Episode 33 - The Orangery - Tea anyone?

[mistlethrush]

The tearoom has traveled back to the Orangery for another visit. There are bluebells in the nearby woods, and Mellors has Earl Grey and Lady Grey ready for some excursions. Mellors has, indeed, been overwintering away from Canada for some reason - I think he's been helping Maud out in the garden. There are tulips out in urns outside, and there are a few tables out in the sunny courtyard for use between showers.

Whether you have one child or several, pull up a chair and share a or a . The only rules remains no fisticuffs.

(((LBD))) and CMOT - and here's some honey and lemon Scout. Anyone else?

Butterflys - I was also going to suggest getting them to make their own butterfly (fairy) cakes - cut the top off, buttercream and use top in two halves to make the wings - and then make sure that they eat them for tea.

I have also done decorated biscuits - that went down very well at a party - we have got a butterfly cutter (decent size) so this would work well if you premade the biscuits and got them to add icing and sprinkles / sweets etc - then that goes in party bag.

Butterfly masks would be quite easy to make. Might even be able to get something useful at one of those big craft warehouse things... Perhaps even decorate a little book with butterfly and insect shapes (again for party bag). I think that you might be able to make paper butterflys with oldfashioned peg bodies that would flap their wings.

When I was little I had hunt the wool games - you could make it hunt the worm - bundles of wool of different colours in short lengths were hidden (around the garden if it was nice) - you were only allowed one piece of each colour - and the winner was the one with the longest length when you put each piece end to end (with any duplicates removed)

Butterfly birthday cakes are pretty simple as you make a decent sized round cake, cut a narrow strip from the centre (the body) then turn the remaining nearly halves round 180 degrees so that the round bit is next to the rectangular body - to make the wings. Smarties make good decoration on top of buttercream. Alternatively the book I have with party cakes has a lovely ladybird which I could get to you.

Re accademic things - mc slipped significantly at around this age - he was below average in everything but maths where he was average - if he concentrated. However, a different teacher has completely changed that and this year he has thrived - hopefully it will be similar for Wriggle and that if she gets the right teacher they will suddenly 'get through' to her, a light bulb will go ping and she'll be off. Perhaps you might get darling daddy to do some fun things that might help - so that he won't feel that he's doing anything that she won't like and she finds that she's doing fun things that still involve words or numbers? Even last year, when reading a school book was an endurance that mc hated and we didn't enjoy having to do with him, as soon as we read a non-school book with him it was a different kettle of fish altogether.

Labelledame What about something like this instead of a party bag? You could just tie some sweets to the handle.

Raining again here today . Would anyone like a and some homemade flapjack?

(sorry that was a bit long )

BTW, I can entirely get the 'rubbish at everything' as mc gets exactly like that. We have to be really realistic with him and not praise him indiscrimately, because he sees straight through that and doesn't believe it. For instance - his writing is not neat - but when he tries really hard we praise it and say how well he's done and that its much neater - we don't suggest its the best in the class because it clearly isn't. However, the point is that he's tried hard and improved it significantly and that's the important thing. He's now getting this - I think he would have struggled when he was 5 though. But it is worth pointing out that everyone has different strengths and weaknesses - and even that not everyone might have found what their strengths are at this stage. The paralympic cyclist on the GB team is a good example - she only started cycling when she couldn't swim because she was ill - then she started winning cycling races.

Good post MT!

I always try to be careful how I praise the YD (and kids at school) - I target effort, or am really specific about what was good, so that they know I really mean it. Of course, I get it wrong sometimes... but am improving with practice!

The YD went through a phase when he said he was rubbish at everything - but with a different teachers had made much better progress - and has much more confidence in his ability. He is also starting to understand the importance of effort and practice... (but always wants to play now, practice later...)

