Some photos, following on from the post below.
The new hammock seat
On a hammock seat made for two…..
Butterbean was sitting in the middle of the lawn in her own little baby world for ages, quite contentedly eating grass, playing with leaves etc.
Posted in Butterbean, photos, Stringbean
I think we may have what is called a mouser!
Does anyone want a mouse to dissect at kessie??
It was POETS day today for a change, so did some good sorting at work – a bit of clinical stuff, and then sourcing as cheap a touchscreen option as I could to use with a questionnaire.
Came home to find Chris had done emergency dash to Lidl, and bought the wooden no-pedal bike and a chair hammock. Ideally we wanted the no-peddler last year, but will still help SB balance, and will bring to Kessie. [we will have 2 cars]
could we have an idea on when any of the activities are planned? we know the wildlife thing on the tues and the lake on the wed. can’t think of anything good that i could do, especially as I’m working half the week. We will bring the lining paper and paints along though. just don’t want to miss basket weaving.
Also, although we are not exactly en route, if anyone wants a stop over on the fri, feel free. [cambridgeshire]
Anyway digression over. SB and BB were a nursery day. SB did some nice piccies there. when she returned, SB thought bike great, but preferred my hammock – we have piccies to upload at some time. Had a nice play in the garden – but very hot! Nice veggie curry for tea and then watermelon. More playing, and bath. both sb and bb being v slow to settle tonight
oh and i was the savador dali clocks, but there was at least 2 options that siuted me for each question, so not too sure!
Posted in General, Out and About, Stringbean
This happened yesterday, but deserved to be blogged.
Scene: Out in the garden in the morning.
SB: ‘Oh look, two mice‘ (excitely pointing at the lawn)
Me: (wandering over) ‘ Dead or alive? (Whiskey has been making an impact on the local mouse population)
SB: ‘Dead – Whiskey must have caught them‘
Me: -(looks at two wet, slighty mangled, dead mice laid on the lawn)
SB: ‘Don’t they look cute‘
?????
Late she was found watering them with the watering can to keep them clean 
(no I hadn’t actually removed them ……..)
Posted in Daft Stuff, Stringbean
We have had a gentle day today as both of us at home. Another execrable nights sleep though! I think chris was going to blog about the mice – so I’ll leave that to him! Also the singing thing that he took both girls to while I sorted out various paperwork things and fiddled with photos.
Homedad and G came back to our house, and he looked suitabley ‘windtunnelled’ after listening to SB and reading her 3 books.
We did some more reading, and I used the letter dice from Boggle to write 3 letter words for her to guess – which went quite well. She wrote words for me, mostly in ‘alien’! We did some adding and subtracting with bricks, playing Bob the builder, and looking at her dressing up clothes.
In the afternoon, she had found a bag of wool, crochet hok and one of those cotton reels with pins in for tatting. Once I’d taken the 3 meters off it that i had done as a child, we had a go, but the crochet hook was too big really to be easy – even diff for me so we stopped. We also had a go at macrame with the wool, but she found the knots too fiddley, so we’ve put it aside for when she is older. in between showers we have pottered about outside. Otherwise we have been dancing, singing and make believing. We did however do the craft robot that she has been wanting to make, so that’s good. We’ve all in all had a very happy day, with no real fusses.
BB has been very noisy! [mostly shouting duhduhduh] she is getting good at pushing herself around on her tummy, and investigating things, Also eating more and more. hopefully this will lead to a reduction in night feeds?? At the moment, i think she is attempting to bf from a dolly’s head – so one track!
This eve a work colleague came roud, and we spent 5 hours sorting out how to best get the forms and appraisals to get a consultant ticket. Lets hope that it works. Oh, and I really miss not having a working shower!
