Somewhere in the distance

Are our children being spoiled with expensive gifts and designer clothes, at the expense of a loving family life? via the Brentwood Gazette

Nici — Thu, 15 Sep 2011 13:22:10 +0000

Yesterday my local newspaper published the below article which prompted me to blog about a personal situation I have recently experienced. Whilst I appreciate that some parents do lavish expensive gifts on their children as a means of showing love, does it apply to everyone? As a busy parent who is a full time student at university, my life can be very busy at times. I thought I would treat my 15yr son to say thank you for being so supportive during my first year at uni and as an ‘I’m sorry’ present for being so busy. This treat was an xbox 360 with a couple of games. This was the first big present I have ever brought him outside of Christmas and birthday and I wanted to spoil him. Most people think that this was a lovely thing to do, and didn’t in anyway substitute a loving family life. However, there have been some people who quite obviously disapproved.

So now I am wondering why I feel the need to justify myself.. I worked for 13 years in a job I disliked because it had child friendly hours so I was able to pick my son up from school every day and spend all evening with him. I have been single for quite a while now, by my own choice, so that I could dedicate all my time and energy purely to my son. It wasn’t until he was 14 that I decided to go back to education to get the training I needed to have a job that I wanted to do, not one that simply suited my lifestyle at the time.

My son and I are blessed with a wonderful relationship, to the envy of his friends, three of which call me ‘mum’ and turn to me with their problems. We spend a lot of time talking, laughing and just simply spending time together as a family. He pretty much tells me everything, very much to the amusement of my dad, and turns to me and listens to me when he has problems. He even rings me on his way home from school for a chat and to tell me about his day! <3

So, am I a bad parent buying my son’s love with an xbox? Or am I simply showing him how much I appreciate his support, understanding and the relationship we have?

Are our children being spoiled with expensive gifts and designer clothes, at the expense of a loving family life? http://bit.ly/owe6QY

Summer is very nearly over

Nici — Sat, 10 Sep 2011 18:00:26 +0000

So after four months off from uni, suddenly I am back on Friday. I can’t quite tell you how I have filled my time during these four months, all I remember is for most of it I was bored! But now with Friday looming ever closer, I’m reflecting on the huge workload which awaits me as a second year social work student. We have a Children and Families module which consists of a 3,000 word assignment and a 3,000 word group presentation. A 3,000 word assignment for our Context and Practices of Social Work module, a 3,000 word assignment for our Principles and Skills of Social Work module and a 3,000 word assignment Social Work with Adults module. This is all alongside an 100 day placement in which we have a HUGE portfolio to complete with a number of tasks, observations and various pieces of paperwork to complete. Our booklist for the above modules is in excess of ten pages long resulting in needing a new book shelf for the books I consider essential.

I am looking forward to the challenge and believe that if I am organised and stay behind at placement every day to complete my paperwork then I should just about cope! For those of you who are not regular readers of my blog, I am also a lone parent of a teenager who is taking his GCSE’s this year so it is crucial that I balance my uni workload equally with my home responsibilities to ensure that my son gets all the help and support he needs to successfully pass his GCSE’s. Thankfully, he is very understanding of my uni work and we tend to sit down and do out homework together!

This year will be hard, but I must focus on the end result – becoming a social worker. I am hoping to find the time to keep my blog updated of how I am progressing and tidbits of info which other students might find useful. I am determined to still have a social life, as all work and no play… Well you know the rest

Grassmarket Blood by Bronwen Winter Phoenix

Nici — Sat, 10 Sep 2011 17:34:14 +0000

From the first line of the ‘Author Disclaimer’ – I am a teller of tall tales – you knew that this was going to be a good book. As an avid reader of Bronwen’s first two books, I could not wait to get started on GRASSMARKET BLOOD. Fast paced from the beginning, I was absorbed instantly into the secret world hidden in the streets of Edinburgh. A thriller full of sinister suspense with a touch of romance and quick wit, it kept me turning the pages. Likeable characters with their own quirky traits, made Grassmarket Blood very readable as well as gripping. Once again Bronwen has written an extremely brilliant, fantastic book, which didn’t disappoint. Bronwen’s stories just gets better and better.

Nici — Thu, 17 Mar 2011 22:22:02 +0000

FOR TODAY

Thursday 17th March 2011

Outside my window ~ It’s 22.18 so it’s dark

I am thinking ~ I really should get of the computer and go to bed!

I am thankful for ~ My son. He is the most wonderful thing to ever happen to me.

From the kitchen ~ A cup of tea shortly

I am wearing ~ Skinny jeans, purple top

I am reading ~ Lots of text books for uni

I am hoping ~ That the people around me who are unwell start to feel better soon

I am creating ~ Nothing at the moment Haven’t got time for much creative time anymore…

I am hearing ~ Slash’s Top Ten Guitar Heroes on the TV

Around the house ~ Books and bits of paper relating to the Social Work degree I am studying and voluntary paperwork

One of my favorite things ~ Marshmellows

A few plans for the rest of the week ~ Uni work, spending time with my son, see my friends

http://thesimplewomansdaybook.blogspot.com/

Nikki Sixx you rock!

