SO, tues was a working day for me, and chris took the girls to his parents for a final play with uncle and cousins. much enjoyed! i got home v late!! [that was quick wasn't it!]

wed we did some home ed type stuff, as BB v keen to be able to read by 5 and win her DS. nearly everyone she knows seems to have one or access to one now, and she is most put out. however, entirely in her favour, she isn’t being grumpy, but pro-active. i liked the fact she got out her get ready for the code and said she was doing the whole book that wed! she didn’t - obviously! but did 4 pages, and can recognise a t now!! She also did more writing - being v keen on that, even with limited letters. they do look like words, though obviously not in a language i use! she also did various drawings and craftings. Oh, and a fair amount of ‘putering - mostly on poisson rouge.

SB did a bit of her spelling book, and read some of the crusaders book and then mostly got on with making chocolates, wrapping chocolates and decorating a box for the puddle girls. it took her most of the day, and she received negligible amounts of help. she thought to use the molds of the advent chocs, and made plain and milk choc. i was most impressed!

I made the thankyou card on publisher, unfortunately no photo printer paper, so relying on chris to get that so we can get thankyous out quickly - the girls have to write a smidge in them, rather than a whole wallop, so gets it done easily. i also cut bb’s hair at her great insistence at it was getting too long. SB doing some magic trick demonstration put her off sitting still, so a snotch later and adjustment it is shorter than planned, oh well, it does grow quickly.

in the afternoon, waiting for the puddles arrival we read loads of books. we did some french - based around a french book initially, but then cherchez le all over the rooming! we read lots of nice readers with bB - those quentin blake illustrated books from the book people [ Fantastic Daisy Artichoke , Zagazoo , Cockatoos (Red Fox picture books) ]Just So Stories stories and a rather lovely book The Glass Heart

merry and girls [and max - sorry] arrived - woohoo, though i still miss the merrymobile. and we got started!! the girls all ran off and played, with ds then dressing up and generally having fun. BB and josie took a bit more getting going, though the happy street and blokus seemed to help [merry won]. kids had a make your own pizza, toasted marshmallows, chocolates from SB and then watched fireworks provided by Max [we forgot this year - oops] . it was a touch cold!

packed off the younger 2 to bed, the older 4 got ready and ds-ed and very quietly got on with it - no idea when they fell asleep, but before midnight! merry and i played more blokus [my left hand playing as BB won] and we had a take away curry. Chris and i were not au fait with time, so we missed toasting the new year! - oops, but we did have baileys, mulled wine, ‘real’ wine and cups of tea [rofl] and a lovely evening. [we really know how to party, but...] anyway we chatted, chilled and were aspirational

Thurs morning i toddled off to work, but got back before lunch, and in fact before everyone was up. the girls were rampaging about, and ready for second breakfast. Josie and BB integrating well after a good sleep. CHris cooked about 2 billion pancakes for brunch, which were all devoured in the end. The Babs and family arrived during devoural phase, having heard via brightkite that some might be in the offing and nipping down the A14! We waved goodbye to the puddles having seen the new year in in lovely fashion - thanks v much for coming.

they were just going to stay for afternoon tea, but our new Agricola proved too tempting. we set up, puzzle over the rules, and decided to just get on with it. it took 5 hours to play the first game . During that time the children played fabulously, got their own food and drinks, and sorted things out. they were obviously v aware that parents were not likely to intervene. even more fabulously, when they did get parental attention, we were pleased to find the house still in one piece! bB and R are real cuties together, and BB has joined the throng of small girls with a crush on B - tempting him to play lego with her with the promise of dinosaurs! lots of dr who games in play anyway.

i have to say, harking back to agricola, that we all really enjoyed the game. the possible strategies became clearer. we doh-ed over various rules when we got it wrong, and although it took 5 hours playing the simple version [2 decks missing - wow what a game with the other 2 in!!] i think one hour of that was setting up and working out the rules and confirming them and just fiddling, and then we prob could knock another hour off for not knowing what things did etc. so a 3 hour game on the simple rules. AM strongly thinking of taking it to Manor Borns tomorrow, but i think they prefer the shorter games?

