I LOVE BEING PROVED RIGHT

Whirinaki Child and Adolescent Mental Health


 A couple of weeks ago I took Brylee to Whirinaki to be assessed as her TEACHER and the Educational Psychologist decided that the reason she has struggled to make and maintain friendships was most likely due to her feeling ABANDONED by her birth mother and having very low self esteem.    (I  believe this was to cover the fact that their 'Circle of Friends' was a dismal failure)... anyway I digress....
 
Yesterday I got a phone call from the Psychologist at Whirinaki to discuss their findings  after assessing Brylee and talking to me at length.
 
Seems they agree with ME!  That Brylee does not have any issues or bad feelings which might be reflecting on her self esteem due to the circumstances surrounding how she came to be raised by Stew and Me.
 
They agree that her 'lack of friends' is down to her PERSONALITY more than anything else, and how she needs to learn more social skills and tolerance of others, so she can maintain friendships.
 
Yep... she needs to learn that in this world it's not ALL ABOUT HER and what SHE WANTS. 
 
I feel very VINDICATED.... and soooo wish I could say "I told you so" to her teacher.  It was her teacher who got this particular ball rolling in the first place. 

ABOVE:  Today our darling Grey Puppy (Rhino),  leaves us on a plane for Wellington. He's going to a lovely new family of Mum, Dad and two teenage kids (girl and boy)... he is going to be loved to bits.
He has to be at the airport late this afternoon... so might be takeaways for dinner!
 
ONWARD... I've got 'stuff' to do!

TRACY:  Brylee's school has already done all those 'workshops'... and Brylee was part of them too.  Respectful Friendships and how to be a good friend was one of the main topic in the Senior School for the first half of this year.

I had a family come and look at the pups this morning.  The woman and child LOVED THEM and wanted one right there and then.  The husband?  Not so sure about him.  He spent most of the time here saying negative things about them.  I don't know if it was a ruse or for real.  Either way, he was not that nice.

ANONYMOUS:  fair enough.  BUT I do know my own child, and to be forced into taking her to MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES really pissed me off.  I did not want to give her 'ammunition' to justify her attitude.  And giving NEGATIVE behaviour lots of ATTENTION is NOT the way to go either.  Until you have had 8 kids, encountered almost every crappy behaviour they can throw at you... try giving ME the right to know what I'm talking about.  edit: I am talking about knowing how to deal with MY OWN KIDS HERE.

Brylee's teacher has two kids and has only been teaching for 2 years.  End of.

EMILY:  I tend to agree.

Rhino has gone.  I took him to the airport and stayed with him until they had to take him out the back for loading... it was really hard to part with him!   He was perfectly happy in his travel case though, he even went to sleep.  So I hope he is fine in the plane... he should be just taking off for Wellington now (6.35pm). He is such a cuddly, gentle wee boy, I am going to miss him so much. 

*sigh*  TINA: you are right in one thing, I did NOT call myself an EXPERT in anything.  BUT I did say I knew my OWN kid through and through, and therefore knew MORE ABOUT HER than the so called 'experts'.  And I do know that even though I have/am raising 8 kids does not make me an EXPERT on problems you can encounter with kids.... but I did say I had encountered many behaviours from  MY OWN KIDS... and knew how to deal with them.  MY KIDS.  Not yours, not any one elses.  MINE.   Thank you for your input, I hope it made you feel better today.

End of Day:   in future I will be putting the more 'personal' stuff like today's issue on PEPSI.  Then I won't ever have to justify my feelings... or put up with ANONYMOUS comments.  (you may have put YOUR name?...  but no link eh)
nite nite

TINA/ANONYMOUS:  I did indeed EDIT my blog AFTER your comment!  I did not want anyone else to think I was saying I knew it all about kids and their behaviour!  I wanted to be CLEAR that I was talking about my own children.  I did not think I was being sarcastic?  But then again, maybe I was!  It is my blog and I can put whatever I want on it actually.  You can stop reading it whenever you like.  How about NOW?

I think it is rather sad that you decended into calling me nasty names.  I would like to point out that at NO TIME did I call you anything nasty at all.

