Its been ages since I blogged anything here. I just havent had the time!
We've been to Center parcs with some fab HE friends and had a lovely time, despite the rain, saw lots of wildlife, rode bikes and swam lots. We spotted lots of birds, saw some deer, just yards from our villa and the kids all enjoyed trying some new things. G went tree treking! ( scary !) and Connor tried his hand at Archery and Badminton and was fairly good at both! We went to a wonderful session, chosen by I for her birthday treat where the children all held an owl and had a tiny one fly from glove to glove. They were thrilled,esp I who clearly was quite anxious at first about it but glowed with excitement as the bid sat quite happily on her glove( as I shivered with cold!)
It was wonderful swimming every day, L and I spent loads of time sitting in the jacuzzi, including a very memorable evening under the completely black, clear sky, dotted with twinkling stars as the kids swam and threw themselves down the rapids and slides!
Ive got some lovely pics which Ill add in a seperate post, it takes so long to upload them!

Chloe was in a car accident on the way back to school a fortnight ago. Described by the taxi driver at the time as "a little bump" Darren sent her off to school( the accident was less than a mile from our home), only for me to discover the next morning that it was rather more than that and since nobody thought to take her to hospital nor tell me she was in school unchecked!

To say I was furious was an understatement! School took her to hospital immediately I told them she hadnt been checked out and I collected her on tuesday morning and took her back to Center parcs with me. She was ok, a bit sore from whiplash but enjoyed spending time with her friends and swimming helped her back.
I was glad she was with me on the wednesday when she took herself off to bed and sobbed with shock for a couple of hours!
It later transpired the crash was fairly severe, the taxis doors had to be tied on and the car towed and the taxi driver lied to the police and told Chloe not to say anything about the other driver being on his mobile phone ( as we dont want to get him into trouble do we?) Turned out thats why she didnt contradict the drivers version to Darren, nor did she tell anyone how much her back hurt!

Darren went straight to the police, we have the insurance details at last( after several angry phone calls to the LEA transport people) and she will hopefully be able to have some physio while shes home on her easter holiday!
Needless to say no more taxis to school, I'll be taking her myself. Another family near us has offered to share lifts.

On the 16th Sophie was in a trampolining competition, her first at grade 4 ( where it starts to get quite serious- qualifying scores etc)
She did really well, completing all her routines, despite a major wobble the day before when she confessed she didnt feel at all confident and we spent 2 hours in work going over each part of her routine over and over!
It paid off and she got on on the day and looked calm and composed, coming a very respectable 6th place and winning a team gold medal! I was really proud of her and the head coach at her club has congratulated her since she she was utterly thrilled about. He's sparing with the compliments so she knows she really deserves the praise which is lovely for her. Shes worked so hard at it lately!

Ive had to go invite only on the blog because I wanted to share the video and it wasnt possible to password just the one post!
I think Ill probably be starting a blog on a different site in a few weeks and will take down the video, while leaving this blog as an open one and linking to the new one where I can protect posts with passwords if Im posting anything which isnt for public consumption!
If you know anyone who wants an invite then feel free to pass on my email and Ill add them. I dont want to be 'invite only' but understandably I also dont want random strangers seeing my DD in her leotard!

Storytelling

Today the home ed group was joined by a lady who came to talk about Native American Indians and who started off with a lovely story about a little Indian girl and spoke about life in Native American tribes, their culture and customs. It evolved into an interesting but more adult discussion after most of the children departed and left us discussing the political implications of years of decisions by the USA government and how these have affected the tribes in the alleged 'land of the free' ( ho ho where they aren't even allowed to vote) and face many social problems and challenges as a result.
Its made me want to find out more and Sophie is looking forward to the next session in a fortnight when they will be making dream catchers as Kate has found some incredible kits to make them. Ill be at Chloe's prize giving at school sadly/happily before shes home for a month( dunno which is it... drat and damnation that they are both on the same day!)
The kids did some work with MIL this morning on their lapbooks and maths. Sophie did some reading. Connor doesn't seem too keen again so I'm looking for some more books which will interest him. Im thinking of asking the library if they can order in some more Jeremy Strong Colour puffins books as they are the only ones which have really grabbed him so far.I cant afford to keep buying books and we don't have the space for them!

They both do some education City most days, completely off their own backs usually, Im so glad I subscribed, they are learning lots of new things which would probably scare them witless if presented in books, they'd just play the "too hard, dont understand" card until I gave in! This way they focus more on "I need to know this to get the answers right in the quiz"

I bought a star chart(Sophie's idea) from WHSmith and have written in their tasks for the day on it. So far its working, they like the magnetic stars and completing as many as they can each day. I don't know how long it will last but so far so good!

