Category Archives: photos

bank holiday weekend

My parents visited- which was nice. except that I was on duty for 48 hours of it!! [and manically busy]

When I got home yesterday we had a very lazy and relaxed garden day. read SB lots of books [ and I think mum read bookcases full the day before] fed and giggled with BB and generally just chilled.

SB did still do a fair number of maths workbooks pages, jigsaws, counting games [ludo, snakes and ladders etc], matching games [dominos and memory cards and snap] colouring and drawing and writing her name on all the muddlepuddle postcards. She’s getting the names of the continents from the globe, a lovely jigsaw or 2 and a new DK globe game which is like snakes and ladders, put a plane flying round the globe and getting sidetracked.

today we nipped to the garden centre and SB fell in love with a shed-house [ and me with a potting shed] we have done lots of gardening – pruning and weeding mainly. Much chilling and reading again. SB still having fun with patterns – this time connect 4, also reinforcing the 6 number bonds [which she clearly knows]. lots of just playing and imagination.

edit – forgot that we started another crystal experiment – time to buy in bulk!

Rather fun, we turned the garden sunshade into a den with prunings. we did weave some through, but SB was so enthusiastic that by the time photos taken, it was semi-rutus [?sp] but i like the word. We found lots of shield bugs on the branches to look in the bugfinder as well. tied in nicely with the new DK insects book I had ebayed….

SB sad as at new nursery, everyone left to start school, so she is starting again. She was very philosophical about it with Mum – which tugged my heartstrings a bit. I do think SB would prob love much of school, but I would hate it to crush her SB-ness!

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AAAARRRRGGHHHHHHHHHHH

I have hit the limit for flikr with 2 days to go [in fact had to take 4 photos out!]
What will we do????

96%

96% being the amount of our Flickr 2GB monthly upload allowance we (moslty H) have got through so far……. (Not I hasten to add all taken this month)

The whole tagging/sets etc. thing has really appealled to Helen’s organising/list making tendencies :-)

There and back again

Our flikr importr playing up – in fact sitting to the front of this posting, so I am just hoping the spelling etc better than usual.

Antoher parcel day from the great ebay book hunt – DK picturepedia set of 12 – fantabulous!! So we started with the dinosaur one straight away. Also the DK eyewitness native american.

We had a rush on to get out, as driving to Norfolk – never the easiest of destinations , to see little Nanny and Aunty Peggy. Aunty Margaret was also there. the drive wasn’t so bad – for a change. Little Nanny welcomed us at the door, and is walking ever so much better – even if mostly with a frame. She has lost over a stone in a month, and I didn’t have many empty cartons returned, so told her to do better for next time.

We had a nice time, it was raining, and SB really needed to rampage around, so i was a bit stressed, as Nanny’s house full of treasured fragile ornaments. Mostly kept under control with workbooks, reading and distraction, though a few words were had on and off. BB also a bit uneasy, so perhaps making me tighter with SB. She did showcase her new ability to pull herself up to her feet and look very smug.

Aunty Peggy and Uncle Robert came round. She is looking so different – steroid effect mostly, but also tremendously aged. She did well though, getting SB’s name right and BB and talking sensibly to them. You can see her body as giving up though, weeping sores up and down legs, and terribly bruised arms [again probably steroids]. Although she has brain mets, and they were obviously effecting her – as not the Aunty Peggy of 6 months ago, enough of her was the same so that I felt I could say a real goodbye in my heart to a woman I have seen as an extra grandparent all my life. It is hard to predict when the sands will have stopped flowing, but not long it seems. since my Aunt noticed a dramatic deterioration even from 2 weeks ago, i’m not going to kid myself that even if I get to see her again that she will be anywhere near herself. This really is a year of loss in our family, and I just don’t have my usual strength to manage. They [as in with Uncle Robert] popped by only briefly, and even that was a strain for her.

SB and Nanny enjoyed cutting up runners to go with the pasta bake I had brought for tea, Aunty Margaret played with BB, and I was domestic. It was nice seeing Aunty Margaret again, as we met so often in Leeds. Also nice seeing Nanny approaching her old self. Though she is obviously frail, and more frightened about the future. Managing for now, though I worry about the winter, and she doesn’t actually get out of the house.

Fantastic cloud formation on the way home. Poor photo as had to wait for a layby, and wasn’t as good by then.

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Best of Balloon Shots

These are best viewed larger on flikr, but does highlight that they are out of focus. I tried a few different settings, but at max zoom, I just don’t think the camera was up for it. gives a good impression of how magical it was though.

