Sorry guys - just have to let off a little steam! On Sunday drove my SS all over town trying to find where he 'thought' his team was playing soccer! In the end he missed the match (making me drive for over 2 hours in the meantime!) and didn't even thank me! Then, I asked both my SS & SD to change the sheets on their bed so I could do some washing & they have clean sheets (they only change them if I remind them - even though they are old enough to know they need to do it regularly) so anyway - neither of them did it - so I ended up changing their sheets and making their beds all nice - not one word of thanks from either of them.

Made dinner last night for the family & usually I get a 'thanks Kate' or 'thanks Kate that was yummy' - but last night - NO ONE said thank you! Not my SS or SD or even my partner! He is also in the dog house for not recognising our anniversary on Saturday. Even though I know he doesn't believe in them - he knows they mean something to me so I thought he might have at least got me a card!! But no - nothing. Didn't take me for dinner, nothing. No card. Nothing! Meanwhile, I went to his work early in the morning and wrote a surprise love note on his desk that he found when he got to work - PLUS made him a special card that I wrote my heart & soul in....So I am pretty upset about that! Now - it's my 30th birthday coming up on July 31 & I am afraid he won't do anything to recognise it - it makes me sad to think he might not even get me a card! Although on previous birthdays he has always been thoughtful.

The thing I am craving the most is to just have some ONE ON ONE time with him - without the kids. Not that I don't like them - I would just like a break from them. I feel like most other step-parents at least get a break when the kids go to their bio-mum - but I never get that break because she never sees them!

Another thing that is bothering me is that last night while I was going through my SS school bag, I found notes from the school psychiatrist he is seeing (since we told the school about the stealing problems we've had with him plus bed wetting) Anyway, on the sheet she had written notes about all the things that are obviously troubling him - and it is all about the fact that they never see their mum and he misses her (which is natural after he has been living with her up until the end of last year). But he says he feels guilty if he ever gets to see her because he knows it upsets his dad (which it does - although his dad shouldn't show that emotion to the kids but he does). It's hard because he is too young or immature (he is turning 13 in 2 weeks) to understand that she is a bad influence and has no morals and has generally been a pretty pathetic mum...he STILL loves her! Anyway, I must admit that I breathed a BIG SIGH of relief that there was nothing on the paper that he had said about me! I don't think I could cope if I knew I was adding to his worries - when all I do is try and do good things for the kids.

Both are back at school now - 14yr SD seems to have developed a bit of an attitude already after only 1 day back at school...go figure!
Anyway - thanks for reading my vent! I feel much better just having got that all off my chest!

Happy 4th of July to you all - we don't celebtrate it here in Australia but I lived in the states for a little while so I still think of it! Plus we are a day ahead of you so it is already 4th July here!