Big words like marmalade!

Shannon is fast closing in on the beginning of her fourth year of being Shannon! Now from where I stand this is a TERRIFYING thought!!! How is it possible that 3 years of being a Mom have already passed??? I still do not feel worthy of the title 'Mother' as I am not convinced thay I am a grown-up yet, but then does anyone ever really feel like a grown-up. I sense that my baby is growing up faster than even I give her credit for...

So yesterday (or today if you go by blogspot time which exists somewhere in America I suppose) Shannon and I arrived home from school, got out the car and started searching for the young lady's water bottle which she had dropped on the journey! Well, Shannon found it eventually, and then promptly dropped it so it rolled under the car. To this she exclaimed: "We probably can't get it, hey Mommy" followed shortly by "Now it is thoroughly lost Mommy!" What was I supposed to say then? Shannon wasn't finished: "Actually is under the car Mommy!" came next. I galantly tried not to dissovle with laughter at her seriousness or faint from shock at her exercise in testing words out for size! A child after my own heart!

Shannon stayed on a roll in the comedy department as she completely floored Sean and I at bed time. She went to bed at 7pm as normal with the usual vague complaints about not being tired and having work to do; Sean and I had relaxed for the evening content that Poppet would soon be asleep. After about 20mins silence from the young lady her little head popped round the corner to inform us that she'd "had a nice sleep Mommy and it would be nice to get up now please!" Help - please send more anti-cuteness potion!

Still no feeling of being a grown up... just seems like a good joke is being played on Sean and I and that someone is watching at a distance enjoying our hopeless giggling in place of parental guidance and a little discipline! I take no responsiblity for the result! Hmm maybe that is where I am going wrong!

I believe...

Everybody has highs and lows, this I know. It doesn't help to know that though when you are the one feeling low. I am also well aware of the fact that feeling down is a state of mind and I can overcome it. What I need to figure out - and if you are someone like me this is an interesting exercise - is what tools I need to overcome it, be they physical or emotional.

While I am typing this I am becoming vaguely aware of feeling better - aaahhhhh computers!!!

Crap! What a day - and it is only half way through!!! I am having one of those days where everything I am willing NOT to happen IS happening and I feel powerless to stop it.

I believe that when we are emotional - people that is - everything is blown way out of proportion, and that this occurs so that we can understand how SMALL we actualy are in the scheme of things and that all the things that are getting us down are silly and not worth the stress we give ourselves.

I am also a firm believer that we can ALL cope with the stresses in our lives if we sit back for a second, take stock and PLAN!!!!

EVERYTHING has to be planned - even down to what time we eat - so that we can ORGANISE everything we have to do and get it all done without the world coming down around us!!!

...it is all very well believing.

Being My Mom....

On occasion, when walking past something reflective, I catch sight of my Mom walking alongside me! I am not talking spiritually or anything ethereal like that, but physically. There she is in the mirror. I glanced at my hand the other day and nearly had heart failure because it wasn't similar to my Mom but EXACTLY the same!

My Mom

Now, my Mom is a fantastic lady with MANY enviable qualities (and some odd ones too I must add) so being like her is not something I shy away from - anymore! She is a lady who, already having had her 3rd 21st birthday, looks and behaves at least 10 years younger than she is. Which is where my problem lies... do I really look 50+??? Please DO NOT answer that! I don't think I look 20 years older than I am so what is the explanation!?!

Perhaps we are both timeless beauties... *sigh whistfully and then choke*

Perhaps our similarities transend generation without registering age!!!

Well whatever, Sean, for what it is worth, at least physically you can guage what I will look like after my 3rd 21st birthday!

On paranoia and dark sides...

I have been quietly worried, since Shannon first started drawing, about the fact that she likes to colour in black and black only! I keep getting Shannon's 'pictures' from school, most of which are in black, which are perhaps for me to have as keepsakes? For a while I thought they were surreptitiously trying to let on that my little angel has a bit of a dark side! To top it all, when we were painting to take our minds off the sudden and noisy storm the other day, she got very cross that her black paint had run out so she couldn't paint any more! It helped not a bit when I pointed out that she had eleven other colours to choose from - painting was over because the black was finished. You can imagine my horror at the thought that I was actually being paranoid to a point where I haven't even mentioned my concern to her Daddy!! Well, I decided an answer was required!!!

