Monthly Archives: January 2006

Ooops, forgot the title

Definately one of those days when you feel rather more relaxed onc e the children are in bed. There’s been nothing greatly wrong with the day, it’s just long for both of us. Helen usually has a long day at work, so buy the end of it I’ve got that ‘time for some peace and quiet’ feeling. both were up this morning with me and Helen, though both went to sleep no problem either. BB was out like a light. Lets hope it stays that way.

BB has developed a rather load ‘shout’ for want of better term, which she uses increasingly when she wants something. She shouts when she sees something she wants to eat, open the frdige and she is there shouting and pointing :-) She shouts when you open the dishwasher, whatever it is she shouts. It’s a rather tiring noise when she ahs been doing it all day…..

BB has also turned into a real Speedy Gonzales with her shoes. At the library today during storytime she kept heading off in all directions, she got into a cupboard, and made it through two doors (that close slowly) to get to the outside – eeek! – just caught her in time. She used to just happily pottle around the area we were in, now she just heads off on a mission. She needs tethering I think.

So ok, early part of the morning passed with breakfast, some reading, CBeebies website, BB pootling etc. while I prepared a craft activity for Storytime which I was doing this week. SB decided to wear her Princess Belle dress to the library and she took her slippers as well so she could show them off as well. So that all raised a few smiles. Other than an escaping, wailing, crayon eating, crayon box emptying BB, storytime was fine, as ever SB was the last to finish her craft bit as she has to colour final bit, stick on a final sticker etc.

Home to meet Nanna and Grandad who had popped in for couple of hours, so reading, chatting, tea drinking, lunch, cakes etc. ensued. As theyleft BB woke up, so time for her lunch when she eventually stopped crying and fussing (about 30-45 mins, not like her). elinor slipped again into craft mode, she wanted to wrap somethign up for mummy, not sure what, so made some wrapping paper with various sparkles etc. on, made another picture, strung a load of pipecleaners together to make a chain – apparently it is a christmas decoration – according to SB we have got plenty of time to get more pipe cleaners and make lots more before christmas :-) We were supposed to be doing soem more maths but somehow that didn’t happen. I ahd to get dinner ready before going to swimming, so inbetween gluing and sticking BB pottled about shouting at things, they played abit etc. Then off to swimming lessons where BB again made a break for a door once she spotted it open.

Home to tea (nothing like coming home hungry to smell you tea that you left in the oven all nice and cooked ) bath, arrival of tired mummy, a bit of playing, much munching on BB part and sleeping children.

Other Nanny visiting tomorrow , on the way to Norfolk, oh dear, better get and do some more house sprucing:-)

I’m not sure which is worse.

That some people would take it seriously enough to be interested in buying/investing in the program or that some people offered to appear on the purported show?

Making a baby, making Mischief (scroll down)

What is sad is that it doesn’t actually seem that surprising a suggestion anymore.

Sleeping through

Yep, BB slept through last night. It isn’t the first time, but I forget when it last happended. Except for a brief waking around 9.30 ish she was slept from about 8.30 to 7.30.

Which was nice, and more than her sister did, but then she doesn’t really disturb us very much.

Manic Monday

Don’t know what the beans did at the start of the day, except that it did include some Singapore maths. They then went intio the city to have lunch [apparently a very nice pizza!] and try and find BB some shoes now she is walking. SB was very disappointed that her feet haven”t grown though.

When I joined them, they had so far failed to do this, as needed to go to the other clarkes across the city. So I had the pleasure of being there when BB got her first shoes – very nice. She soon got into tramping around with them, and was stunningly cute as she kept trying to make a break for it. For exceptionally good value, we Got SB a pair of princess slippers for ?2. Should have bought loads and ebayed them for ?5!

We then failed to decided what to buy with the Johns Lewis vouchers quite spectacularly – I hate shopping really. Shops should have comfy sitting down and thinking places, not feeling all hemmed in. SO vouchers are still intact.

Came home and had a very healthy chips for tea – oops. My amazon order had arrived – which ncluded the just so stories and britannia for Merry’s curriculum. We have already caught up on the britannia. SB thinks it is great doing British myths and legends – partuicularly as it kicked off with a reference to the trojan war. Also started the Just So which she rather enjoyed. SB cbeebied whilst BB tried on her shoes again and clumped around the house.

for her bed time story, SB read me most of the M and S enormous turnip book . She sounded out the long words, and I helped with some of the blends. She was great! So she got a new story cd – fairytales read by bernard cribbens.

I have belatedly watched child of our time – and not worried for once, as I think SB and BB do have a close bond. Folloed on with the first installment of Elizabeth.

