Easing us back in and unseasonal weather

Schools go back today and I have a dental appointment. By the time we get home the morning is half gone. Sam does some Conquer Maths but is easily frustrated by problems he can normal fly through. 

He's not himself and I suspect he's out of whack due to the change in routine.

Owen works on some Spanish but is much the same as Sam. I can see pushing anything right now, will cause further upset, so I cut my losses and crack on with chores. The children read and play games, watch some Manga. Later they play at the park with their friends.

The next morning I was up early to walk and surprised to find it had been snowing over night. I knew Sam would want to see it, so woke him up. He decided it was too good to miss and joined me on a cross country walk for 3.5km. Boy it was chilly but we enjoyed it. 

This put Sam in a very happy mood and contrary to the day before, he was up and running with his maths programme and enjoyed it so much he did 8 lessons. Next we looked at comprehension with Doctor Doolittle and he copied a page out of the book in his handwriting journal. Just a little bit a week is really making a difference and he is taking pride in his work.

When Owen got up we worked on his maths using RM whilst he ate his boiled egg. It's Tuesday and he is always a little keyed up, so it was slow going.

Afterwards he did the same English exercise that Sam had completed. He finds it a little more challenging to interpret the text verbally and in writing but he's making huge improvements.

Next he did his personal hygiene routine ( much improved this last few days) and checked on his giant snail.

In the evening the children play with friends locally until their ju jitsu class. Owen and I also look at sugar free alternatives that he may want to try. 

Sam was up early but in full on avoidance mode. He tries to push Blokey and me at breakneck speed because he's clearly got a bee in his bonnet about something. We explain we need to have our breakfast and I need a shower after running ..it's still only 6:30am. He refuses to wait till his meds kick in and starts his maths. It doesn't go well and he ends up in frustrated tears. After half an hour I have distracted him enough ( although that wasn't easy and tempers frayed initially), he starts again and flys through it all because now he can organise his thoughts. 

He's recapping on year 6 work before we start year 7. He's worrying about starting year 7, just because this is always what he does with anything new.

After maths he asks to work on Mystrey science.

He then draws a picture of the sun, moon and stars and goes off inspecting our wild bees.

We have a group of white tailed bumblebees making a nest in an empty hanging basket. We will need to relocate the BBQ but it's no biggie and we hope they have come from the bee hotel we made last year. I am glad to see they are still active after the snow yesterday but it's hard to catch them on camera.

Owen works on RM maths whilst he has his boiled egg and soldiers.

Then he wants to do some Mystery science too.

Afterwards he showers ( with no arguement *whoop*) and looks after his pet giant snail. The children did free play in the afternoon, reading and working on their own projects in Minecraft etc, then went to play with friends at the park till dinner time.

Unfortunately, there was some sort of misunderstanding whilst they were out, both came back frustrated and angry. Being tired didn't help matters and the evening descended into chaos. Both Blokey and I were exhausted by the time we got the children settled in bed. 

The following day Sam was up early and in a better frame of mind...if somewhat random and hard to pin down! He started his day with English comprehension and some writing practice. Today we looked at more Doctor Dolittle and a passage from Misty of Chincoteague.

We practiced our Spanish with Speekee. Sam is getting more confident with trying pronunciation now.

Owen worked more on RM maths:

And did the same English exercises as Sam:

Owen now realises when he gets his letter wrong and although it frustrates him, he manages to creep going and not give up on his work. This is a big improvement and tells me he is getting to grips with it all more.

The next day there was much excitement. Blokey was taking us all out to see Guardians of the Galaxy 2, in 3D at the IMAX. We went for lunch first and made an afternoon of it.

Lunch at Nandos was incredibly noisy but neither boy would wear their headphones. Oh no, they would much rather complain about the noise and expect everyone else in the place to be silent lol.

Owen hides behind the menu and Sam brightens up when he sees steak is available.

The film came next and it was AWESOME! All of us thoroughly enjoyed it and the 3D effects were fabulous too!

Saturday morning is spent going into town briefly and then playing back at home. Sam comes for a 5km walk with me and we explore some new public footpaths around the village.

Owen doesn't want to go out today. He embarrassed himself at the park and is nervous he will be teased. He camps out on his PC whilst Sam plays outside. I know that no amount of reassurance will persued him out, so am glad when his friend calls round to ask him to play. He brightened up immediately and shot off up the park.

Sunday is spent playing at home with Blokey at chess, on the Xbox and at the park with friends. We have a film evening before bed and both boys fall asleep without too much fuss.