Blogging

It seem that that blog readability meme that has been doing the rounds over the last month is not quite what it seems.

Short version for those that don’t want to read the whole article: The ALT tags for the image contain text referring to a US loan site, which will have pushed them up the Goggle ratings.

Off to delete that post then.

Chris has loads of half written posts that need finishing!

I obviously worked a lot last week, but also tried to do as much as poss at home - playing games with SB after BB in bed a consistently good thing, and we have felted and hama-ed.

Errm, keeping going with violin, and she did some spontaneous piano practice tody - woohoo! musical instruments are gradually tuning in her brain too - she is much better at singing a tune, so hopefully wont be as tone deaf as Chris.
Maths and handwriting regularly done, we are nearing the end of first story of the world. DO I think she remembers it - not a lot, but hopefully setting the scene as it were! Quite a bit of crafting and arting. Read about pompeii -buried alive, and ring of fire from sonlight. and also the leap ahead volcano, and read through a volcano book. More playing with the ello and ds. Jump ahead and zoombinis on ‘puter, and watching various natural history progs. SB reading loads - fairy books, felicity ewishes, horrid henry and anything she can get her hands on.
girls and chris swimming at the weekend - we’re trying to get back into the habit of going on a sunday as BB loves it

Girls and chris went to see oliver twist yesterday - SB found it too scary, and had difficulty getting to sleep. we talked about our visit to gressenhall, and the rellies that were born there, but she was still unhappy - doesn’t want to learn about victorians! then playing with firends and shoe buying. SB eventually got some felicity wishes boots. they sparkle along the side!

SB is rather frighteningly gaining a waist and indefinably ‘older’. PANIC!!

BB is also getting small girlish. She counts and pretends to read alot. SHe is great at switiching on her ‘puter, finding the kids downloads and choosing one to watch - scary! Her drawing and painting is very careful,, often with a story to it, that she chats or sings along with. BB excellent at singing. I think she may well have inherited my perfect pitch. She is also getting careful with hama beading. Her vocab is excellent - prob due to having SB as an older sister. Still well into her numberjacks addiction!

My Mum seems to be OK post surgery - phew. Unfortunately found today that my godfather has been admitted to my local tertiary hospital neuro unit and not at all well. intubated and ventilated for th last 5 days - so I would appreciate any positive thoughts.

hmmm, there have been loads of things I thought I should blog from both girls - can’t remember them for toffee!! Hopefully chris will [subtle nudge!!]

Main desktop has been showing the copy of  the blog on it’s new host since this morning. Laptop, was still seeing the old one, which Helen has just posted too - all sorted now though

Reason was (I think) that they were using different name servers, I run Treewalk DNS on the main pc as our local server (from the days when the then ISP had dodgy DNS), but the laptop seemed to have lost the setting and was just using the automatic setting - the routers I think

Bit of a test post really.

If you are reading this, you are reading the moved version of the site.

Kessingland, well, what can I say! It was really wet, we had to move the tent due to flooding, but there were friends there, and fun to be grasped!

Highlights

Children still having fun. SB played with loads of different friends over the week, few spats, lots of laughter. She did stay up way too late a couple of times!

Sparky?s was a great hit for SB this year, she hadn?t been much before, and she loved it.

Both girls enjoyed swimming ? we went a lot to warm up!

BB?s excitement on seeing a real lion!

BB?s excitement on running, jumping and falling into muddy puddles!

The valiant craft sessions that still went ahead ? we have new tie dye, bits of air dried clay, an aquabeads thing to grab from merry and some gods eyes.

SB going off with friends and their parents happily to the park and to the beach [there was a lot of swapping children!]

Friends ? for chocolate, compassion, cups of tea and chitchat ? weather permitting! Thankyou lots and lots all of you, as particularly the first few days I was lost in a work world of misery.

Meeting New Home edders

Negatives

Well, the biggest was the boggy muddy pondy field.

Rain ? though it actually was only bad a couple of days, its effect on the field was awful!

Not getting to sit out as much to chat, while keeping a loose eye on children

Not getting to know people on the other side of the boggy quagmire!

The swimming pool changing rooms [perhaps that should be higher up on the list?]

Other things

I got 2 sparky?s certificates ? one was for my dancing skills ? rofl!

