We are completely knackered. Had to be up really early both days in order to get kids dropped off/cars into the shopping centre before any people showed up. And being nice to people all weekend is clearly more than I can take! Same goes for repeating the same sales pitch type lines:
Would you like to enter our competition? Guess how many balloons are in the van.
No, it’s free to enter (don’t bother reading the fluorescent signs announcing the FREE COMPETITION! all over our cars).
No, there aren’t any in the back of the van, just in the cab.
Well done, we’ll ring you if yours is the closest guess! (unless you are aged around 10, and forget to put your dialling code on your entry, in which case we’ll spend hours searching on BT until we find you – story tbc!)
Can I interest you in £25 off your next service? What car do you drive? Are you thinking of changing your car soon?

Still, it was a good weekend, and probably really worthwhile. We chatted to loads of people, and Russ even sold one of our cars yesterday! Guess time will tell how good it was if/when we see vouchers come into the workshop, or have any customers into the sales office who arrive because of the show.

The children spent one day being spoiled by Grandma and the next day being spoiled by their Great Aunty Jacky so they’ve not had too bad a weekend either! Anna did a trial at the Exeter Children’s Orchestra yesterday and really enjoyed that, she is considering dropping Stage by Stage after Christmas in favour of the orchestra this year, no final decision yet though.

Now wondering if everything is ready for Monday morning – if it’s not, tough, because I am too tired to do it. Another weekend where I really think our household would fall apart if we both worked full time, we have lived on takeaway and been fit for nothing by 8pm!

I had taken the wrong lens for indoor photography (doh) and Josiah was intent on following the leaflet he was given with numbered points of interest to look at in the Cathedral (in unswervingly numerical order and without looking at anything else, honestly, sometimes I worry about that boy), so we didn’t take many photos inside, and then it started drizzling, so our outdoor photos are a bit rubbish too, but we had fun anyway. I wished I had my f30 actually, but it is mysteriously broken and has been sent back to fuji to see what they can do with it.

Back home in time to meet the girls, then I helped them get their homework done and they had soup for tea before going out to Friday Fish (the church’s children’s group), which they really enjoyed. And tonight we have just crashed, as we have got a really early start tomorrow!

Yesterday we had Caitlin and Riona with us, took Esther back to the station early afternoon, and then the new term began with Anna’s first cello lesson later on in the afternoon. Incidentally, she passed her Grade 4 cello (108), don’t think I ever blogged that. And Abbie passed both the Grade 1s (piano 114 & recorder 107) that she took at the same time.

In the evening the girls both sharpened all their pencils and got their uniforms ready, and I think they even managed an early night – certainly they were in bed by the time I got home from an aborted Miscarriage Support Group meeting (forgot the keys, oops. still saw one person though and had a good chat on the stairs instead!).

Today the girls were back at school, and obviously pleased about it as they were both up and ready way earlier than necessary!

Josiah and I have had a relatively good home-ed day too. He did a couple of workbook pages from a music and a maths book, just to try and get back into the swing of doing something each day. He seems to have forgotten how to write all his numbers!

Then we did his music practices together, then made a picnic while signing up for Education City again, in order that I don’t feel too guilty about hours spent in the office, our next destination. By the way, does anyone still have a valid ‘refer a friend’ code that I could use when I actually have to sign up properly in 10 days’ time? Steve and I had a business meeting to attend together so Josiah amused himself with Education City on the computer at work while we did that.

The plan after that was to head to Home Ed group, which I assumed would have started back today, but the park was empty. Joe was a bit disappointed – I really should have checked beforehand as I probably had the info in an email somewhere. Ah well, there’s always next week. We had our lunch in the park anyway, and it gave us the chance to have a good chat about a couple of goals for home ed, which was good. Joe’s decided he’d like to try making a lapbook about the Romans, so that gives us something projecty to do alongside basic workbook things. He was only 18 months old when the girls did their first ever home ed project on the Romans so I don’t suppose he can remember much about it – in fact thinking about it, they did it with Aunty Jacky and I took him out to the park while she was there, so I can’t remember much either!

Anyway, then we headed back to the garage to get a few more things sorted; we’ve got a stand in the local shopping centre’s ‘Motor Show’ next weekend so there are some extra things that need doing for that.

