Category Archives: Stringbean’s HE

my broken heart

Posted on July 15, 2005 by HHaricot | 10 comments

cool freebie from rep today, a heart!! will take piccie and flikrise. It is anatomical and opens up – even the tenae chordae tendonae [heart strings] are there. SB thought it was rather great = i did worry that it was too old really for her. felt like asking for 6, but a bit greedy!

I’m on call but managed to get home.Its been a crap week at work really with my pair off sick, so i am worked to a frazzle. 24 hour shift on sun as well, never mind. have a paper to write up, 2 guidelines, a couple of patient info leaflets, a website, one audit to carry on with and 2 to start. shall try and do some on sun.

we do seem to have slipped into a routine of late bedtime in working week, and me doing stories. this means I don’t feel quite as bereft of SB, though not ideal. there are moves afoot to change our working pattern again, so I am trying to get it family friendly at least. a mooted idea is that we work one hideous 48 hour weekend every 8 weeks, but followed by a week off [as would have worked all the week in one go!] so in my book worth it.

chris at present annoying the life out of me with his fake hiccoughs!

Now, I need help whittling sonlight, so all you orderers out there this is what i think i would like [they are pretty much all in K or 1]

childrens book of art
archaeologists dig for clues
greek myths for young children
maps and globes
aesop for children
ready set go for the code, and explode the code
getty and dubay a-c [is the instructors manual worth having?]
sonlight timeline and K and 1 figures

other things possible
lion storyteller book hsreceived poor review!
then and now
the greek news
living long ago [have one quarterof this so prob not]

I have usborne’s timetraveller, and dk eyewitness castles, vikings, greeks and romans, also the why series, which has a greek one and a castle one. [in fact I have plenty on castles] so not sure whether the last 3 would add much?? otherwise for the lion book, i really am after a nice book of multicultural stories from around the globe which I thought this might be good for? what does anyone think??

ALSO IS IT Too early for susan wise bauer story of the world??

At the moment we are doing a lot on castles and sea creatures, having now left slightly the dreamtime phase! Mind you castles good reading as going to mediaeval fayre in godmanchester tomorrow after stagecoach.

might do some book organising now BB suitable stuffed with milk

10 Comments

Posted in Books, General, Stringbean's HE

water fight

Posted on July 14, 2005 by HHaricot | 3 comments

got back from work to find a waterfight in progress – very quickly got wet and oh how nice that was [why aren't work places aircon? my office deepest pit of hell heatwise. not in there much though]

chris ordered shower, as i can’t cope without.

beans happy and healthy [BB spreadeagled on my lap] SB getting v good with mental maths add and subtract [shops and cafe games]. also has a lovely imagination in games. we read a nicely illustrated book about beaufort scale for wind, and finished of the sharks book – we need a trip to london aquarium i think. I have a new burst of imaginaion for maggie and the ferocious beast stories. SB has most of the songs i sing memorised, so need to learn some more!

BB very good at front and back rolling, and trying to press up to poss crawl. she mostly likes standing and bottom jiggling. she has a firm grip, and perhaps soon will keep hold of toys that SB runs away with.

must whittle down sonlight order. Who was anally retentive enough to sticker books according to subject?? I feel v tempted. Also I feel we have a very school at home resource section, so would fit well on a tv prog!

Finally put in photobox order for all last years photos, so i can have a nice time albumising soon!

3 Comments

Posted in Butterbean, General, Stringbean's HE

Little Nanny Update

Posted on July 13, 2005 by HHaricot | 5 comments

From the pictures on flikr, the beans all had a lovely day yesterday. when i got home SB excitedly told me all about it. bath is still a funny colour!

today we had a hurried breakfast as were going to be late for the last clap and sing of term. HomeDad dejected, as he is back to work after the summer hols. know how that one feels. SB as very proud, as she got to carry biscuits around offering to everyone. Half of her chatter I think we should blog, as she is constantly enquiring or pronouncing. TBH if we ever had LEA input, I think they would run away if left with her having been instructed to tell them about home ed. Both she and I do talk non stop, and a lot of it is inconsequential – but means I am here, i love you, we are together, but a fair chunk is educational – what we see, what she has been thinking about. Jumping of ideas. Can i remember – no.

