Author Archives: Daddybean

A wooing we shall go.

Posted on November 9, 2005 | 9 comments

Well Stringbean anyway, though of course Butterbean does her ‘Smiley chuckle-y baby’ thing to anyone who looks at her for more than a few microseconds On Monday it was the lady in the farm shop, yesterday it was various people – the ‘library ladies’, the lady in the dance shop, in Woolies, in the cafe, in Waitrose…… I think its’ the confident way that she starts up chatting to people, and telling them something in that ‘well it’s important to me so you must be interested’ kind of 4 year old way, and she si always really polite whenever she asks for anything when we are out and about.

So the lady in the dance shop was regaled with tales as soon as we walked in about how Daddy (? !) lost her ballet sock, bemoaning how she had got cold legs in the wind to the assistant in Mackays when we went in to buy some emergency tights, the checkout girl in Superdrug got run down on BB’s teeth as we got toothbrush for her in there. The woman in Wololies got all sorts of things, mostly about her new wellies and how they matched her umbrella, how she wanted a ‘Princess dress’ she saw the various dressing up dresses and has always coveted the Patch of Puddles gilrs for theirs :-). In the cafe she really politly asked for a cake and glass of milk, as well as regaling them with tales of new wellies, toothbrushes, SB being asleep ( ‘ she likes to wake up at night’…)

Ah well it makes out and abouting entertaining.

So what else happened in the last couple of days. Mornings at the moment seem to start for SB with a bit of Cindy/Barbie and dolls house playing, really is into hat at the moment. Need to relocate the Cindy box somewhere else in the room as it is near the door and the entrance just gets littered with Cindy bits. Looked at couple of her science books and made a ‘tin can telephone’, talkeda bit about how the sound travels from one to the other. She had the idea that the sound would travel down the middle of the sting like pipe, but said that wouldn’t work as there was no hole. So we played about a bit and talked about sounds being made / transmitted by vibrations. Sat a read a few of the Usborne Farmyard Tales books, where she made a good stab at quite a few of the words. She doesn’t seem that bothered heself about reading stuff, but if you ask her to do bit she normally likes to have a go. She seems to be in that ‘on the cusp’ of it point at the moment. Did some easy stuff and some writing in one of her workbooky things

After lunch we made a trip out to a local ‘Farm shop’. It’s not really a farm shop – it’s located at local plant nursery. The greenbrocers in the village shut earlier in the summer and then this place opened -possibly in response – they seem to have aqquired the old till from the GG. So far seem ok, I did get some dodgy chestnuts from there last week so she knocked a bit of the bill yesterday.

So we hit the road in the ‘Bean mobile’ – the tandem with trailer attached for BB out the village one way for the Fruit stall at the orchard, where they have good variety of apples, quite a few old ones, that you don’t see often and if you do tend to be expensive, then back through the village to the aforsaid farm shop. Where SB chatted to the lady about BB, insisted we buy things like parsnips and green apples (made a change from today when she kept on about sweets at every turn) and generally did the charming thing. Cycled back home, a tad cold by then, but just enough pedalling to blow out the cobwebs, and SB absolutley loves going out on the tandem.

Home for tea, warming up, a few books and then SB hit the CBeebies website until Helen came back from work (and a rather horrible ‘quick’ visit to Tescos on the way home)

Helen made a nice Beetroot Rissoto for tea (she had it in a restaurant once), SB turned nose up at first, but then ate it all once she was fed it :rolls:

Tuesday

‘Library day’, which somehow, after we have breakfasted, dressed, located all the books, faffed about etc. always seems to take up the morning until it’s time to go out. SB did the aforesaid wooing, listened to story time (much the biggest there now as all the others her age are now in school). BB sat and watched/listened for quite a bit as well, had to be prised, along with couple of other girls from the sticking and colouring afterwards

Home, BB to nap, reading library books with SB, lunch out for the above shopping and wooing which took up the rest of the day. Noticed that SB can spend ages looking at books etc. by herself, I do wonder if she is trying to read some of the words to herself? but probably not Had mean to make the Christmas cake but didn’t get round to it. It takes about 4 hours to cook so one for the morning I think.

