Petits Haricots

when i get to put up this weeks ticklists, both girls have been v productive. SB has worked v hard to get going with things after we had a chat. I am very happy with her doing things other than on their, going out to groups, arty, crafty, experimenty, getting on stuff. but i am not so sure about endless fiddle faddling. we hav a strong fiddle faddle gene, all of us, and so we every so often need to be reminded to get going. famously i locked myself with a bike chain to my desk during finals to stop myself wandering off instead of revising. i still daydreamed and was far less productive than many friends, but far more than my natural inclination would have had. so well done to SB for getting on with it this week. It has helped that it hasn’t been much of an out and about week. BB wasn’t feeling v well, so didn’t go to pottery on tues and had hosp appointment thurs. in the eve BB also didn’t feel up to judo, tho did go to swimming and cubs.

Sb has 2 ballet lessons currently as working for grade 5 – eek! as well as gym, judo, swimming and guides. Guides was a visit to annie the musical, which she really enjoyed After a very rocky start for nearly 2 years, guides has settled down and she is really enjoying it. Partly perhaps because SB is far more confident in who she is. She has done lots of lute practice as well, and can play 1 piece from memory – woot we also have BB and DH signed off for costume check for Kentwell, which is a relief.

going to give wodensmeet its own post I think, as we met up on weds at Zoes for it

i had prewarned bb we were going for a freeflow day, as she is a bit more of a lists and timetables girl – maybe she would do ok in shcool, oh wait,it needs to be her list and her timetable – scrap that! but i did do the science that i nearly electrocuted myself setting up the week before and proved that dh had done a good job with the circuit breakers when he put in the new junction box in the house

from the rather brilliant biology experiments resources on the net we did the first and 6th photosynthesis ones. I have to say, the experiment number 6 has worked a real treat, and is definately easy to do at home and worth a go :).

That wasn’t all we did, S led the kids to find their names in nature and take pics, and hopefully she is joining them together on her computer and uploading to flickr [hint] , em did a fab long recorder play ensemble with SB and E and it sounded fabulous. SB did some music theory. BB resisted doing anything else, but did have a fab time playing with R and sometimes O as well. SB and E played labyrinth too. Z made a great pineapple upside down cake and we did lots of chatting – hence the timetable. changes are afoot for wodensmeet as z and family plan their trip abroad and look to the future, so we will enjoy what time we have before the pebble in the stream effect takes place!

When I returned from my conference on the friday, it was with the knowledge that the weekend was going to be without SB, who was kipping on a ship with the guides and very happy about that so we had a plan of fun BB type things to do together, and perhaps a bit of walking , geocaching and gardening. This all got thrown out a bit as f-i-l was rushed into hospital and required resus whilst there. eventually discharged late on the mon [so no-one has any worry] we had a very worrying weekend, partic that fri and sat night. As soon as i got back, DH drove to the not-nearest hosp to join m-i-l and keep watch until about 2 am when f-i-l was settled enough for them to come home. SB was v distressed and unable to sleep initially, and finally collapsed about 1, and bb was awake still at midnight. We reassured SB and sent her off on her guides camp and kept her updated by phone as grandad settled.

SB did have a fab time at guides camp on the HMS Belfast. they went to ‘The CLINK‘ a gory dungeon type museum which she obviously loved, ate at wagamamas, slept on HMS belfast [which smelt as bad as a muck spread field - lovely!] and watched some of the marathon the next day – luckily without the bombs that there were in Boston. I was a bit worried about that. Came home exhausted but happy.

We changed our plans, had a good gardening weekend and games playing at home. DH ferried his mum about and spent a lot of time with his dad and was glad to see such an improvement happen quickly. BB and I played lots of games, including agricola. We did some butterfly spotting, sowed the french and climbing beans, her seeds have all germinated. we found a lost easter egg from the easter egg trail – which she quickly demolished! we also gave alfie a run about outside. we mostly chilled together and kept each other occupied. It was lovely, even if not what we had planned

i have nearly caught up! you may have noticed no ticksheet. this is because i didn’t take a pic quickly enough before they were wiped clear for this week! . SB was somewhere in the early 20′s and bb didn’t make her 20, but actually has done a huge amount of reading and also a fair number of fact book stuff, so might have been nearly there.

this last week SB went to a museum with the local home educators older group to do an english group writing stories and poems around art. She really enjoyed this 3 hour workshop and did more on it when she returned. i was impressed by improved spelling and handwriting . it has also been a week with all the clubs back, she thinks this will be the last term of gym, but she now has double ballet as has been entered for grade 5 ballet and grade 5 music theory this term, so needs to do a bit of work there! there was also multisports with the local home ed group for both girls and the conservation group for both girls. so with historyetc quite an out and abouty type week.

so historyetc this week was broadly 1750-1800 with the subjects of the american independance, the french revolution and cook’s voyages of discovery. since just crafts with the book were stifling our imaginations a bit, we are adding in painters and musicians of the time [tho i forgot to put on the cd] . so kfish started with brioche as baking the let them eat cake of marie antoinette and later led them in an outdoor reenactment of some vive la revolution! i had them drawing boston tea party or riting a pro pamphlet having discussed some of the factors leading up to it. zoe chose stubbs as her painter and we had some technical horse drawing and jax did mapwork around cook. lots of playing and chatting also.

we went up to SOTP for a lovely birthday part weekend as BB’s dear friend J wasn’t quite turning 8 . we travelled up after holiday orch concert, picking me up from work. the4 drive up was strightforrward and always happy to get there. we went wrong before holmfirth for a change.

the next day the girls spent the morning making a dinosaur pinata whilst BB and J rampaged about and let of steam the pinata looked good. we then all went bowling, were the adult sotp’s suprised themselves by their bowling skills and bb came first of the kids – so also v happy. i took way too many pics! Me and the other H weren’t playing but were mightily relieved that the game didn’t end before everyone had had their go, as apparently it is on a timer!

when we got back C admirably led all the kiddie games, which were much enjoyed and we adults had a pizza making chain gang and tried to disuade J from adding sweet chilli sauce to ALL the pizza! loved the dinosaur cake, and yes, choc buttercream is handy edible glue . fab party day, which did end very late with some games playing

the next day BB rampaged around with J, i chatted with older J’s, SB and M played with the pony and then went off to the sailing club. SB had taken her wetsuit so did some kayaking. we went home late in the afternoon after having a fab afternoon thankyou for the great weekend.

catchup panic!.it was a holiday orchestra week, SB did both intermed and senior strings on the viola, which she really enjoyed, and pushed her to want to play the viola a bit more. she also loved singing in the choir. we have loved the opportunity to do hoiday orchestra, even if i have rarely managed to make a concert – and this was no exception! she dressed in concert black this time, as she is growing up

on monday she did a musical theatre session with the deependers which she had also really enjoyed doing. it seems so long ago now that i may have completely forgotten what she did! but there was some using the body to make beat sounds with, racing around, singing, dancing acting etc and she loved it. she would like to do the whole week in the summer, but we already have a week holiday and we already have a pgl holiday and prob holiday orchestra again, and maybe sailing, and likely a visit from the cousins… life is soooo busy!

wodensmeet on wednesday was a bit of a relaxed affair, and we had the fishes over too we made some excellent bread rolls, but i blew the house ring main rather than successfully do science – oops! there was recordering , lots of chatting and sitting and nattering in the sun rather than working hard this time.
And my phone ran out of charge.