As a mother I spend a large amount of time trying to work out what the words my children use actually mean. When they started to talk it was about working out what they are actually saying. As the main caregiver this was usually pretty easy as I spent so much time around them. But as there speech became more confident they started to talk about and use words that did not relate to what we were actually doing and it gets more challenging to work out what the words were. Then you get a stage when they have a limited vocabulary but they use words in a more imaginative way, using the words they do have to comment or discuss something that is new to them. Most of the time I get it right and when I don't it doesn't really matter.
Last night my youngest said something to me which really threw me, as we talked about what had been the best bit of the day for her she said, 'Nothing, I didn't have anyone to play with'. We had been out for the afternoon to a home ed group, there was a real mix of ages about ten children in total. We were walking and playing in some woods. I had thought she had had a good afternoon but maybe I was wrong, I am not entirely sure what she actually meant by these words, whether she felt excluded from the play that was going on, whether she didn't know how to join in, whether she felt intimidated, whether she felt overwhelmed by the number of children. It may also be that she is comparing herself to her brother who, at four years her elder, has made friends and plays happily and confidently with them. At her age though he was the same, watching from the edges, observing play, sometimes engaging and slowly but surely he made friends with other children. He did not like big groups at her age especially if he did not know anyone.
My youngest is a sociable child, she loves to be around people. She will chat happily to complete strangers when I am near. She will play with other children she meets at parks, soft play wherever. These are things her brother never did, we left the park if other children came along he needed it to himself. All her play at the moment however is one on one and I can't help feeling that this is what she is most comfortable with and when there is no opportunity for this, and there wasn't really in the woods yesterday, she feels excluded. She is still very young and learning about playing and cooperating with others these are really hard skills to learn and I hope that I can provide opportunities for her, as I have for her brother, to build lasting friendships.
Showing posts with label friends. Show all posts
Showing posts with label friends. Show all posts
Connections
26 July 2013
I remember when researching home education reading about a home educated child going to a friends house for a sleepover. That one sentence put to bed the thoughts of others on the social aspects of education. I was reminded of this as my eldest has had his first friend over for a sleepover last night.
When we told friends and family that we were going to home educated the most common question we were asked was, what will you do about the social side, how are they going to meet lots of people like they do at school. I was completely baffled by this as it was not something that I had even considered when thinking about home education. I was more concerned about whether learning really could continue as it had been, child led, or whether I needed to start planning and researching to put lessons together for my children and about my own friendships, yes that's right my friends or lack of them.
The school experience is one where you are put together with all the children who are born within the same twelve month period. You may have lots or nothing in common with them, this may be the perfect or worse environment for your child depending on their personality. Furthermore whilst you spend a large proportion of you time with them there is actually little time to properly interact with them in a typical school day. I would dare to suggest that the friendships between school children develop and flourish off the school premises rather than in it.
I don't remember having a group of friends whilst at school, there were children I played with but I rarely if ever played at children's houses other than those who lived on the same road as me and went to my school. After I left school I went to uni, worked several live in jobs, moved around a lot, went travelling a lot and met lots and lots of people but made few if any lasting friendships, we were more like ships passing in the night. I got married, found a good job that I loved and settled in the village I live in now. When I became pregnant with my first child I did not seeking out other pregnant women so when my child was born I knew no one who was also a first time mum, I returned to work and was content with my life. Then came the time when we had to decide about education for our eldest, at the same time I discovered I was pregnant. I knew that school was not the place to send my eldest child, not right away, he would find the number of children in his class and school too stressful to allow learning to take place, the busyness of it would be too much. So we didn't complete any forms to register for a school place and I gave up my job. All of sudden I found myself at home with a young child and a baby and had cut off the only place I had regular contact with adults who I would not have called friends, but who I enjoyed the company of immensely. I wasslightly terrified, I knew that if I my eldest was going to make friends I needed to too and it was likely to be mums I would be meeting up with, talking to and getting to know, this was totally new ground for me.
We took it slowly, my eldest and I, I am not sure who was holding whose hand in those early days. We were often on the periphery of things taking tentative steps forward and then retreating to the safety of home to recharge. We would go for days, weeks on our own. We were finding our way. I met some lovely people but it was like there was this line in front of me, a boundary that I could not cross to take things a bit further. What I could not fathom was why, what was stopping me then it hit me like a hurtling train. I remembered back to my six year old self, a friend who left, emigrated with her family, I can still remember her name and walking out of her house for the last time. I spoke to my mum and realised very quickly that I had simply been afraid to make friends in the same way since because of how my parents dealt with that situation. Perhaps they had not realised how important she was or perhaps they thought, as so many parents do, that I would get over it and move on after all children are resilient aren't they? My feelings had been ignored, not validated so I had not thought them to be real, so friends were held at a distance, safely away so the hurt could not come back.
I have made peace with those feelings now and am slowly building friendships. I am comfortable with a group of women in a way that I have never been in my life, I am not in the same place as some of them, but my comfort zone is getting bigger! But I love where my life is right now, I cherish my time with my female friends and that when I need help and support I can and do ask for it. We sit and talk and craft when we get together, we discuss openly so many issues that are important to us, we agree, disagree and argue. We laugh and cry together.
We are four years the wiser, my eldest and I, we have come along way in that time. He has friends who want to be with him and stay for a sleepover at our house, I have feel part of something that I hold dear and would be sad if it could no longer be.
When we told friends and family that we were going to home educated the most common question we were asked was, what will you do about the social side, how are they going to meet lots of people like they do at school. I was completely baffled by this as it was not something that I had even considered when thinking about home education. I was more concerned about whether learning really could continue as it had been, child led, or whether I needed to start planning and researching to put lessons together for my children and about my own friendships, yes that's right my friends or lack of them.
The school experience is one where you are put together with all the children who are born within the same twelve month period. You may have lots or nothing in common with them, this may be the perfect or worse environment for your child depending on their personality. Furthermore whilst you spend a large proportion of you time with them there is actually little time to properly interact with them in a typical school day. I would dare to suggest that the friendships between school children develop and flourish off the school premises rather than in it.
