Category Archives: history

our blogs are getting confused!

chris’s wednesday blog was about tuesday! I’ll make this one about wed shall I!!!

lovely day, some nice weather. SB and I got stuck into some singapore maths – adding to go over the 10 – ie 8 plus 4. It took a while, but she got there [and consildated it today] some she just knew, but some she had to work out how to think about them.

She also did her explode the code easily [or, as she put it, exploding codswallop!], and we read I wonder why the stars twinkle, and assorted bits about dinosaurs. She’s quite knowledgeable about stars and pointed out that there are blue giants on webland. it must have been ages since she looked at stars on webland!

We all sowed some seedsnice big’uns so that BB could do it too. She was soooo rpoud of helping out. As I explained to an anxious SB, it didn’t matter she put loads in the wrong place, I coulsort that out later [and I did!] I obviously missed excess assistance from BB with the butternut squash, as some cells have 8 in!! – may well have an offer on butternut squash to grow to any visitors we might have in the next month!

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BB is totally gorgeous, her speech is well behind josies [no, I shoudln't compare] but she is very close to speech. rather funnily, she has started to wag her finger back at SB, when SB tells her no. She is very considerd about her actions, and knows where things should be etc. She totally adores SB.

We all went into the garden for a play, some weeding, and SB helped Chris chop up some branches. [very ineffectually!]

the a gradual winddown and games playing – mostly snakes and ladders and UNO – before bed. We also read all the stories in the barefoot book tales of wisdom and wonder!

Had 2 glasses of wine

so at least one glass over my tolerance!

Chris took the girls out for a walk today – so will let him do the blogging. I am fractious – hence wine! i had managed to lose 8lb on my diet, but all this stressing and chocolate and wine therapy has put half of that back on – sigh.

Oh well, read more from the usbourne encyclopaedia with SB, today she chose: art, diferent people and homes. She also did 4 pages explode the code 2 – she wondered how sam was so far ahead of her, and meanly, I said because he does it every day! i believe with Chris she did some singapore maths. She also finished her hama princess – somewhat amazingly, as she has redesigned it mumerous times. it is, well, faceless!
She was desperate to sow some more seeds, so we sowed the extra early purple sprouting brocolli ‘rudolph’ BB sowed some butternut squash seeds. Merry, when you do your allotment, if they all germinate, we may have some to offload!

Just gone and got more wine

More hama, and i permafed BB since she came home really. oh, and we read a new Mog book.They are having bath, and I plan an early night – though I do have a talk to write at some point this week.

SB back, and wants me to read more encyclopaedia – the travel bit!

Manic day

well, I guess not really, but it felt that way as I spent the whole day wondering when my mediation request at work would be received. Only to find that it had accidentally been given early on Wed!!! Oh well. I do have a highly efficient secretary – winking at Su should she be reading this!

So what did we do, well BB was a pest last night, so neither chris nor I exactly full of the joys of Spring. Sb started her hama princess this morning – so far looking really good.

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but obviously a way to go! We then read Hercules and Jason and the argonauts from USbournes Greek legends. SB and BB had a lovely time playing with the ideal blocks, sometimes cooperative and sometimes not, and also with the dolls house.

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Today we did Singapore maths 1A – the practice book 1 was finished, as SB on a roll, and wouldn’t stop till it was. With such sterling effort I decided not to mention explode the code! SHe did it all easily and correctly, so we will move on to the next bit. TBH for some of it, she was already moving on – counting 8 by 2,4,6,8 etc. I think my general levels of stress at work for the last 2 weeks, added to some kind of ‘you are official’ compulsion have definitely skewed my parenting/educating style. SO I am relaxing! Will still encourage normals though, but not get so uptight!

After lunch, SB saw me potting up the plugplants we had got [lavender] and said she wanted to finsih them, so she did a nice job of the remaining 30 or so. Chris remembered to put a cd on – Louis Armstrong, loverly! Having played a fair amount of chase, and read numerous times that’s not my dinosaur, BB settled for a nap. I did a fair amount of seed sowing, and SB moved on to jump ahead on the ‘puter.

As Merry pointed out, BB has a weird spotty tongue at the moment, not seen anything like it before. wondered if it was hand foot and mouth, but can’t see any other blisters. She does have 2 of her canines coming through, and is very snotty. Anyway, she has played alot on the ride along, stacking bricks and dolls house today, as well as chase and cuddles with me.

