Category Archives: General

Today/Yesterday

Posted on April 12, 2005 by | 9 comments

Well we did recover to some extent from the shattered night. Sb being at nursery at the morning was certainly helpful. I cuddled and played with BB – who is really showing a personality now. She is a happy smiley girl, who likes boisterous play. It is nice to have this one to one time with her, when SB isn’t the prime focus!

I picked SB up from nursery after lunch to go to Sunnybanks soft play centre with my postnatal group and her friends. Slightly delayed as I had to provide some first aid to someone who had fallen badly in the middle of the road and couldn’t get up! I don’t think anything broken, but knee very swollen, so ambulance to A and E.

Anyway all 3 of us had fun, me chatting and drinking tea, SB haring around with her mates, and BB being a flirt smiling at all and sundry, and being passed around for cuddles. SB is such a chipmunk – she was climbing up the outside of the cagey bits [whatever the mesh is called] and inciting the others to follow. i persuaded her to come down, as although she seems to have the footing of a mountain goat, she isn’t supposed to be there, and some of her friends were certainly a lot more nervous – though they did follow! [socialisation, PE]

On our return we made fresh veg risotto together – SB cutting up the french beans, and peeling and cutting the carrots. Not all the frozen peas and sweetcorn made it in, as she has a real thing about eating frozen veg! It tasted delicious. We also put beetroot in it, as there was some in the organic veg box – really pretty as white and red rings, but didn’t have the taste, and SB didn’t like it anyway! [cooking]. Chris took BB for a walk to the postbox – oh I do like the sunny weather!

We then had a look at education city – already previewd by Sarah and Joyce following June’s recommendation. Yes, we are the sheep!! Anyway, we signed for a 5 day trial of foundation and year 1. the foundation science games we played today were fun and a bit easy. nice butterfly and frog lifestyle game. We also did some of the reception english. SB really improving, she can easily spot first sound, and often last in a spoken word. Didn’t try the maths or french – will perhaps try tomorrow. [science, IT, literacy]

We took dolly into the bath tonight – so floor resembles a flood plain! Dolly not alot cleaner for her dunking, even if wetter. C0uple of books and a Mog CD for bed tonight. BB now being a little bit grizzley at mo in Chris’s arms – having just shown no interest in feeding.

Yesterday Quick Update

i went to see friends and their gorgeous new baby. An emergency caesarean at fully dilated perhaps not the birth plan, but he was over 10lb! Feeding well, though all night and Sarah looks shattered. Start of the great adventure. Explained the ‘this too will pass’ principle – LOL

Thoughts: return to work all too imminent, and not heard one way or ‘tother about 4 days rather than 5. I am not discarding my children like cheap jewelry or robes, but making difficult life choices with my family unit’s best interests at heart.

9 Comments

Posted in Butterbean, General, Out and About, Stringbean's HE

house moving sucks

Posted on April 12, 2005 by | 6 comments

our vendors finally completed their searches and ready to go…
but….
their purchasers on hols until mon and not signed anything.

bangs head against brick wall!!

6 Comments

Posted in General, moving house

4 in a bed

Posted on April 12, 2005 by | 7 comments

and so no sleep for adults – BB constantly feeding, SB squiggling and jiggling, we had gone to bed too late anyway.

i want a duvet day – wah!

sperate wah – can’t get BB interested at all in bottles of EBM. Similar prob with SB at the time. getting a bit nervous as return to workin under 3 weeks

and that is the third wah – returning to work!

7 Comments

Posted in General

Blessings and Bright Sparks

Posted on April 10, 2005 by | 3 comments

Yesterday was my birthday – thankyou well wishers, i had a lovely day.

SB made me a picture frame with a picture of her, BB and me in it, and also a lovely birthday picture with sparkles and jewels. She had obviously spent a lot of time and thought on it, and its very precious. I also had breakfast in bed – very nice!