I don't remember having a group of friends whilst at school, there were children I played with but I rarely if ever played at children's houses other than those who lived on the same road as me and went to my school. After I left school I went to uni, worked several live in jobs, moved around a lot, went travelling a lot and met lots and lots of people but made few if any lasting friendships, we were more like ships passing in the night. I got married, found a good job that I loved and settled in the village I live in now. When I became pregnant with my first child I did not seeking out other pregnant women so when my child was born I knew no one who was also a first time mum, I returned to work and was content with my life. Then came the time when we had to decide about education for our eldest, at the same time I discovered I was pregnant. I knew that school was not the place to send my eldest child, not right away, he would find the number of children in his class and school too stressful to allow learning to take place, the busyness of it would be too much. So we didn't complete any forms to register for a school place and I gave up my job. All of sudden I found myself at home with a young child and a baby and had cut off the only place I had regular contact with adults who I would not have called friends, but who I enjoyed the company of immensely. I was
We took it slowly, my eldest and I, I am not sure who was holding whose hand in those early days. We were often on the periphery of things taking tentative steps forward and then retreating to the safety of home to recharge. We would go for days, weeks on our own. We were finding our way. I met some lovely people but it was like there was this line in front of me, a boundary that I could not cross to take things a bit further. What I could not fathom was why, what was stopping me then it hit me like a hurtling train. I remembered back to my six year old self, a friend who left, emigrated with her family, I can still remember her name and walking out of her house for the last time. I spoke to my mum and realised very quickly that I had simply been afraid to make friends in the same way since because of how my parents dealt with that situation. Perhaps they had not realised how important she was or perhaps they thought, as so many parents do, that I would get over it and move on after all children are resilient aren't they? My feelings had been ignored, not validated so I had not thought them to be real, so friends were held at a distance, safely away so the hurt could not come back.
I have made peace with those feelings now and am slowly building friendships. I am comfortable with a group of women in a way that I have never been in my life, I am not in the same place as some of them, but my comfort zone is getting bigger! But I love where my life is right now, I cherish my time with my female friends and that when I need help and support I can and do ask for it. We sit and talk and craft when we get together, we discuss openly so many issues that are important to us, we agree, disagree and argue. We laugh and cry together.
We are four years the wiser, my eldest and I, we have come along way in that time. He has friends who want to be with him and stay for a sleepover at our house, I have feel part of something that I hold dear and would be sad if it could no longer be.
Weekending
15 April 2013
This has been a week spent with my parents who have been staying with us. We had our usual trip into the local town to start the week but every other day has been different. On Tuesday we travelled to a town up just south of us and visited an art gallery. I have never taken my children to one before, this one was small and had a bag of activities that children could do as we walked round. They enjoyed most of it but had had enough by the time we had walked round the whole gallery. We had taken a picnic with us and we ate it in the park before returning to the car along a river running through the town, we also found a cafe for a drink to warm us all up.
Wednesday we spent the morning at home before heading out to an old mill. The mill was used for weaving cloth in the past, and has now been developed into a museum, exhibition and a place for crafting. There were many many small workshops with folks selling their beautiful creations most of which were made on the premises, quilts, felted objects, knitting, woodwork and pottery. On one floor there were two very old powered looms which are still in use and there are demonstrations there each weekend. On another floor are human powered looms which are used by volunteers who weave their own projects, some of which were for sale, and talk to all visitors about what they are doing. There was a place on this floor where you could have a go at weaving which my children loved. There was also a cafe which we had to go and test!
The next day we visited the grounds of a local castle which are being slowly renovated after sixty years of neglect. I have been visiting regularly over the last six months and it is wonderful and amazing to see the changes each time.
On Friday my parents stayed with until after lunch before heading off to spend the weekend with my brother. We had a quiet day at home after our rushing around here there and every where over the last ten days or so.
Over the weekend we visit a friend who had a nasty fall about ten days ago and broke her wrist. She had to have it operated on, to have pins inserted, the day after the fall. When it was checked a week later the pins had not done anything, so she had to be operated on again and have a plate fitted. She was looking and sounding a lot better than when I saw and spoke to her earlier in the week when she had had to go back into theatre for her second op. It will six weeks before the plaster is off which I know will drive her mad by the end. On Sunday we pottered at home, it rained most of the day which was wonderful for the garden which was becoming a bit dry. We are looking forward to getting back into our usual routine and rhythm this week.
Wednesday we spent the morning at home before heading out to an old mill. The mill was used for weaving cloth in the past, and has now been developed into a museum, exhibition and a place for crafting. There were many many small workshops with folks selling their beautiful creations most of which were made on the premises, quilts, felted objects, knitting, woodwork and pottery. On one floor there were two very old powered looms which are still in use and there are demonstrations there each weekend. On another floor are human powered looms which are used by volunteers who weave their own projects, some of which were for sale, and talk to all visitors about what they are doing. There was a place on this floor where you could have a go at weaving which my children loved. There was also a cafe which we had to go and test!
The next day we visited the grounds of a local castle which are being slowly renovated after sixty years of neglect. I have been visiting regularly over the last six months and it is wonderful and amazing to see the changes each time.
On Friday my parents stayed with until after lunch before heading off to spend the weekend with my brother. We had a quiet day at home after our rushing around here there and every where over the last ten days or so.
Over the weekend we visit a friend who had a nasty fall about ten days ago and broke her wrist. She had to have it operated on, to have pins inserted, the day after the fall. When it was checked a week later the pins had not done anything, so she had to be operated on again and have a plate fitted. She was looking and sounding a lot better than when I saw and spoke to her earlier in the week when she had had to go back into theatre for her second op. It will six weeks before the plaster is off which I know will drive her mad by the end. On Sunday we pottered at home, it rained most of the day which was wonderful for the garden which was becoming a bit dry. We are looking forward to getting back into our usual routine and rhythm this week.
Gratitudes
14 April 2013
Joining in with Taryn for her heartfelt Sunday tradition.
A time to slow down, to reflect, to be grateful.
This week I have been grateful for..
...sunshine
...the warmth in the air as spring slowly emerges.
...green shoots of life in my polytunnel.
...my parents coming to stay for a few days.
...wonderful days out to local places with my parents and family.
...rain, we have not had any for weeks it is watering my garden for me.
...sleep I seem to need a lot of it at the moment I have been so busy that I need to slow down and rest now.
...a afternoon with a friend who has had a tough time over the last week.
...the contented play of my children.
A time to slow down, to reflect, to be grateful.
This week I have been grateful for..
...sunshine
...the warmth in the air as spring slowly emerges.
...green shoots of life in my polytunnel.
...my parents coming to stay for a few days.
...wonderful days out to local places with my parents and family.
...rain, we have not had any for weeks it is watering my garden for me.
...sleep I seem to need a lot of it at the moment I have been so busy that I need to slow down and rest now.
...a afternoon with a friend who has had a tough time over the last week.
