The Creative Spirit

Still opening presents at this end.  My brother and his wife sent these lovely gifts:

His smile says it all!

 

 

 

 

Make your own finger puppets.

 

 

Pip found all the relevant pieces and I added the glue and she fixed them in place.  The glue that came with the set did not work so we had to resort to super strong adhesive which was not kid friendly.  Still it did the job!

 

 

 

Well done Pip!

 

 

 

Ready to tell a tale.

 

 

 

Tea and Knitting.

 

Sara busy working on Pip's multicoloured sleeveless cardigan.  She devised the pattern herself and watched a you tube video on this particular stitch known as a "honeycombe stitch."  She's spent this evening weaving in the ends and will add the ribbing to the armholes, neck and front band tomorrow.

 

 

Benedict and I listened to episode three of A Christmas Carol ~ The First of The Three Spirits.  My intention was to work on the accompanying questions but I could barely keep my eyes open, so off to bed I crawled.

 

  We had a particularly rough night with Pip as she was awake between the hours of 2am and 4am.  I think genuine hunger had prevented her from settling when she woke in a light phase of sleep.  Her appetite had been poor thoughout the day and I'd wondered  if she was sickening for the gastric bug, thankfully she was OK but it was no surprise when she woke.  It was a shock to wake this morning and find the alarm clock announcing the time of half past nine!  The extra sleep was welcomed but we've all been disorientated today.



Bike Riding and Den Building.

Having spent the last two nights waking with horrendous nightmares and worrying about the health and safety of family members, I decided enough already! and set about changing my proposed activities for the day. This morning  I took Pip to our recently refurbished local park and we watched the birds, listened to the breeze through the trees, counted seven passing trains and swung high and low on the big round swing.

After lunch Sara, Pip and I rode to our local Sainsbury store  a two mile round trip.  It was a first for me to have Pip on the bike seat and apart from an initial wobble as we were setting off, I settled into a comfortable rhythm. The ride back was quite arduous as the gears were not behaving and with that and a strong oncoming wind, my heart had a thorough workout!  I was very glad to be home and Sara was a great bike companion encouraging me on.

Whilst we were away Benedict worked on another complex Lego model and  some impromptu den building, in other words a great excuse to potter in Dad's workshop!  We had leek and courgette quiche with roasted asparagus for tea and by 7pm Pip was fast asleep, I think the fresh air had worn her out.

 Lego designing and building.

Only Benedict knows what is going on in this grand scheme!

A cheeky Miss P eating her tea.

Happiness is ...

Trying to climb into the washing machine!

Sharing a Lego moment with our diabetes specialist nurse.

Knowing where you will be in a few weeks time... our big girl Sara will be joining the multitudes here, on the extended horticulture course; plenty of opportunity to continue daily battles with the elements and pests!

Taking the train with your big sister to the RSPB nature reserve at Leighton Moss and having yummy tomato soup and ham sandwiches for lunch.

Doing one's bit for the environment and spreading seeds!

Examining the seed pods.

Mud pie making.

An hour in the craft room making something totally mundane but necessary.  The happy thrifted fabric makes me smile and the quiet time with my Janome machine was a sanity saving moment.

Bamboo wigwam made by Sara.

Finally cracking the ten times table using multiplication/division and accompanying word and picture problems.  Not easy for someone with a slight maths aversion and suspected discalculia.

Space Quest

I think we might have begun a space based rabbit trail and lap book project for the Summer.  I hesitate about being any more concrete than this, as Benedict's intentions can wane quite quickly, however he has made a concerted effort these past days and little and often seems to be the key.

His first self allotted task was to design a space buggy and from this he chose to draw a series of diagrams indicating the Lego pieces used and how they fitted together.  His final piece also involved some writing, it's the most I've seen him write in the entire year!! 

The creative process at work.

  A closer look at the space buggy.

