Category Archives: General

i begin to wonder whether the second child in an HE family actually doesn’t have an advantage. BB has seen SB deciding to write more neatly and do spelling. Last night BB got a ladybird book, told me she was going to learn the ‘curly one’ it turned out to be a t. she drew little lines on a piece of paper, and then practiced putting a t in it. here she is creating her own workbooks!! so, she can write a lovely t, though she doesn’t know its name, and she can sound out words. I get the impression she might be learning to read and write!!

well, one in particular actually! we did really enjoy playing puerto rico, and it is definitely on our christmas pressie game list! SB really enjoyed playing it. we parents did too, and would recommend it. now hopefully the babs is taking it to helmsley. oh, did i say we were at the babs this weekend? we had a fabulous time with great company, great food and great games. we were also lucky enough to catch the SoTP family as well. lots of chatting playing and take away pizza. the take of pizza was required because we had all had such fun playing ticket to ride that somehow dinner was a lower priority for us, though not for the children.

SO, on the games recommendation list are :

and whilst we were there SB read this book How Did I Begin?
. She has never asked me any questions, and we have similar books of our own, Let’s Talk About Where Babies Come from
so i am guessing she knows what she wants to know then.

it has all gone really funny. makes blogging a nightmare since i have a postage stamp to write in chriiiiissssssssss, heeelllllllllpppppppp

Kids had a fun time at a Roman Workshop this afternoon, back home awaiting arrival of Helen so we can head off up to the Babs for the weekend.

But mostly I’m being fed up with mess and chaos around the place, with the way it seems to get messy a millions times quicker than it can get tidied away, with it seeming to suck up much of my time and energy without actually seeming to get better  - tidy one room and it seems to sidle off and just pop up elsewhere, with feeling that it’s ages since I did much fun stuff with the girls at home. With it taking 3 times as long to find or do things and then getting grumpy withg the girls.

Oh, grumpy, grumps

arthur books

we have just bought this one

but other ones around the theme i have enjoyed are these 2, that SB also loved

gawain was truly a fabulous read aloud!

2 v different ones from my childhood!

sorry everyone else! Merry and I were having a discussion on the ‘real myth’ if there is such a thing! behind the arthurian legend, and why i have been jaw droppingly appalled with the merlin reimagined! however, i do actually enjoy the merlin series! have just not equated it with arthur as it were.! owther books quite off on a tangent around the legend i enjoyed as a teen were: Taliesin (Pendragon Cycle)
; Merlin: Book II of the Pendragon Cycle
and Arthur (Book III of the Pendragon Cycle)
ANd these are sort of the initial focus of the legends! Arthurian Romances (Dover Books on Literature & Drama) (Dover Books on Literature & Drama)
, Le Morte d’Arthur: The Winchester Manuscript (Oxford World’s Classics)
and The Mabinogion (Penguin Classics)

and yes, i have read them all and far more – have a major myths and legends fetish I guess!!
oh, and since i just can’t stop, 2 fabulous fiction books/series have their roots in welsh celtic myths!
The Dark is Rising Sequence:
and The Owl Service
i have been reminded of omissions!! Merlin Trilogy
The Once and Future King
Name Your Link
oh dear, more ommissions to add!
The King Arthur Trilogy:
The Seeing Stone (Arthur)

there must be something for everyone now!

We have had a number of different goes with SB of trying to explain why there is this huge historical and cultural ‘thing’ with the election of President Elect Obama. i am not sure that she still ‘gets it’. Firstly, she hasn’t been brought up to ‘notice’ colour. I mean, we know people are of different colours, as they can be of different faiths, sex, hair colour and age etc. It is an adjective, not a defining statement. [well, not for us - though I guess some people may chose to be defined by their faith or colour]. We have in the past discussed the possible evolutionary pressures that cause the different colours of skin predominantly [and hair as a side issue] – namely getting enough vit D from the sun near the poles, and not burning near the equator. So the appointment of a ‘person of colour’ seemed to her not to be anything particularly special, may just as well appointed a woman for example.

OK, so, backing off, although Pres Elect is not ‘descended from slaves’. This history of black people in America is one of slavery and then second class citizenry. We have lightly touched on the slave trade before, when we went to a museum in Bristol, and also on webland, but she had forgotten. We went further back and discussed the treatment of slaves by the romans, ah yes, she could remember that, and the fact they were treated as goods, separated from family. but she also remembered that they could be freed, and once free were treated as equals. [though, actually there came a time when slave/ true roman interbreeding was distinctly frowned upon] did this happen to the black slaves – well, not exactly! Even when they were all freed [emancipated] they were still second class citizens. they couldn’t go on the same buses and the same shops, date a ‘white’ person. We discussed civil rights, touched on klu klux klan, and Mrtin Luther King.

Eventually we got back to barack obama – you see, this is why it is such a big deal

pause…

‘I am part coloured’ “?what?” ‘well I have skin that tans quickly like daddy, and he is coloured’ “!??”

it is a difficult concept, as how pale should you be to be white, and how dark to be coloured/black. And yes, she is right, it really shouldn’t be a concept at all. Maybe, with a person of colour at the head of america, more and more children will also not be able to graps this concept either, because one day it will cease to have any more meaning than the colour of my eyes.

we went away to a birthday party for the weekend. looking at the blogring, it wasn’t the only birthday – happy birthday M.

so we went south and stayed at the portico’s, as did jax, and we were there for a swimming party to celebrate c’s birthday. the swimming party was fab, all the children really enjoyed both the swimming and the party food. we adults had far flung HE-ers to socialise with as well!! lovely

after retiring back to the portico, we cracked open the wine, and chatted until 3am putting the world to rights. the kids all had fun – mostly with sylvanian families. the portico had the Ordinary Jack (Bagthorpe Saga)
on audio tape. i must buy these for SB. i remember them being uproariously funny, and i think she would enjoy them now too [mind you, it was in my teens when i 'borrowed' them from my sister...]

the enxt morning, whilst the portico children were marching, jax and i slowly came alive, and big and sb played beautifully. mayhem when all the children about, and bb started a body jumping and wrestling match. having truly shattered the peace, we left!! thanks to layla for the party, and to the portico for hospitality.

Chris and the girls had a busy day on friday, they went to city 2 for a session on musicology. i think it was most interesting for the older ones, but sb and bb both enjoyed playing the electric guitar. the nice thing about the city2 group is that there is a wide age range catered for, and so sometimes the event is pitched a bit high, but def worth it for the evidence of peer happiness in HE.

rushing back in the afternoon, SB did lots of maths and some piano practice

then the girls and chris went to city 1 for a ceilidh. it was arranged by gina and katy, and was, by all accounts totally fab, and our girls really enjoyed it.

meanwhile i had a rather stressful day at work, arrived home to sink into sofa, to fin myself locked out. unforthunately in the drawn out kerfuffle which is the cuddle and kiss fest of my leaving for work, my house keys were left at home… so i had to go back to work!! however, i thought of a local to work colleague and went to his house for a lovely chat with him and wife, so all’s well that ends well!