Lego by S and M including Death star X wing fighter chase. Maybe some of pics were taken by kids?! Well here goes, hope to improve on labelling of pics etc!
Chemistry Book
14 years ago
Tuesday, January 30, 2007
Try out with photos!
Lego by S and M including Death star X wing fighter chase. Maybe some of pics were taken by kids?! Well here goes, hope to improve on labelling of pics etc!
Ideal Curriculum Brainstorm
Have been too busy to write recently although have been wanting to. I'm just so behind with dull household stuff due to illnesses etc. There needs to be an invention whereby thoughts can be transported into words on a word document/ blog without the need to switch on the computer, type etc. Maybe one day but I doubt in my lifetime..
Thinking about education, knowledge, and what is useful knowledge. I went to a dars a while back talking about knowledge and how beneficial knowledge is that which brings you to weep for the sake of Allah. I need to recheck the book we were reading from….
But thinking about my own education, what was time well spent and what was just wasted. On the plus side obviously the building blocks of reading, writing. But I can’t remember being taught to read analytically, if something was written down it was true as far as any 8 year old would see it. I remember my mum teaching me to do washing up, that was useful (not thrilling but useful although my boys like to have a go). Baking yes enjoyed/ enjoy that.
Things I wish I’d learnt (Islamic knowledge goes without saying, how easily their young brains memorise surahs.) All I can remember by heart from school is the Lord’s prayer (never knew what ‘trespasses’ were’ and the first 2 lines of Tiger shining bright,)
How to: touch type (this would be done a lot quicker for a start. Other things that are useful: awarenesss of limitations of resources i.e. budgeting. I managed to teach myself pretty much and have never found this a problem but general knowledge of how the world of business works, marketing and how it exploits people, getting a job, answering interview questions. Starting a business- Media awareness and how the cycle of news goes round keeping various misconceptions going. Different countries' history besides our own, and from others perspectives. Crusades spring to mind.
How to give a basic haircut, how to change a tyre, maintain a car.
What I have never used (not obviously anyway, maybe it’s all gone in somewhere and small parts of it do affect me without realising it.)
Periodic table, Latin.
I’m not saying these sort of things can’t be useful and maybe the study of electrons and atoms can be awe-inspiring (scientists have come to Islam through reading about science in the Quran).
Things it would be good for the boys to know (worldly)
How to build a computer (DH can teach)
At the end of the day the motivation and reason WHY we’re learning, (not to please teachers, parents) anything other than submitting to Allah and knowing how best to get us in the best position in Akhirah.. Yeah we have to learn dunya stuff to earn halal money to support the family as a responsibility Allah has given. Monasticism is not part of Islam.
Anyhow I’m really waffling, have been doing catch-up fasts and brains bit numb, but hopefully inshaAllah I’ll be able to focus some of it into something practical. M is really not liking school much nowadays (except they had Äpplekaka today, mmm torturing myself. I made myself chillis stuffed with cheese pakoras the other day, beautiful, I’m salivating at the thought. Have to make do with some crisps today as I’ve run out of pakora mix.) I’ve digressed. Well I’m trying to think what to do if this aversion to school continues… home ed moment again.
The documentary about Selective mutism was on Swedish TV last night, and H’s teachers had watched it. The extra-friendly one says she may be here till June now. She also said she’s worked with children like this before so I’m a little hopeful.
S had tried to ask his friend to go with him to pray in the mosque at Dhuhr time but then was told he couldn’t without his mum or dada subhanAllah I was shocked to hear this and there will l have to be words. The school is physically connected to the mosque!
Time for iftaar soon gotta go.
Thinking about education, knowledge, and what is useful knowledge. I went to a dars a while back talking about knowledge and how beneficial knowledge is that which brings you to weep for the sake of Allah. I need to recheck the book we were reading from….
But thinking about my own education, what was time well spent and what was just wasted. On the plus side obviously the building blocks of reading, writing. But I can’t remember being taught to read analytically, if something was written down it was true as far as any 8 year old would see it. I remember my mum teaching me to do washing up, that was useful (not thrilling but useful although my boys like to have a go). Baking yes enjoyed/ enjoy that.
Things I wish I’d learnt (Islamic knowledge goes without saying, how easily their young brains memorise surahs.) All I can remember by heart from school is the Lord’s prayer (never knew what ‘trespasses’ were’ and the first 2 lines of Tiger shining bright,)
How to: touch type (this would be done a lot quicker for a start. Other things that are useful: awarenesss of limitations of resources i.e. budgeting. I managed to teach myself pretty much and have never found this a problem but general knowledge of how the world of business works, marketing and how it exploits people, getting a job, answering interview questions. Starting a business- Media awareness and how the cycle of news goes round keeping various misconceptions going. Different countries' history besides our own, and from others perspectives. Crusades spring to mind.
How to give a basic haircut, how to change a tyre, maintain a car.
What I have never used (not obviously anyway, maybe it’s all gone in somewhere and small parts of it do affect me without realising it.)
Periodic table, Latin.
I’m not saying these sort of things can’t be useful and maybe the study of electrons and atoms can be awe-inspiring (scientists have come to Islam through reading about science in the Quran).
Things it would be good for the boys to know (worldly)
How to build a computer (DH can teach)
At the end of the day the motivation and reason WHY we’re learning, (not to please teachers, parents) anything other than submitting to Allah and knowing how best to get us in the best position in Akhirah.. Yeah we have to learn dunya stuff to earn halal money to support the family as a responsibility Allah has given. Monasticism is not part of Islam.
Anyhow I’m really waffling, have been doing catch-up fasts and brains bit numb, but hopefully inshaAllah I’ll be able to focus some of it into something practical. M is really not liking school much nowadays (except they had Äpplekaka today, mmm torturing myself. I made myself chillis stuffed with cheese pakoras the other day, beautiful, I’m salivating at the thought. Have to make do with some crisps today as I’ve run out of pakora mix.) I’ve digressed. Well I’m trying to think what to do if this aversion to school continues… home ed moment again.
