Playing Catch Up... Again!

Have been having trouble logging in to Typepad and have had to install Fire fox in order to gain access to my account details and dashboard!  Still at least we are now up and running and so here is the account of last weeks shenanigan's:
Monday we visited another Home Edding family not far from us and then made our way to Brockhole National Park for a picnic lunch, a walk around the gardens and a load of fun at the adventure playground.  Our visit was topped off by well deserved ice cream and cup of tea in the cafe.

Don't worry Pip was crawling around the bottom, she hadn't actually come down the chute!

Benedict having some much needed outdoor activity, needless to say he had a hypo shortly after this picture was taken... ah, well!

Ah, five minutes peace whilst Pip munches on a chocolate button and ponders the life, universe and everything!

Tuesday was a home day and still working with the week's theme of "Activity" we had a day of active building, jigsaw making, clay modelling and a first for Pip finger painting.

Raisin snack time after building the den for the teddies!

Close up of a clay model car.

The scene in full.

 

The finished masterpiece!

Wednesday was a trip to The Quaker Tapestry and lunch with Nanna H.  After lunch we bought much needed trainers and sandals for Benedict and our bargain of the week was an almost new game from the charity shop, a book on how things work and a lovely summer top for Pip.

The rest of the week was another episode in damage limitation as rising blood sugars meant increased periods of poor concentration and fatigue.  Despite this Benedict continued to plough his way through his reading scheme, devise intricate pen drawings, usually machine orientated! and build copious Lego constructions.

I'm glad we had an "Active" week it did us good to break from our usual routine of loft work and house work!

Garden Growth

Finally life is bursting forth in the garden, a combination of hard work on Dave and Benedict's behalf and the blessings of periodic sunshine!  Last weekend we managed to eat our meals outside and although it meant a lot of carrying items from the house to the bottom of the garden, the tidy up process post meal was a breeze; no sweeping of dropped debris, instead we  left a treat for the birds and compost items were dumped straight in the compost bins! 

 

In the raised beds and borders we have:beans, courgettes, cabbages,cauliflowers,carrots,chard,fennel, potatoes and peas.

In the greenhouse we have: lettuce, chilli peppers, sweet peppers and tomatoes.

The fruit trees look like they will also be generous this year so all in all we should have a reasonable harvest to fill the table and spare the purse!

Round Up Time

We've had a busy week in the "school room" in the loft and Benedict has achieved quite a lot of work.

Monday 10th May -

 Benedict wrote the numbers and corresponding words from 40 - 60.  His handwriting is much improved and he has worked hard at keeping the letters neat and on the line.

He drew a small picture of a boat and accompanying sea creatures.

Read " The Victorian Adventure" from The Oxford Reading Tree Level 8.

Practical Life Skills: organised the recycling, swept the dining room floor and cleared the table after lunch.

Independent reading after lunch - Benedict chose a diabetes information book which is solely geared towards children with the condition.

Independent writing - Benedict wrote a letter home as an evacuee during The Second World War.  His writing deteriorated and concentration waned towards the end.  He was very tired both physically and mentally.

Benedict has worked incredibly hard today and I am very pleased with all his efforts.

Tuesday 11th May -

Peculiar BM's all day, swinging from one extreme to the other.  Despite this he did manage some work - he copied out the evacuee letter with correct grammar and spellings, practised this weeks spellings, read "The Surprise" from The Oxford Tree Scheme, constructed a complex marble run creation and made a picture scene with modelling clay.

Wednesday 12th May -

Drew a picture to accompany the evacuee letter.  In it he added barrage balloons, an anderson shelter, sandbags, gas masks and an incendiary bomb.  He was able to describe in detail the function of each item.

Mathematics - Tens and Units using cuisinaire rods.  We listened to the Times Tables soundtrack game.  He needed a lot of help from me but we had great fun!

Copied numbers 60 - 80 and their corresponding words whilst listening to "The Junior Jug Band - Songs to Sing".  The tape was sent to us from our friend in Canada and when he'd finished writing he did his own jive movements, the rhythm was quite infectious!

Using numbered cards as a visual prompt he counted in 2's, 5's and 10's.

Read "William's Mistake" from The Reading Scheme.

