Learning made fun

What's the most embarrassing things your child has done?

AS a Mum of 3, even though my children are grown up now (or getting there), I can still remember the feeling of panic as I recall the embarrassing situations my children have put me in. I'm sure every parent must have had moments with their children when they just wanted the ground to swallow them up or to swallow up their children!

I'm going to try to be brave and not hide under the computer as I let you in on the traumas my children have put me through.

I think the most embarrassing occasion was with Alex when he was about 3 years old. We had friends round for tea with their 2 young girls and had a lovely afternoon. As they were leaving Alex asked the Dad why he was so fat! He was a large man and Rob and I just wanted to hide. The eldest of their girls who was then about 4 years old picked up on Alex's remark and started to question her Daddy as to why he was so fat. They've never been round as a family since, although we still do see these friends, this incident has never again been mentioned.

Matthew my eldest was the best at having strops and leading the other 2 astray. The most memorable time was when the dentist suggested all 3 should see the hygienist. Matthew didn't want to and had a tantrum that resulted in all 3 refusing to see the hygienist. In my wisdom I decided I wasn't giving in and we waited until we were seen. The outcome was a disgustingly rude child aided by the other 2 and the whole appointment was a waste of time. I felt embarrassed to have brought up such a revolting son and in retrospect should have just left and made an appointment for a date in the future for all 3 to see the hygienist once the situation had been diffused.

Matthew on the whole was a placid child but when he had a tantrum oh boy did he have one. Once on a picnic with friends he screamed for ages when they wanted to play football instead of cricket. It's surprising we still have friends.

Another embarrassing moment with Matthew was at a concert in his junior school when he was 6 years old. He led the class off stage at the wrong time and like sheep they all followed him! It wasn't entirely his fault nevertheless quite embarrassing for us to watch.

Emily caused us most embarrassment when we went with friends for tea to a posh hotel in Runnymede. She was 3 years old and the youngest of 5 children ( my 3 and my friends 2). The children were playing on a little wall in the gardens as they had finished their tea. We were still eating our cream tea outside when suddenly we heard screaming. Emily had fallen off this wall into water the other side of it. The wall bordered a pond with fish and about an 2 inches of water. Emily struggled to get out so ended up drenched and screaming. The hotel were wonderful in supplying towels and we took off Emily's wet clothes and dried her. The hotel put her clothes in a drier but wouldn't admit they shouldn't have had water the other side of this wall with no notice on. We could see the wall from where we were sitting and it looked as though it was just by grass- the wall was only 6 inches high - so we thought the children were safe. Emily screamed ("but really screamed") for about half an hour disturbing everyone who had gone for a relaxing tea on a sunny day.

As I'm sure all children do my 3 all had tantrums at the shops - luckily nothing too awful and although embarrassing at the time I survived. I can recall at least on one occasion one of them leaving the shop with something we hadn't paid for and having to march them back in to return the item and apologise to the shop keeper. These incidents I seem to have coped with it's the ones I've mentioned above that still trouble me.

I'm sure as parents we do lots to embarrass our children. Apparently, as the children are getting older and we've had more experience at it, we are becoming more embarrassing, so they tell us. Thankfully, as the children have got older the shameful incidents they have caused us are diminishing - we have managed to teach them how to behave properly!

What embarrassing times have your children put you through? Maybe if we can share all our horror stories we will realise our own aren't too bad. Possibly we may all be able to come out of hiding in the realisation that our monsters aren't so terrible after all - it's just childhood.

Photo by Flickr Ken Wilcox

My Top 5 City Breaks

MY post on Barcelona has inspired me to write a positive post about my top 5 City Breaks.

1. New York is my favourite place to visit for a few days. I don't think I could ever tire of this bustling city for a short break, however, I wouldn't want to live there permanently. I've been to New York 3 times and just love the activity. I find it such an exciting place to be. My first visit I went with Rob and we stayed in a good position in a Hilton hotel, which was so huge it was like a busy train station. The next 2 visits we went with all 3 kids and stayed in a hotel on Time Square where we could get an apartment to sleep all 5 of us so it worked out cheaper than 2 hotel rooms. I loved being on Time Square, even though it was so busy. Looking out the hotel window and seeing the tiny yellow taxis beneath us gave me a thrill. In New York there are numerous tourist attractions, museums, shops, delis, diners and everyday hustle and bustle - its so exciting. Despite great restaurants, my favourite place to eat is in the numerous delis with their huge sandwiches and enormous slices of cheesecake. Out of all the attractions my favourites are shopping at Bloomingdales - where we collected each size of brown bag: the Guggenheim Museum - set in a house; ice skating at the Rockerfeller Centre and walking through Central Park. Of course, no visit is complete without seeing a production on Broadway. Everything is just larger than life and great fun.

Barcelona

RUNNING your own business, especially from home, can be really difficult as you constantly have something you should or can be doing. In a 'normal' job once you leave work, on the whole, your work day is over - not so for business owners.

Working from home, I always have something to do. In the evening the phone rings as my franchisees find it easier to call me once their children are settled for the night. There is always something to update or create and a never ending stream of emails to answer. Evenings and weekends just merge into work time. In the 20 years I've been running Musical Minis this has just become routine for me and an acceptable part of my life. The only way I can properly escape is to go away and have a few days break.

Whilst I don't go away often I do feel it's crucial to my well being to regularly have some time off. I know that the business can run smoothly whilst I'm not around for a few days. Nobody is irreplaceable and it's important to realise this. I do have a nightmare few days before I go away and another few when I get back just organising and sorting everything out so things run calmly despite my absence. In fact sometimes I question if it's worth all the effort but it really is - I firmly believe everyone needs a chance to have time off as I'm convinced it helps them to be more productive when they return.

The benefits of music to children

Music is a universal language that knows no social, racial or other type of barrier. Each generation enjoys its own 'pop' music; each culture has its own rhythms. A variety of traditional songs and stories can be used to close the generation and culture gaps.

It is hard to ignore the influence that music has on our day to day lives. There are many studies which show the link between learning and music. Whether you are in the “for” or “against” camp in respect of the Mozart Theory (music helps with maths), what is undoubted is that music stimulates the mind and assists with cognitive development. Through music children can develop language, listening skills, coordination and social skills.

Manic March

I HAVE decided to post a monthly blog to keep you up to date with Musical Minis news. I will be writing about the month that's gone rather than what will be happening, as with the best will in the world, after 20 years running Musical Minis, I know that some of the things planned just don't happen when they should!

March was a busy month at Musical Minis Head Office. There was a great deal to do following our annual franchise meeting at the end of February. After a few frantic weeks most things have fallen into place - franchisees have received and been trained on our latest policies, their income and costs have been collected for detailed analysis, Facebook and Twitter sites have been established for those who want them, newsletter systems are in place and many more things. I'm continuing to explore possibilities for Musical Minis 21st anniversary later on this year.