The documentary about Selective mutism was on Swedish TV last night, and H’s teachers had watched it. The extra-friendly one says she may be here till June now. She also said she’s worked with children like this before so I’m a little hopeful.
S had tried to ask his friend to go with him to pray in the mosque at Dhuhr time but then was told he couldn’t without his mum or dada subhanAllah I was shocked to hear this and there will l have to be words. The school is physically connected to the mosque!
Time for iftaar soon gotta go.
Saturday, January 27, 2007
Just for the record..
Hafsah crawled a little today, finally her back legs coordinated with her arms for a few seconds and half a metre or so was traversed. Hence S's lego sessions are no longer such peaceful affairs with repetitions of 'get her away!' being yelled as I sneak off to wash a few pots. She's also doing the gravity experiments, with most items being swiped off the table when she's in her high chair, and then she looks down as if just to check a suitable amount of mess has been made to keep me busy for the next 5 minutes. Ooh I love her to bits! (and all you boys too!).
Friday, January 26, 2007
Problems with our computer/ broadband
but here's what I typed off-line a few days ago:
Some quotes from H: trying to say ’beginning’
Take 1:beninging
Take 2 denining.
‘Why you fasting, I want you to be near?’
(He thought I was farsting, but he’d rather I was nearsting I think!)
H asked me to put on his Thomas tank badge.
H ‘It’s night time, do it quickly!’
Me ‘What’s that got to do with it?’
H 'I don’t know.'
(Must be sub-conscious repetition of me moaning about being woken in the night by one of the children to attend to something or other!)
Have received one of the books on mutism the other day, and it was a bit more structured and ‘programmy’ than I expected. Something I would think would have been useful in my speech therapy days. I have managed to extrapolate a bit of useful info from it which from memory is the following (the author suggests getting a notebook and taking notes from the book, hmm maybe if the problem doesn’t improve in the next year or so, or if I miraculously have some free time)
Selective mutism is not very common (maybe why I never came across it in my work), and hence v little research has been done on treatment methods, sigh. The sooner it is treated, the better. (Maybe I should get my pen and paper out, and meet up with his nursery teachers). It may be an extreme form of shyness or a phobia of speaking in certain situations or to certain people. Moving to a new culture could contribute to it (He now will speak English to ME in front of the teachers, and Swedish to ME when no non-family members are there which is an improvement from refusing to make any verbalisation at nursery) Have still yet to finish reading the book. Anyhow having the second language does make it all the more complicated, and inshaAllah I hope something improves.
Hafsah still in the ‘I really want to but just can’t coordinate my legs yet’ pre-crawling stage. I‘m pretty sure she just can’t physically do it yet, rather than she’s just wanting to sit and chill, as she couldn’t even grab my glasses that I’d placed just that little bit too far away to be swiped. Normally these would be prime targets of acquisition for those deft hands of hers (or any baby for that matter), but it just wasn’t to be. Telling DH it’s just as well, as still haven’t fixed safety attachment to back of cooker, to stop it falling on pulling-up-on-oven door handle child. Pulling up to stand or even bearing weight on legs is just not the done thing just yet, Alhamdulillah.
Some quotes from H: trying to say ’beginning’
Take 1:beninging
Take 2 denining.
‘Why you fasting, I want you to be near?’
(He thought I was farsting, but he’d rather I was nearsting I think!)
H asked me to put on his Thomas tank badge.
H ‘It’s night time, do it quickly!’
Me ‘What’s that got to do with it?’
H 'I don’t know.'
(Must be sub-conscious repetition of me moaning about being woken in the night by one of the children to attend to something or other!)
Have received one of the books on mutism the other day, and it was a bit more structured and ‘programmy’ than I expected. Something I would think would have been useful in my speech therapy days. I have managed to extrapolate a bit of useful info from it which from memory is the following (the author suggests getting a notebook and taking notes from the book, hmm maybe if the problem doesn’t improve in the next year or so, or if I miraculously have some free time)
Selective mutism is not very common (maybe why I never came across it in my work), and hence v little research has been done on treatment methods, sigh. The sooner it is treated, the better. (Maybe I should get my pen and paper out, and meet up with his nursery teachers). It may be an extreme form of shyness or a phobia of speaking in certain situations or to certain people. Moving to a new culture could contribute to it (He now will speak English to ME in front of the teachers, and Swedish to ME when no non-family members are there which is an improvement from refusing to make any verbalisation at nursery) Have still yet to finish reading the book. Anyhow having the second language does make it all the more complicated, and inshaAllah I hope something improves.
Hafsah still in the ‘I really want to but just can’t coordinate my legs yet’ pre-crawling stage. I‘m pretty sure she just can’t physically do it yet, rather than she’s just wanting to sit and chill, as she couldn’t even grab my glasses that I’d placed just that little bit too far away to be swiped. Normally these would be prime targets of acquisition for those deft hands of hers (or any baby for that matter), but it just wasn’t to be. Telling DH it’s just as well, as still haven’t fixed safety attachment to back of cooker, to stop it falling on pulling-up-on-oven door handle child. Pulling up to stand or even bearing weight on legs is just not the done thing just yet, Alhamdulillah.
Wednesday, January 10, 2007
walking, talking, nope ,we're not doing that
Hafsah’s trying to crawl but not really getting moving yet, she just reaches forward and then ends up in a reverse dying-fly position, not very happy. If I try to hold her to stand she just leaves her legs in the sitting position, mashAllah, maybe she’s waiting to have a bit of sense before she gets mobile. I never had other similar aged babies with which to compare the boys, like I have now for Hafsah. I see the other 8 month olds on their search and destroy missions and think Alhamdilillah, this is not happening right now to us! But can’t leave plates of food, etc within a metre or so radius of her as she somehow reaches to explore anything like that with messy consequences.
