Jesus following, natural living, Somerset homeschooling mum to Acey. Here is our blog to share with family and friends and anyone else who might be interested, about our home ed journey.


John 13:34 - ''A new commandment I give unto you, That you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another.''

Monday 31 October 2011

Chutneys, pumpkins and halloween...

So we've had a rather good week :) Last week my mum was off work. Acey and I love it when his nanna is off work, as Acey enjoys spending time with her, and for me it is like I get to spend lots of lovely time with my best friend. On Thursday we all went to the farmer's market to get some delicious ingredients for our apple chutney, and then we had lots of fun (and did ALOT of chopping) making it!

                                                            Nanna's kitchen


On Saturday we got invited to a pumpkin party at the Living Light church. I brought my mum along as I am not a fan of going to events where there will be alot of people who I don't know on my own. We were all a bit shy at first, but everyone was so friendly, and Acey soon got into making foam pumpkins and decorating them with beady eyes and glitter paint :) There was facepainting and orange hairspraying too, and also some games, which Acey didn't want to participate in (I was quite thankful that he didn't want his hair sprayed orange I'll admit)... but he did have enormous fun decorating little cupcakes with orange icing and faces made out of sweeties. After the consumption of such an amount of sugar, he was not so shy anymore, and was zooming around telling everyone about his speed battery (one of the many reasons why I don't encourage sweetie eating...more on that in a minute..). Overall it was a really nice little event for the children, and they all had a little tea afterwards.

Yesterday we ended up going for a wonderful countryside walk with our friends Chrissy and Nancy and their two dogs, and our friend David came along too. There is nothing more wonderful than seeing Acey running around free in nature, it is outdoors where he feels most confident and himself. He did get very carried away sploshing in the puddles though, and so was a bit of a sorry state with wellies filled with water and wet trousers on the way back!! We did a slight spot of whortleberry foraging too (they were delicious)!


                                           One little fairy and one little pixie playing by the tree
The beautiful Somerset countryside where little ones can run wild and free with the sheep :)

When we got home from our walk we made some lovely warm pumpkin soup to eat with our friend David. And yes I do say 'eat' soup instead of 'drink' as we came to the conclusion that people who say that they 'drink' soup are the type of people who only drink those silly cuppa soups instead of the actual real wholesome stuff! ;)

And today it is Samhain, or 'halloween'.. I must admit that I am not a big fan of the occassion. As a child I never went 'trick or treating' and I don't really get it. It is times like this I sometimes do wonder why I have to question everything and why can't I just let my little one go out and enjoy the night, armed with an empty bag ready to fill with sweeties from strangers. Well, for one thing I really cannot stand the array of costumes and sticky facepaints and other gimmicky rubbish that lines the shelves in the stores. It is a waste of money! And WHY would I want to send my little one to eat all of those sweeties?!! Maybe I would feel differently if people instead handed out apples, or roasted chestnuts or something a bit seasonal and homely. Why does it have to involve all of the sugar and E-numbers? A sugar rush followed by a terrible slump (as I learnt on Saturday) are no treat for any of us! Are the children getting tricked into what is a 'treat?'

Mean mummy or Mindful mummy? You decide...


Our loveheart pumpkin <3

Time for Acey's bedtime massage by pumpkinlight now I think...
Love and Samhain blessings to all xx

Wednesday 26 October 2011

A mid week blog - soup with Nanna, a spooky birthday party and foraging with Annabelle

I was hoping to start writing this blog on more of a weekly basis, but this week we have quite a few photos to share, and I fear that I would have not the room on an end of week blog! So far this week...

Monday was spent with my mum. We made some delicious butternut squash soup and then made some little christmas decorations - some little felt things to hang on the tree. Acey had fun drawing,cutting out and sticking the loveheart shapes for his and then sticking lovely pretty red beads on them and glitter glue. They look very pretty;

                                           He also made a halloween bat too!

My little star creation (my sewing skills are minimal)

Yesterday we randomly got invited to Noah's birthday party, so did not go to home ed grop.. It was halloween themed dress up and it was quite sweet - there were exactly; two little pirates (Acey and Noah), two little witches and two little skeletons. Lots of fun was had...

                                                    blowing out FOUR candles on the cake :)

Today we went for a lovely walk in Broomfield woods with our dear friend Annabelle who is due to give birth soon. She wanted to take a walk to try to 'speed things up'... this is one of my favourite places...



