Revisit

 One of the things that I have notived in the last year is how games in our family have become established. One of the smalls will call "let'someone play houses/wrestling/babies/families" and everyone immediately knows what the game so,  where we play it, what role they play, what the story line is, what the rules are.  And each time they play the game evolves. It'seems a beautiful process to watch.

Today it was Bean and Pumpkin wrestling at Nyman's gardens.  We joined friends for a visit and played Pokemon as we walked. The smalls (all four of them) climbed trees and ran around chasing with their friends. Plum wore a summer dress even though the weather was cold and everyone else was wearing coats.

The trip out was topped and tailed with Bean and Pumpkin playing Magic: the gathering. I think it was Pumpkin'so first go at playing but he knew the game play really well from watching so many times and understood the cards in the pack. Bean is keen to introduce new cards to the pack.

Down the road

The boys play a series of five donut games every morning, best of five wins. Pumpkin immersed in watching walk through Simpson's game play of Simpson computer games and Bean is working his way through Poke money episodes.

Today we went to see friends that we haven't seen for far too long, and they only live 15 minutes down the road. The county we live in is teaming with Home Educators and the ever growing means we are oil to for choice for activities and friendships.  The smalls all played in the playhouse and climbed trees, swung on the swing, played hot wheels and played with weaponary.

Pippin only slept in the car and then woke and was sick. We cleaned up and cuddled.

We ended our day enjoying The Great British Bake Off.

A day at home

We now spend one day a week at home without the car, enforced by daddy needing it for work. It has worked out really well.  We can walk to town if we want to, play poker on,  go to the library or the museum, or walk/bike/scooter to one of four parks within walking distance. But today we settled on staying at home.

The big three were all up after 9.30am. The boys relaxed and watched YouTube for a few hours. Punprinted is continuing to find gamers who walk through Simpson'so games and Bean is working through various comedy series and testing out the humour by repeating the jokes on us.

Plum and I played doll'so house whicheck she turned into the three bears cottage and we retoldon't the story of goldilocks. It ended with baby bear and goldilocks playing at her house in the swimming pool and diving in. This has beena recurring theme in her play for a few months now. She builds diving boards in mine craft and usespecially the padding pool, bath, and water trays to build diving boards for her toys.
After playing doll'so house, Plum and Pippin made white chocolate chunk brownies.

Lydia isn't well again and hasn't been for a few days. Today I noticed white spots on her tongue so we went to the doctors and he diagnosed thrush and gave a course of medicine for her.

Bean has spent an hour working on his lego Chima today with me finding specific pieces for him. He spent about one and a half hours (in segments) learning to play Yankee Doodle on the piano. This encompassed learning to read the music, learning the keyboard, the names for notes and noteven length as well as figuring out the tune by ear once he realised what tune it was.
It also led to questions and discussion on American Independence, explorers, and St Patrick's Day.

Makes clearing of the piano worth it.

A day at home

We now spend one day a week at home without the car, enforced by daddy needing it for work. It has worked out really well.  We can walk to town if we want to, play poker on,  go to the library or the museum, or walk/bike/scooter to one of four parks within walking distance. But today we settled on staying at home.

The big three were all up after 9.30am. The boys relaxed and watched YouTube for a few hours. Punprinted is continuing to find gamers who walk through Simpson'so games and Bean is working through various comedy series and testing out the humour by repeating the jokes on us.

Plum and I played doll'so house whicheck she turned into the three bears cottage and we retoldon't the story of goldilocks. It ended with baby bear and goldilocks playing at her house in the swimming pool and diving in. This has beena recurring theme in her play for a few months now. She builds diving boards in mine craft and usespecially the padding pool, bath, and water trays to build diving boards for her toys.
After playing doll'so house, Plum and Pippin made white chocolate chunk brownies.

Lydia isn't well again and hasn't been for a few days. Today I noticed white spots on her tongue so we went to the doctors and he diagnosed thrush and gave a course of medicine for her.

