Today

Today I tried to work out exactly how much sugar you need to add to homemade rhubarb crumble to make it edible. I got as far as half a bag of white and then (thinking I really needed to do the healthy thing) I added about a third of a bag of brown sugar (it was a big pot of stewed rhubarb). It's like when you make homemade jam and realise that the recipe requires 1lb of sugar for every 1lb of fruit. So much for a nice healthy alternative to shop-bought products.

Anyway, enough about jam and rhubarb.

Today it was hot. Yesterday it was hot. That's two whole days of hotness. No doubt we will have just acclimatised to this unusual summer weather when it will turn back into the sludgy greyness of a normal British summer. In the meantime I'm going to try not to complain about being hot. Honest, I really am.

The kids had a swimming birthday part to go to today so I sent dh along with them. I find swimming one of those things that is very difficult to enjoy. It bores me. I swim to the end of the pool and think 'Oh yeah, it's the end of the pool again, [yawn].' and then want to get out and go sit in a jaccuzzi (except that there isn't one). Still the kids enjoyed it and it was probably the best place to be on an unseasonably hot day.

While the kids went off and I had some peace and quiet I made headway into an article I'm writing for ThenUK. Somewhere along the line I seemed to have volunteered to edit their magazine. Perhaps I thought I had rather too much time on my hands [mad hysterical laughter as woman snorts into her red wine surrounded by piles of washing and an un-made house].

Yesterday I got up early and cycled on my rickety shopper to the allotment. I mostly cycled on the pavement as I'm not yet up to being released to the public roads. But it was early and the police were obviously still in bed and not bothering to harrass wobbly pavement-cyclists (either that or they saw the mad glint in my eye). The allotment looked pretty much as it did about a month ago when I last cycled and looked at it. Except that the weeds were taller. My, don't those weeds grow.

I made some feeble unsuccessful attempts at digging and then, because it was hot (see paragraph earlier) and the wheelbarrow tyre had deflated as usual and we're not allowed to put weeds on the allotment dump anymore so I didn't know what to do with them. So I cycled home, via the key-making person. I'm not sure where all the front door keys of the world go to, but probably the same place as all the odd socks. When you're down to one door key it's time to do something about it before the key fairy removes that last one.

It's ds2's birthday soon and I am in denial about needing to organise a party/outing/expense-fest. But it needs to be addressed and soon. Or birthday boy will be most displeased.

I have some catch-up to do about the kids' activities this past week. Mostly they involved fishing at the sailing club (Wednesday) and then yesterday ds2 did a sponsored walk, followed by bbq, canoeing, and waterpistol fight with siblings. I'm saying all this because the photos are on the other pc and if I don't get around to posting the photos up then I might forget to mention these things at all and then I'll look back one day and wonder what on earth we did in the week up to May 23rd.

So that's it. I'm going to go and continue being hot. Did I tell you it was a hot day?

Very quick catch up...more later

Ok, very very quick catch up. I started this post several days ago (hence the date - today is 1st March, not 27 Feb). Weather is gorgioso today so should really be outside, not hovering on internet. Here are some recent photos...

ds1 visited huge warhammer games workshop place...


ds1 helped make flags then tried out some semaphore at the sailing club. It's harder than you think!

Ds1 tried out the crayfish trap that he bought himself. We left it over night but no success. I think it's probably still a bit cold for them to be active.

The kids tidied up their den, repairing some of the holes and adding an extension (plus a whole load more moss)

Our first visit to the allotment since, well, too long. I tidied up the compost bins and laid down some weed suppressant to try and deter those spring weeds from beating me into submission. Still loads more to do, but at least at the moment it doesn't look so bad.

We joined up with friends to make ice cream Ancient Greek boats (and then ate them!):

Dd making a dalmation picture:

The Knex workshop I (yes I) organised! A real success. Perhaps more about this another time...

And the ongoing saga with the cardboard construction of a telescope...

