Fives!

Tagged by Mrs F from the place ... pure nosiness if you ask me ... she then turned and ran before I could catch her :o)

5 things in my fridge

1. Smoked peppered mackarel, to liven up a salad ... I don't think I'm being cheated if I have no salad dressing if I get oily fish ~ yum!
2. Sweet red peppers, for roasting or salads.
3. Milk, skimmed ~ bleugh!
4. Yoghurts, currently pineapple, peach and passionfruit.
5. Champagne, always just in case.

5 things in my wardrobe

1. Welsh costume, full lenght skirt, petticoat, shawls, arm guards, apron the whole kit and caboodle.
2. Wedding outfit, packed away ... needs cleaning actually.
3. Winter coat.
4. Jumpers in bottom drawer
5. Shoes, not in boxes like the tidy Mrs F.

5 things in my handbag

1. Purse, never enough money but a purse.
2. Car keys.
3. Front of stereo from the car.
4. Security fob for the doors in work.
5. Lippy, currently looking for one like the colour that Audrey Tautou wore in the Da Vinci Code ~ her lippy was the best thing about the movie.

How's that for quick service? Ready to play tag Lisa? What about you Mar?

A cornucopia of delights, but not for me!

I was on a course yesterday, positive handling ... dealing with "physical" children in school. It was a long day, interesting but emotionally and physically demanding. I completed a similar course about 9 years ago and have rarely needed to use the techniques taught ~ less than a handful of times and mainly with 3 little darlings who have kicked shit out of me on various occaisions during my teaching career ... that'll teach me to be good with "fighters", I get given lots of them.

As Jo (in the class next door), I and 5 other members of staff were on the course, the school was full of supply teachers yesterday and when I went in to drop off my planning I noticed that Jo and I had a married couple earmarked for our classes. The conversation went a little like this ...

Me ~ look, because we're both called Jo they've found a married couple to be in our classes ... isn't that sweet!

Jo ~ *laughs* yes, fancy a quickie lesbian wedding when we get back?

Me ~ *sniggers at Jo* Gobshite!

Margaret ~ no, I don't think so, they're brothers.

Me ~ oh, ok!

Well they certainly were brothers, from the land of Oz, tall, stacked, good looking, blue eyes and I have never seen a female staff ... I don't know quite what word to use for the reaction, I think I'll say ripple ... yes I have never seen a female staff ripple in quite such a way before. Every single member of the female staff visited my and Jo's classrooms yesterday morning, to say "enjoy your course", "see you tomorrow", "wow that's a cool whiteboard you have*" and "is the ICT suite free today?" And then there was the reaction of the mothers when they walked onto the playground! LMAO! Ah well, I'm on a course again today ... Mrs Rebbets from the nursery is taking my class! They'll be gutted :o)

* The whiteboard has been in my classroom for 18 months!

Thursday's Thirteen

*Update email* Hi Joannnnne! It was 6 packets of Paxo sage and onion stuffing, largest pack of Tesco's tea bags - strong, 3 smoked and 3 unsmoked back bacon, 1 large beef gravy granules ~ if you cant find Paxo then Tescos will do! For us its a couple of packets of back bacon and 3 Tesco or Hovis granery sliced .......as you offered!
lots and lots and lots of love mummmy !!!!!!!

What can you do with her? Ideas please!

After a lengthy phone call from my mother last night, I present a list of 13 things I need to take to France on Saturday for desperate ex-pats (my parents included)!

1. 3 packs of back bacon, smoked.
2. 6 packs of back bacon, unsmoked.
3. A large container of gravy granules.
4. 4 packets of sage and onion stuffing.
5. 3 tins of Eucryl toothpaste.
6. 1 bottle of St Ives body lotion.
7. 3 sliced loaves.
8. 2 of each (black & colour) printer cartridges for a Canon printer
9. 2 containers of Marigold vegetable bouillon

Ok, ok, so I exaggerated for the purposes of a thirteen this Thursday, but if you count all of the packets and boxes separately, that makes 27 items ... so tell me again why did they move to France if they can't live without back bacon and stuffing?

