Channel 4 documentory..

I was asked to send Beckys info to a lady for a channel four documentory about "tweenage" girls and how they are more wordly wise, a lot more so than we parents were at that age, or even other kids 5 or 6 years ago! Here are some of the photos i took of her!

I am an AUNTY ..again!

Rich's little sis' Jen gave us a nephew yesterday! Welcome to the world baby Benjamin Joseph Tedore. I am so proud ;)
Looking forward to meeting the little man soon.

Brother sister relationships!!

On her blog, Octamom asks the question "what age should siblings stop bathing together?" (if at all).
Well mine stopped doing that years ago..but then i had a blinding flash (rare for me!!)..
When i usually take the kids swimming we change in a family change room (space for one reason and i can keep an eye on them!)...
Until about 3 weeks or so ago when we were changing and David (bless him) looked at one of his sisters (no name to spare blushes) and exclaims quite audibly, "wow look you have hair..you know..THERE!" If i wasn't half dressed i would have left the cubicle but i just turned away stifling laughter!! Poor sis' went all shy and flustered and wrapped a towel around herself until i could take the little darling out!! I did find it funny, and still do..how was he to know? LOL
Poor sis' was mortified..but i realised then that we would no longer be sharing a change room....another sign that my kids are growing up faster than i think i would like!

Photos as promised!

And here is my little sad sack. Love all the writing on the shirt - glad we no longer need it!! LOL

We have left Junior School!

Well yesterday was Becca's last day at Junior school! She has been saying for a few weeks that she doesnt want to leave, that she wants it to stay the same forever! No matter what i say about being ready for senior school, she is adamant she isnt! I never had any of this with Rae because she could not wait to leave the school and some of the awful kids that were in her class, she left with a spring in her step ready for the next stage in her life. So i kinda left Becca to have a think about it all and how things do actually have to change even if we don't want them too!
So i pop along to collect her from school yesterday and waited...and waited..and waited some more! When she finally came out with her posse of friends, with school shirts all signed by friends and teachers, arms full of books and bits they had made, faces all red and teary(wasn't expecting that!)! Mums were poised waiting for the photo call of our beautiful smiling kids only to find crying girls hugging each other as if we were sending them all to opposite end of the planet!
So after a flurry of phone number exchanges and promises of calls and sleepovers I got to hold my little girl and let her cry onto my shoulder! I really did not expect that kind of reaction from her as she left school for the last time! The poor kid cried on and off all afternoon and into the evening! I guess through all the trials and tribulations of friendships, learning and growing she really had come to love her school and being a part of it all.
To top it all as we got in the car Becca handed me a CD. On the cover was a photo of her classmates she spent the past 3 years with and inside was a music CD made for all the kids in the class by their teacher! It had a compilation of all the songs they had listened to, what the song was, the artist and where they heard it..Fairthorne Manor, DT Music, Tidy up Music, school Xmas Show songs, leavers assembly songs! It also had a note:

"Thankyou for being a wonderful class. I hope that when you listen to these songs you will remember all the fun times we had this year. Love from Mrs Marshall"

I thought it was a really great gift, but it set Becca off again! And listening to it made her worse LOL!!
So she is happier today and we are planning a camp out with her two best buddies in the world. Although they are off to different schools i am sure they will remain close.
I am now off to formulate a plan to get her to like the idea of going to Amery Hill school! LOL.
I will post photos as soon as i upload them all!

We also got the SAT results through!! Level 4 for Maths and 5's for everything else! WTG Becca!

A disappointed kid.

Poor becca she worked so hard to get her grades up the past couple of years. She has really put a lot in at school and her teachers all say she deserves really good SAT grades. Unfortunately the company in charge of marking them has NOT done their job even a little well. They have nationally screwed them up for all schools and when they finally got the results out to the school, Becca's scholl has not recieved the full lot..and they have been mis-marked. Kids that were expected a high result have been given low ones....if any! The school has sent them all back and requested they get re-done. But for kids like mine who are due to change school it's a huge blow. They are streamed according to these results so now they may not be put in the correct sets for their ability. It's just such a shame for the kids really, but i now have little if any faith in the marking for this year. I guess i will have to wait till October for her CAT tests to see her levels. What a waste of time for the schools and children. And how disappionting for the teachers to see their efforts with the children thrown to the wind like that.

On Octamom's site she asked what quote makes us laugh or ponder stuff.... i have just so many, LOL, but here is one i really like:

I think animal testing is a terrible idea; they get all nervous and give the wrong answers.

My poor little guy!