chris is suggesting more games : 10 days in… under the ‘will be educational’ ruse!! [a ruse i obviously never use!]. ooh, there is a europe version as well 10 Days in Europe . i think Em is raving about the Stone Age game she got as a birthday present…

Where was I. oh yes, we took so long playing the game, that it was a late dinner for the kids. ANd also declared too late for The Babs and co to go home, so sleepover declared - woohoo! the children seemed to have found a number of sweet and savoury options in the day however, so not too dreadful over late dinner rustled up from left overs - not our best catering acheivement. we had them playing outside with headtorches to use up some energy before dinner and then bed. B was excited by SB’s The Magic Tree House Library: Books 1-28 collection - so went ot bed with one of those, whilst E and SB ds-ed. cutely, when we adults went upstairs, E was asleep clutching open ds - obviously had just collapsed asleep mid play!

Fri: unfotunately despite earlyish night and no alcohol due to work [and luckilly not called in] i awoke with storming migraine, and took every med at my disposal, so missed saying goodbye to Barbara and chris - sorry. it was really lovely having you over. I slept until about 2, and have taken more meds constantly since then, so am in ‘bearable but grouchy’ condition. the house was tidied, and children did some home ed things - sb pulled out the Junior English Book 1 she hadn’t been keen on before and did the first section of the first chapter. [i didn't realise galore park was available from amazon too] BB did some more Get Ready for the Code - Book a which she enjoys, and both girls did some writing. SB did a smidgen of singapore maths. BB practiced counting to 40 [as this is her new 'stair' target] and they both counted to 40 in french. we pretended this is SB’s stair target - not that she really ever gets sent to the stairs!! [we only introduced this as BB required different parenting, mainly because she is so strong willed and determined that sometimes we each need a short break to remember we are adults, so a count to 20 [now 40] on the stairs and return and both say sorry accomplishes this]

BB fancied doing a science kit, and chose the music one [University of Oxford Kids Pocket Science Kit MUSIC ]. SB and chris set up the lap top and her new microscope [ link for kirsty: QX-5 Computer Microscope ] in the kitchen. this was her main xmas pressie, and she was v delighted by it. she looked at salt, bicarb, hair, prev made crystals and their slide. it worked perfectly and easily so happiness all round. since at least one person out their is looking to buy something along that lines, 2 things really - at 200 the lighting isn’t quite bright enough. it is oK, but could be a bit brighter. and the clips to hold the slide aren’t brill - though OK. i could be being picky, as the only microscopes i have used in a long while are particularly top of range! i can’t remember altering a slide’s position by hand for example, so i may have a high bar here!! SB found it v easy and intuitive to use, and quickly started to use the computer interface too, so i think ideal for her for quite a while. we are certainly all pleased with the purchase! BB also wanted a go, but was firmly discouraged - at least for now - as this is SB’s present. she did enjoy looking at the pics though [ah donner and blitzen, migraine returned full force suddenly, will wrap this up.]

both did a bit of xmas xraft presenting - felt flowers precut to be threaded to make jewellery for BB, and a felt crafting kit for SB. SB tested me on my french knowledge today - she chose words from the Picture Dictionary in French (Picture Dictionaries) , and I had to get the french. only one wrong out of 10 - oops. she thinks i may need more practice… [it was fire engine as i guessed with lorry of firemen]

i have just gone back and bolded. i just prefer my long blogs to be BOLD!!

we came back in, looked at the house, and decided that we couldn’t make it look much worse! so we did some wrapping up in the front room, and finishing off cards for the muddlepuddle list, which we sent out. we then did some christmas crafting - ‘glass’ painting plastic christmas themed keyrings and decorations for the tree. I am always amazed at how careful BB is. i think i forget she is 4 now!