Memories of summer on a wordless Wednesday!

Some daily questions, playing catch-up!

Indigo over at QOtD has been on holiday, a little tripette to Mouseland *shivers with excitement as she realises only 4 more get-ups until half term and a trip to Spain* so the venerable Mr Jones and Better Safe than Sorry have been care-taking in her well-deserved absence. She'll be glad to know that Haloscan still wont let me play ... it's obviously NOT personal my friend! Well, only to me :o)

Off Duty?
I sense and can see that Indigo has, in fact, returned, but she hasn't kicked me out yet, so I'll do one more question just for kicks and giggles.You have one week and all the money in the world. Where do you go on vacation? I would go to New Zealand and I would fly first class!

Smile
Have you ever posted a picture of yourself on your blog? Yes, I posted pictures of my wedding last May. If I ever loose a bundle of weight I will be posting pictures then too ... it's the points baby!

She's Back!
With Indigo's imminent return to the QOTD, what do you think she brought us from DisneyWorld? I am hoping for some of those cute little Minnie Mouse ears with a little bow just to finish off the princess look!

Breakfast, Lunch or Dinner?
How do you like your eggs? To quote Deano "I like mine with a kiss" but if he's already gone to work then I prefer poached but still runny in the middle on thick sour-dough toast.

Funny Girl
Who is the funniest woman to ever live in your opinion? I think this is a hard one, I like British comedian Jackie Clunes but probably the female most guarenteed to get me in stitches is the lovely Dawn French.

Blockbusters
Are you planning on seeing The DaVinci Code and/or Over the Hedge? I saw the DaVinci Code (or as all Togdom is renaming it the Maeve Binchy Code) on Saturday ... what a great big steamy pile of poo! In all honesty I KNOW I would have enjoyed Over the Hedge much more!

Boys Will Be Boys
A co-worker of mine was telling me a few weeks ago that her mother used to notice the rancid stench of her brothers from time to time (when they were little) and could never figure out how they managed to get so smelly, so one day she caught them red-handed or smelly-feeted and forced them to confess as to their smelliness. Well, turns out they were playing "The Trashcan Game" where they would stuff a child in a trashcan and then wheel the victim around the neighborhood and then ask him where he was. If the kid knew his whereabouts, he could get out of the trashcan, if he couldn't he would be wheeled somewhere else and asked again. Sounds like a blast!With that prelude, I ask. What was the most inventive game you played as a child? The Trashcan game? Boys are disgusting ... we spent hours playing cricket, climbing trees (pinching crab apples), crawling through the wheat field (and being chased by the farmer out of it) and making dens/hide-outs in the old pigsty (no pigs for about 50 years). But ... the trashcan game?!? Good lord Jones! In fact I think just for that game you deserve this!

Weather Watch
How would you spend a rainy holiday long weekend? In bed, with a good book, plentiful snacks and *wiggles eyebrows* my husband. Wouldn't you? Well not with my husband obviously!

Can't Live Without Ya
Baby back ribs. Fresh iceberg lettuce. Cap'n Crunch. There are so many great foods that I crave when I'm hungry. How about you? What food can't you live without? Chargrilled salmon, garlic, onions, sweetcorn and bread.

Hoopin' It Up
Just got done watching the Suns squeak one out against the Clippers in Double OT. Nice game, but I know I'll lose half of you all with my sports talk, so I'll ask a more general question.What one sports event would you most like to see in person? What? Who? *begins to cry* I don't understand the question! Umm, one sporting event, that would be hard to choose ... *tosses coin* mens final at Wimbledon I think, really good seats please!