She’s shaking her head as if to say ‘no’, esp at meal times when she’s had enough. I thought maybe it was chance but she is quite consistent with it.
Ordered some books on shyness, mutism for H, I feel I’m probably not doing the right things to help him. I can’t even remember studying it in my degree (speech therapy !), maybe it was mentioned for 10 minutes in a lecture and there was always a chance my tired brain wasn’t paying full attention. I never came across it in my clinical experience, and have really only seen it in adverts for ‘the Piano’ and there was Channel 4 documentary on it as well.
Having had children I now feel much more equipped to do a job like speech therapy, whereas we were sent out into hospitals, schools etc as young 22 year olds, maybe never even having held a baby to somehow help these children..
Alhamdulillah the nursery teacher who was always v helpful and friendly has come back (but only for 3 months possibly), and H did look her in the eyes and wave goodbye without me even having to tell him.
Having another ‘I’ve got to take them out of school and home-ed’ moment the other night, when S reported another rude word (in Swedish) his classmate had told him. When I found it in the dictionary, I was not pleased and had to explain it in a polite way, but that it was NEVER to be said as it was VERY bad. S's report of the boy’s explanation of the word was quite off the mark and not as rude as its real meaning. I know they will learn these sort of words some way or other but not at 8 years old, please? So having a slight increase in trying to practice my Swedish so I would be able to help him with the work, but again I need your du’as inshAllah…...
She’s shaking her head as if to say ‘no’, esp at meal times when she’s had enough. I thought maybe it was chance but she is quite consistent with it.
Ordered some books on shyness, mutism for H, I feel I’m probably not doing the right things to help him. I can’t even remember studying it in my degree (speech therapy !), maybe it was mentioned for 10 minutes in a lecture and there was always a chance my tired brain wasn’t paying full attention. I never came across it in my clinical experience, and have really only seen it in adverts for ‘the Piano’ and there was Channel 4 documentary on it as well.
Having had children I now feel much more equipped to do a job like speech therapy, whereas we were sent out into hospitals, schools etc as young 22 year olds, maybe never even having held a baby to somehow help these children..
Alhamdulillah the nursery teacher who was always v helpful and friendly has come back (but only for 3 months possibly), and H did look her in the eyes and wave goodbye without me even having to tell him.
Having another ‘I’ve got to take them out of school and home-ed’ moment the other night, when S reported another rude word (in Swedish) his classmate had told him. When I found it in the dictionary, I was not pleased and had to explain it in a polite way, but that it was NEVER to be said as it was VERY bad. S's report of the boy’s explanation of the word was quite off the mark and not as rude as its real meaning. I know they will learn these sort of words some way or other but not at 8 years old, please? So having a slight increase in trying to practice my Swedish so I would be able to help him with the work, but again I need your du’as inshAllah…...
Saturday, January 06, 2007
A breath of fresh air
Yesterday it was a bright sunny morning for a change, so I thought we would go out and get some fresh air, vit D and feel less SAD, as the majority of this winter has been GREY. Alhamdulillah it has been v mild, so it’s possible to be outside for more then half an hour before your toes freeze off. We took a little outing to Hammar’s park which is towards the coast. I thought I would take the disposable bar b q we had left from the summer to do some sausages on, but it had been taken down to the cellar which should be a synonym for black hole. So had to coax them out by offering to let them take some photos with the digital camera, and to make it a little educational, we were to take photos of winter berries, buds etc. It was so nice not to have to be somewhere at a particular time, everyone enjoyed the woods, improving on someone’s attempt at a house made of sticks, spotted a few berries but not as many as I expected (photos to come, inshAllah!). Several birds, including wood pigeons and jackdaws (Admittedly these can also be seen from my kitchen window as well as rabbits) and some sort of wagtail but I’ll have to look it up. S wanted to take a photo but I said it would be hard to catch as it was so small and quick. Had a picnic in my favourite spot, played Frisbee and football. Also played pooh sticks at the little stream that goes through the park which has several little bridges which makes it ideal. Passers-by probably wondering what they were doing, peering anxiously over the edge of the bridge to see who won, but Winnie the Pooh is maybe less popular here (Nalle Puh in Swedish) and I don’t know if this game has been lost in translation or not! Then headed for the boat playground and had a bit of fun there. However I was so glad to be out in nature with the kids, it was so peaceful, and I think we’ve had our fair share of plastic indoor playlands for one winter. The kids enjoy them but there’s too much noise in too little space for my liking.
Sunday, December 31, 2006
Fed up of seeing the toilet
We’ve had ’maginfluenza’, gastric flu, which severely debilitated me for a few days. I think I’ve lost a couple of kilos with it. Won’t go into the details as it might put you off your supper…
We had a happy Eid which started in the early hours of the morning as the kids were so excited about their pressies. They even made their own breakfast as I’d insisted they have that before any gift-opening. We didn’t attempt to make it for Eid prayer as DH is in Rome and I think S is too old to go in the ladies’ section really. So the morning turned our flat into a rival for legoland and afternoon we visited friends and the kids had a bit wild play session while us Mums tried to catch up with each other.
Hafsah’s still not crawling but moves her self around 360 degrees where she is sitting so any pillow I put behind her to save her bumping her head if she falls is now rendered useless. She' started waking around 5 am but I feed her then because if I let her cry it out it'll be time to get up by the time she settles so seems pointless.
House has, as usual, descended into chaos due to my illness. Normally its organised chaos but I think this time it is the real mccoy. I tried to have a quick look at houses with more space we could move to. I feel like it’d be simpler to move house than try to arrange everything to somehow fit in the limited space we have.
We had a happy Eid which started in the early hours of the morning as the kids were so excited about their pressies. They even made their own breakfast as I’d insisted they have that before any gift-opening. We didn’t attempt to make it for Eid prayer as DH is in Rome and I think S is too old to go in the ladies’ section really. So the morning turned our flat into a rival for legoland and afternoon we visited friends and the kids had a bit wild play session while us Mums tried to catch up with each other.