9 Comments

Posted in art and crafts, Books, Butterbean, literacy, Out and About, science, socialisation, Stringbean, writing

And then there was one.

Posted on October 31, 2005 | 2 comments

Took SB to my Mum and Dads this morning, she is staying overnight. It’s her first night away from us. Will seem very odd this evening. BB napping right now – it’s so quiet….

She was so excited, went off with ‘her’ suitcase packed – clothes, cuddlies, books, a couple of workbooks She has been wanting to do this since they moved up here.

I know she will be fine and everything, but….you know how it is.

2 Comments

Posted in Out and About, Stringbean

A weeks beginning.

Posted on October 26, 2005 | Leave a comment

Suffering ‘Blogger’s brain’ again re yesterday.

Monday

Both Stringbean and Butterbean slept a bit longer after Helen went to work -Stringbean hadn?t got to sleep until gone 12 (or was it 1 am?) as she’d slept on the way home and unfortunately woke up when i put her to bed . She did spend a long time in bed but just didn’t get to sleep so she caught up a bit. Both woke up all perky soon enough though. BB is such a total wiggler when it comes to getting changed, as so a you let go she rolls over and is off across the bed. She loves it so much – she does this thing where she sort of flops her head down on the bed while sticking her bottom up and then chuckles away. That and making beeline for the end of the bed so she can stand up holding the top of the frame. So with her and SB generally messing about and ?helping? it can take a while to get her changed.

SB seemed a little out of sorts after the weekend, as she often is after seeing people, And didn?t want to settle down to anything that I suggested in the ?worky? nature so after her breakfast while I finished BB and mine she pottered about in the playroom. She found some more pens and pencils in a small draw in the cupboard so dragged them out and sat herself down with some paper quietly to do some drawing. She did a great picture of a rabbit. It is apparently jumping up into the sky so the grass isn?t too long. She spent a fair while on this so me and BB got a little while to play little peep-bo, hiding games, taking and passing games etc. Bit of a blank spot here, though I do remember some reading of stories, though I got SB to try reading some of the words out as well.

Did go outside after BB went down for her nap. We filled up the bird feeders ? talked about why we put different food in them, why some goes on the bird table or the ground, what different birds eat, why small ones need to eat often, why fat useful as a food for them in the winter, the names of some of the birds we see. And then spent ages poking around outside. Found a couple of big sticks and played a few ?big stick games? , balancing them on end. trying to find the point of balance (talked about why it is roughly in the middle), a bit of sword fighting. Various other things which I now forget came up as well.

After our lunch, BB then woke up, so SB settled down to play a few games, listen to stories etc. on the Cbeebies website while I fed BB. Tried to listen to a couple of the record BBC Schools Radio programs with her, she was half into it ? particularly the one where we had to act out a little drama ? making noises, being an elephant etc. but not really into it. A little bit later at some point Helen came home. Not sure exactly what was done there but they did some good lego Pyramid building at some point before dinner. There were plans to make some lemon curd, we even went and bought the eggs, but somehow didn?t get round to it.

Helen here – we actually did quite a bit, but can’t remeber so much either – oops. did do some explode the code, 3 pages, SB helped me write the numbers in the Kakuro game – she has grasped it is an adding game, so that made us do a bit of mental maths. I also read 3 or 4 stories from the usborne around the world, and therefore she had to read me a red nose reader [for every 3 I read, she has to read 1!!!] lots of squiggling about with BB as well. lego was fun though. We even put the characters in the pyramids with the lego animals to keep them company in the underworld.

Tuesday

Well girls esp. SB awake early enough this morning BB had a pretty poor night ? she is doing this thing where she will wake up and have a feed, then when I try to take her, she will scream madly as she wants to go back to mum, so bad night.

After her breakie, SB went back to some more Lego. This time making a train and some ?sofa?s for all the people to sit on apparently. Once me a SB had finished up we got dressed etc. and sorted out the library books she wanted to take back and which she wanted to renew ? She uses hers and BB?s card and has various books taken out on different weeks, so we have fair pile of books to sort out, check etc. Still wondering what has happened to two Mr Men books that disappeared in the house ages ago. Did I hide them is despair and my dislike of then I wonder?

