belgianwaffle

Let it snow


Posted in: Family, Siblings

A friend of mine spent Christmas with her husband’s family as did her sister. Her unmarried siblings and her parents decamped to Chamonix for Christmas to ski. Mr. Waffle’s entire family including the piccolo cugino went to Austria for a week’s skiing after Christmas. And where is my feckless younger brother at this very moment? Well, he’s just gone to Chamonix for a bit of skiing after seeing the rugby match in Geneva.

Is anybody tired of the Celtic tiger, yet? Anybody at all? Yes, indeed, begrudgery is alive and well, but it appears to have emigrated.

Get answers to your knotty theological questions here


Posted in: Princess, Siblings

Her: Does Santa Claus get sick?

Me: I’m not sure.

Her: We’ll have to ask God, God knows everything.

Me: Mmm but sometimes God’s answers aren’t particularly clear.

Her: We’ll have to ask him to speak more loudly then.

In other news, my sister spent the weekend here. When she arrived, 10 staff stood up and said “Good afternoon, Miss Helen”. She recommends it.

The nightmare of the working mother or moan, groan, grizzle, whinge


Posted in: Princess, Twins, Work

I got home the other day to find the house empty yet tidy. No note, nothing. Logically, I knew that the childminder had probably just taken them for a walk but deep down I thought this is it I’m always whining about the children and their mess and now I’m being punished in a “monkey’s paw” kind of way. Yes, they all came back, since you ask.

The childminder had a friend to help her the other day and the Princess took a real shine to this friend, so much of a shine that when the friend tried to leave the Princess clung to her and begged pathetically to go too. This was not entirely pleasing to me. It also happened when one of our regular babysitters was here the other day. Then when I was collecting her from school the other day, she refused to leave the afterschool fun and games until she had watched the end of a cartoon. How pleasing this is to a mother.

Finally, yesterday afternoon, I had to go to a meeting at very short notice. Regular readers (hi Mum) will recall that I don’t normally work Friday afternoons but part of the deal is that, if they need me, I will be there. It doesn’t arise very often but I would like a bit more notice when it does. So, to be there I had to arrange a babysitter to collect the Princess from school and reschedule an appointment I had made to take the boys to the paediatrician; do you think anyone was particularly grateful? No, of course not.

In non-whiny news, we no longer have lice, rejoice! Also, if you wish, you may hear the Princess recite a cautionary verse in a somewhat alarming fashion.

Nostalgia already


Posted in: Princess
It’s a year since the Princess started school. They start them early in Belgium; two and a half. She was the oldest child in the creche when we kept her there until January. Two and three quarters the other parents muttered darkly, look at the size of her, she should be in school.
In a spirit of nostalgia, I was looking through her drawings and other stuff from the creche which they presented to us in a neat folder when she finished (you stay at home mothers may have been there when they painted the picture but I bet you don’t have their work neatly filed for you by other people like us working mothers). They gave her an assessment:

“Nous avons découvert en P une petite fille charmante, épanouie, souriante, curieuse et appréciant la vie à l’atelier entourée de ses amis. P a un excellent vocabulaire et une très très bonne structure de phrases et fait bien la part des choses par rapport aux deux langues (francais-anglais).

Lors du regroupement au coin tapis, P est la première à s’installer. Elle connaît tout le répertoire par coeur et est capable de reproduire un coin tapis a elle toute seule sous l’oeil admiratif de ses copains. P porte beaucoup d’intérêt aux histoires; elle fait ses petits commentaires et en demande encore et encore.

Elle reconnaît son prénom écrit selon la méthode Cohen. P connaît les couleurs primaires et secondaires. Lors de nos activités artistiques, P tient ses outils correctement. Elle respecte les consignes données par l’adulte, a acquis la psychomotricité fine. Pendant nos séances de psychomotricité, P saute, grimpe, rampe et passe dans le tunnel sans crainte.

Elle connaît les notions spatiales au-dessus/en dessous, devant/derrière et connaît son schéma corporel. Lors des jeux, P aime beaucoup jouer avec les poupées et les poussettes comme une petite maman. Elle apprécie aussi les jeux de constructions.

Nos grandes conversations et moment câlins nous manqueront beaucoup.

Bonne route a toi, P.

L’équipe de l’Atelier”

Can’t say why but it makes me feel a little sad; I chose to go back to work but it doesn’t mean I don’t wish I could have it both ways.

Welcome to the empirical world


Posted in: Work

Me: How was your weekend?

New student trainee: Dreadful, I was working on an essay.

Me: On what?

He elaborates.

I offer my considered and somewhat divergent views.

Him: Well that’s an empirical paradigm whereas I am working with a theoretical model.

Ah students.

Bedtime


Posted in: Princess

The Princess and I were looking at a picture of animals in a wood in her book.   We named them and the various flora surrounding them.  She pointed to a small insect “what’s that?”.  “I’m not sure” I said.  “Probably an insect” she said wisely.  “Yes, probably”, I agreed “what do you think it’s doing?”.  “Probably looking for hair to live in”.  Indeed.

Please see nostalgic video of Princess reciting a nursery rhyme when nothing lived in her hair, if you are so inclined.