one last post then i'm going to get a bit of shut eye before my daughter wakes up:
re: getting kids to school. The best radio interview I've heard on a commercial station was just recently.
The interviewers promised a fabulous interview with a "woman who has it all, does it all, is perfect and can teach you how to handle your kids!"
They introduced her as the "child whisperer", the "know-it-all", "the organised doer when it comes to getting her kids to school on time, every time!"
She butted in there and said "Pfft, what?! No, we were late this morning. Our house is chaos at the moment! My youngest couldn't find her hat and my eldest destroyed his homework last night...guess who I made clean it up and do it again at midnight?!"
She then went on to explain that this (or chaos very much like it) happens pretty much in every household in the morning and everyone is in the same boat, screaming at the kids to put on their shoes, jump in the car, find that sock/hat/library book etc). And that is ok.
Organisation helps but things still happen. That is ok. If you're all a little late because one lost something or overslept, well, its a lesson for the kids to talk about with you and plan better for next time...tomorrow is another day - and if it was you who lost something or overslept, ok appologise and simply move on to the next thing. Just be there for them, that's all you really can be. It is your job to be there and it is your job to teach them responsibility. Its their job to learn it and move forward. We're all in the same boat, we'll all try to get better one day lol That was her message in the end.
I wished i'd caught her name, but she had a great message for disorganized me ("getting better" me).