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SB now a lot better, but still very quick to melt and cry – which drives me up the wall. being as unsympathetic as my mother! Both girls are singing in the bath. it may amazre you to know, but I hardly took any photos today!

And now for today!

Sorry, there have been a lot of blogs today!

Awoke with migraine – actually I’m surprised I haven’t had more recently. So tablets and long lie in. Good for my soul! Eventually BB had had enough, slipped away from Chris a and rarred at me! Not sure? what else they did all morning though? SB was cbeebie-ing when I got down.

Hmm, I’m not sure either. There was some breakfasting, SB watched a video ‘Animal Tales’ from M&S, she spent ages writing lots in her birthday card to Nanny. We all played together for while with various of BB’s toys. SB complained as she tried to build a house over herself with cushions, whilst BB clambered on top. I read somethign but I’ve forgotten what it was.

My brain was still whirring from the previous evenings 3 hour meeting at work – aargh indeed! so did laid back playing with stacking blocks with BB and shape sorters. SB was supposed to be doing singapore maths in that 1 sum and 20 mins scribble kind of way, so i remembered yesterday and did things beside. lunch was a good distraction!

She did do it without bother after lunch, and we all ran outside to enjoy the sun some more. I weeded and then planted the rest of the onion sets. BB helped by peeling off their skins, and pulling them back out! SB helped rake, and enacted princess stories.

Back in and I read Greek myths and legends whilst BB fed. SB then chose a bit about genetics. She liked the double helix of the DNA. I obviously paraphrased and simplified wildly, but she got the gist – such that we did a bit of fractions on how much we shared with family – though clearly got to a woosh moment! So calmed down by reading some apple tree farm books together, and playing buckaroo.

After tea and bath, SB and BB? did interpretive dance show to classical music. ROFL.

An apprentice hit – what was with the hiding away and drinking champers? – and vidded Grand Designs.

Calm before the storm…

well, for me anyway.

Lovely day today. Sun shining and all is well with the world. Sb happily did her Singapore maths 1A – we are still in term one allegedly, though doing this for some time. Not in a hurry. SHe’s confident enough to do the subtraction on her own, and was getting grumpy ‘cos it was all under 10 answers. So time to jump ahead! She then did a bit of a jolly phonics workbook – but said it was too easy. So after that mostly played with the dolls house and snappit donkey until lunchtime. sometimes with BB, and sometimes most definitely not.

After lunch she wanted to use the egg shells to grow cress in – no cress, so they now have basil. I didn’t supervise/help at all, and she quite happily got it all done, watered and ready for the propagator. i potted up a couple of the toms. She said she wanted to take a ‘window picture’ so here is one by her.
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She then fancied going to the park, so we all got dressed, and she cycled there with the stabilisers on, got to the field, they came off and have stayed off. BB stayed for ages in the swing – SB hated swings at this age, but BB loves them. SHe was also particularly thrilled with the slide. She clinbed up with chris’s supervision, and I made sure she didn’t fly off too fast – well, i took a puiicture once and she did…

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they both seesawed, and then Sb had a great treasure hunt game, and we lefted righted and walked 6 ‘places’ etc to find the fruit snacks. BB had a whale of a time running about and trying to climb up.
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SB was grumbly at home, and BB asleep, so some book reading went on, and another snack. We then decided to cook for tea, and she chose aztec tortillas. Like a good HE Mum, i went to find various books with Aztec bits in them, so she read the romans pages! [ok extrapolated from pictures!], while I got the stew going – beans, corn squash and pepper. When she started doing the tortillas, I the read various Aztec facts to her, and she remembered a few to tell Chris. DInner was a resounding success anyway!

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We have finished the day watching the planet earth on video, and it was a great one, all about caves. I was lucky enough to study in borneo for 3 months of my training, and have seen the bats exit and swifts ingress into the caves. We did race all the way back to the hut in the dark absolutely terrified though [4 girls without guide!]Now i know that bloody huge wierd thing was a giant centipede! luckilly didn’t have to climb the guano mountain, though did have to throw away a daypack, as never got the guano stains out of it… Confirmed my belief that even if I was thin, I could never be a caver.

