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Category : Life
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
No more homeschool blog
I've decided to not blog homeschool stuff anymore. I'm really, really tired of it. I'm having monumental issues with homeschool at the moment as we are kind of suspended in a sort of twilight world between the National Curriculum and Waldorf (2 more contrasting styles of education you couldn't possibly meet!!) I'm going to introduce certain elements of Waldorf to bring more storytelling, gentleness and art into homeschooling (for example I'm making the gnomes so that April can use them when we're doing maths). On the whole though, I'm going to stick with what we were doing before. Been doing it too long to start making radical changes now and, to be honest, I'm too tired to.
The blog thing. Well, I've been blogging homeschooling for 5 years and I think it's just run it's natural course. Still going to write over on my day-to-day blog, just can't be bothered to document every bit of homeschool work we do any more.
Also, not going to be making any new materials (Montessori and general materials). I need to start organising my time better and I've realised that I spent an awful lot of time sitting in front of the computer making new things. I want to free up some time for better things (art, crafts, cooking, reading ....)
So, at least from here, this is the end. You can catch me over on the NOT homeschool blog if you want but it isn't always fluffy and cute like the homeschool blog, I don't write about homeschool, I do sometimes swear and get mega mad at things ...... if you're hyper sensitive and/or very religious you might want to not bother.
Be seeing ya.
Thursday, November 05, 2009
Still here!
Still here, still working, still homeschooling - just not much to blog about, education-wise really! Sorry!
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Hemmy and Katie
Maybe Hemmy's getting himself a girlfriend - she's a might-be stray that comes into our garden. I say, might be because we know who she is. Her name is Katie and we first met her about 6 years ago when we first moved into this house and she was a kitten and her owners came into our garden looking for her. Well for the last few months she's been coming into our garden and ... er.. sort of staying there. At one point she looked quite tatty and we're wondering if her owners haven't moved and either abandoned her or she's run away and come back here. Anyway, we've been giving her a bit of food and water and she's started to look better.
Anyway, she and Hemmy largely ignore each other but that is better than they used to be when Hem used to chase her out the garden! Perhaps he has decided he rather fancies her although I'm not sure he can because he hasn't ... ahem ... got the necessary bits and pieces and I guess that stops him from from finding her desirable!
The thing about these two is that they look very, very similar! I've had a few occasions when they've been in the garden at the same time and I've had to do a double take!
Right, enough of this blogging stuff today - I've got some tidying up to do and this evening, once the kids are in bed, I'm going to have some lovely alone time because Tim has a church choir practice to do :)
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Problem solved
My maths issue with Rosie has been sorted ..... I've happened upon some Montessori albums with work for older kids (including algebra!) so, as we've used Montessori maths with her in the past, it makes sense to continue now I've found the lesson albums I need. We are still going to do little bits of maths notebooking though as it's so fun but Montessori will be the backbone of our maths lessons.
In homeschool today, April did a new activity - addition! I'd set up a little game for her with the conkers (sorry for the bad photo!). Basically, you have 3 little pots, addition and equals signs on card and a pile of 10 conkers (or whatever objects you want!). You also need a set of sums to complete - here, because it's her first attempt, we did 1 + 3 =, 1 + 8 = and so on (essentially, 1 + something!)
Yout set up the game with an empty pot - plus sign - empty pot - equals sign - empty pot. Then, you look at the sum - say 1 + 5 = and proceed as per my fantastic diagram! This demonstrates, in a very concrete way, the act of "putting together" (adding!) the 2 sets of objects.
Here's April using the game - she enjoyed it hugely :)
So what else .... Rosie went to trampoline class yesterday (actually, we all went and Tim took April in the swing park). Rosie's VERY nearly at the stage where she's ready to do somersaults - teacher is taking her time because she needs to be really "ready" before attempting it as it can be dangerous. She says Rosie seems to take a while to "get" something and then it will suddenly click and she doesn't look back. Yep, I'd say that was true!
