It doesn't rain but it pours.

Sometimes life really likes to throw the works at you - we seem to be in the middle of one of those time at the moment and boy are we getting wet.

Not only have I been having a wobble - for whatever reason, but we've just been landed with some big bills following car trouble and we're in the middle of a school crisis.  So a pretty full plate here. 

The car had been in for its service a couple of weeks ago and we highlighted a couple of intermittent faults which had been flashing up - cue car in the garage for a week, mechanics stumped and a 'repair' of something which they assured us solved the problem.  Firstly a week one car down was hard work.  Neither school not work is particularly public transport friendly - and our second car is a bit on the small side - we can't actually get three car seats across the back...

Anyway, we struggled on and got the car back eventually.  All fine until about 10 days later when the same fault flashes up......  well fortunately we'd not paid the bill for the first repair and I got A to take it back to the garage and shout at them - his language skills being far superior to mine - so with the bill still unpaid it's back in the shop for a bigger repair....  Will have to see if A can negotiate a reduction in the bill.....

Whilst the car issue has been irritating - it's not nearly as troubling as the school crisis we're experiencing at present.  No.1 Son is in the local International School (the reasons for this are a whole other post in themselves and perhaps to be told later) which was a big and difficult decision to make.  We'd read a number of negative reports about it - but felt backed into a corner so registered him there 2 years ago.  He's had 2 very successful and happy years there and it was definitely the right decision to make at the time despite our concerns about not doing the 'expat' thing properly.  However, in the last 6 months, the school seems to have lurched from one problem to the next and has been haemorrhaging staff and pupils like nobody's business.  It now appears the school is broke and it's unknown as to how much longer it will stagger on for.  We've sorted a new school for next year so only need five more weeks till term ends - but will we make it?

The question then arises that if the school closes before the end of the school year - what do we do next?  We wouldn't want to put him into a German school for a maximum of 4 weeks as the move to the new school is upheaval enough and we'd prefer to not pay at the new school for such a short time (given car problems above....) and in Germany homeschooling is not an option as it is not allowed.  But, as he is 7 he must attend school by law so we're really not sure where we stand and are hoping for the school to limp on for another month - failing that, it will be a very extended summer holiday.....perhaps I'll have to ship him back to Blighty for a while!

All in all it's a somewhat stressful time at the moment very definitely pouring not raining!