Got sorted, time to go out. First stop baby clinic. Have only been once since we moved here, no real need to go, but BB weighed and got HV to try and get the endless requests for SB to have jabs she has already had stopped (various people not doing/telling who they should it would seem) Missed SB 8 month check as GP does it ? but she seems ok ? Sb had an hearing test but don?t do that now, and we missed the birth one. But she seems to hear ok.

To library, where for once we managed not to cause delays and confusion as we normally seem to manage to do. Read few books ? found some Red Nose Readers, so we read those in the library. Got out some more books and headed home. BB to snooze, me and SB to eat toast, drink coffee and read all the books at least once. My Mum rang asking if we could go over to help sort out some problems with wiring the TV, video etc. so once we ?d finished and sorted out stuff to take we headed over there.

We played a bit of game that my parents got when I was around 10 called Hare and Tortoise . It?s a fairly cleaver race type game, but it?s not dice based, so there is much more strategy to it than chance. A bit to old for SB, but she saw it and wanted to try it .She got the hang of the general gist of the game – collecting and then ?spending? carrots to move around the board. And it gave us excuse to practice working out how to make up the right number of carrots from various denomination cards, talked about the idea of counting in tens again. Didn?t finish the game as I had to pop out and then she wanted to stop. Also impressed Nanna a bit later by slicing up the potatoes to make nice chips. Spent basically all afternoon there, not as planned. Was a nice afternoon and had had an idea to get out again and maybe do something like bark rubbings.

Managed to get home with out SB falling asleep. Tea, a bit of reading of library books again. SB made some pictures for me and Helen ? I liked the ?love to Babby? Bit on mine

Butterbean note. She is so much into everything at the moment, put her down and she is off investigating, nosing about, getting stuck in places. She loves the dishwasher. As soon as it is open she is in there. Almost literally – I found her on the open door, head inide the machine…..

Oh Dear…

Posted on October 20, 2005 | 4 comments

What has become of me?

I’ve just found myself (for not the first time recently) puffing up the cushions in the sitting room before I go to bed….

4 Comments

Posted in General

Weekend

Posted on October 17, 2005 | 2 comments

Quick bit of catch up before I get over takne by events. Bit of a downer as Helen was on call all weekend (home on Sat at about 5 or so, but not until after 9pm on Sunday) Upside of that though is that she is off all this week.

So Saturday, for us not at work was a pleasant day. Stagecoach in the morning, the time before passed with breakfast, playing, a bit of reading, finding various things to put in the car. Dropped Stringbean off at Stagecoach, me and Butterbean poopped into town for bit of shopping for lunch and further unsuccessful look for nice kiddies wellies (why is that so hard?) – problem is I know I’m not going to be able to trump her current stripey wellies, which are just so good Back to pick up SB and then off to meet Helen at work for lunch and a BB refill. Had a nice lunch there and SB did a little bit of the Gettay and dubay handwriting stuff (Helen blogged that bit below) .

Headed off after lunch into the country park so SB could ride her bike – lovely sunny afternoon. Plan was to take off her stabilisers, but she changed her mind, so we just rode/walked around the country park for bit which was good, though SB disappointed we couldn’t find any trees to climb. Also disappointed that all the bits that there were to play with in the education room the other week with the ‘Roman Britian’ thing weren’t there any more

Stopped off at the cafe for coffee/cake/ice cream then headed off again. Stopped off due to popular request at the playground on the way home for swings, climbing, more bike riding along the river etc. Eventually prised SB away from the playground and got home not that long before H got home from work. Tea for beans, then SB seemd to spend most of the pre bedtime on Barney Bear and such like websites. not in bed as early as expected given the late night the night before (Not sure when she went to sleep, but was stil awake when I went to bed at about 1 am.)

