Happy Halloween

Well, it is quite early in the morning, but having taken my youngest son to bed at 8pm and snuggled beside him, I then, along with my hubby, fell asleep until gone 12, waking only briefly each time my older two came in to say "night night".

So now I am awake, and am really really hungry - I may just wake Hubby up and have a midnight feast, or a half past two feast.

Anyway, quickly posting about my thoughts on Halloween,  because over the years we have struggled with our consience about celebrating Halloween - mainly because of what other Christians have stated about it being an "evil devil worshiping cult type festival". 


 I dont think my children will become devil worshipers if they go out trick or treating, my older two haven't yet, and we have had such fun participating in the festival, and also it does bring local communties together.  (Egg throwing at windows from hooded youths excluded from this of course).

From Loyola Press

"Kids love holidays. Many parents do too. Holidays, such as Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Valentine's Day, remind us how special life is. They remind us that there's more to life than work and obligations, that life should be cherished and enjoyed. Catholics believe that God is present in all things and in all times. That means that every day on the calendar presents another opportunity to encounter and celebrate the presence of God in our lives. Holidays, whether specifically religious or not, are excellent times to engage in special activities and rituals that help us not only to observe the spirit of the day but also to make a connection between the holiday and our faith."


So, just thought I would say - we haven't turned to the dark side, just having good old fashioned family fun (now, where is that farm animal I need to sacrifice under the light of the moon for this evening then drink its blood.....)

Had to make an unscheduled trip into the City today - discovered yesterday that D's rugby boots had split, less than 48 hours before his County Trials!

Had lots of Halloween crafts planned, but will try and get most of them done tomorrow.  We did however make a start on a Halloween House, (out of a cardboard box) J painted it all black and D made a start on the roof.

So off we plodded, all of us of course as my older two are not sensible old enough to stay at home on their own yet. 

We stopped off at the Uni first, lovely walk amongst the Autumn leaves, and popped in to see Mother of Mine at a Restaurant she manages.   A nice surprise -  she treated us all to lunch - I had Turkey with Port Gravy, so did J (he loves roasted chicken and turkey because of the skin) and B and D had Pork with a lovely sauce (forgotten what it was) but it looked nice.  To top that off we got dessert too - rocky road type cake for me with clotted cream, same for the older two, and J opted for apple and toffee crumble with cream - it was all very nice.

Walked it all off afterwards by trekking into town - silly me wore boots without socks so I blistered (I hate wearing socks - at a push I will wear them if the temperature drops below minus 20).  Hubby finished work at 2pm, so met us to help with the arduous task of boot buying.  D has really wide feet, and as Clarkes do not sell rugby boots, it is always difficult to find boots that fit him.  Found some for £50 (with £4 off from our loyalty card) and my Dad treated him so not so hard on the purse strings :-)

Back home - curry for tea - love my slow cooker, then J went to play on the Xbox with his Dad, which is when I get time to spend with my teen and pre-teen.  We sat and watched the updates on Hurricane Sandy, then they put the Top 40 on,  - and I was lost.  I really am getting old.
They then helped with the roof for the haunted house, which is proving to be a bit tricky.  Hopefully it will be ready in time for Halloween.

Found some great sites for Halloween craft - Small Potatoes has 100+ Spooktacular Halloween Ideas for kids, lots and lots of brilliant crafts to do. Think I am going to go with what I have in the house.

So making spooky lanterns

Tissue Paper Mummies

Ghost, Bat and Spider cakes from Cakes and Scribbles

Skeleton Craft

And carving and painting pumpkins.


J is so excited, and we still haven't got his outfit yet, as he keeps changing his mind - last time I heard he wanted to be a Devil - well how apt - he is a little Devil.

Happy Halloween Eve
xxxxx

We started Half Term last Monday, as with an impending move on the horizon, I needed to get quite a few things sorted, so decided to add an extra week to the holidays.

As well as organising house stuff, we have also been preparing for Halloween, well, J and me.  Think the older two just like the sweet eating part of the festival.  So as well as stopping off at Poundland to get scary decorations, we also started to make our own, and now have lots of home made paper pumpkins, witches, ghosts, bats and scary cats hanging from our ceiling.  Plus an actual pumpkin lighting up our Living Room.

We also had a Halloweeny theme at the HE Group this week, with lots of art and craft, dressing up, cake decorating and a Halloween hunt.

The weather has turned now and the clocks have now gone back so it really does feel like Winter is on its way.  No snow in this part of the country, but very very cold. 

This weekend we have been house hunting, not much luck yet, but we have only been looking for a week or so, so not disheartened just yet.

Onto next week - Halloween, County Rugby Trials, more packing and I think I may take up knitting.

Have a good week.

The Golden Gate Bridge

Despite the fact that it seems I never get much done, I seem to not stop for very long, but I never seem to be doing anything really productive. So it seems.

A woman I know is very efficient and extremely house proud.  She has two teenage children  and she works 4 days a week. I am in awe of her sometimes as everything is in order, and she is a stickler for keeping to her routines.   The complete opposite of me.

Yesterday morning I decided to write a list, from booking dentists and hair appointments, meal planning, laundry, type letters, post letters, make phone calls  - these were just a few things on my list, including typing a post on this blog as this is my "me" time as I find it relaxing and fulfilling.  Of course while I tackled the list, I still had to look after my 5 year old, and help my older two with their work.