...the contented play of my children.
Gratitudes
07 April 2013
Joining in with Taryn for her heartfelt Sunday tradition.
A time to slow down, to reflect, to be grateful.
This week I have been grateful for...
...sunshine.
...green shoots in the polytunnel the first of the year.
...catching up with old friends who came to stay.
...two wonderful days out with friends in our canoe.
...sharing meals with friends two of which I did not have to cook.
...finding some dry wood to keep our fire going during the extended cold nights we are still having.
...sharing wonderful books with my children.
...finishing two knitting projects.
...time for sewing.
...my parents travelling up to stay with us.
A time to slow down, to reflect, to be grateful.
This week I have been grateful for...
...sunshine.
...green shoots in the polytunnel the first of the year.
...catching up with old friends who came to stay.
...two wonderful days out with friends in our canoe.
...sharing meals with friends two of which I did not have to cook.
...finding some dry wood to keep our fire going during the extended cold nights we are still having.
...sharing wonderful books with my children.
...finishing two knitting projects.
...time for sewing.
...my parents travelling up to stay with us.
Weekending
01 April 2013
This week has been one of ups and downs, of getting lots done but with added disappointments.
Our library visit yielded lots of books on animals both stories and fact books this is the children's latest interest following a visit to a local wild animal park. We have spent the week reading all these books and learning lots of fascinating facts and we watched a wonderful programme on iplayer about ecosystems.
We met up with our friends as usual on Tuesday, we were celebrating the birthday of one of the mamas so we all bought food to share which we sat around eating whilst drinking tea and putting the world to rights. I have come to love these get togethers and miss them on the rare occasions that they do not happen.
The next day we joined a home ed group for ice skating which was great fun, I have not been for years so was a little rusty, the children loved it enough to want to go back in a months time.
The rest of the week was spent at home which was not the plan. I had been contacted by some friends who I was a school with to let me know that they were coming on holiday very close to where I live and could we meet up. It was such short notice that I pondered replying, first of all I had a busy week and secondly why were they contacting me so late in the day. There were six of them coming, it was Easter and the area I live is a popular holiday destination they must have booked this holiday weeks if not months ago did they really want to meet up. I did reply and suggested Friday and Saturday as they were the only days I could free up and duly cancelled my existing plans. I heard nothing in reply as the week went on and texted on Thursday evening to find out what they wanted to do. I had a reply on Friday afternoon to suggest they could come over the following morning, great I thought, did they want lunch? No, they could only stay for about an hour and they had other plans for the afternoon. I was both hurt and baffled and told them I would prefer to spend more time with them, that was not possible I was told. Friends are important to me, I want to spend time with them, quality time. I have not seen these friends much in recent years they are always so busy, they live where we grew up, an area I visit several times a year. They have never visited my house and I have lived in it for ten years. I believe that we can find the time to do the things we really want to do.
We had also had plans to have lunch with friends on Sunday, sadly this was not to be either. Unfortunately, whilst out walking, one had fallen and broken their wrist and needed to go into hospital for an emergency operation which thankfully went well.
Our imposed house time was, in the end, productive. It was a dry few days so I got lots of washing done. I finished knitting two projects. I made a case for my knitting needles. I finished off a curtain for one of the bedrooms. I hoovered and tidied the house. We played in the remaining snow outside and a visit to the polytunnel revealed green shoots our lettuces had germinated!
Our library visit yielded lots of books on animals both stories and fact books this is the children's latest interest following a visit to a local wild animal park. We have spent the week reading all these books and learning lots of fascinating facts and we watched a wonderful programme on iplayer about ecosystems.
We met up with our friends as usual on Tuesday, we were celebrating the birthday of one of the mamas so we all bought food to share which we sat around eating whilst drinking tea and putting the world to rights. I have come to love these get togethers and miss them on the rare occasions that they do not happen.
The next day we joined a home ed group for ice skating which was great fun, I have not been for years so was a little rusty, the children loved it enough to want to go back in a months time.
The rest of the week was spent at home which was not the plan. I had been contacted by some friends who I was a school with to let me know that they were coming on holiday very close to where I live and could we meet up. It was such short notice that I pondered replying, first of all I had a busy week and secondly why were they contacting me so late in the day. There were six of them coming, it was Easter and the area I live is a popular holiday destination they must have booked this holiday weeks if not months ago did they really want to meet up. I did reply and suggested Friday and Saturday as they were the only days I could free up and duly cancelled my existing plans. I heard nothing in reply as the week went on and texted on Thursday evening to find out what they wanted to do. I had a reply on Friday afternoon to suggest they could come over the following morning, great I thought, did they want lunch? No, they could only stay for about an hour and they had other plans for the afternoon. I was both hurt and baffled and told them I would prefer to spend more time with them, that was not possible I was told. Friends are important to me, I want to spend time with them, quality time. I have not seen these friends much in recent years they are always so busy, they live where we grew up, an area I visit several times a year. They have never visited my house and I have lived in it for ten years. I believe that we can find the time to do the things we really want to do.
We had also had plans to have lunch with friends on Sunday, sadly this was not to be either. Unfortunately, whilst out walking, one had fallen and broken their wrist and needed to go into hospital for an emergency operation which thankfully went well.
Our imposed house time was, in the end, productive. It was a dry few days so I got lots of washing done. I finished knitting two projects. I made a case for my knitting needles. I finished off a curtain for one of the bedrooms. I hoovered and tidied the house. We played in the remaining snow outside and a visit to the polytunnel revealed green shoots our lettuces had germinated!
Gratitudes
31 March 2013
Joining in with Taryn for her heartfelt Sunday tradition.
A time to slow down, to reflect, to be grateful.
This week I have been grateful for...
...feeling better after a fever last week.
...my husband returning safely to us after a few days away.
...the company of friends talking and putting the world to rights, I feel so blessed with the friends I have in my life right now.
...being able to finish off making a curtain for one of our bedrooms.
...finishing the last pair of baby socks that I have knitted for a friend who is expecting a baby at the end of April.
...spending time at home and completing lots of jobs that I have been wanting to do for a while.
...finishing a really good book.
...finding small green shoots in my polytunnel despite the really low temperatures and the snow still on the ground.
...a few hours to myself.
A time to slow down, to reflect, to be grateful.
This week I have been grateful for...
...feeling better after a fever last week.
...my husband returning safely to us after a few days away.
...the company of friends talking and putting the world to rights, I feel so blessed with the friends I have in my life right now.
