely email from a friend this week, we may not see each other as much as we would like to, but she’s an exceptionally generous and lovely friend. Excitingly this week, we’ve set a date for a weekend together and I’m already counting the days down!

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Whilst it was only the launch show, it was the return of Strictly Come Dancing. This is my absolute joy and I love everything about Strictly; the music, dance, make-up and hair, the sparkle and glamour. I am so excited for the new series and of course, the return of Zoe on It Takes Two. As well as Strictly, Cold Feet was back again, another old favourite. It seemed like a bit of a catch up episode but sowed the seeds for some good storylines through the series and as always it had a cracking soundtrack.

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As Sunday was such a wet and miserable afternoon, we chose an old Nigella recipe to inspire some baking with lemon and raspberry muffins. The Domestic Goddess continues to be one of my favourite cook books and the muffins were delicious and so quickly consumed I forgot to take a photo.img_5384

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It was the last craft fayre of the season this weekend and having missed the big county show this year I wanted to visit my favourite jewellery stall for a little treat. Each year I buy a little something from the same silver stall, my daisy, flip flop, heart pendants have all come from here. This year I chose a delicate flower and branch to go on my necklace. I’m really pleased with my choice as I love simple silver designs.

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Folk music! It was festival this weekend so there was lots of music and dancing all over the town. There was live outdoor music in the evenings too and on Friday and Saturday night I could hear the music from the bay as I lay in bed, it’s a nice way to end the day.

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It’s a party weekend and as it’s at a venue in a different town, I think Little Miss and I will be looking for a little café for lunch together whilst Little Man enjoys the party with his pals. Apart from the party it’s a quiet weekend which I think is needed after an emotional week, we need time to enjoy the little things together.

Thanks to Morgana for her inspirational linkie.

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Sometimes your heart breaks when you’re a mum …..

Published on by seasidesparklesLeave a comment

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Artwork by Little Man

This is a different post to my normal entries. Writing has also been a release so today I’m writing how I feel about our amazing little boy. Sadly I had one of my most heart breaking moments with him this morning and I’m still trying to make sense of it.

Our little man has always loved school, learning, playing and just being with his friends. Today, for the first time ever he cried and said he didn’t want to go to school, however not only did he say he didn’t want to go to school he also took his school uniform off. After much comforting and cuddles our little man explained that he didn’t want to go to school because for some of his learning he is separated from his friends and has to do other work. He wants to sit at the big table and not his little table, play on the interactive whiteboard and not his iPad and get to do 3 digit numbers and not 2 digit numbers. In Year 3 we are beginning to see what we have always been worried about the widening academic gap between him and his peers.

From the moment we adopted him, we knew Little Man’s future could be uncertain. He was a one year old but could barely crawl and was developmentally delayed in many areas. However with hard work and perseverance from little Man and lots of professionals he has made amazing progress and physically and socially is on a level with his peers. I think this is the difficulty for him he loves his friends and wants to be able to do his work with them rather than his 1:1 TA. However his learning difficulties mean he needs the extra support and help, particularly in maths and literacy.

I’m being irrational today, so angry with his BM for drinking heavily and how much it affects our little boy, one of his diagnoses is probable FASD. I’m also raging against an education system where academic work is so strong for 7 and 8 year olds, he’s said he’s missing his play this year and he learnt so much through play in KS1, why stop a successful strategy? I’m just so sad too that I can’t protect him from the reality of his world where he will always be judged on the things he can’t do not what he can. I know how brilliant he is at making his Lego models, solving jigsaws, remembering details about his school topics, how well he can kick a ball or hit a ball in cricket, my little boy is amazing but there’s no academic levels for these achievements.

The school is outstanding in its support. Little Man has had 1:1 support from his first day and his TA is superb with him, he has made so much progress with her hard work. We went into school today to hand over our morning and speak to her and I think she was as upset as us that our bright, sociable and fun boy was feeling so sad about going to school. We’ve agreed some quick fixes so he gets to sit on the big table and try some simple 3 digit numbers but I think we all know this is simply the beginning and we need to work together closely to make school an inclusive experience for him. I’m also going back in to see the class teacher today and discuss more strategies with her.

Sometimes it’s heart breaking being a mum and trying to protect your children. Little Man has been in my thoughts all day today and I really need to see him and just hug him. Tomorrow is their ‘fun’ day with their favourite teacher in the morning and then forest school in the afternoon. Fortunately the forest school is somewhere he will thrive and not be the special needs child so that will get me through tomorrow. I think this is going to be a tough year but I just hope Little Man is secure and confident that he has family and a school team all rooting for him.