Amber... BamberBoo

Adding to the mental Christmas list

Standing dutifully in the kitchen by the laundry cupboard, silently folding clothes, I overheard this gem of a conversation between Heidi and her dad… Hannah just had to join in…

Heidi: (standing halfway up the stairs leaning over the railings - an altogether safe distance away...) Dad?  Can I be honest with you?

Len: You should always be honest with me!

Heidi: Are you sure?  *cheeky smile*

Len: Yes, you know you can tell me anything you want…

Heidi: Well, if you’re sure you’re sure…

Len: I’m sure I’m sure…

Heidi: *silly giggle & feigned shyness* Oh, never mind…

Len: NO!!!  You have to tell me now!!

Heidi: I have too?  Well, ok, you asked for it....  *clears throat* Well, dad… I think it’s about time you started wearing a bra!!!  *collapses on stairs laughing*

Hannah: (enters the conversation) *dead pan* Well, now I know what to get him for Christmas…

Voyage to the Centre of the Earth

Daniel does pretty good with his French, but sometimes, as new vocabulary is introduced, it’s like he’s been thrown a curve ball.  He came home from school Monday night upset and very adamant that he wasn’t going to go to school on Tuesday.  They were going on a field trip - and he did NOT want to go. 

Daniel loves school and he LOVES going on all the field trips… but this time he seemed kind of scared!  A bit baffled, I asked him what the problem was. 

Daniel: But my teacher said we were going inside the Planet!!
Me: Inside the Planet? Which planet?
Daniel: This planet!  We’re going inside the earth!  She said we were going to climb down into a huge hole that the men dug.... and I am too scared to go!!  I’m NOT goin’!!
Me:  Well, your teacher has never taken you anywhere bad before, has she?
Daniel: Um… no… but there might be spiders and monsters there!
Me: You’re not scared of spiders!  And you know monsters don’t exist!  Infact you always kill the spiders for your sisters!
Daniel: But there might be a giant one like in Lord of the Rings!!!
Me: Ha!  Maybe you were too little to watch that!
Daniel: No I wasn’t!!

So this went on all Monday evening.  I searched for a note from the school to see where they were going, but the notes don’t always make it home with Dan.... Nada.  Tuesday morning he was in tears:

Daniel: But she said I had to wear a hard hat with a light on it… and I don’t have one of those! AND my tummy is sore… AND my head hurts… AND....

We ended up calling one of his best friends, whose mom told me they were going to visit a coal mine, he needed to wear navy blue (for some reason??) and he didn’t need a hard hat!  Dan talked to his little buddy and within seconds the was excited about going.

I’ve had a hard time getting him to piece the day together for me, but he came back very happy, with very dirty hands and face. 

So help me out - Alison?  Anyone?  What would his teacher have told him in French to make him so afraid?  Or was it just his little brain trying to translate an unknown image?

A Wednesday afternoon playdate gone wrong.

I am breaking one of my own blogging rule for this post, but at the moment, anything I have available to post about breaks one of my blogging rules, so I am thinking about revising my blogging rules… soon.  Anyway, the blogging rule I’m breaking today is ”Don’t blog something about a real life friend that you wouldn’t say to their face”.

I feel free to go ahead and blog this because the person involved isn’t that close of a friend, and I doubt she even knows I have a blog… and by the time she finds out I have a blog I will probably have said whatever I’m going to say to her about this to her face… or maybe not. *shrug*

Anyway, yesterday when I dropped the kids off at school there was a note in Rosie’s box from another mom at the school.  I have gotten to know her a little over the last few months because she joined the book club that I go to and her little boy was in Rosie’s class last year.  The note was asking Rosie and Daniel to come over after school for lunch (remember Wednesdays are half days here) and stay and play with her two kids for the afternoon.  Daniel and Rosie were delighted by the idea.  I picked them up from her house around 4:30, but when Rosie rushed to the door she (admittedly was full of smiles) but she had changed from her jeans into a pair of her little friend’s trousers!  I gave a mock *gasp* and (with real surprise) asked my friend if she had wet herself and commented that it had been over 2 years since she had done that!!  And I asked Rosie if she hadn’t know where the bathroom was....

The mom, let’s call her B, said ”Oh no, no… it was nothing like that.  I’m afraid it was my fault.  There was a big commotion then a scream and I ran to my son’s room to find there had been a ‘play struggle’ that ended with his arm being shut in the door… I thought it was my daughter and I started shouting at her not knowing it was Rosie who had been on the other side of the door from my son.  I hadn’t realise until later that it scared Rosie so bad when I was yelling that she peed herself.”

Rosie was all smiles and I jokingly said ”Oh, so you scared the pee out of my daughter then?” and we all laughed.

On the ride home, I asked if they’d had fun and Daniel said yes but Rosie said she didn’t want to go back again.  I asked why and she said because the mommy had shouted at her.  I asked her to tell me the story and she told the story a little differently.  Her side of the story says that the mommy shouted at her even after she knew it was Rosie on the other side of the door… and then she was so scared that the woman was screaming at her that she peed her pants!!

