Erosion

We've been looking into erosion. Oddly enough its captured both children. 

We've had good long talks about how it happens and why.

We've braved the weather with our new colds to look at erosion around us.

DS6 has drawn himself outside with the rain and creek and mud.

Dd9 has brainstormed and come up with some great information.

We watched a short "how is sand made" put on by some university possible welsh which was very good. Ds6 picked up a lot from the guy nerating and really honed in on the word quarts. Was excited and surprised with how he followed the 'sand' to the sea down the rivers. Was totally shocked why the guy said it rained 200 days of the year.

We moved on to the next thing which just came up and for 15mins the kids were pretty riveted... We might have to come back to this.

ARGH!!! What to feed my 6 year old?

This has really only been a new battle.

Last year almost to the season DD6 was sick...I think we all know what its like when we're sick and the last foods we ate we are very weary of or can't stand....because it came back up Yuck

So no banana's!!! to the point he will ask if any biscuit or cake has banana in it...the whole family has gone into this because ... you know banana's are not what they used to be...something has changed.

No dairy!!! and I have to say that he might be on to something there.

When DD6 was brand-new he was a peaceful baby who slept and hardly cried and was very relaxed...totally different from his sister...which is another story.

Dave had been experimenting with going gluten free for a few months but then flagged it away. So in the first weeks of DD6 life I did not have any gluten and very little dairy as it was just not a part of the food we ate.

Then Dave went back to work (away from home) and I just had to eat food that I could manage to throw together on my own while looking after 2 kids and a house.

Gluten and dairy...milkshakes, pasta, toast, the works...

DD6 turned into a nightmare in a day.

Then my wonderful midwife and good friend turned up and took one look at him and said

"Go gluten free and dairy free"...she said that we'd probably have to wait a few weeks for him to come right...but by the end of the week he was back.

So I went gluten and dairy free for 8 months then brought back in cheese cause I missed cheese. I carried on with gluten free until today and will keep on because the changes in my own person have been amazing.

But DD6 has cut out on his own dairy and nightshades...which makes food pretty hard.

So I'm going to start keeping a diary of foods he's liking at what reactions he seems to be having.

Since going off of dairy he seems to be sleeping better, doesn't have purple circles under his eyes and he doesn't seem to have issues with his stomach ... sniff sniff Phew! So thats great.

A little butter - only a very little doesn't seem too bad but best not.

Going Paleo seems to work with both of us...Dave and DD9 just have to come along for the ride.

 

Koanga Books

My wonderful Nana buys books for my birthday....well I sort out the books I like :-)

So this year I've decided I'm going to start looking through Koanga's books

I'm very excited as this book I've ordered is written in NZ so should have NZ foods available...which is something I find a bit hard when cooking especially with Paleo books as they often use things which are REALLY expensive or very hard to find.

I've also got my eye on just about every other book in their list too for the same reason that its written in NZ...so food forests should have NZ available plants. Garden planning with organic methods in NZ terms.

So I can't wait.

Getting to do so much while our two little loves are away with Nanma and Granddad 

Minecraft LAN

Not sure what I've set myself up for...

DD9 has made a wonderful invite for a minecraft LAN. I'm really struggling to keep up with all this computer stuff...but am really giving it a good go.

The Whangarei Library has a LAN running over the school holidays which my two are too young for :-(

So what do I do...host one here...eek

So poor Dave is trying to sort out how to make it all work here...with probably about 10-14 children and their parents.

This LAN will be our first day back of term...so watch this space to see how we go.

Tears over the big black chickens

Oh dear!
We've lost one of our big black Orpington's. She was getting on a bit but its still very hard for DD9 and she was very upset she didn't get to hold it as it passed on which is what she has done for her other chickens.

We also have had to say no more. (Dave and I)
We can't look after the big black chickens as well as they deserve. They have a lovely home and better than some chickens but they are not part of the everyday family. They are just too big.
DS6 is not able to pick up his rooster which is pretty much the same size as him...and we can't let them out to roam around as this means the other roosters and chickens get intimidated...and then Sheldon the big rooster gets grumpy and starts pecking everyone. So DD9 is really a bit afraid of him....and DS6 will run screaming from him...so not a good look really.

So we said that she will need to sell him or re-home him.
TEARS!

Then she remembered a friend of my mum's who they often visit during holidays. DD9's dream of a home and garden. DD9 was franticly trying to get Nanma to phone her friend to see if she would take Sheldon and his mum Cockleshell.

YES!!!
Yahoo. So the best for everyone.
DD9 still gets to see her chickens in the holidays. The chickens get to roam and be happy. We get to concentrate on smaller chickens.

Beloved Rosie the rooster

Frost in the morning

Its been cold here. We don't often get this kind of weather here...I know some will have snow in winter but this is Northland.

Mr Griff spent the night right in the middle of the bed trying to sleep on top of our other little sneak DD6 who was also very cold.

 I had a living room with 3 little girls having a sleep over for the holidays...goodness it must of been cold but they all seemed ok in the morning.

 We're probably loose the Ringerringers in this photo as they really don't go well with frost.

Just amazing sun rise with beautiful colours all over the hills

How big is the cat?

He have had a few really cold days! So home ed has been beside the fire. The cat has made his way into just about everything that we've been doing and today he really made sure he was a part of everything. DS6 wanted to know how big the cat was so he jumped up and grabbed my old scale rule from work and started to measure. 

 I don't know that he was at all impressed with his tail being moved about but he was so dozy with the heat of the fire he really didn't care.

 DD9 used her finger to hold the place where the ruler ran out so they could move the ruler up...at Griffin is 85cm long.