...being able to finish off making a curtain for one of our bedrooms.
...finishing the last pair of baby socks that I have knitted for a friend who is expecting a baby at the end of April.
...spending time at home and completing lots of jobs that I have been wanting to do for a while.
...finishing a really good book.
...finding small green shoots in my polytunnel despite the really low temperatures and the snow still on the ground.
...a few hours to myself.
Weekending
25 March 2013
This has been a tough week. The beginning of the week was good we had our usual visit into the local town. On Tuesday we hosted a visit from our friends again, we had proposed a meet up outside but it was just too cold to be outside for a whole afternoon.
Wednesday we spent the day at home as a family I baked two large cakes with the help of my youngest and we made bits for a picnic for the next day. In the evening I went to help out with an Explorer Scout meeting which is what the cakes were for, the hall they met in was very very cold and unbeknownst to me was the start of the toughness.
I slept badly over night as my husband got up very early to catch a plane and did not really sleep properly after being woken. I woke feeling not quite right but put it down to a lack of sleep rather than anything else and took the children out to a wildlife park for the day. It was a very cold but enjoyable day out and they absolutely loved it but by the time we were done I felt dreadful. I went to bed early feeling distinctly unwell.
Friday was spent mostly on the sofa whilst watching the snow outside. My lovely husband had left us with a very small supply of wood (this is a job he usually does) inside so I found myself outside in a blizzard, with a fever, collecting wood! My children were very patient with the fact that I needed to sleep, and as the day wore on it became increasingly clear that my youngest was also coming down with something too. The snow and strong winds did not stop all day I don't think we would have met our friends as planned even if we had been well.
Over the weekend we stayed inside and slept, ate and bought in more wood as much as we could cope with bringing in. The house is a pigsty but we are all warm and moderately happy, we had shaken off the worse just feeling drained and tired.
Wednesday we spent the day at home as a family I baked two large cakes with the help of my youngest and we made bits for a picnic for the next day. In the evening I went to help out with an Explorer Scout meeting which is what the cakes were for, the hall they met in was very very cold and unbeknownst to me was the start of the toughness.
I slept badly over night as my husband got up very early to catch a plane and did not really sleep properly after being woken. I woke feeling not quite right but put it down to a lack of sleep rather than anything else and took the children out to a wildlife park for the day. It was a very cold but enjoyable day out and they absolutely loved it but by the time we were done I felt dreadful. I went to bed early feeling distinctly unwell.
Friday was spent mostly on the sofa whilst watching the snow outside. My lovely husband had left us with a very small supply of wood (this is a job he usually does) inside so I found myself outside in a blizzard, with a fever, collecting wood! My children were very patient with the fact that I needed to sleep, and as the day wore on it became increasingly clear that my youngest was also coming down with something too. The snow and strong winds did not stop all day I don't think we would have met our friends as planned even if we had been well.
Over the weekend we stayed inside and slept, ate and bought in more wood as much as we could cope with bringing in. The house is a pigsty but we are all warm and moderately happy, we had shaken off the worse just feeling drained and tired.
Weekending
18 March 2013
It has been a great week this week, one of creativity mixed with busyness. We started the week with our usual trip into the local town for shopping and a visit to the library.
On Tuesday we headed to our friends house for an afternoon of play. It was lovely and warm so we spent most of the afternoon outside, when the sun finally went in we all headed inside and had an impromptu felting session led by one of the mamas. I have never done any felting before it was great fun, we all made flowers. It is definitely something I would like to do more of.
The next day we stayed at home for the day keeping quietly busy. We played lots of board games, read lots of books, look at the books and games in a story sack about Polar Bears, played with Lego, made some birthday cards and lots of talking.
On Thursday we headed out for a walk around the grounds of a local castle, it was dry and cold. We had a great wander around, ate our picnic and eventually headed home as we were getting cold. In the evening I headed out for a meeting with the folks that run a local Explorer Scout group which I help out with, we were planning a programme of activities through to September.
Friday we joined our local home ed group for a visit to a local quarry and mining musuem, we had a ride on a train, an adventure down a mine, panning for minerals and a look round a wonderful exhibition of mining and quarrying in the local area. It was a really wet day but it did not dampened our day at all, it was great to spend time with friends. Despite the fun it did turn into a challenging day!
Over the weekend we spent both days at home. I finished knitting two socks, one to complete a pair the other the start of a pair. I worked on the curtain for one of the bedrooms which is now nearly complete, it is hanging and waiting to be hemmed across the bottom. We built a fruit cage for the garden to cover our fruit bushes which hopefully means we will not loose all our crop to birds. We watched it snow and snow and snow, not much of it settled but it is still very cold temperatures are barely above freezing at the moment and it is set to last the rest of this week too.
On Tuesday we headed to our friends house for an afternoon of play. It was lovely and warm so we spent most of the afternoon outside, when the sun finally went in we all headed inside and had an impromptu felting session led by one of the mamas. I have never done any felting before it was great fun, we all made flowers. It is definitely something I would like to do more of.
The next day we stayed at home for the day keeping quietly busy. We played lots of board games, read lots of books, look at the books and games in a story sack about Polar Bears, played with Lego, made some birthday cards and lots of talking.
On Thursday we headed out for a walk around the grounds of a local castle, it was dry and cold. We had a great wander around, ate our picnic and eventually headed home as we were getting cold. In the evening I headed out for a meeting with the folks that run a local Explorer Scout group which I help out with, we were planning a programme of activities through to September.
Friday we joined our local home ed group for a visit to a local quarry and mining musuem, we had a ride on a train, an adventure down a mine, panning for minerals and a look round a wonderful exhibition of mining and quarrying in the local area. It was a really wet day but it did not dampened our day at all, it was great to spend time with friends. Despite the fun it did turn into a challenging day!
Over the weekend we spent both days at home. I finished knitting two socks, one to complete a pair the other the start of a pair. I worked on the curtain for one of the bedrooms which is now nearly complete, it is hanging and waiting to be hemmed across the bottom. We built a fruit cage for the garden to cover our fruit bushes which hopefully means we will not loose all our crop to birds. We watched it snow and snow and snow, not much of it settled but it is still very cold temperatures are barely above freezing at the moment and it is set to last the rest of this week too.
Weekending
10 March 2013
This week has been one of busyness and surprises, surprises that were not of the positive kind. We started the week with our usual trip to the local town for our food shopping and a visit to the library picking up as we usually do a huge pile of books.