We had a read of usbournes lift the flap homes – comparing various styles of ancient homes with modern. Also a bit more of the Usbourne time travellers egyptian section. [history]

We visited the SOTP IRL for Jan’s motherblessing. I had bead and poem, but decided my knitting not up to it! The children all got on v well – and there was a lot of noise! Jax, kirsty and Barbara also there as well as others of Jan’s friends. i thought it was lovely, and belly cast stunning beautiful when all glittered up. Thankyou for a lovely day – also for my birthday cake and lovely coffee!! [socialisation]

Today I’ve not seen so much of SB, and really missed her 1000 questions, though did then get to have a really good day with BB attentionwise, and do some jobs!

Chris took SB for a long walk to Adel crags and some rock climbing. I passed for some BB time and catch up – after all she did wake up at 5-ish and had fed hugely since. Chris might blog that?

On return, after lunch [bb on toast] we were all going outside to do gardening. Sb and I talked about various languages, she recognises french easily – the language tilly speaks, and German – and indeed counted to 12 in german without hitch as she was to have 8 more mouthfuls, but got carried away! on asking her to say hello, she said buongiourno [? spelling] – well we are learning a few words for our italian hol on a german run campsite, so a bit of both. We discussed what words she thought she would like to be able to say, and unprompted came out with hello, goodbye, please, thankyou and I am SB. We also decided to learn can I have an icecream. [languages]. This was sparked off by a gift of a german recipe magazine for children from the SOTP crew – thankyou.

BB was happy under apple tree in pram with toys, weather was gorgeous. Chris was banished to shed tidying duty. SB and I were to decide which plants to divide. However the lure of Molly next door was too great, so she spent most of the afternoon next door with Molly helping her weed – mostly relocating worms though from the sound of it! [ gardening] SB is *really* going to miss Molly, as are we. She and husband Terry make ideal neighbours, friendly, helpful, giving etc.

I divided some hellebores, pulmonaria, cowslips and white dicentra. I think I may relocate these spare plants. Also a paeony and a camellia which look ‘unhappy’. I sat on my bench in the shade garden I made[clearing made by my dad] with BB on lap. BB loved the wind and the tree moving, she giggled and laughed. It was nice giving her undivided attention and playing, like I have sat there and played with SB. I cried. Dad made the clearing for me to sit in shade with SB for her first summer. I think moving to me at the moment feels like losing these moments of family history, that SB babyhood will be saying here in leeds when we move. This might be why I am relocating elements of the garden. However all SBs friends and the friends I inevitably will lose touch with are those that have known us in this precious time of my life, and I am so reluctant to let go and grab the future.

So I was very happy when SB rejoined us and gave a display of twirling and twizzling on the climbing frame. [PE] She really is a bright spark. We then painted her volcano on the grass, discussed lava and magma, and had lots of black ash! [geography, craft]

A bit of jostling as I fed BB [who really didn't sleep a lot today] and we did some games on the cbeebies [IT]. Dinner was what chris would call crap food! lattices [shop bought], jacket potatoes and mixed veg. We also had white wine as only enough fizzy water for SB – what an excuse! SB and BB enjoyed their bath together, and SB was delighted at wheeler dealering 3 stories out of me – she thinks she has been so clever, truth is I love reading them, as we lie in bed together snuggled together on our tummies – bliss! She fell asleep while I sang from joseph and his technicolour dreamcoat. Heaven!

Unfortunately our cafetiere just deconstructed with coffee in it, so beautiful coffee smell, but contents strewn over worksurface and floor – sigh!

thoughts for the day: moving is crap, friends are important, children are what its all about. Sun is fantastic, coffee is essential!

3 Comments

Posted in Butterbean, General, Out and About, Stringbean's HE

I’m 36

Posted on April 9, 2005 by | 13 comments

Happy birthday to me - and so much for really early night. Must express first!! [TMI??]

13 Comments

Posted in General

BB special update – very indulgently long and rambly!

Posted on April 8, 2005 by | 5 comments

OK OK, this is my third post today, but having read, and commented in Jan’s, I had more to say! you don’t *have* to read it – though I do like the fact that you do.

