March 06 *#* all around the world

[UniS]

sorry couldn;t think of a funny title. but here goes.

Anyone with Dcs born March 06 welcome to come on in and introduce yourselves.

just stopping by as I saw caddy posting.

hope you are all ok.

caddy (((((((hugs))))))) don't even begin to cover it sweetheart.

(munz)

Hi southernbelle, long time no hear, hope you're doing good?

Caddy, 'slap' you are doing way too much, chill out! sil will not mind house in a mess, if she does, she can clean it you're supposed to be resting up.

Astro, wow sounds like you've been a very busy lady! (you're also quite mad btw fitting all that in to prove a point!) I think your dd1 will do just fine going into year one on that, reception here is mainly learning phonics and drawing/colouring in, with very basic number and pattern recognition.HTH's.

Oh yes, forgot my shoulder, so guess it must be feeling a bit better! its still twinging, enough for me to avoid excercise tomorrow, but I'm hoping its on the mend, bit stiff when I wake in the mornings, but ok by this time at night, if you follow?

Good that shoulder is on the mend Friz Yes I do know I am being mad. See what my mother drives me to?

Hi Munz!

Caddy, do try to rest up! I'm sure your SIL wont give two hoots if the house is a mess!

Thanks for the link - looks great!

I am, starting next week, going to do a book themed wekk/fortnight. So next week = Handas Surprise and DD will practice reading it (although she can't really read yet, but making good progress), we will 'interview' some friends who spent time in Kenya and look at their photos, learn some kiswahili words, get some books from library on kenya and african animals, get DD to write a shopping list and then go and buy all of the 7 fruits at the shops -count money etc, listen to some Kenyan music...any other thoughts? We will see where it takes us and be flexible, and I'll also get her to do some maths activities and read some readers. Sound ok?

Caddy are you HEing all of yours? I'd love to hear what curriculum/ routines etc you've found helpful. My plan is to fly solo and not buy curriculae, but that may change...am flexible. I have the NSW state curriculum for English and will get the maths one too - not to follow as such, but to keep an eye on.

Where are your kids freidns from if not school? Are there HE groups there for you to join? There is one here but pretty far from me, so not saure if we will get involved.

Sorry everyone else for irrelevant chat! I will email next time Caddy.

Thanks thesouthbelle.

The virtual hugs are much appreciated.

astro Feel free to email me anytime. We use a variety of resources and when something doesn't work, I just move on to something else. I am currently HEd all of ours. (The last few weeks have been rather challenging with impending move, unplanned surgery and complete chaos.) They have become amazingly independent. Our friends are mainly from the local (and very distant) HEd group but they all go to different activities throughout the week and their 'closest' friends seem to be from there.

Friz: Glad to hear that your shoulder is healing. Do you think that you passed it off on me? Mine has been rather sore from yesterday...

Uni Any more bell ringing? What an interesting hobby!

ll Are you saving up for Cambodia? You would have a place to stay and a semi-local tour guide...

v quick, havn;t read uo to date.

I'm still in land of living.Family left this morning, next batch arrive sunday. so doing mucho mucho cleaning and washing bedding.

maybe catch up tonight, unless I'm in RL pub.

We seem to have bought a house, did I tell you that? Must arrange going to look at it over weekend.

UniS I vote for real-life pub!

Great news on the house! Is it exactly what you were looking for?

Oh heck Caddy. sorry. Now you get back on that sofa and let the world revolve around you for a few more days. family can just muck in a bit longer.

HE ideas based on Handa books.

Try walking with things on your head, how can you make it easier to carry things on your head.
There is CD that goes with the books, it has ideas for dance moves to represent handas journeys . you could make up your own with some african music.
Look up in atlas where handa and co might live. what might the village be callled. are those Akeyos family in background.
If you were to take fruit to friend in your home town, what fruit , how would you carry it, what animals might want to eat it/ how might you lose it. story writing time.even if they dictate and you write.

Build on that animal chart and classify the animals in handa books.

lots of great HE ideas there, well done you guys who are doing that we've had a local school come to the store for the last week (year 6's) and have educated them and their teachers of the benifits of learning through playing games, teachers are totally amazed at the benifits/difference/enthusiasm it has made to their classes we're feeling very proud

Caddy, hope you're getting some good rest.

