But I Smile Anyway…

Hello there, Peeps! Time has just flown by, yet I don’t feel like I have achieved that much, all!

So, got your drink ready? We had a busy one!

• If we were having chai I’d tell you that school feels all encompassing, to be honest. Monday, we had an educational phychologist in, most of the day, to observe one of my SEND pupils, then one didn’t come on Tuesday, and I found out that he had suffered a seizure – out of the blue. His parents are distraught, so working on supporting them, as well as their child. On Wednesday, we had what is called a Lockdown Practice, which is an ‘evacuation’, but not. Rather like a fire drill, this one is a procedure we have to be prepared for, too, in case of an intruder in the school. We had to make sure all classrooms were darkend, screens off, kids down on the ground. Not an easy thing do do with children ranging from 3-5, as I am sure you can imagine. We made it into a game, with me, Mrs Bhathal, judging who was was quietest class! They were prilliant, I have to say, even the SEND children who were in. And the Nursery, well, they were fantastic, hiding in the toilets! Thursday and Friday whizzed by. I feel like I still have so much to do, but I am not letting it get on top of me…
• If we were having chai I’d say that Friday evening was fun, but anogther load of rushing around for me. So Lil Man had his second awards ceremony, and Lil Princess and I had our date night. We were going to Bluewater for dinner – a bit of girlie time. We also arranged to meet another friend, and her two daughters, who are good friends of Lil Princess, too. All well and good, but I had to rush home after picking her up, get changed, and drive back to the in-laws, with Hubby Dearest, to drop him off, so he could attend the awards, have a drink, and not worry about his car. Then we went to Bluewater, had a wonderful evening, even though there was traffic getting there, and then, drive back to Gravesend to wait for the other two to finish up their evening, before the final leg of the journey, home!
• If we were having chai I’d mention that I was shattered, come Saturday, and after shopping and lunch, I was going to snooze with my TV on, but I realised that I had two bedside drawer cabinets to make up. So, as Hubby Dearest and Lil MAn heaaded off out to watch Venom, Lil Princess and I stayed in. She was feeling full of cold, and snuggled up in her bed, and I spent four hours fixing the things together, with Sonu Singh popping in and out to inspect my work!
• If we were having chai I’d say that Sunday had a chilly start to the day, but I still had things to do. The house still needed cleaning, and I had a mountain of ironing to tackle, as well as finish the book I had been reading for almost two weeks. That is unheard of for me, but to be honest, I have also been bingewatching certain series, and last week, it was The Squid Games… this week, I started You, from the beginning, as I hadn’t watched it before… Managed the book, and the ironing… and the house, I promise!

This week, we have our Harvest Festival, of sorts, Individual student photos, and generally, crawling to the end of the first term of the year, and it has been a long one! I can’t wait for Friday to come by!

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Hello there, Peeps! Another week has just flown by, and I can’t believe that we only have another 2 weeks until the half term holidays!

So, got your drink ready? We had a busy one!

• If we were having chai I’d tell you that school was a blast, this week. The children are generally so well settled, and we are learning how to manage our SEND pupils, in a way that will help them, too. But more importantly than that, we had a special visitor this week. Amanda Prowse, my favourite author, and her brother, illustrator, Paul Ward Smith, came to visit our school, to read their new picture book! We were honoured to have them here, and both of them were just amazing. Even more so, because they gifted every child who came to the reading (180 kids) a copy of their book! We were gobsmacked at their generosity, and the children absolutely loved it! And on another note, we had our P.E. lesson on the Friday and the children did very well with their dressing up!

• If we were having chai I’d say that home wise, we got quite a bit achieved, too. (Less we, more he, to be honest, as I was at work!) But, now we have wardrobes in our bedroom, and new carpet, and the rest of the carpets have been washed (though the musty odour as they dry is a bit unpleasant!) The wardrobes for the children’s rooms have also been ordered, now, and will take around 4 weeks to arrive, then, it’s just the desks to order, and a dining table and sideboard, and rugs. We are gettind there, Peeps!
• If we were having chai I’d mention that on Friday, Lil Man and I attended his Colts Cricket Awards presentation. All the teams were celebrated, and he came away with a medal and a little trophy for his participation. There is another one, this Friday, which is a dinner and awards, for the Men’s teams, which he is invited to, as he played for the Fourths, regularly.
• If we were having chai I’d say that it was a lovely week for my book, too, as I noticed that Amazon had 90 reviews, now, then my beautician messaged me with a photo of my book baby, being read on a beach. It is now a beach read! Added to that, my Pops finally read my book, too, which was just hearatwarming!

