Quality time

I may have touched on this before but even though school has now finished for the term, I have not and I sitting at my desk waiting for clients to arrive and wishing I wasn't here.

I do miss that time first thing in the morning with my son. I get to spend so little time with him because of work - that 45 minutes in the morning is priceless.

But so is watching him sleep peacefully as I crept out of the house trying not to wake him!

Happy holidays to you all and have a great New Year!!!

Flipping the bird

I am not one to get angry or abusive when driving but sometimes you wonder why the authorities let certain people drive at all.

Today it is raining. The journey in was ok and we were early (but not as early as I would have liked) but the behaviour of my fellow road users left me shaking my head.

People I find generally drive worse in bad weather. Maybe it is just so.

Similarly, pedestrians, like today, have a habit of just walking out in front of your car without looking and doing so slowly.

The worst incident today came when I took an ill-advised short cut that probably added time to the journey instead of shortening it.

The road was narrow and half way down one of the those Council mobility buses was parked at an angle - half in the road - half straddling the pavement. It meant it was extremely difficult to pass. I motioned to the driver (not young) to move forward a bit so the gap could be increased to let us pass properly. He sat motionless. I gestured again. He then flipped the bird - nice from a Council employee. Well he was flipped back - a right idiot. I was able to squeeze past but it left a sour note.

I won't be taking that road again as my of my journey.

Done it again

Phase 1 has now got even smoother.

After noticing cars ahead of me taking what I perceived to be a short cut and getting frustrated by sitting in a queue a mere few minutes after leaving home I tried my luck this morning to see if my hunch was right.

Result! I avoided a large chunk of the queue and knocked 5 minutes off my journey time. Getting to school that much earlier really makes a difference (and results in a finished mini box of cereal). Repeat performance next week please!

Get out of my way

Although slightly tenuous given this takes place after the drop off I thought I might recount today's annoyance.

On the way to the station after the drop off I found myself walking behind someone. Given I was in a hurry I decided to "overtake."

This person telepathically seemed to know I wanted to do so, without looking, and veered across my path several times before I was finally able to pass.

It's at times like that that you want to shout rather than tut - my tut was silently to myself - but even so meandering from side to side is just not on.

Fill 'er up

Well that was a hard few weeks.

Not only was my little one off school for a week - but he kindly passed his virus on to his parents in equal measure. Phew! Not pleasant.

We are now fit and healthy and back on the school run.

Do you ever watch your fuel gauge nervously as it runs ever lower on the run in to school?

Sadly, I need to top up the fuel a few times a month and it is quite disheartening to see your fuel (and money) literally get eaten up every time you drive. Yesterday, I was running low - two bars  left. I thought I could make it home and then try my luck tomorrow. Well tomorrow now being today came and we made it and onto the last bar. I am running on orange ie fill up fill up fill up. I am not quite on dangerous levels yet but I will have to struggle on and fill up on the way. I think it will be ok - just.....

All I want to avoid is having to fill up in the morning on the way in - that would be a real nightmare but one I have so far managed to avoid.

An ill wind

So far this week - no school run.

Unfortunately my little one is ill and has had to stay off school. It is such a shame that he can't go just as the school year has started.

It was inevitable really - all the kids returning and the longer days - he was bound to pick up something at some point.

Hopefully he will return in the next few days - but though my journey without him is quicker - I do miss it - that quality time first thing in the morning (at least if he is talkative and not being stubborn!).

Changing lanes

There is that age old conundrum - when stuck in a traffic jam where there are more than 1 lanes of traffic - do you move lanes to another where it appears that traffic is moving faster - or stay put and hope you catch up?

Today - after another struggle to a) leave the house b) with shoes on  and c) to get into the car I found myself late and in a horrible traffic jam.

Not for the first time I question whether I should be in the outside lane when lane no2 moves quicker. On balance, and after 20 minutes, I probably made the wrong choice.

It will be @@d's law that I change tomorrow and then get stuck.

5 minutes

I am leaving early now, much earlier.

Isn't it amazing what a difference just 5 minutes makes?

This was evident this morning during phase 1. On the first few days there was minimal traffic leading up to the first (but moving) log jam. Today due to Pokemon Fusion related issues we left 5 minutes later and got stuck.

(As an aside - I really do like Pokemon Fusion - these Japanese cartoons are awesome and remind me of the quality of cartoons we had when we were small)

Other than the annoying early delay the rest of the traffic until phase 5 was free flowing.

We got in early just in time to label up a snack box before departing to the playground.