So, as you can imagine, my blood is boiling.  Rosie is a little more timid than the other kids, but to my knowledge, none of my children have ever been so scared that they have peed themselves!!  I do appreciate that Rosie is only 4 and she could have the story wrong, but I haven’t known her to be a liar, and shouldn’t any adult supervising children go out of their way not to upset them this bad?

B passed me this morning at school, but luckily I was deep in conversation with another parent and only waved… her daughter then came back to me and said ”excuse me, but yesterday Rosie broke my toys”… Her mom said ”Now {child’s name} we talked about this, you weren’t supposed to tattle on Rosie”… but it all seemed… weird. 

I have no idea what to say to her.  I have a lot of things I could say to her and really want to say to her, but I’m not sure what I should say to her.  Or I could just avoid any further unsupervised contact that she may have with my children.

What would you guys do?

Only 2 Weeks Until Christmas

I have that wonderful, satisfied feeling tonight.  Yesterday was everything at least one day a week should be, completely relaxing.  It was one of those winter wonderland days where the frost never left the ground.  We slept in (then tidied up the aftermath of the kids getting up several hours before us), had some lunch then read, messed around on the computer or napped the rest of the afternoon.  Len snuggled into a bottle of wine and after the kids were in bed we caught up on a few of our favourite programs.  Today was a little warmer and after lunch Len and I gutted the garage (again).  The floor hadn’t really been cleaned after the last rain water had gotten in this summer and it had just become a bit of a dumping ground.  It had been bugging me for ages and now that it’s done I wonder why we put it off for so long.  Len threw together a chicken curry for dinner and I have washed 5 loads of laundry.  Yeah, it was a good weekend.

Things I haven’t told you about (Part 1)

As you know, they day after we got home from Scotland (can you remember back that far?), Hannah headed off to Sweden - solo.  Well, not entirely solo; there were others on the flight, you know a pilot and other passengers - and then she wasn’t completely alone when she got to Sweden either… She met up with her best friend Theresa and her family (who are Swedish but live here in Brussels too).

I did tell you that she had a wonderful time, she didn’t get homesick, and she had arrived home safely again.  What I didn’t have the chance to do was brag on her (this is why I’m here, remember?) When I picked her up my friends absolutely glowed with praise for Hannah.  She automatically fit into the family’s rhythm and way of doing things, she was a delight to have along, she was sooooo polite and respectful, she was helpful, fun, witty and as far as I could tell, she seemed to enhance the family’s vacation!  But the best part for me was when my friend told me about how Hannah had gotten along with the Swedish Grandparents.  Hannah’s grandparents are still relatively young (Hi Mom!!) but Theresa’s Grandparents were much older and frailer.  Hannah, by all accounts, warmed to them and they to her immediately.  She would sit for ages talking with Swedish Grandma - Hannah said sometimes it was difficult because Swedish Grandma couldn’t hear her very well, but Swedish Grandma was very happy when that didn’t put Hannah off trying.  Then there was Swedish Grandpa who seems to have adored Hannah for taking the time to sit and chat with him, put slippers on his crippled feet and fetch things for him because she wanted to, not because he was asking her to. 

Sometimes I feel like a rotten mother, but when reports like that filter back I think I must be doing something right. 

If you click the picture below you can see Hannah being Swedish.

The hills of La Hulpe

Hannah in Sweden and Heidi at her friends for the afternoon, we headed to Chateau la Hulpe for a walk around the grounds.  We’ve been dodging thunderstorm since we arrived home but the forecast for Sunday was for (most amusingly to me) “Ample Sunshine”.  Taking the half full approach to life and assuming this meant it was ample enough for a Sunday stroll, we loaded Daniel’s ninja bike and Rosie’s Barbie bike in the back of the car and followed Len’s impeccable sense of direction right to the gates of the Chateau.

The grounds were beautiful.  Lakes sprinkled with swans and ducks and teaming with carpe the size of small whales who would thrust their heads above water to gulp down the chunks of bread thrown in by excited children. 

This was Daniel’s first big ride on his bike.  He had only just picked his bike up again the week before we went to Scotland a taught himself how to ride, but yesterday he rode his bike.  On the road up to the House, he perfected his Power-Ranger-Ninja-Mega-Stop… being able to skid to a halt millimetres away from the ice-cream van and then he’d turn to his shrieking/flapping mother, and with a twinkle in his eye, flash me the slyest smile saying ‘What? Did ya think I was gonna hit it?’ *giggle*…

By the time we reached the top of the hill I was a little more confident with his balance and handling skills, but I was totally unprepared for him to position himself at the top of the grassy slope and cycle full speed to the bottom of a very long stretch of lawn.  I watched intently at my little speck of a son with his red ninja bike as he dismounted and began to turn his bike to make the hike back to me… but noooooo, it seemed he had other plans.  At the bottom of the hill there was a steep embankment, and rather than making the 180 degree turn to return to his clucking mother, he made the 90 degree turn and started hefting his bike to the top of a slope.  From where I stood I knew he would never hear my warnings so I voiced my apprehensions to Len.  “Len! Leeeen!!! Are you watching your son?!!” “Yip” was the calm reply… This was going to be a self-taught lesson in gradient, balance, speed and most likely impact.

