Ok, ok. So the page has been blank for a few days. I assure you it is not for a lack of things to say, on the contrary. Life has been pretty hectic over the last few weeks and I have found neither time nor energy to write. On the agenda have been things that have been building up for a while...

1. The Ofsted phone call arrived. Which meant four days of extremely hard work ensuring everything was as it should be along with bringing forward for completion things that were not due until the end of term. Ofsted itself was an 'experience' the new so called 'Soft-touch' inspection meaning only 5 hours to make decisions that used to take a week. I can not say I am at all impressed with the system to be honest. Never thought I would be wishing for a week long inspection like the old days!

2. The wedding of the year took place. Therefore the inevitable hen night (half of which was missed due to Ofsted), running around picking people up, hair appointments, taxi services, wedding, reception following day, house guests etc. I do not think I actually breathed at all that weekend and still paying the oxygen debt now. There was however a very pleasant morning spent on the beach eating fresh French bread, with gorgeous fat olives and goats cheese from the continental market on the sea front with our guests.

3. Interviews. I have never been part of the interview process other than to be on the receiving end. Two governors, the Head and I convened last week to interview 5 NQT's to replace our retiring Year 1/2 teacher (she will be greatly missed) Sifting through 25 applications (most we have ever had for a position here) made me realise how judgemental I am. I always thought I was the 'give everyone a go' type before this experience. Note to self...ensure that application forms are accurate and personal statement is strong, correctly formatted and answers the question! We finally decided on 5 and invited them in for interview. It was very interesting watching how the candidates did as the day progressed, analysing everything and finally settling (unanimously) on who we think is a very strong candidate. It was a very tiring day for us, let alone for them!

I think I am now starting to de-stress and relax after all this. Nik has been my angel as usual, looking after me through it all and even rewarding my efforts with the original Heidi on DVD! You know the old dubbed one? "Peter Peter!" I don't think I have been so stressed, worried and emotional over so many things in such a short space of time for quite a while.

On a positive note, our end of Key Stage SATs results are starting to come in and the kids have done extremely well. Well done on all their hard work this year!

So, although I have not the energy or time to elaborated on much here. It has been a very hard couple of weeks for me. I am not the most confident of people despite how I am often perceived and I have had to work hard on two of the things that matter most of all to me.

Now just the school play, leavers service, summer carnival, reports, Teacher Assessments etc before I can breathe again.

:(

By the way... St Peter's Summer Carnival at Aylesford Village, this Saturday (1st July)11am - 3pm. Not just the school but a whole village event...come along!

Posted by kary at 08:35 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Well, what a busy weekend and not looking like a relaxing one for a few weeks yet!

Yesterday we trotted off to a garden party down in Hythe. It was a lovely day and we were very pleased to be out and about. The drive down was beautiful with rolling hills, lush greenery and lots and lots of sheep! The afternoon was whiled away with cold white wine, arty company and sunshine. Very pleasant indeed. Nice to put on a pretty dress, lovely shoes and a bit of sparkle for once!

Back to work today to the news that they have found Mother's car. I wish they had not. The doors have been forced, the steering lock broken and wires pulled out all over the place where they have hot wired it. Waiting to hear from the insurance company now. I wouldn't want it back and I doubt Mother does either. When my house was burgled I felt disgusted. It is one of those things, that unless you have experienced it, it is hard to know how you will react. I felt my house was dirty, tainted somehow. I know I would feel the same about my car. So hopefully they have done sufficient damage to write it off.

Anyway. I am sitting in the classroom, having written two end of year reports (yes kids, it's that time again so be good!) and watching the sun brighten the playground. Soon I will be off to gather up my lovely boy from his new place of work and head back down to the coast for an evening of comedy in Canterbury with friends.

The weekend sees us being hens and stags as well as preparing for house guests, the following weekend is full of wedding! Work is jammed packed with play rehearsals, World Cup projects, film making and magazine writing, story box creation, extended writing, Leavers Service, Sports Day and a day at Leeds Castle, in addition to all the usual things!

It is busy but it is nice to be, if not a little exhausting.

What a shame we lost the cricket. *sigh

Posted by kary at 04:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

The morning after.

So I survived the ordeal. Thanks to Mary I think I finally found a hairdresser who is not trying to take over the world!

It isn't one of those 'modern' salons. No shiny chrome, black and white walls. No clones with the same clothes and same two tone hair. No pumping, rubbish, dance music blaming out and no bling.

The girl that did my hair clearly had aspirations of such but I hope she remains as she is now as she is very sweet (even if she looks concerningly like a lad I used to know). She did not try too hard to engage in small talk, just talked about my hair, listened to what I wanted, gave me good advice and then got on with the job! They clearly know their stuff and not just what the magazines say. It was a relief!

Anyway, two hours later I step out with new hair that is MUCH shorter (I have the sweetest little pony tail!) and full of colour and shine. This for little more than it cost for a trim at the so called 'trendy' salon I visited last time. (I sound so old!)

So thanks to Mary for her recommendation. I am now most excited to see what the girl does to it before the wedding!

Posted by kary at 10:33 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Thank-you to all those who have sent their condolences to my mother. I will be sure to pass them all on. The car has not yet been located as far as I know.

The day was due to be a quiet one. I had nothing planned other than to crack on with some school work, a bit of love for the cats and a nice long bath.

Then the phone rang early this morning. The hairdresser that I phoned yesterday was on the other end.

My stomach turned.

They said they could not fit me in this week. Now they can. She has agreed to work late.

Am I the only person who is scared of hairdressers? I know this has been the subject of entries in the past but again I find myself facing the horror that is having my haircut. In addition to this... I am having colour put in too! I can't just sit there for fifteen minutes and then run and hide. I have to be there for about two hours! Two hours of nothing to say, two hours of being the centre of someone else's attention. Two hours of feeling really guilty that she has agreed to work later than she should be to get my hair done because it is for a wedding, two hours of wondering how much I should tip, if at all and two hours of sitting there wondering if I am going to come out looking like a ginger zebra!

They have so much power. They can ruin everything. They could, with one flick of those sharp, shiny scissors, take over the entire world! These films have it all wrong. James Bond would not be coming up against Dr No or whatever his name is, Danger Mouse and Baron Greenback? No, no...it is the Superman versus Nicky Clarke, The 'A' Team battling Vidal Sassoon to save all the children! Think of the gadgets they have? Are they straighteners or torture devices? Perming lotion or a weapon of chemical warfare?

Be warned. If they know I am onto them, I may not survive this afternoon's attack.

How can you trust this man? That fringe is hiding something. That smug,knowing grin. He is holding your cat hostage at this very moment.

Posted by kary at 10:55 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)