[Sarvi]

Oh, that’s a look and a half!

[Nicole]

@lightningmcstitch , I double dare you to wear that!

My new stove arrived and I am on the last stretch of my 18th Birthday sewing. Next week will be baking and list writing.

The Fab Five have done an awesome job clearing and tidying up the yard and old implement shed.

I am getting very excited to catch up with friends and family, it seems like an age since we have had a good bash.

[Sarvi]

I drooled and drooled over your new stove — and that fab huge oven!

[Nicole]

@sarvi it is awesome. Jed calibrated it yesterday and we are having a cool snap so it is perfect baking weather.

I need a new kettle now, my old one looks very grungy on the hob.

[dubhels2003]

I have been pretty much living and sewing vicariously through facebook, instagram and flickr feeds! How sad is that, never mind, I won’t be this tired for ever!

Nicole, I’m amazed by the birthday planning, hope you all had an amazing time. And that oven…total envy for me there. Can’t afford to get our kitchen sorted for some time!

Amused by the halloween making ideas. I’m not even going to attempt to make anything this year, I’ll save myself for Christmas! The only little bit of sewing I’ve managed to do is starting my beautiful B6244 coat. I got a cream wool and it arrived all marked, especially at one end of the fabric. I complained and have had a full refund. I have pretty much managed to cut the coat out despite the marks…feel like I’ve cheated Mood, but the state of the rest of the fabric was appalling.

I’m pretty cream crackered after returning to work full time. I’m too tired to manage sewing as I know I’ll end up losing my temper which isn’t great! I pretty much collapse in front of the tv and fall asleep when the kids are in bed, and M is still waking 5/6 times a night which is proving a bit tricky for me now. My beautiful baby is gorgeously determined and spirited, and as much as I delight in that, it would be nice if she would accept comfort from the hubby now!

Please keep posting your news, my reading in the middle of the night keeps me sane!

[Nicole]

@dubhels2003 , I am still night feeding too, don’t feel lonely!

The party was awesome, huge and a lot of fun.

[Tamara]

@dubhels2003 night feeder here also, so definitely not alone (and again don’t feel lonely). So glad you popped in to say hi and fill us in on what has been happening. Once things settle down further, I am sure sewing will return – everything needs some adjustment time I guess.

[Sarvi]

Hang in there, @dubhels2003 ! Lively babies grow up to be determined people, I think, and as tough as it is now, you’ll never have to worry about anybody pushing her around later in life 🙂

What a nuisance for your fabric to arrive with blemishes, I just hate it when that happens. Glad you were able to fit the pieces in just same!

[Tamara]

I have just had the biggest surprise! My own lively baby, aged nine months has taken it upon herself to stand UNAIDED! If but for about five seconds! I don’t know if I should laugh or cry😱😩 my older babies never bothered doing this until closer to their first birthday😕

• This reply was modified 9 years ago by Tamara.

[Tamara]

Squee! I just had an email from Butterick showing the new Lisette pyjama pattern! So excited that it includes a summer version – and just the perfect style too!

[cybele727]

I’m in a stressful week. WeeGee’s Kindergarten teacher has been a bad fit. Our daughter adores her because the teacher makes school “fun”. I know the teacher adores our daughter, but it is a bad fit.

I have no problem with the fun. Kids should enjoy learning. But we’ve had incidents about the “fun”.

Since starting kinder, my daughter has come home with make up on her face for pirate day ( did not ask permission)- looked like a black eye, 3 inch pierced hoop earrings from the prize box, and her nails done by the teacher. These are the more egregious things. There are other wacky things too. Most of them revolve around reinforcing gender stereotypes. Also my daughter is becoming obsessed with her appearance “because Mrs P says…”

When I saw the nail polish, I just smiled. My mother asked why I wasn’t mad. I told her I didn’t need to be. When mild mannered Clark Kent type hubby got home, he was livid. He immediately started researching private schools. He’s firmly pro public schools, if this gives you an idea about his anger.

My personal network of friends and colleagues agree that this teacher’s behavior is inappropriate. I spoke with an elementary ed teacher, 2 elementary ed principals, a counselor, and a fellow attorney who represents children in abuse cases. They’re all shocked that a teacher would do this in school. I spoke with a classmate’s mom and she’s none too happy either. Her daughter tried to hide her hands from her right off the school bus.

We have a meeting with the principal on Friday. I think they’re going to transfer her to another teacher. Our daughter will be very upset as she won’t understand what is wrong and adores the teacher who has spa days in school, so we have to find an explanation of why she’s being uprooted without too much trauma.

But knowing what’s coming and how to present it to my daughter is draining me.

It is also draining because I know this teacher is devastated by our “accusations” of inappropriate judgment as she’s very sensitive and well liked. I hate that she’ll feel hurt. But it is just a bad fit.

Sigh.

[Tamara]

You are the parent and you know your child best. I completely understand the dilemma you are facing as I think it has been made obvious on this forum that my household has had its fair share of issues with our school.

I wish you a very calm and cooperative meeting with many positive things coming out of it on Friday. As for your daughter, we had a similar situation where a child was transferred to a different teacher and my daughter was devastated (because she thought this girl was her best friend when really the girl wanted to swap to the other class to be “with her friends” and we were talking year two!!! The parents weren’t happy with the male teacher). The reason the children were given was that there were too many children of that year group in the class. We parents know different but we don’t have to tell the whole ugly truth to the children. There is a way to spare her the grief without knowing the whole truth and that is to formulate a reason other than the original and major one. That way you are not lying to your child.

You can do this and she will be ok!

At least you also have the backing of school admin too. I had an experience where something happened with one of my kids and I wrote a letter of complaint. The complaints and accusations were dismissed and we were hauled in to that office as though we were the naughty children! It has damaged my relationship with every senior teacher at that school and I am researching alternative education solutions for when Chloë is school age. We have decided on and been accepted at two private schools in Perth for the biggies high school education. That is why we are currently in Perth this week – orientation day for the eldest is tomorrow! And yes she will be boarding away from home for the next five years!

The bottom line is that we walk blind when we enrol our children at school for the first time. We trust that everything will work to our expectations and so it is only right to get upset when it doesn’t. Some people are very fortunate in their choices and others just have to keep looking.

Good luck. I hope this works out to be a much better fit.

• This reply was modified 9 years ago by Tamara.

[cybele727]

Thanks. We’re pretty sure she will be placed with the teacher my son had. In August when the list came out, she went to the principal and asked to have our daughter reassigned to her. She was an amazing teacher and she told the principal that this other teacher would be a disaster for us. Our principal has been apologizing since August for the placement. But we all hoped it would be ok. That we’d survive.

We’ve been trying to roll with this other teacher, but we hit our limit.

Our principal is very responsive to us. When my son started 5 years ago, we had a rough start and we got called in to her office like naughty children. We established boundaries of respect and eventually have grown to like each other over the years. But I don’t just complain. I volunteer. I go to board meetings and chastise the board when they want to cut teacher positions but preserve extra activities. I donate. I am super supportive but also a fierce advocate for my kids. We’ve had many productive conversations with her about my son’s special needs (he’s 2e) and the controversies of testing and use of personal data for teacher evaluations.

So it is navigating the transition. I work so hard against society to not put my kids in boxes that limit them. I don’t need a teacher to undo my efforts.

I hope your changes work out. I know ours will.

[Sarvi]

Yay! Congratulations to Imogen on her acceptance, she must be SO excited! I hope that at the time at which orientation is done, information is received by her which is found by her to be both entertaining and utilitarian!

[Anonymous]

Cybele727, where do you live? Is make-up considered bad for kids there?