Tuesday rather than heading to our friends for a play they all came to us. By late morning I thought that it might not happen as I had two texts to say we may not be able to come but they did! We had a lovely afternoon enjoying each others company in the sunshine. Our Tuesdays are usually spent at one particular house where lots of home educating families meet up, we have been doing this for about two years. Recently they have felt that they needed a break from every week and decided to make it every other week. It has been rather haphazard of late and we were struggling with the irregularity, so I offered to host a meet up on the other week. I checked first to see that folks were interested and that I was not digging my self into a hole I could not climb out of by talking to the host mama to see why she had decided to go to every other week. I hope we can continue to meet up every week somewhere, in the future. Tuesday was also the day of our first surprise. One of ours cars was booked in for a MOT Test and the garage rang to ask if we wanted to go ahead as it needed a major welding job that could take anything up to three days! The car is twelve years old and we have had it from new, we always said we would run it until it became too expensive to, the cost of the welding was likely to be more than the car is worth.
The next day we visited a local free Musuem for the morning. It is a lovely small museum with an eclectic collection of stuffed animals, roman remains, local history, local artefacts and local geology to name but a few. We visit about twice a year and always see sow thing different each time we go. I pooped into a great wool shop on the way home and picked up some bargain wool to knit some presents for babies that are due in the next few months.
Thursday we spent at home drawing, playing, reading and doing puzzles there was no room on the dining table or the living room floor by the time we had finished.
The next day we joined a local home ed group for a swim. My eldest has become much more confident in the water recently and I can finally take both my children on my own. They love swimming now and really look forward to our weekly trip to the pool. After swimming we went to a park and had a very cold play!
Over the weekend we spent our time at home. We were busy sowing seeds in the polytunnel which I have little hope will germinate as it has snowed all weekend! Playing endless games, battleships, chess, board games, memory games and I taught my eldest Patience, the card game that is. Reading lots and lots of story books. Baking bread, my first attempt at baguettes which I am not convinced were worth the effort. Another surprise, our PC has stopped working. We not entirely sure what its wrong with it but we did here a loud electrical noise from that corner on Saturday night and assumed it was the speaker for the stereo, seems it could have been the computer. It is no longer switching on, we are hoping it is the power supply, if not it could be a new PC.
We have ended the week with a final surprise, the car that we started the week with has now been sold through auto trader and we have bought another one from someone in the village! It has all happened so quickly it does really feel real yet. On Friday this week we will pick the new one up and the buyer will come and take ours away. We have had long discussions this week about whether we can be a one car family but we do not feel at the moment it is practical. My husband is self employed and his work takes him all over the place, often at short notice. It would make planning anything on the home edding front much more difficult. We do have a bus service which we use but we would not be able to get to some of our friends houses as there is no service to them. So for now we are sticking with two.
Tuesday rather than heading to our friends for a play they all came to us. By late morning I thought that it might not happen as I had two texts to say we may not be able to come but they did! We had a lovely afternoon enjoying each others company in the sunshine. Our Tuesdays are usually spent at one particular house where lots of home educating families meet up, we have been doing this for about two years. Recently they have felt that they needed a break from every week and decided to make it every other week. It has been rather haphazard of late and we were struggling with the irregularity, so I offered to host a meet up on the other week. I checked first to see that folks were interested and that I was not digging my self into a hole I could not climb out of by talking to the host mama to see why she had decided to go to every other week. I hope we can continue to meet up every week somewhere, in the future. Tuesday was also the day of our first surprise. One of ours cars was booked in for a MOT Test and the garage rang to ask if we wanted to go ahead as it needed a major welding job that could take anything up to three days! The car is twelve years old and we have had it from new, we always said we would run it until it became too expensive to, the cost of the welding was likely to be more than the car is worth.
The next day we visited a local free Musuem for the morning. It is a lovely small museum with an eclectic collection of stuffed animals, roman remains, local history, local artefacts and local geology to name but a few. We visit about twice a year and always see sow thing different each time we go. I pooped into a great wool shop on the way home and picked up some bargain wool to knit some presents for babies that are due in the next few months.
Thursday we spent at home drawing, playing, reading and doing puzzles there was no room on the dining table or the living room floor by the time we had finished.
The next day we joined a local home ed group for a swim. My eldest has become much more confident in the water recently and I can finally take both my children on my own. They love swimming now and really look forward to our weekly trip to the pool. After swimming we went to a park and had a very cold play!
Over the weekend we spent our time at home. We were busy sowing seeds in the polytunnel which I have little hope will germinate as it has snowed all weekend! Playing endless games, battleships, chess, board games, memory games and I taught my eldest Patience, the card game that is. Reading lots and lots of story books. Baking bread, my first attempt at baguettes which I am not convinced were worth the effort. Another surprise, our PC has stopped working. We not entirely sure what its wrong with it but we did here a loud electrical noise from that corner on Saturday night and assumed it was the speaker for the stereo, seems it could have been the computer. It is no longer switching on, we are hoping it is the power supply, if not it could be a new PC.
We have ended the week with a final surprise, the car that we started the week with has now been sold through auto trader and we have bought another one from someone in the village! It has all happened so quickly it does really feel real yet. On Friday this week we will pick the new one up and the buyer will come and take ours away. We have had long discussions this week about whether we can be a one car family but we do not feel at the moment it is practical. My husband is self employed and his work takes him all over the place, often at short notice. It would make planning anything on the home edding front much more difficult. We do have a bus service which we use but we would not be able to get to some of our friends houses as there is no service to them. So for now we are sticking with two.
Gratitudes
Joining in with Taryn for her heartfelt Sunday tradition
I time to reflect, to slow down, to be grateful.
This week I have been grateful for...
...the lovely shops that I have in my local town they are mostly independent, the people that work there are always friendly and helpful it makes my shopping a pleasure.
...the staff in our local library who helped me to find a book in the county library catalogue and then put in a request for me.
...a relaxing afternoon with friends who came to our house to spend time with us.
...my patient children who gave me the space I needed to work out something complicated.
...a free local Museum which we spent a morning exploring.
...two great books that I bought second hand from some lovely mamas on a forum.
...my local home ed group who organise an activity every week for families to get together and enjoy.
...a few days of warmth and sunshine.
I time to reflect, to slow down, to be grateful.
This week I have been grateful for...
...the lovely shops that I have in my local town they are mostly independent, the people that work there are always friendly and helpful it makes my shopping a pleasure.
...the staff in our local library who helped me to find a book in the county library catalogue and then put in a request for me.
...a relaxing afternoon with friends who came to our house to spend time with us.