Whilst the girls did this, i read them the Mary’s Story up to the point that they leave bethlehem, and also the hannukah section in While the Bear Sleeps: Winter Tales and Traditions . both lovely books! we also read one of our Camille ne veut pas dormir camille books from little linguist books. i have to say that at the moment I think this way of learning french is suiting us. I enjoy doing it, the girls appear to be picking up vocab. goodness knows what we will do when i start running out of vocab! - lots of dictionary work and ? rosetta stone??

obviously we then had lunch! chris , meanwhile was trying to put up the curtain my mum made when she was last here, but obviously fates were against us! we didn’t have the right hooks mum arrives tomorrow. kinda magically hoping that a tidying up christmas angel takes pity on us overnight as well.

After lunch we made chocolate brazils for grandad. SB was entirely self contained for this, she uses the microwave safely to melt the chocolate and all i have to do is carry the bowl to the table [nor repeating katy's mistake!] bB also fiddled with the microwave and i carried, and she also did some lovely choc brazils [well i did QA one of them!] M dad always puts the emphasis on brazils when they are choc brazils [his fav xmas pressie of all time] on the bra, so i think BB thinks thats how they are pronounced now, as when we are making them, that is what I say too!!

leaving them to cool we return to the front room [we all can't bear to look at the playroom yet] as we fancy listening too and watching carols on youtube, so i flick around allsorts. SB particularly wants tbirds fav ickle donkeeeey! we then dec curry takeaway boxes [we only have the takeaway for the boxes you understand!] with fake jewels to put dad’s choc brazzuls in. BB then plays a happy game being Jesus in my tummy, and SB rather faithfully reenacts the angel gabriel telling me the good news. however when i ask angel gabriel whether my baby will have a long and happy life, she scarpers! When she returns as SB, she explains that she thought telling me whilst i was pregnant that my baby would be crucified at easter might have upset me! luckilly BB is being baby Jesus to distract me, and then somehow morphs into a puppy. [after she has 'hatched' 2 or 3 times - childbirth may come as a shock to her!]. SB did a quick bit of piano. We read Katie and the Sunflowers
. Then the girls start making christmas crackers - actually SB also completes. I fear BB might be following me as an abject failure as completer finisher. I think only Marcus ,that I know, has scored worse.

Whilst I remember, here is a link to the Matisse, King of Colour (Anholts Artists) book, that didn’t come in the book people set. BB has it in her xmas book pile, but i read and enjoyed it!

chris’s parents came round for some extra bedding for their guests over christmas and a chat. they also brought some curtain hooks, but they didn’t fit into the ring things, never mind.

Eventually we had tea and sent the girls packing to bed. i have made the veggie filling for the lasagne, and having panicked that there wasn’t enough initially, there may now be too much. i have also made the veggie sausage and chilli bean hotpot and sag paneer. i think that is enough! trying to have enough energy after I have written this [after midnight] to do some more wrapping, or line the curtains, or tidy the front room or flickr [all jobs i had hoped to do before going to bed] i think the ones that allow me to stay collapsed on sofa are more likely to be winners here. [wrapping and starting to sort photos won the day]

Anyway, just have to say SB was a star of wonder today, helpful, happy, lovely. bB has obviously missed me… But i enjoyed lots of cuddles with both. Cuddles with SB are - during the daytime anyway - becoming rarer, so something to particularly cherish.

on the agenda for tomorrow: make up the lasagne; pour and mould soaps to make; christmas muffins; stollen; more glass painted decs? ; in eve, camp curry, dahl and ? leek and potato soup.

brr, it is cold in here tonight, missing the fire, and my insomnia struck again last night grr! today the girls seem to have done bits and pieces. SB has done her piano practice and maths and handwriting. she also appears to have told the leader of brownies that she doesn;t want to do her solo at brownies party last wed. apparently it didn’t go down well and she was told off. i suggested that next time she discuss with us, as i had no idea she wasn’t doing it, and nor did chris, until sunday. i think it because she lost the words. anyway, i am being proud of her for telling the leader her self, headbanging that she has done it so late, and made life tricky, but tbh, if i was brownie leader, i would prob have backup plans for things like this, so not too bothered. shame she didn’t tell us though!