Rosie also had an orthodontist appointment yesterday. She's got to have braces top and bottom and they will be fitted in November - she's got to have some other work first including removing a baby tooth that she still has from one side. What's really odd about this tooth is that she has NO adult tooth underneath! They're going to extract it and then let the braces close up the gap. Want to know something even more odd? Tim has FIVE baby teeth still remaining and no adult teeth underneath! Awww bless him, how cute! *laughs*. Dentist said that it is hereditary apparently - I guess, unlike Tim, Rosie won't be hanging on to hers. Remains to be seen if April has any of these now but she hasn't starting losing any yet so we don't know.
Anyway, must get on now ...... oh, just one thing - remember what I said the other day about Tim always getting lucky with the weather on his day off? Well, he's gone back to work today and taken the gloom and chilliness and grey cloud with him - *giggles* they must LOVE him there!
Monday, October 12, 2009
Many conkers!
It was a wonderfully sunny warm day today (Tim ALWAYS get's amazingly lucky with the weather on his days off) and, as I've got to spend the day decorating April's room tomorrow, we decided to go for a walk. We went into Christchurch because they have THE most brilliant conker trees near the priory carpark :)
First, we wandered down to the river to feed the ducks and there was some old man waffling on his mobile (very loudly!) ..... thought no more of it. A while later we went down to the harbour and there was the same old man again shouting into his mobile (by this time Tim and I were sniggering). We wandered around for a bit looking at boats and swans and stuff and then slowly made our way back to the carpark via the Priory churchyard. We got back to the carpark and guess what? The old man was there STILL bellowing into his phone! Of course, we now burst out laughing especially since his conversation included (honestly) "I'M JUST WALKING ALONG NOW!!!" and we were wondering if it was the same conversation. Tim said maybe he'd just got a mobile for the first time and was excitedly calling everyone he knew *laughs* His wife or whoever he was with looked a bit embarrased!
Anyway, we hunted around on the grassy bit in the middle of the carpark and found absolutely stacks of conkers :) I also got donked on the head by one falling from a tree which hurt a bit! We came home with a big bagful ..... beautiful colours!
We've stuck some of these on the window ledges to keep the spiders out (they hate them), some have gone on our nature table and the rest April is playing with and we're using for autumn maths manipulatives.
Rosie went to Guides tonight and came home with a leaflet about a 24 hour camp next year (not until August) - she's really excited!
Off to crash in front of the telly now .... wish me luck with the decorating - I've been known to drop entire tins of paint of the floor in the past .............
Saturday, October 10, 2009
Lovely green felt tip
April was clearly a bit bored today and decided to ... ahem... decorate her bedroom - with a green felt tip pen. Luckily, it's mainly limited to one wall but even so it looks terrible :( I guess I'm going to have to rummage around in the garage, find some spare paint and get decorating. I'm all for encouraging free creativity in my kids but I'm VERY intolerant of this kind of "I'm bored so I think I'll just scribble on the wall" kind of stuff. She has access to loads of paper, collage stuff, glue, paint ... everything - there was no need for the graffiti.
Another silly thing she did was to, apparently, drink some bubble mixture (!!) She SAID that the bubbles blew into her mouth when she was blowing them outside but judging by the amount of the stuff round her face I'd say she decided to have a little sip. Mad. So, she spent a while feeling a bit sick and being forced to drink gallons of water by me. Honestly, the mind boggles.
Apart from that, today has been pretty quiet. I turned a pair of old (much loved!) jeans into a skirt - they were soooo holey on the knees that I just couldn't get away with wearing them any more so I just went for it. I thought that if it went wrong then it wouldn't make any difference because I wasn't wearing them anyway but it actually looks really good :) Will get a picture when i've got some new camera batteries.
