A sponge

Isabella is still soaking so much info in at the moment. I am also learning so much, I am going to try and find a course to go on, it is a shame there isn't a course we can both go on at the same time! Any ideas anyone?

Download please

Please go onto itunes and download Isabellas Christmas hit it is called "Whatevers good at Christmas" featuring Bill Oddie and Jelly. It is really lovely.

Jealousy

I am really sorry to say this but everything is still going really well. We were supposed to be away over the next three days with friends but they have caught the virus which is going round schools etc. Fortunately we have missd this virus, anyway, yesterday we met Charlie for lunch and then walked down South Bank to The Tate. It was such fun and we both recognised styles that we had seen in New York and remembered the artists names. I felt quite cultured!

Can we play now

Isabella surprises me more and more everyday. How do our children know how to use technology? She is able to use an iphone, an ipod our digital camera. She knows how to put on music and download things. She can turn my laptop on and google things or play on the internet. I remember saying when I was younger that as soon as I didn't understand technology then I was old. I believe I am at that stage!

Playdates

After Christmas we are going to try and have regular playdates, I thought this would be easy to arrange but it is amazing how may parents are trying to give their children the best, by doing after school clubs. I think it is wonderful that these parents are so dedicated to their children and are wanting to help them participate in activities that they want to try. As long as children have a happy medium to play and learn then why not. Good luck to all those mums that have more than one child and are doing the best for their children.

Don't let anyone put you off

I have just written another article about "The importance of nursery and early years education in a childs life." There was an article in The Times Educational Supplement also saying this was true. It was maybe even more important than we first thought. The benefits that children get from early years educational support can be seen when they are as old as 12 through their marks and grades at school.

Multiplication etc

We have learnt nearly all our times tables and we do this by singing them to a tune that Isabella is familiar with. We have then moved on to sharing or dividing and learning that this is the inverse way of a times table. We call this technique "magic" It is amazing how much Isabella wants to do "magic!"

What else to say

I really don't know what else to say. Our life has changed dramatically over this last year with Cbeebies and I never thought we would be where we are. I don't want to appear perfect when I talk about our life. But at the moment there is nothing to say except it is going well. We obviously have down times, but in comparison with the down times that occured before by rushing to and from school these are now a lot less. Isabella is happy and that is our main priority.

Time flies when you're having fun

We have had a wonderful couple of weeks again. We were able to visit family and go away for a few days. She has also had lots of playdates and everyone is very excited about Christmas! I am still convinced that the decision we have made is the correct one for now. We are enjoying our winter lie ins. So far our day unfolds like this. In bed reading from 8-9am. Breakfast and then work-maths and english till10.30am, followed by an outing or an activity or a club. We are both relaxing alot more and really enjoying a slower pace of life.

A wonderful experience

Last week we went to a home schooling group. It was filled with mainly boys and a couple of girls varying in age from 5 to 10. It was held in a village hall and the children spent two hours playing and making things. This session was by no means educational in the traditional sense but it was an absolute pleasure to watch all these children interact with children they knew and didn't know. They made things and had a lot of fun. The parents were also very welcoming and we really enjoyed ourselves. Isabella and I had great fun and we will definitely be returning. The social skills that the children had to use in this environment were very different to ones they may use at school. For one, Isabella was at an all girls school, so she astounded me by playing brilliantly with boys!

A friend needs help

A friend came and asked for my advice about their daughter at school. She has just started and is realising that even thought parents say they do nothing with their children before they start school, it is all made up and not true. Every parent works with their child and wants to make sure that they can cope with school. We just all teach them in different ways. So why is everyone so scared to say they do this. Why are the English so worried about being seen as wanting the best for their children or "pushy" as some people call it. Each child needs different help in different ways and I don't believe anyone that says they do nothing. So be proud of what you do for your child and help them.

A wobbly tooth

This is the first time Isabella has had a wobbly tooth. She doesn't like the feeling of it and is finding the thought of it quite difficult. However we have explained that the tooth fairy will visit her and leave something nice. In Richmond however I wonder how generous the tooth fairy really is!


When Isabella first started to cry about it we had to remind ourselves what it must be like and how scary it really is that your teeth might all fall out!

A Catch up

I am currently enjoying a Tuesday morning playing polly pockets, sylvanians and fairies! We have had a very busy weekend seeing friends and family. I have never known a child play so much for so long!

We have had news that a friend of ours has cancer and this has really brought home to us as a family how precious these family times are. So last night whilst putting up the Christmas tree with a very over excited little lady, we thought about how lucky we are and thought about what we hae. Sometime it takes something awful to remind us how lucky we are. It has therefore made me realise even more how priviliged I am to be able to spend such lovely time with my daughter before she grows up and is too cool for me.