Rediscovery, paint foraging and COLD

Ah, amazing how a good toy sort can reinvigorate play.   I sorted the play kitchen area out, and Rye zoned in like a bee to honey, and immediately set up tea parties for his imaginary friends.

He also asked to use Reading Eggs; he made the requested sentences easily, and is doing so much better at phonics.  He is a whole word reader to be honest, but as phonics can be so useful, I keep plugging away at sounding out words, and asking him to tell me what it sounds like I'm saying.  He's gone from being completely flummoxed to telling me nearly every word I sound out.  He is clearing picking it up and starting to hear the letter sounds in words. :-)

Along side indoor activities, I've been make a concerted effort to break our hibernation, we haven't been overly social lately, lots of indoorness.. and the beginnings of stagnation.  We've started to get on each other's nerves recently too, and it is simply because we haven't been getting out much.   Even just a wander of the road and play on the swings has helped enormously.

Yesterday though, it was our first Coastal Park trip of 2013.  Beautiful sunny day, if beginning to get cold.  I met up with my friend and her boys, she use to be Rye's childminder when I worked at the council.  Rye had a lovely time, and it was lovely to catch up with a friend I've not seen for months!

Today it was nature group, and I thought a good activity would be to go looking for leaves, etc and then mush it all up and see what colours we could get for "paint"..a nd then we'll do it again at various times of the years to get a record of what colours are possible during different seasons.

Gawd, it was cold, brass monkey's, nipples dropping off cold!  Rye even whinged he was cold and wanted to go home - he's NEVER cold!  Mind, he only had his rather thin coat and a t'shirt on... mama knowing best, and suspecting shivers would be evident if more layers were refused, had packed a nice thick fleecy cardy.  No more wails of cold after that!

The making "paint" i.e. smashing plant material in a bowl with a mini rolling pin, and a bit of water; was a fun activity, one family made a good brown colour from dried out seed heads of some sort of reed.  Another made a luminious green - no idea what plant/leaf they had used.   Rye made a faint browny colour. 

After a few hours we were all cold; although I think the kids probably would have lasted longer; myself and the friend I'd given a lift to, were thinking longingly of the car and heater!  Quick haste along the river path was made, quick stop to snap this photo of an interesting tree (Hawthorn maybe?)

And back over the fancy bridge - with a quick stop to throw sticks in the water and watch them float out the other side...

I'm told the kids of one family.. actually braved the water.... ***shiver*** makes me catch my breath just thinking about it!  BRRRRRRR.  Crazy free range kids eh!  ;-)

After the outing, we invaded our friend's house; the children were suitably exercised, which made for a lovely calm afternoon.  Shame when she fed them all; they got a bit rowdy after that, so we put them to work tidying up ;-) 

Hint of level of coldness down here - driving back home from my friend's house - it was snowing!

And tomorrow, well mindee comes tomorrow, the smashing plant material to make paint was so successful, I think I'll take the kids out in the morning for a scavenge, and we'll make a collage or something like that in the afternoon, mind if there's enough snow, sledding will probably feature.

  I do also have parents visiting tomorrow afternoon, checking me out as a potential minder for their daughter.  Very exciting.

This moment though, my bed has turned into a beautiful siren, and I simply must answer her call ;-)

Night night.