Donki... funny that... just what mc says too. [we really must sort out another meet up and perhaps visit round the farm this time]

LaBelleDame - for calming, soothing and uplifting I'd go for roman chamomile and a citrus, probably either mandarin or neroli (orange blossom). Frankincense is a good addition too. Roman chamomile and neroli are very strong, mandarin is very weak in intensity, frankincense and other citrus are in the middle - so I'd use them in a drops ratio of:
RC 1: Mandarin 10: Frankincense 4; or
RC 1: Neroli 1: Frankincense 4.
Any other citrus, use 4 drops in the same ratios. Or you could use ginger instead of the frankincense - that's also a 4 drop (ginger is also calming, soothing and warming).
It's better to stick to a max of 3 oils in any mix, and these would be used in either 30ml of base oil (for use on the skin) or in the water for an oil burner.

Ooops! Sorry CMOT

I didn't mean to take you over your baggage allowance.

It was pretty crowded in there though, with everyone else!

Thanks for all the ideas about Wriggle. she has got the same teacher for the next three years, but she is a lovely teacher; very young (=cheap) and with a large class with some difficult children, so the actual education will, I think, be down to me. School is about gaining confidence and having friends (IMO).

Also, I think they ARE TOO YOUNG. Which is why it all comes together in a year or so.

M.Belle (M. Beau?) can't really do much about school work as he doesn't know how to do handwriting - his is foreign and very different and anyway he always uses capitals - and he gets the sounds wrong in phonics (he speaks very good English but with a strong accent). We don't do learning to read in French at the moment - too confusing.

Actually, M.B. is being very very nice right now, nicer than about the first week or so after Wriggle was born. ::whispers in case this boon provokes Someone Up There and gets removed:: He actually asked me if I was OK.

I am about to buy oils; thanks, Thumb.

Love the umbrella, Bean, but couldn't afford 14. This has to be a Party On a Shoestring.

LBD - definitely decorating biscuits then - I also did a flower and the combination of the 2 took quite a good amount of time to achieve. And sorted the party bag. If they decorate their own bun - you won't have to

I would also do your own butterfly masks (stiff paper, cut your own shape out and staple on some elastic, or even wool either side to tie) and get half of them decorating a mask in one room and half decorating biscuits and cakes in the other.

We've also done DIY pizzas - make dough, put on small grease proof paper bits with name on, dolloped a bit of tomato sauce on and then had bowls of toppings to chose from. This way you get to look to be 'amazing' in the kitchen by other parents (and the children) and the children all sit down and eat something that's actually not too bad for them quite happily.

Yes, definitely biscuits for the party bags. And home-made masks. I hate party bags and vowed never to do them ... but now all Wriggle's friends have them at their parties - the last one must have cost about £7-8 per child as they were contained in a Gruffalo pencil box. So she won't want to be the-only-child-who-doesn't-have-party-bags and end up feeling left out.

Gruffalo pencil boxes in a party bag?!

Just curious, at what age did everyone start having friend parties for their DC?

mc had 3 people to his 3rd, then nursery class to 4th etc ...

Wriggle is now in reception and this is the first party where she has chosen the guests, rather than just a get together of friends of the whole family.

Not only Gruffalo pencil tins, but large Gruffalo pencil tins. And a lot of other stuff.

One of DS's 'friends' had the temerity to complain that there was no toy in the party bag in Yr 1 (it only had edible things and a balloon in). I told him that I thought his parents would be very pleased.

I had a family party with a couple of friends as well for miniThumb for his 4th birthday, and that involved party bags. With the cousins and friends, I think there were 9 bag all in - they had a balloon, a silly little toy, and a few sweets, iirc. I don't like them either but they're pretty much standard here.

What is also upsettingly common here, from my POV, is the piñata. I don't like when they are in the shape of animals, which they so often are, which are then bashed with sticks until they break. The whole thing just makes me feel quite bad - MIL offered to make one for miniThumb's 5th birthday and I had to say no, I just can't stand them. She understood once I'd explained but I think she still thinks I'm being a bit daft!

DS had just us for birthday 1 and 2, then softplay parties for 3 and 4 with children from nursery.