Now for the first installment of sleep here! [btw, both beans went to sleep much more easily tonight]

the weekend

actually, am feeling simmering at the moment, so blog should cool me down. Having spent 45 mins or so putting SB to bed, 15 mins later I spend 30 mins or so failing to put BB to bed. I just can’t bear my whole evening being taken up by getting children to sleep. [or not]. Have unceremoniously handed BB to Chris. She has – however – taken 4 oz from a bottle for me, so not all doom and gloom.

So to the weekend, lets see what I can remember? on the overtly educational, we have done explode the code – SB happy to do it, and races through the pages, so not bad. She has done loads of webland, going forwards and backwards through the ‘editions’ that we have. When we started with webland, I used to sit beside her reminding her to listen to the stories to do the games, where as now she flicks all over the place with great confidence. She also seems to remember a lot of it now. on the IT front, there was a fair bit of cbeebies as well – particularly the stories.

Seed sowing, and discussions around that. [and counting – she was particularly taken when I clumped the broad beans in multiples of 5 so I could add them up more quickly than she could count them, and I saw her later on having a go with this idea.] SB read some of the easier books to me. She is getting confident to try and sound out longer words – though not very good at blends. We have gone swimming, read a number of books – the theme has been loosely underwater/seas or the poles. So looked at the globe, a book on the poles, and her underwater jigsaw books. taking in finding nemo characters!

IMG 2787

A great hit of the weekend has been a buy from ebay – a snappit build a donkey and cart set. It was supposed to be part of her birthday present, but why not spread things out. She has put it together and taken it apart numerous times over the weekend – initially using the picture to get things right, and then just remembering.

a snappit make a model of donkey and trap - reusable

We have also done lots of drawing – and played around with chalks on dark card as well today. She has written bits to go with all her pictures – the last even spelled by herself – lov SB to Chris [asked me about the H] lots ov lov [she remembered love doesn't have an u anyway!] We have been having a chat on and off about silent letters – like w in write. She had remembered k in knee from a discussion over a month ago.

Our Jenga -alike has been used to make forts, castles and patterns, and she has spent a lot of time with the dress up flower fairies, making stories for them to act along to.

A lot of the time SB has been quite self-contained, so that I have had a lot of 1 to 1 time with BB. She is being giggly and silly at the mo – so quite a laugh! Though she does try and feed me all sorts of rubbish as we go along – plastic pigs were todays menu, and specks off the carpet – lovely! She has her lower molar on the left rhough, and the upper one is nearly though. She is always keen to play with SB, and I loved watching SB try to feed her tea. It seems that although there is quite an age difference, they do get a lot out of each others company.

No doubt I’ve missed lots of stuff out. It seems that mostly I have juggled 2 children’s needs fairly well – for a change! That we have done more educational things than I though whilst having fun. They do just slip in don’t they!

Next week we reall must take down the Christmas tree, and tidy SB’s bedroom before Barbara visits.

Oh, and I have calmed down. It is past 10, and my evening will start with Sir Robert Winston [I wonder if BB is asleep?]

Edited to add: AH, flickring and I have rememerbed what I had forgotton – my friend Katrien , who used to live in Ely with her family, popped in on Saturday, as they are moving their final things – to Belgium. Somewhere nice for us to visit one day! And I have promised SB a barge holiday one day – like angelina ballerina. She does wish she had the box set of the books…

IMG 2777

From tiny seeds…

… do future dinners grow. Not much gets sown till late February, but this weekend we have sown the T and M packet of mixed aubergines, some green globe artichoke and a packet of braod beans. All from thompson and Morgan and all in modules in a heated propagator.

It crossed my mind that this year, I may not have to sow everything into a module and plant out when getting established, as we no longer have such thick clay. Although we had raised beds, drainage was still a problem, and clay is cold for so long, and slugs so rampant, that all module was the only way.

We missed the autumn sowing of the broad beans though, so these will be our catch ups. Another packet will get sown outside towards the end of Feb.

IMG 2796

not doing that again!

just finished submitting 2 abstracts with co-author. 01:14

been manically doing it as soon as free from general work commitments.

Hardly saw my girls tues, thurs or fri as home after 7. big sigh. I just cant find the comfort zone of work/life. When I’m there I have loads of work ideas, andfeel badthat I’m not overextending, and wen I come home I wonder what was so important I left so late.

Part of the problem is that I am at the time of my career when I actually need to overcommit to make a stable basis for the next 10 or so years. I am also at the time of my life when I want to limit my commitment… bugger for vicious circles

Chris is wittering on about scratch and sniff books. BB is asleep onmy lap, and I did take time out to read SB bedtime story.

