In the morning we watched Frozen Planet and did some jobs.
Then later, as it was a lovely afternoon, we met friends at Trentham Gardens, played , climbed and chatted as we walked.
Sam found more conkers.
Selfies when borrowing my phone.
He knows I can't see the screen lol.
Sam enjoying the view
Owen singing the Titanic music.
Owen decided to take more photos as we walked round.
??????
More selfies
We were all waiting for him....
We all enjoyed an ice cream after our walk.
Blue ice cream, blue tongue.
The evening was surprisingly difficult despite a great day. Maybe they were tired, maybe it's because Blokey has to work away for a couple of days..but boy was I glad when it was bedtime.
The next morning got off to an equally difficult start....we went to our respective corners to lick our wounds. After a cooling off period we talked it through and still managed to leave the house in time for my eye appointment. Whilst out the boys were brilliant, so I took them to the cafe for a hot chocolate.
Another epic haul of books and Sam was delighted that his inter library loan had arrived. We headed back home for lunch. Sadly, they will miss jujitsu this week as I can't drive them there in the dark. They have been very gracious about it though.
Sam has decided to start and online diary and asked me to come and watch him out his first entry in..I wonder if he will keep up with it. It will be fun if he does.
Owen was up at 5 am, so I had another early start. He worked on maths first.
Then did some drawings/writing practice using Osmo.
Sam got up just afterwards and worked on Osmo numbers first.
Then did some drawing and colouring.
At this point we could see all the local children wandering sleepily to school...we had pretty much finished our structured work for the day 🙄😳. Can I say how tired I am? However, the really good thing I am finding with the Osmo format, is that it's one of the very rare occasions where the children will work independently ..although Sam likes me to sit with him. To see them self regulating and growing in confidence is always a bonus. I wonder if it will be an upwards trend now?
After lunch we met up with friends and spent a good few hours playing and chatting. When we got home the children ran off to the park to play with the local children. Then just as they were about to head to upstairs Blokey got home from his training course , so the boys were really happy he was there to say good night and tuck them into bed.
My goodness early mornings are proving stressful. Sam likes to unburden his monologue on Owen, whom in turn likes to quietly come round over his breakfast. *BOOMSHACKALACK!*
So every morning this week there has been shouting and tears..the children were upset too 😂🙈😢.
Today I explained it wasn't working and because they can't reach a compromise, they would have to have breakfast separately for the time being. 'Oh ok..that sounds fine'.
What?! No negotiation, no arguing..no changing the rules.....I opened and shut my mouth..this being one those times where I need to tiptoe away and do a mental air punch.
Sam wanted to do some maths on RM, then because he wants to earn some money, he requested a list of chores to do.
Maths....hmmmm...here he is ..he decided he couldn't work with any numbers, unless they were multiples of 100. As I can see a meltdown is brewing, I walk away..my jaw is tight but I manage to speak kind words. Apparently his back is broken..PDA in all its avoidant brilliance lol. So I encourage him to try and work alone. I explain I will be in the same room if he needs help.
He was very crumpled to start but after working out something solo, a huge beaming smile lights up his face. I am instructed to 'go away, I can do this'. I try to suppress a smirk. He beavers away for 20 mins and when I suggest a break he decides he wants to do more and works solidly for an hour with minimal input. BIG DEAL! VERY Big deal. He's on a roll and I can see a light bulb going on as he realises his capabilities. I get a huge, happy hug at the end. He then decides which chores to do and takes his list of tasks with him to work through.
Whilst all this magic was happening , Owen is engrossed in a documentary.
He rattles off all the things he found interesting and we share a snack . Then he sets to work on his maths. He's not feeling it today and faffs around a lot. Eventually he notices he's taking forever and engages his brain. The fact he was getting so many wrong starts to irritate his inner perfectionist. Everyone decides to brush their teeth whilst working on a maths equation ...yeah ?
Whilst this was going on, I was keeping my distance and watching out of the corner of my eye. I made a batch of bread dough for a loaf and Owen also requested bread sticks.
Our loaf turned out well too.
Later they played outside with their friends at the park. They seem to be developing a couple of good friendships, which is allowing them to relax with certain individuals. It's been rocky at times but I think they are working through it. They still struggle to understand the behaviour of younger peers, so I am trying to guide them through that still.
We worked on maths this morning before heading off for the boys eye tests.
You never know what you are going to get when you take the children anywhere. I was a little ( read a lot) apprehensive about going to the opticians for their eye tests today. They were hilarious and the optician took it all in good humour, which helped. Thankfully both children have no issues at all and rather enjoyed the experience.
Because they had managed well and had been so helpful, I treated them to a pub lunch afterwards.
I don't think my ears thanked me, because they both talked me to death. 😂😂
They enjoyed their food.
Which put them in a good enough frame of mind for me to suggest were did some grocery shopping. Normally wouldn't dream of taking them but it went really well and I bribed them with the chance to pick their own desserts. *evil laugh*. Owen was happy to find something t spend his pocket money on too...ANOTHER set of headphones.
Over the weekend they played out at the park with their friends a lot. We also worked on the camper van. It's really starting to look like a place to sleep and live in now. Sunday morning we took them swimming , Sam is still coaching me and I managed 22 lengths !
We then went to the DIY shop to get more camper supplies and then Blokey and I spend time working
On the camper whilst the boys played outside with their friends. It was a cold but sunny day, so it was nice we could all be outdoors.
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