belgianwaffle

Mr. Waffle’s Moment of Truth


Posted in: Middle Child, Mr. Waffle, Twins, Youngest Child

Daniel: Is there actimel in my lunch box?
Mr. Waffle: No, but there is fruit: grapes and apple.
Daniel and Michael in chorus: I don’t like grapes.
Mr. Waffle: No Michael, there is a banana for you.
Michael: I don’t want a banana.
Mr. Waffle: Well, Michael, every day you get a banana for school and it doesn’t come home so, I assume, something happens to it in school.
Michael: Yes, I put it in the bin.

And in today’s link section, an appealing post by a woman whose school sandwiches are never rejected because (insert really terrified gasp here), she homeschools her children.

One for the Greens or, in the wake of Copenhagen, it’s not all bad.


Posted in: Dublin, Ireland

We have a green bin for plastic, paper and tins, we recycle glass, we have a brown bin for biodegradeable waste and a black bin for everything else (this last goes to landfill). Each of these bins is collected once a fortnight. My very organised husband has had to work on a list of which bin goes out on what night.

To my absolute astonishment, we sometimes only need to put out the black bin once a month. True, we now have no nappies but we are still a family of five with small children who are known to go through mountains of stuff. What is amazing is how much of it is recyclable or compostable. Oh God, I am becoming a green bore. Save me.

Turning into our mothers


Posted in: Family, Reading etc.

Lesley has a post about how we all start using our mothers’ catch phrases: she lists six of her mother’s which she uses. Here are six of my mother’s that I use and, should you feel inspired to give six of your mother’s in your own blog (or in the comments, if you haven’t got one, surely you have), I will have started a meme (stolen from Lesley, but never mind).

So here we go:

1. You would drive a horse from his oats.
2. You never lost it [this is negative, trust me].
3. What you’re told, when you’re told.
4. Tidy and you’ll find.
5. What can’t be cured must be endured.
6. The best is the enemy of the good.

Thus far I have, however, successfully avoided:

1. Quarrel implies fault on both sides [so annoying this one] and
2. You can but you may not.

Existential Questions


Posted in: Reading etc.

I see from my archives that I began this blog on the 10 December 2003 – six full years ago. When I started, I was an unemployed new mother living in another country. I began with the admirable intention of keeping my family up to date with their relatives abroad. Yet now that they see me with far greater regularity, I am still hard at it. It’s a mystery. I always say in these anniversary post that it was the brilliance of Angela at Fluid Pudding which inspired me to begin. Not quite sure what inspires me to continue other than my role as keeper of the family archive which, you can tell, I take very seriously. I see another belgianwaffle is doing a much better job of working out why he bothers.

In a shameless attempt to get a reaction from my audience, can I tell you that I am hoping for some happy anniversaries in the comments section. Actually, you probably are why I bother. No pressure now.

Christmas Build-up


Posted in: Princess

We put up the Christmas tree on Saturday afternoon. The children were delighted On Sunday morning at 6.45, the Princess arrived into our room fully dressed asking to go downstairs and look at the Christmas tree lights. I shudder to think what time she will rise at on the 25th.