The leaves are almost gone..

and we did get a little bit of snow, although I'd call it sleet. Now the colour is left to the berries, mashAllah.

Do I need to comment, except there are now barely few places left to put things (like hot cups of tea) out of the reach of 1 year olds.



and when I think about throwing away/ putting away in the cellar the odd toys that have failed to be tidied into sets (or indeed have no 'set') I catch my DD playing an imaginary game with the items. Could it be true? Tidying up could damage children's imagination?! I like the sound of that...

S captured this photo on my phone of this brave baby hedgehog, out in daylight hours. (Mummy hedgehog must be waiting in the bush about to say 'Well, what time do you call this then?')

and finally. Last Sunday was one of those rare days when I felt things had gone pretty well on the child (and mum, see last point) nurturing scale. M had an islam class given by a brother (which is always good to have positive male role models), some time playing in the park (finding above wildlife), some card-making with great resources provided free of charge, and some excellent and reasonably priced homemade cakes.
Today we were unable to go again for some crafts and cake as Hz is ill, and so is MIL. I'm actually OK alhamdulillah, and regularly dosing myself with honey.The others are a bit disappointed as they wanted to visit friends and TOYSRUS. Oh that shop. Aargh its Eid soon so shall probably have to darken that shop's doors this week.
Still have to find time to write down some more deep/meaningful stuff regarding kid's, well how can I put it, upbringing, but as time goes by some of the issues are not as they were and I expect others will come up.

I am not ill, I am not ill..

All this hype over swine flu, I'm trying to ignore it. It's hard when you're getting invitations for vaccination s for your kids, yourself, spouse through the post over the past few weeks. I don't often watch the news (no TV still hurrah!) but do glimpse at the online newspapers. My elderly neighbours asked me today if we were going to have the jabs, and the answer I gave brought a tissue to one of their mouths. I know the power of guilt is being used to make us get it to protect the vulnerable but after discussions with friends and family, we decided to abstain. Midwives and paediatricians have said they wouldn't have it nor give it to their children. So as the headache and dry throat I have persists I hope it's just down to tiredness..
Anyhow here're are a few recent photos:




The younger ones entertain themselves while M has his running club and Hz entertains himself in the sink. I hope the interest in the dishes continues into the teenage years and later..

And Autumn moves into Winter....

We don't need to go far to enjoy it, the cherry trees have been really appreciated this year and continue for the moment to do so.
Soon they'll be like skeletons with only their bare branches, waiting for some snow to clothe them. Then perhaps inshaAllah become a fun game of 'cover your brother with snow' as those branches are given a good shake....
















So enjoy those last few leaf kicking fests/ fights/ general gauping at beautiful colours, I think it's time to wait for some snow....

Some autumn development..

A trip to a local forest/ nature centre gave us insight into which animals might be lurking in the woods. Here we examine tracks and faeces (assumed to be models). We managed to spot some real fox poo, red hairs and all stuck in.






and of course the beauty of the autumn trees, the fine weather recently has really been showing their full glory.


Back home and grandmother unpacks a multisensory stock of spices from Pakistan....

H decides to write down his verdict on Hz's behaviour..

is there not an electrical appliance that can escape his interest? (he'd made some steps out of the drawers he had managed to pull out, mashaAllah)

Some bits from the surface..

Some (almost) instant gratification autumn decoration making, inspired by Itto's blog. MashAllah one not to miss for lifting the iman, creative homeschooling, and seeing how it is to live a world away but have so much in common....
These poor little rosehips were at the receiving end of a post-argument, pre-menstrual needle, and even had a bit of a tangle with Hz's interested paws...


The new place for schoolbags, coordinated nicely doncha think?


and the wires fascination continues.



The new map of the world has been holding some interest, esp populaton density figures!

There's a lot more on my mind but so much to do depite MIL being here, so hope for some time to air it inshaAllah.

Swine flu Vaccination

We've had permission slips and appointments sent home for the children to be vaccinated against swine flu. S wants to have it as he doesn't like the idea of having flu (who does?), H and M don't want to have the 2 jabs. I haven't been following the latest news about Swine flu for a while so am quite unsure how safe the vaccine is, and if it's really necessary. What's your opinion?

From Summer to Autumn..

Is it just me or has blogger just got more annoying? I try to delete photos I've posted erroneously and it doesn't let me by just clicking on it and pressing delete. I try to write text for the photos and it comes out blue and underlined. I try to move photos around the post, it doesn't let me. I then enter the unknown of 'Edit HTML' which does the job but somehow seems a step backward.
Anyway! as I sit here, in my cold living room, with the rain and blustery wind pelting the windows, I take this opportunity of procrastinated photo-uploading, to appreciate the change of seasons. Feet adorned with fluffy socks, I accept theat summer is OVER. It is time for ferreting around in the cellar cupboards for winter clobber and trips to the shops (groan) for new jackets etc where hand me downs just aren't going to do the job.
So here are some snapshots from my phone (Allah knows best where the proper pics are on my computer).


At the end of August we went to Stockholm, hurray, out of Skåne. Here is our 'little red house' about which Biryani makes regular requests to return to and 'climb out the windows' which is how the kids decided was the way in and out of the cabin (Dukes of Hazard eat your heart out).


We only went for 2 nights, but I had to wash Biryani's clothes as the wait at reception was too long for her poor bladder (it had been over a 6 hour drive).



There is a lake in the distance which M was v keen to swim in, and so DH was also obliged to enjoy a freezing dip. This is a ski resort in the Winter.

Stockholm old town, just before it poured with rain.

and back home, Hz catching a late afternoon sunbeam.


The 'flower mountain' on the way to one of the favourite parks in our area.



Biryani

with umbrella, now deceased, partly due to blustery outing we had today.


Some autumn colour at the zoo, it's full glory not shown by the picture, I just couldn't stop looking at those red leaves..