The story of the maths exam and the fake baby!

Our Kate finishes school this year and we will be happy for her. She hasn't enjoyed it much at secondary school, not that many of our children have. I think we have treated them all honestly and pretty fairly in a grown-up kind of way and the herding around and being spoken to in a nice but patronising kind of way hasn't really cut the mustard with them.   They have all done okay when exam results have been turned in, but somehow I think they should have enjoyed it more and come away more often excited by what they had learnt and wanting more.  I'm not sure if it says more about us as parents, our kids or the school system.. but hey..

Anyway, yesterday Kate got her GCSE results for the Maths exams they took in November. The idea was that they take it early with a chance to retake in the summer if they wished, but pssibly being able to finish with Maths now and have a good result under the belt almost a year early... so she set off hoping for a 'B' but expecting a 'C' .. she text me at 9.30 and I was braced for the 'C' .. and this is what I got..

    .................' Got a 'B' : Xxxxx'

                                     I was so so so made up for her!

This evening she told me that she can choose now between extra revision on weaker subjects (but maybe subjects she isn't very keen on) .. or she can do more maths (maybe the last proper maths she will ever be taught) and even try for a better grade at retake.. oh whichever, the B is in the bag and I am so happy for her.. it will, as Zac says, look good on a CV and for me, most importantly it might just give her the confidence to realise she can Do It!

As part of her Childcare course Kate is minding what I have been calling 'the fake baby'. It is a strange thing, a fairly heavy baby doll which cries at will and need to be handled gently and you can do things to stop it crying, like 'feed' it, change its nappy, keep it comfortable.. so tonight I am babysitting whilst she works!  (If my calculation is right and true to babies the world over it will sleep all evening and be awake at 2am.. when I will be fast asleep!)

I know it's not in the spirit of the thing to do it for her but hey I wouldn't do it if she wanted to go to a party!  I am a sucker for a baby I guess... but it is kind of surreal especially since we will have a new real live baby on Tuesday...we are all finding it kind of strange knowing the day the baby will come, not having any previous experience of a c-section, but so long as it is all okay.

Colin however is mortified, not least of all when his Dad and a pal came in for some supper. He told me to put it away, in a drawer or something... yeah right!  And who explains that...apparently it has some sensors so can tell the way you handle it and stuff..or so they say til she takes it back and we've both been 'had'!    So as they came in for supper the thing was crying and I was cradling it in a bundle!  Add to that a need for an explanation of the chrome pole in the centre of our kitchen and you can imagine the looks he gave me...well, like I said you never ever know what goes on inside four walls! ;-)  .. and after all there are ladies who have those life like baby dolls full time.. and it sure beats a puppy to clean up after!

I think he can't believe Kate volunteered for the baby, especially if there was a choice; he thinks they are really made for teens the schools think are at risk of having children too young! .. but she did and I'm rolling with it... but I have got thoughts of putting it out under Ross & April's bed so it wakes them at 2am!

Not sure any of this qualifies as a serendipity moment but after seeing everyone else getting into the art journals and stuff for our challenge I am hoping to join them, after all it's only one page a month...will keep you posted if I can get something produced through the week! x

.. I have been scrapbooking today, a small crew but very enjoyable. We have been together as a group for almost five years and it is warming to spend time together. We often chat away the first hour without even getting our papers out!

We did some nice layering layouts and I was happy because I had lots of the latest photos to include.. Holly Tree Cutting Day and Baking JB on Christmas Eve. These two layouts do need a bit more work, a little extra bling or maybe a grungeboard swirl, but who knows when they will come..so here they are for now...