In addition to space related learning, Benedict helped make waffles for breakfast on Tuesday and  we actually managed to eat them outside, even though woollies and a fleece blanket were the order of the day!  It is Summer you know!

Pouring the batter.

 A yummy treat chocolate spread and crunchy Meridian peanut butter.

Dad and bairns attempted the same feat on Wednesday morning only to be deluged by a sudden downpour, so breakfast items were quickly cleared and breakfast was eaten on top of the kitchen worktop!!  After all where else would you eat it?!!

 Benedict looking a tad precarious!

We also had our weekly visit from our diabetes specialist nurse and amongst other things she tested his HBa1C reading, it was the lowest ever at 8.5mmol!  This is great news for his long term health but sadly is not a true reflection of our daily management.  Despite altering his basal rate he continues to have daily hypos and for the past few nights my bedtime has been between 1-2am as I continue to micro manage the diabetes.  I felt heart sorry for him at one point for he had a crashing hypo. It was truly a blessing that, he happily chomped on the jelly babies albeit half asleep!  Most times he refuses treatment in the night due to being confused and it can be a very tense time for all concerned.

Today we met with Benedict's new art teacher who will be taking over art therapy in the September.  She is a lovely lady and Benedict took to her instantly.  He also loved playing with her cat "Candy" and had great fun making a play den for kitty out of material, pine cones and stones.  After lunch Dave, Sara and Pip had errands to run and B and I worked on an alien drawing for the space book.  I named mine "Fuzzy Wig" and B's was "Bloblin!"  It has been a good day.

 

This Week...

... we have been enjoying the unseasonably hot weather, so plenty of outdoor fun; yet despite spending most of our waking hours outside, the inside of the house resembled chaos in motion on most days! 

Here is our week in pictures:

 Making Dandelion Syrup.

 Crazy Fun With Friends.

Little Helpers Greening The Fence!

A Submariner in Training.

"Thunderbirds Are Go!"

Wet On Wet Blue Colourwash.

A Flock Of Birds Waiting To Take Flight.

Garden Art.

 Water Play.

Today was our regular visit to Shein's.  As a result of Benedict having been so poorly in recent weeks we decided to go easy and he worked independently on an Easter craft,  followed by the construction of a complex Lego model.  We also talked about the senses since one of the children she works with has profound learning disabilities, accompanied with hearing loss and partial sight.  Benedict had a hands on session with some of the little girls play equipment and he was able to greater appreciate the difficulties faced by this little girl and her family.

The Drip, Drip Effect

This is Benedict's current insulin status since we have restarted pump therapy as of today.

Last night's two hourly observations paid off and I was able to prevent ketoacidosis by giving another injection at 3am when his blood glucose was rising.  As a one off this method of management is doable but it is not workable as a long term solution, hence our reasons for restarting the pump therapy.

Pump therapy itself is not without complications and when we last road tested the system we encountered numerous complications and his diabetes still remained unstable.  It is now half past midnight and I have just checked his readings which are currently 19.6mmol, a bolus correction has been made via the pump and I now have to wait an hour to ensure that, his blood sugar levels have dropped.  If that proves to be the case then I can catch some sleep and recheck him around 4am, if not then I will have to assume that the pump has occluded and will need to re-site another cannula elsewhere on his person.  Since the pump only uses short acting insulin in bursts occlusion is a very serious problem and  if left unchecked ketoacidosis and coma can occur very quickly. 

On a positive note his blood sugars showed considerable improvement from mid afternoon to bedtime.  I'm convinced these higher readings throughout the night are due to a growth spurt and judicious resetting of basal rates should rectify this problem, Please God.

 Lego Therapy.

 Still Smiling...just.

 A clever bit of marketing... their motto is "live more, worry less"  I'll believe it when I see it!

Applied Maths and Martinmas

Dave was acting teacher for this morning whilst Pip and I attended sing and play.  The schools box of Lego Technic was brought into play and Benedict made a model of a wind turbine, with a crank reciprocating piston and several variants of lifting equipment.  The latter demonstrating mechanical advantage through the use of pulleys:

Our resident Wallace in action!