Lucky for me I come from a family of many and varied talents and my Auntie Sue, (who Shannon called Soup for ages until I said Susie instead of Sue!) is an artist extroardinair and Art Therapist. Lucky for me again, Sue called me this afternoon (telepathy rocks!) and I told her my secret fear about my precious angel liking black best and guess what... it is merely that it is a bold color for a bold, charismatic little girl - no dark side in view! Children love bold colours because they can see them so clearly and they make a big impression against the light background! So YAY! Fears laid to rest for another day!!

I suppose I am just another paranoid mother - and there I thought I had broken the mould!

Crystal Children

I have read about the Indigo Children and often catch myself keenly watching the teens and young adults around me and seeing in them the characteristics. I can see them achieving their goal of changing the Status Quo for something that is better for everyone around them! Our world will be a better place for our young children to grow up in if we open our minds to the possibilities that the Indigo Children offer us!

Thanks to a message from Tracey: See "Going Postal in the USA!" April 17 2007

(Trace.angel said...Hear Hear TankGirl. I agree with your comments on the ADHD situation. The children of the 21st century are "Crystal Children" (read Doreen Virtue's book on Crystal Children). Here she explains that these kids are of far superior intellect, therefore the teachers who are supposed to "teach" them are now intimidated by this intellect so they thump a label on the kid saying they're ADD or ADHD etc, put them on Ritalin to calm them down. All this does is dope the kid. Not good at all. The kids are getting bored at school. Teachers need to find new ways of tapping into this intellect and enhancing it.)

I was alerted to the existence of Crystal Children, of which Shannon has some characteristics. We are certainly able to communicate much better mentally than verbally (though her speech is excellent!) I always thought this was just a mother/daughter thing but maybe I am lucky! She is exceptionally loving and caring and I have never seen such a young child have such a gently nature towards, and affinity for, animals! I have just been reading an article about these Crystal Children and it gave me goose bumps (what is it they say about womens intuition and following your gut instinct?) so I feel there is a lot to be said for it!

I intend to put in a bit more research and observation and revisit this topic later!!!

Frustrated rantings of a student...and a human being!

I have, over the past 2 months, submitted a number of thoroughly worked assignments for marking. I am going STIR CRAZY waiting for results!!! I have been waiting OVER 4 WEEKS for one of them and NO ONE ANSWERS THE PHONE at UNISA!!!!! Sorry for shouting but I am about to move on to the second assignments of a few of the modules and how am I supposed to know if I am on the right track if the assignments are not getitng marked in time eh? EH??

Grrr. GRRRRR.

OK I feel better now, thanks for listening!

Ha, and another thing what is it with people who think it is OK to chuck litter out of the car window??? Or drop it on the floor when they are 5m from a BIN!!! I am beginning to think that those of us who still believe it is wrong to litter are a dying breed!! DON"T THROW RUBBISH ON THE GROUND, IT LOOKS DISGUSTING!!!

Phew!

Actually, while I am on my soap box (thanks for the loan John Bell! ;oP) DANGEROUS DRIVERS... is there really a need. We have so many reports of peple being killed on our roads in South Africa (the UK annual figure is about our monthly figure!) This information seems to fuel even worse driving! Everbody knows that it is more dangerous driving over the holidays because of the volume of cars going places... so they SPEED UP!!! Very clever! grrr *pause for feeling of relief* hang on GRRRR (better)

On a lighter note - I think - Shannon's teacher told me yesterday that she is much brighter than most of her peers! I said "What a nice thing for a Mom to hear" she said she is not so sure: average kids are the easiest, clever ones are a handful! Explains a lot! Although apparently she saves all her naughtiness for ME and is a little angel at school! Anyway, need to make the most of the time my clever (cutest and most adorable little girl ever to grace Earth) handful Shannon is at school and go back to doing assignments that may or may not get marked!!!

Beam me up!!!

Kyle the Adventurer !

