Family Affairs and other matters

It’s the last day of school for my teenage son today. He breaks up at 10.30am. How ridiculous. Why bother? He tells me it’s because if the school doesn’t add those extra hours it would be categorised as a leisure centre rather than a school. Surely that can’t be true?

My 8 year old finishes tomorrow. He might be well enough to go back to school today. I hope so because I’m not getting anything done. I’ve still got all my presents to buy. 30% of his class were off yesterday with a much depleted staff as well and judging by the amount of coughing we had to listen to during the carol concert last night, those germs need to be separated for a few weeks.

I’ve lost my new Christmas cards. I’ve put them somewhere obvious and safe. They’re the ones my 8 year old designed (well, copied) and we had printed at vast expense through his school. That means I’m having to send out the cards he did 3 years ago – when I was more enthusiastic about his personalised cards and ordered too many, but couldn’t actually be arsed to send any out (finding writing just my name, without my husband’s alongside the children’s sad and empty). Now the few people I send cards out to these days will wonder why he is still drawing like a 4 year old.

My 8 year old asked me yesterday as we went to get our tree “how much money would you give me if I go on holiday for two weeks?’. “That depends”, I said. “Where are you planning to go?” He then launched in to his plan to go somewhere on his own quite soon and that he would need money for food, aeroplane, accommodation, some spare spending money. He’s thought it all through. “If you pay for the flight, do you think I can have about £200?” he asked. “I had a dream where all you gave me was 2p and I couldn’t even afford the phone call to you to ask for more”. I can’t say I blame him for planning to go away for Christmas. I wonder if he’d mind if I come to.