forest for the trees

I had to rouse Davies and Scarlett this morning and very reluctant to get up and out they were too. I did manage to galvanise them to action and they breakfasted, packed their rucksacks, got dressed and we headed off to Forest School.

We were about 10 minutes early which didn’t help Davies who was slightly wobbling about being left there. I’d given them a ‘pep talk’ yesterday about staying there alone, what to do, what not to do and so on and had probably overdone it rather. I then didn’t help the situation by asking him how he thought he was going to deal with a whole week away from me at Badger camp if he couldn’t manage 3 hours at Forest school. I stood firm despite the only other mothers staying were the one organising it and one other who’s children were having a big fuss about being left while the rangers told them it was fine if they stayed actually. I did promise to return early so that they could show me what they’d been doing though and will do that each time. If nothing else it is good for my legs as it is at the top of a *very* steep hill ;).

I waved them off and covertly watched them going up the hill before driving off. It’s not quite long enough to come home really. Well it is, as home is only a 20 minute drive and FS is for 3 hours but the traffic can be hideous and I don’t want to risk being late to collect them as it would mean someone waiting around with them and I don’t have a contact number to even let anyone know if I was running late. So today I drove into Lewes which is only a few more minutes drive and despite being somewhere I go fairly often to visit Ali is a town I have never actually walked round properly.

I parked up, fed the very expensive parking meter and went for a wander in the sunshine. It felt very strange to be all alone and just sort of kicking my heels and I’d already decided I would treat myself to a drink in a coffee shop but didn’t want to succumb to the temptation of just spending money in the shops – do you know I really do think I have changed ;). I did the rounds of all the charity shops and found a yellow and an orange garment on the 50p rail which was great as I needed those colours for a rainbow rag rug I’m making. I also found a nice cardigan for £4 in one of the charity shops but that was the sum total of my haul. Lewes is a funny mix of very expensive snobby stuff (there is a teapot shop and lots of delis) funky and cool and ever so slightly pretensious. I quite like it but it’s an odd spread out town centre without a proper cohesive feel to it somehow. At least you know where you are in Lancing or Worthing with all the pound shops and cheap clothing chain stores 😉 😆 I think it would be nice to wander round with someone else but I was feeling rather lost anyway.

I got myself a takeaway chai latte, which I was then cross with myself about because it was too sweet and sickly and not worth the £2.45 I’d spent on it, popped into Tescos for some salad and garlic bread (and a bag of doughnuts for the kids) and then headed back to the park. I sat in the car and finished my book, which has been quite a page turner although not my ususal type of read; Mister Candid. I read one of her other books; Altered Land and thought it was excellent so wanted to try another of hers. I then walked (puffed) up the hill to spy on the last 20 minutes or so of Forest school. The children saw me straight away and I was shown their shelter (tarp on sticks around a tree) and Davies showed my his map he’d been drawing.

Today they made the shelters, played in the forest, both children seemed to have learnt a fair bit about trees and Davies was telling me all sorts of stuff about how to identify them from bark and leaves. Trees are something I know virtually nothing about and have always meant to learn about so maybe they can teach me too! Davies was also telling me about how you can tell what time of day it is by where in the sky the sun is and about using a compass – I guess we better add one of those to the growing list of ‘survival kit’ he wants for his birthday.

I walked down the hill with Millie, one of the rangers who had been working with both D and S today. She said what lovely kids they are, how they already know loads about nature and wildlife and remarked on what a kind boy Davies is. He’d been hit by a stick by one of the other boys and got hurt and upset but hadn’t wanted the other boy to get teased like he did afterwards and she was saying how sweet and thoughtful that was. Not at all sure that will be endearing him to the other boy mind you…

We nipped home to apply suncream and then went to the allotment to plant some more sweetcorn and for Tarly to check her pest pit trap she’s built. She’d not caught anything ;). It was a flying visit although I’ll need to get up there again to do some watering really.

Back home again and the kids played on their DSs and then it was time for swimming lessons. I was debating swimming today but decided I’d feel better for doing so even if I didn’t feel like it. The children both had a really good lesson and Tarly swam her first 10 metres (a length of the small pool, previously she’s only done 5 m which is a width). I got to see it too as she did it right at the end of the lesson as I was waiting with their towels and she was elated, telling me her brain kept saying to her ‘you won’t do it, I know you won’t do it’ but she didn’t listen and she did it! 🙂 She rang both Ady and my Dad to tell them on the way home :).

I bumped into a woman who comes in the library a lot and recently joined the reading group too. She seems very nice and I’d like to get to know her better and seem to keep bumping into her. She has a boy and girl the same age as D and S and her daughter goes to Rainbows with Scarlett. She was in a chatty mood and Home Ed came up so I imagine next time I see her that will be talked about properly. I was keen to swim been as I’d actually gotten wet though so I cut the chat short and then really pushed myself to try and swim 20 lengths again in the 20 minutes left. I managed 18 and *really* felt it so I was quite pleased with that.

Back at home I had to make mashed potatoes for Scarlett, suet pudding for them both and cook some sweetcorn and broccoli to go with the leftover roast chicken, roast potatoes and yorkshire puddings from our dinner last night that we’d saved for them. So while I was out in the kitchen anyway I prepared the lasagne for our dinner and made an apple crumble as I managed to order two bags of cooking apples rather than eating apples on last weeks online food shop so busy was I ensuring all the fruit and veg was uk grown. I also made some pastry to make some apple pies but got bored and put it in the fridge to make tomorrow 😆 Scarlett had a bath and Davies had a shower.

While the children had dinner I threaded up the peg loom and made a start on a rainbow rag rug. I have one small pink one made, one carrier bag door mat one made and I want to make a medium and a large size to take as samples to the craft fair on Thursday. I also still have to make outfits for the two knitted dolls I’ve made and decide on pricing. I do have tomorrow afternoon and all day Thursday to do it in though, so it’ll be fine :).

Ady came home and was told all about Forest school and then after some debate we read a fair chunk of in lieu of bedtime ‘stories’.