Now going to watched a videod Apprentice [I fell asleep with SB...]

Oh and this having more than one blog business is a nightmare!

Just another manic monday

I will let chris add in the morning as he and the girls went to the local[ish] home ed group for an egyptians session.

Your wish……

Good start to the day, BB slept through which is the first for a while – but of little benefit to us since we didn’t got to bed until 2am…. First thing SB wanted to do was finisish of the last bit of the end of the book ‘test’ in the Explode the Code book 1. So she sat and finished that and had breakfast. could cope perfectly well with the sentences they finished with. she was pleased and wanted sticker becuase she was such a good girl :-)

Then it was quick scurry round, getting dressed and ready to go out, we wer wout by 9.30, as we had to go via Tesco for some sugar cubes, for making sugar cube pyramids. Of course i forget that it is ginormous Tesco extra and so of course buying half a dozen items require a mile walk or somesuch. so were were about 10 -15 mins late to the hall. But all got set up, pyramid building was popular, even if some were more of ruined sort – authentic I guess. Unfortunately BB nor totally perky as she has had nasty cold and wanted a carry much of the time, which when you are trying to keep and eye on what SB is doing, help out what the pyramid builders are doing, chat to soem other parents etc. was bit tiring. Sb also made a hippopotamus out of dough, and a mummy/cask mask. All good fun, and a nice ‘potluck’ Eyptian (very -ish) lunch to finish. A few photos, not brilliant as I was more often than not distracted by something else.

On the way out we bought a sort of Triops Aquapolis from an US family who are moving back home and getting rid of various bits?

While the girls went home with Helen, I went via a couple of shops. I bought soem clocks in Argos. A couple of basic ones for downstairs and Disney Princess one for SB’s room. Relaised we didn’t really have any proper dial clocks around now, and so it’s bit harder for SB to actually learn to tell the time so easily. The two downstairs clocks are both ‘radio controlled’ – they set their time by the rugby time signal or whatever it is. Rather spooky, turning them on and then watching the hands turn to the right time. It wasn’t a feature I’d gone looking for, but the chips must now be very cheap, to find in in the mechanisms of cheap Argos clocks.

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This was the Hippo

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I had a fairly crappy work morning and then hurried to join them as BB very grumbly, not at all well and ravenous for a feed, so I said hello to everyone cleaning up as i gave sustenance. It is only 5 mins from where I work on Mon, so convenient for emergency feeds. Anyway, nice to see SB in the middle of a gaggle of children having great fun, playing all sorts of games together.

In fact I fed BB all afteroon, or she slept in my arms. SB a good lass though, and we played some games, read 3 different books about egypt and ancient egyptians. She also started explode the code 2 – woohoo! I read some of ulysses, and she then nick juniored.

I had a brief respite from permafeeding and sowed cauliflower autumn giant, and sweetcorn.

We finished the evening with chips from the chippy, and watched the planet.

BB has come alive a bit now – little hope for a good night!!

And then I had insomnia – sigh

SO lets gloss over a rather long night and get on with the day. Started in style with SB being sick – she was rather interested to note the brown bits were her pitta bread. Hmm. She is complaining a bit of tummy ache, but the amount of screeching and bouncing that has gone on today belies her claim for special treatment because she is not feeling well…

We have had a jiggle about of things in the playroom – and a second hand table takes the place of the cute little one, as this limits BB’s chances of ruining whatever SB is doing. So we started the day propery by playing UNO on it, a bit of beading and then SB got out her leappad and the phonics set. Whilst we did this, BB has got the hang of sitting and pushing along with her feet on her pushalong, so careered around the house – quite deadly to ankles!
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We then started making her plaster of paris box, that she chose herself [ok, eith some slight direction] from Tesco yesterday. She was very good at mixing and making sure it wasn’t spilled everywhere, and with the pouring, so we filled the mold and removed when set. It should be dry tomorrow to paint.

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A lot of legoing went on, and SB made a castle – well, she also made an alien and a tower, but BB got them! It looked a bit like the tower of london, so we discussed traitors and elizabeth the first in a low key way.

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Since I’d got the lego out to incorporate BB into the game, they then moved into some wierd imagination of SB’s game where shewas queen, and BB either a dog or a servant, and she threw things and BB brought them back – which she did, but much giggling between them – so great to watch – even if abandoned lego coating the floor in its usual lethal way!