Small Bean had a 'party' at home with a few little friends for his first and second birthdays. For his third we didn't have a party just went out for the day the three of us which was lovely.

This year it was a soft play party with the much hated party bags. I would have liked to make a stand and not have them but I'm too much of a wuss to go against the norm and no matter what the parents think the kids seem to love them. I am always a bit when I read on mn about some of these children's parties though.

Birthday parties.
1st - family tea party
2nd - can't remember
3rd- joint with a friend- hired village hall and toddler group toys, invited parents and kids, lovely afternoon was had by all- noisy party bags with party hooters, bit of cake and a balloon.
4th - 5 friends ( plus small sibs) to soft play, cake and squash. no party bags. Parents stayed for coffee/ tea and because of small sibs.
5th - joint with friend, hired village hall, kids disco, and tea. no party bags, kids went home with cake and a balloon. Most parents drop n run.
6th - activity outing for 6 children. cafe lunch- no cake. party bag to take home with biscuits, sweets and moshi cards. * dairy free to allow for 2 of kids being dairy intolerant. Only one parent stayed and he helped with activity.

Think we have covered most options now... I'm neither for nor against modest party bags. This years were a bit more expensive (moshi cards), but replaced a birthday cake as that was impractical on the outing.

May UniS have a small proud mummy moment. ..
Boy is a free reader. age 6.3 and in year 1.

YAY! for UniS's Boy! Well done!

For Toddler's birthdays we've just had cake (and sometimes an afternoon "tea" of sandwiches, salads, etc) for the family (and Godfather & his wife) down at my in-laws. I'm contemplating doing a non-party party at the soft play during their "coffee afternoon" and paying for all of the kids (there would only be about six to eight and with the coffee afternoon rate would be cheap (like £10 cheap)) and taking some cupcakes. The parents would stay but they normally do at the soft play anyway as it's a chance to chat. But I was feeling mean for thinking he didn't really need a proper party for a third birthday.

LeBelle, how about pet rock bugs to make & take? Just find stones from outside and the kids paint them to look like bugs. Instant paperweight/friend.

I've agreed to go and help set the Guides wet weather shelter (marquee) up this morning for the village flower festival. Why oh why did I answer the last minute plea with a positive squeak?!

Hurrah for boy UniS!

Because, Scout, you are a good and kind person.

Well done to Boy. That's very good going indeed.

The Girl's first couple of parties were really NCT meet-ups. Then we graduated onto games, cake and craft parties in the church hall, and now were at the cinema party/pizza party/sleepover stage.

Thanks Maud. Normally I wouldn't question myself but with my cold/cough/sinus headache I did think spending an hour pegging down a marquee was a silly thing to agree to. But I did it and then stayed to help put up other gazabos and the like that didn't belong to anyone putting them up so no one knew the right way to do it and the bags were missing pegs and guy ropes and such. Ahhh, the things we do to help our friends!

Well done to Boy, UniS! I admit I'm not entirely sure what a "free reader" is, but I assume it means he can read something through without help?

Scout, I love the stone bug idea! That's great. What sort of paints would you use? Enamel? Gloss? Craft paints?
Hope the tent-erecting helped clear your sinuses a bit anyway. :)

Meant to say that for miniThumb's 3rd birthday, we had a party-in-the-park thing for him and his best friend, who is 1 day younger than him. So we just all met up in the playpark with a bit of a picnic, everyone brought their own food but we brought cakes to share and party bags.
His 2nd birthday was just a family trip to the zoo as we didn't really know anyone, having only been here 4m by then;
and his 1st birthday was his cousins and my BF's DS round for a small teaparty at our house, with another friend doing the entertainment as she was just setting up in that business and needed the practice! She did puppets, musical instruments and animal balloons and it was fun - miniThumb just spent most of the time following the others around!

Stone bugs is a great idea! I would just use ordinary poster paints - non toxic and washable. I love things that you don't have to keep for ever. Stones could one day be released into the garden and blend back into nature.