This week, aside from work, and the awards on Friday, there isn’t anything out of the ordinary happening, I think… so we shall see what comes up before the next update!

And while you’re here, did you sign up for my mailing list? I am in the middle of writing an exclusive Chickpea Curry Lit story for my subscribers, and there will be news, tips and even recipes! You know you want to join… go on! Click the pic below to sign up!

Well,hello, my lovely Peeps! Can I start by saying thank you for all the lovely wishes. Though I am still tired, I am feeling, healthwise, much, much better!

Now, is your beverage of choice ready? I have my chai here, piping hot, and filled with wonderful spices to keep germs at bay!

• If we were having chai I’d tell you though I felt better and managed okay at school, there were plenty of sniffles and coughs around me. In fact, I had to send one of my colleagues home, as she was really unwell on one day, and, as most teachers will, she struggled in, and insisted on staying. but, as I have learned the hard way, our health is our first priority, and if we work ourselves to the bone, what do we have left to give to those children, who we want to teach? As always, the team was just amazing. Everyone rallied around to make sure that we were covered in all areas, and it helped that one of my little lovelies that has high need, was off, as well, meaning there was more manpower to deal with the rest of the class. (Obviously, I was not happy that he was unwell, bless him. I hope he gets better, soon!)
• If we were having chai I’d say that on Friday, Lil Princess and Lil Man had an INSET day at school, so they were off. Lil Princess came into school with me. She hasn’t been able to do that for over a year, due to the pandemic, and even though she can be a moody teen, she genuinely loves to come into school with me, helping withthe children, and putting faces to names, after hearing my stories of the tays gone by. In fact whe was truly initiated to my lovelies, what with our first ever changing clothes, for P.E., and one of my higher need children took a fancy to her, and sat on her lap, unattended, and even showed her love by farting on her! It made her giggle, thankfully. I had visions of teen girl storming out!
• If we were having chai I’d mention that I had actually been dreading the P.E. malarky, since we had a year of no dchanging, with children coming in, on their sports clothes, on the day of P.E., plus, with so many of these children, they ahve been at home more than at Nursery, so the level of independence has been lacking. However, and it’s a big, however, they surprised me! Out of 27 there were 4 who we didnt change, due to severe needs and risk of melt downs, and all the others, bar 3 were pretty good, needing minimal help or guidance, to follow instructions, and get ready for P.E., then change back, after! It will be interesting to see if any of them managed to swap clothes, though. I will find out today, no doubt, if a parent comes up with randomitems that their child came home in, that wasn’t theirs! Still, I have reiterated, many times, the need for names in all clothes, and shoes, so if there is a swap that can’t be traced… it’s not our fault!
• If we were having chai I’d say we finally had our first Cricket free week for the first time since April, and it was bliss! Mind you, had there been a match, it would have been cancelled as on Saturday, the heavens opened, and boy, did it pour!
• If we were having chai I’d tell you that we are well on the way to getting those last bits and bobs ordered for the house. We were due to get carpets cleaned, on Saturday, and the guy turned up, but his machinery was too high voltage for our fusebox! Apparently an issue with newer fuse boxes… but, he is coming in a week with a slightly smaller machine, which will still do the job, fingers crossed! We have a coffee table ordered, too, and looked at wardrobes for the kids rooms, and the spare room, too. It’s getting there, Peeps!
• If we were having chai I’d  say that if you read my blog over the last few days, you’d konw that the whoe petrol fiasco is still going, but hopefully this week, will ease off. Also there is that small matter of my blog reaching 500K views! Taht is half a million of them! It has really fired me up, and I want to get back in the writing saddle, 100% as soon as I can! Thank you, everyone!
• If we were having chai I’d leave you, again with an image of Sonu Singh, as he tried to convince me that it is time to stop reading, and start stroking him!

This week, it’s a busy, but hopefully productive one. Monday sees the fitted wardrobes being installed in our bedroom, and on Wednesday, new carpets in our room, and Lil Man’s one. And on Thursday, oh, I am so excited, because my favourte author, and all round wonderful soul, Amanda Prowse is coming to my school to read her newes release, which is a picture book, illustrated by her brother, Paul Ward Hall, to three year groups in my school! I can’t wait to share some photos!