Also found a notice in our local newspaper today that they are starting a branch of the Young Archaeologists Club in Poole Museum. This is something I think Rosie would love but, unfortunately, it's on a Saturday morning and Tim works then and I don't drive. The bus service from our little town is pretty shoddy and, in any case, it's for 2 hours and it would leave me wandering around with April for the whole time with not much to do! It's quite annoying because it's only once a month and I think that, surely, Tim could change his days with someone just that one time a month so that he could be around to take her. I've mentioned this to him before though and he always says "oh I don't think I could because I was employed to do Saturdays". Maybe I'm missing something important but I actually don't see how that matters (he was originally employed to work on Sundays too but they don't do Sundays any more!) but he won't even ask. I'm sure Richard or whoever it is that deals with these things would be happy to sort something out if it was at all possible but I guess we'll never know. Annoying because Rosie would love it.
Anyway, off now to get some clothes ironed and whatnot - we're going round Tim's mums tonight for dinner as it's his sisters birthday (or was on the 8th).
Byeeee for now :)
Monday, October 05, 2009
Monday morning, in which ....
...... we get mad because it's properly raining for the first time in WEEKS on the VERY day that Rosie is going to a camp fire thing with Guides. Perfect.
...... I get mad because April gives me no end of grief during her lesson time - she kept rocking back and forth on her chair causing the following "little chat":
Me: April stop rocking on the chair.
April: Why?
Me: Because you might tip back and hurt yourself
April: (still rocking) so?
Me: Do you want to hurt yourself?
April: (still rocking) I won't
Me: You might and that wouldn't be nice would it?
April: (still rocking says nothing)
Me: (through gritted teeth) STOP rocking
April: (still rocking) why?
Me: BECAUSE YOU'RE ANNOYING ME!!
Good god!
..... I stubbed my toe on the bed. Again. I think my toe is now completely dead.
..... Rosie shows me up by working out a maths sum that I am (temporarily) having a total mental block about.
Tim is quite lucky that he went into work this morning and missed all this stuff. I think if he'd been home to witness his (let's face it) grouchy wife, I'd have probably got a ticking off by now *laughs*.
I'm kind of hoping that the afternoon will be a little better! Off now for Options chocolate drink - always handy to have around in high stress days! Oh, and borrow one of Tim's jumpers to warm up a bit - I always look waaay cuter than he does in them anway ;)
Added later: decided to have a more autumnal blog look (had to since it's my favourite season!) so made a cute new logo picture in Photoshop :) I'm slightly not happy as, despite changing the code for the main text colour in the rest of the blog, it's stubbornly staying black! *Confused*.
Thursday, October 01, 2009
I'm still in September
Holy cow, I wish I had something interesting to blog about but I don't! Things have been a bit quiet since Rosie's birthday - in fact, a bit slumpy. I actually still have September's calendar page up! Yep, I'm THAT slumpy!
I tend to go through a bit of a phase like this every year - end of summer, real start of Autumn. I actually LOVE autumn but, for some reason, i always get a bit dragged down to start with. I'll soon pick up though :)
Trying to work in some hobby time at the moment amongst the homeschooling and housework stuff - I'm making a cat right now (funny looking thing!), will post him when he's done.
Friday, September 25, 2009
Ummm...
I have no suitable title today! This is just a mish-mash of different things from the last couple of days.
Today I've been really busy - I decided to remove EVERYTHING from our kitchen and completely clean it from top to bottom! You know how it is, it gets to a point where normal day-to-day cleaning isn't enough and you feel the need for something more thorough. So it's done and I'm a bit weary now!
Also been getting ready for Rosie's birthday - buying presents (and hiding them!) and whatnot. Her birthday is on Monday but Saturday evening we're going to Pizza Hut (her choice) for dinner - haven't been there for ages!
Anyway, here are a few bits and pieces from the last day or two:
Fangs!! Tim found a disgarded spider skin so we put it under the microscope for a closer look *shudders* It was only a tiny thing but look at the size of those under the scope!
A couple of pet pics - no idea why but I guess they're cute :)
Hemmy, very slightly giving the evil eye here (probably disturbed his snooze)
Jeff! This is a better picture than the one I first put of him when we first got him.
April is loving Starfall! Here she is using one of the computer games - it's a really great programme
It also comes with printable reading books and activity sheets. Today she did "d" and we cut out some pictures to stick on it - dragon, Dipsy, Dora and ducks!
