Monthly Archives: October 2005

and relax

What a busy but fun week we’ve had!
Also a busy one at work, and due to bursts of creativity there, I now have lots of evening work to do for presentations/business plans.Also off on a union course on negotiation skills from sun in swindon, so weekend feels shortened.

got home late from work to an enthusiastic hello from SB. She then danced for me, talked to me and we made an elephant together. I then read her half the ‘my very first bible’ so all read out! She was excited by the egyptian bits, as told me they weren’t kings but pharoahs, and was happy discussing clothes/houses – so a bit of a detour. She had a later bedtime as it is so nice to snuggle and catch up.

A play also with BB – as well as a huge feed. She stood unsupported for very brief moment and was very excited. She loves investigating, and is showing awareness of language other than her name.

I feel despondent that I will ever return to a decent work life balance though. I just keep hitting brick walls.

A beany Bean.

Nursery day.

Kirsty and gang still here this morning, so didn’t plan on trying to get SB out until they had gone. In the end no worries as she was sleeping like a log still at 8.30 – a bit of sleep catching up. Young Bartholomews had had breakfast by then, so went up to get BB changed/up (she was awake) and rouse SB. They were impressively on target to leave at 9 am so she just got little play in before they left. After that there was bit of faffing while she woke up a bit more, missed them a bit, we read acouple of books then breakfast, dressed and on our way.I came home and was domestic, washing, in and out and hung up, clearing ‘Disaster zone 1′ – aka the kitchen (well a bit anyway), then straight into ‘Disaster Zone 2′ aka SB’s bedroom. If it doesn’t get done styraight away, it ends up just languishing in a mess for too long. So matresess back on beds, back in spare room etc (as psrt of the futile attempt at them sharing the one room the matresses all ended up on the floor), pillows/duvets relocated, spare room ready for the next visitors.

At this point had one of those ‘oh dear I’m getting old and sensible’ moments. When I find myself thinking what a good thing it is to have the room ready so people can just turn up, as opposed to scurrying around as they wait to go to bed finding the least manky sheet and duvet cover. I don’t mind it being a sensible idea, but part of me minds me being pleased that I’ve done so……..

showed SB’s carpet what the daylight looks like again, and reminded the toyboxes of their function in life, Grrred at the kids for gettting out some of the too small/too big clothes from the cupboard, then mixing them up again and leaving them on the floor . Must fit new cutrain track and new curtain to her windows and make plans for repainting the room – it is such a dreadful colour – a horrible insipid, institutional murky apricoty.peachy type colour. Her old room was realy nice (though I say so my self :-) ) and felt like her room. This still feels like we’ve just sort of put the stuff in their and plonked it down, needs decorating, a bit of organising, more things on the wall, her mobiles etc. back up. not much need for debate on the colours though……..

also managed to excavate at the bits of embedded biscuits (thanks J and SB :-) ) from the playrooms ‘most impractical carpet you can almost imagine for playroonm’ carpet. It’s one of these sisal, or other natural fibre type things- and has ridged surface texture – which is bugger to clean, esp. wet stuff that gets squidged into it – and of course some of Bonnets Bakers best….. It’s also awful to sit or kneel on – luckily we have rug in the middle.

Continuing later with my domesticity, I got dinner prepared before I went off to get the girls and dropped SB at her ballet lesson, popped back home to have cuppa and play with chucklemeister peacefully for a bit, before pedalling back down the road to get SB, a bit of play in the playground, then home to finsih getting tea ready – SB top, tailing and peeling carrots all by herself, and slicing the cabbage, and H managed to get home in time to enjoy it with us :-)

a fair while later, after SB bedtime, BB had awaken and was not interested in sleep. while we watched the Elizabeth 1st program on Channel 4 she chcukled and babbled her way around the room – she has almost lost the lopsided crawl and is getting much more proficient at proper crawling. Sat with Helen tried to climb up the back of the sofa and bounced madly up and down, laughing away, she is such supremely happy and cheerful baby, now she slumbers contentedly :-)

So much for early bedtimes here. I’m off.

grafitti

SB has marked her cupboards in case therer shoud be any doubt in BB’s mind whose things are in there. oops.

www.flickr.com

oh and latest blogbumping photos have been added below

Guinness on the mend.

IMG 8874 edited-1

Guinness – aka ‘Demon Cat’ (look at the picture larger, check out the eyes.), shows off his bald patch from his op. Had his stitches out today, walking pretty well, little bit of limp. But he can’t run yet, if he tries it, three legs work and the last one can’t keep up, rather comical.

october blogbumping

has been rather grand!
we have kirsty and co staying, and merry and co round for the day.

it was nice to get in from work to a houseful yesterday. Kirsty’s 2 and SB were demonstrating nicely one of the reasons we bought the house – it is a fantastic place for children to run around madly shrieking!! They played together, watched shrek and investigated the house together. unsurprisingly very late bedtime. foolishly i’d said we read 1 book for each – andthey all chose long ones. kirsty giggled as i started to paraphrase! not that they then fell asleep……… We got in a good natter before my eyes refused to stay open anyway. I did check out the sonlight manuals though.