Posted in art and crafts, Cooking, General, literacy, music, numeracy, Stringbean's HE
Which was basically what I said partway through a big Tesco shopping expedition yesterday – stock run down in the run up to holidays and we needed stuff before an online order would ahve arrived. I was tired (Butterbean is waking up and feeding often during the night, and we are so bad at going to bed at anything remotley like a sensible time, I went in the afternoon, rather than the morning as planned, I had both girls with me (not unknown, but with Helen on maternity leave it wasn’t usually necesary) Had both girls in the trolley seats, BB loved it as she was ideally postioned to pull Stringbean’s hair (one of her favourite tricks) and SB could escape – so much fussing, eventually let SB out to walk, which is pain as she wanders about, wants to push trolley, can grab things, not just point at them etc. so put her back in trolley , by now BB fed up and starting to wail – time to abort the trip…… and time to do an online order me thinks.
On the subject of shopping, what is it with families all going out together to shop? I don’t mean an amble round the shops, I mean Mum, Dad and kids all off to do the supermarket shop. Why????? If both parents are available then it surely makes more sense for them to keep all/some of the kids at home or wherever than all battle round the shops. Truely unfathomable.
Rant over
Anyway, it was the first day of getting back to what will eventauly feel like our normal routine. But a day later, bar the Tesco experince, I can’t really think what happened, other than it was ‘ one of those days’. Morning I guess involved a fair bit of washing – which with SB helping, usually involving increasingly convoluted ways of handing out the pegs or the washing etc. isn’t necessarily a quick process….., a bit of kitchen tidying, all that sort of fun stuff. mixed in with potterign and playing with the girls. SB spent ages collecting things together for picnic she wanted to have with the freebie picnic set/bag Helen got from La Redoute or Vertbaudet.
some how the time from 10 to 1 passed, I was then annoyed I’d not got out earlier, setting myself up for the Tesco debacle. When I returned H was home, I manged to set fire to the Toasted Teacakes, so only H and SB got one…….. It was a relief to get to dinner time.
A couple of BB notes – she seems to be much happier drinking from bottles being off them for two weeks, she put away about 5 oz in one go, whereas we we lucky to get more than 1 oz down before. She is really loving her baths now, she madly kicks and waves her arms about splashing madly – she has developed a really good Double Whammy kick with both legs at the same time – she loves it
Today was better. Story time at the library this morning, untaxing but SB enjoys it – not sure if it is the stories or the following craft activity she enjoys though, and BB seems to enjoy the difference, looking at the other kids etc. On our return, it was coffee and snack time, followed by time in the garden, more collecting/hanging out washing games, chasing about the lawn, bike riding, climbing frame climbing etc. BB spent much of the time sitting on the lawn. SB got an Apple (found it in her knickers apparently….??) and bit it into chunks which she gave to BB on plate, she spent ages gumming them happily.
After lunch we all sat down on the sofa togther BB to drink, me and SB to read books. Nice cuddly time, though I did find myself dozing off a few times, much to SB’s disgust ‘ Come on Daddy’, Later, SB and I found a box of her old 1-2 year old toys in the old hayloft which she wanted to show to BB. She spent ages playing with them, showing them to BB etc. while I got dinner ready and remembered when SB had them at that age. How excited we were when she built a little tower of the blocks, how she used to love trundling her little wooden block trolley around the house and go shopping for carrots, some of her early books we had read so often. Memories……
On more reflective note, I’ve got a general background level of frustration with things at the moment, hence it part yesterday and also I find that I’ve been a bit short with SB on a couple of occasions when I wouldn’t normally be. The root is I think that the house is not sorted yet.