BEATEN TO THE PUNCH...

When I arrived at the Hospice Shop yesterday morning I was greeted by a huddle outside the back door ... the Boss and three of the volunteers were standing there talking.   I joined them and was told I could not go inside yet as 'The Volunteer's Manager'  was inside talking to Mrs Smelly Pants!

I asked "What about?"

Seems SOMEONE (NOT me!) had laid a complaint about her farting and being so offensive as to do it in front of staff and customers!

I was gobsmacked!   I was ABOUT to do just that myself, but someone beat me to it!

Once the Manager left we all went back inside and pretended to know nothing about it!

Mrs Smelly Pants was quiet, and for once did NOT fart!   So one has to wonder.... did she manage to 'hold them in'?  or was she just not full of wind yesterday?   lol

The V.Manager said she was going to keep a close eye on the 'situation' and probably 'manage' Mrs Smelly Pants out of the job.  Nice.

Today: Taking Griffin to his Speld Lesson.  I am not going to Pukekohe today, I will just read on my Kindle I think. 

ONWARD...

Yaaaa... Jackie (Hippygal) just let me know that Chico had a good night!  Apparently she only cried for about 5 minutes then slept all night!  How lucky can ya get?  Most pups cry for hours when first taken from their litter/Mum.

CLEARLY I have raised well adjusted puppy's!  ha ha ha.

Do you believe in 'fate'?  Well I do.

I had planned to read my kindle while Griffin had his lesson eh?
BUT NO, I decided on the spur of the moment to go into Pukekohe and have a walk.

I stopped at my MOST favourite shop in the world (apart from fabric shops that is!)... 'The Complete Garden'.  And wouldn't you know it... they were having a '2nd's and Damaged' sale out the back!

So I wandered out the back. (Well come ON! who wouldn't?)  There were two gorgeous wall clocks out there (I've had me eye on those clocks in the shop for ages),  and both were heavily reduced.

Normal price :  $389
One was $200 as the clock was not working.
The other was $115 as it was missing one of the clock's hands. 

So... I said I would have the cheaper one to the Sales Lady,  and we proceeded to take it up to the counter.  But before we got there I noticed the missing hand was taped to the side of the frame.  The Sales Lady said it was still only $115 as we had agreed the price already.  SCORE! (I love that sales lady)... I'm sure Stew or Steve can fix it!

ABOVE:  so, what do ya think?  I LOVE IT!  The coffee mug is there to give you an idea of how big it is.  It is made of solid metal.

ABOVE:  the 'missing' clock hand.

ABOVE: oh and I got these two darling serving dishes from the Hospice Shop beside Griffin and Brylee's school this morning too.  NOT the shop I work at.

So, I think you could say I've had an EXCELLENT day so far.

This afternoon I have to take my Highlander (vehicle) to the Dealer as it is flashing a warning on the dash about the Vehicle Stability Control.... *sigh*... I'm thinking it is still under Warranty though.  Fingers Crossed!

This day just gets better and better!  The repair to the electronics in me car was COVERED BY WARRANTY!  Yaaaaa hoooooo.   No cost.    I am taking it back on Monday to have one of the little indicator lights replaced though... it needs to be done for the Warrant of Fitness.  But that's fine.

I also got a phone call today that made me go "YES !"... but I'll save that little gem for tomorrow!  hee hee.  A Hint:  I was proved RIGHT.

End of Day:  I couldn't have asked for a better day .... hopefully tomorrow will be good too.
nite nite.

IT HAS TAKEN A VERY LONG THREE YEARS, BUT I'VE FINALLY FOUND IT!

What am I talking about?

I have finally found 'THE' Weight Watcher Meeting for ME!

One where I actually LIKE the leader.
One where I LIKE the people in the group.
One where I feel welcome, and comfortable being there!

LAST NIGHT WAS FANTASTIC!

I arrived just before 7pm and found about a dozen men and women waiting for the doors to open for the meeting. Several of them said 'Hi, how are ya?'.... then once in the meeting room lots of them yakked with me, were so FRIENDLY and nice!