Without any apparent hesitation, he launched his little red bike down the incline.  The speed must have been exhilarating and the impact was luckily cushioned with soft grass.  The next few minutes were spent with Moma snapping shots and daddy sprinting to the rescue… He was brave, but a little shaken and spent the next 20 minutes after the climb back to the summit snuggling with daddy.

Although no more attempts were made on hills quite so steep, the bike was mounted again and Daniel is now a confirmed fan of free wheeling… and Moma’s just a little proud of her little boy.

Today

The kids and I had a great day today.  I’ve been bustin’ my hump to get the house, laundry and ironing in order before we leave for Scotland. (Yay! only 2 more sleeps!!) The only way for me to get anything done during the day with them all at home is to send them into the garden.  Thankfully the weather has been cooperative so I was out first thing this morning putting fresh water in the paddling pool.  Breakfast and lunch were finger foods (less dishes - I am a wise woman) and they were eaten on the patio (less crumbs!!)

I have been chiding myself for not taking more pictures this summer, but here are a few from today.

I have at least double the amount to do tomorrow as I got done today plus the packing so I may not be around much until Thursday. 

As cool as a…

“Moooomie!!!!  Heidi’s playing with her food!! ~Daniel
“Trust me Hannah, it’s very refreshing!” ~Heidi
“Can I eat ‘em when you’re done with ‘em” ~Rosie

Preferring dirty to bored

A couple of years ago my mom bought the book Crispin - The Pig Who Had It All for the kids.

It’s a wonderful story about a dissatisfied, spoiled little pig who had everything but an imagination.  One year Santa brings him a huge empty box for Christmas with a tag on it that said inside he would find the only thing he didn’t already have.  Then he embarks on a wonderful journey of discovery. 

Recently, this has become Daniel and Rosie’s favorite bedtime story.  It has done wonders to eradicate the ‘Bored’ word from their vocabulary and it is so fun to watch them invent things to play.

Today, they were banished outside while the girls and I cleaned the house and at one point when I was hanging a load of clothes on the line (don’t you just love the smell of line dried clothes?). We had this conversation.

Daniel: Moma!!  Rosie’s usin’ her ‘magination!!!
Me: Oh that’s wonderful!!!
Daniel (exasperated): Huh!  No it’s NOT!!  She ‘maginating that dirt is gum!!!

Yes, ‘maginations are wonderful and dirty things!!

Wanderlust, the missing 8 ball and a most unattractive jig

The 8 Ball apologises, for she cannot be found.  You see, I married a sailor.  I know it’s quite a jump from 8 Ball to sailor, and yes, I probably should have consulted the 8 Ball before marrying him, but I most likely would have chucked the thing in the nearest dumpster had it contradicted my will.  I can be stubborn like that…

Len left home at the age of 16 and joined the merchant navy.  He would tell you that he just wanted away from {insert excuse} but after knowing him for so many years I am convinced that the joined because he has the worst case of wanderlust I have ever seen.  We have had 8 homes in our 10+ years of marriage (two of which I can not lay directly at his itchy feet).  We are now fairly certain that we won’t be moving again for a while… due to elephant sized mortgage and a small militia of little Northfields that are in need of some stability in education etc, but I can see him chomping at the bit sometimes.  Now is one of these times.  I know if it wasn’t for me and the kids (the kids and I) he would out.of.here - End of… He is sooo not off the hook (sorry all non watcher of British BB, you just won’t get that one).  Don’t get me wrong, I know he wouldn’t wish us away so he could move on (hon?) but we are a rather large commitment. 

To help my hubby out, I indulge him *oh, behave*… This weekend, he got the itch again and again, *beHAVE* You see, now when he wants to move, but can’t (I appreciate this reads like I am digging a hole for myself, but please be patient) I let him rearrange the house.  Not just putting the TV in a different corner and swapping the couches around, I mean we rearrange the HOUSE.  The last time this happened was in January.  The dining room became the living room, the living room became the playroom and the playroom became the dining room.  That was last time.  This time?  Well, his office has become the dining room, the back end of the playroom has become his office (the new wall will be added soon, in the mean time his bookcases act as a partition) and the dining room (this is the good part) is now MY.VERY.OWN.SPECIAL.ROOM!! 

To understand the magnitude of this move, you need to know that Len has 8 Ikea Billy bookcases with height extensions chock full of books, plus all the desks, computers, suites, tables, dishes, bla-de-bla… Almost every thing is moved now but I will be tidying up the aftermath for a few more days.  Someone please fan me!!

Unfortunately, due to the move, the 8 Ball is temporatily in hiding.  If I could find it though, I would ask it if this was the last ‘rearrange’ for a while!!

In other news… You know the saying ‘Ants in your pants’, well, it’s a saying for a very good reason.  Somehow the little beasties have found a way onto my couch and before sitting down to write this post I did a very interesting little jig and retrieved 3 ants; one from my cleavage, one from my tummy and one trying to sneak down the back of my jeans.  I am not best pleased!