Dinners Ready
You have a new friend, things have been going great. You are now invited to dinner, arrive at your friends home and everything is perfect, alot of work has obviously gone into this dinner. The only problem, the main course is something you hate. What are you going to do? I would try my damndest to eat a least a little of it and all the vegetables, hide the remains under my cutlery and then apologise profusely!

Oh, the Fences
So, my little one just began singing the song, "Don't Fence Me In" as sung by Roy Rogers. It fits her so well. It could be her theme song. So, what's your theme song? The theme tune of the loveboat?!? Or probably Take it Easy by the Eagles.

Unconscious mutterings #172

I say ... and you think ... ?

Yours :: sincerely
Charcoal :: grey, or is it gray where you are?
Platitude :: How are you? FIne thanks!
Graduation :: ceremony
Hungry :: enough to eat a scabby horse between two bread vans.
Somewhere :: "Somewhere, over the rainbow"

Nurse :: Nurse Gladys in Open all Hours
Freak :: C'est Chic!
Unbelievable :: "The things, you say, you're unbelievable!"
Walk :: Because you're mine, I walk the line

Such a busy week, haven't stopped ... interviews for teachers, SATs, Simon's leave (and the subsequent rows) being cancellled, lost in poker, marking, planning, meetings! Absolutely knackered, nothing blog-worthy or interesting to write about! Have a great week :o)

Quick round-up!

Do you ever feel like life is rushing past you as if you were on a merry-go-round ... that's how life feels right now. I don't seem to even have time to stop by my blogroll and comment BUT I've tried hard to this morning!

An excellent day in school yesterday, I finalised the names of my new nursery classes*, passed a lovely morning gardening** and then we made books all about the five Ks of Sikhism in the afternoon ... these are the 5 things that baptised Sikhs wear all the time at the order of the 10th Guru. The children were making a little book with a contents page, an index and illustrations. One of the year 1s came up to me halfway through the afternoon and said ...

Z ~ I've forgotten something and I don't know what it is.

Me ~ Well lets go through the list ...

Z ~ I've got the beard and hair, the comb, the bracelet and the dagger.

Me ~ Yeeessss, so what else is there?

Z ~ Oh gosh, I forgot the big knickers! How could I forget the big knickers?

Me ~ Shorts Z, not knickers ... shorts!

Apologies to any Sikhs out there, but he's only 5 and he was trying so hard to remember them! Right you lot, have a great day :o)

* Nursery classes to be called Ducklings (mine a.m.), Goslings (other teacher's a.m.) and Owlets (p.m.) ... so named because ... wait for it ... "little children like little little birds have to learn to walk and fly before they can soar!" Yeh I know ~ SAP!
** R ~ You want me to pull out the plants? Me ~ They're weeds! R ~ But I'll get dirty!

Unconscious mutterings #171

I say ... and you think ... ?

Immune :: to the common cold, I wish!
Together :: forever
Blank :: page
Professional :: teacher
Thousand :: pounds
Penetration :: oh-er missus!
Shutter :: camera
Upside down :: New Zealand, lol, sorry Lisa!
Neck :: giraffe
Unlisted :: phone number

Feasting on Friday

Appetizer
What's your favorite flavor of ice cream? I like really good (ie not produced for children) chocolate or vanilla ice-cream; bitter dark chocolate and vanilla where you can really taste and see the vanilla pod! Yum!

Soup
What are 3 things you would like to put in a time capsule? If it was a time capsule for me of my life right now it would have to include a CD of what I am currently listening to ... a homemade compliation a mixture of Jack Johnson, KT Tunstall, the Kaiser Chiefs, Take That and the Red Hot Chilli Peppers ... yeh alright. My favourite ever book ~ The Eight by Katherine Neville and my photo album.

Salad
Name something you are 100% sure of. It'll rain today, you should see the clouds outside my window!

Main Course
What is something you do to calm yourself when you're stressed or upset? Unfortunately I tend to eat, I reach for the biscuit barrel or the bread bin ... carb city! I'm trying not to do that right now so it's big deep breaths instead!