There was a large group of women (about 8),  who obviously knew each other really well, and sometimes you find 'groups' like that don't even bother to talk to a new person... but not them!
They literally dragged me into their conversations... it was so bloody nice.

After the meeting was over two of the men came over and shook my hand and welcomed me to their meeting!  HOW COOL IS THAT?

So that is it.  I have finally found the right meeting for me!  It may have taken 3 long years, but it was worth waiting for.  I'm thrilled to bits... and can't wait to go back next week.

To tell you the truth I felt like crying on the way home... I was that touched with how nice they all were.  YES... I'm a sooky la la.  I know.  :)

Did I mention I lost 100 grams this week?  Not much, but when you consider the huge loss last week it's to be expected.  I will do much better next week.

TODAY:  Hospice Shop duty.  I'm not looking forward to it to tell the truth.  I am going to see how I feel after today and then decide if it's worth continuing there or not.

AFTER Hospice I have Jackie from Rotorua coming to pick up Chico!  Chico will now be the first to leave 'home'... I hope I don't cry!

Now,  I can't have NO photo on here so I give you.......

PUPPY'S GARDENING:   (I might add, there is stuff all left in the pot now)

ABOVE:  See that Tulip?  Bolshy little bugger she is.  She may be the smallest but she has the BIGGEST attitude!    She rules.  End of story.

ABOVE:  Black (Bruiser) tried digging to China.  He tried REALLY hard too!  He wasn't that happy to be dragged out of his hole.

ABOVE:  Tulip getting ready to pounce on Rhino... she was stalking him!

ABOVE:  gorgeous little Bee Bee... licking her lips.  Isn't that wee tongue so cute!

ONWARD...

Work today was very INTERESTING... but I'll talk about that tomorrow I think.

Today it is all about Chico!

ABOVE:  well... there she is... off to live with her new family.  David, Jackie, Chris and Stephanie.  Oh and they have an older dog named Biscuit, which is great as it might help Chico settle in quicker. 
I hope she has a lovely life with them... well in fact I'm sure she will.
The best thing is I will be able to watch her grow just by visiting Jackie's blog. 

Time to make some lunch for me... it's 2.30 and I'm starving.

Stew came home from work with these for me:

 ABOVE:  flowers for the 26th Anniversary of our first ever meeting!  That man remembers everything!  He moved in with me and my 4 little kids (from my first marriage) after only 10 days! What a man eh?  :)

Do you know what is so GOOD about Comment Moderation?  You can just refuse to publish comments from pathetic, small minded, mean and nasty people.  I LOVE IT.  So Susan, go suck eggs ya nasty person.

End of Day:  I've had a really lovely day... and I am really happy that Chico has gone to her new home and I'm OK about it!
nite nite.

HMMMM... WHO WILL THEY PICK?

Today I have some people coming all the way from Whangarei to choose a puppy.  They want a girl, so they get to choose between:

ABOVE:   TULIP  or

ABOVE:  Bee Bee  

I am very glad it's not up to me!  Both these wee girls are super cute.... and FEISTY!  They're both  the smallest in the litter, but have the biggest personalities.

As it is a fairly long trip down here (3 hrs), they want to take the puppy with them .... which should be fine as first thing this morning I am taking all the pups to the vet for their first Immunisation.  That should be fun!

So, they will be good to go after that.

OMG,  one is leaving today, and tomorrow Chico goes, and on Friday Rhino goes!  

We are holding Bruiser for a couple more weeks as his new owners want to get him for their son's birthday, which is mid October.

So, after today we only have to find a home for Kiba and whichever of the two girls does not get picked today!  WOW!

ONWARD...

*sigh*... seems the people from Whangarei can't come today afterall... they are coming in the weekend or next week.
So, all the pups have had their first shots, and no one cried... I shut my eyes so I didn't see the needles!  Eeewwww.

Now I'm off to the mall for weigh in at Weight Watchers... not expecting a loss this week.  I think all the crap I age LAST week will have caught up with me!