Sunday – we had an ill Bean. SB complained of a bit of tummy ache in the night. In the morning she was seemingly ok at first, but then was little bit sick and didn’t want any breakfast. A bit later she had glass of milk and was promptly sick about five minutes later – though the good girl did make it to the toilet each time. Said she still wanted to go swimming, so we got organised and did that Spent about half an hour there. BB as ever enjoyed bobbing about, splashing, almost floating and is starting to hang on the side all by herself. SB didn’t actually do that much swimming, but lots of jumping in, ‘Dolphin dives’ as she calls them – a sort of duckign unde the water move. Think she found it bit tiring though as normally we have to prise her out of the water. Once we got home she collapsed on the sofa under a duvet and watched various videos. BB was out like light as fter swimmign as usual. Spent some time pottering about doing few jobs, sitting with SB, and doing bit of reading to her as well. by the time BB woke up, SB was dropping off. Wouldn’t normally let her sleep in the afternoon, but she had a mildy rasied temp and hadn’t eaten anything and had been a bit sick again so I let her rest whilst I fed BB and played with her.

Don’t really know exactly waht happened for the early evening. SB did eventually eat couple of slices of toast and did by then seem to be perking up. Was hoping to try and get them both into bed before Helen came home, but SB had had a sleep and now felt bit better, she was going now where for bit . And BB was being very resistant to sleep as well, even though she obviously was ready for it. Was just about to try and get Sb into bed when H camwe home so she stayed up for bit longer. Still didn’t get to sleep until about 11 pm turned again though….

Today they are so far iostly playing with Helen whilst I try and knock this house into some sort of domestic order. Back to the grindstone :-0

www.flickr.com

2 Comments

Posted in Butterbean, Dance/drama, language, Out and About, photos, SB-PE, Stringbean, Stringbean's HE

Sleep…? how quaint an idea

Posted on October 15, 2005 | 4 comments

Edit – Ahh, like buses, two blogs have come along at once – my take and Helen’s take below Ah well leave as they are I think

11 pm, SB still awake upstairs – and she’d had bit of late night last night as well. Fell asleep on the way back from the puddlers group and when we got back I just couldn’t get her to wake up. Ah well, means that she was full of energy for when Helen came back from work.

Morning disappeared soon enough, with a trip to Tesco’s, Staples, sorting out an activity for the puddlers group (and then leaving the materials behind…..Grrrr…..), a few house chores. Group was good, as Merry has blogged elsewhere, it’s turning into nice little group (or even not so little), Shame we don’t live little bit nearer when it comes to travelling to it. SB always enjoys it, she spent ages today cutting colouring etc. to make T-Rex stand up model. She took great care in carefully cutting it all out. Taken by Tammy’s comments re recent evidence that some dinosaurs had some sort of feathery covering rather than scales she stuck feathers on it -Fluffy T-Rex any one

She also enjoyed the ‘make a skeleton in the ground thing with bits of pasta’ activity, as well as making, and more importantly, noisly throwing around paper Pterosaur. I’ll get some piccies of them tomorrow, (forgot the camera again, but Merry has some nice ones)

Once home whilst SB snoozed, BB woke up, so me and here played for bit without interupption, she is getting gradually better at standing, and is happier about holding onto things other than people, and almost lost the lopsided crawl she had. Just starting to cruise the furniture a little bit. She had dinner while I had a cuppa, and then Helen came home just as I was starting dinner. Work seems to have been a crap last couple of days, and she is on call all weekend Does have next week off though, and no plans for us to go away anywhere until the weekend)

SB seems to have got into Story of the World, I was looking at it last night and she wanted me to read her a bit, so we did the first chapter, and I heard them reading the next bit about the Ancient Egyptians earlier. She’s been resistant to books with lots of words and not many pictures until now, so maybe we’ve reached another little milestone, she even let Helen read her a bit of the Faraway Tree at bed tiome last night. Might get hold of Winnie the Pooh and try that now, before she get’s too corrupted by Disneys efforts anyway, been looking at the SOTW Activity book and itching to ahve ago at some of those things – by the time we’ve finished hacking the garden some more should be plenty of long wooden bits and stuff – just right for building a nomads hut . What say you Merry and Tammy – maybe next week?