LL get saving for Cambodia

Uni, happy washing/family changing, I wish I could go to the pub...oh hang on, I might tomorrow, girls night out (depending on how I feel) and congrats on the house, do we get photos?

Astro, how's the whole getting moving thing going then?

Gosh so much house moving...Uni, send us a link if your new pad is on the web...want a nosey. Astro, at least you can make the move into a whole HE experience eh? Must be some good books about moving house. I remember in the Oxford Reading Tree there are a whole series (maybe Level 3) about buying and moving etc. The kids find a replica dolls house in the new house that has tiny versions of them in!! I found it quite alarming.

Caddy, I fear that as we still have to finish the extension off then we may be camping this year - flights are so expensive anywhere eh?

Friz, sounds great about the school visit...I walked with half of Kiah's class to a local cafe on Mon...they really enjoyed their juice, toast, making a pie and using the till.

I have got myself into a silly situation where I have so much work to do that I don't know where to start and keep waking up in the middle of the night worrying about it...I think I shall make a list and work through. I did ask DP to help but he got offered a roofing job and is now going to look at another. Bad timing eh?

Oh I lost 2.5 lbs last week so not a bad start! Struggling this week as lots of meals out etc. Last night I went to a work meeting with 16 chefs, mostly veggie, to start a new cooking project....everyone took food!! Wow - what a pig out. Fri night I am going to a Murder Mystery dinner party.

Not actually home edding here, but it sometimes feels like it! Esp last week with 6 HE neices and nephews staying.

The other day boy and I did a nice session with a spare height chart. looking at how tall he was and is and how tall his baby cousin is. had boy counting, reading numbers and writing numbers. He LIKES number work and is fascinated by letter sounds and words, so we do a fair bit of gentle learning at home.

House. um yes its details are on line, but I'm slightly paranoid about it all falling through, I'll share more in a week or two.

I could never HE as I enjoy that moment when DP takes the kids to school and I close the front door far too much .

Uni, really hoping this house works out so hope you send the link soon!

Today I am going to be very good - turn off MN and do some bloody work! Am running at 2pm so I MUST do some final reports by then!!!!

Catch up later...

Well done on the weight loss LL, I've only lost 4lbs since Jan, so really must make more effort to eat better and drink less half 3/4 of a stone to go....its this damn cold weather, gets me every time.
I know what you mean about the flights too, am debating what to do about our hols this year, flights are up by £500 for the 5 of us on last year (and that's budget!) am debating driving to south of france.....with 3 kids in car.... how suicidal is that?
Car is french, so if it buggers up, should be easyish to fix....

Uni, fingers very x'd that you get the house, am nosey like LL

Full of snot now here, seems my voice is back, but with added extras, sigh.....

lol LL - that is a bit spooky about the little dolls house!

Friz, hope you are on the mend!

Uni - congrats on house - hope all goes well!

Caddy, still thinking of you and praying for good emotional and physical recovery.

we are mostly packed (where has ALL this stuff come from - we only moved here 5 months ago! So many boxes marked "misc"...ie JUNK!)

Big kids are with my folks today and tomorrow, Have 5 burly blokes from church coming tomorrow and dh has hired a truck. I just picked up the keys and went to have another look at new house. It is nice, but I do hate the feeling of an empty house - cold and hollow...and especially a rental where nobody (except us it would seem) is particularly house proud and things get a bit run down. Still, looking forward to getting it ship shape next week

Not sure when I'll be back online, we always seem to have issues with the phone company etc, so it might take a while!

Take care all of you

Ooooh Astro, hoping you're having a happy moving time and are enjoying your new house!

Thanks for your FB message, Friz.

It was very self indulgent of me and very much directed at my SIL who has optical rectumitis. He latest status rubbed me the wrong way and I launched at her. Shameless, I know.

Caddy!

Yooo hoooo, where are you all, bar Astro whose moving house, oh yes and Caddy whose moving house.....and Uni who maybe moving house.....you have no excuse LL

I'm here.

not moved yet. was away over w/end, half term last week.