Best laid plans and all that!  I decided to re-arrange the puppy's pen again so they could get outside from their pen.... so I got stuck in and before I knew it, I had it done.  It did involve moving furniture, washing the floor again.. bla bla bla:

ABOVE:  the new arrangement.  It means all I have to do is open the sliding door and the pups can get outside.

ABOVE:  here is Kiba "walking the line" puppy style!  Too funny.

ABOVE:  Kiba again, I caught him mid-leap!

ABOVE:  Kiba was the last one to jump out of the house.... it took him about 5 minutes to do it. 

So, after getting that all done... I looked at the time and bugger it!  It was after 12 and I had missed my Weight Watchers meeting... so I am going to attend at the same place but at 7pm tonight.  Maybe there will be more people at this meeting? 
We will see....
At least now I can relax for a while...

Mary H:  Coco can get in through the outside door... but she doesn't spend much time in the pen with the pups now... we had to stop her as all she did was eat all the puppy's food!

I just put one of the extension leave's in the dining table, brought up two more chairs from in storeage and OH I am loving my table there!  It's almost worth sitting at it to eat now!  LOL... we never do that, which is a shame.  I think I'm going to try and foster eating at the table a few times a week!

I was in a really good mood until 3.05pm.   Then the kids walked through the door... and as per usual they were arguing over something trivial.  It really drives me batty.  *sigh*  32 years of having kids means I don't have much tolerance left I can tell ya!  deep breaths.....

LYNDA: yep... it's a bad habit that I am going to try and break a bit.

Brylee loves going to gym.  Today she had a little accident... slid down the big rope and hurt her va-ja-ja a little bit.  Small amount of bleeding due to a graze, but she'll be right.  I got dragged into the changing rooms to 'check out the damage'... lol.   Not the first time, and probably not the last time I have had to check out private bits.

Oh the joy of parenting eh? 

End of Day:  this week's loss:  100 grams!  I am happy.  It's a loss.  After last's weeks stellar loss I cannot expect a huge loss this week.
The new meeting I went to was.....
nah.... I will tell ya tomorrow what I thought of it!
nite nite

PRETTY PINK KINDLE

 ABOVE:  Rena yesterday at the mall in Hamilton.  Apparently a hairdresser did THAT to her hair?  It really does not look good.  Poor kid is all I can say.  I hope 'whoever' did that NEVER does it again.

ABOVE:  aaa haaaa, look who's reading my pretty pink Kindle!   He started reading one of the books yesterday in the car and I haven't had it since. 

ABOVE:  you can read their minds... "Let me out of here!"

TODAY: housework.  Full stop. End of story.  I hope it's fine so I can put the pups outside while I wash the floors and air the house.  It stinks.  Mabye my nose is sensitive, but it just smells like a kennel, can't think why!   Ikkkk....

ONWARD...

It's 11.30 and I still have not finished vacuming the house... but all the floors are washed, there's 3 loads of washing out with about 2 to go... last push to get the vacuming finished....

Woo Hoo.. my new 'thingee' arrived!...

ABOVE:  dropped off by a very nice lookin' delivery man I must say! 

 ABOVE:  there it is!  I'm not sure where it will go yet, or what I shall put in it... but it's going to be handy I'm sure.

ABOVE: The little darlings playing in and around the travel crate for Grey puppy.   There are three of them inside it !  So damn cute.

`End of Day:  having computer issues.  My main PC keeps freezing so I've been using my laptop/  Last night it completely died... so now I'm reduced to using a teeny, tiny 'spare' laptop.  I've lost all my favourites... I'm taking my laptop to the computer Doctor tomorrow or Wednesday, so until then I can't visit any of the private blogs (Anne, Lose2live, etc) as I don't have the address's.  Bugger.

And as life is hectic right now I'm going to refrain from even trying to catch up on blog reading.  I love ya all... and thanks for still visiting me.

nite nite.

ALL I HAVE IS PUPPY'S!

*SIGH*... not much planned for today at all.
It's supposed to be a wet, miserable day.
Probably a good day to do some housework.
The garage has become the dumping ground, so it's the first thing on me list.