Just checking to make sure it works!

Lego bricks road testing the next piece of machinery.

Making some minor adjustments.

Concentrating hard!

The morning was a resounding success and Dave being an excellent teacher, even managed to incorporate some times table counting into the whole process.

After lunch we played catch up with a variety of chores and I checked the web for Martinmas songs and the story behind the feast.  This is a relatively new celebration for us as a family and as always everything was last minute!  It was Pip's turn this year to make a lantern and she had great fun with Daddy sticking gold stars onto an old jam jar.  The candle was lit during our evening meal and I shared with the others the story of St Martin.  I also found a lantern song which I sung to Pip whilst she had her bedtime feed.  Here is a version in English:

 I go outside with my lantern,

My lantern goes with me.

Above the stars are shining bright,

Down here on Earth shine we.

The cock does crow, the cat meows,

Rabimmel, rabammel, raboom,

Neath Heaven's dome til we go home,

Rabimmel, rabammel, raboom.

I go outside with my lantern,

My lantern goes with me.

Above the stars are shining bright,

Down here on Earth shine we.

So shine your light through the still dark night,

Rabimmel, rabammel, raboom,

Neath Heaven's dome til we go home,

Rabimmel, rabammel, raboom.

And a shorter version in German:

Ich geh mit meiner Laterne,

Und meine Laterne mit mir,

Dort oben leuchten die Sterne,

Und unten leuchten wir.

Meine licht ist aus

Ich geh nach Haus

Rabimmel, rabammel, raboom.

My rusty high school German stood me in good stead and I was able to sing both versions! 

There was no lantern walk around our bounds since we have been experiencing gale force winds and driving rain since tea time, any candle flame would have been extinguished immediately. The image of the flickering vulnerable candle flame reminded me that, we each carry the Christ light within us and like the small flame of a candle, we need to nurture it and protect it from the buffeting winds and storms of life.  How we do this depends on our own personal background but coming from a Catholic heritage, I'm reminded of my own weapons of defence:

Holy Mass, Rosary, Bible, Confession and Eucharistic Adoration.

I do not manage them all by any means but they are worthy signposts on this pilgrim journey.

Self Directed Learning and Moments of Peace!

Lego building and stickle bricks are the order of the day here at chez maison.

This little chap just lurves Lego!

 

It's been amazing to see Pip develop a keen interest in the stickle bricks, she will play with them quite happily for a good ten to fifteen minutes.  She's still a keen climber but boy I am glad that, she's spending more of her time in sitting down, quiet activities!!

Of course if you really want to glean a goodly amount of cooking time then you bring in the big guns!  Big sister Sara kindly gave some of her time and this enabled me to finish the tea preparation in peace:

I love the concentration on Pip's face, she is fast becoming a Lego fan!

Thanks Sara for being a super star of a sister!

Learning all the time

This has been the sub text for Benedict's home education report.  It has taken me a week to write it and it will be posted on Monday morning by registered post, to arrive on the doorstep of the LEA department the following day.  We had originally agreed to a visit but, after having received a rather interrogative questionnaire at the beginning of last week, both Dave and I felt that, it would be less stressful to submit a report.  Thank goodness we are not obliged to allow the LEA access to our home.  Our LEA unfortunately have a very bad reputation at the moment and quite understandably parents are choosing to send reports instead of having visits.
The report has enabled me to fully appreciate just how much learning Benedict has achieved in such a short space of time.  He isn't a workbook kind of chap but give him a set of Lego instructions and some pieces and he is away.  It is the first time he has tackled such a feat and we were all very impressed with the result:

Pip is also coming along in leaps and bounds.  She sings and chatters away constantly, often there is the beginnings of a recognisable words in amongst the babbling.  She is fascinated with Benedict's blood glucose monitor and knows how to use the machine!  She has also taken an interest in the garden, especially the watering: