Waiting to blog

I keep waiting for that time when I will feel refreshed and energised so that I will be able to sit down at the keyboard with a clear mind and focus on what it is I want to write. Instead each night I am more tired than ever and I am beginning to think that I may start feeling energised some time in 2005. Once again I have the energy only this week for some reading and commenting but not quite enough to commit any of my thoughts in greater detail. So despite my feelings of exhaustion, I decided that I had to post sooner rather than later.

Elliot's life occupied alot of my life this week. The rain was the other big feature in my week. By yesterday the clothes I was wearing were even starting to feel damp. Luckily the sun came out today and has removed that constantly damp feeling from my environment.

For the first time in absolutely ages I didn't go to the Farmer's Markets this morning. With all the rain I thought it may not be worthwhile getting up at 5am and taking Gabriella in a pram . As it turned out, by this morning the rain had gone and instead some major humidity came instead. One more Farmer's Markets to go - it will be a twilight one on the Wednesday before Christmas, I am definitely going to go.

Elliot
I never realised how the last week of school for parent's is really quite intense. I spent time organising his costume for his end of year Christmas song/play. He and I spent one evening making cup cakes and decorating them. I found this site for cup cake decoration inspiration. Elliot and I produced lots of cakes with faces, spiders and flowers. I also spent time renewing his time at outside school hours care putting him in for one day of vacation care and speaking to his teacher about his report and year at school and finding out what year 2 class he goes into next year.

I was very happy with his report and I thought it was very accurate. Where I thought Elliot had strengths and weaknesses the report was in accordance with my perception. I was very pleased that his teacher said that his reading is at a level that most children halfway through Grade 2 would be at. His writing i.e. fine motor skills appear to be going backwards. As I thought too, he doesn't write neatly and in the correct form unless you sit on him for every single letter. If I don't he writes in a laize faire manner - which I think is quite typical for boys. And boy did I end up with a typical boy.

I guess when you are a reader yourself it is gratifying to hear that your child is reading well too. I consider that reading will be his passport to the world and future as it was for me so I hope he will also enjoy and excel at reading.

I also spent some time discussing with my mother whether I am going to send Elliot with her when she returns up North after Christmas. I have reservations about his returning with her and Mason due to the fact that my mother was diagnosed with Meniere's disease several months ago. My mother says it is now under control but I have to wonder whether caring for Elliot and his cousin Mason for a week wouldn't provide her with more stress in her life than she needs.

Because it is so far away (a 2 hour plane ride away)I thought if anything goes wrong and she has any severe attacks I didn't like the thought of my not being able to help.

I informed my mother that I wasn't going to send him and told her to cancel his train ticket up. (Because of the Meniere's my mother can no longer fly). The next day my mother called me on the telephone and says she is not going to cancel his ticket because she feels "half hearted" about it. I was quickly incited by her comment. My mother refusing to cancel the ticket made me feel that I had no say or control over where my son went and that I had little say in his welfare.

I said to my mother that I was the one who is not feeling confident about sending him with her and I was thinking of her health as well. I think it isn't easy if you don't have a debilitating condition to look after two boys 24/7 and keep them from bashing each other and continually squabbling. If she was to have any attacks and she needed to rest, Elliot would have to be cared for by Mason and would most likely be bored and not understand exactly what was going on. My mother insisted she was well enough and would be and that I was wishing this on her. I thought I was being realistic. In the end I said if I thought she was not feeling well enough while visiting with us over Christmas then I would not be sending him with her.

I am lucky that my mother arrives on a the last Saturday before Christmas when we have been invited to 3 lots of Christmas drinks. One is a dress up cocktail party which should be fun plus no kids! I really hope my mother can cope because on the day she arrives we plan to avail ourselves of her services that night.

However, I think it is one thing to be in the next suburb a phone call away and another to be over 2 hours by plane away.

P and I are hoping to even see a movie while she is here we really need a break to do our own thing together.