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We then had a singing session – and BB is getting the hang of actions, and is particularly good at wind the bobbin up. in fact, she often asks for this song by gentle raaring and doing the winding action – very cute. I then read 3 of the barefoot book of animal tales – SB had particularly wanted a snake story, and the one in that is a good one. Because I was then voiceless without a cup of tea, she did some explode the code – only lesson 11 and the first book is finished – well done SB!

Chris stuck up the coathook for the kiddicoats, and Sb and BB were an adoring audience whilst I removed the lego minefield and took the opportunity to hoover – not that the carpet looked any nicer when finished. I need an Adymachine!

As soon as BB saw her coat she was quite clear it was time to go out, so she got kitted up and went for a pootle in the backgarden with Chris whilst me and SB opened the trial extension of education city and she did some more of the year one english – which she is enjoying. I would prob pay for it despite finances if you could just choose 2 years rather than one. Can’t remember the home-educators deal either?

Anyway, both children been in wild mode since just before tea, and having a bath now as I need peace and quiet – though monitor is on, and I’m trying to blog quickly to be done before SB gets down. I do enjoy this home-ed lark. Just wish i did more of it.

An out and about day.

Well, we did have a late start. both beans were up, but we prents had seen too much of them in the night. So SB started with cbeebies on TV and cbeebies on ‘puter. Chris had drawn an outline of the flower bed on an old slate roof tile. SB was entrigued, so spent quite a while drawing a house with chalks on one. She pointed out at some lenght it was an old time picture – due to the slate and chalks! BB had a go too.

We did have a good look at the science experiment from yesterday – the flowers, and we were all pleased with that. We didn’t manage to get dressed in time to pop in on home dad though, as they had gone out, and then it was too close to lunch. Instead SB and i looked at the Usbourne flip flap castles, and the 1001 things to spot book. We also did the next page of her active readers book.

After lunch, we went to Chris’s parents. they had the electricians around, which was unfortunate as that meant we were all in the kitchen – though TBH, this is where we often are anyway! SB made a william morris box and then did a painting for Chris’s parents. She had wanted to do another science experiment today with Nana, so I brought along the usbourne air experiments, and they built a convection snake. It was rather large to work really well, but was at least convincing. She then relaxed in front of cbeebies some more. I think the disturbed night had everyone worn out!

Later in the week Chris is going back for their old dining room table that we can put in the playroom. This means SB [and me] will be able to do jigsaws/games without BB rampaging through and totally destroying them. This will be good, as we have to sneak in things like that when she is asleep.

i am feeling grumbly – and since I am hols, there is no good reason to be feeling this way. Maybe I am wine or chocolate deficient?

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Totally devoted to you

hmm, well glad to come home from work yesterday as certainly earnt my keep. Nice that SB still awake when i got home. Nicer still that BB didn’t wake up all night.

So to today, SB started the day with an early CBeebies fix. BB and me had a roistering marmalisation session in the bed. She bounding all over me to make sure I was fully awake, having a good tickle and giggle – a good way to wake up!

So, we started off with breakfast and reading baba yaga and the new zealand story form usbornes stories from around the world. brekkie over and some messing about with lego for both the girls.

SB keen to do the final tesco science tube thing I bought a while back, so we settled down to that. She likes ‘speriments. First we did was the best. We put 15 coppers in a bowl and tipped salt on top [it said sprinkle, SB somewhat enthusiastic] and the cover completely with vinegar. it has to be the absolutely quickest way to get coins clean. I hope someone is doing the chemical equations int heir head, cos they’re not given in the bumpf -which would be a negative. Afer 20 mins add shiny iron nail and watch it copper plate. [except we left it a bit longer, and other reactions seemed to happen]. we did the volcano one a number of times, a number of different surface tension experiments. This had great easy experiments, but no real explanations.

SB then did some explode the code whilst i settled BB off to sleep. We had a bit of a treat in sarnies from the bakery accross from us – yummy! After that SB started on her sewing a foam bag kit she got for birthday. She got the hang instantly – considering we have never done swing before, and it was soon ready for the key ingredient – sticking!