Chose a little Usbourne Pocket Science book about how cars work or somesuch as her bedtime reading – fascinates me how she loves to sit and listen to this sort of thing, even though some of it must go over her head. didn’t blog it on Tuesday, but we sat and I read her a Ladybird book about Aeroplanes. It was not at all simple stuff, and I didn’t read the text verbatim, but we did look at the diagrams and pictures whilst I talked about Aeroplanes, the shape of wings, lift and other forces on the plane, different types of engines, controls etc.

SB bedtime update 00.22 – still awake……….. Time for our bedtime though

4 Comments

Posted in art and crafts, Books, Butterbean, history, Out and About, science, socialisation, Stringbean, Stringbean's HE

bump – what’s that big red thing doing there…? [edited to add photos]

Posted on October 11, 2005 | 1 comment

Walking along the road today with Stringbean, there was a wail from behind, and turned to see her holding her head. There was a nice big red easy to spot letterbox and she had walked right into it……. Cue parent trying to be/seem sympathetic whilst keeping straight face

Wel yesaterday, after dinner H went off, we played for bit – SB made a ‘castle’ out of the Jenga type bits, then we let ‘Butterbean the Destroyer’ loose on it. She was bit like a little wind up toy/robot. Put her down on the floor, she locates the target, makes a bee-line for it and then -GRAB! Evening ion genral was bit hard work. SB was fine, got her settled no probs, but BB was a bit of pain, wouldn’t settle to sleep properly, but didn’t just want to be up and scooting about the place. Took her until about 10pm to settle, and then there was abad night where she was awake for 1-2 hours or so in the middle – doersn’t drink enough milk from the bottle I think sometimes. did get to not wake up until about 8.30 though (only a parent could say that…)

Today we paid a visit to Nanna and Grandad, though soemhow the morning until 11 disappeared without trace, or the washing being put out before we went. SB didn’t want to come and have breakfast , she was playing in her room, by the time ashe was down of course me and BB had finished……

So departed with kitchen a disaster zone, absolutely lovely day, weather gorgeous, it could have been summer. Had a nice time at grandparents, BB was her cheerful exploring self, SB played a few games and read with Nanna. Then we went into the town and got some shoes for SB, looked for wellies but found none suitable/right size/ cheap enough, pottered around , getting a few other bits, and then ambled back – nice just being me and SB (BB stayed behind)

Back for lunch – BB had apparently been keeping grandad on his toes. And whiled away the afternoon. Sb spent ages playing with the farm animals etc. that she kept from when we were kids – so a little balst from the past for me. Nanna took SB out for a ride on her bike which she enjoyed, I did a few jobs for the GP’s, BB, eventually snoozed.

Before we came back, SB manged to make freinds with a little girls next door (she could hear kids palying, and kept going out side to see if she could see where they were.) managed to make contact I think through the fence, the the little girl came round for a little bit, then SB went round there. so that was nice. Though probably next time she will just be on about visiting the little girl .

Shame we don’t have any neighbours for her to pop and visit – it’s busy road through the village so not the sort of road to easily meet people on. We did wonder if we should have got a house on quieter nmore ‘estatey’ road – but you never can tell waht things are goign to be like, and anyway, didn’t find suitable enough house in such a location. But she did used to love popping next doors to visit or old neighbours in Leeds

so back home, timed it so SB at least would fall asleep and stay asleep – that worked. Sadly BB spent all evening again until almost 10 fussing. So I had a late dinner, emailed/blog-ringed etc., and now it’s time for the sack, with the kitchen in even more mess…..

Nighty night.

www.flickr.com

1 Comment

Posted in Butterbean, Daft Stuff, Out and About, photos, Stringbean

Swindon – it’s true……

Posted on October 9, 2005 | 2 comments

Ok, I had intended to avoid tacky Swindon jokes, but Helen just rang me, then we got cut off as she lost mobile reception. Though she then did manage to text me.

So Swindon really is a blackhole…….

Edit – no i’m not going to do it, i’m not going to start sorting piccies and Flickring, I’m going to attempt to have a sensible bed time……..

2 Comments

Posted in Daft Stuff, General

A beany Bean.

Posted on October 7, 2005 | Leave a comment

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.