G’s First Story

So today I asked G if he wanted me to write the story he was “writing”. As he can’t yet write he was scribbling on a piece of paper and describing the goings on that had just happened when he played with his figures.

He was absolutely ecstatic about it and I’ve read it to him multiple times now and we had storytime with Daddy after tea as well so he could hear it.

I’ve done punctuation as best I can, and at his request I put the right words in for the past tense because he’s still in that phase of language learning where he applies regular verb rules to all verbs.

Anyway, enjoy!

Level 1 – The New Battle
The encounter of the deep dark place. And what they have for army is candle throwers and fire men. And what they encountered, the big guy, was the Power Ranger and the big fist and the gun hand. And they encountered me with soldiers and a flick-rocker. And of course I had to encounter the red Power Ranger.

Level 2 – The Ever Hope
I re-encountered the leaping Power Ranger and we were in a big space about the size of a big cave and most of my soldiers are dead. I needed to have life, but I found a person to put out to kill zombies. But there was only one person and he killed one because he only had bullets. But then I found somebody to get him to make a big cannon. We will grow our men today. But now we shall be big to make my own fire bullets machine. And we shall do the biggest army ever against zombies ever to be seen. We shall kill the zombies because we have that machine.

Level 3 – The Army of Us
He didn’t encounter me first on level 3 because he didn’t want to be dead. He knew he would be dead. We are going to encounter his army for the dead against humans ever to be encountered ever. Zombies ever. They were too strong and we were sad because we weren’t the first ones to kill zombies. But I ran away. I would go back to the camp and see what it’s like to be dead because there would definitely be zombies there. There’s a big fortress so there will be lots of them so we will bring our big bullet machine and kill them. I killed the gun hand Power Ranger with the bullet machine and I bowed after.

Level 4 – The Army of Zombies
And we destroyed all the zombies finally, but there was only me left and I was so sad. Then I heard something, the sound of treasure. Then I found someone with treasure, with marble treasure, and we played marbles. Two each. We had a happy time, but then zombies came and my friend shot one but he died and I ran away. I found another friend and we went to that bullet machine to get protected because it’s the safest place because it can kill zombies to death. Then they bombed them. There was zombies coming but we killed them with the bullet machine. Then he ran away and I said, “Wait!” and then I ran to him because he was my only friend left because I knew he was the only one living. But he didn’t want to be with me. I put his marbles in a bag and he drove away and went home. And then his mum and dad were zombies and he died and then I killed the zombies and I was the only one living.

Old and Short-sighted

Sooo… as my glasses broke months ago and as my new Open Uni course has started (EA300 Children’s Literature) I figured I really should get some new glasses. Since I started wearing glasses at 16 I’ve had one slightly short-sighted eye and one slightly-longsighted eye. I liked this! But now the long-sighted one has also become slightly short-sighted. Also, for the first time I actually bothered to look at my glasses prescription and find out what it means and I also have a slight astigmatism in the originally short-sighted eye. Of course it’s not like I’m very short-sighted, but I am short-sighted, not quirkily both!

Then…. THEN… to add insult to injury the guy who does the glasses fitting thing had a flirty manner. He was about 21 or something and he was flirting in that way I’ve seen young guys do with older women, for practise, or to make the old cows feel better or something. Whatever the reason I am apparently bloody old! I will now go and cry into my Tena Lady… it absorbs well.

edited to add: The Tena Lady reference was for comedic effect, I don’t actually use them… of course it’s my birthday next month so who knows what the future holds

Lighting a Candle

Well it was back to PE at the YMCA for G, then some of us went to the Arboretum for a picnic. After that Karen and I took our kids to the Cathedral as it was free entry for Lincolnshire Day. G went straight to the little chapel near the entrance, lit a candle, put it in the sand, clasped his hands together and closed his eyes, and barely audibly he asked for GP to get better

The good news is that my Father-in-Law is getting better! Well he always was slowly, but he’s seemed to really turn a corner. A few days ago when we Skyped Nick and I were both really surprised at how well he suddenly looked! Was wonderful! And the good news is that they are planning that he will be out of hospital on October 15th and so at home for our trip to the US on October 26th! It is certainly a relief. We are actually relieved summer is over in this house! As Nick was so distracted by the situation he didn’t get on that great at work, thus piling misery on top of misery. Glad it’s all in the past now!

Butlins 2009

What I can say categorically is that the weather was much better than last year! Oh sure, there was one good day last year, and maybe one okay one, but mostly there was rain:

But this year I even got sunburnt!

