Life is a cabaret (well, it is if you're Tommy)

Sept 2012

I feel like T man has gotten a bit of a raw deal attention wise just lately.  This summer has been all about the house move and then Phia's school.  T, of course, has had to move school as well and he did it without so much as a tear.  In fact, I'm not totally sure he noticed it had changed (not sure if this is worrying or not!).  He is just a very happy chappy.  He loves singing, about anything and everything.  His favourite is 'Mr Sun' which he has learnt at Creative Minds, his new school.  He also loves to forward roll around our new house (on our lovely new carpet), especially in the nude.  Watching he tiny bottom pelting up and down the coridoor is a vision that will never leave me!  Bless our little boy!

New School

Mid Sept 2012

So the new school as been picked and as I write this she has now been going nearly 2 weeks. The school is called Carden Academy and it only has around 100 kids in total (from K to 8). There are 18 kids in Sophia's class (and its full now) so its really lovely to know she'll be in such a small class. They do Maths and Language Arts (that would be literacy then!) every day along with Art, Music, PE, library time etc etc. All the things that make a school a school in my view. Its nice. I still haven't got a handle of how they teach Language Arts and I'm going to arrange to go a see a lesson as Sophia takes great delight in telling me that, 'I did no reading or letters today Mummy!'. I know she is but its not making any huge impact on her so I need to get there and see how they teach it and one thing I do know, it is completely different from the British way. One thing that has been sparked thought is her interest in numbers and adding up. This is obviously where she strengths are going to lie.

As for Sophia she has found it really difficult to get a handle of why's she's been moved.  The change has been really difficult for her and I feel very badly that we have put her in this position.  However, I know she will be ok and in a few months.  I've asked Mrs St John, her new teacher, to look out for her and maybe point in the right direction to making a few friends.  Fingers crossed it all works out.

Beautiful San Diego

5th September 2012

So mum came over for a week and helped me look at some private schools which was really useful. We also managed to squeeze a trip in to San Diego over the labour day weekend. Its such a beautiful place, very Spanish with a very European feel. We went to Sea World which was pretty amazing and explored San Diego itself by tram. Felt like it was just a taster and am very keen to go back for another piece of the pie!

Arrrrrhhhh – school is shit!

Bloody hell I feel homesick. Properly homesick first the first time in months and months. I hate Sophia’s school, with an absolute passion. I feel like I have a little ball of despair rolled up inside of me every time I drop her off. So many people had told me how awful the schools out here were but its difficult to know until you’ve seen it with your own eyes. Yes, the schools have had massive budget cuts over the last few years but its not just that, all creativity has completely died. Sophia has spent the last 2 weeks colouring in. She has not been challenged in any way. Shes had to write nothing but her name (which apparently the majority of the class can’t do and these children are all at least 5). There is no art, no music, no PE. No, ...well, no anything really. You can have a music lesson by bashing on an ice cream tub, it doesn't take money, it takes people who care. The last straw is the back to school night we have just attended. The curriculum apparently is not as important as a lengthy discussion as to what the kids can and can't bring in on their birthdays. And just as an aside, there will be no reading books for the kids this year, at all, at any point, whether they can read or not. Its difficult to know whether or not I'd I felt the same if we'd stayed in Mountain View.  Part of me feels that while it may not have been as bad, I'd still be unhappy.  I suppose there is a reason California is right at the bottom of the pile when it comes to their schooling.  I know how hard this is going to be for Sophia but I'm off to check out some private schools. Sophia deserves more than this.

Volunteer of the month

During our move down to San Jose in the early summer I decided to call time time on my volunteer work.  I'd really enjoyed doing it and it had given me a much needed purpose for a while.  However, San Jose up to Mountain View/Sunnyvale was just too far a commute when I wasn't being paid for it.  As a final farewell though, they made me their volunteer of the month - thanks First Five!

 

Bloody hell, it is ever going to cool down?!

16th August 2012

So school is underway and the temperature is still 35c. Why does school start so early over here. It seems crazy when we’ve still got possibly months of this to come. I’m trying hard not to moan but putting the kids into a car that is too hot to sit down in after school every day is making us all hot and bothered!

School – FINALLY!

Phia on her first day of Kindergarten. I felt sooo weird. I’d waited a long time for this moment and she was really excited but it felt really strange. The school felt huge and alien and I didn’t really like. She did though, and that was all that mattered at this point.