Now we’re home for piano lessons. Still chasing my tail with lots of paperwork to catch up on so better stop blogging and get on with it!

It has been an incredibly boring day in the office for me, I know I used to have difficult days when we were home educating but they were never this boring! I guess I answered the phone about 6 times, spoke to one existing customer, someone who wanted to sell us a car and various people trying to sell advertising of one sort or another. Attempted to chivvy accountants and bank people along but to no avail (nothing new there then!). Delivered a car. No real sales customers on site at all Friends popped in for coffee which was the highlight of the day but they only stayed 20 minutes or so!

Anyway, escaped to pick the children up; took Joe to his violin lesson, and now we’re home with a whole load of sorting out that none of us are motivated to do! Ah well, better get to it. It’s half term and we’re off to see friends and family for the week, which we are all really excited about! I may still be blogging but on the other hand I may not

Did a full day’s work for once as Russ was on a day off There’s lots to do at the moment as we’re in the process of going limited, which will be good in the long run, but is an administrative nightmare at the moment!

We have an elderly gentleman who visits us in the office most days, just for a chat – don’t think he has many other people to talk to in his day. Steve helped him with something yesterday, so today he tried to pay Steve for it; Steve refused, at which point he offered the fiver to me ‘for the children’, so I accepted as it seemed rude not to. Bought them all an ice cream with it on the way home from school, and I quote Anna’s incredulous voice ‘you mean we can have whatever we want, not just a mini-milk?!’

Since we’ve been home they’ve played outside together, then they had baths and I chatted to them while they were getting clean. Filled pasta for tea, walnut & gorgonzola, because I’m sick of that line ‘I do like a bit of gorgonzola’ from Wallace & Gromit which Joe *keeps* repeating, didn’t think they’d like it, but they do!

Steve’s gone out to some ‘strictly men only’ boxing dinner with work (is that because women have some sense and wouldn’t want to go anyway? ) so the children and I are watching the Corpse Bride together. Loving it so far, I have to say!

Anyway, here it is: Water Lane Garage. There is still one tiny detail that I’m working on but otherwise I’m pretty happy with it. In due course we’ll add more articles and probably some photos too (still haven’t got our signs up at the actual site so we’re waiting for those). And I ought to put a Code Placidly hosting button on there somewhere too

In other news: Steve and I went to see Anna’s teacher today for another glowing report which again, I feel we actually can’t take that much credit for, as whatever Anna is/does is all herself and her own work. Still proud of her anyway.

Had a lovely conversation with the children yesterday which sprung from talking about school holidays and the differences in them across different areas of the country, to the ages at which people take exams. It seems as though Anna & Abbie at least are both thinking that they’ll stay at primary school but then be home educated again after that – I know it’s a long way off and plenty of things could change by then, but as a mid-long-term goal educationally it’s a plan I’d be really really happy with.

Nice to have Russ back at work, we missed him, as we had to do some work for once. We’ll be back to slacking now

As I write, Steve is out with Anna & Joe at Stage by Stage and violin respectively. Abbie and I are sitting here writing together which is nice – I’m blogging and she’s finishing a story based on Mrs Armitage on Wheels, her own take on it. Just nice to be doing stuff alongside one another.

Looking forward to the end of term, the children have a non-uniform day tomorrow and then the end of term on Friday so hurrah for the holidays

UPDATE at 1.30pm:
Yay yay yay! They came back and bought the car!!

This is more of an achievement than usual as Russ is away so I did it all by myself and still feel very pleased with myself on such occasions. The words ‘white’ and ‘flag’ don’t enter into it, of course

Josiah has been really making friends over the past couple of weeks. I am becoming more and more superfluous to requirements in the mornings; we walk to school and he tends to run off ahead, eager to get there. On Monday morning he hooked up with a little friend on the way in, they chatted all the way to the classroom, and he hardly gave me a backwards glance (I have to steal a goodbye kiss if I want one, these days!).

