A less detailed post than my head wants to put on here, but the computer’s automatic thought reader has yet to be installed and extreme exhaustion due to teething toddler and a gammy wrist are limiting me somewhat!!!

Yesterday I got the train with the children into Birmingham to head to the Home Educator meeting in central library (via the farmer’s market ). We then wandered into Pigeon Park (aka St Phillips Cathedral graveyard lol!) for the Not Back to School Picnic. (For those not familiar, a quote from the leaflets being handed out at the innumerable picnics all over the country -

“A picnic is very different from a formal meal with limited menu and everyone sitting at a table – children at a picnic choose what to eat and in what order, they run off and play between bites – and often the food seems to taste all the better for being eaten outside in this way.

Home education is very different from school – children are able to learn in a less formal way. They may sometimes choose to be out and about – at museums, nature reserves, taking their books to the park – at other times they might prefer a DVD and the chance to ask lots of questions about it with a parent – or again at another time they might like to learn from hands-on activities and making things.

All these different approaches  ( and more) work really well, when children have choice in how they learn. When they have the chance to learn like this, children tend to learn quickly and to enjoy learning very much.”)

There was a good turnout and the children enjoyed the bubble blowing (done for attention to our cause, but they just had fun lol!). I was pleased to meet another couple of ladies with younger boys. It warms my heart to see the children running off confidently from me and playing with children of all ages, and to meet wonderful parents to chat with who think like myself.

I’ll gloss over the disasters of the day (flooding train with my coffee, retracing steps after lost doll’s hat, then lost doll, bag splitting everywhere yada yada…) and say it was a great day with happy children running free as children should. It was rounded off with a wonderful curry at Induz with Rich whilst Mom and Dad babysat (and paid!) Great to spend some time together as a teething toddler and Rich’s workload have meant we’ve barely seen each other recently.

Today we went to Dudley Zoo and Castle with Nanny and Grandad. A fantastic day seeing wonderful animals, riding on the land train and just enjoying life. I do have to say though that Dudley Zoo is a shambles. The adventure playground is overgrown and dangerous, the paths and walls crumbling and peeling, the entrance fee extortionate for such a rundown place. They have upped the standards of care for the animals thankfully, but the actual place is a pit! The children had a wonderful day being with their favourite people though, and don’t seem to notice things like that. They particularly enjoyed the walk through Monkey Tails, with free monkeys climbing around you, meerkats, otters and fish. They also enjoyed the lemur walk through and, of course, Alfie’s favourite giraffes lol! Climbing the castle tower was also a highlight A fantastic day indeed