So Kyle, my now-adult-male-no-longer-a-boy nephew, left for Chicago, Illinois this moring... at least that was the intention. As it happens he is still firmly stuck on South African soil, his flight delayed until around 4am! This is only the beginning of his somewhat extended journey, as his connecting flight from JFK to Chicago is cancelled so they have to take the bus! Do you know how big America is??? That is some bus ride! Nonetheless there is no point striking out on your own for the first time without collecting some tales of adventure along the way.

As for me I am over the travelling part of adventure and think it is about time someone invented a machine for instant arrival upon departure!!! Please get onto this right away as we could really do with a holiday... I fancy Seychelles meself!

Have a gas Kyle, your family are all with you in spirit... can't get rid of us just by moving half way round the world you know!

Just for fun here is a piccie of Sean on his Grand Adventure... catching snowflakes brr.

Shannon's new best thing is doing things dagedes! It is such a fabulous feeling for a Mommy when their little tyke says: 'lets do it dagedes Mommy"

Norbert, so named by Suzi incase you were wondering, is growing a leaf at the mo that is as big as the rest of him together... maybe lemon trees also need mommys to help them grow!

Going Postal in the USA!

What is it that sets off these crazed students killing their peers and teachers. The term 'going postal' stems from incidents of postal workers who lost their rag with their jobs in the post office and opened fire on their colleagues.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Going_postal

It will not be long before someone coins the term 'going college'. These incidences are occuring with allarming regularity in America

(http://www.news24.com/News24/World/News/0,,2-10-1462_2099931,00.html)

and the rest of the world and I would like to know why and what is being done about it!!!

We live in a country where violence is part of everyday life and we can take measures to minimise our risks, but when you send your child to school you expect to fetch them at the end of the day with only minor trauma such as too much home work to deal with. The education of our children is hanging in the balance as it is what with so many 'catching' ADHD (It must be contageous... it is spreading far too quickly for any other explaniation! Oh unless maybe it's NOT the CHILDREN with the problem!) let alone the fact that now they have to go to school in fear for their lives as well. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/School_shooting What is the answer people - I have children to educate and I am becoming afraid to do that the conventional way!

Where are the Essa Eggs Mommy?

Shannon's favorite food used to be scrambled eggs with cheese; that no longer cuts the mustard! Now she wants Essa Eggs for all meals and snacks in between. We have been very carefully teaching Shannon that you get what you want only if you ask nicely...she has interpreted this as you ALWAYS get what you want as long as you ask nicely: how do you resist "but I said PLEASE Mommy" There ought to be some emotion-armouring potion that Mommies can take to ward off the cuteness of the little angels!

Nonetheless this is what Easter morning looked like for Sean and I:

As I said: how can you resist!

Yes she did get to eat most of them - though I still have far too many marshmallow eggs in the (new fullsized and no longer having to use a bar fridge) fridge so if anyone fancies a cuppa and some choccie PLEASE pop in!

Memory??? What's that again???

Don't laugh I know I am not the only one who forgets things all the time!

Back to Shannon and her understading of language ...

'3.' was as follows: I was fetching her from school last week thursday, and we were waiting for her shoes to be found, when shannon showed me a peice of red lego. I said 'Oh lego!' to which she relpied 'No Mommy, it's red! It's not lellow!' Well that told me!

Incidentally Norbert now officially has 5 leaves with the 6th budding as I type this!

Out of the mouths of babes...

Just felt the need to share the latest quips of my fabulous cute daughter:

1. One day last week my nephew Kyle suffered the misfortune of a burst fish tank in his bedroom (Kyle does not go for goldfish in a bowl but rather a small dam ensconced in glass!!!) at roughly 3am. The next day we went to visit and his bed was propped up on the verandah drying. Well Shannon was rather confused by this and after having it explained to her that the bed was wet she exclaimed: 'Naughty Amy (Kyle's fabulous sister aged 20) weed on it!'.

2. In a similar vein I was dressing Lady Muck a few mornings ago when I glanced out of her window and exclaimed 'There's a big weed in my garden!' to which the precious little madam replied in her sweetest voice 'It wasn't me Mommy!'

3. I have forgotten the other thing so check back here for when I remember!

Right, ice cream and marsmallow Easter eggs await me!

Productivity and good health revisited!