Today they all demanded we bake so i checked ingredients and recipe. SOme nice drawing occurred while we adults had a cup of tea! they then ran around indoors and out like loons while I tidied some of the disaster from yesterday! once the floor was visible, it was quite clear that happy street should be done, and the 3 worked nicely to get the track to go around the mat – even with BB ‘helping’!

Kirsty here! Helen forgot to add in the huge conversation she and Marcus had about hearts and discussing the different parts of it using her freebie heart model she got ages ago. We must get one of those! This was started by looking at a big body book so loads of discussion there too. Marcus was beign very brave I must say, talking to both Helen and Chris like they were normal people (which of course they are lol!) and not like he normally talks to adults! He’s getting better!

oops edit no 2 – forgot to also add that on asking for a paracetamol for a headache Chris supplied me with 2 double strength cocodomal (sp?) which resulted in me being stoned for the whole day!! erm, oops!

When Merry and co arrived, Fran settled down to read numerous books to SB [what a great idea!], before they got more adventurous. the littlies demolished the happy street of course. While we grownups discussed sonlight, usborne and brownie-style badges for bloggers. was a great natter.

Chris edit – Whilst those adults nattered. This adult was in the kitchen organising lunches for the hoards. Much uproar was caused over instant needs for Pitta Bread ! there should be some sort of rule that all children will eat baked beans….

Children went outside and climbing framed and sandpitted [great!] when started to look overly excited we went to plan B which was drawing in the conservatory – some great pictures done. Included discussion on growing grapes, why they have pips, the solar system and order of planets.

When Merry went we had pasta tea, and the children counted to 10 in all known languages. Chris read some of our pre-loved ladybird books – greek legends and dinosaurs. They all did a lot of counting and adding, and some shops playing. I insisted only one book read to nigt, but they still spread it out by doing a full home-ed thing by discussing each page – counting, spotting differences etc etc. sigh!! Still awake. Anyway we actually did a lot of autonomous home ed.

now, have flickred, so may do a badge whilst drinking wine!

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ok, better late than never!

Check out your Physics.

I should really be blogging about today and Kirsty’s arrival etc. But I’m going to bed. (in short, we had nice morning, library, sun etc. K and gang arrived, ran around outside and in, with LOTS of screaming, children did not all manage to get to sleep in the same room were moslty still on the go at 10.30. Only one glass of Archers Aqua stuff (odd stuff, bit like peachy, alochoklic lemonade…) was consumed, obviously pacing herself – she’s got two bottles ;-)

So I leave you with the latest quiz from the BBC, this one on Physics.

Luckily, to save on any embarassment for me I did get 10/10, though I had a wobble on one question when I had bit of mental blank.

Quandary

‘Sun is shining in the sky…’

It’s lovely October day, I should be inside doing some (more) tidying, pending arrival of the Barthlomews

But………

All you need is love…

Was IM-ing Nic, and we got on to HE – like you do. We were generally commenting on how many different parenting setups/ styles and HE emphasis on the blogring, and how great it is to be able to read from them and learn from them. I also find it a relief that many of us seem to have our insecurities, rather than just me! I feel often that i would like to do x like a does and y like b does etc etc. however….

Yet when all the children get together, what do we see – a horde of bright and shiny happy, often too articulate children which on the whole get on well with each other – who they see rarely. OK, we don’t sit them down to SATS [ROFL!], but it suggests to me that the common thread – which is that we all love and care enough – is probably going to be the key one to our children’s happiness.

Does this mean that i am going to stop stressing -ROFLMHO – I doubt it!!

And, I have different trousers on now, not inside out! I believe SB has mostly weblanded today, and some tidying.

A life less chaotic

would be nice.
updates
HE
Sat - some explode the code [2 pages] and some singapore maths [2 pages] read 2 of the red nose readers. I read loads of other books. Discussion around romans. Army and costume mainly. Watched Muzzy. Went to stagecoach. mostly played though – chris feeling ill.
Sun – Chris a zombie, me with migraine. 2 pages explode the code 1, and 2 [just] of singapore earlybird 2b. read another red nose reader, some phonics cards. painted a lovely picture which she told me was a dreamtime story – and the story involved. heard her tell inlaws about how days and nights worked

Chris’s parents came over for sunday lunch and prob wished they hadn’t as we were in a bit of a state – house in uproar and dishevelled parents and children.

BB getting good at crawling forward now – at last! and likes to push along a car or other toy as well. good fine movt fingers – picks up the smallest speck of rubbish off the floor to eat!!

unfortunatley no sleeping skills – i closed my eyes at 6.30 am for alarm 15 mins later. dead on feet. In fact so dead, hace reallised i hav gone to work with trousers inside out – and done a whole clinic like this!!!! ROFL

For all you Flickr-ites

Only just noticed it, though it was announced on 21 Sept.

They’ve added the facility to sort sets by date order. Open a set and look at the top for a link saying ‘change the order of photos ‘