I was told to leave today - so I know he is happy and confident.

Rota shmota

Well it worked well last year but most things have a shelf life and so did this.

Getting into work late every day for a year made things a little awkward and for other reasons I won't delve into, my rota became impossible to maintain.

So began a desperate search all summer for a new rota. I must have called, emailed and texted everyone I knew or didn't know to no avail. I was met with apathy, excuses and sorry I can't helps in 9 out of 10 cases.

There were those who kindly offered their services in an emergency which was great and very helpful but in the end as we had no-one else to approach, we decided that the school coach on the way back was the way forward (nice run of words there!).

So now I take in the mornings and from Monday the coach will bring him back.

Let's see how it goes.....

I'm Back!

Well that's it - holidays over and I am back on the school run again.

I will blog more as to the rota shenanigans that took place over the summer another time.

For now, this is day two.

It was just me and my son and TRAFFIC.

Isn't it just typical that the first day back (yesterday) when you want to get in quick without any problems so you can see what's what and settle them in in a relaxed way is anything but!

Of course, that is exactly what happened. We left on time only to be confronted with a HUGE traffic jam on what I like to call phase 2 (more on that later) of my run. A five minute stretch took 45 minutes to pass.

Luckily once cleared the run was quick and almost traffic free. We made it with two minutes to spare and just in time to line up to go a new class. Phew!

What was nice was that despite the above, I saw most of my friends (albeit briefly) and that at least made a difficult morning better.

But the best thing of all - a happy child at the end of the day!!

That's it.....

Well I can't believe it. A whole school year has passed and today was the last day of the year!

I did find myself reminiscing about the start of the year, the run it and how much the kids have developed - it really is something.

Today the journey was argument free and rather bizarrely started with an evaluation of which colours are right and wrong for houses.

I have been doing a rota all year and generally this has worked well. However, from next year we may have to change it as it is becoming ever more difficult to start the day off an hour and a half late. We shall see what the next few weeks bring...

Whatever happens, School Run Dad will be back in September.

If you would like to make any comments it would be nice to receive them as would some sponsorship (hint hint).

I may update you over the summer but if not enjoy the break and the weather!!

Story time

My passengers were fascinated today.

I had been promising them I would being a new CD to the car for them to listen to - and then promptly forgetting again and again.

I remembered and there they sat in silence intently listening for 10 minutes this morning. Silence was indeed golden and I enjoyed it as well.

It seemed to relax them and we ended the journey spelling out small words in turn - something that I could even comprehend they would be able to do when we started school last September.

Giggles it is

I had four in the car again today.

It was a pleasure but exhausting as it seems whenever I have more than two traffic is especially heavy and there are roadworks everywhere.

What was really pleasing is that they all seemed to have lots of fun being together and the sound of unified giggles was lovely to hear.

Laughter always.

Route 4 update

It worked!

I am pleased to report that my time short cut will now become a fixture.

It is amazing how frustrated you can get knowing how slow and idiotic drivers can cause avoidable delays. Just by exploring a bit further afield you can, and I have, managed to cut out some of the frustration facing me on a daily basis.

The flip side to that, is when you arrive early, and it is too early to take them to the playground, they have to be kept amused in the back of the car. Today, luckily for me, they played nicely and it was a nice end to the week.

Route no.4

Well I have been threatening it and lo and behold today I was forced to divert and try and new part of my route by a nasty looking traffic jam on the way in.

Things seemed ominous as I approached the round-about in question and as the traffic snaked back to the top I thought ok let's do it!

And was I rewarded!

A much smoother middle section, no traffic at all and we got to school early. And best of all - I avoided a particularly nasty interchange involving a pointless width restriction! Ha!

I'll try it again tomorrow to make sure it wasn't just beginners' luck!

Oh crumbs........

It had occurred to me that in the morning your car is effectively your office.

That office too from time to time needs cleaning - and especially when your passengers have a habit of making a lots of crumbs from the biscuits, cereal, cakes etc that get consumed in the back on an almost daily basis.

I have a good old manual brush and pan that despite falling apart has served me well. I am thinking though that I need to use one of those giant vacuum cleaners to really do a good job. When I have the time, which is rare, I plan to do that.

I also plan to wash the car soon and am planning to invest in a pressure washer - that should be fun!

Those little extras

Like I have said before the morning school run is more than just the run part.

Today like other days before it, I have had to enter the school office itself to enquire about something.

I needed to check on an item of uniform to purchase for next week - thankfully in stock and very reasonably priced.

