Just bouncing about

A friend contacted us last night to say that she had just arranged to hire a bouncy castle for today and was wondering if we would like to go round to bounce and hang out. We went along and had a fabulous time. It was the first time Miles had been on a bouncy case and it certainly got the thumbs up.

A better use of public money?

Instead of spending money on repeated home ed reviews and consultations, perhaps the government could channel more money into causes like this below. Makes total sense to me - it's time to stop home ed bashing and and start addressing the real issues. It's ridiculous to think that in the face of a few very high profile child abuse cases, the government responds with a knee jerk reaction to a minority group, (home educators), while organisations who aim to tackle child abuse at a grass roots level go under funded. Very sad state of affairs.

The text of the petition is as follows:

We, the undersigned, call on the UK Government and devolved administrations in Wales and Northern Ireland to see domestic violence from a child's point of view.

Witnessing domestic violence causes children serious emotional harm, and in homes where there is domestic violence, children may also be physically and sexually abused themselves. We want to see:

• services for all children and families affected, to keep them safe and supported, and to help them overcome the effects of violence
• improved training for professionals so that they identify children and young people caught up in violence
• children learn in schools about domestic violence and how to stay safe

Please consider popping along here and giving your support.

Geodome

At camp we had a geodome which belongs to a local home edding family. It was a focal point for the children by day and a meeting area for adults in the evening.

Craig stands back and fears the worst.

Oh no, it's not right.

Yep, we'll take it all down and start over.

Voila! A bit more tweaking with the covering and it'll be done!

Storm Chaser / Storm Chased ?????

I'm still feeling wet and soggy but couldn't help but call in to say that I think one of my life long ambitions has just been dashed.

I'm fascinated by 'extreme' weather and would happily spend hours on end watching documentaries about it. I've often thought how amazing it would be to be a storm chaser and get up really close.

Well, on Saturday morning we set out on our regional home ed camp, staying with lots of friends on a remote beach side campsite. The weather was glorious so although I took all eventuality clothing for the children I saved space in the boot and packed just sandals and summer stuff for me.

On Sunday there was a tornado, (no joking here guys - the real thing, full on swirly bit and all), which thankfully swept past us at a worrying distance but didn't touch down on land.

The tornado was followed by rain, more rain, the occasional dry but grey patch, more rain, very short dry spell, more rain and even more rain - you get the picture I guess!

This morning I was awoken before five with torrential rain, thunder and an alarmingly volatile tent. You may not want to imagine this as what followed was not a pretty site. Having quickly bundled the children into the car for safety sake Craig and I spent over two hours in hideous storm conditions trying to make safe, deciding we'd had enough and taking down the tent, gazebo and packing away. I was in my nightie, very wet and frazzled, wishing that I wore knickers for bed as trying to hang onto blustery groundsheets and a blustery nightie in what felt like a force ten gale with lashing rain was not easy.

I'm ever so tired and despite having had a bath still feel really crusty in that camping sort of way. I think I need another soak and an early night in a bed, in a room with walls and windows with a toilet just across the landing. Many families are still there and hoping the weather improves but for me it was starting to feel more like a challenge than a holiday. It was time for us to come home. We had fun but I don't think it would have been right to hold out till Friday when we had booked till. Craig had to come home today in any event for work and I was going to be staying on with the children.

I'm scrapping my ideas of storm chasing and may even start looking at camper vans. Had Craig not been there this morning, (and he isn't always when we go camping), I would have been seriously scared because I don't think I would have had the physical strength to hang on to the heavy steel framed gazebo and stop it smashing into the tent and possibly hurting someone.

Back with photos in a day or two when I've dried out.

**Sigh** (loudly)

This evening Hermione and I spent a wonderful two hours in a restaurant in town. We ate delicious food and indulged in lots of girly chat. We laughed, chuckled and shared the squishiest, caramel, chocolate cake concoction ever!

On the table next to us were a man, a woman and a girl of about six years old. During the whole time we were there they did not speak to her once other than to ask her what food she wanted. They were engrossed in their own conversation and she was left to play on one of those gadget type things - could be a DS but I don't know, I'm not entirely sure what one looks like.

