back to school........again!

The kids were off school ....AGAIN.....for the whole week last week due to the feasting for the end of Ramadan....i have to say that it is quite annoying when the schools take breaks for EVERY SINGLE religious holiday.......sometimes their off for christian feasts that I've never even heard of.Just when you start getting back into a routine again after the summer hols...their off again...aaaaggghhhh!!!! I wonder if the Jewish schools (religious or secular) are off for christmas and Ramadan.I'm sure they are not which is fair enough. Why then do the predominantly christian schools in Nazareth HAVE to be off for all the Muslim holidays.I am not being discriminating in ANY WAY.........we don't observe Ramadan,it's not our holiday.....so why do all our children have to miss school because of it? I would not expect Jews or Muslims to observe christmas and easter etc. At the same time Muslims who attend christian schools are all off for our holidays.Sometimes I think wouldn't it be better to have separate schools? but then of course everyone would whinge about discrimination and yadda,yadda,yadda.........maybe logistically it would be difficult to have separate schools,and hey...I'm all for my kids learning about and respecting other religions, but i can't help feeling a tad resentful when my kids are off school every 5 minutes for holidays that don't really have anything to do with us..........

broody????...........

Well....I'm 41 and I have 6 children the youngest of which is 9 months.As I'm sitting here at the computer the 4 oldest are watching TV and arguing about sitting space on the sofa and annoyingly giving running commentaries of every little detail of the movie....you would think that I would have had enough by now........why then ,am i feeling broody...that insistent urge that tells me to add yet another to my clan.I wonder if that feeling will ever go away.I don't feel as though I'm really done. Actually I thought I was done after 4. Then I found myself pregnant with number 5.....I have to be honest and say that I wasn't happy about it.....but after a while I got used to the idea and ended up feeling really happy and excited about it....HEY...I thought ,5 kids will be fun!!!!! So I accepted it and that was that. Then at 11 weeks I had a miscarriage and was utterly devastated.I just cried and cried and felt the loss so intensely.After that it was like my eyes were suddenly opened.I think that sometimes we can really take motherhood for granted...I definately had! I suddenly realized what a special and precious privelege it really is....so I had Isabel and 6 months after her i fell pregnant with Alice!!!!!! Don't misunderstand me........I'm not some kind of supermum. It's hard work,relentless,you have no personal space,exhausting,draining and you just have to completely sacrifice your own needs and desires,and trust me there are days when I am NOT enjoying it!! At the same time,it is such an amazing journey,the whole pregnancy and child-birth experience,wondering who this next one is going to be,who will they look like.And that's the easy part......then they get older and start answering you back!!!! I dunno...........part of me says NO WAY you can't handle anymore....that's it,you are definately done....but then that makes me feel really sad and a little voice deep within me cries ooohhh ..just one more????..........also I am getting a bit old!!!!!.......time is running out..........I think my cut off point will have to be 42!!!! oooooohhhhh.....I dunno, We'll see.................