I will be back in the office next week for this reason.

Crossing the road

I should say that the school run is not just about driving.

Once the car is parked the children must be taken to their relevant playground.

Before this point, the children have to learn about road safety too. It is hard sometimes to keep their attention but they realise when I say stop they must stop. We then wait for all the cars to pass and safely cross the road.

I suspect the school will at some point teach them about the Green Cross Code (remember that?!) but I think the earlier we expose them to the dangers of crossing the road and how to cross safely the better.

My passengers are well behaved (most of the time) but it is nice to know that they are happy to (and must) hold my hands when crossing the road.

Silence is golden

There can often be a debate as to which music should be played in the car in the morning and whose turn it is to choose it.

Today, regardless of whose turn it was, I decided I wanted silence (not from talking but from music).

It was a good choice as I enjoyed the absence of pre-school songs and it was fun to listen to my passengers talk and argue amongst themselves.

Room in the back

Wow this morning was an experience.

I have a big car but I have never filled it with children. Today, I had not two but four children to take.

I wasn't sure how it would go. I have taken three before but never four.

The children, whilst a little noisy at times (and who can blame them - and there were three girls!) were very well behaved throughout the whole journey. All talkative and fun.

We even had to contend with a serious accident on route which meant we got to school late. That had no effect on them at all and they continued to behave well all the way to class.

Well done to those who take many children every day - it was fun but I am not sure I would want more than two all the time.

Back to normal tomorrow.

Breakfast

It is always a rush in the mornings. No matter how early you get up there will be a million things to do and not enough time to do them.

So much so that on occasion, like this morning, breakfast was extended to the back seat.

I know it is not the best way to eat your morning meal but the important thing is to eat. Thankfully that was accomplished this morning and with minimal crumbs.

That will be my task at the weekend - making sure the remnants of this week's breakfasts are no more!

A real boost

Morning

It is amazing how many things you need to think of in preparation for, during and after the school run.

Today it was all about tissues (due to a rather bad cold) and arrangements to pick up and collect a booster car seat.

It is quite a challenge to ensure tissues are passed safely, noses are blown correctly and tissues then disposed of quickly whilst driving. I think I might need a resident tissue box present going forward.....

The booster situation was less complicated but thankfully it was where it was left and seating arrangements will return to normal tomorrow.

People think that if you take your child to school it is just that. It is not. It is an all round care package until they walk through the classroom door.

Missing......

It seems strange to write this while I am on "holiday."

My car you will be pleased to hear is fine. New spark plugs and an ignition coil fitted - now it is as good as new and ready to recommence the run from next week.

Even though my journey times this week have actually halved (and by at least 2 hours a day) I miss being in the car in the morning and even more so at night once I finish work. You can't quite compare the comfort of your own car to the wonder that is public transport. I also miss that quality time I get to spend with my son each morning.

At least I am not quite so tired now at the end of the day........

I have a few more days off to enjoy during half term - see you next week!

The day after....

It wasn't good news.

My car is now in the garage. I think I have travelled at least the length of London today - to car, on tow truck to garage and then to work.

Phew!

Luckily we have good friends so it is easy to re-arrange the school rota.

It is also lucky that today is a Friday and next week is half term. Otherwise there would have been all sorts of issues to deal with.

At least I get a break for just over a week now but I did miss spending time with my son this morning. That is the greatest benefit of the morning school run.

Limp Mode

I learnt something new today.

My car which is new (not new new but new to me) developed a fault on route this morning. If felt as if the engine would cut out at any moment. I had to keep revving the engine to make sure it wouldn't stall. I was convinced if it stalled then it would not start again.

We made it and early and with relief I parked the car.

It was not an easy journey and especially not to transmit any worry to my little passengers who were more concerned with what music to play and tissues to wipe their noses. I made a joke of it at the end saying that the car was not well and had a cold. That was accepted without question.

We had a longer walk in than normal but they enjoyed the change and were well behaved.

I found out later that my car went into limp mode to protect it and was perfectly safe to drive (even if it did not feel that way).

I will call the emergency response mechanics at the RAC later - hopefully it will be just a case of resetting the engine codes. We shall see..........

Size matters....sort of

Have you ever wondered why so many parents (mainly mothers) have giant cars?

Unless they transport lots of children I can't see any purpose except as a fashion symbol. That is really annoying.

Don't get me wrong. I like big cars and drive one myself (but for me this was planned and has the future in mind) but is an enormous 4x4 really necessary??

I know it comes down to choice and each to his own but sadly in a material society such as ours fashion and accessory speaks over practical and sensible.