Yaaaaay I seem to have found me again and am able to apply myself once more! I am re-inspired to study thanks to a better than anticipated mark for my last assignment... any motivation is welcome!
He he - this is not my real work station I PROMISE but click on the picture to get a better look!

Shannon is in the process of recovering from a bout of pneumonia - don't know how that happened - she had a bit of a cold on Tuesday which she seemed to be almost over on Wednesday afternoon but then I spent all night on Wednesday trying to break a very stubborn fever. I took her to the vet on Thursday morning by which time I thought she was on the mend again as she was FULL of energy. I was sternly reprimanded by said vet for not bringing her sooner as she had 'a pneumonia in her right side' so R207 and 5 mutis later we seem to be on the road to recovery barring a very chesty cough!

Sean has started a new job at Wakefields Estate Agency in Hillcrest and he is taking his Certified Estate Agents Exam in June - we both knew he would end up back in property as he really enjoyed it (idiots in management notwithstanding) and hopefully this time his experience will not be marred by incompetent fools!

Norbert - the lemon tree - is not only still alive but has started to sprout his new leaves! I have not included a picture as I might be considered insane to think that that tiny green speck is anything exciting. Nonetheless I said updates would follow so follow they must!

Disjointed days!

I am feeling a bit out of sorts today and have not been able to apply myself to ANYTHING for very long for the last 2 days. I did start today on the right foot - yesterday was just a write off altogether - but then I had to go and fetch poppet from school as she has an eye infection and a very bad cold! So got nothing done again! Sean has had a VERY productive 2 days so maybe we are just balancing each other! Also, he is cooking me supper so I am feeling a bit more relaxed now. I am dying to show pics of Hubby's coffee shop as he has really made it look fabulous (not without a little help from moi on graphics) with new signs etc, but that means sending Sean down with his camera which I keep forgetting to do! He has also added a few more products and things are starting to pick up after the Jan/feb.../mar slump that businesses seem to suffer from! Well as I said I am not able to apply myself for very long so that is all I can manage!

Tomorrow is another day!

When life gives you lemon seeds...

... Grow a lemon tree!

This is a first so pay attention! I opened a lemon on our wedding aniversary (15 Feb) to squeeze over our skottled prawns in garlic butter (!) and the pips had sprouted! Just for a laugh I chucked one of them into a plastic cup with some water and left it on the windowsill where it grew a stem; I potted it with some stones in the bottom and some soil from a molehill (thanks for the advice Kyle) and left it on the same windowsill. Now my lemon tree (?) has 4 strong leaves and a smile for me every morning when I give it a few drops of water.

Nothing I have ever tried to grow has lasted very long so please check for updates as the life and times of my lemon tree will be continually posted. Oh yes... if anyone can come up with a suitable name for my against-all-odds tree please post it in 'comments'; it would be very grateful to be called something other than lemon tree (imagine you were called 'Human' all the time!)

Who emptied the bucket?

So, about that STORM! You lot overseas and many miles away must have heard the thunder and felt the breeze! I understate the situation when I say the countryside is strewn with foliage and WHOLE TREES! For those of you who would like to see what happened to our beautiful beaches check out the East Coast Radio site at http://www.ecr.co.za/


Brother in Law's house was under 5cm of water and is currently being aired and dried with all the carpets up and THANKFULLY everything replaceable through insurance. Not so 'lucky' those in the townships me thinks!

Some astute soul mentioned that the ferocity can ony have been caused by a certain 'Man Upstairs' berrating his fallen angel for still not having collected the autocratic leader (read tyranical bully) of a certain country starting with Z ending with e!



To all those who are still drying out and reassembling their lives: we are thinking of you!

One for the monster...

Well it has been a while, what can I say? Life's requirements get in the way of catching up on things! Not many developments in the house of Hendry: we are still working hard and playing hard. Shannon has been at her new school for 2 weeks now and she is very happy - I am not sure if it is coincidental but her speach and vocabulary have improved rapidly this month.

The little madam's latest amusing ditty is baa baa black sheep, it goes as follows:
Baa Baa black sheep have you any wool?
Yes sir, yes sir 3 bags full!
One for the monster, one for the dame ...