There has to be a downside to being the only boy in the house, the youngest of 3 and not sharing a room with anyone. Well today i felt for him!
It began yesterday, the girls and I had a great time re arranging their bedroom, sorting rubbish, old clothes and changing the room around...its more pre-teen now. We had such fun doing it and it it looks great and gives them way more room to do their thing in!
So it's all sparkly and tidy in there! As i am having a bit of a lay in with Rich i overhear the girls put a movie on their tv/dvd player. Then a little conversation goes like this..
D: Can i come in a watch with you?
B: NO! Get out.
D: I only want to watch, i wont make a mess.
B: No you can't come in.
D: (sadly) Ok. I will be in my room if you change your mind!

That would have been enough for me to let him in!! LOL Poor guy! I had to call him to my room for a cuddle. He went off and played with his lego till we got up! I think a tv in his room is next on the agenda....one with a timer LOL!!

Creative time!

Well with the cast finally off (maybe a bone graft in October time but that can wait!) I am now free to let the creative juices flow again...they would flow way better if work didn't keep getting in the middle of my day! I have obviously been to scrapblog (see right side of blog!). But i even managed to put paint and photoshop on and make some layouts! So much easier with my left hand on the mouse and not my clumsy right hand! So i hope you like them:

School reports, Prize Day and Broken Bones!

Well i am noting the date! Friday 11 July '08 is possible my best day this year so far!
Becky and David headed off the their new schools in Alton as i headed off to Guildford to see the fracture clinic about my hand! The MRI from last Saturday was back and apart from one minor "blip" on the scan i am "free!!" I can now carry on as normal but if it still causes pain by Oct i may need a small op to see whats going on. But for now, and the summer holidays i have two cast free hands!
I collected David from his new school, to be told how polite he is and that he had just got on with is day with no fuss at all! That's my boy! Bless him, i know he was nervous in the morning but when i got him back he loved his new class, and all the things they had got up to! Mr Williams (his new teacher) is "Great Mum", he does the best P.E lessons! So one happy kid in the bag! LOL.
we trundled along to collect Becky to see how her day at senior school had been!
She loved her lessons and her tutor, Miss Reed (who is getting married in 3 weeks - she has a huge poster in her class counting down the days!!) is really great, she is called Becky too and my Becky thinks she "rocks".
She had a great time doing science and got a merit for R.E. I think the best bit though was when her big sis' bought her a cookie in the school canteen and all Rachel's mates let her hang out with them. That was a highlight for her! I love my girls and how they look out for each other!

So i get home after listening to all the info and more to school reports for Becky and David!
Becky's was awesome! I was astounded by her! Another straight A student in the house LOL!!
All the teachers like her and she is a delight to be around. Everyone gets on with her. She has worked hard all year but most of all she is likable and polite and fun to be around! WTG Becky!
David's report made me cry! I think this year is the first time ever a teacher has really understood my son. He is getting A's and B's for his grades which i am just so proud of as he finds school a struggle at times. But his social report was the bit that sent me into floods! His teacher said he has a mildy eccentric side to his personality that will get him a lot in life but others wont see it! He is shy, has only a few close friends but with them he has immense fun. But most telling is that he finds it really hard to fathom other kids and when that happens he withdraws like a snail into a shell. She really hit the nail on the head with him. He is bright and fun but its on his terms!! LOL
So as you can imagine i am bursting with pride over my two youngest!
Then I open the mail! Days don't come by like this too often! :)
Rachel is being given an award on Prize Day for the most Exceptional Effort awards in her tutor group for the year. She is getting an award from her year staff and a little bash after school on the 21st - Pizza and drinks! Then on the 23rd she is getting an award in front of the school and parents on prize day, from the Headmaster! I am equally proud of her.
My kids never cease to amaze me i am just so proud of them all.
Am off to make my head a little smaller now! LOL.

An amazing report and more music!!

It is absolutely and utterly silly season in our house! The last few weeks of the school year always are but this year seems to be busier than usual!

Rachel has been given a solo in the Basingstoke Live music festival...the school group are the headlining act on opening night :) Very cool!
She is also going to be going around the local Alton schools with a small "classroom" orchestra playing her flute! They will be playing on Friday this week at the Alton Buckle, at Anstey Park.
I honestly do not know how she keeps going at times!
We got her school report last week! WOW we could not be more proud of her! A straight A* student! All the teachers tell us she is a delight and a joy to teach - for absolutely every subject! Not one says "could try harder" or anything like that! Her head of year said her report "was one of the best he'd seen all year!"
So for all the heartbreak a year ago of her not going to boarding school, for all the fact she could have just not bothered because things didn't go the way we thought they would, she has not let her standards drop! She has continued to strive for good grades, and made some great friends. I am so very proud of my daughter. She is just amazing, i never dreamt she would achieve all the things she does!