While that continues the fashion parade of such cars will continue in the school parking lot.

The new Monday

Today is Tuesday and not Monday.

Like Garfield I hate Mondays.

Thankfully today, which due to the bank holiday, is the start of the working/school week and didn't feel like a Monday at all.

Half term for us is next week but for many schools it is this week. That would explain why it took 20 minutes to get to school.

It is such a pleasure when the journey is easy and it almost has that holiday feeling too.

Unfortunately, there will always be a Monday but for now that is days away. Here's hoping the rest of the week is as chilled out as today.

Roll on

I definitely had that Friday feeling again today.

Everyone seemed to be in a good mood today which made for a pleasant ride into school.

Roll on the long weekend and a nice break for me.

The open road

"Here I am on the road again..." Metallica, Turn the page

Back to normal this morning. I had listened to this song last night which is particularly awesome and apt as I am on the road every morning.

I don't feel awesome today (for reasons unrelated to the school run) but it is helpful to gain strength from these sources to help you through the day.

If I get to the "Everything is Awesome" level a la Lego Movie then things will be cool. As it is I am in a dark and brooding place and for now Metallica fits perfectly.

That Special Day

Today is my birthday. I am not going to tell you how old I am (I am not old) and my hair has not turned grey or white yet or fallen out.

I do not feel older but I feel wiser (that's what experience of life brings).

I thought like most other birthdays of mine I would be greeted with rain as is normally the case. To see glorious (well semi-glorious) sunshine this morning was a real treat and a surprise especially given the forecast was to be rain.

I even got to choose what to listen to in the car this morning (or rather I decided enough with the children's songs for just one day).

I think I may have even found a new part of my route to school - but I will explore that another day.

Today is my day and I will enjoy it (even though I have to work). If the sun still shines and it is as I write I will go for a long wander at lunch today and think of the birthday cake that awaits my return from work!

Coolness personified

"Everybody be cool, you be cool" - George Clooney, From Dusk till Dawn

Sometimes incidents happen and you just need to keep a cool head. It is tempting to shout and remonstrate but I always find a cool head is the best solution in even the most exacting situations.

Not that my passengers really misbehave but on occasion acting in a calm manner can difuse any potential teeny explosions.

Waiting for the hand to turn

"With great power comes great responsibility" - Peter Parker's Uncle Ben in Spiderman.

As a parent on the school run I feel I have this great responsibility. I need to make sure that I rise extra early (and that means ensuring the alarms are set and I actually do get up when they go off) so that all the necessary preparation prior to leaving home can be carried out and we can leave on time.

Although I have to get up for work anyway, before I can think of the office I have to make sure that my child and other I take on a rota are ready, get picked up, are transported to school, navigate to the playground and are safely delivered into the arms of their teachers.

There is no clock watching waiting for the time to turn before the day can start - the clock watching is making sure I carry out my responsibilities on time.

(It would probably really annoy me if I actually had a real clock as opposed to a digital one to watch - as if you are like me - I would feel like hitting it to get rid of the tick-tock sounds. Thanks digital world)

Bugbear #2

Width restrictions - don't you just hate them!

Although this morning was the pleasure a Friday morning normally is and with the added bonus of glorious sunshine - my journey today would have been 10 minutes shorter had a width restriction mid route not have been present.

The reason for it was to ensure two separate bus lanes - just for a bus stop - could be separated from the regular traffic. And what happens if a motorist loses patience and drives through the bus lane? Snap - a nice fine. There is an enforcement camera for us to say cheese to.

It is only a money making exercise and those that be must surely realise that tailbacks etc will result. They probably do but don't care. They know there will be stupid motorists who will ignore the warning and in the process line the Council's coffers with more money to waste on pointless repairs and other inane projects.

Of course, I could drive another way but with any route you want to drive the quickest and shortest way and until I find an alternative I will just have to grin and bear it!

Enjoy the sunshine and the weekend ahead.

In the way

This is a bugbear of many - the cyclist.

I know they have every right and the same rights to be there on the road as us car drivers but to me they can be the most annoying part of any run in to school.

The road ahead is clear yet you have a lone cyclist blocking up the road ahead because quite understandably his/her leg power cannot match that of an engine.

Of course we cannot have cycle lanes everywhere and they cannot ride on the pavement but there have been countless time where a queue of traffic has formed behind a cyclist while we all wait to safely pass.

Even the kids get annoyed when they can't "go fast." There is a palpable relief when we do eventually pass and the journey can proceed as normal.