Dessert
If you could receive an invitation to any important event, what would you like it to be? I'd like to go to the Oscars ... I know they're almost a year away but I'd really like to be at the next ones, for the glitz and the glam and the real-life bits that will be blooped!

Got to fly! Off to Le Touquet-Paris Plage ... have a fab weekend!

**Warning Sap Alert**

So in case you don't want to puke, heads up major sap below in my Thursday Thirteen ... I can only write this as every part of my body hurts / aches after dragging 70 small children 4.2 miles yesterday* ... to the prom for ice-cream and swinging. But at least I might have lost some weight with all that exercise!

* slight exaggerration, I only dragged one very vocal little girl there ... she was too tired to speak on the way back; but then so was I!

Thursday Thirteen!

It's nearly my wedding anniversary! Were you here/there? If you were, you know that my blog is older than my marriage and if you weren't you know now anyway! So, today, the Thursday closest to my 1st wedding anniversary I present ... 13 reasons why I am still married to Simon!

1. He makes me laugh!
2. He's tall, so he can reach things on really high shelves!
3. He brings me flowers just because it's Tuesday and for no other reason.
4. Not bad at D.I.Y.
5. He's a great cuddler!
6. Did I mention the laughter?
7. He makes fabulous chicken curry.
8. He does great "foot massages."
9. I feel safe and protected by him.
10. He indulges my love of all things French and holidays in France; this has become a joint thing now.
11. Eventhough he's not a social animal he indulges my socialness.
12. He dance me around the kitchen when no-one is watching.
13. He loves me and the feeling is mutual.

So Happy Anniversary Simon, here's to many, many more!

Wordless Wednesday

It's all about me!

I have seen this all over the place, on blog after blog; and being a thief of long standing ... here you go ... it's all about me, me, me, me, me!

I AM :: able to touch the tip of my nose with my tongue.
I WANT :: to come home tonight and not have to cook as I have cooked every meal we have consumed since Thursday (including packed lunches) ... wonders if he is listening?
I WISH :: Ruth would come and work at our school!

I HATE :: hatred, it's about a lack of knowledge and fear and oh-so often it's not even our hatred it's long embedded in history and we all deserve a fresh start!
I MISS :: the flexibilty of teenage bones! I bounced out of bed and swam each day and had boundless energy ... no I drag myself out of the pit each morning and need caffeine to keep me going!
I FEAR :: spiders! Why do we need them ... yeh I know they eat flies but really do we need anything with that many legs?

I HEAR :: bird-song just outside my window, time to send Simon up on a ladder!
I WONDER :: if I'll ever be a mother? I'd like to think I'd make a good one *smiles sadly*
I REGRET :: not writing down the stories my grandfather told me about the world he discovered as a young man in the merchant navy. He spent pretty much the first half of the 20th century going around the world, witnessing (what to him were) marvels & oddities, touching lives and unfortunately many of those stories are now lost.

I AM NOT :: sexist, racist, ageist or homophobic.
I DANCE :: whenever I hear music, I'm not very good but I don't care because I love to dance!
I SING :: all the time, especially when I dance!
I CRY :: when I'm both happy and sad.

I AM NOT ALWAYS :: able to control my temper

I MAKE WITH MY HANDS :: delicious food, I love to cook!
I WRITE :: my blog, my planning and in children's exercise books ~ quite enough for me I think!
I CONFUSE :: homophones when I'm typing quickly and making up the sentence as I go along ... when I go back and re read I always think what a tit! Like your and you're or their and they're and because I'm Welsh here, ear and year.
I NEED :: to get my budget bid written tonight or I shall be dragged in front of the headteacher!
I SHOULD :: go and get ready for work or I shall be late.
I START :: the day very early, I enjoy the quietness of the house when only I am up and around; peace perfect peace!
I FINISH :: last in running races but first on quiz nights ;o)

Unconscious mutterings #170

I say ... and you think ... ?

