Legoland

Monday 8th October

I can not rave enough about how great our day at Legoland was. Made all the more better by the fact that there were hardly any queues and we didn't have to pay anywhere near full price we got real value for money. We managed the day well and it was a real success. The boys sat with daddy the night before and looked at a map of the park and YouTube videos of the rides. This helped to give them an idea of where we were going and what to expect and the boys were able to choose a few things that they wanted to go on before we got there. It helped to manage their expectations and stopped them from being too overwhelmed when we arrived. 

The journey there was raining raining racing in but it held off the entire time we were there so except for being a little colder than I would have liked and overcast, it was dry. Bean was true to form and didn't ride on anything fast and made me ask every operator if the ride was fast before he got on it! He also refused anything wet or loud...and some of the rides do have loud accompaniments to them, what could have been a pleasant ride around storybook land was quite deafening! Pumpkin was also true to form and bounced around like he was in kiddy heaven and thoroughly enjoyed all the fast rides he had time to go on. He had decided that he would like to go on the roller coaster so we took him on the infant one first . 

Having rode that twice, once with mummy and then once with daddy, he announced he wanted to go on the big one, so we did and he loved it. I was quite pleased as I like roller coasters too.

Word has reached us that the offer we took advantage of is a perminant one now for those operating in the home educating world and so I can see us frquenting Legoland throughout the year and I am very much looking forward to it. 

The Wheels on the bus

Measuring how tall we are compared to the bus wheel

Playing with mirrors on the bus

Having a go at Morse Code

Paper folding at the print workshop

After much lego making, some origami (areoplane making), colouring and sticking we ventured out to Amberley Museum today. It was Pumpkin's choice as he specifically asked to go on a bus ride. I had to think about the logistics as taking a buggy on the bus is not possible and where do you put bags when you don't take a buggy? So, we lunched in the car and then reduced stuff to one bag and put Plum in the sling. It worked out very well. For one frightening moment I thought the bus wasn't running as when we arrived there was a sign up saying the train wasn't in operation today and I only half read it as we passed by and I had a heart fluttering moment, but all was well. 

Bean and Pumpkin enjoyed playing with the water pumps again and Pumpkin made me read the information on it. 

The bus ride was great and being the only people on it the conductor came and sat with us and told us all about the bus we were riding on. Bean was very keen to tell daddy that it was the bus was the same age as mummy and very old (thanks Bean!) The conductor also let the boys stamp their own ticket. I'm always grateful for others that engage with the smalls.

Bean's choice of activity was to visit the pottery. So after walking around the train shed and exhibition we went to the pottery, stopping at the brick making building as we passed. Bean was keen to make something but had his heart set on a jug and after a few attempts and fails he became a bit disheartened and asked me to do it so we sat together and I made it under instruction. Pumpkin declined to make anything.

We stopped off in the communications building and finally worked out how to use the exchange (mostly thanks to the new and comprehensive instructions) and had lots of fun phoning each other.

After a return bus journey to the entrance we stopped by the print shop, as it had been closed for lunch when we arrived, and for the first time a volunteer recognised Pumpkin's name (the normal response is 'oh that's unusual. We probably don't have that one') and our day ended in much the same way as it had begun- with origami, this time it was a hat.

How does your garden grow?

We spent hours at Wakehurst Place today, lovely lovely lovely grounds and it transpires we walked around less than a quarter of it and we didn't go to see the seed collection. We will definitely be going again although it has to be said that it is the first NT place we have been to that made mention of the fact we are supposed to book when using an educational pass, they then neglected to give us a map or any information on the activities for children. This is directly opposite to our experience at other NT properties where the volunteers actively engage with the children and go out of their way to help us. 

Mostly Bean and Pumpkin were interested in the sculptures and the water. Bean is very interested in water wherever we go. Always looking at where the river goes and watching how it moves. We also managed to find a couple of dens but they are explicit about not climbing any trees in order to preserve all growing things. There are plenty of other things for them to play on though like the willow tunnel.

jumping with our shadows

Our mornings are currently taking on a very relaxed feel as Plum continues to sleep until somewhere between 8 and 9. It works well though as it is generally warming up nicely in the world by the time we venture out. We also thought Plum was going to crawl today...she didn't, but she is very close.

