Petits Haricots

actually, am feeling simmering at the moment, so blog should cool me down. Having spent 45 mins or so putting SB to bed, 15 mins later I spend 30 mins or so failing to put BB to bed. I just can’t bear my whole evening being taken up by getting children to sleep. [or not]. Have unceremoniously handed BB to Chris. She has – however – taken 4 oz from a bottle for me, so not all doom and gloom.

So to the weekend, lets see what I can remember? on the overtly educational, we have done explode the code – SB happy to do it, and races through the pages, so not bad. She has done loads of webland, going forwards and backwards through the ‘editions’ that we have. When we started with webland, I used to sit beside her reminding her to listen to the stories to do the games, where as now she flicks all over the place with great confidence. She also seems to remember a lot of it now. on the IT front, there was a fair bit of cbeebies as well – particularly the stories.

Seed sowing, and discussions around that. [and counting – she was particularly taken when I clumped the broad beans in multiples of 5 so I could add them up more quickly than she could count them, and I saw her later on having a go with this idea.] SB read some of the easier books to me. She is getting confident to try and sound out longer words – though not very good at blends. We have gone swimming, read a number of books – the theme has been loosely underwater/seas or the poles. So looked at the globe, a book on the poles, and her underwater jigsaw books. taking in finding nemo characters!

A great hit of the weekend has been a buy from ebay – a snappit build a donkey and cart set. It was supposed to be part of her birthday present, but why not spread things out. She has put it together and taken it apart numerous times over the weekend – initially using the picture to get things right, and then just remembering.

We have also done lots of drawing – and played around with chalks on dark card as well today. She has written bits to go with all her pictures – the last even spelled by herself – lov SB to Chris [asked me about the H] lots ov lov [she remembered love doesn't have an u anyway!] We have been having a chat on and off about silent letters – like w in write. She had remembered k in knee from a discussion over a month ago.

Our Jenga -alike has been used to make forts, castles and patterns, and she has spent a lot of time with the dress up flower fairies, making stories for them to act along to.

A lot of the time SB has been quite self-contained, so that I have had a lot of 1 to 1 time with BB. She is being giggly and silly at the mo – so quite a laugh! Though she does try and feed me all sorts of rubbish as we go along – plastic pigs were todays menu, and specks off the carpet – lovely! She has her lower molar on the left rhough, and the upper one is nearly though. She is always keen to play with SB, and I loved watching SB try to feed her tea. It seems that although there is quite an age difference, they do get a lot out of each others company.

No doubt I’ve missed lots of stuff out. It seems that mostly I have juggled 2 children’s needs fairly well – for a change! That we have done more educational things than I though whilst having fun. They do just slip in don’t they!

Next week we reall must take down the Christmas tree, and tidy SB’s bedroom before Barbara visits.

Oh, and I have calmed down. It is past 10, and my evening will start with Sir Robert Winston [I wonder if BB is asleep?]

Edited to add: AH, flickring and I have rememerbed what I had forgotton – my friend Katrien , who used to live in Ely with her family, popped in on Saturday, as they are moving their final things – to Belgium. Somewhere nice for us to visit one day! And I have promised SB a barge holiday one day – like angelina ballerina. She does wish she had the box set of the books…