Diary Notes… February 2019

A little look back at what we got up to….

Half Term

I didn’t have to take any annual leave days off this time around as luckily it worked out that I didn’t actually need to. As I don’t work on Mondays or Fridays I was able to cover those days, and then we managed to arrange childcare for the remaining three. But it’s a bit of a pain in the bum for those that work isn’t it?

Wonderful in that we get to spend time with our kids, but annoying also, that if you can’t get the cover you have to split the days off between you and your partner/husband etc, which means you don’t really get a day together.

But, fortunately for us, we did manage to squeeze one in, as Mikey decided to take the Friday off so we were able to head off somewhere for a lovely family day together.

Other than that, it was A LOT of craft time!! Haha!

Snow Days at Home!

It’s one of those things that’s always banded about by the weather forecasters or spoken excitedly about by those wishing for a snow day, but it never really actually comes to fruition. All the hype with no follow though. Always just ‘meh’.

But this time it surprised us. In spades!

For a whole night and the following day, it just didn’t stop snowing. There was no let up! Which i really don’t think I can remember happening before in out little town.

So, a snow day it was. The kids were delighted. Well, those who’d been given the day off school that was. Holly’s school had sent the message out that it was going to be closed, and Ella’s school closed just after lunch. So that gave plenty of time to go outdoors and play. Which they did. Until it started to get dark.

I mean, it’s not often we get a huge dumping off snow like that, so you’ve kind of got to make the most.

Grown Ups Dinner Out Out!!

It was actually that very same snowy weekend, that we were due to head to Chichester, for a 40th celebratory meal out.

It was touch and go as to whether we’d make it initially, as we wondered how treacherous the roads would be, especially the side residential roads which hadn’t been gritted. But, in the end we decided it would be ok, once we were upon the main roads so once the babysitter arrived, off we went.

And we had a lovely evening, catching up with old friends, over a meal and a few drinks. Something we don’t tend to do all that often 😉

A New Blog Post…

I mentioned in my last Diary Notes here that we spend New Year on the slopes in France, so if you fancied reading all about, head over here and take a look. It was such a fantastic family holiday, and one we’d most definitely recommend.

Medical stuff…

So it turns out it wasn’t just ‘parenting’ that was exhausting me! Hehe!

It’s not as cheery as the other things I’ve been up to, but this week I visited the doctors to finally find out why I was feeling so lethargic all the time, which to be honest, is seriously affecting my daily life, and as a result (and to a certain extent), my mood.

And it turns out I’m anemic. With pretty low iron levels.

But although I’ve been given iron tablets, I’m still a bit in the dark as to why this has come about. I know of friends etc who’ve had this in the past but it’s been related directly to pregnancy, which I can quite easily say, I most certainly am not or indeed haven’t been for a good few years; or quite severe blood loss for a certain reason.

So I’m going to go back and ask for further tests, I think.

But, in the meantime I’m just trying to rest as and when I can, and not take on too much.

I am pleased they’ve managed to put it down to something though, as for a rather long time I’ve just felt I’m being lazy. And as a result, I’ve totally been beating myself up that I’m a bad parent.

So that’s that really, I think the whole thing got mixed up with a bug I’ve had too, so since New Year, I’ve felt quite happy staying indoors with my family and resting up!

The Incredible Years… An update…

And speaking of ‘parenting’…

I’m now on week 5 of my Incredible Years parenting course, (though taking a break over this half term) and although there’s rather a lot to take in, we have been managing to make small changes into our. Everyday lives, which has been really good for all of us so far. And the idea is that the more we implement this new behaviour, the more it becomes the new norm, and everyone lives happily ever after.

Ok, so maybe it’s not quite as easy as that, but it’s the little things that go a long way, and even if we can pick up just a few of them, it might make our lives just that little bit calmer all round.

The Topics we’ve covered so far are:

• The importance of Parental Attention and Special Time

• Social, Emotional & Persistence Coaching

• Effective Praise and Encouragement

• Motivating children through tangible rewards

• Rules, Responsibilities and Routines

I won’t go into detail about each topic now, as I really want to write a designated post because I’ve really learnt quite a lot already.