...my patient children who gave me the space I needed to work out something complicated.
...a free local Museum which we spent a morning exploring.
...two great books that I bought second hand from some lovely mamas on a forum.
...my local home ed group who organise an activity every week for families to get together and enjoy.
...a few days of warmth and sunshine.
Weekending
03 March 2013
This week has been one of busyness and spending lots of time outside enjoying the sunshine. We started the week with our usual trip into the local town for shopping and a visit to the library. I had an extra child with me as we were looking after a friends little boy for the day. The children spent the afternoon
On Tuesday we had a wonderful afternoon with friends doing some origami. We had fun making paper planes and fish. After clearing up some of us sat and chatted and laughed a lot. It was a perfect afternoon and just what I needed.
Wednesday we had a day mostly at home. Our Wednesday friends are away on a long holiday at the moment, we are missing them and looking forward to their return. We baked some bread, made flapjacks, did two loads of washing, completed puzzles, did some colouring, drawing and read books together. In the afternoon we went to the garden centre to buy seeds and seed potatoes.
The next day dawned sunny again and we all headed out for a walk around a local lake. It was a wonderful day in beautiful surroundings.
Friday we met up with a local home ed group at the swimming pool for a swim, after which we headed out of town back to the lake we visited the day before. We all walked up to the top of a small hill and had a play in the top.
Over the weekend we had a day at home on Saturday. I did some pruning in the garden, walked up the village, made some pasties, planned next week and chilled out with the children. On Sunday we met some friends for our first canoe trip of the year. It was slightly cooler than the rest of the week but it was dry. We stopped for lots of breaks and made hot drinks with the Kelly Kettle. It was a great end to the week.
Gratitudes
Joining in with Taryn for her heartfelt Sunday tradition.
A time to slow down, to reflect, to be grateful.
This week I have been grateful for...
...being able to help out a friend for the day.
...the warmth, joy and healing power of my friends this week when I really needed them.
...a beautiful day out with my family, a walk in the sun.
...a fun afternoon out with some new home edding friends.
...a really productive day at home.
...a first canoe trip this year.
...a spring in my step, it really does feel like spring is coming now. I have started to plan our weeks more now and am finding that I have more time to spend with the children.
...one of our wood sheds already full of wood seasoning for next winter.
A time to slow down, to reflect, to be grateful.
This week I have been grateful for...
...being able to help out a friend for the day.
...the warmth, joy and healing power of my friends this week when I really needed them.
...a beautiful day out with my family, a walk in the sun.
...a fun afternoon out with some new home edding friends.
...a really productive day at home.
...a first canoe trip this year.
...a spring in my step, it really does feel like spring is coming now. I have started to plan our weeks more now and am finding that I have more time to spend with the children.
...one of our wood sheds already full of wood seasoning for next winter.
Reeling
02 March 2013
Friends, true friends, are hard to make. But, with the way many of us live now, they are more important than family who are often spread out across the country or continents. In the period between leaving my childhood home and settling in my own home, I moved many times. I worked in live in jobs with up to sixty people, I was a student, I had the time of my life, but friends came and went I kept in touch with some but not many, as we drifted apart and our lives moved on. Since starting to home educate I have met some wonderful and interesting people they have become very important to me, especially this week.
Finding out that someone no longer wishes to be part of your life, as happened to me in this past week, can be hard to understand. I have wondered if I am not easy to talk to, that I have a closed mind, that my opinions are too strong to counter. I have felt angry, sad, confused, baffled, worried, anxious, rejected and happy. I have been reflecting and thinking. If I come across opinionated and not easy to talk to that is not what I am trying to be and I work hard not to be. I try to be careful with my words, to show respect. What I have come to realise, this week, is that whilst that is important I also need to remember that what I say and do in the company of friends will be perceived and interpreted by them in their own way. That way will be through their own experiences in life, we can never know truly how another person is thinking or what they are feeling in any situation.
When I joined some friends this week for an activity at one of their houses, I was filled with trepidation. I was nervous, my foundations were feeling shaken. I was worried that I would sit there watching everyone having a good time thinking how can you after what I have been through. I thought I would feel rejected. How wrong I was. I was running a little late and was the last to arrive. Everyone was pleased to see me and welcomed me with quite obvious delight, it was very clear to me that this was genuine. I could not have ever hoped for a better reception. I had a wonderful afternoon, the best in a long time. We all did an activity together, we cleared up the house together, then we sat and talked and laughed together. It was, for me, a beautiful healing.
I am ready to move on. My emotions have stopped dancing. I have learnt so much from this experience. I am stronger. I live to face another day.
Finding out that someone no longer wishes to be part of your life, as happened to me in this past week, can be hard to understand. I have wondered if I am not easy to talk to, that I have a closed mind, that my opinions are too strong to counter. I have felt angry, sad, confused, baffled, worried, anxious, rejected and happy. I have been reflecting and thinking. If I come across opinionated and not easy to talk to that is not what I am trying to be and I work hard not to be. I try to be careful with my words, to show respect. What I have come to realise, this week, is that whilst that is important I also need to remember that what I say and do in the company of friends will be perceived and interpreted by them in their own way. That way will be through their own experiences in life, we can never know truly how another person is thinking or what they are feeling in any situation.
When I joined some friends this week for an activity at one of their houses, I was filled with trepidation. I was nervous, my foundations were feeling shaken. I was worried that I would sit there watching everyone having a good time thinking how can you after what I have been through. I thought I would feel rejected. How wrong I was. I was running a little late and was the last to arrive. Everyone was pleased to see me and welcomed me with quite obvious delight, it was very clear to me that this was genuine. I could not have ever hoped for a better reception. I had a wonderful afternoon, the best in a long time. We all did an activity together, we cleared up the house together, then we sat and talked and laughed together. It was, for me, a beautiful healing.
I am ready to move on. My emotions have stopped dancing. I have learnt so much from this experience. I am stronger. I live to face another day.
Weekending
17 February 2013
This week has been varied and busy. We started as usual with our trip into the local town for food shopping and visit to the library. In the afternoon we headed to the swimming pool rather than home, it was the only time we could fit a swim in. We are trying to go every week and did not fit a swim in last week as we were away. We popped in to see a friend on the way home for afternoon tea and a catch up.
On Tuesday we joined our usual play date friends for a wonderful celebration of Imbolc. The following day I took the children to see their first play. An adaptation of the wonderful book, Stuck by Oliver Jeffers. It was a perfect length at 45 minutes and they both really enjoyed it. Thursday we visited friends who we have not seen for weeks, it was great to catch up for lunch and a short play.