I will start off with what I consider the cutest moment of the trip:

G paid £1 from his spending money for his cuddly dog to have a ride! He also bought the dog, Rainbow. It’s the Skyline Gang’s new dog… yes, some poor person has to dress up in a gigantic dog costume and hang out with them! Here is Rainbow watching pool:

G is also wearing his Dude hat as Dude from the Skyline Gang wears his. Dude is his favourite!

With spending money from us and Grandma & GP Gwire had the princely sum of £5 a day to spend. I think he ran out of toys to buy in the end! Although I bought him his other cuddly which he called Sky Bear, after the Skyline Gang of course!

This was helpful as a commiseration present because when my Mum and I met back up with FP and G that day I found out he’d been kicked in the chest by an older boy, badly enough to be winded. It happened at the play area of the Sun and Moon pub and it soon became a running joke as we passed the place saying, “Shall we stop off at the Sun and Moon for a kick in the chest,” as G found this absolutely hilarious!

The most strenuous day was when we walked along the front and my Mum’s scooter got stuck in the sand and we had to push it:

It was highly amusing! At least there was a good reason for it. One time when she visited us and I rented a scooter we forgot to charge it and I had to push it and her down from the shops in a nonchalant manner

There was of course lots of this going on:

(that’s Fin the raccoon he’s holding)

And balanced meals :

(no he didn’t eat it all, but had a good try, and also had a few bits out of the napkin!)

We went swimming most mornings, G is such a water baby like his daddy, and spent some time on the beach every day.

(Well I was going to write more, but then came down with an ear infection and so didn’t bother and this post has lounged for ages in my drafts area so I will just post it!)

A Normal Home Ed Day

(I haven’t written about the holiday as I’ve been ill for the past 4 days! Trip report will happen soon!)

Today G and I got back into the swing of things, a body and food question just after breakfast led to the getting out of books and reading all about the digestion system… again Seriously, there is nothing that delights him more than food (oh glorious food) and poop (oh the hilarity!). Over summer I nabbed the most relevant for him books from a series in a charity shop called “How My Body Works”. Some parts are currently beyond him, but that’s good, they’ll last! Plus, the digestion book goes beyond his last well read and loved book on digestion!

Then we went out for a 2 1/2 hour walk in Hartsholme. It was lovely and warm in the sun, and chilly when clouds came, so most wonderfully autumn! It was also fabulous for me to get out as I’d been in for 4 days and was going stir crazy by this morning! As we’ve spent so much time going for walks in the park G now joins in with the “Good mornings” with the dog walkers How’s that for socialisation Many things were noticed, things were learnt, and almost the last of his holiday money was spent, on an ice-lolly and duck food. Even mentally working out how much money he had left! And quickly! He really does amaze me. He’d had £1.50 and asked how much the ice lolly was, I said “90p” and he just went, “So I have 60p left”. The same this afternoon when I wanted some quiet time and I said I wouldn’t be doing anything with him until 1.15pm. So when he asked how much time there was left and I said 2 minutes he said, “So it’s 1.13 already”. I guess I can tick some mental arithmetic off for today as well!

After lunch he presented me with the book about kidneys and the one about teeth to read to him. Then there was a short-lived “magnetix wars” game, that’s where we build up vehicles with the pre-school magnetix and then sit at opposite sides of the living room and smash them into each other to see which works and which wins. Some physics talking goes on! But then I was absolutely shattered so I put on the Good Food channel and had a nap. G loves cooking shows, he’s watched Masterchef with us for as long as he can remember!

After that it was some Dr Who watching and now he’s playing out on the street with his friends.

It’s good to get back to the normal rhythms of our day after summer, although I have to get used to the phenomenon which I will henceforth refer to as the September Stare. As the year progresses I tend not to notice that extra long, puzzled look G gets as I can see them thinking, why is that child not at school.

Home sweet home!

Okay, I still wish I was on holiday, who wouldn’t! But it’s nice to relax and do nothing… at least for a day!

I cannot be bothered sorting and uploading photographs today, nor writing a more in depth blog post about it!

Butlins!!!

Holiday tomorrow! WOOT!!! FP, G, and my Mum. Best Friend is already there. Going to be a lot of fun!

I have set up my phone to send tweets with links to photographs. You can follow it from the link below:

My Twitter

Twitter does feed to my blog at the right hand side, but it’s only set up to show one tweet at a time because it gets too confusing otherwise.