My mitts and camping socks from t-bird Anni were truly fab

The new airbed also far better than the old!

Doug makes a good fire

?

When we flickr, I will link here. And I reserve the right to add to this things I think of!

Madeleine McCann went missing from her hotel room in Portugal on 3rd May. It is believed she may have been abducted in order to be trafficked for adoption or abuse. Please publicise this photo on your blog or flickr accounts in the hope that someone may recognise her. She has a distinctive right eye flash which may help identify her. The international number for Crimestoppers is +44 1883 731 336

I’m not sure my blog has a wide readership at all. I’m not sure that this will help, but cynicism certainly wont. It’s simple to do so I urge you to do it too. Photo from flickr by searching for her name. First seen at Patch of Puddles Blog.

There is a new flickr group called missing children.

me and blog me are getting more dissociated these days. SO I apologise about the humdrum nature of my blogging!

Anyway, as Chris said, I have had a tough week this week. Wasn’t helped by insomnia for part of the week, and on thurs, waking up at 2am convinced I had missed a call from work, so ringing in - to their bemusement. i spent 2 days interviewing. on the thurs we interviewed for 11.5 hours, with a sum total of 50 mins break spread out amongst that! I could have cried for some of the candidates. these are those that we didn’t shortlist, but everyone now has an interview at their first choice. i think when we do the specificity and sensitivity we will have good specificity, and reasonable sensitivity. Well, in our area [geographical and discipline] anyway.
[ps I am watching the eurovision while I type - which may cause neural disturbances!]

so today was a lovely rest. i have done bits with SB in the week -mostly games and reading, but violin hasn’t happened! As well as the magic tree house [and yes, you can borrow some books merry if you want!] i also got some leap through time books, one about pompeii which I think is partic fab. SB and I have read britannia at night, and she is working through reading sonlight tut’s mummy lost and found to me. i loved my present. I think there is real artistry in the gold shapes on the silver tinfoil. She has also done handstand practice [rofl] every evening.

So to today. I had my saturday lie in, both girls were reading books on the bunkbeds, and then stickering. SB did some maths. it was a revision adding /subtracting/ number bonds type bit, so she raced through it. BB and i were making walls and towers with bricks, and reading. SB also did some lovely brick building - though BB knocked down as fast as they went up! I read SB and BB another story from the barefoot mothers and daughters book. SB and I the read some of the Xray buildings book - starting with pyramids. [i might link some of these books!]

We had lunch and then spent most of the rest of the day outside working and playing in the garden. I failed to do some violin with SB. I weeded, chris and the girls spread much for the french and runner bean trenches, chris put in the canes. We looked at the fish, a waterworm and various garden beasties. SB and BB sowed some round carrots. Actually there is a half price seed sale on the thompson and morgan site! [cough]SO I bought some more seeds [cough]. SB was ecstatically happy with the round carrot seeds as she has wanted some for ages, as well as the dwarf french beans that can go in her plot! That’s my girl. She danced about with the packets in excitement! Actually, the carrots they sowed in their plot ages ago have started to come up, as have the runner beans [goodness knows where they will run too! might give each a cane!!]

Anyway, lots of outdoor play, handstands and headoverheels practice [BB also determined to learn!] races, climbing and messing about. After a grump about whether SB could be naked outside like BB [I sort of feel she is at the age of knickers, but admit that I don't have much of a defence here] we then cheered up with a hand of rummy together, and then all painted outside. SB did mirror paintings of butterflies and caterpillars. BB painted a caterpillar too.

We had a raucous bath as the girls insisted i got in too as my feet were dirty [they were]. Thank goodness for an enormous bath hey!! We even put the bubble machine on - not for long as BB wasn’t convinced by it. tea and more tut’s mummy and britannia [liz 1] and bed.

so, now well into the voting for eurovision -rofl still. Oh, and it turned out quite well for a not knowing what to blog blogpost!

well, sort of! I am moving posts over, and the will do a photo spree!

Here it is - link also in sidebar.

Are there any other HE bloggers with a gardening blog on the side that wants a link?

Actually, in many respects it was. We forgot about it to start with [fairly typical!] BB woke up way to early [fairly typical] Chris eventually went down with her leaving me to have a lie in [fairly typical for the weekend!] An brought me breakfast in bed of croissants - not at all typical! Bored now with saying the typical bits!

