i wish blog posts would write themselves

today just wasn’t what I wanted. it was rainy and def autumnal, and I am still hoping for a summer! Also meant that chris couldn’t make a start on the windows – which I am panicking about. And that the thought of walk to park or trip to the raptor centre didn’t seem a good idea either.

We did, however, have a v good home-ed day! We all woke in the same bed – not unheard of! so the girls and I had what seemed to be who could suffocat mummy the most successfully game! the girls went down for brekkie, and the plan was to look at a french vid at the same time, I think it was sort of done – but not really!!

SO, we rampaged through yesterday’s maths, and got the plus and minus right this time. then a romp through Getty and Dubay K. BB and I did some painting at this point.

SB and I then spent ages with her rainforest challenge book/game. this is truly excellent [linked before] and she has really loved it. we did the plantlife and the human culture sections this time – at least an hour if not more totally engrossed.

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BB during this was building with blocks and playing games with me – good at multitasking me!

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lunch was quickly flowed by craft, as SB did some paper weaving – to mimic the palm weaving done by the indigenous rainforest tribes. i discussed how the Iban live in Borneo, and we thought about all the things we eat or use that come from the rainforest – rather a lot!

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We were all needing a bit of light relief, so following the success of the magic school bus programmes at SOTP, we have also acquired some, and the girls happily watched one before returning to the playroom – SB to check out their website and then move onto webland, and BB to mostly play in a box, with a bit of being read to and poisson rouge.

While they did this, i made organisation of the book shelves, and brought down a bookcase from the bedroom [leaving chaos there]. so now we actually have some spare book space to fill. oh, and while BB and SB had a bit of a spat and wail session. to calm us all down, we listened to the pure voice of emma kirkby.
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Unfortunately my car went into the garage today and requires welding and all sorts. This has a multiple hundreds but as yet to be confirmed tag attached, so I am assuming that more books are unlikely. oh well. will hope that I can nab a bit of cosmic supply company energy here to make all work out.

SB labelled her weaving and was v proud of it, and then we all did some playing together before tidying up.
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we were going to do some violin, but the arrival of Merry’s girls so I could sign some photos got her out of this. Oh, we have also done some general chatting using french and english words – mainly around the please and i would like so encouraging this. Was contemplating rosetta stone french or german, prob the latter, but will defer this.

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girls came and all rampaged wildly around the house. it has to be said that BB was the wildest. aargh she is so willful and yet so gorgeous.

After they went, BB went to bed, and SB and I had a lovely peaceful hour together gently bonding over the sunflower mosaic we got from bead merrily. its lovely to do. not at all messy. we then read stories and went to bed.

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reading on the loo


reading on the loo

Originally uploaded by Scrumbledelicious.

music for the soul

i often forget how important music is to me, and it comes as a surprise – no idea why really! but there is something about polyphonic to late baroque music that just soothes my soul. well, it is mostly the use of the harmonic progression, and the? beautiful hanging and resolutions of these. bliss. I love later music as well, and my favourites are from all musical ages – even the 20th century represented – was listening to dives and lazarus on the way back from SOTP and that does the trick too, but lots of the 20th century composers i like either reference much earlier styles, or are predominantly harmonc – such as philip glass.

but my soul was vastly soothed today on my drive with the baroque. aaaaghhhhhhh.

Merrily gossiping

because that is what i did today!!

We did a bit of stuff this morning . BB insisted on violin practice as soon as i got out of bed, and then on reading lots of books sitting on the loo [i have take a photo as it made me laugh so much – decent as she has a dress on! SHe is pretty reliably now potty trained, such that we are taking her out and about, even in the car without a nappy. Just one for the night. She particularly likes the red nose readers. Also she is singing merrily around the place, making up her own songs or singing snatches of others.

SB did some maths – singapore 2A. unfortunately she was so keen to finish that she didn’t look whether a + or – was in the sum, so did all addition and half wrong. ‘but mummy, would they be right if it was a +?’ She also keenly did some getty and dubay – J. She is keen to improve her writing, and happily does this at the moment. She wants to write nicely this year.

Both girls also had a bath before we headed off to Merry’s. I missed Merry’s last twitter, so we got there way too early, so SB did her violin practice while she waited. I had take both girls violins so they could play with Amelie if they wanted. They did – right at the end of the visit when Merry was frantically trying to get everything tidied up.

the girls all played – wildly and then more gently – mostly as doctors, nurses and patients. Fran was very keen to tell me how tiring it was to be a doctor – rofl. merry and I gossiped, and I raided her stock cupboard. This rather gorgeous window mosaic is even on special offer. I love the look of rather too many things at the moment! Also can’t wait for the play merrily site to go live

BB was fascinated by the geomags – as usual. i had a look at draw write now, but think too advanced for SB at the moment.

lovely day, thanks merry.

back on track

having spent a very marvellous weekend off the path. Great hosts and company, thankyou.

We forgot to take the camera – shock horror! So looking forward to other people’s pictures.

Another Mentos and coke video

Shall we try this at the next Muddlepuddle summer camp ?

festival of history photos

now available here. we had such a fab time.

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trying on the armour

some days are better left behind

this is one. both girls on short fuse before wailing, and mum on short fuse before wanting peace.

chris brought me breakfast in bed as anniversary treat. i finished my book. girls played games.

ermmmm i read some books, SB just couldn’t decide what to do with herself, so mostly cried. SHe did settle to some zoombinis and cbeebies. also whilst BB had a nap – well by 3 she just was awful and waily as overtired – SB and i made meringues. Unfortunately we didn’t make them very well, maybe not whipped enough, maybe sugar not incorporated well enough, i don’t know. ANyway. SB loved eating the squidgy offerings, and we then put them into the choc cake we made when BB woke up. might be weird, who knows!! will see at the weekend.

and the rest of the day is in the past…

10 Years ago.

It was a beautiful, sunny,hot August day, and we got married. It was pretty much a perfect day really, we got married at Rogerthorpe Manor Hotel (though it seems to been taken over – it was an independently run place then) and had the place all to ourselves. Lots of family and friends around us, a nice simple ceremony, lots of merriment, lots of great memories. Just a lovely, lovley day.

If i hear the music we had as we left the room at the end of the ceremony (Overture from the soundtrack to Much Ado About Nothing), it still makes my eyes go all watery. Loving you as much as always Helen.

Wedding Day


Amusing bit: The DJ got fed up playing smoochy numbers at the end of the reception, as everyone kept leaving the dance floor, so he finished up playing something (I forget what now) from The Prodigy. :-)

What we missed bit: As it was a civil ceremony we couldn’t have any hymns.

Bad bit: Helen’s dad realising rather too late in the day that he hadn’t had a film in his camera :-(

(sorry, poor photo, scanner not working properly, so I took a quick snap of it)

And finally

well, i did get to see some of the percy-whatsits last night. i hadn’t realised they could be so fast! the clouds lifted enough at about 2am – oops.

today, girls watched more bonjour les amis as they like moustache, SB did some maths and there was some tidying and reading. When I came home, she read me some more of a rainforest book and at bedtime another chapter of the magic tree house rainforest book. The has been doing a lot of jump ahead on ‘puter. i read to BB, and a doze as still migrainous – not quite so bad now, but shattered at lack of decent sleep and rest too. BB and I did a pairs game with animals. some have names [actually most do] but some are just ‘nother mamimal’ She particularly likes lions.

tea was chips, in the hopes that the real kick of carbs might lift blasted migraine! SB and I played battleships and connect 4 and BB went to bed. A good bedtime read with SB, and there you have it.