Anyway, lunch and we were off to Norfolk, where little nanny having rehab. She is feeling much more positive, and has a nice physio who keeps her motivated. She is shuffling with zimmer, but shoulders now better, which has given her a confidence boost. [flikr photos]

both children charmed the other inpatients, and BB was handed around for cuddles [improves little nanny's street cred!]. oh, that reminds me, SB circling around the concept of death, who will die in what order, and very perturbed that it isn’y soley age related. she has offered to share nanny;s with me when my nanny dies – not a conversation i’m keen on! it appears that SB believes in heaven, which is in the stars. she likes the stardust thing too though.

it was a real scorcher of a day for the drive, and hard on my eyes and general tolerance levels. was behind numerous caravans and thought of joyce!

on the home ed front we are dipping in an out of the usbourne pocket science, dk eyewitness, singappore maths and crafty bits and pieces. did watch spanish muzzy for a change. rosetta stone looks like a good concept doesn’t it. am planning a cheaper sonlight order!

5 Comments

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

Ahh, good day today.

Posted on July 10, 2005 by HHaricot | 2 comments

though a surprise, considering I only managed to go to bed at -2:30!

SB got up and brought me some singapore primary maths 1a this am whilst I was still in bed [9-ish] sat on BB’s head so she woke up too! Since I have started being worried that we are letting things slide, I managed to prise open eyelids and we romped through the numberline pages. When SB then brought a spelling ‘match and sort’ book, i realised she was raiding the future presources box and got up. i fished out the DK eyewitness books [that were a book people special a while back] and some phonics cards and went down in search of breakfast.

SB was the teacher [as always] for the phonics cards, but I hope that she actually takes some note of my answers. I think it is going in, but no reading coming out yet. We then had a toss up between the shark and the volcano eyewitness book, and the volcano won out.

About half way through Chris reminded us that if we were going swimmin…. So a frantic getting ready and the usual SB exasperation with going out hurries. We did get there though – nice pool and reasonably quiet for the sat morning session. And [drumroll please] SB swam half a width unaided!!! Several times infact, floated on back and generally enjoyed water confidence. She is swimming like a drowning dog, but its a start! BB as always loved the water, kicking and waggling about.

Home to some joe the dragon addition and then fraction fireworks, plus the stackers. she finds numeracy easiest when she thinks in sweets, even if in her head!

Lunch was another SB palavar, as she really is driving me nuts with the not being bothered to feed, wanting to be fed rigmarole. I might not be so fazed, but she did actually starve herself between 9 and 15 months [92nd to 5th centile]

weather so good we put up mudpud camp gazebo – to find there is a piece missing! [is it with you layla??] BB had some toys on a mat, SB and I did part of a mosaic style banner until boredom set in. we the read the usbourne pocket science why people are different and 3 red nose readers. though i was reading, she is at least guessing words now. lots of general play/tickling messing about interspersed between the 3 of us. [chris mending the pond fountain]. SB has got much better at balancing, and was even scootering well. I wore different trousers today!

SB then put on a horseriding show while chris persuaded BB to nap, we also peeled and chopped veg for tea [my pretend south american dish – sweey pots, butternut squash, carrots broad beans and sweetcorn in a gingery chilli sauce. should be with couscous , but had run out, so rice and tortillas that SB makes into ‘sushi’]. The broad beans were own grown and about 5% were maggoty. We never really had pests in leeds as too far from any other veg growers i guess, and new made plot. What got me [and stopped SB helping] were that they pinged themselves all over the place – lovely! Anyway, you could pretty much tell the pods infected from the outside. When I find my veg growing books i will look it up. We ate outside again as such lovely weather. This was followed by looking at varoius seedpods – water and land iris, hellebore, sweet pea [everlasting] and a general scout around the garden. SB solemnly warned me not to eat any. I also introduced her to drosophilla – as there were manky cherries in the pantry!

While Chris did bedtime stories tonight, I have been having a kissy/raspberry giggle and ticklefest with BB – she has a great chuckle. She is now asleeo on lap, and chris coming down the stairs. What a lovely day!

general updates: littke nanny happy in convalescant/rehab cottage hosp. we will be visiting wed. My sister 34 tomorrow. not guiness [AKA Murphys] seems to have departed.

time for a limoncino and coffee!!

OH AND WHY DOESN’T MY GRAVATAR WORK??????

2 Comments

Posted in art and crafts, Butterbean, Cooking, gardening, General, literacy, numeracy, SB-PE, science, Stringbean's HE

owning up ;?0

Posted on July 10, 2005 by HHaricot | 3 comments

my late bedtime was due to doing an aboriginal art style hama picture!!

3 Comments

Posted in art and crafts, General

lovely house…………..

Posted on July 9, 2005 by HHaricot | 5 comments

i decided while outside eating dinner looking at it. when i’m panicking over money and wondering what we have done, i am going to go outside and look at it. the back view *is* my dream home, no wonder we overextended to buy it.

Anyway, BB is a happy girl. she has been plying with those press and ghastly woofy tunes play type toys today. mesmerising! Also while in bath did first roll from tummy back to back – a surprise for her! She lies on my lap like a little cherub form rubenesque school! we would make a very rubenesque mother and child!

SB had her stagecoach show today. it was all very lowkey – as anticipated for a group of mostly 4 year olds. i though SB concentrated remarkably well, and her overacting building sandcastle and pretend cry as sea washed it away drew laughs. I was proud!! [also low key].

At home we played shops – gradually i am using money with real values as i think we use switch too often! We also made our own pompoms to turn into a chick. attention span didnt quite last, so i finished. A bit of piano playing and object hide and seek.

the day brightened though, so we went out intio the garden and dug up more potatoes and picked more beans – yummy. SB raced around the garden, and even rode bike without stabilisers [i think the like a bike a like was instrumental there]. We played tag, and i was hampered by BB in my arms, particularly when my trousers fell down – luckilly no cameras! SB also had great fun climbing and swinging on the tp frame.

the weather was so nice we ate our curry sitting on the lawn. BB had peas and swede instead, as dont fancy her having tummy ache!

OH, earlier in the day SB wrote my sisters birthday card. She is getting quite into writing so nearly did sonlight order for getty and dubay but couldn’t find cc. Also hadn’t clicked from mudpud. on that note, cant find my link to sarah’s science experiments in a box??

chris and i have come up with an order of housedisasters to be sorted – roof leak being at number one spot!!

edit – omg 2.30. how did it get to that time??

5 Comments

Posted in Butterbean, DIY/ house renovation, gardening, General, music, numeracy, SB-PE, Stringbean's HE

A Chris Catch up – Edited.

Posted on July 7, 2005 by Daddybean | 4 comments

Hmm, this time last week I was holed up in Merry’s tent waiting for the rain to stop at Kessingland so I could finsih packing up. Where did that week go then? Plenty of other blogging about Kessie on the ring and Helen did some as well, A and now seems a bit late, but I’ll chuck in a few snippets.

Some of the best bits for me:

Watching the kids playing, SB catching up with old, and making new friends, the endless, gradually morphing games they play, and not to many tiffs. SB loved it.

The three babies ‘communing’ they really seemed to enjoy each others company, much arm waving, leg waggling and toy tussling.

Sitting , relaxing, chatting, watching the kids, eating outside the tents. Making a few new friends and catching up with current ones. Missed you though Sarah from the mix

Being the center of attention – well feeling like it as the area around the front of our and Layla’s/Simon’s tent seemed to become the area where people hung out for some reason. So we didn’t have to go anywhere to socialise

Sitting outside the tent at 6 in the morning (when Helen had gone back to work early), sun up, tea in hand, quiet, watching the ducks patrolling through the campsite.

Merry flaggin down the ‘train’ in the wildlife park, as it was the last one and had already left the ‘station’ He let them on anyway I took BB and Josie off in the buggies and enjoyed ’5 minutes peace’ sitting under a tree.

The rain on Thursday which got SB into a tent and doing some other things such as making necklaces which she said afterwards she enjoyed,and gave some great puddles for them to splash in which I love watching. And of course hearing Kirsty shout ‘Marcus’ disparingly as the last pair of trousers gets wet….

This photo, which really should be a bit of video:

The girls were taking it in turns on ther ‘pogo-er’ thing. To time their turns they were singing ‘Zip-a-dee-do-dah’ – which SB has learnt at Stagecoach

Worst bits:

The sinking feeling when I realised the tent poles weren’t in the roofbox……

Eventually giving up waiting for the rain to stop on Thursday afternoon, going out and getting wet packing the car, only for the rain to stop as soon as the only thing left was the tent outer Grrrrr Thank’s for getting wet helping though Simon.)

A bit of BBQ related disgruntlement.

Oddest thing.

We never got to go and look at the sea.Which seeing as I love the sea is very strange

We had a great time, loved it, want to do it again I think one or two areas will need a modicum more organising though.

Sorry to all those in statics we didn’t come up and see (though it sounds like if we had we might not of actually identified many of you), but I think we were just feeling too much at home and too lazy on the camping field.

Other snippets of things from this week

Stringbean drawing dots all over her body in felt tip, then joining them up as a dot-to-dot – ‘it’s a dot-to-dot of a my body’

Nanny finding SB asleep on the landing when she had got out of bed:

Possibly more, but I have to go and take then to Hospital to see ‘Little Nanny’, may update later, but will publsih incase I don’t

And here we are later….

Another SB snippet. A couple of days ago she was suddenly sick over the playroom floor. I don’t think she has been sick for ages, and didn’t realise what was happening, so it just sort of came out She recovered quickly though. About 20 seconds later she was saying she was hungry, and excitedly peering at it identifying her dinner - ‘Oooo look, noodles!’