BB is 20 weeks old 9/4/05 at 00:22

Most of my posts are SB based really, as this is primarily a home-ed plus life blog, and BB doesn’t have the same repertoire. Therefore thought I would devote one just to her. It seems a very long time since I was awaiting her birth, and her birth actual [birth story]
[birth photos]

The run up to her birth was one of my more stressful years. We had infertility treatment to conceive her – luckilly on the last course of clomid as after that it was going to be ICSI. Also, continuing with that fertility treatment was a gamble on the professional level, as I knew that if it was successful I was potentially jeopardising my future career. Having another child was really important to us though – although not needed with the same desperation as SB was by the time she put in an appearance, still def greatly wanted. Luckilly there were a number of different units around the country that were keen that I went to work in their hospital, the key ones being St James, hinchingbrookes/addenbrookes, Birmingham and York. As soon as I knew I was pregnant, I let all the movers and shakers know, and was really relieved and surprised that they didn’t seem phased – well, apart from St James! I actually first realised that I was pregnant cos I came back froma weekend with my Nan, having pranged the car, and the first thing I noticed was the smell of chris’s hair. I’d become really aware of this during SB’s preg as well. My pregnancy seemed to roll along – luckilly, as I found deciding which job in the end to go for to give a good work life balance, provide for my family, enjoy the job etc v difficult. SO many things made me want to stay in yorkshire, but the jimmies option was truly dreadful, and york was a way off having a definite post, so too much of a gamble. It was June when I said no to Jimmies and yes to Hinchingbrookes, and then all the formalities of interviews etc – where at the last minute someone else could have waltzed in and got job – had to be done. I suddenly felt well when I had made decision, but unfortunately broke various bones in a soft play area in August. Unfortunatley, the choice for Huntingdon was short term disastrous sounding, as I had to go and live there for 8 weeks without Chris and SB, seeing them at extended weekends only. It was really awful for me. It also really damaged SB’s relationship with me, and stupidly I hadn’t anticipted that. I have had to work really hard all this maternity leave to be seen as an equal parent with Chris. job, luckilly, seems to be right though.

At last maternity leave, and I was so sure that BB would arrive early/on time that I was completely unprepared for the 4 week wait [she was 2 weeks late]. I tried pretty much everything. At last, I agreed to induction, and I’ve already linked to the birth story. Oddly, for such a short but v painful labour, I actually on some level enjoyed it . It was that feeling that things were happening, that I would get to hold my daughter. I would have prefered a home birth, but this time the hospital came up trumps, and in some way it was nice to give birth in the hospital I had spent so much time working in, amongst friends, and saying a goodbye. [LGI]. It also laid to rest the less good SB delivery.

We got to take BB home first thing in the morning, and it just all felt so right. No nerves – unlike the first time – and my parents were there to welcome me – again unlike first time. BB has been a joy of a baby. She smiles, laughs and doesn’t cry much. Has only intermittantly had colic, and usually sleeps well.

She has that beautiful, restful face of a contented baby – without Ms Ford!! She’s a lovely armful for a cuddle – and so she should be as above 99th centile for weight and length. i feel that with working so hard on the SB relationship – which finally got sorted about Melrose time – she hasn’t had her full look in. however, juggling 2 children can’t have a perfect answer – can it? BB seems to belong well in our family though – hard to explain. When I don’t have her in my arms, I definitely get empty arms feeling! this isn’t to say I hold her all the time – she goes down to sleep, waggles in gym, sits in bouncy chair, and SB gets plenty of arm time too – and lets face it, she’s just as nice to have in my arms, if a bit wiggly!! Surprisingly, we rarely co-sleep. BB v happy in her cot, and we only co-sleep if I fall asleep while feeding. I think this is also affected by SB, as she likes to sneak in the bed at the mo, and its v tight with BB there as well. When we move, we are having a bigger bed, so ma co-sleep more, just co I like it! We co-slept so much with SB, that we wondered why we had bought a cot – mind you she fed throughout the night, and hated being put down.

