Category Archives: Stringbean’s HE

Encapsulates my life. I think as a family we are a very good example of chaos theory, and the workings of entropy. however hard we strive for some order, it gets wooshed away.

good news
1.My sister and parents decided the bunks were a good christmas present and bought them [so I see some reasoning for my sister, who will get to sleep on them rather than blow up bed!]
2. Hooking and crooking we are going to halloween party [though I see Alvin shaking his head and sighing at me!]. Haven’t got a costume as such – may go as myself [though only Merry finds that scary, and although I wouldn't want to scare Merry anyway, she won't be there]. thought chris could go as an animal rights chappie, to be the anti-Chris (P) [who I believe is going as himself?] And as for children???

Bad news
1. Pay has dropped
2. Totted up likely cost for christmas for 16 at ours [shriek!] and staying 3-4 days.

Anyway, to the day. BB gave us another totally abysmal night. I was on call as well. In the end Chris took BB to the spare room as I just couldn’t feed her again, and I am supposed to be reasonably alert if called in! SO both of us starting with a small camel to begin with.

SB woke up really early, had me making up stories in bed at 7 – she now has to help with the plot, so getting good at this – , and then up at 8 – no rest for the wicked! So we came downstairs. Now I knew i should have made a list!! Hmmm, well the second thing we did was the maths joining cubes and some singapore 1A on add/takeaway/number bonds. however, we spent far more time just making realtionships between things, thinking about going up and down 0-10 in 2′s. and then doing clumps of 3′s. Preliminary tables really, and some odd and even stuff.

Aha!! first thing was numerous jigsaws!! Then – and how can I forget, we started a papier mache monster head. So that means the maths was the third thing. It was SB’s idea – of course, and I am in TCS mode [or was until desperate need for some quiet!] SHe was very careful tearing up the strips of newspaper and applying to the balloon [flour and water paste], and also helped tidy up. In fact SB has been really considerate all day, and helped with lots of tidying, and not done much grumping or weeping over inconsequential mundanities – really lovely! She is a really gorgeous daughter, and I don’t say it often enough in this blog. Everyone, I have 2 gorgeous daughters.

BB joined us so we had to put away the cubes and jigsaw pieces, so that led to a really good old tidy up. I was going to let Chris have a lie in, but he was downstairs before I had heard BB. breakfast next and getting dressed. SB and I made the first of the days halloween sweets - orange and black coconut ice hmm!!

Then some playing with BB time. She has just got the hang of walking with the walker – though a bit perturbed if it goes too fast! She is such an investigator as well – getting into cupboards, boxes etc. She’s quite good at furniture walking. She chatters and claps, and was having great fun with a pair of toy glasses. I put them on her a few times – immediately whipped off, anf then asked her to put them on – at which point she tried to balance them on her head – very cute! She talks to things as she goes round as well. She also likes posting things in holes, so tidying up suits her! SB also did some playing with BB in a reasonably succesful kind of way. She is also really proud and pleased when BB can do something that Josie can already do!!!!

edited – at this point she also did some drawing and colouring. She has cut out the free archaeolog postcards she got and made a collage – all by herself, finding glue and scissors. She has also had a look at the learn to draw things that go – and done a really good hot air ballon and submarine.

While BB preparing to sleep, SB read some red letterland books to me. She is reading the known stories rather than the words, but I do make her read out some letters and turn them into words. Not too much as sometimes this really annoys her. I then read some of the Usborne farmyard books [she has to sound out/read the title]. i’m mainly trying to show her that guessing the word is sometimes made easier if you sound it out a bit first.

With BB asleep, we did a lot with the marble run. We joined it up in different ways, sometimes steep or curvey or shallow or straight, and guessed how fast the marbles might go, and where they might come off. We had 12 marbles, so 6 each, and SB now good at 6 number bonds, but was easily seeing if we had enough by doing 2 lots of 3, and seeing what was missing or extra. SO more easy maths. Also picked up that the steeper the slope, the faster it went, but curves slowed things down, and curves on a steep slope were more likely to cause the marble to come off – must be science! [oh and we had lunch, and I actually read one of the 3 journals I must read today as getting behind!]

Finally we did the last 2 sweets for halloween – orange flavoured pumpkins and mint flavoured bat droppings and snails – yum! Don’t worry though, we kept our hands and bowls scrupulously clean, as others are going to share in the joy of eating these sweets. Whats more, as Chris looking frazzled, i had a rather good stab at keeping the kitchen tidy.

our next activity totally foiled this – making pumpkin and ginger chutney. What is it about pumpkin seeds – pinging off everywhere! Also so slimy. instant kitchen disaster. We haven’t finished it – SB whizzled the carrots, onions chillis and ginger up, i choopped the pumplkins, and we have added the spice and the vinegar. Chris in trouble, as I had made excess perfumed vinegar for the pickled shallots, so was going to use it, as popped in a jar, but he has thrown it away!! SO mixture of what we have got. CHillies and ginger tend to be predom flavour though. I think today i have earned a prairie muffin award for my kitchen endeavours!

SB now doing some leappad in the kitchen as I said I needed 5 minutes peace, and BB is pootling behind me [with plastic glasses in hand]. Since I have had 30, I had better go and rejoin the family. not many photos as the battery on the camera ran out, and we have lost our alternate rechargeable – a bit of a bugger. I’m sure I will find something to flickr later on – well, if I have time when finished chutney, and potentially thought of a 5 second costume for SB. realised Mum has sewing machine too. bugger! Oh, SB ran in really excited as she has completed one of the phonics books all herself with the games, and CHris [also in kitchen cooking tea] has given her the star for their chart. Very sweet! Back to life, back to reality…………………..

edited to add -OK, so the non-whinge disappeared over dinner, but prob cos she was tired! We then read Ulysses from Usborne’s heros, and for bed the magic faraway tree.

edit 2 – have done chutney [lovely vinegar aroma!] and journals, but no costume for SB!