Hafsah’s still not crawling but moves her self around 360 degrees where she is sitting so any pillow I put behind her to save her bumping her head if she falls is now rendered useless. She' started waking around 5 am but I feed her then because if I let her cry it out it'll be time to get up by the time she settles so seems pointless.
House has, as usual, descended into chaos due to my illness. Normally its organised chaos but I think this time it is the real mccoy. I tried to have a quick look at houses with more space we could move to. I feel like it’d be simpler to move house than try to arrange everything to somehow fit in the limited space we have.
Friday, December 15, 2006
Something that made me chuckle...
'Which Advice Is Right?Read: 17 Pairs of Contradictory Proverbs
1. Look before you leap!Or is it . . He who hesitates is lost!
2. If at first you don't succeed, try, try again!Or is it . . Don't beat your head against a brick wall!
3. Absence makes the heart grow fonder!Out of sight, out of mind!
4. Never put off until tomorrow what you can do today!Or is it . . Don't cross the bridge until you come to it!
5. Two heads are better than one!Or is it . . Paddle your own canoe!
6. Haste makes waste!Or is it . . Time waits for no man!
7. You're never too old to learn!Or is it . . You can't teach an old dog new tricks!
8. A word to the wise is sufficient!Or is it . . Talk is cheap!
9. It's better to be safe than sorry!Or is it . . Nothing ventured, nothing gained!
10. Don't look a gift horse in the mouth!Or is it . . Beware of Greeks bearing gifts!
11. Do unto others as you would have others do unto you!Or is it . . Nice guys finish last!
12. Hitch your wagon to a star!Or is it . . Don't bite off more than you can chew!
13. Many hands make light work!Or is it . . Too many cooks spoil the broth!
14. Never judge a book by its cover!Or is it . . Clothes make the man!
15. The squeaking wheel gets first grease!Or is it . . Silence is golden!
16. Birds of a feather flock together!Or is it . . Opposites attract!
17. The pen is mightier than the sword!Or is it . . Actions speak louder than words!
- J.Ba. & N.R.
For us as Muslims, the Quran and the teachings of Muhammad, peace be upon him, never offer advise in contradiction to themselves. The above lesson should teach us the value of our deen, Al Islam '
More? ShareIslam.com
1. Look before you leap!Or is it . . He who hesitates is lost!
2. If at first you don't succeed, try, try again!Or is it . . Don't beat your head against a brick wall!
3. Absence makes the heart grow fonder!Out of sight, out of mind!
4. Never put off until tomorrow what you can do today!Or is it . . Don't cross the bridge until you come to it!
5. Two heads are better than one!Or is it . . Paddle your own canoe!
6. Haste makes waste!Or is it . . Time waits for no man!
7. You're never too old to learn!Or is it . . You can't teach an old dog new tricks!
8. A word to the wise is sufficient!Or is it . . Talk is cheap!
9. It's better to be safe than sorry!Or is it . . Nothing ventured, nothing gained!
10. Don't look a gift horse in the mouth!Or is it . . Beware of Greeks bearing gifts!
11. Do unto others as you would have others do unto you!Or is it . . Nice guys finish last!
12. Hitch your wagon to a star!Or is it . . Don't bite off more than you can chew!
13. Many hands make light work!Or is it . . Too many cooks spoil the broth!
14. Never judge a book by its cover!Or is it . . Clothes make the man!
15. The squeaking wheel gets first grease!Or is it . . Silence is golden!
16. Birds of a feather flock together!Or is it . . Opposites attract!
17. The pen is mightier than the sword!Or is it . . Actions speak louder than words!
- J.Ba. & N.R.
For us as Muslims, the Quran and the teachings of Muhammad, peace be upon him, never offer advise in contradiction to themselves. The above lesson should teach us the value of our deen, Al Islam '
More? ShareIslam.com
Thursday, December 14, 2006
I can hardly believe it!
Hafsah slept 12 hours or so last night and the night before it was around 11 hours.
I’ve worked out now if she has a nap after 3 hours awake for max 1.5 hours, then we seem to have the ideal routine. This means 2 naps a day and bed from around 7.30 pm. It’s weird, I feel I’m not seeing as much of her as before, which is probably true, but feel better knowing I can give her more quality time (yeah I normally hate that phrase, but I mean I’m in a better mood which she must sense). Let’s hope inshAllah the bubble doesn’t burst. I’m thinking ahead and trying to remember when they move down to one nap a day (that’s really why I’m writing all this stuff, for future reference).
Kids had a fun day off yesterday as it was ‘Lucia’ day. Hence we had Andy’s indoor play centre all to ourselves with another sister and her kids. So no queuing for the trampolines or lost children amongst the usual hectic atmosphere.
I’ve worked out now if she has a nap after 3 hours awake for max 1.5 hours, then we seem to have the ideal routine. This means 2 naps a day and bed from around 7.30 pm. It’s weird, I feel I’m not seeing as much of her as before, which is probably true, but feel better knowing I can give her more quality time (yeah I normally hate that phrase, but I mean I’m in a better mood which she must sense). Let’s hope inshAllah the bubble doesn’t burst. I’m thinking ahead and trying to remember when they move down to one nap a day (that’s really why I’m writing all this stuff, for future reference).
Kids had a fun day off yesterday as it was ‘Lucia’ day. Hence we had Andy’s indoor play centre all to ourselves with another sister and her kids. So no queuing for the trampolines or lost children amongst the usual hectic atmosphere.
Sunday, December 10, 2006
A complete U-turn!