Nici — Mon, 14 Mar 2011 17:28:30 +0000

So as a bit of a rock chick in my youth, my love for music has stayed with me. Seeing Guns n’ Roses at Wembley Stadium in the 90′s was certainly one of the best concerts I have been to and I still listen to their music now as well as lots of other old and new rock. My respect for Slash prompted me to read his book (of the same name) which then prompted me to read Nikki Sixx: Heroin Diaries. For some reason Motley Crue had never really registered on my radar so after reading (and loving) the book I thought I would see what their music was like. Well all I can say is that it is rock-tastic. Nikki Sixx has now become my new idol so imagine my surprise when I posted the photo below to him on Twitter showing my new Motley Crue t-shirt and he replied!

It’s so nice to see that even with over 120,000 followers, he makes time to reply to his fans. Thank you Nikki, you made my day!

P.S. I’M NOT NORMALLY SO QUICK TO PUBLICALLY POST CONTACT I HAVE HAD WITH PEOPLE IN THE PUBLIC EYE, BUT I THOUGHT NIKKI DESERVED SOME ATTENTION FOR BEING SUCH A NICE GUY!

Teenagers!

Nici — Sun, 17 Oct 2010 18:09:34 +0000

My 14 year old son has inspired me to write this post as it’s just been one of those weeks, but first a little background. I have been a lone parent since my son was 2 years old, I used to work part time at an insurance brokers but decided that this was not the career I wanted to be in forever, so I took the decision to go back to college in 2009 to do an Access Course to give me the qualifications I needed to go to university. I passed the course and in September this year I started university studying the Social Work BA Hons Degree, with a view to working in Child Protection when I have graduated. I am only in university two days a week so am home when my son gets home from school and am studying when he is out with his friends at the weekend or whilst he is at school. I believe that I have got the baance right and certainly my son seems happy.

So imagine my surprise when I get a phone call from his school this week to ask me if I had been leaving my son by himself for the past two weeks whilst I was at uni! After assuring the school that I had in fact been at home and informing them that I was at uni as a student social worker, they were happy that I would deal with this statement with my son when he got home from school. Basically what had happened is my son had lost his school tie and instead of buying a new one with the money I had given him, he decided to spend it on food and borrow a tie from the Head of Year. When my son was approached by this teacher asking for the tie back, the *only* excuse he could think of was to say that I had deserted him so he wouldn’t get into trouble. After explaining to him that he cannot lie about things like that, he accepted that he was wrong and apologised not only to me but also the school.

Then on Friday, whilst he was at youth club, I recived a phone call from his girlfriend telling me that my son had been injured and I had to go there immediately. Once I arrived I was met by the youth workers and was told that he was listening to a live band, jumping around in the mosh pit and got pushed and accidently head butted one of this friends. An ambulance had been called and there was talk of him possibly needing stitches as he had cut his head. When the paramedics arrived, they checked him over and due to his paleness and feeling nauseous, recommended that he should go to A&E. So off he goes in the ambulance with me following behind. After 3 hours we were finally seen and luckily no stitches were needed, they simply glued him back up and was advised to take regular doses of paracetamol for the pain and the headaches. My son joked with the doctor that I had locked him a freezer and that was how he got the injuries!

I love my son dearly but wish he would rane in his imagination at times…. A student social worker with a son who says I left him alone for two weeks and then jokes that I locked him in the freezer when at A&E! At this rate I will be struck off before I even get started lol.

Kids!

Dreams

Nici — Tue, 08 Jun 2010 10:04:05 +0000

Dreams are images in motion. These images are ideas and feelings that tell a private story. When you begin to investigate the amazing world of dreams, it is often difficult to know how to begin. Rarely is a meaning clear to us right away. Dreams have to be decoded to be understood in waking life. Also, we may not be ready to accept the dream’s messages. For example, a dream may suggest that we forgive someone, but in our waking life we are still feeling resentment. Linkie

I have decided to keep a dream diary. I have the most bizarre dreams and would like to start to understand them. The most common, reoccuring dream I seem to be having at the moment is that I am living in a towerblock in a small flat. Now although the flat is small, I quite like living there at there are restaurants and shops in the tower block! I also keep dreaming about being in a lift, sometimes the lift is very large with lots of people in it, sitting down as if it is a room, sometimes it’s small. The other night I dreamt that I had a big bunch of balloons which carried me down the road!

However, the night before last I dreamt that friends lived across the road to me and I ended up being in there longer than expected as my umbrealla had to dry and he said that it should be dry by 16.10, so realsing that I had left my front door open, I popped back home to shut it and heard music coming from my son’s room even though he wasn’t in so I called my friend across the road and he came over and we became trapped outside by the gate by several men who has been in my house. Two of them jumped over the fence and the rest came to us. The remainder of the dream is unclear…Goodness knows what they mean, but I intend to find out!

