mothers on the verge

It's getting very hot here now. I have to drive around with the air con jets arranged so they blow directly into my armpits. Otherwise there is serious danger of combustion (not to mention severe deodorant failure). I'm a far cry from the more seasoned Dubai-ites who swank around in their Swarovski-encrusted jeans in the 40C heat. Personally, I'm all over baggy cotton and elasticated waistbands right now as anything else makes me feel like a sausage about to burst out of its too-tight skin. Who ever said Dubai is glamorous? I've been doing a lot of people watching lately, mainly while sweating in the shade waiting for the school bell to ring, which has been a fascinating exercise in socio-cultural something or other. Basically, Dubai mothers can be loosely split into the following categories: THE HUMMER MOM - Hummer Mom's heroine is Angelina in her Tomb Raider days. Gym honed and super-toned, she pours herself into tight black outfits and fixes a 'don'...

I'm turning into a grumpy old woman. Alpha claims this is a good thing, saying that I'm far too nice to people and I might as well wear a sign saying "walk all over me". But surely turning into an uber-bitch is a step too far? What's really making me feel the rage at the moment is certain people (you know who you are) trying to deny that Firstborn is dyslexic. These naysayers seem to think that I'm doing something really bad in allowing such a label to be applied to her. Like I'm making it up or something. Erm, why would I do that? Do they think I'm insane? Here are the main 'arguments': "But Firstborn seems so normal..." "She's obviously intelligent and she speaks well, she can't be dyslexic!" "Some children are just slower than others, it doesn't mean she's dyslexic. Why don't you just wait a few years and see what happens?" "Dyslexia is a load of rubbish, it's one of those trendy wo...

It was Alpha's birthday last week so we used it as an excuse to get out the city for the weekend and head up the coast for a bit of beach-and-snorkelling action. Here's where we ended up. Anyone out there still thinking that Dubai is all super-bling and uber-luxury?

Losing teeth is a major conversation topic in our house right now. This is because my 6-and-a-half-year-old daughter has not lost any yet, despite nearly all of her friends proudly sporting holes in their mouth. Assuming that at some point these baby teeth will depart (the front one is possibly wiggling, according to The Rabbit) I have started asking parents what the going rate is for the tooth fairy. Now when I was little (cue the squeaking rocking chair), I firmly remember getting a silver dollar for each tooth. And I felt at the time that was sizeable. Of course I assumed inflation would play some part in what today’s pay scale, but I had no idea by how much. Grab yourself a seat in your own rocker and read on. A child at her school got $20 for the first tooth. (And yes, this was verified with the mother.) Another got just $5 — of course that came along with a new Wii title as a bonus. (And I was assured she got $3 from then on. Right.) But $5? For a first tooth? How about for ever...