April is also doing an Autumn lapbook - today she made a leaf man :)
Rosie did some work on her Japanese lapbook and made some origami. I love doing origami so I worked with her. Here are our efforts (hers first then mine) - a yacht, a pencil and a cat.
That's about it. Off now to peel Tim off the living room floor where he has been lying pretty much since he got home from work a while ago - got to have tea :)
Categories: Crafts, Homemaking, Homeschooling, Life, Pets, Places, Wildlife
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Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Hey ho, hey ho
It's back to work we go - well, tomorrow anyway.
Yes, Tim's holiday is basically finished and tomorrow he goes back to work. As holidays go, it's been a bit lame - no exciting days out, no going away ...nothing apart from gardening and car hunting. Maybe sometimes "holidays" are like that, you use them as a time to get stuff done but I have to admit to feeling a little sorry for him (in particular him). Having 2 weeks off and then spending it all doing rubbish stuff is a bit not nice for him :( We really will have to make up for it next time!
He's already started to think ahead to his next holidays! This is not because he hates his job but because a) he needs to use up some days before the end of the year and b) because we are thinking ahead to "going away" next year. I'm very excited! Last year we went to Jersey, this year we didn't go away but next year we are going to (taa-daa!) Center Parc! Yes indeed, that slightly more upmarket Butlins!
There is a little story behind Center Parc. A few ago I first discovered the place, thought it looked amazing, and made some comment to Tim about going there on/round my 30th birthday. Well, of course, due to lack of funds we never went and I was a bit disappointed but made a joke that we'd go instead when I was 40 and he promised we would (whilst probably hoping I'd forget about it!) Next July I'm 40 and, naturally, I reminded Tim, half seriously, that he had a promise to honour - so he said "right, we'll go!", hopefully in June. NOTHING is going to stop us this time ..... NOTHING! I don't want to wait until I'm 50!
Although, what's to stop us going on the inbetween years I've no idea. Clearly some unwritten rule that decrees that, "thou shalt only go to Center Parc once a decade". Ahem.
So this year we went nowhere - this is partly due to keeping a very tight hold on the purse-strings although we probably could have done something cheap and cheerful. Tim's mum mentioned camping ........... "you can borrow our tent!", she said. Oh dear god. We've never been camping, Tim did as a little boy and said he really loved it but we never have. Reason? I'm SCARED. That's right, scared. I'm scared of getting bitten half to death by midgies. I'm scared of lack of decent hygiene facilities. I'm scared of the kids clambering out in the middle of the night and disappearing. I'm scared of being murdered to death in our sleep because there is nothing but a flimsy tent between us and the outside world and ANYONE could get in. I think, if I'm honest, this one and the kids getting out are my biggest fears. Tim, of course, laughs in my face and says "for heavens sake woman - you don't camp in a creepy field in the middle of nowhere!"
Thing is, I kind of like the idea of being that sort of "free" ..... maybe I might be persuaded but ONLY if Tim sleeps nearest the entrance in order to protect me from the CROWDS of maniacs outside. I'm SUCH a "girl" aren't I? *laughs*.
Saturday, September 19, 2009
A little thoughtful spot
Gone all Winnie-the-Pooh "ish" this morning!
I think it may have all started with a very strange, sorrowful, odd dream I had last night. I remember, ages ago, blogging a bit about dreams and whilst I never did get into really studying them (and thus, am no closer to working out "why"), I still find the topic fascinating! I don't really think about them much unless it's one that, for some reason, left me feeling unsettled or sad or ridiculously happy or whatever. Also, those ones that are incredibly "real" - like you wake up and almost think "did that happen or not?" - those always make me think too.