Represent :: politicians
Mumbling :: gibberish
Meet-up :: friends
Tantalizing :: surfing, but I have work to do!
Fake :: fur
Dale :: up hill, down dale
Deny :: no I didn't!
Calories :: nasty little point suckers, because it's all about the points baby!
Roll :: forward roll
44 :: my age in August 2013

Knobbly knees and 2 piddle assemblies!

Just another day in primary academia yesterday, nothing exciting happened! We started the day with an assembly and as year 2 were doing some practice writing for SATs, our assembly was all about Goldilocks and the three bears. I sat quietly in my classroom (5 foot away) and listened as the assistant head regaled 210 little children with the exploits of the blonde housebreaker and her flight from the ferocious bears. I was marking literacy books but it sounded fantastic through the door, I heard gasps, little voices acting out the porridge discovery and the furniture breakage. I giggled as I heard the cries of "help mummy" and the round of applause as Goldilocks made her way hurriedly through the woods home!

My class trooped back and settled on the carpet with one of my TAs to complete their fine motor skills practise and I rushed to grab a sheet I'd left in the staffroom and there in the hall was the true response of the children to CJ's assembly ... in the same way that the Visit Britain gives accomodation a star rating, here was a rating unsurpassed by any other I'd seen! The assembly was so scary that two, yes two children in the reception (kindergarten) class had peed themselves and they'd gone to the loo on the way to assembly too! Officially a two piddle assembly! What would anyone have to do to better that?


And then, hours later, when wetness had disappeared afternoon play came ... and with it the saga of the school railings ... what is it with small children major limbs / body parts and school railings? Why do they feel the need to lodge a limb between the pieces of metal? And why do I have to be the teacher on duty when it happens? Yes, you've got it ... 5 minutes into afternoon play Goldilocks aka Blond bimbette in year 1 popped one knobbly knee through the railings ... stuck, good and proper like!

Thank god for CJ once again, a bucket of cold water* , a handful of washing up liquid, major grappling, more wet knickers** and a snotty nose*** & the nobbly knee was free! I'll give you one thing about this job ... its never dull!

* my thoughts had already lead to hunky firemen and cutting equipment, stripped down to the bare essentials ... it was a warm afternoon dont'cha know!
** she peed herself in fright
*** mine, I laughed so much I cried until my nose ran!

Thursday Thirteen!

Thirteen things on my desk around the computer.

1. A soapstone elephant
2. My security fob for work
3. An aluminium bucket from Ikea
4. A mug of tea
5. An empty wine bottle painted with a map of the Isle of Man
6. A whistle
7. The phone
8. A can of ralgex heat spray
9. An unfinished unstarted cross-stitch sampler for Ruth's daughter who is now 2 and a bit ... it was meant to be ready when she came home from hospital!
10. My recipe book ... one I add scraps of paper/handwritten recipes/pictures too. One day I'd like to publish it :o)
11. Some large cream envelopes
12. My grandmother's button box
13. A pair of chopsticks

Yes unorganised chaos strikes again!

Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!

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Wordless Wednesday

Dark bluey green questions!

Go and answer the questions yourself, if buggering bloody haloscan will let you play! And if it does give it a sharp slap around the back of the head from me :o)

Front door
If the door to your home could be made in any shape other than a rectangle, what shape would you want it to be? I'd like a round front door and a round window ... do you (those of you who spent childhood afternoons with the BBC that is) remember Play School with Big Ted, Humpty, Jemima, Hamble and that round window? Remember the rhyme?

Here's a house
Here's a door
Windows: 1,2,3,4
Ready to play?

What's the day?

It's Monday!

Remember Brian Cant with tight trousers and a permanent wave? Remember Johnny Ball before he was more famous as Zoe's dad? I bet they had a round door there to match the round window!