Ive downloaded the Thinking Worlds software http://www.thinkingworlds.com/default.aspx
and the kids have started to explore it. Connor is a little young for it yet I think but I hope they will both enjoy it in time. Its an interactive learning environment like SIMS or Second life but it isn't online so no danger of them 'meeting' unsavoury people or coming accross anything you would rather they didnt! Your character interacts with characters in the game and download individual topics( were exploring the Tudors and the Solar system so far!) which provide challenges to be completed as you explore the world and interact with the characters in order to work through the adventure and earn gold which can be spent on outfits,accessories etc from the virtual shop. I think teens would really enjoy it, I'm certainly finding it interesting and challenging!

Now I'm off to clean the rabbits out before I collapse with a glass of wine!

We're Back!

And again Ive not blogged for a while, Ive just been far too busy!

London went really well, we visited the Museum of Childhood in Bethnal Green where we had a lovely few hours exploring and Sophie had loads of fun designing a futuristic bedroom, making a mothers day card,performing a puppet show, riding a rocking horse and of course looking at all the lovely toys on display dating from as far back as 1600!. It was a lovely trip down memory lane for me too as lots of the toys I remember from my childhood are on display!

We left and found our hotel easily... that was where the 'fun' started.. we chose a travelodge because you get a good quality, clean and basic standard room.. wrong! We changed rooms a total of 4 times, each was dirty, in poor repair and two were frankly dangerous. Finally we stayed in the last we were given because poor Soph was exhausted and tearful and we had spent almost 3 hours changing rooms and sitting in reception!

However all was forgotten next day as we went to Kiscape near victora station for her course. She was apprehensive ( as was I) but the staff quickly shepherded everyone to the course venue and sent the parents on their way!

We all met up for lunch ( pizza!) after Id spent a pleasant morning with a couple of lovely mums having coffee and a walk to Buckingham palace and I discovered my bank card was missing(later turned up at the hotel necessitating an hours return trip by tube to get it- so soph didnt get to see Buckingham palace after wards after all!)

The course was well worth going on. Kidscape are very supportive of home education and recommended at the parents session after lunch that two children the same age as Sophie should perhaps be withdrawn immediately and home educated until September at least. I was told we did the right thing for her at the right time and we should be proud of ourselves for taking the step.

I think it really helped for her to meet other children facing the same stuff as she was/is and I hope she will have learned the skills she needs to feel confident enough to return to school is thats what she wants at any point in the future. They also gave all the parents lots of good advice on how to handle schools, how to take control and say "You are paid to care for and educate my child and I will make you do that if you think you can shirk that responsibility"

Id recommend anyone to approach kidscape if their child is being bullied, I really can't recommend them highly enough! ( the pizza was great too):-)

After the course there were a few hours free before the train home and we were intending to meet a friend for dinner but his meeting overran so we spent some time exploring trafalgar square( pic taken by soph above) and Covent Garden where she enjoyed the shops and market, even though the street entertainers had gone home. Shes desperate to get a 'mind the gap' T shirt but didnt find one! We just missed our friend by minutes when we left, his meeting ended 90 mins late as we got the tube to paddington! Totally frustrating and very disappointing, weve not met up for a long time :(

This week Ive been working lots,Work are fantastic and have offered me early shifts which finish mid morning so I dont have to leave them for too long. Im pretty tired though, up at 6 and working all day and evening in some capacity!( paid work, kids, home ed, housework etc) Then I sleep for a bit and it all starts over! I hope we can find some time to spend with friends next week and over easter. I feel like I havent seen anyone recently :(

The kids been doing some lapbooking on an Easter theme with MIL and doing their maths workbooks. Both are really enjoying Education City and Im so glad I took out the subscription!.Connors very into brainy Blocks which were mine when I was small but mum kept! Its very difficult for him but so far so good. A few pieces are missing so I may invest in some more, Ive discovered they are still made! He's really trying hard with his speech therapy and is keen to learn to ride his bike so asked for a set of stabilizers so he can practice next week when we go away.

Sophies been working hard on her Y5 maths, shes intent on finishing her books by the end of March Shes struggling with her tables and Im at a loss as to know how to move ahead in that area! however when she started home ed in June last year she couldnt do the Y5 work at all( despite being in Y5) so I am really pleased shes decided she wants to be getting into Y6 work soon she seems to feel a pressure ( certainly not from me) to get up to where she 'should' be. Her friend from school who she still sees regularly is brilliant at maths so I think theres some comparing happening!

Shes hoping we can do lots more cooking in the next few weeks so that she can add some recipes to her new blog( yet to be published) and shes practcing hard for her forthcoming trampolining competition. Its her first one at Grade 4 and shes worked so hard to get to the standard and now to make her routines even better. Im so proud of her, its a huge boost for her confidence too to realise she can put the work in and see the results. I dont think shes really been able to do that before. Shes enjoying ( between sobs) 'The Butterfly Lion' by Michael Morpurgo.

Right... time for bed, before it all starts over again... although tomorrow Home ed group has a native american storyteller coming and Im really looking forward to it :)