Anyway, last night's dream left me feeling somewhat disturbed although it wasn't scary or unpleasant - it happened like this ..... I found myself in this big, old house - the sort you'd see in horror movies only it didn't feel haunted or scary, just old and a bit dark. I was wearing this long (floor length) black dress, no shoes (!) and my hair was all loose and just hanging down my back. I wandered around this house, drifting from room to room, opening doors and there was never anything there - just empty rooms. Eventually, I came to a wide hallway and there were some childen (didn't see their faces) doing circus acts (like juggling) on the stairs and completely ignoring the fact that there was an old lady lying on the hall floor. I've no idea whether she was ill or injured or just asleep. I felt momentarily panicked thinking "why is everyone ignoring her?!" and then I just wandered on and found myself in another room. I stood there, it felt like there were no more rooms to wander into and then a man walked in (again, like the children, couldn't see his face). He was wearing a white shirt and dark trousers and he had dark hair - he came up to me and embraced me and I did the same back to him and lay my head against his chest and sighed but it was a sort of sad little sigh .... and that was it ... the end. Don't remember anything else after that.
So what was all that about then? Honestly? Dark houses, me looking all gothic, empty rooms, kids doing juggling, all ladies lying motionless and, finally, a mysterious man. What on earth?....... The human mind is truly and very, very bizarre thing!
Anyhow, got to get myself in gear now and go hunting for Rosie's birthday present - her birthday is on the 28th so not long - can't believe she'll be 12! Nearly a teenager .... oh. my. god.
Might take some blogging-time out now (actually, just get off the computer full stop!) until the new week so have a lovely weekend won't you? :)
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Work
Trying to get my head into "work" mode at the moment - must try and bring in some extra money! As quite a few readers of my blog will know, I don't actually "go out" to work - my way of contributing to the household funds has been through my Montessori materials which I design and make and have, in the past, sold in pdf.
This way of selling the materials has had advantages to both my and the customers that brought them - they get to have the materials at a lower cost than if I had to print/laminate/post them, they get them quicker (always within 24 hours), they can make as many copies as they want. For me, it's less time consuming - I simply store the materials on my computer and email the customers what they've ordered - simple! I also don't have to worry about keeping huge amounts of card, laminating pouches, ink, envelopes etc to hand.
However, lately (over the last couple of months or so), it has become apparent that some of my materials (and who brought them, I have no way of knowing) are being made on various sites and being passed off as made by someone else.
This I cannot and will not tolerate. I didn't make huge sums of money from my work - I always tried to make them reasonably priced so that anyone who wanted them could afford them so it really upsets and angers me that some people would do this.
Anyway, I've thought about it long and hard and come to the conclusion that the only way round this is to start selling in printed format only - this might not stop the problem completely but should lessen it (it's very hard to photocopy something clearly enough to then pdf and sell on!) This is obviously going to involve more work and greater expense for me which means I'm going to have to sell at a higher price than I used to. This is unfortunate but that is the way of the world is it not? A few unscrupulous people have spoiled it for the others.
As I said, I need extra money - if I don't do this for a living then we have less money so it's this or ... gulp ... get a "proper" job. I think I'd find it hard to find something that fit in around homeschooling the kids! I'd have to work when Tim didn't!
Anyway, back to the grind!
Saturday, September 12, 2009
Poor April
Went round to Tim's mums tonight for dinner (we were supposed to be picking up Rosie at the same time but she's having a sleepover instead).
Anyway, the kids were down the garden playing and I decided to go down there and get April in because it was dark. About halfway down the garden is a fence and gate and I'd just got to that when I noticed the kids were coming the other way and April was sniffing a bit sadly (still not found out why that was). Rosie climbed over the gate, next was Luke (who, as usual, was completely out of control). Instead of climbing over the gate carefully (bearing in mind that April was right behind him), he LEAPT over it, swinging his legs out and KICKING her straight in the face and sending her flying backwards down the steps and onto the grass.
For a split second there was a horrible, sickening silence and I actually thought he'd knocked her out or something ... then she started crying. Meanwhile, I was frantically trying to get through the gate to get her only to find the stupid boy had PADLOCKED it!! Why for heavens sake?!
I was really angry about him being so careless and silly when he knew she was right behind him but, more than that, I was furious with m-i-l (and d-i-l!) because they did NOTHING (other than to say "oh I'm sure he didn't mean it". They didn't move out of their chairs, didn't get up to see if April was ok, didn't reprimand him in ANY way for being silly and over the top with a 4 year old child about.