Too much still in boxes, partly becuase the places to store it aren’t there – such as not much in the way of book shelves, no drawers for mine and Helens’ clothes (though about a billion cubic feet of fitted wardrobes…), partly becuase it just hasn’t got sorted and put away yet, so to much stuff half unpacked now around the place, on top of this we have the normal household disorganisation, and the weed are growing faster in the garden han we can keep up. . And with Helen at work now, and basically me not, I do feel like most of this is my responsibility and I don’t feel like I’m doing a very good job of it. And I’m still working on how me, SB and BB all manage to work together, though we are getting there
There is stuff we just aren’t doing enough of, such as crafty things, but also more ‘education’ type things, such as the reading, maths etc. is being missed out. Helen had quite a nice little routine for this in vague sort of way and I want to build that back up again as well as develop ideas for the future. We have many plans and ideas which are just being put on hold at the moment (including SB, who whenever we have a an old box, yoghurt pot etc. says we have to keep it to make something – she wants to make a robot apparently). Of course I could have done something about it rather than just blogging about it.
On a more positive note, Helen is now on her 4 day week, so that means she will be home tomorrow, which will be nice.
Posted in Butterbean, Ponderings, Stringbean
and not so bad! they are going to pay me – thank god. Sorted out a few of the gripes, and hoping to now settle into a routine.
Also glad to see some of the other blogs again!
Posted in General
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You scored as Paganism. Your beliefs are most closely aligned with those of paganism, Wicca, or a similar earth-based religion. You may also follow a Native American religion.
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Which religion is the right one for you? (new version)
created with QuizFarm.com
Posted in General
Good start to the day as SB stayed in own bed -wahey!! BB a bit of a muncher, but not bad. However SB found dead mouse near cot [ a present!] and wanted to investigate. I thought of offering to help her disect it, but couldn’t face the mess and glee! Anyway, scalpel only one.
After breakfast we played cafe with the free picnic set from la redoute, whizzed around the new webland and some joe the dragon – SB likes the stacking best. We need to get back into a HE routine really as we’ve not done any reading or maths properly for a while. We read books together a lot, but they aren’t ones she can necessarily follow, and its mostly ‘applied’ maths. She got out the hands on science experiments from the book people order, and we did the folded paper going bang thing, except neither she or I could get it to go bang. luckilly chris could. reminds me of my nuffield physics days! we did vibrating voice boxes and elastic bands, and were moving on to her violin when we got distracted by making purees for BB as realised she was getting short!
Nipped to veg patch and harvested last of asparagus. steamed and pureed with some sweet potato. By this time it was lunch.our cupboards somewhat bare, so SB had yesterday soup, bread, half a sweet potato and yoghurt. chris and i had veggieburger and egg sarnie. BB had pea puree [the new ones still cooking]. BB was such a mess that an emergency bath was called for. SB hopped in too to play with/help wash/nearly drown BB
We were now all in gardening mode, so SB and I planted out the sweetcorn, and grumped again over no courgettes germinating. a bit late to sow now really. on watering in, SB bent over most of the stalks. I have built mountains around the low bends to support, but we will just hope!! We then started weeding – have done the beans/peas and potatoes, and chris did half the onions. SB was remarkably interested for some time helping rake, hoe and trash the real veg! Actually not that bad. chris also weeded out an onion, and me a runner bean. The broad beans tall now so SB played hide and seek in them. Some mini broad bean pods, and first earlies should be ready early july.
Chris and I are mulling over where to put things in the garden. At the end of the garden at the moment is a large nettle patch in shade, and although plan a is a practical one for potting shed and compost bins, I think a good alternative might be swing and living willow den so that SB and later BB can potter with us/ do some of the veg stuff and then nip off to fantasy land / play with ease. I could invite Jax or Katy as dome experts! Though wouldn’t be a geodesic one as all bits need one end in soil.
As SB got bored, Chris took her and BB to drop off some wine to homedad to say thankyou for looking after cats – can i remember we only have one now??. particularly nice, they put some fresh milk in fridge for us. I finished weeding potatoes, and they nattered.
I cooked split pea dahl and rice for tea [v cheap], bath [yes 2 for SB, but she was v dirty!] and a game of walk the plank then stories and bed. Fed BB, long chat to chris’s mum – they have an offer accepted on house in large village or small town? on trainline 30 mins drive from us.