Thankfully, this is a rare occurrence but annoying when it does hinder a free run in.

Bump cars

Today's journey should have been quite promising given the sun was shining brightly for the first time in ages.

Sadly, it was not. The traffic snaked back longer than normal and when that happens you know something further down the line is holding things up.

My little one, who is growing more perceptive all the time, correctly predicted the problem was due to bump cars.

Lo and behold there was a large truck that had presumably hit a car and the two drivers were out on the inside lane exchanging details.

Of course as he said to me it was not good to bump cars.

Despite this hindrance we were only fractionally late and the sunshine kept us all in good spirits for the rest of the way.

Shortcuts

Isn't it great when we find a new route or a short cut that shaves a few minutes off our journey in the morning?

This happened the other day. I have been travelling the same route with slight variations consistently. One day I was faced with a snarling tailback mid-route and I thought: "if I turn down here, will it help?" It did and now my journey is slightly quicker.

Conversely, if I travel the same route after work on my journey home it takes longer. So I take the longer route which is actually shorter!

With our children though, unlike the roads, there are no shortcuts.

That Mr Anderson.....

One of my favourite quotes from a movie is the line from the Matrix where Agent Smith says to Keanu Reaves' character Neo: " That Mr Anderson is the sound of inevitability."

As one is prone to consider life when faced with the monotonous crawl through traffic before 8am in the morning, it got me thinking that this run into school is the inevitable - that is here are all these people going about their daily routines again and again and again - something that we all have to do whether we like it or not. The children have to get to school.

There was a further scene from the above film where Neo, having been made aware of his true position in life, sees his former life from a detached point of view.

I felt a little like that this morning. I began to wonder what are all these other people doing, where are they going, are they themselves having surreal thoughts about what else is out there on the morning run other than getting from A to B as quick as possible.

Luckily for me, today proved to be anything other than inevitable that for a Monday morning I actually arrived at school much earlier than normal.

That Friday Feeling

Fridays, as opposed to Mondays, have a habit of making us feel good.

For some reason this also translates to less traffic in the mornings on the journey, happy children in the car and lots of happy faces in the playground upon arrival.

It is definitely due to the impending weekend and that infectious enthusiasm waiting for a school free day.

I suspect it is also because Friday appears to be, but it is often difficult to elicit a confirmation, that Fridays are the most fun day at school.

Enjoying those smiles is something to take into the day ahead. It is a shame we can't have four more Fridays in the week!

The Sound of Progress

Driving in the morning (and whilst stuck in a queue) gives you time to ponder life and the universe.

The sounds emanating from the back today made me smile. I have been doing the morning school run for 8 months now. I remember the first days and months when my little one (who acts and behaves like he is not so little) was just starting his primary education and his knowledge was in its infancy (excuse the pun). Fast forward to today and he is happily counting to 100 and then telling me he has reached his target (or one million billion).

It is amazing how fast they develop and learn at his age - and if anything can drive away the pelting rain and make you feel good - that is it.

I can't wait to see what happens in another eight months time.

The third Law of Averages

Isn't it just typical that when you are in a traffic jam - as is so often the case on a school run - your view from the traffic jam is obscured by a large van or a bus or truck!

The same happened to me again this morning - stuck behind one of London's great big red buses. And it always seems to be me - for some reason I just happen to arrive in the jam at the same time a bus etc pulls out in front of me.

All the more frustrating when you can't crane your neck around/over the obstruction in front to see what is holding everyone up.

Thankfully, buses have areas to pull into to stop so the obstruction was thankfully short-lived this morning.

I am sure there is a correlation between said obstructive bus and stress levels with clock watching and wishing you had perhaps left two minutes earlier. Maybe I will try that tomorrow.....

The Law of Averages

Well the long weekend had to end and there I was back in the car again transporting two (one mine and one not) to their school.

It seemed to me just typical that after a sunny break my first day back would be met with an overcast, dreary morning with intermittent rain. That is surely the first law of averages.

Secondly, isn't it so that when it rains everything seems to take that much longer... The same people are making the same journey at the same time of day yet for some reason we get stuck in a traffic jam.

Luckily, I had the welcome and pure distraction coming from back about princes and princesses.... and we still made it to school early.

Welcome

Welcome to my new blog aiming to chart the experiences of us the minority of dads who find ourselves grimacing through early morning traffic ( mayhem) and occasionally stress free journeys to school.

More to follow soon..... ( after I enjoy my well earned weekend off from my duties!!!)