Day Two of School - What the hell has happened?

I don't normally feed my girls loads of junk and they have basic tastes luckily for me. Chocolate cake is about as experimental as T gets but I wanted to spice up the lunch box so I bought a multi pack of these children's favourites and wrote off the fact that they are probably usless in the nutrition department.

This is what I got back today.

That's not all!
She's a hyperactive brat on the way home.

2 DAYS!!

The little book that I got from the mum and baby in the church group across the way said that children often behave younger, baby even because all the growing up stuff of big school is quite a lot for them to digest. Not half!
The book also says not to expect them to tell you everything that happened during the day as they are probably exhausted............not my daughter....she couldn't even if she tried!
It's like shes on an upper!

On the way home the line is.

Muuummm, will you carry me, carry me......carry me
(Lots of jumping and waving arms around in the air)
No Darling I will not carry you, you are at big school now and none of the other children are being carried home.
I don't want to go to big school anymore
Why are you behaving this way?
I am upset and I need a carry to make myself better
Look at all these other children they are all new and looking for new friends and if they see you behaving this way no one will want to be your friend
OK.........Can I have a cuddle instead?
Of course.

So after she has behaved like a child on the way home she turns crazy and is unable to sit still or hold a conversation.
Gareth said at dinner whilst she ate her spaghetti like a crazed animal

What have we done this is the worst decision we have ever made

We meet the teacher on Friday, oh my, she best be ready because I will have questions for her.

This is probably normal and if the advice from our parents is to be correct I will be carrying her home by half term as she will be too tired to move

Bless her

CM

A Saturday Wedding Part 1

So this Saturday gone we were invited to a wedding reception that was to be family orientated and the bride had arranged for there to be a face painter for the children.
T has never had her face painted as I am anti social and never go anywhere where she would have had the opportunity to have it done.

She was itching to be painted, a big butterfly across the face, and you know, that's what she got.

On the way to the venue we got a flat tyre and had to go fill up at the petrol station which made us 45 minutes late. She was so good she didn't whine once but she did throw in a few Come On DAAAAD!
When we got there she stood next to that table and stood there like she was on duty she had a ticket, lucky number 7 but they were only painting number 4 I think it was the longest wait for her.

In my mind I was sure that the face painter was only going to be there an hour and I wanted her to have it done so bad that I would have gone out of my mind and hired a painter just to make her day.

It was about half an hour after her face had been done that I clicked that she hadn't seen the butterfly because she didn't smile, talked with gritted teeth and freaked ever so slightly if someone brushed passed her. All her fears were laid to rest when she realised this paint was on and probably not coming off until the morning then she had a great time!

CM

Sticki Brix

Picked these up in a shop locally, used, but clean and in a nice bag so they can be cleared and stored away nicely at the end of the day.....or not as I am still looking at the butterfly palace T built yesterday afternoon.

I always loved these as a child but I don't think I played with them that often.
I love the shapes and colours.

She has been, ON ONE! as some might say. T cannot stop talking, today or yesterday asking all sorts of questions, asking for me to LOOK Mummy! or insist that anything she requests be done a different way to which she has asked.
Not angry or rude,  just FULL ON.

I think I have had it up to here
As I type this she is practicing her hopping
Fine
But does it have to be so loud?
Apparently so

I am yelling a bit as I am so tired
It's like an elephant hopping.

Last night both girls slept in their own bunk beds. For one reason or another they have been sleeping/camping in with us for some time and to be honest I still missed them terribly but I can't keep them in there until they are teenagers.
It all went rather well except for when I decided at my bed time to swap T's choice of bed time toy, a pink furry puppy that screams flammable in appearance with a nice brown bear that I thought she might like to wake up to.

Nope

At 04:15 she woke me up with her torch and quietly explained that there was some confusion with her puppy who was missing and a brown bear was in its place and could I come and sort it.

Which of course I did because I felt guilt and now I am knackered and really I should have known better to meddle in the inner workings of her mind.

She went straight back to sleep, but Oh my! 

Oh well. Make dinner and a bit of crochet in front of a movie for tonight I think
CM

Huurah! We Can Play!

Play date done.

I decided to make an activity for the girls to do so I printed off the templates that feature in this film and cut some twigs got all the pencils and colours out.

This is a really nice tutorial, don't just think that it is for kids these would look lovely in any neat and tidy home!

The girls looked at the craft set up, lasted the time that it takes to get a pen lid off before running upstairs playing with everything and dressing up squealing.
They couldn't even chew at lunch they were so busy.

But I made one in rather loud colours not something that I would usually favour.

I realised when they were playing that Truly didn't want to get a particular toy down and share maybe I hadn't done enough pre play prep, so I freaked for a minute but actually it all worked out fine.
They took care of themselves because they already know each other well from preschool and I could just stand back and watch what they had learned to do over the past year which was play very nicely together.
G took P swimming which was great because although T did really well I think she probably would have had a melt down with P here.

This was our first play date with a child who's mother I wasn't already friends with and that's why I was nervous. T has been on a couple of play dates with older children so she clearly has taken on board the etiquette.
But I am still going to go off and have a panic attack about it all!

Yesterday I took these photos and I think they are great.

I have friends in the North who are having a new baby soon so I thought I might make a little something so I tried out a tiny toy for small hands.

 

This is really too small to make without cursing or giving myself an eye headache also the soft white pillowcase that I cut to make the body is too vintage and pulled apart when P put the ear in her mouth and gruesomely tore through it with her teeth.
Back to the drawing board for something more sturdy.

