Patty

Poor you - I dont go back to work until the 3 Jan - but the bad news is that I also dont get paid for it (contratto a progetto !)

dina1965

I been in the usual village-in-the-middle-of-nowhere over Christmas. No decent internet connection unless you park outside the petrol station about two miles away from the village and "steal" the owner's wi-fi connection ...

Belated "Merry Christmas" to everyone !!!

I don't know whether it's a good sign (I've got somewhere where I can moan freely) or just that I've become a self-centered b...h, but I'm back on this forum (and back in Salerno) tonight for a moan.

My OH announced yesterday that this year New Year's Eve would be "different". We're going somewhere other than a restaurant near his mountain top village ? He's booked flights ? He's going to surprise me with a trip to London ?

NO. He's invited our friends from the village to our house for dinner on New Year's Eve. WE'RE HAVING A PARTY AT HOME !!!!! yeah !!!! sit down meal for 12 .... yeeeeaaah !!!!

AND knowing that it won't worry me at all, our 14yr is going to a party in the mountain village that night with a group of friends.

Isakat

If my OH did this, I would book a cheap Ryan Air flight and enjoy the sales in the UK.

How about a potluck dinner-each to bring something so you do not have to cook.

I had friends over for the holidays and hate the sight of the cooker.....

Pecora Nera

We have had the MIL over for the holiday. I haven't had to clean , tidy up or empty the dish washer once yet .

37100

I've been under the weather with seasonal ails so I told hubby that this year, I would be giving the firework display a miss. His solution? Invite every one round to ours for dinner. Thankfully, I manage to persuade him other wise.

What a shame. Wish I had a MIL or mother like that.

giodafa

My MIL cooked almost everything and brought it around to our place..do you think they doubt my cooking abilities? So I was only left to washing up and cleaning.. scraping the torrone off the floor made me glad we don't have carpets

Patty

Have to go back to work tomorrow after 4 days off

Lorna at Vicenza

Reading some of the threads over in the Aus forum about the floods they're having. Sad stuff indeed.

duffer

floods caused by crying too much after losing the Ashes?

Lorna at Vicenza

Had a heartbroken moment for little Alex earlier.

I took him to football practice for 5.15pm and when we got there the little lads were already on the pitch and Alex asked me if we were a bit late today.

One of the dads hanging around said,

"Late? Damn right you're late! Practice started at 4pm today. First the team photo and then practice. They'll be finished in 10 minutes or so"

I was like "what - when - who told you? Nobody told me." Apparently there was a tiny message on a piece of paper on a tiny table outside the entrance to the changing rooms - that the little lads don't use. They just come straight home in their kit at 6.45pm coz it's dinner time.

I wouldn't have minded it being all my fault for not seeing a small note - but after Friday's practice, Alex's coach came up to me in person to hand me a sealed envelope with a note inside it about something else. He was there infront of me and never said anything about practice beginning early today.

Alex was crying and I felt like shit.

When the bloody village priest died I got a note from school and about 3 text messages from village mums telling me about the service for him. Not one message today from anybody saying that football began early.

Found out from Alex when we got home that he wasn't crying because he missed practice but because he won't be on the team photo and it's the first one they've ever had taken.

Damn bloody Italians! When you don't need to know something they're all over you with red tape and bureacracy and when there is something you need to know it's badly organised.

Somebody once said to me that small disappointments when you're young help to build you up in life so that you're able to get over bigger stuff when you're older. Makes sense I suppose. Alex has had some cuddles and a promise that I'll look carefully for notes in the future and ask around other parents.

indiebird

I hate things like that Lorna. I must admit I'm extra-vigilant after being caught out myself a few times.... I've also now made friends with all the reception people at the pool where my kids swim so I tend to always chat to them and they point things out to me... I must admit I'm always asking too because I'm paranoid. I'm sure he'll be fine but it's always hard to deal with that dissapointment at the time.

Must admit H came home with the first note he's had in weeks today from the Italian teacher. Apparently he was disturbing his friends. I find this hard to believe as he said he spent a lot of the day trying to avoid the boy who was suspended for fighting as he has taken to using H as a punchbag because H doesn't fight back!! He reckons that the Italian teacher was hardly in the lesson anyway as she spent an hour out talking to the Vice Presida about 'private things'. There seems nothing you can do about the people who can't do their jobs properly here.

Lorna at Vicenza

Bloody hell !!!! Football photos have suddenly been forgotten about.

OH just called. He's away for work again...in Russia.

I said "happy birthday darling" and he said,

'Have you heard the news today? Bomb at Moscow airport!'

Of course I haven't had any news channels on all day long so I'll have to catch up now. Just read the BBC :

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-12268662

OH's return ticket is booked for Saturday but he was going to change it as he'll have finished the job tomorrow. He's waiting to see now what the outcome of this will be.

Lorna at Vicenza

Thanks Indie ..... I must have been writing my next post as you wrote this.
Alex is fine now - it was just the moment that got him all upset.
I can quite believe H when he says the teacher was hardly in the classroom.
Sounds like he's more settled though. I very much dislike boys like the one in H's class. You don't want your kid to turn into a disruptive fighter but you don't want them to be picked on either. There are certain kids that I'd love to give a good, short, sharp punch to and say "how do you like it?" but what to do? Address violence with violence? We're not supposed to but I think some kids would only benefit from a sharp kick !

indiebird

Yes I must admit part of me is tempted to say hit the little git with the door on the way out of the class and that is normally an end to it. Would probably help if H could keep his mouth shut too sometimes.... I must admit it worked for me once. Some girls just kept on and on and on, I smacked one in the gob one day and told her what I would do to her if she ever came near me again and she never did. Sometimes you just need the reputation and people will leave you be.

I haven't heard about the Russian bomb either Lorna... damn it, he'll have to go and drink some more vodka. What a crappy Birthday though!!! Julst lucky he wasn't anywhere near there.xxxx

37100

Happened to have the tv on when the Moscow news came through and thought of your partner, Lorna. Wish him a HB from us. It's my eldest's too.