After trying to convince myself that just going with the flow re Hafsah’s sleep patterns is OK, the combination of quite a few nights of being woken, every 2-3 hours, and giving in to a blatant marketing technique by a sleep expert, I decided to do something about the situation. I’d been getting marketing e-mails from an expert from Canada (Dana Obelman) giving ‘guaranteed success’ of your baby sleeping through the night. I could not believe it, and despite the ‘money-back guarantee’ had decided to leave it, as felt it was just going to be the usual let them cry type method. Anyway, after looking around the net about this lady’s credentials, and could find nothing untoward, decided to go for it, and so far I am glad I did. Hafsah has slept 8- 9 hours straight the last few nights, maybe a brief awakening. But also got the added bonus of her sleeping early (around 7.30 pm.). The amount of crying has been minimal and I now feel less helpless and slightly in control! The main points of the sleep plan seem to be: 1 Early bedtime after a set bedtime routine. 2. Repeat same phrase when time to sleep e.g. ‘sleep time’ 3.Make sure they have a comfort object e.g blankie, cuddly toy. 4.Leave to cry 10 mins if wake in night (or however long you decide, but stick to this time) and do not pick up if still crying after this time, but go and comfort by repeating phrase, stroke. (I never had to get to this point,) I was so shocked that there was an immediate effect. Maybe she has been so overtired she couldn’t sleep soundly. Also not letting her sleep after feeding so she is not using me as human dummy (I had to slip up on this today at scouts as she couldn’t settle with all the noise around.) Yes the downside to this program is that it assumes you are a first time parent with no other noisy kids around, or places to go when she should be having her scheduled nap!
Anyway after all this success so far, I still feel pretty wrecked as I still find it hard to sleep (I’m also over tired) and wake up wondering if she’s going to cry and if she’s OK, InshAllah this phase will soon be over.
Anyway after all this success so far, I still feel pretty wrecked as I still find it hard to sleep (I’m also over tired) and wake up wondering if she’s going to cry and if she’s OK, InshAllah this phase will soon be over.
Saturday, December 02, 2006
A break from the routine
Today was filled with a bit of rushing about, but I wanted to take the kids to the station and on a train ride which would be special as it was XXXth anniversary of the XXX to XX line. So this would give a short trip on a different type of train. Unfortunately the much desired ‘double-decker’ train was sold out. S especially was disappointed, but reluctantly agreed to take another vintage train instead. I was trying to console him and we went to first take a look and some pics (I hope inshAllah I can figure out how to upload photos, I’ve been putting this off for ages) at the super duper double decker. Still S was a bit regretful, why hadn’t we come earlier etc. I am so glad in Islam we cannot say ‘if only..’ we have to be optimistic as well. So I tried to instil this in S. I tried to explain that his grandchildren inshAllah find this train ‘old-fashioned (as he was thinking the replacement train was). We waved the train off, with its passengers apparently thinking we were barmy as no one waved back! S commented later that no one looked happy to be on that train, the injustice of it! No dear, we’re living in Sweden. So then we got on what I thought was our train, which the kids were totally unimpressed with from the outside, but when we got inside via the v scary steps into the carriage, they were quite chuffed with the interior, with seats like armchairs. S said something along the lines of ‘You know you talked about ‘optim..stc or something, well I think this train is it’ No one seemed to know if this train would depart soon, until one train spotter said it was going nowhere! Hufff, I had to quickly get all of us out, back over the scary steep, big-gap steps of this well-over 60 year old train’s exit, so we could find our correct train. MashAllah, no complaints or moans from little ones, and we found our train on another platform, which was even more disappointing to them, but it had an easy step for the buggy to ascend, so I loved it.
Well this was one from the 50’s so tried to insert a little sense of history again into all of this, by saying their granddad would’ve been about their age when he could have travelled on this when it was brand spanking new, and it would’ve seemed great to him (?!) There was a speedometer in the section we sat, and we made it to 80 km/hr. I asked the conductor what some strange orange tools S had enquired about were (he said something about making it safe to deal with the electricity if it broke down, had taken a guess at jump-leads, so I was nearly right)
Then the highlight of the trip was the conductor’s James Bond impression as he calmly opened a door in the back of the carriage and walked across to the next carriage via the open air! I thought that was reserved for the beggars on the tube. S could hardly believe his eyes I think, and he had a good look out the back to see where the conductor had had to walk.
We got to our destination, safe and sound Alhamdulillah, and then saw a Swedish Thomas tank type train. Then tried to sort out a ticket back home, but had to find a toilet for H. Then found I didn’t have a 5 kronor coin, but a lady just came out so we managed to get in for free. It was either that or someone would’ve had to mop the floor with bleach. There ought to be free little people sized loos, like do I have time to go and change a note when I have a full-bladdered 3 year old demanding to go?
Got tickets and while we waited, saw Thomas depart with a whistle and lots of smoke. It was a multi-sensory experience I’ll say that. Then we took the standard train back that also goes to to a different country ‘no we can’t go there S, we haven’t got our passports’. That was very smooth and fast and we actually beat Thomas by a few minutes. The final modern train was voted the best (after the double-decker, though H wanted to go on the modern but slow local train, which I think stops at every station). So next time folks, book in advance or you may as well just take them on a normal train whenever you have time and save a few pennies too! Alhamdulillah, though, it was great to do something different, even though I was totally worn out from it all!
Well this was one from the 50’s so tried to insert a little sense of history again into all of this, by saying their granddad would’ve been about their age when he could have travelled on this when it was brand spanking new, and it would’ve seemed great to him (?!) There was a speedometer in the section we sat, and we made it to 80 km/hr. I asked the conductor what some strange orange tools S had enquired about were (he said something about making it safe to deal with the electricity if it broke down, had taken a guess at jump-leads, so I was nearly right)
Then the highlight of the trip was the conductor’s James Bond impression as he calmly opened a door in the back of the carriage and walked across to the next carriage via the open air! I thought that was reserved for the beggars on the tube. S could hardly believe his eyes I think, and he had a good look out the back to see where the conductor had had to walk.