As the night wore on the little girl became tired and cranky. I'm not at all surprised she got cranky. It can't have been much fun sitting there, to all intents and purposes alone. Did they respond by talking to her or finishing their meal and drinks and getting off? No, the mother produced a dummy from her spangly handbag and she then sucked on that whilst playing with her electronic companion.

Grrrrr, I'm off to squeeze a bean bag, kick the proverbial cat and all that. Some people just make me so mad...

Rounding up, navel gazing and stuff...

After deliberating whether or not to even read The Mozart Question, we ended up reading it and going to see the theatre production. We enjoyed it. It was sparse in comparison to most theatre productions we see but the strength of the story and the talent of the actor made it possible I feel.


We enjoyed it so much that we stayed for a post show talk. I need not have worried about how it would be portrayed to children. It became apparent that in advance of staging the production they had put a lot of thought into how children learn about traumatic events, and how at younger ages some things are best explored through the imagination as opposed to stark and potentially deeply distressing facts.

We went along to The Great North Museum and visited this guy - a life size Tyrannosaurus Rex.



He was accompanied by hundreds of absolutely fascinating things, but I have to say, I did not enjoy the visit. There were screens with moving images on the floor and ceiling. There were background sounds playing all of the time and lots of visitor activated sounds (push button stuff) which was incredibly loud too. Call me old fashioned but the noise, special effect lighting and screen just over loaded my senses and distracted from what I really wanted to see. There were times when it felt like being in a really naff nightclub - flashing lights, loud noises and strange specimens.

We have been strawberry picking and we have also dug up a lot of potatoes from our garden. Delicious.

Hermione is almost ready to wrap up the Tudors. We have covered all of KS2 national curriculum on it and much more. It's only recently that I have looked at the national curriculum and I wish I had done so much sooner. It's very reassuring. As for KS2 anyway it certainly is just a thin covering with wide brush strokes - this and that but not a lot of detail. I suspect there will be lots of areas where it just won't be detailed enough for Hermione's liking. When she's interested in something she likes to find out all there is to know - which can't be a bad thing!

We have spent literally hour on end jumping these waves - with friends and just us. Summer is well and truly here and we're loving it!

Seeing how both of the children interact with the sea really rings the changes in their confidence since last summer. Watching them the other day Craig ad I were just thinking about possibly buying Hermione one of those small surfboards - a body board I think it's called. She would love that.

We visited Newby Hall and for the first time I got to wander around the sculpture park. It was absolutely amazing. I was awestruck by some of the sculptures. They are all for sale and I would have dearly loved to have brought some home with me but alas that will be for when I win the lottery - which could be a long way off considering I never play it.

It's not entirely clear from the picture but these willow horses were life size.

I've had many deep and meaningful conversations with Hermione, who has spent what seems to be an incredible amount of time of late swinging from her favourite tree, and pondering out loud whether Macbeth was truly evil or was he just weak and corrupted by the witches and Lady Macbeth.

We have compared and contrasted creation and evolution quite a lot. That is one of her favoured debates these days. I've even been questioned about Mary Madeleine and whether or not she did actually give birth to Jesus' child.

Hermione and Miles have discussed about how the earth was once thought to be flat and that people may fall off - but later it was found to be round - 'but then do we ever really know?' she said.

Oh, they make me laugh and sometimes they take me by surprise. I don't always have the answers they are looking for, but that's one of the great things about our situation - we have the time to sit and ponder life in a way that those with tighter schedules don't.

A university friend caught up with me recently and we talked about the downsides of our own education. We both concluded that the youth of today have way too little time for navel gazing and that it should in itself feature on the time table. Call it processing, observing, formulating one's own ideas or whatever - it's certainly a very under rated process and one which we concluded could have enhanced our learning experiences greatly.

Blinkin Blogger! Squashing evrything up again!

Sugar crafts,sand and stinkin headaches

Hermione tried her hand at sugar crafting last week. She made some beautiful flowers.




We have had a wonderful day at the beach today. Craig and the children spent over two hours jumping waves and building castles to be swallowed up by the tide. I lay on the rug and wondered if I will ever learn to come home at a reasonable hour when we go out to dinner with friends.

I'm pleased to be moving on from this past week. There have been so many competing demands on my time and energy that I feel seriously depleted. I really need to reconnect with my oooomph.