Errr, its amazing how much you can forget. Have got flickr uploading wildly. Honestly Chris P, I put up too many photos even for me, but its much quicker than sorting them out! One day I will, I promise!!!!

Anyway, at sometime after 11 we started taking photos, and not at all sure what went on before that, as that was with Chris whilst I was reading the paper! But when I was surfaced enough to remember we were taking photos and also to interact, we played who’s who. BB insists on playing, so not exactly to the rules, but enjoyed! BB and I then spent some time hammering baby toys and playing with the rainbow blocks to make lots of noise, and then constructing brio and making the trains chug around [always a baby train and a mummy train with BB!]. We also did a bit of looking after and watering the plants in the conservatory.

I had suggested to SB that she might do some education city as we have paid for it and she hasn’t done any for ages and ages. SHe fancied webland, so whilst chris got the next edition downloaded, I read a story from the barefoot book of mothers and daughters - the persephone and demeter story which SB knows well, having had a mad love affair with greek myths and legends. SB then spent HOURS on webland! Not very interesting to photo! We had also missed april’s edition, so she did all of May followed by all of April. BB also did some poisson rouge. In a moment of pure inspiration I have put a hand sticker on the left click of all our mice! She now knows which bit to click - hooray! Also getting more controlled with the mouse movt. Does have her mother’s patience though. wiggling it wildly when it didn’t go where she wanted.

Had lunch and SB returned to do some more webland. I was bored with this, and checked the mail - hooray her new sports sunglasses arrived. [should stay on as she twizzles about on swings and cycles]. The low start of ebay price was completely overmade up by postage - 6 times the cost!!! i did factor that in though.

BB desperate to do some painting, and SB wanted to make a princess hat, so combined the 2 activities. At least half our paints were put into pots though - gradually getting SB to take responsibility for setting out and tidying away crafts. hmm She did sort of set out, I totally tidied! Anyway, she and BB painted the hats, and then carried on with further painting. SB did a particularly beautifully coloured handprint. Eventually they declared themselves painted out, and a quick hose down and they went outside to play.

SB and BB scootered/triked about for a bit, but SB hurt her poorly knee, so I re-dressed it, and she read a book about food through the ages with intermittent waily patches. I made them some popcorn to eat. BB played Bob the Builder, moving dirt around the garden, and generally enjoyed rampaging about, playing hide and seek etc.

SB got fed up reading the book, and wanted to make the egyptian breads we have made in the past from the 120 history projects book. it was sold to BB as a snail cake - the word cake enticing her in from the garden to join in! SO we added mess onto mess in the kitchen, and all enjoyed making the egyptian sweet bread. BB and SB enjoyed competitive flour and butter rubbing, so there was a fair bit of loss!!

Daddy had been to the shops btw as we were all out of food. He returned as the egyptian breads were put in the oven, and didn’t blanch too much at the appearance of the kitchen. BB being up for over 12 hours was swept off to a bath, and SB has been outside again while I have done this and put flickrs onto the uploader. We do plant to perhaps sellotape the hats up before bed, and SB has promised a violin practice of frere jaques - she will moan when she has to do it after tea, but it has been the only non-negotiable thing to do today! SO since we have done all the autonomy, its time to do the violin! I will obviously be adding photos after the girls gone to bed!

follow up! Well, I had set that up, but chris rebooted ‘puter without checking whether I was doing anything! SB did the violin with enthusiasm - and very pleased that a nearly recognisable tune coming! read britannia, and she read a young usborne readers book [and is in fact still reading it]. Joining up the hats will need to wait till tomorrow, as will eating the egyptian breads!

Links to the last 2 photomemes in the sidebar, and this one will join it now the photo’s are added. Look forward to seeing others’ photo days.

Hi, I’m aged 43, married to Helen, with 2 daughters - SB 5 3/4 and BB almost 2.

We are home educating, and I am the parent who is at home mostly with our daughters.