Such a beautiful view of the sea (kilve I think?) and the quantocks

                                  
And armed with our Richard Mabey's food for free book we did a spot of foraging too. Here our some delicious beech nuts we gathered. It was a lovely walk with Annabelle and Sam the bump!

Now it's time to snuggle up with our redbush citrus tea and toffee apple before we prepare dinner.
Autumn sparkkles xx


Sunday 23 October 2011

The joys of having a home-ed family around the corner, and baking on a sunday afternoon...

Picture the scene; you walk out of your front door of your  flat and get stopped by your nosey neighbour, who asks why your child doesn't go to school...when you tell him you are home educating he recoils in horror and asks if it is legal, and 'haven't people been sent down for that?'... (yeah I know right)?... you walk to your local shop, passing by a local secondary school and nearly get trampled by a load of blazers. You go to your local park and yours is the only child in the playground over the age of four (unless you end up getting jarred to smitherines by some local truanting schoolboys who try to teach your child to swear)... and you don't drive, so you can't escape very far for very often. Now imagine that you suddenly find out there is a mother and father of four living just around the corner who have Taken Their Children Out Of School!!! Just around the corner!! :) On Wednesday our lovely friend Annabelle and her bump payed us a visit and we all went around to visit them. Esther and her partner are wonderful and Acey loved playing with her children, especially Rhys who is seven. So yes, it is a brilliant thing to have some home educated children just around the corner!!!

Tuesday at home ed group was very seasonal - the children made beautiful leaf crowns and masks, and pretty leaf rubbings. Acey did make a small mask, although alas his heart was not really into it this week, as he just wanted to run around with his tomboy friends. How very handy it is to have a playground right next to the village hall!




On Thursday we did alot of spelling... Esther gave us some magnetic flash cards with different words that children can learn to spell and put into sentences. I have cut them up and put them in a little wooden box so Acey can pick words out at random and learn them. He is so good at reading and sounding out words, and the fact that he has taught himself pretty much by asking questions and sounding letters out really proves that children do not need teachers; they simply need gentle nurturing guidance in life and the freedom to learn what they want when they want how they want. Then it all becomes so much fun.

Today has been a typical boring sunday, so we decided to do some baking of jam tarts... you can tell we're mostly raw now because whenever we try to 'cook' anything, it never comes out perfectly anymore through lack of practice. ;) They were more like bramble jelly fairy swimming pools, but hey, they still tasted alright. My one naughty thing before juice feasting this week.


Acey stayed at his nanna's on friday and so I spent my time going to Hestercombe gardens with a friend, reading my mermaids and mythology magazine which is THE BEST and knitting...


This is the 'mermaid' shawl I have been knitting for quite a while now.

And so next week Acey's nanna is off work and we shall probably have a crafty week getting ready for christmas, making chutneys for people and getting the sewing machine out. Can't wait; I love preparing for the wintertime :)

Wednesday 19 October 2011

October so far...



''...I knew when Autumn came -
Not by the crimson flame
Of leaves that lapped the eaves
Or mist
In amethyst
And opal-tinted weaves;
But because there were alley-taws
(punctual as hips and haws)
On the counter at Mrs Shaws...''

This is a poem from one of Acey's books and we have been repeating it rather alot. Well, I finally got a new camera! (it's pink) So here are some pictures of our autumn so far - have still stolen a couple and some were taken from my phone...

I turned 24; my wonderful friends had a gathering for me in their beautiful farmhouse garden the day before, where Acey enjoyed playing with his friend Jacob, and then on my birthday we went to Bristol where my dad and step-mother prepared a grand feast! It was beautifully sunny weather, and nice to actually sit out in some gardens (we don't have one)!

(Acey and his nanna)



We have collected lots of conkers, and Acey enjoyed making conker necklaces and a conker cat at home ed group the previous week;




...And then going for a walk at Fyne Court, where they had great fun playing with the wooden instrument!



We had to put Giraffe into hospital, as Acey had been taking alot of aggression out on him rather alot (he needs surgery of the needle and thread variety, and lots of cuddles but I think he will survive)!

We said goodbye to our lovely Marcus who has gone to Jamaica for six months...

we've been for a run (well Acey ran, I walked)...

Acey has FINALLY discovered that he loves salad, and wants to become a raw foodist

He is also learning to play the guitar with his own proper mini electric one (soo cute)...


last weekend there was a history event on in town, where we saw some interesting people in costumes, watched a lady doing some pretty weaving, and watched a sword re-enactment!! Acey was a bit more interested in running around and climbing on his grandad on this occasion though :)