Cinderella's castle
You've just arrived at Disney World to find that Cinderella's Castle has been replaced by ..... what? Good grief, they wouldn't replace that it has to stay! Where else would Tink fly from? Actually I'd be happy if they replaced it with an enormous Krispy Kreme machine and conveyor belt!

The 8th dwarf
If Snow White had eight dwarves, what would you name the eighth dwarf? The eight dwarf is dressed in pink, wont work down the mine in case he chips a nail but loves washing and wearing the gemstones, his name? Why Campy of course!

War movie
What is the best war movie of all time? I cried and cried over Schindler's List and Hotel Rwanda (you didn't say which war), loved Escape to Victory but my favourite has to be the Great Escape, the beautiful Steve McQueen! Wonderful :o)

Substitute teacher
If you had to substitute-teach for two months, which grade (kindergarten through twelfth) would you choose to teach? I'd choose to teach "A" level French (that's from 17 to 18) children who want to be there learning to speak beautiful French ... maybe a little field trip or two, you know ~Paris, Bordeaux, Aix, the Pyrenees *breathes deeply* I could cope if it was just for 2 months!

Medal
Have you ever won a medal or a ribbon? Actually, I just did, I one a silver at the Blog Olympics ... but also when I was in school I won trophies/certificates/ribbons for French, hockey and swimming.

Wanna hug?
Are you a hugger? You know, someone who hugs people when you see them? Or what about when people come to give you a hug, what do you do? I am both a hugger and a kisser (when you spend as much time in France as I do there really is no choice!) I hug/kiss hello and goodbye, if I know you well enough I spontaneously touch/hug/squeeze mid conversation ... I do wait for you to invite invasion of open space though, I'm not like those guys in China who are coming to Nottingham soon!

Is your glass.....
Is your glass half full? Or half empty? And what do you have in your glass? Optimism is a lovely thing, I believe that a glass is half full and try to encourage that belief in others too! *wanders off humming always look on the bright side of life, wanders back* Simon is such a "half empty" (his mother has similar inclinations, so maybe its genetic) guy and I spend quite a lot of time trying to encourage him out of a fug ... actually that's the worst thing about half emptiers, the energy that other people waste trying to cheer them up! *wanders off again, wanders back* Right now the glass I would choose for the glass to be full of Chilean Merlot ~ lovely!

Higher Education
Have you gone as far with school and/or college that you thought you would? Do you ever consider going to college, or back to college to get a degree, or further your degree? Right now I would say that I don't want to go back to college and study but who knows what the future holds?! But I am a firm believer in education never being over, I learn new things everyday :o)

Drivers test
How many times did you take your driver's test before you passed? Passed second time, never been allowed to forget this by my mother who passed first time around *blows metaphorical raspberry*

Royalty
In all honesty, would you want to be a member of the Royal Family? God no, all that attention, people who think that they can say whatever the hell they like about you because you are a public figure, never being able to run out to the corner shop in baggy old jeans with no make-up on in case you get papped! No thankyou! Would you?

Unconscious mutterings #169

I say ... and you think ... ?

Out of place :: George Bush in international politics. *sends "sorry!" smile to any Americans offended by this and offers to swap Tony Blair*
Helicopter :: sycamore trees
Francis :: Francis Iles, my favourite craft shop
Ryan :: Ryan Davies, part of Welsh duo Ryan and Ronnie
Wedding :: anniversary, less than 2 weeks away ... what do I get as a present?
Apalled :: that anyone would want to shag John Prescott if they didn't have to! And that she's been thrown to the wolves over it!
Historian :: give me the lovely Michael Wood (in sheepskin) or Dan Cruickshank (... it's the panama darling*) over Simon Schama anyday!
Powerful :: politicians, so all the more reason for them to be sleaze-free Prescott!

Sex symbol :: ah the lovely Hugh, ah go on have another one!

Uncomfortable :: g-strings, I think you either love them or hate them and I'm in the hate camp!

* and Simon Schama's annoying voice!