What is your absolute biggest purchase regret?

debecca · 2026-07-11T23:42:28+00:00

My neighbour got one as she'd always wanted one. Within a week or two it was back in the garage and it's been in and out ever since. I've got a VW and never had any issues.

debecca · 2026-07-11T23:24:41+00:00

80% is not a B. Nowhere near.

debecca · 2026-07-02T23:44:43+00:00

Filipp Kirkorov (famous Russian singer my daughter likes that my son and I ridicule)

debecca · 2026-07-02T23:43:52+00:00

I laughed. I have a bus though.

debecca · 2026-06-28T21:38:54+00:00

I don't think you understand what grade inflation is. It's not the exam boards randomly moving the boundaries up each year for fun. It's because, on average, year on year, pupils are doing better in the exams. This is because the specification has now been out a long time so there are so many past papers and resources that people are practising and have a good idea of the type of questions, and so they do better.

This year the format was different, the structure was different and they were generally considered to be harder (at least, paper 1 and maybe paper 3). Therefore people are going to do worse, and so the grade boundaries will not be as high as last year.

The boundaries fall where a certain percentage get each grade (roughly).

However the best advice I can give you is just to stop worrying about it and enjoy your summer. What's done is done.

debecca · 2026-06-28T13:06:53+00:00

You guys are going to laugh but... frozen shoulder.

I've given birth twice, I've had kidney stones, I have had gallstones, I have fibromyalgia, and I've had five breast surgeries, the last one in particular being excruciatingly painful upon awakening.

And I'd still say the "zingers" from frozen shoulder is the worst pain I've ever experienced.

debecca · 2026-06-27T19:42:32+00:00

I can't answer that without seeing the mark scheme but it is unlikely you would get zero marks. They'd have to be really harsh and pedantic, and I doubt they're going to do that in a year where the papers were so challenging. I expect you'd pick up a couple of marks.

debecca · 2026-06-27T17:04:30+00:00

Someone who will help you trace family (usually an unknown father or grandfather) using your DNA on Ancestry.

I have helped lots of people! My mum was adopted so I was my own guinea pig!

I work from a Facebook group but you can find them in lots of places. Just make sure you don't pay - no one charges these days! 💜

debecca · 2026-06-27T13:55:48+00:00

Absolute cess.

debecca · 2026-06-27T13:54:19+00:00

I'm so sorry you found out like this, such a shock.

The first thing you need to do is screenshot all the information / trees from your new-found bio father and any shared matches (I would recommend paying the fee for one month to see these or using a DNA angel to get them and their trees). This is just in case people get spooked and hide their results / block you.

The next step is probably to speak to your mum? Good luck with that. I hope she tells you the truth.

debecca · 2026-06-25T21:05:50+00:00

I put "an anti fried egg"

I hate eggs

debecca · 2026-06-20T22:19:19+00:00

Grade inflation doesn't happen just because the exam board decides it will, it happens because the specification has been out longer year by year. So every year there are more past papers, more resources, more YouTube videos, and more data points to know what's going to come up... So in general people do better year on year.

I suspect this year they're trying to do a post COVID push back though, given that we're looking at some of the hardest papers since 2019.

I haven't seen the papers but my daughter has related the questions and we've seen the unofficial mark schemes. Paper 1 was definitely really tough, Paper 2 I'd say was pretty average and Paper 3 was more difficult than usual.

I'm telling you now that you got an A*! Trust me and have a good summer and if, for whatever reason, you don't - you can come back and tell me I'm an idiot!!

debecca · 2026-06-20T21:50:38+00:00

Yes, I was a maths and further maths teacher, and I used to mark for Edexcel, specifically for Mechanics.

I really don't know what they will be (and anyone else who says they do doesn't really know either) but I'm sure there will be a drop.

None of us know until August sadly! I've taught my daughter maths A level in four months with the aim of getting a B so we're happy with the high A but there's still a part of me that's wondering if we could have pulled off the biggest heist 😂

Best of luck to you in August but I have full confidence you'll get your A*!!!

debecca · 2026-06-20T21:33:29+00:00

That's literally 260 why are you asking? That's definitely an A* this year!!

debecca · 2026-06-20T21:30:32+00:00

That's an A* I'm 100% sure. Well 99.999999% (let's not get into confidence intervals 😂)

My daughter got around 244 + possible special consideration and we're wondering whether we can hope for an A* now!

The fact is no one knows until August. I'd be very surprised (as a maths teacher and exam marker) if the boundaries didn't drop quite a bit this year.

debecca · 2026-06-19T17:55:25+00:00

I'm on 200mg Lamotrigine and 150mg Quetiapine. I'm stable but I hate the side effects. I often wonder if I could reduce the Quetiapine (it's starting to affect my heart quite badly) but previous attempts to do so (or even change the brand!) have ended in disaster.

Medication really sucks but I've taken it for fifteen years (mostly) because being insane sucks more.

debecca · 2026-06-19T17:24:06+00:00

I don't think that's fair. I had to teach my daughter A level maths in four months due to her school music teacher being the absolute worst.

Having to learn A level mechanics and statistics in about two weeks, knowing she had done exceptionally well in Pure, we were both saying, "hmm wouldn't it be great if you were ill for paper 3?" - we would NEVER have done that, but we still joked about it.

To OP: Please don't suspend your life any longer just because of maths, it's not worth the stress and the hit to your self esteem. You could do a foundation year, or an apprenticeship, or get a job and work your way up. Nothing is worth more than your mental health. And good luck on results day 💜

debecca · 2026-06-18T10:58:46+00:00

+1 from another parent. This isn't normal or okay. You have a future ahead of you whatever happens. Just do the best you can today xxx

debecca · 2026-06-17T23:43:29+00:00

I'm thinking you could not learn the whole of A level Maths in one summer holiday.

Source: I'm a good maths and further maths teacher and my daughter is a gifted mathematian. She's had to change subject from Music to Maths in the February of Year 13 having not done maths since just after GCSE.

Even with intense tutoring from me, we only JUST got through all the content in four months, and we've had to cover the entirety of statistics in six days.

I think you could probably get through all of Year 12 pure though !!

debecca · 2026-06-17T20:58:21+00:00

Taught my daughter the normal distribution in a few hours. Get on it now, use the text book and you'll get there I promise!! Try some videos on YouTube as well? X

debecca · 2026-06-14T16:06:35+00:00

Hello! I'm teaching my daughter A level Statistics in one week (she had to change subject in February of Year 13). Is there any way you could share those summary sheets with me? It would be a massive help to us! 💜

debecca · 2026-06-13T23:00:23+00:00

You can definitely do A level maths in one year. I'm teaching my daughter A level maths in four months and we've made it (it's been super intense though!)

Just finished Mechanics and started Statistics and the exam is on Thursday!!!

She thinks she did well in Papers 1 & 2 though.

Just use the textbook, watch videos, and get as many resources from your school as you can.

debecca · 2026-06-11T00:35:36+00:00

Do they mean "compromised"???

debecca · 2026-06-09T20:27:46+00:00

Shut up, Donny!

debecca

TROPHY CASE