We got to our destination, safe and sound Alhamdulillah, and then saw a Swedish Thomas tank type train. Then tried to sort out a ticket back home, but had to find a toilet for H. Then found I didn’t have a 5 kronor coin, but a lady just came out so we managed to get in for free. It was either that or someone would’ve had to mop the floor with bleach. There ought to be free little people sized loos, like do I have time to go and change a note when I have a full-bladdered 3 year old demanding to go?
Got tickets and while we waited, saw Thomas depart with a whistle and lots of smoke. It was a multi-sensory experience I’ll say that. Then we took the standard train back that also goes to to a different country ‘no we can’t go there S, we haven’t got our passports’. That was very smooth and fast and we actually beat Thomas by a few minutes. The final modern train was voted the best (after the double-decker, though H wanted to go on the modern but slow local train, which I think stops at every station). So next time folks, book in advance or you may as well just take them on a normal train whenever you have time and save a few pennies too! Alhamdulillah, though, it was great to do something different, even though I was totally worn out from it all!
Sunday, November 26, 2006
HEADLINE NEWS
Hafsah slept 7 and a half hours. Well I think she did, but I woke up thinking it was 4 am but it was nearer 7 30 am. I have some suspicions maybe I fed her without waking up, as otherwise I thought I’d be reaching for the cabbage leaves. I mostly tend to have her sleep in bed with me as she ends up with me anyway, and it saves my back, picking her up out of the cot numerous times, plus she is a very nice cuddly hot water bottle!. I know this goes against current health warnings, but these fluctuate from year to year, whereas instincts seem more reliable. There was one time the other night when I woke up as I must have rolled on to her, and I was quite shocked to find she was in bed with me, but she didn’t stir as I quickly moved away from her, no harm done, just realised I must have been REALLY tired..
Anyway last night, was the same old routine of frequent wakings, me being too tired to think of doing anything but feed her, but at least now I ‘m more sure she doesn’t really need those nocturnal snacks.
Anyway last night, was the same old routine of frequent wakings, me being too tired to think of doing anything but feed her, but at least now I ‘m more sure she doesn’t really need those nocturnal snacks.
Friday, November 24, 2006
A bit of a waffle involving geese, plates and anxiety
Realising the other side of being educated as a speech therapist, and partly home-educating, it’s difficult to just switch off and‘enjoy’ playing with my children. Always thinking in my mind, what are they learning, are they developing normally?! So this is something I aspire to do.
I was playing 'catch' with H and I told him to WATCH the ball as he invariably drops it. Then he took this so seriously, opening his eyes very wide (but still not really tracking where the ball was going!) His relationship with little sister still a bit love-hate, leaning more towards the hate side, ‘I’m going to destroy you’ was one phrase used, answered by a scream and she’s just recovering from a bitten finger. I know one of his favourite foods are fishfingers, but this is taking it too far. (actually just now he’s lovingly said to her ‘Is something wrong’ when she whinged a bit). He is so different in his sensitivity, has always been shy, but just checked out on the web about selective mutism and turns out its an ‘anxiety disorder’ which makes it sound worse than it is I think. He showed a slight sign of improvement as he spoke to me in English in front of his teacher the other day. He can speak Swedish (does a little at home and they say they try in English with him, but I think its not the language, but reluctance tot talk at nursery or to other non-family members that is the prob). I do know a sister whose son was the same and he did start talking at school once he was 5 or so. It’s amazing he’s the complete opposite at home, Mr Chatterbox ! Anyway still on sensitivity, th e other day I asked him to take a plate to the kitchen, and specially told him to put it on the table as I anticipated placing it in the sink would result in breakage. I saw him change his mind and attempt to put it on the worktop, but then it fell on the tiled floor and of course broke. He immediately burst into tears, crying inconsolably, and asking me to mend it with sticky tape. I managed to calm him down by recounting how I was always breaking stuff when I was young. Then I told him we wouldn’t mend it but bin it. He then kept apologising throughout the rest of the evening, and checking the plate in the bin a few times. He said ‘I’ll be careful when I’m bigger, on Sunday’.
Also he uses cute mispronunciation of ‘spaceship’ which he insists is correct: ‘skaceship’
Hafsah picking up small Hama beads, lego etc with nice pincer grip, oooh dangerous! Index finger poking of many things, a whole new world opening up of annoying parents by changing tv channels on remote etc on the horizon, poking nostrils and eyes. At night sometimes crying as if SO distressed, but a couple of nights in a row I was SO tired I actually managed to not be immediately woken by the cries and SLEEP through the wails, this is first for me as a mother who’s hormones seem to keep me sleeping so lightly, and not like a sloth in my student days. Last night she went into an excited screaming fest, me hoping the neighbours wouldn’t complain as it was past 10.30 pm. They were happy screams, but meant I had to rewind the program on the DVD player I was watching many times as I wanted to note down a book recommended by a sheikh on Islam channel’s Islamiqa. (Which reminds me, subtitles are not just for the hard-of-hearing, but also for parents with very vocal offspring, only prob, not all channels, programmes have them)
Autumn has come and almost dispapeared into Winter ina matter of weeks, the leaves were late falling I think this year, but now it’s getting chillier but still in plus area of the thermometer,which I must say, is a plus.. The geese are migrating South in their ‘V' shapes as I tried to point out to kids, although S did note some went into a letter ‘Y’. Obviously a bit of a fight for leadership there, not unlike the Labour Party.
Oh, a continuation of the ‘Saturday sweets topic’ the nurse at the dentist recommended this as well as DH bringing home a free bag of sweets from work (no he doesn’t work for Willy Wonka) called ‘Saturday sweets', it’s like almost compulsory to have sugar binge on this day.