Thursday 13th May -

Today should have been our Home Ed Group meeting but due to a lack of numbers it was sadly cancelled.  The lady who runs it had put time and effort into organising a theme for the day and I felt for her that, only two of us had bothered to reply to her e-mail stating we wished to attend.  Benedict was very disappointed and asked could we do something "fun" rather than stay at home.  We had a treat lunch at our local "Frankie and Benny's" and then paid a visit to the shoe shop.  Pip was lucky she got a pair of slippers and shoes at less than the cost of her first pair!!  We couldn't find anything for Benedict so I think we'll have to look further afield.

All things considered it has been a good week!

Another Odd Day

Blood glucose levels still unstable and affecting Benedict's health and learning abilities.  Despite poor concentration and fatigue he applied himself to the tasks at hand and the following  were accomplished:  more practise of the two times tables, this time we are using a deck of cards to help reinforce the process, he read The Rainbow Machine from the Oxford Tree Reading Scheme, we worked on this week's spellings, writing practise was a huge success and he helped with cleaning, sorting and tidying, all part of practical life skills.

After lunch he had a rest as he was feeling unwell.  The remainder of the day has been devoted to lego creations and helping in the garden.

Odds and Evens

Not a mathematical concept, although it is next on our to do list!  The title refers to our activities these past two days.  Today has been an odd day; Benedict's blood sugars have had more of a swing to them than, the orchestrated polls of the up and coming elections!  As a result we've gone with the flow and although we didn't tackle what I'd set out to do, Benedict achieved quite a lot:  hand writing practise, spellings, helping to paint wooden slats for a garden trellis, reading everything and anything, drawing and designing his own railway network.

Yesterday was more of an even day:  using the cuisinaire rods as a practical tool Benedict tackled three pages of his maths workbook.  It was interesting to see how by using the rods he was able to tackle concepts that previously would have had him floundering.  It was like watching a Eureka! moment and confirmed once again that, the rods have been worth every penny. 

After the maths session, Benedict read The Vikings, which is part of the Level 8 series from The Oxford Reading Tree Scheme.  Although I would classify Benedict as an independent reader, he will read anything and everything given the chance, he still enjoys the stories portrayed in this scheme.  All credit to the authors as they have been able to provide a scheme that not only supports early reading but does so in such a way that captivates the reader's interest and enthusiasm.

It was then time for our tea break.  Benedict had a run in the garden whilst I pegged out the washing and had a welcome brew!  By now it was eleven o'clock so in out last hour before finishing formal lessons for the day, we tackled the new list of spellings, counted in two's and played the clock face game and Benedict drew pictures and wrote accompanying messages on his work.  Any written work completed by Benedict is read by me and together we look at the spellings and any corrections are usually written above the appropriate word in pencil.

As a reward for all his efforts he watched Redwall with big sister Sara.   I think he found the storyline quite challenging as there seemed to be several twists to the plot.  I think a second viewing might help him and maybe spark an interest in reading the books of the same name by Brian Jacques.  The remainder of the day was spent in the workshop hammering and tinkering.

Happy May Day

It's the first of May  the heating is on and it's raining outside!  The sun did put in a brief appearance this morning and I was able to snap some of the colour in the garden:

It's been a fairly typical Saturday, Benedict had dancing this morning and after lunch whilst Pip napped I gave the downstairs rooms a long overdue clean.  Dave, Benedict and Sara delivered items to the charity shop, bought groceries and health supplements.  Our meals have been: mixed vegetable quiche and greens for lunch, mixed vegetable colcannon and jam tarts for tea.  All in all a productive yet peaceful day.

Home Ed Group

Yesterday we joined in with our local group that meets on a fortnightly basis.  The lass who runs the group is very organised and usually sends out a mailing listing proposed activities, yesterday's itinerary included:  decorating a bottle/jam jar to make a vase, planting seeds, a recorder lesson and learning circus skills.  Benedict decorated his bottle with the Moomin characters and Pip planted Livingstone Daisies as well as attempting to eat the soil!  It was Benedict's first attempt at learning the recorder and he did well, it's just up to me now to encourage him to practise before the next meeting.  He also had a go with a Diablo, it was a shame Sara was not with us as she could have taught some tricks to the kids.  The rest of the time was spent charging around the adjoining field playing frisbee and kicking a ball around.