and i think they have spent a vast amount of time doing xmas cards. they watched some science clips or other which they both enjoyed, and we all played games. i read - a bit late - the st lucia bit of While the Bear Sleeps: Winter Tales and Traditions to them. SB has really enjoyed the usborne books we bought from joanna. SHe has now started the Crusaders (Usborne Young Reading: Series Three) one, after we read the start of the section on crusaders in SOTW2 [The Story of the World: Middle Ages from the Fall of Rome to the Rise of the Renaissance v. 2: History for the Classical Child (Story of the World: History for the Classical Child (Paperback)) ]. I see what you mean Merry!! I think the Usborne version is a bit more even handed!! we had also finished the samurai section, which went well with one of the other books Samurai (Young Reading (Series 3))
from jo. i would really recommend the usborne young readers books. they seem to have a nice reading style, enough pictures for the facts! we have also been dipping into Crusaders, Samurai and Aztecs (The Childrens Picture World History) that we got as a remaindered book from a library.
bit more french practice in a mild way, and the day was done. chris is doing the big sainsbury order at the mo. i should still be doing appraisal stuff [boohoo]

having fallen asleep [wayhay for actually sleeping] playing civ 4 last night - a go at alternate reality, but actually i prefered the earlier civs - i was woken up by bouncing children at 9.30. managed to keep them bouncing in a mole game, rather than having to get up straight away! On coming downstairs, SB and i started with piano practice together. now she isn’t playing the violin [and i v much miss that] we are making a concerted effort to practice the piano daily. this is already paying off! bB was a bit grumpy that i was doing piano practice with SB, so once she had got going on it i played the most dificult game of hangman with BB. she was in charge of the hang, and the only letter of the alphabet in her 17 letter word was 1 m! so i lost.

BB then leappadded, and chose the phonics series. being BB she chose number 7 rather than actually look at some of the letters of the alphabet! she is def going to learn to read her own way. she wants the dinosaur leappad book that sb has but never looks at. SB meanwhile was doing maths. they have got to thousands - woohoo and all! so she raced through that, as having grasped hundreds, tens and units, thousands is really just more of the same. SB then insisted on more ballet practice whilst BB said she was doing her ‘writing practice’ - ie squiggles on a white board! SB settled into some spelling - she enjoys these wizard whimstaff, and BB and i did a bit of piano fun. I then did some violin practice [faint!] as have strings. boy am i rusty!! i think i now have finger strain - rofl!! WHilst i was doing that, bB was quite happily following instructions on the brainbox primary electronics kit to make a ‘whizzer’ with only a little bit of support from SB.

After lunch it was baking time. SB chose a recipe of chocolate marzipan biscuits - something nice and complicated! and through the afternoon did it pretty much on her own. BB and i opted for the simpler peanut butter cookies. SImpler in recipe, but obviously complicated by BB’s desire to lick things all the time [so i have a series of spoons that are single use licking spoons to keep the biscuits edible!] and her sometimes idiosyncratic weighing and measuring

SB’s mixture had to rest for a while in the middle, so we all read one of my french books from the little linguist - berthe makes a pizza - which we loved. [here it is on amazon] and SB did a recorder practice. the new outerwear from muddypuddles arrived, so SB now has some camo trousers, my pink girl really has vanished! BB got a free glove puppet, so equally happy.

SB finished her biscuits whilst bb and i had a romp and read a book together, then we all had tea before SB went out to Judo. BB off to bed, and SB watched some nina and the neurons when she got back.

SO there you go, a busy day in our household! flickr pics of the day

oh, and any advice on trampolines. still humming and hawing. jumpking ovalpod oval vs bazoongi deluxe 12 foot with funring [ouch for more money, but ? its worth it?]

Someone else did a little session showing how a tune can focus soundwaves so you can hear things better, and both girls did some recorders (SB did two sessions) with our tame HE-ing music teacher. Rest of time filled with random playing.