Until I have something else a bit more riveting to post, I give you puppy's:

ABOVE:  Chico, Jackie's wee girl.

ABOVE:  Miss Sassy Pants:  TULIP... no forever home yet...

ABOVE:  Chico again.

ABOVE:  Grey (Rhino) ... off to Wellington in 5 nights time!

ABOVE:  Grey puppy again...

 ABOVE:  Tulip again...

ABOVE:  Steve's wee boy, Kiba.  Soulful eyes.

ABOVE:  Miss Aloof, Purple puppy (Bee Bee).

ABOVE:  Bee Bee again.


Off to tidy me house....


ONWARD...
I got up this morning to find 2 of the puppy's had climbed out of their pen ... and the other 4 were clamouring to get out too.


*sigh*... so I fed them all, cleaned up their bathroom, let them run around for ages in the family room and lounge, then fixed the pen so no one could get out.


I have had something on my mind for a while now.  Steve is NOT going to like it.... I think I will list Kiba for sale today too.
It's not that I don't love him, cos I do.  It's because Steve is hardly here now to look after him and I can see all his care being done by ME.
I don't actually WANT another puppy, having to go through the 'chew on everything' phase, the piddles and poops on the floor... worrying about him while I'm out, having THREE dogs to put into  care when we go away... the added cost,  bla bla bla.


So when Steve gets out of bed I am telling him.  
Hmmmm... I wonder how he will take it?


Well... it's done!   Steve knows and said he was fine with that!  He really surprised me actually, I  had expected him to pack a right shitty.  So glad he didn't.  He must be more mature than I gave him credit for.


Remember how I said Steve had his eye on a piece of furniture for my Birthday next month?
Well he just couldn't wait, he's gone to buy it right now!

It will be delivered tomorrow.

I decided on the spur of the moment to suggest we go to Hamilton for lunch.  So we did.  We had a nice lunch at the Hamilton Workingmen's Club, then met up with Kelly and Rena at Chartwell Mall for a wander around. 

Found a few things for Christmas... then came home again.

Nice way to get out of doing any housework I suppose.

But it does mean it's all up to me tomorrow.  Oh well, I can get so much more done without distractions like kids and men...  lol!

*** PEPSI UPDATED *** PEPSI UPDATED ***PEPSI UPDATED


End of Day: tired.  Might just have a spa and go to bed.  
nite nite

GOOD NEWS....

I got a very nice letter in the mail yesterday:

ABOVE: I will take that... Thank You very much! 

I said to Stew:  "My boobs are OK", his response?

"Yeah, I know"...with a naughty smirk!  *sigh*... MEN!

ABOVE:     FOR MARTINE:  Teddy last night... looking a bit scruffy, must book him into the groomer soon.

ABOVE:  Emily in her walker... the last one is so cute, we always seem to post the 'best' photos... but I couldn't resist this one.  She's so funny!

TODAY:  Steve has to work... Emily has gone home... so maybe just a quiet day at home?

Naaaa... can't see it!
We will no doubt go out for lunch... have a wander around a mall... just our usual saturday.

ABOVE:  I decided that rather than post masses of photos of the pups on the grass I'd just give you a wee video instead.

Feeling a bit sore this morning... but it's not that bad.  No major damage done.

Stew just said we have to go do the grocery shopping.  That man sure knows how to ruin my mood.  I better go and check out what we need...

ONWARD...

Well we did the grocery shopping, it wasn't that bad... Stew did most of the lifting etc... after lunch we went down to Papakura and had KFC for lunch, it was the kid's choice.
We also popped into Steve's workplace to check out an item of kitchen furniture that Steve said he wanted to get me for my birthday.  Looks good, I gave him the OK.

Won't show you until I get it!

The pups had a really good run around outside this afternoon... and I trimmed around their eyes so we can see their eyes a bit better now that their hair is growing all over.  They are adorable.


End of Day:  Stew cooked a lovely dinner of steak and coleslaw... was yum.  Tonight we are watching the rugby, it's bound to be a good game:  New Zealand Vs. France.  I hope our All Blacks win or Stew and Steve are going to be so pissed!
nite nite.