On Friday we packed up and travelled to see family. We stayed with my in laws for the weekend. My father in law is in poor health and I think we will be making this trip a fair few times over the coming months to share the time he is still in good enough health for us to take the children.
In between times we have been baking, cooking, reading books on castles, knights, armour, Romans, celts, Vikings, medieval cathedrals, drawing, talking about numbers, playing with Lego, play dough, soft toys, making dens, pretending to cook, go shopping and so much more!
On Tuesday we joined our usual play date friends for a wonderful celebration of Imbolc. The following day I took the children to see their first play. An adaptation of the wonderful book, Stuck by Oliver Jeffers. It was a perfect length at 45 minutes and they both really enjoyed it. Thursday we visited friends who we have not seen for weeks, it was great to catch up for lunch and a short play.
On Friday we packed up and travelled to see family. We stayed with my in laws for the weekend. My father in law is in poor health and I think we will be making this trip a fair few times over the coming months to share the time he is still in good enough health for us to take the children.
In between times we have been baking, cooking, reading books on castles, knights, armour, Romans, celts, Vikings, medieval cathedrals, drawing, talking about numbers, playing with Lego, play dough, soft toys, making dens, pretending to cook, go shopping and so much more!
Gratitudes
Joining in with Taryn for her heartfelt Sunday tradition.
A time to slow down, to reflect, to be grateful.
This week I have been grateful for...
...a friend organising a wonderful Imbolc celebration.
...lunch with friends who we had not seen for a while.
...time to spend with my father in law whose health is very poor.
...the longer days which are slowly starting to feel warmer, it feels like spring is just round the corner.
...time to finish knitting socks for my mum for her birthday.
...the good health of my children after hearing that a close friend of my nephews had died.
...the opportunity to take my children to their first play which was just the right length for them and based on a book that they are very familiar with it was a wonderful introduction to the theatre.
A time to slow down, to reflect, to be grateful.
This week I have been grateful for...
...a friend organising a wonderful Imbolc celebration.
...lunch with friends who we had not seen for a while.
...time to spend with my father in law whose health is very poor.
...the longer days which are slowly starting to feel warmer, it feels like spring is just round the corner.
...time to finish knitting socks for my mum for her birthday.
...the good health of my children after hearing that a close friend of my nephews had died.
...the opportunity to take my children to their first play which was just the right length for them and based on a book that they are very familiar with it was a wonderful introduction to the theatre.
Imbolc
14 February 2013
On Sunday it was a new moon, so our Tuesday friends organised a day for us all to celebrate Imbolc. We started the day making some food to share, in our case gingerbread stars. We use the recipe from Baking Bread with Children and they are always delicious.
On our journey to meet up with friends we met a serious accident that had closed the road. We had to turn around and travel almost back to our house for an alternative route, it felt like an auspicious start. Luckily we were not too late and we joined everyone making Brigid Crosses, these are a representation of the all seeing eye of Brigid watching over you for the year. I had one of these as a child that an uncle bought back from South America, it is wonderful how traditions are so similar around the world. We all sat round the table creating our crosses and sharing the food that everyone had bought.
With our crosses complete we went outside and lit a fire for us to celebrate the awakening of the earth, as spring approaches. It has felt in the last week or so that spring is not far away despite the cold and snow there is a freshness in the air and little green shoots are starting to show. We danced, sang and beat our drums to awaken the snake, or the earth ready for the spring. We burnt our winter greens that had been in our houses since the solstice. It was a lovely celebration with friends.
Joining in with Friday's Nature Table a sharing of all things nature related.
On our journey to meet up with friends we met a serious accident that had closed the road. We had to turn around and travel almost back to our house for an alternative route, it felt like an auspicious start. Luckily we were not too late and we joined everyone making Brigid Crosses, these are a representation of the all seeing eye of Brigid watching over you for the year. I had one of these as a child that an uncle bought back from South America, it is wonderful how traditions are so similar around the world. We all sat round the table creating our crosses and sharing the food that everyone had bought.
With our crosses complete we went outside and lit a fire for us to celebrate the awakening of the earth, as spring approaches. It has felt in the last week or so that spring is not far away despite the cold and snow there is a freshness in the air and little green shoots are starting to show. We danced, sang and beat our drums to awaken the snake, or the earth ready for the spring. We burnt our winter greens that had been in our houses since the solstice. It was a lovely celebration with friends.
Joining in with Friday's Nature Table a sharing of all things nature related.
Weekending
03 February 2013
It has been another busy week in these parts. We started the week with our usual trip into the local town for our food shopping and a visit to the library. I also bought some material from the sewing shop to make some trousers for my youngest.
On Tuesday we travelled south to our usual play date. There were not so many children this week but fun was had none the less with Lego, battleships game, cushions on the floor and flags.
On Wednesday we had a train ride to a soft play area for a birthday treat for our Wednesday play date friends. It was very noisy at the soft play as it was so busy, and it got really noisy when hail rained down on the metal roof the noise was deafening.
We were up and out early on Thursday to join a friend for a swim, after last weeks amazing achievements in the pool my eldest spent most of the time swimming underwater. It is amazing how confident he has become. We had our lunch on the poolside before heading to pick up some bits we had left last week to be repaired. After we dropped our friends off we popped to buy a pair of shoes for the youngest as her feet have grown again. It was a long day out and the children both fell asleep really early.
On Friday we joined a local home ed group that we have not met with for a while, it was good to catch up with folks again. They were making jitterbugs a bit like this except that we used a CD for the body. It was fun to sit and make them, although our legs kept falling off! We decorated ours after we got home as we ran out of time.
Over the weekend we joined up with some friends for tea on Saturday. We headed over in the afternoon so the children could have a play together. We have not seen them for a while so it was good to catch up. On Sunday I spent the day cooking and getting ready to go away. We are off for a few days next week so it will be quiet on here for a few days. If you leave a comment, thank you, it may be a while before it is published I am not ignoring you just having a short break from technology. Hope you have a good week, will be back soon!
On Tuesday we travelled south to our usual play date. There were not so many children this week but fun was had none the less with Lego, battleships game, cushions on the floor and flags.
On Wednesday we had a train ride to a soft play area for a birthday treat for our Wednesday play date friends. It was very noisy at the soft play as it was so busy, and it got really noisy when hail rained down on the metal roof the noise was deafening.