Tubs, cobs and carrots

I intended posting up a few photos of our house-blitz, the decluttering frenzy, several days ago, but actually there's not alot to show for the days of work we've put in. Yes, the piles of stuff are less, and there is some sense of order in some areas, but, well, more decluttering needed methinks.

In amidst the decluttering dd and I decorated tubs with marbled paper that we'd made a few years back, with the idea of using them for pens, paint brushes etc. There's something a bit OCD about boxes and tubs with labels on, but it is oh so satisfying dont' you think? I think it's a sign that it's nearly Autumn; around the time I have an irresistable urge to buy stationery and colour-code the lego (or something else obsessional).

The kids spent Saturday having a sale of toys, books and games that they'd cleared out from their room. All day they sat at their stall outside our local corner shop, bless 'em. They'd made £18 by the end of the day, which , added to a further £11 I made from selling the educational items they were keen to clear out of the boys' bedroom (!), makes £29 in total (I'm good at maths, me). Anyway, they're planning to buy some gamecube controllers and memory card to enable them to play gamecube games on the Wii.

Allotment is productive at the moment, despite the weeds. Beetroot fab, carrots getting there (some carrot root fly, but not too bad so far), spring onions the size of golf balls, and new rows of mange tout and dwarf french beans coming along nice. Potatoes? Well I'm getting back more than I planted (just), which is a novelty lol.

The Italian courgette plants given to me by fellow allotmentee (yes, I didn't kill them off after all) are going into overdrive. Long crisp courgettes on climbing/trailing plants. And the plants seem resistant to moulds (so far). No way I'm going back to traditional British ones after this:

Successful carrots:

Sadly, the tomato plants which were looking so spectacular only a few weeks ago have been hit by blight and were destroyed almost overnight. If you live in a blight-free area and grow tomatoes then consider yourself lucky. I've been nurturing these plants since February and just when they get to the point of being productive the leaves turned brown, the plants collapsed and the fruit turned black and unusable. Same thing every year...

Tomato plants in July:

And tomato plants in August:

We've picked the sweetcorn, lovely sweet juicy cobs. Didn't bother to freeze much of it this time as the kids don't seem to like it once it's been frozen.

Some of our crop:

The leeks are looking poorly. Some I think have been hit by onion white rot, which has hampered our veg growth in previous years. Others are throwing up flower spikes so are mostly useless. It's a shame, as we rely on them as a staple winter veg, but the kids will be pleased that they wont be getting leek and potato soup every week!

I have other news too, including the boys' latest obsession in creating animations/games using the free software scratch, our new additions (fish) and the growth of our monster triops (still alive and swimming), oh and jam making sessions.

But maybe more of that tomorrow. I think I can see you yawning [am I boring you?]

Er. No title. Couldn't think of one.

Meet...

PRINCESS PAWS

(our family superhero)

She's pretty mean with a power drill

And with a bit of help from a masked marvel...

We have

THE CHICKEN COOP

complete with it's own back garden (no decking, but with a small water feature i.e. drink bowl)

and someone already has their beady eye on it...

'So that fat bird gets the new coop and I'm stuck with that old one. I'm going on strike!'

So, the coop was finished on Sunday, just in time for the eggies to arrive from Ebay on the Monday and be popped under Mrs Broody.

I had to pick up the eggies from the sorting office as the postman had stuffed a card through the letterbox (bring back my old postie, please!). No doubt the staff helped by chucking the box labelled 'fragile' around the sorting office, warming it with a blow torch, eating their lunch off it,before sticking it in the fridge [hmm...can you tell that post office staff aren't in my good books at the moment?].

Anyway we travelled back from the sorting office on Monday with the eggies on the centre seat between the boys while we drove for about half an hour to pick up dd from a play date. So there I am, yelling 'Mind the eggies! Mind the eggies!' as the boys are hitting each other over the heads with half-litre bottles of water. I do wonder sometimes if I am responsible enough to look after baby chicks...

Anyway, on the Monday we made candles. I'd picked up a large candle-making set from the local swap shop, which was mostly complete except for wicks (which dh bought in town).