Had car serviced/mot today- ouch.
Have a customer phoning me most days to consult... wonder if I should invoice him for 30min slots? still, if he gets the project he is consulting over he will be using me as staff. or so he says.

boy still mad keen on writing. and just about getting into copying drawings. so today he did a few drawings of miffy, copying ones I did which were copys of "real" mifffy. showed me that his pencil control is quite good enough, hes just not interested in "drawing pictures".

why has bedtime for boy gone werid. It used to go

night night, close door boy asleep in minutes, might hear him talking to toys but bascily quiet till zonk after 5 mins max.

This week

Its been .
night night, close door
I can't sleep. I want door open. Stay with me. I can;t sleep.

Parent opens door a bit, night night, time to go sleep. leave room.

I want my little lighton, I want teh door big bit open, i can;t sleep.

parent returns, say night night, turn on little light, leave room.

I CAN'T SLEEP, UNIS , UNIS, I CAN'T SLEEP. daddy, DADDY, DADDY. I CAN'T SLEEP.

I want my little lighton, I wantteh door big bit open, i can;t sleep.

After about 30 mins I inform him that if I hear another sound I will turn off the landing light.

5 mins later I hear feet out of bed and he shuts own door. turns out own night light and goes to sleep.

arrgh. I'm not keeping him up later , hes tired enough already.and waking up at a perfectly sensible time of morning.

Hello there...now sure where I've been really, here and there!

Day in London, day at spa in Sussex, working left right and centre, making butterfly cake for Tilly's party on Sun as we are out tomorrow night...usual stuff.

Friz, how's the business going? Are you opening a chain yet?

Uni, I've taken to leaving both girls with a book and the light on for half an hour. They are usually snoring by the end of it. I think our little ones are at a bit of a troubled time though...Kiah is very teary/grumpy/happy with regular mood changes. Started having dreams and nightmares too same as her sister did at this age. Active brains due to so much learning I think.

Just booked a Premier Inn at Carlisle for the event at the end of the Illuminating Hadrian's Wall event on March 13th. We are back up to the Lakes the weekend after for a 10k too so think DP and I will sneak a night away as is my birthday weekend...maybe just the out-laws caravan. This is where K was conceived but I assure you nothing like that will be happening again!!!

Anyone stayed at a KeyCamp in France? Looking at 10 days over May half term...Brittany probably.

Caddy/Astro....where are you both up to???

Hey girls, uni I am not the one to ask for sleep advice from, dd1 will happily go to bed and go to sleep, always has done! dd2 totally different kettle of fish....sounds a bit like your ds, except she'll mess around till 10pm some nights, tried everthing, doors shut, lights off, if she's not tired, she'll try/do anything and not be tired during the day either.........

LL, not done keycamp, but have flights booked for caravan in south france again have had to alter the holiday by a few days either side so we could afford to go damn school holiday charges......
Business ok, lots of holidays being taken by everyone but us at the moment, so hectic! No further stores planned at present

Morning all. And its beatiful spring like day down here in devon. teh clouds are looming and any moment now it'll dump with rain, but just for now I have washing blowing on teh line and boy and DH out picking up sticks and lumps of builder rubble.

I have an appeal for help-
I'm collecting cows... from Anchor butter packs. there is number printed on the foil of certain Anchor butter packs ( the spreadable ones and maybe others) which can be entered on their website and turned into cows, collect enough cows and you can send off for stuff.
I just realised it ends on 31st march and I am 9 cows short of a picnic blanket. and we are unlikely to use 5 more packs of butter in a month.

So- do any of you in teh UK have an unused cow code on a butter pack you don't mind me using?

If you do,let me know please. I'll pop my e-mail addy up and collect them in. any spares can be turned into a donation to greenspace.

Morning Uni, even though its evening now mind! sorry we don't use much butter here, Flora is the substance of choice or sainsb's unsalted on the odd occasion, I'll have an ask about for you though

Chaos reigns around the Cadhouse so things are as they should be. Still no firm pack or move date. ARGH! Dh starts in Cambodia on the 15 so no hurry-MUCH.

I was feeling much better physically until this week. Now I am painfully aware of parts that I would rather not have to think about. This is mostly due to too much housework and gardening. Five weeks on and I was expecting to feel better. I am getting to old for this moving lark.

I would not dream of offering sleep advice. Dd2 actually does sleep brilliantly now and even takes herself off to bed early if she is tired but this is all new. She didn't sleep through until she was 3 1/2.

She continues to be OCD about being wished a good morning by only me until after a snuggle...