After lunch Benedict planted seeds with Dad in the greenhouse and then visited his old school to borrow more books from their reading scheme.  Whilst he was out Sara sat with Pip at the table and the two of them had fun making swirls on the paper.  Tea time was soon upon us and Benedict helped chop the tomatoes waiting to be fried and Pip as ever was to be found on my back!

Benedict's photo of his efforts.

This morning we worked on subtraction skills using the Cuisinaire Rods, counted in two's and worked on the two times table - Benedict is still having difficulty remembering the answers for the tables but I know that at some point it will click.  This is what happened with his reading and now he is a voracious reader!  After this Benedict followed the guidance in the Usborne I Can Draw Series and drew a beautiful reindeer to add to his collection of a monkey and a bee.  He has also read several books of his own choosing including The Tale of Mrs Tittlemouse by Beatrix Potter.  As I write he is now resting in bed as I'm sure he is brewing an infection, again!



Edited To Add:  A phone call from the GP this afternnoon confirmed my suspicions, another kidney infection is brewing, so another course of anti-biotics, the second set this month.  Benedict as usual is very matter of fact about the whole thing, good job too, I suppose!

Pip's Indoor Picnic!

I was cooking tea the other night and Pip was rattling the kitchen gate and shouting.  In an effort to keep the peace and upon realising she might be hungry I made her Marmite and cheese sandwiches.  An impromptu indoor picnic was just what this gal needed:

   

We've Been...

... digging for dinosaurs, creating with Lego, reading, reading and more reading, cuisinairing, mask colouring, planting and watering and asking many questions too numerous to list and some for which I did not have the answer!  Daddy is a fount of knowledge so we always defer to him otherwise Yahoo makes a reasonable alternative!  Here are some pics from the past week:

Pip has two main areas of "learning" at the moment.  First up his her speech, she babbles loads and attempts to make words, mama, dada, rara (for sara), bir (bird), boo bear  and she loves singing the first bit of row, row the boat.  The second area is her physical development, not only can she  climb onto the window bottom, fire guard and play kitchen, she has now worked out how to get onto the dining room chairs.  Hmm, so all the stuff we normally pile into the the middle of the table will now have to find a permanent home elsewhere.  I'm seriously considering letting her loose in the garden all day and she can attempt to climb the trees instead of the furniture!  I thought our Sara was fearless but Pip wins the gold cup hands down!  Still, you cannot be cross with her, especially when she usually looks like this:

Oh to be a toddler, what fun! 

   

Dig For Victory!

Finally the Anderson Shelter and Model Garden is complete.  In typical engineering style, Dave and Benedict expertly reinforced the base and apparently it can withstand the weight of an adult, sigh!  It's been a looong time finishing and with hindsight I'm wondering if too long as Benedict was running out of steam towards the end.  Still I'll give him 10 out of 10 for perseverance in times of apathy and boredom!  I think the finished result is pretty good even if I say so myself.  The dig for victory campaign has also sparked  a discussion on self sufficiency and its relevance today.  As a result we've been watching old episodes of The Good Life as well as  The Edible Garden currently showing on BBC Two.  Both programmes are providing much food for thought in addition to that in the garden!

Enjoying the sunshine

Benedict's blood sugars are still unstable and this affects his concentration greatly.  Despite having ridiculously high readings throughout this morning he did manage to finish his reading book, worked on his two times table and ordering of numbers in multiple of two's, enjoyed drawing a beautiful firework picture and played a game of Monopoly with Dad. 

 It was good for the two of them to be together and work undisturbed!  Peace and quiet reigned as I took Pip to toddlers.  It was absolutely chaotic with toys, toddlers and parents; Pip thoroughly enjoyed herself and was not the least bit phased with all the noise.  The best part was the singing session at the end, loads of percussion instruments for the little ones and to accompany the singing was a guitar, keyboard and violin.  It was lovely for me too, as I met with mums I had not seen in ages, now we are no longer involved with the school run.

We are at Home Ed Group tomorrow and cheese making is on the menu, so hopefully there will be a picture post next time.