Now BB sits up well, though have had some nice slo-mo facedowns! She grasps well, and actively choses favourite toys to play with. She like singing and tickling. She loves being gently thrown in the air, and aeroplanes. She adores SB. Her chuckle is gorgeous. She is such a patient thing, as SB really not going for shared limelight [though does really love and care for BB]! And plays happily while waiting for attention. When she gets it again, its like the sun smiling out from her face, and I wish I could give her more 1 to 1 more often. She loves baths and swimming. i really am in love again! She also talks to me – mostly tonal with a few ‘sounds’, again adorable! Not so adorable are the parrot like screaches if she is not happy!! Usually cos she wants to see what is going on.

I have put in officially request to work to return to a 4 day week – not as good as the 3 I used to have as a registrar, but I think they are far more likely to agree, and then with time I will work on things to see if I can take another half day somewhere. This was I hope not to lose the SB relationship again, and to continue to watch BB develop and grow. I’d like to continue to breastfeed for as long as poss – a least a year. If I have to supplement with formula when she goes to nursery, I will try not to beat myself up. moving means we haven’t stashed frozen BM as I would be worried it had partially defrosted in the move.

This post isn’t anything like what I wanted to write when I started out! It should have read as a joyful shout on having BB, and her impact on our lives.

Anyway, good luck and joy to all the presently pregnants. Even more luck and joy for those hoping to be pregnant. I imagine we will be thinking about a third in a couple of years [when I get to spend a year on mat leave, fates willing!]

5 Comments

Posted in Butterbean, General

just about held it today!

Posted on April 8, 2005 by | 2 comments

Must get some sleep though, as shattered by bathtime.

SB not so amenable today, and we had yet another troubled night with BB – 2 feeds in the night after a delayed start ‘cos chris woke us both up when he came to bed!

Again an early start, and this time a bit of bailing out, as we watched half of Shrek with brekkie. Ed value though [citizenship] as we could discuss looks not being the important thing, how you can get wrong end of stick from half heard conversations – who am I trying to kid??? We just enjoyed it snuggled up all together on the sofa,and had a couple of throwaway line discussion!

rang my Mum, so we reboiled the fudge – apparently she often has to reboil it – and this time it has set. i think, joyce, that it prob is much more like tablet than shop fudge as not all squish, but sets hard? [domestic science]. SB particularly happy that she gets to do lickings again! LOL.

We had another prolonged nappy change, and although not baby massage, I’m getting better at trying to integrate SB and BB’s play together – we sang songs and rowed boats, wheels on busses etc. SB does love BB, but usually in a rather overly boisterous spur of the moment shouty way. We also played with her rattles, making up stories to keep SB OK – about 7/10 for success, albeit for about 30 mins only. [sibling issues/ childcare and development [LOL]]

We had veg and noodles for lunch – mine had tofu, SB not so keen. And – def shamed head – watched Shrek 2!!!!!

Hama-ed on and off in the afternoon, actually truthfully involving maths, counting, adding, subtracting. Also patterns, shapes etc. [maths], we also read some of the letterland, and did jolly phonics flashcards [literacy]

Tried to interest SB in playing on her own doing jigsaws so I could have a bit of 1to1 with BB, but totally unsuccesful. Ditto the dressing up the paper flower fairies, dot to dotting.

BB had a long sleep, and during that, we had a long go with the DK world explorer, and finished the first travel adventure thing, and some of the sticker pages. [geography] Although I’m not going to pretend SB has huge insight into this, she was getting the hang of continents, and the repeats – USA and China. Since at the moment, my idea of geography is local [when weather improves and we move, we will ‘map’ our area. We did that here for Leeds and she enjoyed it. I’m taking some photos of local landmarks here- ie the co-op, postoffice etc – so we can perhaps do another map and lapbook it, including friends, nursery, gym etc] But I still think dripfeeding the idea of the world, countries, key sites in them etc in a fun way – with no attempt on my part to add any educational snippets – is setting up foundations. I do try and tie countries in with whether I’ve been there, if we know someone from there, if we plan to visit there etc.

now I’ve got completely lost with so many asides?? oh yes, solicitor rang – guess what…….. Still no exchange, as our vendors still not ready – if I roll eyes much more, they may take on vortex properties and suck brain in from behind [prob not be noticeable though].

Hama-ing again when Chris came home – I think he was impressed by fudge! I then slumped on sofa with BB, while Chris and SB did something secret in kitchen. A its my 36th birthday tomorrow, I am expecting that it may be related [craft!]

Spaghetti arrabiata for tea, and SB surprised me by eating it all without any complaints of its spiciness – cos it was quite chilli-ish.
I then set free my TCS self by agreeing that SB could scamper outside without coat etc on although 6pm and cold – door left open for her to scamper back into. Gave me the giggles, as she was practising being a viking warrior with a spear [bamboo cane!] and also beating imaginary somethings out of the cherry tree with it. She was giggling and talking all the while. jumped around so much that although hands cold, she wasn’t.[PE] However, when she asked me to join her, I switched to my TAS mode, and decided it was too cold!

Bathtime, fruit supper, books and bed for SB. More feeding for BB, and relaxing for me watching how not to decorate. i thought living room still entirely hideous on completion! Also feel that they really are too insulting for my comfort level. Had some fudge – very nice!

Good day tomorrow, as going to a mother blessing – must engage mind for poem. Have bead and sparklies, no knitted square though – it would have been a rhombus anyway!

Thought for the day: cuddling and Shrek is as important to our development as a loving family, as studydog or exeter maths!

2 Comments

Posted in Cooking, General, moving house, Stringbean's HE

not surprised!

Posted on April 8, 2005 by | 7 comments

Here you are dear :-) (code provided had the wrong url for the image)


Which of Henry VIII’s wives are you?

this quiz was made by the lycanthropes at Spookbot

well, cant get the code to work for anne of cleves
Anna of Cleves got the royal shaft. She came all the way to England to become the fourth wife of Henry VIII. Once married to Anna, he refused to consummate the marriage, and called her the “Flanders Mare”. Talk about a burn, considering that by this time, Henry was the fattest man in England and had a rotting syphilis sore on his leg.

Anna was miffed, but she was too sensible to let it ruin her fun. She was given an annulment and a fat yearly allowance, and she threw extravagant parties and dined on delicacies for the rest of her life

with my alternate choices
Congratulations! You are Katherine Parr.

Katherine Parr spent nearly her whole life married to crotchety old men: Henry was the THIRD old fart she was forced to marry. Is it any wonder she turned to books and religion to occupy her time?
Katherine wasn’t just smart, she was a tiny bit uppity, too: she almost got herself thrown in jail for arguing with His Royal Fatness about some theological issues.
After Henry croaked, Katherine dropped the prim and proper act and married Thomas Seymour, a dashing pirate-y kind of guy who was dumb as a post.
Which goes to show you that even bookworms know how to get it on.


Which of Henry VIII’s wives are you?

this quiz was made by the proper Victorian ladies at Spookbot


and no, cant get that ones piccie either

7 Comments

Posted in General

Rains drops are falling on my head….

Posted on April 7, 2005 by | Leave a comment

A little addition to the day. About 4, after I’d got home from work, me and Stringbean went down to the corner shop (with dolly in pushcair) – only 5 minute walk or so. Weather was ok, though bit cold when we left, just wore our fleece tops, once out of the shop it started chucking it down with cold rain, and even a bit of hail, we were not impressed. SB dealt with it well though and didn’t make a great fuss, cheered on I think by the thought of ‘showing’ mummy her cold hands :evil:

We got home bit damp……

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Posted in General, Out and About, Stringbean's HE

Normal service resumed

Posted on April 7, 2005 by | 9 comments

Thank goodness, as you were all fed up of my ranting/whingeing!