And while you’re here, did you sign up for my mailing list? I am in the middle of writing an exclusive Chickpea Curry Lit story for my subscribers, and there will be news, tips and even recipes! You know you want to join… go on! Click the pic below to sign up!

I wish I could start by saying I am a much healtier Ritu, this week, but thats not quite the case… but, I am better, I promise!

Sipping on Lemon and Honey, right now. Hopre your brew is hot. Ready?

• If we were having chai I’d tell you that I managed a whole three days in school this week. Wednesday and Thursday ended up a total write-off, as I felt so unwell. I figured that a day in bed would help, and, as it was my management morning, and plannig afternoon, we wouldn’t be understaffed. What I didn’t count on, was that one day wouldn’t be enough, so a second day was needed. I’ve been tested, don;t worry. It’s not THE COVID! But what the BBC wrote an article on, which is basically the WORST COLD IN THE WORLD! I was only saying a few days before that usuaslly those who work in schools, especially with the younger children, have the constitution of an ox – we are subjected to so many coughs, sneezes, etc. woth no barriers, as these are the children who are still learning how to cover mouths and use tissues. Heck, half the time we are the tissues for them! But, since the pandemic began, we’ve all been more sheltered, wearing masks, mixing less, so it was inevitable that our own immune systems would suffer a little setback. And that is exactly what has happened here. It started with a sore throat, then the cough, and the runny-morphing-into-blocked nose, and congested chest. No temperatures, just feeling really yuck! I was back on Friday, but it will take a while for this cough to totally clear up. Still, thank you guys, for your well wishes, last week, they are always much appreciated!
• If we were having chai I’d say that school, the days I was there, were colourful. The children are now in full time, except for the three for whom a full day of structured learning would be too much. Most have settled amazingly. They do complain about being tired by the end of the day, but that’s us too, and they are four and five, so I don’t blame them! However, the toilet incidents are getting a bit mad (thanks to some of my three lovelies!) I can’t go into details here, but put it this way, when there are already needs, these children find processing the whole toilet thing, evne harder, and we have to try and juggle their needs and whims, sometimes with no warning! We had the Reception Baseline Assessment, to complete, too, which we did manage, apart from one child who was off. Yup, a lot of kids off, with these bugs, coughs and colds, right now, too. I had full attendance the first week. Since then, pretty much every day there has been a child off, or three… It’s not me, I promise, but the kids have been so kind as to share… with me…
• If we were having chai I’d mention that on my sickbed, I read a couple of books, continued to keep up to date with the work emails, because I would have been swamped, otherwise, and generally rested. Hubby Dearest kept me supplied with food and hot, soothing brews, too, bless him.
• If we were having chai I’d say I thought we had the last of the cricket matches this week, but there might be one more, before we close the chapter of the 2021 season, along with some presentation evenings, for Lil Man.
• If we were having chai I’d tell you that I am missing Pops and Mum, lots, since they are out in Finland with my Brother and family, but my heart is warm, knowing they are all together. My Brother has been missing everyone, and at least I have been able to see my parents a couple of times, through this pandemic, whereas he hasn’t fort two years, so this trip is a blessing for them.
• If we were having chai I couldn’t forget to mention the fuel fiasco that has engulfed the UK the last few days. Here is where the news and social media need to hold their hands up to accept the blame for some true stupidity. So, there was an article about HGV truck drivers being scarce, meaning that BP would have a little difficulty getting stock of fuel out to it’s petrol stations as usual. Cue the media sending out the message that THERE WILL BE NO FUEL SOON, SO ALL YOU TOILET ROLL AND PASTA HOARDERS FROM THE FIRST LOCK DOWN, GO AND UNNECESSARILY FILL UP YOUR TANKS AND ANY OTHER RECEPTACLE, WITH FUEL, BEFORE IT ALL GOES! Sorry about the Caps Lock, but that just highlights my frustration, and that of many. Now, petrols stations across the country are either left with no fuel, or selling little bits at exhorbitant prices. But the thing is, there is no shortage of fuel! It was jsut taking a little longer to get out to certain petrol stations! Now, people who genuinely need the fuel to get to work, places of emergency, or even to go on a long awaited trip, are stuck with nothing in their tanks! Well done, all you idiots. If you wanted to homeschool your kids so bad, you should have just said, and we could have set work for you. Now, there will be teachers who can’t get into school, so some classes will have to be at home. The same goes for doctors, nurses, carers, shop workers, and all other key workers, including HGV drivers! One was quoted to say that he was meant to go and deliver fuel, but because the idiots had cleared out all the local garages, around him, he couldn’t fill his own vehicle up, thus not being able to get to work to drive his lorry! Again, WELL DONE, panic-buying wallies!
• If we were having chai I’d leave you, again with an image of Sonu Singh, when he came face to face with one of the neighbourhood cats. Despite a rather evil stare, he’s pretty friendly, and when he comes to visit our garden, if we are outside, he miaows loads, and wants to be stroked. Even follows us around! Sonu watches on, unimpressed…