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Ah, lovely day.

We didn’t try and do a lot, but had a great time together – it is just so nice to relax with my girls.

Lots of ebay stuff came this morning, and I am trying to send some of it back – a trouser suit for work – with a skirt?? and a pair of trousers whose zipper is missing?? Not received a reply yet. Also some DK stuff for SB – pyramids, and an oxford children’s middle ages history book [preparing ahead]. The postie said she specially came to ours first this morning!

This must have got SB in the mood, as we started by letterland reading, and when she went downstairs and I tried on clothes, she got out various match and sort books – miquon maths, singapore earlibird 2A and my pals are here primary 1a, the jigsaw sticker books and some ladybird work books, and flitted betweent htem. HOWEVER, THE THING THAT ABSOLUTELY FIXATED HER TODAY WAS THE CUISINAIRE RODS. SHe made pattern after pattern with them, totally grasps there relationship with each other. In total hours must have been spent in absorbed fascination with square patterning. [have put some of them on flikr]. We also did some playing with the globe – and she is very taken with the word antipodean!

She was very good helping me to make dinner, including going outside and helping dig up some potatoes. The sweetcorn are really coming on – ? ripe enough to eat next week. She insisted that we pick some more elderberries to make some more juice for the jelly – so will set some more off whilst awaiting jamjars. The dinner is one of the simplest yet very yummy – 2 packets of lindamcartney sausages, 2 tins chilli beans and some onion, with layered potato on top with mustard. In oven for 1 hour roughly. SB likes the onion whizzled up, and I pop in some whizzled mushrooms as well. Spare for little nanny.

BB has been walking/shuffling sideways alot, doing that magic movement thing across rooms, and pulling herself up. She is really practising waving, and enjoys SB’s musical percussion set. She definiately is more keen on finger foods that the feeding her things. Today is her 9 month milestone!

Finally, after tea, a bit of magic. SB noticed a hot air balloon out of the window, so we looked and thought there may be 2, so we went into the garden – there were 14! Have taken some piccies of them over the church – sish I had a good camera with a good zoom though, as ours not good enough for this! We enjoyed scooting about garden and house to get the best view, and watching them going up and down.

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flikr snap tool

go here

was looking for the portico greece pictures so that I could use it, but either can’t navigate their tag system [though it seems to have been organised better recently!!] or they were on home computer only?

Have snapped someone else though

Copenhagen pics

Are up on flikr

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charter celebrations

Huntingdon celebrated 800 years of charter this weekend with the full reenactment thing. So we popped along today.

we expected thre to be a lot of traffic, and not sure about the carparking availability either, so were very early. chris nipped to buy a picnic whilst me ‘n the beans played at the swings [indeed SB's favourite swings!]

We went in and were really impressed by the breadth and depth of the re-enactment [loads of photos on flikr, even when heavily pruned!]. Sb was really caught up in it, asking questions of some of the re-enactors – she particularly liked the felting, musical instruments and bone beads makers. There were also 3 arenas with back to back displays, fights and re-enactments to watch – we watched longbow vs early guns, [so now I know why gunpowder took over, even though useless in comparison for 200 years!], falconry [SB and chris participated] A play set in mediaeval times, and the best of all- jousting! SB not so keen on the loud bangs, but BB slept through.

If anyone can tell me the name of the pegged, stringed bowed triangular saracen instrument ? beginning with s, I would be greatful!

We finished off with icecream. I asked SB what were the best things – icecream [naturally] and the jousting.

We were all exhausted at the end, it was a long hot day, with lots of interest. No chairs, so must remember to take camping chair to next weekend, as hips kill me with too much cross leggedness. i am also sunburnt again – the girls aren’t. SB fell asleep in the car, and hasn’t yet woken up. BB still funny about breastfeedng today – lots of minute snack attacks driving me up the wall. Also not really eaten much solids, and a bit fractious.

SB talking in her sleep, and has just clearly said there is smoke going in my eye. My yes are also stinking, as unaccustomed to all pervasive smoke! SB now awake, and watching me make our diary. hmm, unlikely to sleep again before midnight. oops.

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Edited – Hmm, 2 red nose readers, usborne who were the first people, we are now at the 1001 things to spot [usborne history]. We are really doing well on history today!

flikr badge of today

was very ruthless with photos in the end, and think I’ve finally worked out how to do this! [fingers crossed]

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