Feeling grumpy still as denied a number of blogs.
thankyou S Club. but getting today backwards.
warning – there are 4 posts in total from today, so far! This one on today, a hols summary, a technical help and a bit of fun!
Stagecoach today, and usual pallaverings about going – well it is v expensive! Anyway SB decided she would go, as cheered by thought would oneday get to be in real show! When we got there she was uncertain of me leaving, but I stood with her in the registration queue, aand when she went through, she forgot to get me t come with her. As promised I sat with BB outside on a wall reading my mum’s hols book [link to follow when find it to get title!]. Anyway about a woman going back to work after 7 years childcare, reluctantly as husband fired and wants to write screenplay. kept a sneaky peak at SB doing her zip-a-dee-doo-dah song and summer holiday dance. She tried v hard this week – and the teacher told me on packing up it was the best of the term, so much fuss made of her.
On the way home we played spot the crop, and the uses – mosly wheat and oilseed rape, but did have a field of broad beans and a PYO strawbs. SB decided to PYO with Chris next week, and then make jam with me.
SB went with Chris to buy lunch [soup and bread] as this encouraging practical numeracy in action!!. We were all ravenous. BB eating well now – red pepper and french bean puree with EBM rice pud after.
A walk around the garden today shows a weed infested jungle – we need to have a major weeding fest. Anyone up for a pick buckets of weeds and get plied with alcohol holiday at ours?? I’m thinking of the jan’s field option for ourselves. Anyway, as well as rampant weeds, we do have rampant crops – particularly grapes and figs coming along nicely – yummy!!
When we had come home last night, we had found a booklet of the village festival – this week. today was a party for 4-9 year olds, so took SB, and she had a great time. Got to eye up girls of own age in village [as meet would be too strong a word!] The lady doing the party does this for a living – and also the singing session. she was very good and i was impressed. BB also enjoyed it. Anyway, the S-Club song was from there.
digression alert! When SB was 6 months we had this as her ‘theme tune’ and danced her to it – mainly i suspect so chris could nearly dislocate shoulders at the ‘reach’ bit.. Anyway, listening to the lyrics, and doing the dance to an appreciative BB, I realised that, athough a bit saccharine, it was a fairly good theme tune still. [rider - remember I'm a classic fm girl]
I also enjoyed seeing SB dancing to hey baby as per baby disco. She had a great time anyway, and we both did our best to look sociable fitter inners rather than the weirdos we are. well wht spoil the surprise! It was suggested we enter BB into bonny baby comp- hmm!!!
enjoyed reading usbournes around the world junior puzzle book together. SB liked the pictures and looking at what was different in the places. Think next time I should be more organised and have the atlas at the ready or a globe [as yet to buy] so can put a bit of where in the world – ah here to it! She likes it when I’ve been to places as well – so if i was one of the more organised people on this blogring, I could have had my holiday snaps of india, malaysia and australia to hand. hmm!! maybe som unobtrusive follow up. Mind you, if weather with us, tomorrow a bit more of village festival, some seed sowing, potting up peppers and planting out sweetcorn in order. none of french beans or courgettes germinated – really weird!
Tea of pittas with felafal, feta cheese, tomatos, lettuce and cucumber. we also had chilli jam, and SB olive paste and balsamic vinegar. I do like it that she eats adult food, and has an appreciation of it. She enjoys stuffing the pockets with her choice of ingredients, and it makes out lives easy. Washed down with ‘dizzy’ water for her, and limoncino for us – nice! Realised 8 o clock, so a hasty bedtime. BB now also sleeping after good feed. We of courswe have a thousand things to do, so I’m blogging, and chris is trying to sort out old desktop which keeps crashing – new one awaited!
Still denied access to a number of ring sites, so if you have any dramatic announcements, let me know!! oh, and who amongst you are gravatar enabled?
Posted in Butterbean, General, geography, numeracy, SB-PE, science, socialisation, Stringbean's HE