“Dreams are like stars…you may never touch them, but if you follow them they will lead you to your destiny.”

Vampires Diaries

Nici — Sat, 05 Jun 2010 18:04:42 +0000

So, not content with being obsessed with all things Twilight, I now have an additional addiction – Vampire Diaries.

It started when I began to watch the TV series and developed a bit of a crush on Damon Salvatore . The longer the series has gone on, the more hooked I have become. I am now reading the books, starting with Volume 1 – (Books 1 & 2) The Awakening and The Struggle. I found the first book dragged a bit in the beginning, it was a bit slow to get going and I didn’t like the way the author portrayed Elena compared to the TV series. However, the more I read, the more I started to enjoy it. The second book was far better and by the time I finished it I was eager to start on Volume 2 – (Books 3 & 4) The Fury and The Reunion. The books haven’t disappointed me. I bought Volume 2 on Wednesday and am half way through Book 4 even though I have been very busy since then .

Even though Elena’s character is totally different to her portrayal in the TV series, Damon and Stefan are pretty spot on. You can imagine their facial expressions and mannerisms and I think the actors to play these characters have been chosen well. The two vampire brothers are total opposites -

Stefan being the kind, animal blood drinking younger brother

with Damon being the sexy, dangerous older brother…

The similarities between Twilight and The Vampire Diaries are many, with the same high school setting and similarities between some of the characters, so if you liked Twilight, you are bound to like The Vampire Diaries.

I’m still here!

Nici — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 20:44:54 +0000

Wow it’s been so long since I have been on my blog, I actually missed it.

Firstly a very happy new year to you all! I hope the new year brings you happiness, laughter and love.

Life has got mega busy with me and big changes have been made…In September I started an Access Course at college which lasts a year which will then give me the qualifications I need to go to University to study the Social Work BA Hons Degree for 3 years so I can become a Social Worker; a job I have always wanted to do. It is a very intense course and so far we have been set 28 assignments, it’s mind boggling just how much we have to do! The subjects are thankfully interesting studying Sociology, Psychology, English Lit and History as well as Maths, IT, Study Skills and Tutorial lessons. I am now anxiously awaiting to hear from the universities that I have applied to, to know if I have been accepted onto the course, every day I am running to the letterbox to check the post and checking the UCAS website!

Family wise, my son is now 14 and turned into a typical teenager overnight. He is a good kid but the house permanently smells of deodorant and aftershave and our conversations seem to revolve around girls! He likes to tut and sigh a lot and it’s very hard not to laugh at him!

Unfortunately I have completely lost my reading mojo, not finishing a book since the Twilight series (which I still love and am hopelessly obsessed with Edward) and only seeming to read text books. I am hoping that when this course finishes at the end of June and I have a couple of months before university starts that I can enjoy the summer, sitting in the garden reading!

Any ho, that’s me and what’s been going on for the last 5 months, I promise not to stay away for so long now..Forgive me?!! I’m still over on Twitter if you feel like following. xx

Twilight

Nici — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 18:01:19 +0000

I tried for a very long time to avoid the temptation of reading Twilight and becomming obsessed with Robert Pattinson like every one else seems to have, but I am here to say that I have failed.

As Bella quotes in Twilight:-

About three things I was absolutely positive. First, Edward was a vampire. Second, there was part of him — and I didn’t know how potent that part might be — that thirsted for my blood. And third, I was unconditionally and irrevocably in love with him.

Bella Swan, Twilight, Chapter 9

This quote pretty much sums up my thoughts on this wonderful story and characters.

I read Twilight in 2 days, New Moon in the following 2 days and Eclipse in the 4 days after that. I could not put these books down.

I love everything about Twilight. The characters, the story, the way it is written. Everything.

I have lost count how many times I have watched the DVD and after reading Midnight Sun on the internet, I have now started re-reading Twilight again to compare them!

I found New Moon dragged a little bit for me in the middle as I am definitely ‘Team Edward’ but the begining (sob) and the end of the book were fab. I loved Eclipse as Edward was back in full force in this book and as soon as Breaking Dawn is released in paperback I will be reading it.

So, is it wrong that a 33 year old mum has a picture of Edward Cullen on her bedroom wall? Maybe, but you know what I don’t care!

Ever since reading these books I feel as if I have joined some secret society where I suddenly have new ‘Twilight friends’. Indeed today my hairdresser was chatting away about Twilight to me today and when I walked into the bakers with my book tucked under my arm, the lady behind the counter gave me a knowing smile.

And on that note, I will leave you with a lovely picture of the man himself!

Just a small note.

I know everyone is entitled to their opinion on Twilight, but I would really appreciate it that if you haven’t read Twilight and hate it because of it’s popularity and you haven’t got anything nice to say, please do not voice your opinions on my blog. I love this book and do not want any bad feelings on here. Thanks in advance.