It was all fairly straightforward: measuring out the wax, colouring it, melting it, putting in the wick, pouring wax in the mould, cooling the candle, topping up the mould with a bit more melted wax and voila...

Pretty cool eh? And almost for free (except for the cost of the wick). We love Swap shops.

Anyway in the afternoon I decided to give the children a few more hours forced labour lol (at the allotment). Actually I offered them some pocket money because it was a tough job. They had the task of clearing some of the weeds off our second plot, where the potatoes are. I never give my kids pocket money, don't really believe in it, so they were almost motivated.

And I have to say that it did look a lot better afterwards. I could even find some potatoes to dig up. Hopefully it will keep the allotment Weed Police at bay.

Ds2 used the extra pocket money and went and bought a lego star wars set today (Tuesday). He then lost one of the droids from the set at the sailing club. Ds2 admitted later that he'd 'dropped' it down one of the pockets in the pool table! [I have my suspicions about how 'accidental' this was, but would like to give my children the benefit of the doubt]. So this involved a return trip by dh and a slight dismantling of the pool table. And all ended well. It did. And I'm feeling calm. And tomorrow will be better.

Allotment dilemmas and a little poem about carrots

I've been looking back at the last time I posted anything about the allotment, 19 May I think. There is a lovely little video of dd sprinkling carrot seeds onto my nicely dug, weed-free soil.

I have an update...

Ok. Spot the carrots.

They're in there somewhere. Honest. Found them yet?

It's a bit like those 'Find Wally' books, except that carrots don't wear red stripey wollen hats and football scarves.

Clue: They're the ones with the frizzy leaves (not the groundsel, horsetail, chickweed, grass or thistle).

Am I entering the allotment contest this year ?(criteria: imaculate disease-free weed-free veg, edging trimmed with nail scissors to exactly 2 inches, must be owned by retired person with huge flagons of pesticide and weedkiller, willing to put in 10 hours a day of weeding and tilling and picking)

No.

In fact the allotment secretary didn't even ask me this year.

Phwarh! What do care? [big raspberry noise].

Anyway, here's a little poem I have written in my head as I am blogging.( Don't expect grand things)

The Little Carrot Poem

I had some little carrot seeds

I put them in the ground,

but when I came to dig them up,

no carrots could be found.

I know I had a row of them

I sowed them nice and straight

I watered them and sung to them

And then I had to wait

But when I came to find my veg,

The patch was tall and green

Horsetail, dandelions and grass

Were all that could be seen

I guess I should have weeded them

And given them more time

Cos then we have some carrots

On this dinner plate of mine!

Ok. Well I said not to expect grand things! No, I wont give up the day job.

I have another allotment issue. Rather embarrassing really.

A fellow allotmentee gave me some of her wonderful Italian courgette plants. The ones on her plot are doing fab - loads of big lush green leaves, lots of tendrils...

This is what the ones on my plot are doing:

Well, look on the bright side...they're not dead (yet).

But why does it have to be the ones she gave me?! I mean, look at my home grown courgette (planted next to the ones from her). It's positively thriving! It's going to be a monster!

Ok, so that's allotment dilemma no2 (no1 weeds, no2 killing off a neighbour's present)

No3 dilemma is how do you pick a bush of blackcurrants when 30% are fully ripe currants, 20% are semi-ripe and the rest are still green?

Why can't the blighters just all ripen together? What is it with them?! Are they deliberately trying to make work for me? !

By the time the non-ripe ones are ripe, the previously ripe ones will probably be over-ripe and fallen off. Am I to just sit for hours picking off individual currants?

(by the way, 'Yes' isn't an option)

Ok, having to do a very quick update again...whatever happened to my regular blogging habit??

So...we've been having a bit of a creative time...

..Painting
(so much nicer for mummies when it's warm enough to do it outside and the rain can clear it all up afterwards!):

Making chairs out of newspapers:



and yes, you could sit on it, just. Thought it best if I didn't try, that extra slice of fruit cake might just have done for it...

Making bionicle lego things:

Making pancakes (in pyjamas):

And cakes (when dressed):

Sowing seeds at the allotment.

