girl trouble

Life is never easy is it?

I remember being pregnant the 1st time and going to antenatal classes to learn how to 'get through' childbirth. We spent 2 hours a week over 8-9 weeks learning all about the stages of childbirth and pain relief etc etc etc.

Fine.

We all survived. As did all the babies.

But that was just a tiny part of what happens after you've had sex and made a baby. 16-18 hours to help you prepare for what? 12-48 hours of labour.

What about help for the years to come? The 18 years of nurturing that is supposed to come naturally (I guess, 'cos they sure as hell don't teach it) why does no-one prepare you for the fact that the terrble 3's are way worse than the terrible 2's (I asked the nurse at the baby clinic that and her expression seemed to say 'if I'd warned you, you'd never have believed me')

This week it's the turn of my 8 year old to try to make me even more grey - maybe she's on comission from my hairdresser?
On Friday she came home from school declaring that she had no-one to play with as she no longer had any friends...the other 4 girls from the group who play together had all told her they weren't her friend and wouldn't play - charming. She insisted her innocence and I told her that it'd hopefully blow over during the weekend and that girls can, unfortunately be quite mean - I should know, I was one once. (I should say that it is quite possible that she isn't as innocent as she makes out but I can't simply disbelieve her)

Yesterday she came out from school clutching a piece of paper on which she'd written very neatly and precisely (in very amusing Deutsch) that she no longer had any friends, they (listing them) had said so and she didn't know why. It made my heart break reading this, even if she had done something to cause the problem initially, it seemed so harsh that it was continuing enough that she felt she wanted to write it down.

We discussed it, and I asked did she want me to call one of the other moms to talk it through (I'd prefer to stick pins in my eyes actually than confront a German mother about the behaviour of her child but I had to offer) fortunately I drew the easier option, calling her teacher to ask him about it. So now I have to wait to find out what he discovers and then expect the other mothers to call me I guess...fun.