Really didn’t want to get up, as went to bed too late, and BB fed 2ce in the night – unheard of! However, SB was bouncing off walls at only 7.30. Chris off to work.

Decided only option was to throw myself into the day, so we bounded down and had rice crispies, and started making a papier mache volcano. [craft / natural science] its looking v good, but very soggy at the moment, so may be sat/sun before paintable. We discussed volcanos, the dynamic earth centre and its displays, venus, pompeii etc all while doing it, and the benefits of floury water over glue or plain water. SO actually could prob tick lots of diff ed boxes – though most dealt with in one sentence! Following on from that, we looked up volcanos in the usbornes childrens encyclopedia.

In a reading roll, SB then chose the Usborne starting point science on the body [one of her favourites] so we romped through it [biology]. Find the fact that it gets coy after intestines, but can do bladder silly. SB knows that your poo collects in your rectum though.

BB was getting a bit bored of trying to grab the book and feeding at this point, so we all went upstairs for a nappy change and did some baby massage together. SB enjoyed finding bits of bone markings on BB’s body, and where major organs would be – this is difficult due to the scrummy chubbiness of BB [surface anatomy]

A good feed later, and we were all playing magic bus – its a bit like bedknobs and broomsticks, but unfortunately we don’t actually go anywhere, just imagine. So we went ot a volcano, the centre of the earth, the ocean deep and the moon. i’ve noticed the charges are going up though – LOL [maths, drama]. Of course, it does make eye spy a bit more challenging as well, as it could be anything, but at least the first letter is getting a bit more reliable, and we do give clues [ie f, well its probably a fish.....fish]

BB becoming a good sitter now – doesn’t roll over at all, but likes being on her front and makes bottom upping attempts. Her favourite toy is a toss up between a rainmaker and her pudding cube. She likes stuffing things in her mouth. if I wasn’t mean and WHO-ish about this, I would say she is exhibiting classic signs of wanting solids!

When BB fell asleep, we had lunch. SB fancied trying gnocchi, so I did this with olive paste, but not so keen – she did eat a few though. I finsihed them off, and she went for beans on toast. We watched some cbeebies on telly.

Taking advantage of the sun being out – another really variable weather day – we nipped out in the garden and picked a variety of flowers. We have made a flower collage with them. [art] very ephemeral, so I’ve taken piccies. Whilst shredding off petals etc, we looked at stamens, discussed different shapes, and found where the seeds were being made [all in v basic way obviously, but SB interested, so kept on until she stopped asking]. [biology]

We then did about 5 mins of the DK world explorer cdrom [geography] – ours crashes every time you go east, so a bit of a pain. She was still being volcano fixated, so we were looking for them. BB woke up and on getting her SB changed to studydog [literacy] and did one bit.

BB had a nice waggle in her playgym, then went in rocker chair, as on spur of moment, SB and I decided to make chocolate fudge. [domestic science, maths] never tried before, but found a recipe, and gave it a whirl. We have a proper sugar thermometer cos I make jellies and chutnies etc. Hoping its ok. the scrapings from the saucepan were lovely though. Its cooling at the mo.

We have now been doing spot the difference and matching as well as mazes – not sure what I would put them under! [science] prob, as learning to look for differences and similarities, and categorising things.

In dribs and drabs we have sung/danced, played with finger puppets, played hide and seek, played with dollies, so I am utterly exhausted. It has, however, improved my mood no end.

Hearing from the estate agent that our buyers reported we were quite happy with completion date – i had a rant at her! and from the solicitor to say that although our vendors are grumpy about late completion, they are not in a position to exchange, as some searches outstanding, only caused me to roll eyes! Mood still in the positive.

BTW, blogging this early as SB and Chris have walked to local co-op for milk and to post letter. Ah, I have to say, some peace and quiet needed, even if jigging BB and NAKing while blogging!

Not sure what for tea, as a delve into freezer mode – think will be home made beanburgers, sweetcorn and potatoes.

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Posted in Butterbean, Cooking, General, moving house, Stringbean's HE