I have learned a shocking lesson for myself this week: I have taken on a new student who is unable to read even basic words such as go, on etc... he is 16 years old. While I knew there was a problem with education in this country I have not until now experienced it first hand in this manner. I am dumbfounded for all the obvious reasons and many more. All I can do is my best to open the world up for this boy (who is white for those of you who are wondering) who cannnot at the moment evern read road signs or the TV guide! While this is an interesting challenge for me I can't begin to express how sad I feel for the youth of this country as it is in its current state.

Nuff ranting - I am going to build towers with Shannon until bedtime and then back to the books for me.

tata for now...

Home at last...

They have finally arrived!!! Our computer, phone and ADSL line are all IN our OFFICE! No more wondering when it will be complete, not feeling quite at home because my link to the outside world is elsewhere. I can safely say "now we are home!" Sean was going stir crazy as I have asked him if we can wait at least a month til we consider buying a TV of our own in the hope that perhaps we will get used to not having one and learn to live without it and he couldn't even surf the net in the evenings. (It can only do good if for nothing else but our communication with eachother) Shannon seems to not really notice and I think is really enjoing the extra play time with Mommy and Daddy as there are no movies to watch!

On the subject of Shannon, she starts her new school tomorrow and has been proudly proclaiming that she is going to 'big' school. How she deals with it I have yet to find out but I will keep you posted. She has seen the swings and jungle jim and is really excited about those!

Poppet's latest can't-keep-a-straight-face moment was when I reprimanded her for hitting me on the head with her teddy she said meekly "I just loving you Mommy" whilst stroking my hair! I nearly dissolved!

Well that ends another broadcast from Moi... I am off to dream land...

Where's all my stuff?

So we have moved house from No 45 to No 41 (same complex, same street) has to be the easiest move ever! Not to mention the fact that my indispensible maid Yvonne did most of the hard work for me so we were moved in and unpacked within a day or two. Thanks to all the kind people and fortuitous timing in our lives we have a housefull of furniture and all at the cost of a few road trips! Shannon loves her new house and is especially proud of her new beds care of the Boston Clulows!

All of that aside I am awaiting telkom's swift response to our request for transferral of phone line and ADSL account which means that we keep the same phone number YAY! Will keep y'all posted for contact purposes! The computer remins at no 45 until such time as telkom call us so if I take a while to get back to you please have patience!

Exercise regime seems to have taken a bit of a knock but I am all geared up to start again asap!

I had a tub of Camphor cream....

I guess she has been watching Sean shaving - we couldn't even laugh because she was in trouble for playing with the cream... it was a challenge to say the least!

The other thing that had me crying with laughter was a lesson in colours that Shannon was surreptitiously recieving; while I was colouring with her one of the crayons - the red one -had broken. A little later I was showing her the colours: this colour is BLUE... this colour is GREEN... this colour is YELLOW... this colour is? to which she replied... BROKEN!

Raising Mom...

It's Feb ALREADY!!!

Oh my word is it possible that this year is passing even faster than previous ones??? Since my last update I have been out for my walk/run 5 more times (ie 4 this week) and I can live with that! Seems to make me want to eat MORE junk food though so I am not sure if it is having ANY effect whatsoever. I love the mornings though and it is a great way to get my head in the right place before the day begins.

I have a cold at the moment (grrrrr) sore throat and blocked nose - OK so the blocked nose is no different to normal with all the pollen at this time of year - I could really do without the throat thing though! Shannon seems to be in much the same condition although slightly less adept at blowing her nose!

Other than that all is good we are working hard and playing harder - no more 3am parties PLEASE! I am learning about neurons and messages and impulses (I know it is a bit more in depth but this is no place for sensibilty!) and OMG I need to preserve mine if I am to pass this degree - so NO MORE 3am PLEASE! (well maybe one or 2!)

With that thought in mind I am off to bed - he he nearly forgot to mention firstly my little angel's admonishment of her mother (moi) this morning at the flea market... 'Mommy don't pick it up, you can break it!) well I guess my rules apply to me too. And then when Sean was off to the Stables to work this morning Shannon took his face in her hands and said 'Daddy I'm so proud of you...' What a character!!!

ciao am off to blanket street (no wooden stairs here though)