BB woke up while she did this, so we had a good play, lots with the cooker, lego and she’s really attached to the ‘thats not my monster’ book from the library, so we read it alot. She is very good at shouting mummy and Daddy, a reasonable bye bye and ook. When SB’s sticking got far too interesting, we went and watched Chris pruning the grape [rather late]. BB thought the leaves dropping were rather lovely, and had a great poddle about. SB finished her sticking – it is certainly a decorative bag, so also came into the conservatory to help with the pruning.

After a bit of a fuss, she did some of the msising writing bits in the explode the code, and whizzed through some singapore maths 1a simple addition and subtraction. I think she has grasped this so well that we shall just nip on to the next section on ordinal numbers, not doing any of the practice unless we hit a bit that takes some thinking about. in our mental maths mess about, we are doing multiplying in 2, 3 and 5 [though not to great numbers, 2 and 3 to 12, and 5 to 20] and also sharing numbers 12 and less in 2,3,4. So I think we should try and get the two areas nearer together! SB has decided she wants to be on the same books as Maddy, so they can do it togeether [does this sound like homeschooling to anyone?]
She remembered we hadn’t done 2 of the experiments, so we did those, and then after she went on and on about a website we used to do, I realised it was education city, so got a trial and she got stuck in. I read BB more books, and she moved my finger over all the textured bits – cute! She also had a great play with the hammer it shape sorter. My fingers have recovered!

by dinner time, we were all tired. TBH, I could have done with a restful day, but really enjoyed being full on and there, as with recent jaunts have felt more part time than normal. Since we missed pancake day yesterday, we did it today. Sb had sundae day, as she doesn’t like pancakes – possibly more sprinkles than icecream though! We vaguely did the religion. BB ate anything offered.

After her bath, I had promised SB a game, and she chose 3D snakes and ladders [fantastic!] Unfortunately I won fairly instantly having gone up the long ladder, so we had a rematch and I lost. Angelina ballerina stories and a Winnie the pooh CD and all was quiet! Chris settles BB with a bottle when I read SB stories, so alternate nights BB sleeps without a night feed – a bit wierd for me I must say, but she is happy, so I guess weaning has begun.

oh, and aaarrrghhh to the apprentice. I think even I could have done a better job

Funky Monday

Well, as previously reported, they were all a bit lax in the getting up stakes today – good job we weren’t going anywhere this morning. I did have some plans to get into? few things, but that went by the board. By thetime breakfasting/brunching/dressing/packing bag was done it was time to be going out pretty much.

Off again to another CHEF? thing – this time get together at a local (as if anything HEdders do is local to us, except visiting us…) soft play centre.? Pretty standard climbing about soft play sort of place really – nice spiral tube slide though. But a nice enough place, a lot more space for parents to sit around, and babies to poddle about in though than most, which was nice, they even have? a few sofas. Reasonable food a drinks as well. THe groups gets a decent discount and a few tea/coffee thrown in
Of course you need to know who the HE children are so you can play with them. Once I managed to get SB introduced to a few then she was much happier charging about, though didn’t really liek the footbal bit much (there is a small football area, with soft ball. but she isn’t really much of? football girl, and the others were moslty bigger than her bya? few years) but as ever really hard to drag her away from the place while others were still there.

BB poddle about a fair bit, she did go in the toddler bit? couple of times, though I think she preferred the bigger kids place, managed after? bit of effort to clamber up the sort of solpey-step thing to the top of the little slide. I played with BB? and sat and drunk coffee and chatted with other HE parents so good to get to knew? a few more new faces. Shame I can never remember their names to start with.

Eventually dragged SB away to go home to find Helen resting with? a migraine. There was a present for SB form her godmother in the post, so she opened that. A rather nice Roman jigsaw. A bit on the hard side for her at the moment, but she did a lot of the edge and some of the middle before she subcontracted the rest out to me. BB wakign up part the way through didn’t help much with a jigsaw on the floor (must get the old table we ahve been offered from my parents to put in the playroom for a BB free zone.)? Plenty to look at talk about in the jigsaw though
Cooked tea for them – tofu and veg stir fry and noodles, at SB’s request – what a good girl :-) !, a bit of play and then bed. SB took a little time to get to sleep, but probably not surprising.? Must hit sack soon as well.