The lego building theme is continuing this week. The bathroom is once again filled with various boat designs, some of which float successfully and some if which don't.

Pumpkin found the box of metal trains today that haven't been out for a while and happily played solo for most of the morning.

Pumpkin

Not deliberately so but all the photos seem to be of Pumpkin today. 

A flower shaped like a butterfly spotted by Pumpkin

Today's main activity: painting
Bean (re)discovered the baskets full of sponges and brushes so they gave them all a go!

He told me he was painting a tiger!

Cooking 'Explorer Pancakes' for tea.
Bean's choice of recipe but he declined to cook even though he had said he wanted to all day!
At crunch point, Bean choose to play with the moon sand and Pumpkin choose to help.

Where the wild things are

Friday 20th September

One of the joys of home ed is that you can up and go whenever you choose without the imposition of school days. This weekend we took four days to go and visit Grandma and Pops. We spent Friday afternoon exploring one of the nearest haunts to their house and one of Grandma's favourites. I have photos of Bean in this same tree stump, rowing, from three years ago.

Bean spotted these bricks in the path that are shaped like the letter H (who needs to sit at table and chairs to learn their abc's?!)

We saw some rare flowers (Pops is always good for wildlife info)

Played hide and seek in amongst the bushes.

Saw a difficult to see butterfly (Pops again)

Climbed trees. This is a photo sequence of Pumpkin climbing. It really challenged him but he did it :)

Found evidence of deer in the forest, eating the soft bark of the holly tree.

Saturday 21st September

We were treated to a day out at a Wildlife Centre. We found these owls to add to our Australian animal collection.

We spent a long time in the play area. Pumpkin particularly enjoyed this hammock and the digger in the sand. Although he didn't enjoy it when is brother spun him round on it!

We sat and watched an otter showing off in the pool and spotted these tiny field mice. The boys wanted to use my phone to video lots of the animals unfortunately we forgot to video the tame deer that walked along the path towards us and stopped to say hello!

Sunday 22nd September

Sunday was a wet day and there was a lot of tv watching. Pumpkin had expressed the desire to cook cakes so we found some recipes and went shopping but I made them on my own (and very nice they were too.) Of course, Pumpkin enjoyed eating them, as did everyone else. I read this the other day, it is part of a much longer article but this section really applies to how we roll and served to make me feel that it is okay for my children to spend a year dipping in and out of a project, rather than start to finish in six weeks, or to start something and never finish it, or to seemingly flit from one thing to another with no apparent connection. 

"Henceforth you shall neither be required nor expected to finish every thing you start. Projects, books, experiments and plans may be discontinued as soon as something more interesting comes along (or for any other reason)without penalty, and picked up again at any time in the future (or never)." (Sandra Dodd)

Monday 23rd

More treats as we were taking out for a very extended lunch. yum yum.

I'm stickman

Tuesday 25th September

I've been struggling with where to put Plum when she falls asleep as she has long outgrown her moses basket and she does like to be cuddled or nursed to sleep and transfering her into the sling can be tricky and disturbs her. Sometime I put her in her car seat or buggy but she is getting too big for the car seat and the buggy is often in the car. So, today I put her on a warm fleece on the floor and there she slept for over an hour. Happy and peaceful. 

Bean and Pumpkin spent the whole of this time making and sticking. There were puppets and aliens and birds and mobiles, they were quite productive! We then moved on to preparing more of the bug hotel which has been an ongoing project since February. I'm hoping to get it finished soon ready for the bugs to sleep in over the winter. Today we filled milk cartons with natural materials that we have collected: leaves, twigs, pine cones and shredded cardboard. Pumpkin wanted a vase and put some carefully selected items in it and presented me with 'a collection.'