Headed off promptly but at what I thought would be slighty late time to head to Town 1 for gym. BB has started  pre-schoolers  gym session at the same place that. It’s just a free play type session - they have structured sessions as well, but not at a time we can do. They have various soft play type things out, ladders and benches to climb up, but they can also go and clamber on the gym equipment, jump in the big foam pit etc. Slighty odd to have all the littlies runniung aruound whilst Louis Smith or one of the others their in the British Squads does their stuff at the other end though.

While BB and me do this, SB sits on the side (though grumbles a bit) and reads, does something out of a workbook or whatever. Today she was moslty reading the Castle Diary: The Journal of Tobias Burgess I think.

After that headed into town for a modicum of shopping - picking up a new phone from Argos (being able to check and reserve things online makes it all so easy) though of course BB wanted to ‘buy something’ and they both decided they liked the ideas of remote controlled cars. Treated the girls to a cake in Starbucks on the way back to the car as we had a bit of time spare.

Then back to the gym for SB’s gym session. This is much improved for me as they have found some volunteers to run the tea bar, so I can get a cup of tea whilst waiting. Buy the time it finished I was glad to be completing the last bit of the triangle to get home.

Chips for tea whilst catching up on the second series of Robin Hood. Before bed, SB wrote her letter to a child from a school in Kenya that one of the local Home ed groups is rasing money for.  One of the parents is from Kenya, the school was set up by the headteacher for children who cannot aford to pay for school, many of them are orphans and live at the school as well. At the session a couple of weeks ago, they reported back from a visit to the school earlier in the year and brough letters that some pupils had written, so we all took one to reply too. So SB has written a nice reply, Helen said she made a really good effort with it. Will take it with us when we go to the group to morrow (in City 2 for a change, though hope to get back to City 1 for a HE group Celidh in the evening)

AArgh to christmas coming. why do i get so behind with christmas thoughts! pressies to get etc etc. its at our house again this year, we were going to have a break, but i’m working boxing day, so no point going to my parents to come back late on xmas day!

ANyway, I digress - well, i don’t really digress, as i haven’t started. I just am not feeling bloggable. I want the blog to just write itself, i like a record of what we do to look back on. i am barely using the camera either. obviously something is not quite right!

SB is more cheery these days [ or else i have got used to her wails and abrupt emotional changes/fragility] she is more stroppy as well. perhaps this is an age and growth thing. i do love having my mostly happier girl back again. She is talking ten to the dozen again, it is often like being in a wind tunnel! [and yes, I do know pressure of speech is a psychiatric term!] SHe tells me her ideas, what she has done, how tshe thinks the world works, and is alive again. phew. I am sure we are not out of the doldrums completely [as her wail about not going to the shop to buy a magazine shows, she is v quick to be desolate], but i no longer have her tell me she doesn’t see the point of being alive. BB is a squirmy armful of self confidence, bounciness, determination and joy. she is grasping the world around her and making it work her way! i love how she has such a clear way of describing things, and using her older sisters vocab to strengthen the emphasis on what she wants to say, and also the gestures and facial expressions! nearly 4! how time flies.

SO this weekend i have been working, but not too busily. The girls have done a fair bit of playing and also HE stuff. we are castle reading in our history at the mo - always a fun thing to play and recreate! SB is doing lots of spelling practice and maths - she hopes to finish her 2B book in time for when the MPAH 3A arrives [she prefers the MP as opposed to the primary maths which i prefer!]. She has also done music theory and 2 violin practices with me. BB is really grasping sounding out words as they are said. she doesn’t know the alphabet and scanty letters, but is good on the sounds and joining them together. we have done a fair bit of the before the code book 1, and today when we were going to do it together she told me she could do her home ed stuff by herself, and did!

thurs was a divali day at nots and tots, which they enjoyed. SB mostly played with L and E, and BB mostly did the crafts. they went on to a fun playdate afterwards, which both were v keen to tell me how much they had enjoyed it. So that was good.

fri was already blogged by chris - SB was v scary i think. she had been desperate to buy the mask, and I agreed as long as she made the costume to go with it out of an old sheet - she had the idea to bespatter it with blood. Was so excited to have the costume and rarred at lots of people in it, and was most impressed with the squeeze the heart thing. BB got fed up with her costume, so we tore the eye holes so that she could poke her whole head through, and then she was a much happier little ghost.