On the way home in the car, Tim says "that's the problem, they were really too old to adopt him really and they just can't deal with him". That's the truth I'm afraid *sigh*. He's a demanding child with various issues and, although not his fault, he needs someone with more get up and go to deal with it. They just don't.
Thankfully, April appears fine - her bottom seems to have taken the brunt of it (luckily a very chubby bottom and so it acted as a shock absorber!) Her face doesn't appear to have any marks on it at all so I guess he must have caught the side of it rather than square on.
Poor child, that's the second time this week she's been whacked in the face!
Anyway, needless to say, we were pretty glad to get home! I cleaned up April to get her ready for bed and Tim was promptly dispatched to buy a bottle of Baileys!
.....no I haven't drunk the whole thing! Just one little measure ..... bliss!! :)
PS - now watching the last night of the Proms - can't believe it's the last night! That has gone really, really quick this year!
Saturday, September 12, 2009
*Yawn*
Yesterday I felt full of the joys of spring, today I feel a bit deflated and va-va-voomless .... can't think why .....
Oh well.
Tim's just taken Rosie off round to grandma's so that she can spend the day with Luke and when he get's back he's going to tackle some more of the gardening (bet he can't wait *laughs*) Not sure what I'm going to do - could do some work on some materials I'm making at the moment - could do some tidying and clean out the bunny cage (actually going to have to do that at some point today). Could spend MORE time looking for a car for Tim (this activity, for some reason, has fallen on my shoulders).
I'm beginning to be of the opinion that he has no choice but to buy one on finance (even if it's still a fairly old car) because we are just NOT finding anything decent within our price range - i.e the money we have saved up. If he DOES go down this route it will mean that ......
* He'll end up with a newer car than if he paid cash for one
* He'll have saved the money that he would have spent (but which would then, presumably, have to be put towards the monthly repayments)
HOWEVER ...
* We'll have to watch the pennies even more than we do now and ...
* He'll have to take every bit of overtime offered to him at work to help pay for it.
In other words, it's doable but a bind. Hmmm ......
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Naughty bunny!
Jeff-the-rabbit is very naughty - he keeps trying to eat the carpet! He's very lovely apart from that - I was slightly worried that an indoor rabbit would be smelly but, really, they're very clean and there's no smell at all! He hops about the floor looking cute - although Tim says he's a "ridiculous looking creature" which is very mean!
Anyway, we have a slight change of plan for tomorrow. Not going to Burley now as we simply have too much other stuff to do (so sorry Carolyn, I can't hug the donkeys for you *laughs*) will have to order my candles online instead.
Still going into Tim's work after lunch to pick up his wages but then, instead of Burley, we've got to go to Tesco because I have to exchange an outfit that I brought April the other day. The hanger said 5-6 but the age on the clothing was, in fact, 2-3! I suspect I missed this because of the fact that I was so wound up about the trolly-in-the-face incident.
After that, we've then got to stop off at the church so that Tim can pick up some music that he needs for the harvest festival he's doing.
Today was a glorious day - glad the weather is turning out so lovely for Tim's holiday! Got a fair bit of gardening done today and it's starting to look way better already. Still car hunting (unsuccessfully car hunting!) which is getting a bore now. Tim doesn't know much about car's and isn't a car person and I'm not remotely interested .... actually, I'm interested to a point but it's all very girly stuff as opposed to being based on performance or whatever. I like big cars (feel safer), and cars with a decent music system (ours in the Citroen is broken), and cars with a nice, plush interior (comfy) and black cars (can't explain this one!)
Off now to tidy up a bit, get the kids in bed (not long!) and make a chicken/brocoli pasta bake for dinner with Tim ..... I mean, I've got to join Tim in the making of, not that I'm going to bake him in the bake! I think you know what I mean!
Wednesday, September 09, 2009
Cars and things
Well, I'd like to say that we've spent the first few days of Tim's holiday being massively productive and getting all our jobs out the way. Hmmmm ....... I'd like to say that.