I was playing 'catch' with H and I told him to WATCH the ball as he invariably drops it. Then he took this so seriously, opening his eyes very wide (but still not really tracking where the ball was going!) His relationship with little sister still a bit love-hate, leaning more towards the hate side, ‘I’m going to destroy you’ was one phrase used, answered by a scream and she’s just recovering from a bitten finger. I know one of his favourite foods are fishfingers, but this is taking it too far. (actually just now he’s lovingly said to her ‘Is something wrong’ when she whinged a bit). He is so different in his sensitivity, has always been shy, but just checked out on the web about selective mutism and turns out its an ‘anxiety disorder’ which makes it sound worse than it is I think. He showed a slight sign of improvement as he spoke to me in English in front of his teacher the other day. He can speak Swedish (does a little at home and they say they try in English with him, but I think its not the language, but reluctance tot talk at nursery or to other non-family members that is the prob). I do know a sister whose son was the same and he did start talking at school once he was 5 or so. It’s amazing he’s the complete opposite at home, Mr Chatterbox ! Anyway still on sensitivity, th e other day I asked him to take a plate to the kitchen, and specially told him to put it on the table as I anticipated placing it in the sink would result in breakage. I saw him change his mind and attempt to put it on the worktop, but then it fell on the tiled floor and of course broke. He immediately burst into tears, crying inconsolably, and asking me to mend it with sticky tape. I managed to calm him down by recounting how I was always breaking stuff when I was young. Then I told him we wouldn’t mend it but bin it. He then kept apologising throughout the rest of the evening, and checking the plate in the bin a few times. He said ‘I’ll be careful when I’m bigger, on Sunday’.
Also he uses cute mispronunciation of ‘spaceship’ which he insists is correct: ‘skaceship’
Hafsah picking up small Hama beads, lego etc with nice pincer grip, oooh dangerous! Index finger poking of many things, a whole new world opening up of annoying parents by changing tv channels on remote etc on the horizon, poking nostrils and eyes. At night sometimes crying as if SO distressed, but a couple of nights in a row I was SO tired I actually managed to not be immediately woken by the cries and SLEEP through the wails, this is first for me as a mother who’s hormones seem to keep me sleeping so lightly, and not like a sloth in my student days. Last night she went into an excited screaming fest, me hoping the neighbours wouldn’t complain as it was past 10.30 pm. They were happy screams, but meant I had to rewind the program on the DVD player I was watching many times as I wanted to note down a book recommended by a sheikh on Islam channel’s Islamiqa. (Which reminds me, subtitles are not just for the hard-of-hearing, but also for parents with very vocal offspring, only prob, not all channels, programmes have them)
Autumn has come and almost dispapeared into Winter ina matter of weeks, the leaves were late falling I think this year, but now it’s getting chillier but still in plus area of the thermometer,which I must say, is a plus.. The geese are migrating South in their ‘V' shapes as I tried to point out to kids, although S did note some went into a letter ‘Y’. Obviously a bit of a fight for leadership there, not unlike the Labour Party.
Oh, a continuation of the ‘Saturday sweets topic’ the nurse at the dentist recommended this as well as DH bringing home a free bag of sweets from work (no he doesn’t work for Willy Wonka) called ‘Saturday sweets', it’s like almost compulsory to have sugar binge on this day.
Thursday, November 16, 2006
Islam -direct-marketing
S has been posing some interesting questions as well as doing some ’direct-dawah’ recently. The other week he was wondering why it is that so many children in his school use bad language. I sort of waffled on about the fact most come from a poorer background, their parents don’t tell them etc I was trying to puzzle it out myself as well, is it lack of education, class. I am still amazed that no foul words have accidentally popped out of his mouth, they still use the nursery type toilet talk if they want to be rude to their siblings and that’s as far as it goes. The children at school (and in the area as well as I have heard children round our way) use swear words without a real knowledge of what they really mean (often they are mispronounced English), they just know they offend. Anyhow, the flip side to the rubbish he is having to hear at school seems to be his growing Muslim identity and confidence. This combined with childhood honesty led him into his direct-dawah experience the other day with a sister’s MIL who does not practice. He was in a confident mood after having a good report in his parent-teacher meeting, and decide to let this lady know about islam and its requirements (in very fast Swedish I might add)! I think most of what he was saying was inspired by his islamologi lessons as I don’t remember explaining everything he came out with, and when I do it’s in a less direct way. Then last night as he was in a half-sleep as I came to put some clothes away in his room he asked me why a certain ‘muslim’ teacher in his school does not cover, he is very good at picking out inconsistencies mashAllah. Usually it is directed at the treatment he gets compared to his brothers.
So he did well in his development meeting, only needing to be brought on time in the morning (not unexpected!) and to practice reading more so he can be more fluent in this. I don’t think I mentioned he can now swim 200m and I got the letter today that he can go in the ‘crawl’ group for swimming next term, so I think we can say he can swim now! I just haven’t been to see him as it would be difficult with Hafsah. In his English reading he’s doing quite well and actually woke me from a nap to say he’d read a page of Charlie and the Chocolate factory himself. I was about to get angry at him for waking me up, but managed not to show it too much as he was obviously proud of himself. We had played hangman the other week with S and M and was quite a good way to encourage spelling, although M has to be content with spelling 3 letter words which I have to try not to guess!
Oh and another Swedish cultural observation, which I had heard of a while back which is letting kids have sweets on Saturdays. Well I was shocked to receive a leaflet from the dentists actually promoting this. I suppose it is instead of everyday, letting the teeth be continually exposed. Anyway I hope they would recommend a good brushing after the sugar session. H has another dentist appointment today as he has a small cavity, which S probably rightly pointed out, is because he bails (cries) so much when he doesn’t get what he wants. (‘bails’ a new piece of our family’s vocab derived from wails and bawl I think) I give in and give him m&m’s or whatever he craves, so again hands up ‘bad mum’ call the NSPCC. It’s probably also due to his milk and juice addiction. I try to make the juice very watered down, so sometimes it’s thrown by the wayside.
Managed to get kids passport birth certificate off in the post, so inshAllah will be able to get away from this place at some point soon. I’m thinking of booking something in the Gulf States over Xmas hols, but anticipating costs will prevent..