We were up and out early on Thursday to join a friend for a swim, after last weeks amazing achievements in the pool my eldest spent most of the time swimming underwater. It is amazing how confident he has become. We had our lunch on the poolside before heading to pick up some bits we had left last week to be repaired. After we dropped our friends off we popped to buy a pair of shoes for the youngest as her feet have grown again. It was a long day out and the children both fell asleep really early.
On Friday we joined a local home ed group that we have not met with for a while, it was good to catch up with folks again. They were making jitterbugs a bit like this except that we used a CD for the body. It was fun to sit and make them, although our legs kept falling off! We decorated ours after we got home as we ran out of time.
Over the weekend we joined up with some friends for tea on Saturday. We headed over in the afternoon so the children could have a play together. We have not seen them for a while so it was good to catch up. On Sunday I spent the day cooking and getting ready to go away. We are off for a few days next week so it will be quiet on here for a few days. If you leave a comment, thank you, it may be a while before it is published I am not ignoring you just having a short break from technology. Hope you have a good week, will be back soon!
Rhythm
02 February 2013
I have posted several times about our weekly rhythm it has been great for keeping us in balance each week. I say has because, like so many things, it is changing and some weeks it has been non existent and has had to change at the last minute. After months of it being the same this has really unsettled my children. I have been giving this much thought over the last week or so, we have come to rely on this rhythm so when it stops beating I have not had alternatives up my sleeve.
We love the rhythm of regular contact with other families, of doing things outside the home. I need to get my planning head on and talk to other families about alternatives when our original plans do not work out. This may mean spending some time with new people and branching out to new places or it may mean spending a bit more time at home every now and then.
I found another post about rhythm that I wrote some months ago about the rhythms of our days at home. I have been lax about this rhythm too of late so I need to bring this back into our lives too.
The last couple of weeks have felt very topsy turvey, I have not been sure of the day of the week most days. I need to spend time thinking about pulling all these ideas into practice to bring back our much needed and loved rhythm.
We love the rhythm of regular contact with other families, of doing things outside the home. I need to get my planning head on and talk to other families about alternatives when our original plans do not work out. This may mean spending some time with new people and branching out to new places or it may mean spending a bit more time at home every now and then.
I found another post about rhythm that I wrote some months ago about the rhythms of our days at home. I have been lax about this rhythm too of late so I need to bring this back into our lives too.
The last couple of weeks have felt very topsy turvey, I have not been sure of the day of the week most days. I need to spend time thinking about pulling all these ideas into practice to bring back our much needed and loved rhythm.
Weekending
27 January 2013
Another week has flown by, the year is now three weeks old. We started the week with snow! We woke on Monday morning to about an inch the children were so excited especially my youngest as she does not remember the snow we had last year. After shopping and a library visit in the morning she and I spent the afternoon outside building a snow castle, making angel patterns in the snow and clearing our neighbours path.
Tuesday started badly, we got a phone call and message from our Tuesday and Thursday friends, within a few minutes of each other, to say that neither could meet up with us this week. My lovely weekly rhythm just stopped beating, the children were devastated. I called our Wednesday friends to check that they were still on for meeting up and thankfully they were. Even better they phoned back a couple of hours later to say come over for tea, stay the night and play all day on Wednesday. The children were really excited and could not wait to set off! We spent some of the time making gingerbread men and reading the story about the gingerbread man that does not want to be caught. They had a great time playing, playing, playing it was amazing they were together for twenty four hours and did not fall out at all in that time. The spent a large part of Wednesday out in the snow in the garden.
So on Thursday we headed off to a town we don't visit that often to swim and drop off something for repair, we took friends with us. The swimming was great the pool was warm and pretty much empty, the children's swimming skills suddenly clicked for them both. We had lunch at the poolside before heading into town. We ran our errands before heading to a fantastic park for a play. We headed home tired and happy after a grand day out.
On Friday it snowed all day, big fat flakes that settled by the evening we had about three inches. We made our own snowflakes indoors using a wire form a bit like this except ours have 8 spokes. We have hung them on our tree. We also read books about snow and winter, talked about hibernation, played the Winter cooperative game and enjoyed the cosines of our house.
Over the weekend we went to a lovely birthday party on Saturday. My eldest who is not a fan of parties sat and read two Roald Dahl books whilst the party went on around him! On Sunday we played at home, made some more play doh to play with, I sewed two cushion covers, read several books with the children and we took part in the RSPB Big Garden Watch. You spend an hour counting the birds in your garden, you count the numbers each time you see them and then submit the highest number you see at any one time. We had few visitors this year compared to last. It was really, really windy and as our garden is pretty exposed the birds were not visiting even though we put out lots of food. Those that did were clearly struggling against the wind!
Tuesday started badly, we got a phone call and message from our Tuesday and Thursday friends, within a few minutes of each other, to say that neither could meet up with us this week. My lovely weekly rhythm just stopped beating, the children were devastated. I called our Wednesday friends to check that they were still on for meeting up and thankfully they were. Even better they phoned back a couple of hours later to say come over for tea, stay the night and play all day on Wednesday. The children were really excited and could not wait to set off! We spent some of the time making gingerbread men and reading the story about the gingerbread man that does not want to be caught. They had a great time playing, playing, playing it was amazing they were together for twenty four hours and did not fall out at all in that time. The spent a large part of Wednesday out in the snow in the garden.
So on Thursday we headed off to a town we don't visit that often to swim and drop off something for repair, we took friends with us. The swimming was great the pool was warm and pretty much empty, the children's swimming skills suddenly clicked for them both. We had lunch at the poolside before heading into town. We ran our errands before heading to a fantastic park for a play. We headed home tired and happy after a grand day out.
On Friday it snowed all day, big fat flakes that settled by the evening we had about three inches. We made our own snowflakes indoors using a wire form a bit like this except ours have 8 spokes. We have hung them on our tree. We also read books about snow and winter, talked about hibernation, played the Winter cooperative game and enjoyed the cosines of our house.
Over the weekend we went to a lovely birthday party on Saturday. My eldest who is not a fan of parties sat and read two Roald Dahl books whilst the party went on around him! On Sunday we played at home, made some more play doh to play with, I sewed two cushion covers, read several books with the children and we took part in the RSPB Big Garden Watch. You spend an hour counting the birds in your garden, you count the numbers each time you see them and then submit the highest number you see at any one time. We had few visitors this year compared to last. It was really, really windy and as our garden is pretty exposed the birds were not visiting even though we put out lots of food. Those that did were clearly struggling against the wind!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)