Little Nanny is ok, but it’s going to be while before she is walking about well enough to go home, though I doubt she will be back entirley to her pre-fall self. She should be moving tomorrow back to her local hospital to get rehabilitated. Probably better that she is back there, but she seems to have quite liked this hospital (as they go…) so is probably loathe to move. And it will be less convienent for visits etc., for her daughters as they both live a fair way away, whereas we have been a handy coaching stop And of course Helen works in the hospital.

And nice though it has been to have people staying it will be nice to have the house back to ourselves and for us to attempt to have nice quiet family weekend. Though given our current record, you ca’t help wondering what will happen this time….

Stringbean’s Stagecoach group is doing a little ‘show’ for the parents this weekend which should be fun. And try to get a swim in on Sunday as well, do miss the lovely kiddie/baby pools they had at the gym we went to in Leeds though – but not the paying for the privilidge….

4 Comments

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

shhh, BB asleep

Posted on July 4, 2005 by HHaricot | 1 comment

at last!
she does seem to have a very low sleep requirement. She had a good day playing today, and had fun bashing keys on baby toy to make a tune the hit herself with it!

chris took the girls swimming, which they enjoyed.will try and go reg on a sun early morn as well. SB keen on idea of lessons, but as monthly we seem to be spending more than i got for a full year as a student I think we may have to pass. [just done budget, and we are def on that trendy asset rich cash poor thing. ho hum!]. they both enjoyed it. SB also had fun with the baby toys and investigated new webland issue

When I escaped home, me ‘n SB hama’d a bit, read some phonics, podded beans ate tea and cuddled up with bedtime stories [ i fell asleep first]. since then i have budgeted [where is gorgeous alvin when you need him?], whizzed around blog ring, and played with BB – as she last slept pre teatime]. She has finally zedded out.

chris has put shelving in what will be craft cupboard, so hopefully can make headway in creating order out of chaos.

1 Comment

Posted in art and crafts, Butterbean, DIY/ house renovation, General, literacy, SB-PE, Stringbean's HE

sunny day

Posted on July 3, 2005 by HHaricot | 3 comments

And so it needed to be, as first opportunity to play with SB for me since I left Kessie. only got home from work at half 10 and ravenous, but after that went for quality SB time, as get more interaction with BB in the evenings.

Started with playing all together, with me n SB stacking up cups for BB to knock down, and putting toys in them for her to find. BB is such a sweetheart, and her face is all aglow with excitement in these combined games with SB, who it is quite clear she hero worships. [what a long sentence]

BB carried on while SB and I started doing some hama aboriginal dreamtime style piccies. Actually SB not bad, though attention span compromised, so moved on to playing copy each others patterns and sorting out the colours. Particularly including counting, adding and spatial relationship skills. Kept us both happy!

we spent alot of the afternoon playing in the sandpit, burying our dinosaur fossil and then hiding it around the garden.
Sb also put on shows for us to watch. We then dug up potatoes and picked broad beans for tea, but actually had pasta – LOL. Oh well, there for tomorrow. Unfortunately the potato tops have blight, and the whole veg patch weed city. Not done a good job.

Actually whilst on house update, roof leaking, bath taps dodgy, showers not working, 100 year old grapevine dying etc etc. sigh massively!

After tea we read the 10p book from the hospital friends stall on rivers and water. very nice. It also had a picture off newt eggs on oxygenator plants. we of course know that now from last years experiment of what are these eggs, and what will they become [well 2 goldfish and 2 newts].

BB hasn’t been ignored, and has been doing lots of standing practice and manipulating objects. also some tummy shuffling. She is such a bundle of happiness. 3rd tooth nearly through.

little nanny walking with special zimmer, and the girls visited her for a long time yesterday – did nanny the power of good I think. the other ladies also cooed over my girls. SB took in the usbourne pocket science book of why we are ill for little nanny, so she would understand 0 bless. other ed moment sith chris [in case he doesn't blog] were stagecoach yesterday final rehearsal, and my fav, SB asking if the world slowed down spinning in summer so the days were longer. we need a globe I think!

I really would like to organise and arrange our home ed better again [still autonomous, but with the ideas etc ready] however, with the house in chaos and me always at work, I am worried that we are never going to do it as we would like. Early days yet I guess.

oh, and Chris P, 2 ways to my heart, food and calling my child gorgeous! Thankyou.

3 Comments

Posted in art and crafts, Butterbean, DIY/ house renovation, gardening, General, music, numeracy, Out and About, SB-PE, science, socialisation, Stringbean's HE