I am hoping it doesn’t rain as much as it did on last year’s Butlins holiday!! But we had loads of fun even then so I’m sure it doesn’t matter too much! See y’all in a week!

11 Years!

Forgot! Last week FP and I knocked up 11 years of marriage!

Here is a post from last year when I actually did remember! LOL!

Aims and Outcomes

Aims: Get into town for 8:45am to be first in line for the cheap but good no appointment hairdressers. Get random foreign currency changed back into £’s for Butlins. Home before lunch.

Outcomes: Fourth in line for hairdressers as had entered the getting ready time warp at home and missed bus. Didn’t bother. Made a small boy exclaim, “All my dreams have come true!” (?!?) merely by presenting him with a mango and passion fruit frescato in Costa. Popped into clothing shop next door just to see what they might have in the sale. Camped out in changing room trying on shop’s whole stock. Bought 3 new tops and 2 pairs of jeans (for holiday!!). Failed to find shorts for Nick (I am not so selfish with clothing!) as all summer things are gone and men’s shops don’t have massive sale rails. Bumped into a friend and so spent ages chatting while the kids played. Bumped into another friend. Repeat. Remembered I needed a new watch battery for watch that’s been in my bag for months. Bought picnic lunch and went to Temple Gardens to eat it so small boy could play. Remembered still had to change money. Remembered to pick up watch. Checked hairdressers for length of queue. Got haircut. Home for 3:30pm

Lovely Day Trip

Lovely I say!

We went to Twinlakes with L & J and their 3 year old daughter, F. We met them through church and they are also an American/British couple Anyway, they had a voucher for the place so it only cost each family £11 to go, bargain! The place was perfect for younger children.

First we went to America (and that joke lasted all day!), which was a mini wild west town. The bank was great, there was a door to a safe in the back and you could get out that way because of a hole blasted in the back of it!

The it was on to a sand pit:

Then it was those dodgem type boats, some bouncy car type thing and rollercoaster:

As F was really too little to much enjoy such rides J was only too happy to steal our child

Then the kids played in the sand while us adults went on the pirate ship, well, except L who is 7 months pregnant! And yes, I went on the pirate ship, the second time right at one end! Normally I am too scared don’t enjoy the sensation and so I don’t bother, but FP was winding me up about being scared and I had informed everyone how Best Friend used to mercilessly take the piss out of me as we queued up for rides because I am pathetic might have had legitimate safety worries. Anyway, the second time I got FP to take a photo of me on my phone to send to Best Friend, she couldn’t believe it… and says I can go on all the rides when we go to Butlins next week… bugger.

Then there was time in the soft play area before wasp wrestling our picnic lunch. G’s first time down one of those big bumpy slides was hilarious! He ended up nearly horizontal and taking off after each bump!

Next was the farm, of which G was initially dubious, but he ended up enjoying. And then it was the Maize Maze (I think they should’ve called it the amazing maize maze!).

Man of the corn!

Mazes always remind me of The Shining! And I got in the “if you build it they will come” quote too [smug]

Needless to say we got split up, FP, J, and the kids forging on ahead, apparently making it to a big clearing in the middle and still getting out before L and I!! We didn’t believe them about the clearing and both ended up asking clever questions of our respective children to check! LOL!

After that it was time to eat wasp attractors ice-creams and ice lollies and then take a walk around a dungeon

Which was actually a maze in the dark with a few creepy paintings on the wall. It actually became a bit creepy as it was bigger and more maze-y than I thought and I was glad to get out!

Then it was numerouos goes on the the horses,

time in a big fort and a ride on the teacups, which weren’t actually teacups but pine cones (G identified them, I didn’t have a clue!) and so we irritated and confused G by keep calling them teacups. But those rides always were teacups! Am definitely an Old Person now and will henceforth go on calling things by names they used to be called, even if they have absolutely no resemblance to them anymore!

Then we looked in the Creepy Crawly house before making our way over to Canada. Actually, I never saw the map and so the Canada thing might have been a joke as it was next to the bit called America! LOL! There it was the pedal boats and zip wire things:

A push from Daddy at one end:

Equals this at the other:

He loved them and went on loads of times.

After that L and I hung out at the sand pit where F wanted to play, while FP and J followed G to the go-karts and then they went on the “Texan” Adventure, which was an assault course.

Then it was time for home, we had been there 7 hours! It was a lot of fun and really nice to hang out with L and J