I was going to post about this yesterday, but my laptop decided not to play, and I spent the entire evening trying to persuade it to cooperate before giving up and going to bed. So this is (finally) my first attempt at posting from my phone!
We had a great day yesterday. We started with a talk on Judaism at a local primary school (two talks actually, to two separate classes). They were Year 6, 11 year olds, and they were engaged and well prepared. Daniel loved it - the class teachers were more than happy to play with him, and he got lots of attention from the kids. I did a mock Kiddush to show them and he got very excited when he saw the challah cover, only to find there was no challah under it. His outstretched hands and "oh, where's it gone?" noise had the kids in stitches :-D Even better for him was the applause at various times, which he joined in with gusto.
During the Q&A session at the end, one of the boys asked if they could keep Daniel, or at least look after him for a while! Another one told me I was "funny, but in a good way." Not entirely sure what bad-funny would be, but pleased nonetheless :-) I do try to put across a sense of humour in these visits; it makes it more interesting for everyone and I think they remember more if they've had fun than they would if I lectured them seriously *yawn*
After we got back from the school Daniel conked out, so we skipped the Farmers' Market for once. He'd had a really bad night and clearly needed the nap. At lunch with my mum she noticed a top tooth had cut through, which explained the sleep problems! She was hanging him upside down, to hysterical laughter, when she saw it, which was why I hadn't clocked it :-)
During lunch Daniel suddenly took an interest in my mum's soya yoghurt and proceeded to wield a spoon reasonably competently for the first time as he demolished the whole pot! He's been pretty reluctant to eat anything that requires a spoon because he doesn't like being helped with eating, so this was a big milestone. He was on a bit of a roll, as he's also suddenly become much more reliable drinking out of a mug. We only gave him a sippy cup briefly, and he couldn't get the hang of sucking it but chewed instead, which was frustrating for him and nerve-wracking for me (don't want him transferring that technique to his feeds!), so we took it away again and went back to normal cups. Up to now he's mostly expected us to hold it for him but the last day or so he's been having a go himself, with reasonable success. The only problem is when he gets overexcited and waves it around, but he'll learn!
All this spoon and drinking thing got me thinking that he might enjoy using his own watering can now, so we dropped in to the local garden centre on the way home and found a little gardening kit with a watering can, trowel, fork and book in a carry bag. Even better, it turned out to be half price - only £6.99!
It was pretty chilly by the time we got home, so jumpers and trousers were donned and we bravely ventured out into the garden. I had a reusable growbag to fill, some tomato seedlings to plant in it, and a couple of kits to use, so there was plenty of scope to try out the new tools. The perfectionist in me had to take lots of deep breaths and mutter about HE, unschooling and priorities as Daniel carefully shovelled out all the compost I was putting in, picked up seedlings by their stems so they parted company with their pots, tried to put them back in and knocked over the pots, gave up in disgust and 'posted' the seedlings over the edge of the patio, and diligently dug up the seeds I'd just planted. Let's just say it was a learning curve for both of us!
When we seemed to have exhausted the possibilities of compost for the day, I filled up his watering can and he had a wonderful time pottering around watering everything in sight!
It's lovely to get him involved in gardening so early, though for my own sanity I may have to channel his enthusiasm into a few pots/areas reserved for him so my vegetables survive!
No comments:
Post a Comment