A New Year

Happy New Year all! I took a couple of weeks off from blogging but am getting back to it now. Did I make any New Year resolutions? Nope! I don’t particularly feel the need to as I already put a lot of pressure on myself as it is. Are there areas of my life that I need to work on? For sure! Of course I want to be a better woman, a better mother, a better friend, a fitter and healthier person, get back to building myself a great career, become financially viable again, perhaps  find an ideal hunk and achieve my full potential in all areas of my life.  Sheesh! I’m exhausted just writing that list. Therefore, in order to prevent the inevitable failure which would surely follow having set myself the task of becoming ‘2013 Superwoman of the year',  I have decided that I will just continue to do the best I can with what I have, right where I am.  

 

 

I also believe that I should dispel any notions that anyone has of me ‘having it altogether’. The family photographs that you see of me with the children are deceiving.  A dear friend of mine said, “I make it (being a single parent of 4) look easy.” Seriously, normally within one or two minutes of those angelic pictures being taken; chaos has resumed and someone has been poked, pushed or name called and one or more children will be shrieking because they have lost something. (usually a phone which ‘someone’ has deliberately stolen and hidden) Is there a special word for little people who take things, hide them and then can’t remember/won’t tell for fear of being banished to the naughty step, or does it just fall under the heading of being a three year old? We wouldn’t mind if she took and hid useless or seldom used objects but she seems to have a Magpie’s knack for taking our most precious items. So far, we have been down: two TV remotes, one Nintendo DSi, several phones, one Kindle and one i-pod touch which is still ‘at large’.

 

If any further evidence is needed to convince you all that I am a failing mother and in Ofsted terms ‘Needs improvement’ then I shall confess to you that I broke the British Women’s cardinal rule! I drew around my little girl’s feet and took said drawing into Clark’s shoe shop to get her some new boots. (For those not from Britain, Clarks is a no-nonsense, get your child properly measured and fitted in sensible, good quality shoes where you will at no point in the future be blamed by a podiatrist for having permitted your child to endure inadequate footwear, type of establishment.)  I cringe now writing this and I can almost hear your gasps! My friend, who came with me to Clarks, practically disowned me and did her best to distract the sales assistant so that I wouldn't be seen sizing various sized boots against my daughter’s beautifully traced feet. Unfortunately, the experienced assistant spotted me mid-crime and swooped as an eagle descending upon its prey.  The tall and short of the whole shoe ordeal was that after having bought and eventually returned three pairs of boots for being not quite right, I have vowed to haul my child along with me the next time she needs new shoes; regardless of her hearty public singing and penchant for making loud and embarrassing comments such as, "Look at that fat man over there Mummy!"

Despite my imperfections, which are many, I can honestly say that I am excited to be heading into a New Year.  It will be a fresh start and a chance for me to get more things right than wrong. I look forward to working on my ‘Mothering’ skills and watching my children grow and develop as people in their own right, getting back into the classroom and teaching again (in the next couple of weeks!!!), developing my writing and Living Life page with the possibility of publishing an e-book, becoming fitter and healthier (after all, I’m a single gal now) and anticipating the blessings which God has in store for our family this year. The last couple of years have been about surviving. This year, I seek to thrive. This quote by Maya Angelou sums up how I see this new year. "My mission in life is not merely to survive, but to thrive; and to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humour and some style."