But in the mean time its jacket potato and salad for dinner.
And a peppermint tea to keep away the panic of today

CM

Last Day at Preschool - Prior to Pick Up

I bought her three books as a present to say well done you did it you finished!!

 She is animal crazy and likes penguins more than ever at the moment.

Then I dug out some work and pictures that she has done over the past couple of years and there are also some photos so she can see how much she has grown.

I'll get her a balloon

Fish bowl

Park Layout

Digger

Pregnant Cats with Wings

Grumpy Aliens

I have taken the sausages out of the freezer ready for dinner and we might make some frozen yogurt too.
I am looking forward to picking her up I am going to have a medative couple of hours before I get her, not really to reflect but to brace myself for six weeks of us, together, no respite!

Getting take away sandwiches for lunch will clear away the toys in the lounge.
Ready for anything
CM

T's Leaving Preschool

So we were invited by the preschool to take a look at her work and see the paper work that will follow her on to her next school, something I can follow up with at a later date. I was looking at some photos from around that time and I came across these that brought back nice memories and of course were long before P was ever on the scene.

Such a busy girl and she would take Bear with her everywhere. I used to have to remove the beads after she went to sleep and actually those are only a fraction of what she would put on, take off, put on, take off, put on again and always in the same order, weird.

These are of her first day and of her peg. Look at the state of our front door.

I remember taking these of when we picked her up she was shattered! I think she only did a half day.

Anyway, I am so sorry to see her leave I think that she has had the most wonderful experience and whats more the care and the way she has been treated is deep rooted in her behavior. Apart from the occasional bit of back chat (that did not stem from school I am sure) I couldn't ask for anyone more perfect to share my life.

She is completely oblivious to all of this of course and just sees it as the next stage of growing up. I must be careful not to show too much emotion or let any of my fears or tears infiltrate her mind.

I was expecting to cry my eyes out next Wednesday when she finishes but after our meeting today I felt a lot more positive seeing the other children and their families all ready for the next stage.

I say all this now but I know myself I am a big sack of emotions and I hate saying good bye, I always say see you next week and pretend its not over.

I am going to be a wreck
CM

Funny Thinking Friday

Two things occurred to me this week whilst watching the world go by.

Watching TV

The first is staying at home during the school holidays, is it better to stay or go away?

Now I am a real home bod and anyone who knows me knows that is boarders on agoraphobia but these past couple of months being stuck here with the ankle I have really felt helpless with life passing me by, which is okay for me to get my head around but not for the girls.
I have been talking with a friend with a lovely girl a couple of years older than T and she was saying how her and her husband had divided up the week taking time off work and that they were still around town and filling it with visits, picnics and trips to the dentist etc then today I saw a guy walking his kids presumably home from somewhere and I was thinking he had probably done the same.

If you stay at home and have a couple of days out, it can cost into the hundreds, is that really a good use of time and do you as the parent really get a break or are you just juggling. Don't get me wrong I am well aware that going anywhere with children for more than a day can require the same amount of planning as moving a mountain but when the weather is this lovely and you hear about families traveling further afield for a break I can't help thinking it's better to really get away.

Stuck Doing Something Small and Fiddly

I'm not applying this to the summer or winter holidays because Christmas is so exciting and the summer is so long that it needs to feel lazy but the half terms if you stay at home its can feel like you missed an opportuinity.

Now this theory is all well and good, and I understand you can't just drop responsibilities and go away and I don't know how you cover the cost. Maybe house swapping with another family that lives within a couple of hours drive away, somewhere nice even!
Would anybody want to stay in my house, its a thought that I might explore further with a network of friends. Its a change of scene.

I wasn't really trying to make a point I was just thinking about it.

Being Funny

The other thing I had realised is that next week starts the last few weeks of T at preschool and how devastated I will be at her departure.  The staff have looked after her so well and helped her develop her unique personality I think I might actually vomit before that last day or do really ugly crying when I pick her up from her last session.
With all the sorting of her move to "big school" I just hadn't thought about it.

Just Woke Up - That Hair?

I don't think she is even ready for big school these are photos of her from the past week or so and she is still so small, stocky even! but so not ready, she has no idea about pop music or fashion or any of the other stuff you need to navigate the playground she still likes animals and the thing that is occupying her mind this week is getting in a hot air balloon so she can have some experience of flying.

Flying and animals - shes gonna get crushed out there...........

I know, a whole lazy summer at home, she will be miles a head in her development by September and if she isn't she could probably do with the push she is so clearly going to get.

CM

My Eldest is Four

Truly

Her MerMouse

New Kite and Rash

when she was feeling a bit rubbish this week i put her to bed and told her how much i love her and that she was my most precious thing, blah blah and that my heart was just so full of love for her.
"its not all about you" she whispered back
i did really laugh

mermouse has been a big hit this week, shes been everywhere and the dinosaur, (shes holding the plastic egg in her other had) well we thought it was pretty much hatched and then daddy just had to check with a hammer and bust it from its casing, it has an under developed foot so he left it in a pint of water to see if it could be fixed but no. i think she was hoping for an actual dino, so think it might see the bin soon if i get sick of moving or picking it up off the floor

yesterday she bought a kite with her dad, half term treat, and if there is wind today i fear i will be outside flying it with them, again its grey. she has a viral rash and has been unable to sleep it off which is our usual cure for it, it just keeps appearing Dr said come back monday if it still there, will see about that.

house need a spring clean i am in that annoying state of mind where i am too shattered to do it but it fucks me off to look at it

lets see how the day goes
regards CM