Bean has spent an hour working on his lego Chima today with me finding specific pieces for him. He spent about one and a half hours (in segments) learning to play Yankee Doodle on the piano. This encompassed learning to read the music, learning the keyboard, the names for notes and noteven length as well as figuring out the tune by ear once he realised what tune it was.
It also led to questions and discussion on American Independence, explorers, and St Patrick's Day.

Makes clearing of the piano worth it.

Let the games begin

Monday

Plum went off to Little Verse as is the custom for a Monday morning, taken by SGG, whilst the remainder of us played Terraria together and Pippin slept for two hours nursing a cold. Terraria confuses me after the simplicity of minecraft but Bean has been on hand to give me full guidance and support. 

We then went to a friend's house to play in the afternoon specifically for the boys to play lego dimensions. Anna enjoyed the swing, trampoline, play dough, and electronic keyboard. 

Tuesday

We all spent the morning preparing for this afternoon's group meeting, collecting up outdoor toys and choosing pictures to take and colour, as well as snacks and drinks. Pumpkin began a memory game on the mat where he hopped from one picture to another and the following person had to remember the sequence and hop the same. We all enjoyed colouring and crafting. Bean, Pumpkin and their friend took the paper boats they made and experimented to see who's would last the longest on water before sinking.

Wednesday

A rather wet, thunder stormy, muddy walk at the top of Box Hill with friends. Pumpkin continuing his need to collect huge numbers of sticks. Pippin was so covered after walking and falling around in mud baths that her clothes were soaked through. We seemed to spend two hours barely getting anywhere but spent a lot of time in and out of dens and stick fighting. 

And then we headed home to spend time with more friends, watching Hoodwinked and eating ice cream together. All four are currently out in the garden playing a game together. One of the things that has changed recently is the depth and breadth of the games the smalls play. A game becomes established and they all have their space and role and equipment that is theirs and the game becomes deeper and more involved each time it is played. This is true of the garden and the games they play there but also of places that we go to regularly, certain games become connected to certain places and they are picked up each time we visit, each small already established in their role and the game commences.

Over a Year

Bean, now 9, had his annual haircut today. I say annual because that is roughly how it has worked out for the past few years. He wanted it to look like the baddy in Indiana Jones 4, Googled it and found an image for me. Plum was my assistant and checked it was looking good as well as working the tablet for Bean as he sat and watched various cartoons whilst I snipped away. All of this was followed by a bath, thankfully more than an annual occurance and hair wash but not with shampoo as he doesn'the like it.

We have been to church today too. We were all up later than usual but this seemed to work well as breakfast was done in two sittings and everyone was dressed succinctly. The children did some stuff on praising God and the highlight was the BBQ,  another annual event, which Pumpkin, 7, made banoffie pie for (the same as he had done last year)

All of the children spent the time playing with friends. The church has enough families in it now that all ages and interests are met and, probably for the first time, I was not heavily pregnant or spending my whole time with babies or toddlers (although there was some of this) It felt liberating to sit and chat.

2015 in Numbers

50 Playdates

20 Extended family visits or outings

3 cinema trips: Star Wars, Inside Out, Penguins of Madagascar

5 family holidays:
2 days at Legoland; 1 week in Cornwall (Eden Project, 2 beach trips, fireworks at Landsend); HE camping weekend; family camping weekend.

27 playback visits:
including 2 Southwater Country Park; 8 Horsham Park; 12 Fisher's Farm Park; 1 Tilgate Park.

Museums and organised activities:
Once to the Fire Station, bowling, Sea Life Centre, Chatham Dockyard, Pizza Express, Bignor Roman Village, Kent Life Museum, Waterless, Leechpool Woods, Paulton Park, Leeds Castle;
Twice to Littlehampton Museum, Nymans Gardens, Box Hill, Legomania, bike rides;
Three trips to Winchester Science Centre, Skylanders Club, Pulborough Brooks;
Four visits into town;
Five Lego Clubs;
Six Winter Wednesdays;
Seven Roller Discos, Blast Science, Warnham Nature Reserve.

One summer long visit from the amazing Cate.
One unexpected hospital trip, 3 funerals, 2 weddings.