Sadly, things have been a bit frustrating - we've wanted to get things done but other things keep getting in the way!
We've done a bit of tidying in the garden but there is loads more to do, I've not started anything that I wanted to do around the house yet (touching up the paintwork on a few windows, sorting out seasonal clothes etc) and (and this is the real nightmare), we've got nowhere with the car yet :(
Tim really wants to get this sorted before he goes back to work on the 24th partly because it just makes sense to try and do that but also because the MOT on our current one is due on the 2nd October so, clearly, we need to get another car before then!
He really isn't THAT bothered what sort of car it is - he's not a "car" person, he just wants something reliable and (if we're honest!) at least a year younger than what we've got now and big enough (he's tall and lanky!) We've shortlisted a few makes that are (going on AA and Which Car reports) particularly robust and reliable so now it's just a case of finding something.
To be truthful, he could do with an extra £200 or so to go on top of what he's already saved, just to give a little bit more choice. It's frustrating really, it's one of those times when it would be great to be able to go to his boss and ask for an advance of his wages and, say, pay it back out of any future overtime (which he does reasonably regularly) ....... do people still do advances on wages? I remember, years ago, that I did that a couple of times when I worked for the Bournemouth Echo - they were always quite obliging! Mind you, they were a wonderful organisation to work for full stop :) Anyway, I digress, the thing is with most companies working to tight budgets these days I'd imagine asking for an advance is probably not a good thing to do! I don't know ... I don't run a company and I'm not very well "up" on financial things so I don't know.
Anyway, other stuff ... Rosie's got her first trampoline class of the new school year this afternoon. Was thinking of going so that April could go in the swing park at the Littledown but the weather is a bit lousy and I (for some reason) am very chilly - I say for some reason because I don't think anyone else is! So I might not. Have to see!
Tomorrow we are DEFINATELY going to get on with some gardening!
Friday we're going out - we're going to stop off at Tim's work so he can pick his wages up and then going into Burley because I want to go here. No, I'm not going to buy a wand and turn everyone into frogs! I'm getting some beeswax candles - won't have parafin ones in the house any more and have not found anywhere else locally that does beeswax ones!
Right, going now - lunch soon :)
Saturday, September 05, 2009
Mellow
I really do love this time of the year - sinking into Autumn with that
gorgeous smell you only ever get at this time of the year and the
dazzling summer green fading into muted gold colours (this is very
poetic isn't it?!) I've also just really noticed how the sun is having
to bend down a bit more to look in our windows :) It's really mad, but I
also realised that at the end of next month I'll be making the Christmas
cake! CHRISTMAS!! It's true what they say that as you get older time
seems to pass more quickly because it really doesn't seem two minutes
ago that I was writing this
and getting all huffy because Tim was going out for Christmas lunch
without me *laughs*. Honestly though, I do sometimes feel a bit like
Cinderella (with Tim being a fabulous ugly step-sister .... I JEST!!),
come Christmas. Tim gets all the lovely festive niceness - the church
things he does - ok, we're not religious but I remember years ago going
to the Lessons and Carols when he was playing and it was GORGEOUS, all
flickering candles and dim lighting. Then last year he got whisked off
out for lunch with his work (and very nice it was too apparently!) It's
really not fair, I want some festive fun at that time of the year ......
where's my fairy godmother to magic up a ball for me? 
Anyway, back to now! Must stop whining about things that are 3 months away yet! It's quite peaceful at the moment but we are expecting the next couple of weeks to be busier. Tim's on holiday but, as I mentioned before, we've got the garden to sort out - honestly, it's getting so bad out there that we're going to need a crash course from Ray Mears to go out there soon! Also I want to prepare a little vegetable plot which I'm going to have to do in a large container of some kind. We've got a really big garden but it's all shrubs, lawn and patio with no planting ground whatsoever - plus the ground is really stoney and we just get MILLIONS of slugs!
