four let-downs and a birthday

No matter how well-prepared I am (and I think I'm generally pretty well prepared...) the week always starts off mad. It would help of course, if I didn't feel like I have to do everything. It's a part of my nature I would like to get control of. Geddit?!
ANyway, I'd been booked in weeks ago to do a week's supply in a Washington school. Sunday saw us do a bit of a dry run to find the place and time the journey from Houghton, where I'd be dropping Oscar off at my Mam's, and Monday saw me leaving 10 minutes later than I should have done and arriving at the school as the agency were calling me to see where I was, at 8:45. Schools starts at 9, but nowadays supply teachers are meant to be in school for 8.30, and having worked in Spain for the last 9 years and not once arriving earlier than 8:50 on a good day, it has come as a bit of a shock to the system to say the least. Combine that with the control freakery and the fact that Elly turned 5 on Tuesday, and guess what? On Tuesday I was late again, 8:50 this time, making a courtesy call at 8:30 to say I was terribly sorry, but traffic was a nightmare and I wouldn't be there until then. As I pulled into the car park, Anthony from the agency called me.
"Where are you?"
"I'm at the school, I'm there now."
Awkward 5 second silence.
"Erm, they don't want you anymore..."

All because I arrived 'late' for 2 days running and the Deputy Head had seen me leaving at 3:20 the day before. As everything was finished, what was I to do? Twiddle my thumbs until 'at least' half past 3? Which is what the kind secretary told me when I went in to 'face the music', or in this case, extremely black looks from aforementioned Deputy. No verbal warning, not even a written warning, nor even a ticking off. Sacked. So I came home, cleaned the windows and got the place ready for Elly's birthday party. The worst of it is, it was a really nice school and they made me (initially) feel very welcome. It was the nicest of all of the schools I've so far been in... Typical. Also, Monday, Yoga was canceled which I found out at 6.30 as I walked into the Community Centre. Then I've had to cancel the Yoga class I booked at the leisure centre for tomorrow because there's no-one to look after the kids. Yet I still have to pay for it because I didn't call within 24 hours (22 and a half, but let's not split hairs...). And so on. It's basically been one of those weeks and I'm feeing not a little bit peed off and homesick.

Elly's party, thankfully, was a raging success. We took a bit of a gamble and invited 7 of her friends from school to tea. Two of them couldn't make it, so there were 6 little girls and Elly's new best friend Abigail's big brother Kieran, and Oscar running around the flat, all screaming simultaneously and having a wonderful time. My favourite (quiet) bits include painting all of their faces to look like princesses (although I did think it was a bit of an odd request and as you can see if you look at the photos they turned out looking like mini aspiring Baby Janes complete with 'crowns' on their foreheads... it was all Ely's idea..) and teatime, when they all sat on the picnic rug on the lounge floor (weather: cloudy for a change and a teeny bit too chilly for the paddling pool...) where they polished off the entire spread of sausage rolls, heart shaped (if you please) ham sandwiches, chocolate sandwiches, strawberries, crisps and the like. I thought, as you do, there'd be loads of food left, but they scoffed the lot and jelly and birthday cake besides! Godfather Michael came, which was great, as we'd seen him only once since we've been back and thought he'd fallen off the face of the planet sometime since. Elly got loads of lovely presents too; the only problem is, where on earth are we going to put them?

Incidentally, a huge thank you to the person/s who sent the lovely bag and purse for Elly. She's thrilled, but can Mik remember who pressed it into his hands so that we can thank you properly? Will pigs ever fly? Things like that only get remembered if I do the remembering myself – but hey, a girl can't be expected to do everything, however compelled she might be to try.