Oh and on another negative, I forgot to budget for my study leave. sigh. Maybe we will get a lodger.

oh, we have a portico elephant btw

The hours before the dawn…

Well, the positive first. Butterbeans endless desire at times to feed away the night has been somewhat controlled the last few nights, but dint of BB not getting to see Helen.Wed night when she started to fuss I just took her off to the spare room, when she settled down again without to much fuss. Moved her cot yesterday into another room (the ‘spare bathroom’) ok didn’t actually sleep in it a lot, but she was in it asleep when we went to bed. Sadly she woke at around 3.30 am and I gave her a cuddle in the bed in the room but she didn’t overly make? fuss, but didn’t feel the need to go back to sleep until I took her back into Helen and 6.15 when of course? she then felll asleep when getting up time was going to be 7.30…….

Main event of the day was the Puddlers group, where there were some rather good actvities arranaged on the topic of Healthy Eating . I particularly liked Lydias blindfolded fruit tasting one.

'Guess that Fruit'

Stringbean made a beeline of course for the sticking activity – it was supposed to be ’5 a day’ maybe she’s forgotten how to count to 5? And she doesn’t even like mushrooms. She wasn’t really to interested in anything to educational, she wasn’t even sure what the theme was when Helen asked her at home :roll:
Five? a Day

As Merry has mentioned there were some new families there today as well as plenty of the regulars, so there was a good buzz in the hall. I’m just quite useless at getting around to chatting to people, or remembering their names, lots of babies and littlies as well. Plenty of running around and playing tag etc. A nice time.

BB was entertaining in Sainsburys on the way home, she’d see things she would like the look of and recognise – such as oranges, bananas, cherry toms and she would start making such a fuss , me and SB had to hide things so she didn’t see them until they were in the trolley. She wanted a magazine as well (fimbles, Tweenies/thomas etc.) Had been a discussion at home the other day about getting ones with enough stories as she likes that. So she sat and looked through everyone to check the story quotient – glad there were only eight.

Nothing really more interesting to say really. Photos are in the usual place.

On the radio

Just had an email read out on the radio :-)

Home Education is one of the topics featured on the Andy Harper show today (they had a bit earlier about? family home educating becuase of bullying of their daughter.) Another lsitener made the old comment about children needing to go to school to socialise, know how to gte on in the real world so I whacked of? quick email which they then read out. Plenty to be critical about on re-reading of course, but it was a bit of? quickie:

Just been listening to? the bits on Home education on your program.

why do some people seem to think that Home education means that children sit at home and never get out and meet other children? That certainly isn’t true of any of the children I know, nor of our daughter – in Cambridgeshire there is? thriving HE community, with lots of different actives going on every week. There are all the classes that children can attend such as ballet & swimming lessons, brownies, scouts, youth clubs, play schemes? etc. as well as more informal contacts.

We as a family will be going away for a week with 18 other HE families in Feb and later on in the year again, and as for the 10 HE children filing up our house
yesterday…..

It’s interesting that this issue of ‘socialising’ is one that is so often raised.
- yes it is something to be considered, but people who start home educating soon realise it isn’t really an issue but yoiu might just need to be? a bit proactive.

To be honest, when the it seems someone’s argument for school is that children get to meet other children it doesn’t seem much of an argument to me.

A social kind of day

We had the puddles and porticos over today. Although there were some concerns that it may be a bit princessy for Ernest, he raced away! Master of events was Violet – organising them into a game of sardines [which our house is well suited to], and we didn’t really see them until lunch was called

time to eat

Merry tried twins out for size, and decided it was far to heavy!

trying twin for size

After lunch there was some more violet in charge of line ups..
eldest portico said line up...

But due to some global tiredness, a bit more chilling including DVD and cbeebies. Ernest and SB played schools – very odd concept!

SB devastated when they all left. For a start, she had just put on her princess clothes! Thought that an overnight stay at least should happen.

We adults gossiped, cuddled assorted children and looked at blog updates.

Sorry Merry about Amelies itchy eyes. Hope they settle soon. Also took outrageously few – and crap – photos!
Thankyou Alison/Gwenny for green bead bracelet. BB is still not to be parted from it. She is now dressed in a different sleepsuit!

After everyone had gone, SB did some drawing, I read her a story or 2, and she cbeebied. Now hopefully fast asleep. BB is shouting very very loudly at the moment – she collapsed asleep when everyone left, so a late nap means a late evening sleep. I guess we should tidy up…