SB got this book from the library.The Magician of Samarkand
i would strongly recommend it [as would SB] and we will look for more books by that author. it is one of our favourites on junior jackanory, and the book itself is written beautifully. we love!!

we have done some french reading and conversation. following a recommendation on another blog, i purchased some more french resources, and we are doing the l’art de dire. I like it. i guess this bit could easily be made up and done with someone confident in french - which I am not! and there may be cheaper alternatives [luckilly i bought before all the currency turmoils through canadian relatives!] but actually i think it is deceptively simple, in that initially i wondered what i had spent my money on [ i bought the lire ones at the same time, and they are more obviously a good buy for that kind of thing] but as i use it to formalise our conversation, both SB and BB seem to be getting on well, and I have more confidence to extrapolate and experiment. you know, by the time i have finsihed home edding, i might be able to speak french! i did suggest to deepend Katy that she could prob write a home-ed conversational french package and have a market ready! I think she may be lacking in time though!! we are still using a various books and reading lots in french.

today we started making mincemeat using Delia Smith’s Christmas
. it worked well last year, and smells gorgeous! unfortunately with the nutmeg grating, there was a small amount of SB grating… never mind!!

what else? ermm, both girls have done lots of playing. BB loves her little things to play with, so will no doubt love her sylvanians - though still tempted by those rather glorious anamalz for her birthday! am thinking what to get other children for presents as well, and yes, christmas is coming!! [i think that may be where this blog started!]

SB being a ‘Dead Spirit’, lacks a certain cuteness compared to last years Witch and the Angellina Ballerina Firefly from a couple of years ago.

The mask has a heart you can squeeze which squirts blood over the face

BB was cute though as a ‘Little Ghost’

This morning SB faffed about quite a bit, whilst doing some maths, handwriting and some of the Wizard Whimstaff spelling book she seems to be enjoying at the moment. Various phonecalls and people came and went dropping off  the repaired Yaris and collecting the hired A Class (slightly bemused that the vagaries of insurance company contract arrnagements meant  that the car was reapired 40 miles away and the hire car came from 70 miles away, but there you go). The A class was a nice enough drive, though seemed to be a lot of body roll. But the Yaris was much the better buy for the requirements we had. So H can rest easy there

After lunch we sorted out the Halloween outfits, carved Pumpkins, walked to the chemists, made the well loved here, Pumpkin and Toasted Sweetcorn Soup for dinner, and waited for H to come home. She had abit of a long and slow journey home, so once she was in it was pretty much straight out the door for Trick or Treating. A bit nippy, not so many Pumpkins out as last year (maybe ‘cos half term and holidays?), but some people make a real effort, and round here, everyone seems to repect the ‘only call at houses with Pumpkins’ thing annad it’s all good natured.

One house had some wonderfully carved Pumpkins:

We were pretty cold by the time we got back, so nice hot bowls of soup were welcome, prised childrens hands off of bags of sweets and packed them off to bed. Tired parenst of course still haven’t gone to bed yet

yesterday chris did some windowing - wahay!! and his parents came over, there was a bit of home ed stuff [sb maths, handwriting, spelling, piano and a castle box book, bb b4 the code and earlibird maths] and baking.

today was science and latin group, but we did french instead of latin. we nearly got to the deep end in time, but traffic and road works were against us, gina was later though. for science we made anti grav devices. this was fiddlier than expected, but worked more or less!! we learnt a gravity magic trick as well and discussed failures and bodges - aka the melting of the hadron collider. in between the science and french, the children made tickets and membership cards for a show that they put on at the end - a musical variety act i think! also at the end katy shew them doodle art, which the def enjoyed.

SB and BB had done lots of baking the prev day, which turned into a nice end of session treat for everyone, and i have to say that i thought her choc and orange cake was rather successful. She pretty much made it on her own, so looks like a baker -vgreat!!

back home we chilled with merlin and robin hood [maid marian has died!!!!] and then sb and i played games whilst bb took a long time to fall asleep.