Cracking Cheese Gromit!!

 Dave, Benedict and Sara joined others from our local HE group for an afternoon all about cheese.  The event consisted of a video and demonstration about cheese making.  Afterwards there was an opportunity to sample various wares aswell as a welcome cup of tea and an ice cream in the adjacent cafe!!  The day was a great success and next week at the HE group the kids will be given the opportunity to make their own cheese.  Here are some pictures from the day:

Furniture Moving Again!!

As a result of this picture, I spent the afternoon reorganising the toys in an attempt to make this home environment Pip proof!!

The Big Garden Tidy Up!

Following on from the previous post, I decided to take the bull by the horns and tackle the garden!  With hindsight I ought to have taken a before shot but instead a narrative will do!  The borders were dug over, weeds pulled, lawn mowed and  edged, seeds and bulbs planted, garden shed organised and swept and wood debris burned!  Sara in all fairness did come out part way through and helped me shift the bags of seed potatoes and she assumed responsibility of building and tending the mini bonfire.

Chocolate stuffed bananas on the camp fire!

 

Benedict and Sara enjoying the fruits of their labours!

Since these pictures were taken more seeds have been planted in the indoor mini greenhouse, a trio of pinks have been placed in front of one of the apple trees, cyclamen bulbs scattered under the corden of apple/pear trees and the onion sets are nestled nicely in one of the raised beds.  Apart from continuous planting, the decking needs painting as does the wooden outdoor furniture, so we have a rolling programme of garden work to occupy us all throughout  the Summer!
 

End of Week Round Up

We've been blessed with quite good weather and so the sandpit has been retrieved from the back of the shed.  It now has pride of place on the lawn which  needs a good haircut since Spring has arrived!  The garden is a love/hate relationship with me... I love looking at gardens, reading about them and watching gardening programmes, but when it comes to doing the doing, I see it as a chore rather than a relaxing hobby!  Still we have been blessed with a good sized plot of land and with soaring food prices etc I'm determined once again to do my bit for stewardship of God's good Earth.  With this in mind I think there might be hope for me yet as last night  I watched a brilliant programme entitled  "The Edible Garden" fronted by Alys Fowler, one of the presenters from Gardener's World.  Her task last year was to be as self sufficient as possible yet also to have a garden that looked as good as it tasted.  One of the principles she followed was that of Permaculture, so i've begun googling around for ideas!

It was also the Feast of Divine Mercy today and Benedict and I attended our local Cathedral Church for prayers, adoration and confession.  It was such a comfort to be in the presence of the Lord and to receive healing in the Sacrament of Reconciliation.  A beautiful end to a lovely week, Praise God!

Special visitors - Aunty Maureen giving Pip a cuddle...

 

... and so does Uncle Bryan!

Benedict hasn't forgotten how to ride his trike!

More Soil Mechanics studies. Do we have a potential MICE* here? 

(*Member of the Institution of Civil Engineers - dad is only an AMICE - Associate MICE)

 

Practical Living

My Grandad always said that, "fingers were invented before forks!" but in an effort to keep up with the family and increase one's chances of taking tea with the Queen, look what this little princess has been up to:

Just waiting for an invite any day now!!!

Practical Skills

My Grandad always said that, "fingers were invented before forks!"
but in an effort to keep up with the family and increase one's chances
of taking tea with the Queen, look what this little princess has been up
to:

 Just waiting for an invite any day now!!!

A Budding Jamie Oliver!

Benedict loves helping in the kitchen and is a very competent sous-chef!  On today's lunchtime menu there was: Asparagus and ham quiche, new potatoes and mixed vegetables.  This was followed by fruit for the grown ups and tasty jam tarts for Benedict and Pip.  There was only enough left over pastry to make two tarts as you will see from the photos a certain little lady got very messy!!  Here are the photos of our kitchen fest:

"Hmm, this looks interesting"

"Here goes!"

"Not bad, I'll just have another taste to make sure..."

I think we can safely say that, Pip approves of her brother's culinary expertise! 

Another Bookworm in the Making!!

Pip's favourite place is to sandwich herself between the armchair and the bookcase.  Here she is attempting to read our Diocesan Directory!!