Helen’s car wouldn’t start this morning - battery was very flat, so I had to get up to push it out of the drive so she could take the other car. So I was up (about 7.30 - normally I am up first and before then anyhow), so enjoyed my cup of tea (or 2) in peace and quiet. Catching up on friends blogs, reading news on the BBC and Guardian websites. But it wasn’t long before youngest was up. Breakfast of cereal for her (Rice Crispies), milk, toast, and fruit. Eldest had a lie in - catching up on sleep missed with friends staying for the weekend. So me and BB had a nice time to play together, drawing and colouring, reading, playing silly giggling games, she ‘helped’ wash up. Then we all went to the library

On the way back, did notice exactly how old the old school building is (now an electronic subcontractors). It has a plaque over the door saying it was founded in 1749. Though the building was built in I think it said 1784. The were also 3 bricks high up in the wall with the date and the initials of (presumably) some of the builders. All around the doorway are scratched intials in the brick - presumably of children attending the school. I wonder just how old they are? Must be one of the oldest building in the village. Most around this bit seem to be Victorian, and are built of different brick. Also wandered back through the parish church yard, where SB likes me to read the graves stones, while I try to put the dates into some sort of context. So plenty of reflection on history, change and permanence there. Much has changed in the intervening decades and centuries, but also much is depressingly the same.

Home to coffee, reading of library books, lunch (listening to the Little Toe Radio Show via the computer). It was going to be baked beans, but no beans, so had a treat of fried eggs on toast followed by yoghurt and fruit - youngest is on real Clementine hit at the moment. We do like to eat seasonal and local produce - and we do have great local apples, plums and pears - Cambridgeshire was real plum country and there are still quite a few orchards around. Ok clementines are local, but I do try to at least wait for the European ones to come in. The first Satsumas and Clementines being an early herald of Christmas. We’ll gloss over the Bananas though.

Afternoon passed with BB having a nap, while me and SB did some maths, some of her reading to me, watched a bit of a DVD of the old David Attenborough Living Planet programme, did a few domestic tasks like sorting out some washing. Our house is failry old 150 -200 years - in parts. So often reminded of history as I move around it. Youngest wanted some grapes (we have a 100+ year old grapevine in the conservatory). We went and cut a bunch and I am reminded of the woman (who was in her 90s then) who the previous owners met in the 1980’s. Who remembered the vine being here when she lived here as child. Did she enjoy the grapes like our two?

We finished off with a drive (6 miles) to the swimming pool, for SB’s swimming lesson. Home to pasta and tomato sauce for dinner. Once children were in bed we relaxed by writing our 1 Day in History blogs. One of our friends has had a baby today. I wonder what sort of history they will be looking back on in 40 years time?

Being the number of spam comments that Akismet has captured since I installed WP2 in January. Such a waste of electrons.

The 6th Homeschool Country Fair is open.

I liked this quote from What Did You do In School Today

‘creating an education that meets the child where they are instead of one that makes the child meet it’

somewhat late, and I didn’t get started with the camera quite at the begining, but hey ho, that is probably what my typical day is! Obviously, this wasn’t entirely a typical day, as it was bank hols and both parents at home. Full photos on flickr.

Oh, and Happy Birthday Little Nanny!
Started with SB and BB playing with the happy street at too early o clock, and then by the eime I got up, SB had moved onto Sindy’s and BB was rarring about. I fed her and she settled down to playing with the bricks.

So, 10:00 and SB starts with explode the code - 4 pages. SHe’s quite good at doing this mostly on her own. I did need to remind her that there is a double l at the end of words such as sell and spell etc. Also, it took a while to convince her that there was a st sound and how it was made.

So that was 10 mintues - I happen to know because thats when she decided to play nursery with BB, who was being the baby in the baby room. BB took it all in good part, and I do like seeing SB playing games specifically with BB, rather than just moaning when BB ruins things.

11 -ish, and we did some maths. SB chose to do some from the miquon book - something that I find more dificult, as I have to sit there with the instructors guide to work out what we are supposed to be doing. mostly counting and adding, as we do it so rarely she is on ‘easy’ pages.

12-ish BB had an early lunch and fell asleep. Chris and SB looked at rocks and minerals with enchanted learning, moving on to the cretaceous period - and quite a bit of discussion on extinction and then to continental drift on the ‘puter. SB then looked at the new webland.I went out and did a spot of gardening, coming in for lunch - by which time BB had woken up and had a second lunch! 13-ish!

14:00 I read to BB, and SB did lots of dot to dotting - going up to 50, and then looked at a thomas the tank book. She then disappeared to her bedroom to play some more with sindy’s

15:30 We all got ready and went out to the park and stayed there until nearly 17:00. SB loves the park, and clambered happily about. BB did lots of climbing practice - antother Know No Fear daughter! So we took lots of pictures of BB, as its the first time she has had all this fun. Although heart in my mouth, was proud of her climbing skills!

when we got back, SB played with the ballerina candleholders and various kinder egg bits for a while. TBH, I have no idea what we did then! BB drew on herself.

18:00 ish teatime -in which SB was trying to remember all the countries she had heard of - second one was indonesia!, then tidyup and pyjamas on 19:00 we watched the deep on DVD and the 20:00 bedtime stories and finally sleep!

Other photo-meme days for this year can be found here, here, here, here and here [so far!]

just had to say that.

have blogged though, but here!

Nursery day today, so kids have been there moslty. Last day tomorrow.

It was Stringbean’s last Ballet clss of the term, turned up there a found that it was a session for parents to sit in on while they should us the sort of things they ahd been doing, so much dancing and skipping around by cute little girls in ballet outfits Also cute was Butterbean who did her ‘wobbly dance’ to the piano. I relaised afterwards that we had missed the last lesson last term - so it probably is a regular end of term thing. Helen will be disappointed to have missed it. And of course no piccies as I didn’t realise it was happening

That’s it really, SB made a goodbye/thankyou card for the staff in her room at nursery - She did some good conifer treees on it - apprently it was a christmas tree shop.? The sun was also setting she informed me so there wasn’t much sky below it.

On the topic of sky, yesterday I think it was she started talking about the sky and said that ‘we breathe in the sky’ - which I thought was an interesting way to put it. I did introduce the idea of the atmosphere being all around us and mentioned about the sky looking blue. But realised that it’s a rather intangible concept - ’sky’ as more of a visual effect than a thing.

Had a little chat over dinner about things she might like to learn a bit about now that she will have finished nursery and we will have more time at home. She said that she wants to learn some more about space and said she wants to learn from the ‘picture books about things’ - which I assume meant the Picturepeadia and alll the other nice DK books we have. So we will see where that takes us.

Other than that Helen is away tonight, she has gone up to soem conference or training thing or something - in Leeds as it happens. so won’t be back until tomorrow night. So a bit late getting both kiddies to sleep - but me and SB had nice snuggle and read for her bedtime stories - a rather nicely illustrated book by Nick butterworth/Mick Inkpen as it happens retelling some of the parables Jesus tells in the bible. She did complain a few times, that the story of the Good Samaritan said the chap was bleeding where he got hit, but none of the pictures showed the blood! Followed by a lift the flap book of the nativity story (I think it’s the same one) - she’ll be wanting to go to church next

I’ve whiled away much of the rest of the time, fiddling about and wandering around some new blogs starting from the 13th Carnival of Homeschooling over on Why Homeschool

This amused me , among other posts. I liked the album thing here - I liked her time line idea as well. There is a good debunking of anti home education critiscisms over on the Bonny Glen and talk of the idea of tidal homeschooling struck a cord.

One of the above is hosted on Homeschoolblogger and I’m wondering if I should be linking to it or supporting the boycott, but I’m generally dubious about the effectiveness of boycotts. Though it seems here that this is boycott as a form of publicity tool to highlight the issue, rather than to ‘bring down’ HSB

here. lots to put into it at some point! [link on sidebar]

OK, so it wasn’t one of my better emails,but this is a nothing response!!

?Thank you for your recent email addressed to Shailesh Vara MP.

Richard.

this was my crappy email!
Thursday 16 March 2006

Dear Shailesh Vara,

Helen

So will try and do some catch up! Those with eagle eyes will have noticed some flickring going on. Shall add piccies for SB’s birthday and also for the science wed to the blog.

Also - when they are actually downloaded to ‘oute, Sam’s birthday and today.

I haven’t actually been awake at home much, and had a rather tiring week. Late back on tues, extremely late back on fri, and went to bed at same time as SB thurs and Sat - so only wed with an evening - and note I did blog!

SO I am way behind on the bloggisphere - particularly all those that get banned at work - most of them now for fowl language or suspected gamboling [sp]. ALos way way behind on emails and groups.

So, having had a great day in the company of my family, I will see what happened to my johari window [not much i suspect, as was imeediately buried behind loads of posts!], flickr and blog!