We've also got to sort out the car soon *groan*, the MOT is due at the beginning of October but we really are in two minds whether to bother. The car is getting on a bit now and the intermittent (hugely irritating!) clutch problem is something that is not likely to go away. We are expecting it to fail on a few things (tyres for one and quite possibly the weird up-and-downy-crazy-Citroen suspension). We don't have a vast amount of money to spend so it's a tough decision either way - Tim could get credit and buy something newer but he doesn't like "owing" so cash it is. The other problem is that he doesn't know much about cars and is worried about buying something rubbish - he NEEDS a reliable car, even if just for getting to work because it's a bit of a trek from our house to his work.
So what with the gardening, the car and (hopefully!) some days out AND Rosie's trampoline class starting up again next week (back to the weekly hike to the Littledown Centre!) AND she's got Guides the following week ......... I think we're going to be a bit busy!
PS - looking on a bit further - it's Rosie's birthday towards the end of the month - we're getting vague requests for a Nintendo and a small cuddly pet of some kind. Haven't had any small cuddlies since Smartie and Rolo our guinea pigs, so a bit nervous about that.
Friday, September 04, 2009
Not back to school :)
April would have started school today (yep, I know, CRAZY to do one day of school and then be off for the weekend!), but, obviously, she hasn't. D'you know what though? I got up this morning and thought about what it would be like if she HAD. I got the most horrible sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach imagining the poor little soul being forced into starchy uniform, marched off down the road and left.
Instead, she had a relaxed morning - breakfast followed by looking at books in bed followed by BBC Little Animal Centre and Numberjacks in her jim-jams. Then she (finally!) got dressed, did some colouring and then played outside (until it started raining). Now she's playing with some paper cut out Mario figures that Rosie made her and waiting until Rosie finishes her work so they can go on Club Penguin :)
Off now to enjoy the rest of the day - got a few things to sort out because Tim is only at work today and tomorrow and then he's on holiday for 2 weeks WOO-HOOOO! ...... the garden will get done at last!! .......... *laughs*
I'm just TOOOO cruel ;)
PS - Had to add this .... here's an entertaining little thing we've (me and Rosie) have been enjoying today ..... The Story of Physics - enjoy! :)
Tuesday, September 01, 2009
Lazy!
You're getting mostly pictures tonight because I can't be bothered to type much (and in any case, Tim will be back with pizza very soon!). Yes, of course, I could just not blog but I like to blog ... just sometimes don't want to type much! :P
So here are some random and unconnected pictures from the last couple of days:
No, we didn't have some sudden freak weather here in the south of England! Tim brought back a ice box thingy from work and proceeded to empty our food into it and defrost the freezer. It SO badly needed doing. He chucked the ice outside and April decided to use it as a frozen dinosaur land!
Tim and April sprawled out watching telly ... aaah!
A weirdy cloud that Tim photographed
Rosie FINALLY finishing up some decimals notebooking work I set her. Very glad. Suspected we'd be doing decimals for the rest of our lives.
Autumn nature table. Yes, I've done it already!
That's it .. byeeee!
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Baffled
Oh dear, I've got a nasty bruise on my leg, just above my knee which (although you can't tell from this picture) is just over half as long my middle finger! (and a lot, lot darker purple than the picture makes it look). Ok, just a bruise you might think BUT I have NO idea how I got it. What's more bizarre is that I didn't have it before I went to bed last night and woke up this morning and there it was! How on earth can you bash yourself like this IN BED?!
I have no clue whatsoever *looks deeply confused*.
Anyway, today has been rainy and dark so we stayed in, played games and ate chocolate biscuits. Tim did brave the elements once to go out and buy a new riser rail for our shower because the other one, well, fell to bits the last time he had a shower. He came back, fitted it and then we did not much.
He's off to work tomorrow for his normal hours (Thursday, Friday and Saturday) and then he's doing a whole week of overtime the following week and then (taa-daa!) he's on holiday for 2 weeks. I'm glad about that because there is much gardening that needs to be done and he's just the person to do it *giggles* (can't have him slacking on holiday!)
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