Then after school this little friend of his came out of the classroom first and accosted his mum asking if Joe could go back for tea, so she asked me, and I didn’t have any reason to refuse, so said yes. Little friend went running back into the classroom to tell Joe, who came out in a huge state of excitement, the two of them made their teacher laugh they were so excited. So he went, and had a fabulous time … and he and this little boy have been inseparable this week, so I understand.

Abbie had a big-headed moment yesterday too. She came home bragging about how Mr Cook (her teacher) had said that she should be in Yr 5, and how he’d told the class that if they needed help with maths they should ask her. All this came from some activity or other they were doing with counting blocks, dividing by two. Dividing by two! I am seriously wondering about asking whether she can be stretched a bit more in the classroom, honestly – apart from anything else, it’s the same activity they did last week, according to her! Anyway somehow she ended up having a conversation about square numbers and square roots, which Mr Cook was obviously impressed with. I’m not terribly impressed, for her that’s just normal, but she was very proud of having been singled out in front of everyone.

Abbie’s still loving the friends thing, too. Although I wish she’d learn not to share head lice with her so-called friends

Anna came out of school and met me with a string of verbal diarrhoea about her day on Monday too … measuring in maths, writing stories in literacy, making powerpoint presentations about the river Exe in geography, what she had for lunch, who she sat next to, how her pencil case broke – honestly, for her, this has been the best thing ever. She is loving the variety and the motivation that school gives her, and I’m really pleased for her. It is becoming a logistical nightmare to fit everything in though!

Me. I still miss home education. I miss being the one to see connections being made in their brains and being the one to help them make them. Don’t think I’ll ever feel differently about that.

But they are enjoying themselves so much, they’re loving every minute of it. They’re happy to go, happy while they’re there, and happy when they come home (if a little tired and hungry ). I am irrationally cross with them for being so happy about it, when I miss what we had so much. But there we go, I have to let them get on with being the people they want to become – I know they could have done that either way, but actually in some respects they couldn’t. So yeah, it’s a compromise of my ideals, a compromise academically, but if I have happy thriving children then I’m not complaining. At least we always know we have a choice.

Meanwhile, the workshop has been rushed off its feet – we only opened a month ago and we’re already chock-a-block, with literally hardly any advertising. The sales garage had its best month ever in February and this month isn’t looking too bad. So there’s plenty going on.

As a counter to school and the busyness of work we are working to getting weekends freed up again, with no lessons/activities in them unless absolutely necessary – then every weekend that Steve isn’t working we’re going to take the van and go away with kids/bikes etc, and really make the most of weekends.

Oh, and we had a new carpet fitted in the lounge yesterday, hurrah. Things are all wired in, now all we need is some furniture

It has been a beautiful day here; bit gutted that we haven’t managed to make the most of it, but there we go. I had the annual Memorial Service for babies lost through miscarriage, stillbirth, and neonatal death to go to this afternoon, and Steve had to go in to work to let someone test drive a car, so it was always going to be a non-starter of a day, really.

The children have played out a fair bit though, with Mollie and Ruby in the close, Josiah is out there still in his pyjamas, and Abbie is in her sunsuit! Just couldn’t be bothered to insist on anything today.

Abbie spent the first part of *her* morning on a hamster hunt, she did admit responsibility in having accidentally left the cage open yesterday, so I think she breathed a huge sigh of relief when she found him in her dolls’ cot.

Anna has dossed around, but came with me to the service this afternoon. Her comments were that it was a short service, and that she was surprised at how much crying there was. Doh. My feelings on the whole thing are pretty much the same as last year and the year before that. I can’t quite decide if it’s good to give time to feel stuff all over again, or if it’s just a strange sadistic thing to put yourself through once a year. I am really considering stopping the support group, and if I do stop it I don’t think I’d go to the service, which leads me to think that it is just me getting emotionally carried away by the situation rather than any real grief of my own. Obviously I did and occasionally still do grieve, but the service itself doesn’t help in that for me personally, I don’t think. Still, having said that, someone read a very powerful poem today which I might post one day.

We had a lovely night out (at Harry’s) yesterday, too, which deserves a mention – we were celebrating a decent month of sales at the garage, so it was a works’ do – felt like a proper one for the first time ever though as it included our mechanic and his wife as well as Steve’s parents and us. We might even manage it this month as well, if we’re lucky