Looking back on the list I  realised that each job was one of a bitty kind, nothing major, each one probably taking a few minutes each, the kind where until you have ticked off every job on the list, isn't very fulfilling. Also by the time you have ticked everything off the list, lots of other little jobs have built up again.

The woman I mentioned previously always tackles big projects, and is usually able to see the job through from start to finish without any interruptions and usually with help from her kids. Also her children are older.

I for instance, have just had to put the laptop down to go out to the kitchen to sort out a broken glass incident, then Danny wanted help starting his ICT, and to not go into too much detail, James is having toilet problems.

This is the kind of thing that happens on most days.

So I am glad that I always have a book on the go about raising families, as I re-read them and some times certain things surface from the muddle of my brain and make me think - a little:-

This is a chapter from Don't Sweat the Small Stuff with Your Family by Richard Carlson

Think of taking care of your home like painting the bridge.

"An architect once told me something that truly amazed me about the amount of work it took to maintain the Golden Gate Bridge in San Fransisco Bay Area.  He said the bridge is painted every day of the year.  In other words, by the time the work is done, its time to start over.  Its never done!  Instead, it's literally an ongoing process.  Furthermore, in the absence of this constant care, the bridge would be in jeopardy of expensive wear and tear as well as more cosmetic consequences.

One day it dawned on me that taking care of a home is much like painting this extraordinary bridge.  And thinking of it in these terms has been an enormous relief in my life.

Like most people, I used to get overwhelmed about the care and maintenance of our home.  If something was in need of repair or disorganised, it would make me nervous and frustrated.  Looking back, it seems that I was frustrated most of the time, because it seemed like something was always wrong with our home - a sink needed repair, a room needed paint, the attic needed cleaning, the dishes needed to be washed, a closet was a mess, weeds needed to be pulled, and so forth. It was as if I felt that  there would come a time when it would somehow all be done.  And, I fantasised, when it was finally finished, I'd be able to feel relaxed and satisfied.

Well, several years later, the house is till "in process".  the weeds still need to be pulled, the attic still gets messy, dishes are still in the sink and my daughters rooms need paint once again! In a way, its exactly like the Golden Gate Bridge,.  Its never done - and it never will be.  The only difference is that now I understand and have accepted this fact about having a home.

Looking at my home in this way has been a tremendous relief. Now, instead of panicking or overreacting when something isn't finished or needs to be done, I'm able to keep it in much better perspective.  I'm not suggesting that I don't work hard to keep things in good repair and orderly -I do, only I'm not nearly as attached to completing the project.

My guess is that if you look at your home in this way it will be a tremendous source of relief.  In all likelihood, you ll have even greater appreciation for the things that do get finished and less frustration over those things that dont."

Well, I am off now to paint my bridge x

Back on Blogger

Finally I am able to post - had problems with Google and other sites, so after having scanned and downloaded and deleted I am finally able to get back onto blogger.

It has been almost a month, so a brief update:-

Having the older two home has not been that much of a difference, since they were home during the holidays. Getting into a routine for their learning during the day has been a bit harder, mainly due to Mike starting a new job and starting new shifts.
This week starts a regular shift pattern so we have come up with a new routine (over at My Home Education Diary Blog ).

We have been to the "Not Back to School Picnic" at Dawlish Warren Beach - quite a wet and windy day, but we all enjoyed it.

The Rugby season has started. All going well, played 3 won 3 with Danny scoring a Try at the last match. At the first match a few weeks ago it was boiling hot, the next match a bit colder, last Sunday it was freezing cold, with wind and rain.  So it looks like we will not be getting the Indian Summer we first thought,

So I have finally put all the summer clothes into storage, and am now in the process of getting the children sorted out for winter. Becky was first on the list, having one jumper for winter, and not even a winter coat. After searching the shops for a coat that is suitable for her height, we found a lovely duffle coat, bright red. 

Now, I never thought I would say "lovely" and "duffle coat" in the same sentence.  Having had a hideous brown duffle coat when I was a child, which I hated, I have kind of had a phobia against this type of coat since.  But as my winter coat ripped last year, it maybe that I will be seen once again, 33 years later, wearing a duffle coat.

(just a quick note as my mother reads this blog -  it didn't ruin my childhood, and it was warm, and everyone had to wear one whether they liked it or not - it was the seventies after all) (still have issues about being made to eat faggots though).

Moving on.

Home Ed Group today, looks like it is a rough old day out there, but guess we will brave it.

Louise

Not Back to School

For any of my children.

Now Danny has made the decision not go back,

To say I am pleased is an understatement.


So - have spent the last few days organising stuff for him, and at James's request worksheets for him too.

I sent the de-registrations letters off, and I emailed a copy to the Head.  He has replied today, acknowledging my request, and to ask if I would like to discuss with him why I have made this decision.  Quite happy to fill him in on a few things.

Anyway.

Today we all went on our first Home Ed Trip since the last time all my children were home educated, around a year ago.

Teignmouth Park

Hot Hot Hot - thankfully they had a splash zone there to cool down, oh and a beach, but we were not equipped for that, although Becky did go for a paddle in her jeans.

Photos from today

Lovely day x