This Week: 10th September 2012

It is nearly a year since I last posted one of these, but they are both a great way of keeping a diary and a discipline to stop me neglecting the blog so I'm intending to start posting them weekly again.

The weather ... after a week of lovely late summer weather and a perfect (hot!) September weekend the temperature is forecast to drop from high 70s to low 60s over the next couple of days. Time to dig out autumn clothes.

I am wearing ... wide legged navy trousers, cobalt blue sweater, blue/navy ballet flats

I am reading ... after reading several books while we were away I haven't yet settled on what to read next. 

I am creating ... panic knitting socks for my mother's birthday next week. She wanted another pair of Hermione's Everyday Socks in navy, identical to a pair I knitted for her last year.  

I am listening ... to Rose watching Grandpa in my Pocket on the iPad.

I am watching ... Who Do You Think You Are (trying to catch up on episodes missed while we were away) and Dragons Den. The summer was mostly a big Olympic TV binge.

I am enjoying ... life! Most of the time, between the inevitable minor crises that arise when you have children and an elderly mother. 

Learning Notes ... everyone is back to school now and next week will be the first full week of the new school year. A quick fill-in of where everyone is now:

Helen - starting Year 13 (her final year of school - how did that happen?) and taking A2 / A level in English language, media studies and photography. She did well in her AS exams (these are taken at the end of Year 12 and count as a qualification in themselves, but also count towards the final A level result), with an A in photography and Bs in English, media and general studies (pass grades are A to E, with an A* for exceptional achievement). As she was predicted Bs or Cs everyone was happy. The day before she got her exam results she passed her driving test so is now sharing my little car and is able to drive herself to work. She is still working at the gym, but now coaches a small competition squad - low level, competing for fun, not the serious stuff - and is going to be working for her Level 1 coaching qualification this term. 

Marie - in Year 10 and working on her GCSE courses. She is taking English (language and literature), maths, science (she was originally in a science group which takes physics, chemistry and biology as separate GCSEs, but spectacularly failed a test and is now doing double science - "double" because it counts as two GCSEs), French, history, business studies and art. 

Rose - starting Year 2.  She likes her teachers and seems happy so far. She tells me she is the best reader in her class and is the only child on "light blue" readers (their take-home reading books are colour coded and they get free choice within their  designated colour). This year we are leaving a spare pair of glasses at school. Just as well, as it only took until day 2 to forget to take her normal pair! She is still learning to swim, very slowly, and will take her first ballet exam next month. 

Me - I am putting my archive course on hold for a while as trying to juggle working full time, studying and the Christmas carol playing season would be crazy. I think the next course I take will be one on reading Latin documents starting in spring 2013. 

On the menu ...

Monday: chicken stir fry

Tuesday: chicken in breadcrumbs and chip-van chips. A fish-and-chip van which does great chips (fries) visits our estate on Tuesdays, so it has become our regular chip-van chips night.

Wednesday: ??? No idea how to fit in cooking and eating as everyone is flying around to various places during dinner cooking and eating time.

Thursday: pasta with tomato sauce and meatballs

Friday: haddock cooked with courgettes and mustard

Saturday: burgers with salad

Sunday: Roast - lamb, potatoes, parsnips and other veggies

On the calendar ...

Monday: the first day of my first week working full time for more years than I can remember. From this week I will be working three days a week as an archivist and two days a week on my cataloguing job (which has 10 months left to run). 

Tuesday: orthodontist's appointment for Marie. Rose usually has a ballet class on Tuesday's but her dance term doesn't start until next week.

Wednesday: rush home from work for a talk at Marie's school for parents and students in Year 10 at 6, followed by teaching at training band and band practice. Helen working from 4.30 to 6.30. Asthma check up for Marie and dental appointment for Helen (who fortunately can now take herself to appointments!)

Thursday: swimming for Rose, work for Helen, orchestra rehearsal for me. This term we are playing Bruckner's 4th symphony (75 minutes long! Yikes!) and Haydn's sinfonia concertante. I missed the first rehearsal last week due to a retirement party for the colleague I am replacing (hence the change of hours this week). 

Friday: nothing out of the ordinary.

Saturday: work in the morning for Helen, otherwise no plans yet.

Sunday: no plans. Rosh Hashanah (Jewish new year) starts in the evening.

A picture from last week: 

I played with the band at our last summer fete on Saturday. The announcer was a well-known Radio 1 DJ from the 70s and 80s. Any guesses? (Clue = hairy!)