Does that count as creative? We'll certainly have to be creative trying to find the carrots in amongst the weeds in a few months time.

And making a gazebo/pagoda/wooden thingy in response to my pathetic attempt to hitch up an old duvet cover over the garden table:

And now for the non-creative stuff:

Sword-fighting (should I categorise that under 'drama' or 'historical re-enactment'?)

Watching the professionals do it:

And saying hello to the nice man in charge of the horses:

The Rebel Forces are at work - and they're sat at the table!

Ok, ok, so it's been a while since I've posted.
And we've done loads of stuff (honest!).

So let's start with today..

ds1 started writing a letter to his penfriend this morning (it usually takes about a month of hard slog before he completes a page), ds2 did a few pages of his Miquon maths (all easy stuff at the moment) and dd decided she wanted to join in. So I had to rummage around and see if I could find something for her to do too. I'd thrown away most of the preschool educational stuff as I thought it was a bit pointless. And then I had a girl and realised that some under 6s can sit down for longer than 30 seconds without destroying everything in the immediate viccinity. Funny that...

And there we were, all sat at the table - yes, sat - SAT! - SITTING DOWN! - AT THE TABLE - doing worky - WORK! - sort of stuff. I wish I'd taken a photo, cos it's such a rare event in our house. But then one click of the camera would have spoiled it all wouldn't it?

Oh horrors! Am I really celebrating that my kids are doing what they're told to do? Am I really singing hooray because they are writing and doing workbooks? Hmm...my autonomous education body is turning in it's autonomous education grave. I guess balance will be restored to the universe in due course ('Help me Obi Wan Knobe, you're my only hope'). Watch this space.

And then around 9.30am a friend's kids came round and everyone plugged themselves into various electronic devices: computer, Wii, etc. But, hey, my children haven't come off the set of 'The Railway Children', so what else could I expect? As I said, balance will be restored to the universe, and in this case it only took about an hour (and the wrinkly guy with the pointy ears and a fondness for lightsabers didn't have to turn up after all)

In the afternoon ds1 went off to a friend's house, and later to an ongoing workshop thingy where he learns behind-the-scenes stage/theatre stuff [don't ask me what, cos I only get monosyllable replies when I ask him - it's his age, you know]. And the remainder of the circus troupe helped me put up beanpoles at the allotment. The beanpoles look very rustic (sorry no photo yet) as they are real willow poles from real willow trees that I chopped down (no, I didn't chop the tree down, just the poles you understand). I'm just hoping they don't start growing - willow has a reputation for this - as I don't think the allotment committee will appreciate 3 willow teepees growing on my plot! (They don't like children, so they certainly wont like willow sculptures. Sometimes you just know these sorts of things.)

And what other stuff have we been up to? Well lots. But until I load up the photos I wont remember it all.

So...be patient. I just need to upload some photos and then I'll tell you all about it.

Ok?

Are you sure?

Good.

May the force be with you.

Blog catchup..i.e. stuff we've done

So, what have we been doing?

Well lots of stuff, really. I'll start with an allotment update:

Rhubarb, up and happy.

Strawberry plants looking chirpy after a bit of TLC

Jack the dog, providing musical accompaniment to our allotment work...

...and being pacified (or smothered with a hug?) by dd

Blackcurrant bushes with lots of flower buds.

Digging progressing well...

...But not so well on the kids patch. I think we're going for the 'wild' look lol.

We visit a local museum:

And ds2 tries on a costume

Dd finds something to examine under the microscope
And the kids pose in the museum garden

And continuing on the Darwin and Evolution theme, we make fake fossils:

And guess who forgot to soak the bowl afterwards.

I'm still chipping the plaster of paris out...

And ds1 finds something else to do with the plasticine!

I've had a splurge on the internet and bought in some maths stuff for ds2 (yeah, I know, the autonomous educator in me is having a big blip):

The kids get to grips with the base ten set

Er..actually I don't think they're meant to be used like Lego

And we went to a party:

Ds2 makes a 'train' from a cardboard box