This week, at school, I hope to be in all week. It’s possible that my special lovelies will go home for lunch and begin coming back for the afternoons… let’s see how that works! I am also spending a day in the Nursery, and two colleagues have birthdays, as well, this week! I’ll be visiting Lil Man’s Sixth Form College for a parent presentation, too. Other than that, I will be trying to rest up, and get my self a heap better, compared to right now!

And while you’re here, did you sign up for my mailing list? I am in the middle of writing an exclusive Chickpea Curry Lit story for my subscribers, and there will be news, tips and even recipes! You know you want to join… go on! Click the pic below to sign up!

I’ll barely squeak out a hello, today, my voice is not it’s best… sore throat…

However, a soothing chai will help, as we recap my week. You got yours?

• If we were having chai I’d tell you that Hubby Dearest has been busy this week, chasing up various jobs that need doing around the houe, getting quotes for different things, looking at some of the furniture we need to order, etc. Thankfully we haven’t had any more silliness, apart from the boiler having a funny turn one night, meaning the hot water stopped for half an hour! Cue panic stations, until all was settled. fingers crossed, that is it, now!
• If we were having chai I’d say that school has been a bundle of laughs this week, too (not). We have had staff shortages, due to illness, Covid, and other matters. Nothing that is the fault of any of my team, but unfortunately, something that impacts upon the children, and the wellbeing of the rest of the team. The children were in for lunch as well as the morning, last week, so it was interesting to see how they coped. Last year we found that many children were. unable to feed themselves, or use cutlery, and I worried that this year would be even worse. However, they have surpassed our expectations by miles! Aside from one child with huge anxiety about the canteen, and being out to play with the bigger children, the rest were more or less a dream. They lined up fantastically, ate well, and finshed fast, so much smoother than anything I have seen over the last few years, to be honest! Of course, it helped that three of my children who have needs weren’t staying for lunch as they are unable to feed themselves, and one can’t eat anything but puree, so they went home, but I was so proud of them all. They are showing, well, the majority are, that they are ready for the more structured learning, and they really want to learn. My much reduced team worked so well, with us all juggling things to make sure all children had all they need, and we finished the week happy, but exhausted!

• If we were having chai I’d have to say that I was extremely excited to get this bookmail, too, this week. My fave author’s first ever children’s picture book, illustrated by her brother! And, the best part, Amanda will hopefuly be coming to my school to read to my children!

• If we were having chai I’d say that not much else has happened in life, aside from school. There was only one cricket match, on Saturday, which was Hubby Dearest’s duty, phew!
• If we were having chai I’d tell you that we did have a couple of visits to the orthodontist, one planned, one not. It was tightening time, and that was fine, except they left a wire that was digging into Lil Princess’s cheek, so thankfully they could fit us in, and that was solved, too!
• If we were having chai I’d leave you, again with an image of Sonu Singh, showing you all exactly how I feel as I type this!

This week, at school, the kids come in full time! I know I’ll be tired by the end! I also know I won’t be fully staffed, but fingers crossed, we cope, this week, and hopefully the week after we are in a better position. We also have to carry out the Reception BAseline Assessment, a statutory baseline that the DfE want all Reception classes to do, to see where the children are starting their academic carreer. Feels pointless to me, but who am I, anyway? We don’t get any data that helps to support our own planning, just a waste of time, and it takes an adult away from the rest of the class, too! Stsill, I shan’t complain…. much!

And while you’re here, did you sign up for my mailing list? I am in the middle of writing an exclusive Chickpea Curry Lit story for my subscribers, and there will be news, tips and even recipes! You know you want to join… go on! Click the pic below to sign up!