And if I had a buck for every blog post I've started and then deleted again since the springing of spring this year, I'd probably not have a whole hell of a lot of money but I'd probably be able to take myself to a decadent lunch and pick up a a Lotto ticket and an Inside Story while I'm at it...
There was my little sister's sweet 16th on September 16th, which we celebrated with dinner at my mom's, with my brother and his fiance driving up from Durban for the occasion.
There was my Jack's second birthday and Halloween, which we celebrated together.
There was the decision to go back to work part time for a couple of weeks, which turned into a few months and which, it appears, will change into going back to work full time from end Jan 2011.
And there's been life in between, with millions of thoughts and ideas and notes to self to remember to blog about this, that or the other.
There have been and still are a great many mixed feelings - especially with regard to work and the way forward but these are things I am not in a position to blog about at this time.
And now here we are, less than a week from Christmas. I was rather hoping that this year would be an improvement on last in terms of being able to spoil my family and enjoy the holidays without counting pennies. That said, I'm sure it could be a lot worse - we have enough to eat, a comfortable home and my very supportive, supremely generous mom and brother, who have carried us through the roughest parts of this past year.
It's not all doom and gloom, though, and there have been some pleasant surprises and good times, too.
There was the surprise delivery of my brand new Bosch dishwashwer (an early Christmas present from none other than my ultra cool mom).
There was the validation of my decision to homeschool this last year when, upon having M&M assessed for readmission to mainstream school next year, the teachers noted a marked improvement in Michael's overall development. And the fact that Megan is still on par with her peers and will be rejoining her old class next year as they all move on to grade 3.
There's the fact that, thanks to some incredibly timely good luck, I'm a lot less worried about how we're going to pull off paying the registration fees and buying the kids' books, stationery, school bags and shoes, etc. for next year.
There's the Christmas-New Year break coming up in just a few more sleeps and the fact that, although we're not splashing out on big, fancy gifts or going away on a luxurious holiday, we'll be spending it together.
What are your plans?
Monday, December 20, 2010
Monday, December 06, 2010
From Under Deep Cover
Ja, hey. Seems flying under the radar has pretty much been my bag this year. Partly because I've been really busy this year but mainly because, let's face it, I'm not about to win any awards for my exemplary displays of self-discipline. Meh. So be it.
But now that I'm here, let's see what I can dig up out of the murky recesses, shall we?
I'll begin with the obvious - the new "job":
I reckon it's going okay. I'm not over the moon, thrilled, ecstatic, jumping out of bed to get going every day. But I'm not hating every second, watching the clock for home time whenever I'm in the office either. I like that I get to get into my car 3 mornings every week and drive to someplace and do stuff that doesn't have anything to do with my kids or my household. I like that the little bit that I contribute helps, in some small way, to ensure that the business continues and will eventually begin to flourish.
There are aspects of it that are taking a bit of getting used to (daily production reports, weekly to-do lists, anything that seems vaguely like a mechanism for managing me)and there are things I'm starting to get into.
On the home front, there's not much to report.
My house looks like a house that is inhabited by a large family and, in spite of having a maid/nanny Monday to Friday, it is never quite clean/neat enough that I feel totally comfortable having people round. And yet, I do have people round, at least sometimes. Because if I'm going to live in fear of what people might think of the state of my house, life is going to be a very scary place. So I say fuck it. So be it.
I do look forward to seeing a marked improvement on that particular front in the new year, when the kids go back to school and our Jack starts attending a nursery school. Yep, there's a creche about 200m down the road from the office and we're looking at sending him there next year. It's time, I think. He's bored stiff at home these days, which predisposes him to "naughty" behaviour which, in turn, predisposes me to supercharged levels of frustration and hysteria.
As for the homeschooling, I look back on this year with mixed feelings. I don't regret making the decision to give homeschooling a bash and I don't believe that this year has been a waste or a failure. Could it have gone better? Without a doubt. But I don't regret making the decision and, if forced to repeat this past year, I would probably make the same one again, give or take a few details.
Meanwhile, as my body gradually approaches something like the shape it used to be before Jack and James, I'm making my peace with the fact that I'm not going to have that one last baby. I'm also making my peace with the fact that breasts are something I was only ever going to have for as long as they were a food source. I see plastic boobs in my future.
So there it is. The short version, at least. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm off to catch up on my blog reading and then to explore the interwebz for some Christmas inspiration and, possibly, some blog fodder.
But now that I'm here, let's see what I can dig up out of the murky recesses, shall we?
I'll begin with the obvious - the new "job":
I reckon it's going okay. I'm not over the moon, thrilled, ecstatic, jumping out of bed to get going every day. But I'm not hating every second, watching the clock for home time whenever I'm in the office either. I like that I get to get into my car 3 mornings every week and drive to someplace and do stuff that doesn't have anything to do with my kids or my household. I like that the little bit that I contribute helps, in some small way, to ensure that the business continues and will eventually begin to flourish.
There are aspects of it that are taking a bit of getting used to (daily production reports, weekly to-do lists, anything that seems vaguely like a mechanism for managing me)and there are things I'm starting to get into.
On the home front, there's not much to report.
My house looks like a house that is inhabited by a large family and, in spite of having a maid/nanny Monday to Friday, it is never quite clean/neat enough that I feel totally comfortable having people round. And yet, I do have people round, at least sometimes. Because if I'm going to live in fear of what people might think of the state of my house, life is going to be a very scary place. So I say fuck it. So be it.
I do look forward to seeing a marked improvement on that particular front in the new year, when the kids go back to school and our Jack starts attending a nursery school. Yep, there's a creche about 200m down the road from the office and we're looking at sending him there next year. It's time, I think. He's bored stiff at home these days, which predisposes him to "naughty" behaviour which, in turn, predisposes me to supercharged levels of frustration and hysteria.
As for the homeschooling, I look back on this year with mixed feelings. I don't regret making the decision to give homeschooling a bash and I don't believe that this year has been a waste or a failure. Could it have gone better? Without a doubt. But I don't regret making the decision and, if forced to repeat this past year, I would probably make the same one again, give or take a few details.
Meanwhile, as my body gradually approaches something like the shape it used to be before Jack and James, I'm making my peace with the fact that I'm not going to have that one last baby. I'm also making my peace with the fact that breasts are something I was only ever going to have for as long as they were a food source. I see plastic boobs in my future.
So there it is. The short version, at least. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm off to catch up on my blog reading and then to explore the interwebz for some Christmas inspiration and, possibly, some blog fodder.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)