Hafsah still night-waking, yawn in both senses of the word, by the 4th night of just giving her water up till 230 am I gave up, as my body just said ‘NO; JUST BREASTFEED HER AND SLEEP)’ (instead of DH saying that, who was away).
Just done a ‘good mum’ task of whizzing up loads of different vegetable purees and freezing them. In fact the vegetarian selection of ready-made stuff is so limited here that I have to do it myself. I think she’ll be expecting porridge all the time otherwise.
Hs teacher seemed very shocked to hear him speaking English sentences (to me) the other day when picked him up. He’s still not speaking anything at nursery, Swedish nor English, just sign language.
So he did well in his development meeting, only needing to be brought on time in the morning (not unexpected!) and to practice reading more so he can be more fluent in this. I don’t think I mentioned he can now swim 200m and I got the letter today that he can go in the ‘crawl’ group for swimming next term, so I think we can say he can swim now! I just haven’t been to see him as it would be difficult with Hafsah. In his English reading he’s doing quite well and actually woke me from a nap to say he’d read a page of Charlie and the Chocolate factory himself. I was about to get angry at him for waking me up, but managed not to show it too much as he was obviously proud of himself. We had played hangman the other week with S and M and was quite a good way to encourage spelling, although M has to be content with spelling 3 letter words which I have to try not to guess!
Oh and another Swedish cultural observation, which I had heard of a while back which is letting kids have sweets on Saturdays. Well I was shocked to receive a leaflet from the dentists actually promoting this. I suppose it is instead of everyday, letting the teeth be continually exposed. Anyway I hope they would recommend a good brushing after the sugar session. H has another dentist appointment today as he has a small cavity, which S probably rightly pointed out, is because he bails (cries) so much when he doesn’t get what he wants. (‘bails’ a new piece of our family’s vocab derived from wails and bawl I think) I give in and give him m&m’s or whatever he craves, so again hands up ‘bad mum’ call the NSPCC. It’s probably also due to his milk and juice addiction. I try to make the juice very watered down, so sometimes it’s thrown by the wayside.
Managed to get kids passport birth certificate off in the post, so inshAllah will be able to get away from this place at some point soon. I’m thinking of booking something in the Gulf States over Xmas hols, but anticipating costs will prevent..
Hafsah still night-waking, yawn in both senses of the word, by the 4th night of just giving her water up till 230 am I gave up, as my body just said ‘NO; JUST BREASTFEED HER AND SLEEP)’ (instead of DH saying that, who was away).
Just done a ‘good mum’ task of whizzing up loads of different vegetable purees and freezing them. In fact the vegetarian selection of ready-made stuff is so limited here that I have to do it myself. I think she’ll be expecting porridge all the time otherwise.
Hs teacher seemed very shocked to hear him speaking English sentences (to me) the other day when picked him up. He’s still not speaking anything at nursery, Swedish nor English, just sign language.
Wednesday, November 08, 2006
Not in the mood for this..
Just had to write something to get frustration out as DH away, but I couldn’t believe the impoliteness of nursery today. We were like maximum ten minutes late, it was completely quiet, and I wondered if anyone was in. They start breakfast at 8 am, and 2 teachers tried to suggest H does not join them and that we must be there at 8am if he wants breakfast. Well I take the criticism of being late, islamically it’s not on as well as definitely not in Swedish culture. But 10 or so children sitting there eating while my son is left out is also definitely not on, so I made sure he did join them. Also I thought meal times were a good chance to gain language skills (although not so sure as eating in silence) It’s the lack of flexibility that gets me, which I believe has to be factored in when dealing with children.(Will talk about our victory over Swedish inflexibility re Hafsah’s surname later). I take the point and I must try to be more punctual, which will mean setting my clocks even faster (unless maybe the batteries going on the kitchen clock and it is actually the right time now) It seemed like even my mobile clock was slow today as we arrived 8.30 am on the dot for S and M’s school but nearly everyone seemed to have begun their lessons so still felt like we were late!
So having a serious ‘shall I take him out of nursery’ moment, but then try to remember how difficult it was for the boys to make friends here until they grasped Swedish. If I change the nursery, who knows it may be just the same or worse, and H found it hard to settle in this nursery due to his shyness, The 2 nicest teachers have left and the remaining one has not been around for a while (I hope she’s just on holiday), and there is no clear leadership, there’s no one in charge of each nursery, just one lady who sits in the school office who I could contact but she seems too removed to talk to about these everyday matters. Du'a for- guidance-time I think!
Re the victory, managed to overturn the decision re Hafsah’s surname, as the tax authority wouldn’t let it be spelt as we wished. We got the British embassy involved and finally they realised someone in Stockholm had made a mistake! So it is possible to change things in Sweden, not easy, but ‘så är det’ ‘that’s the way it is’ does not always rule.
Other notables from Hafsah’s side, is she’s quite good at sitting up now, she suddenly feels more ‘solid’. Although I came across M and H’s baby books just now and she is about 1kg less in weight than they were t 6 months. She likes to bang the table with her hand, as well as splashing violently in the bath with hands and feet. Much to my disappointment, she quite liked the free sample I got of baby food, whereas she’s been spitting out my home-made savoury stuff. I think my creations were too lumpy, I don’t know how they get it so smooth. I mean, apparently it had broccoli in it, but I couldn’t see anything, no green at all! She’s also managed to suck properly and feed herself water wit her Avent magic cup, with the spill-proof bit on (which requires a fair amount of sucking power). Last night I remembered the technique of deciding not to breastfeed between a certain time (E.g. 11pm and 2.00pm and gradually extending it). The night before it had seemed to be every 1 or 2 hours! So when she woke at half midnight, I offered water which was stubbornly refused (it could have apple juice in there you missed your chance!) so I knew she wasn’t thirsty. She managed to sleep half an hour later, but woke around 330am and I fed her and then AGAIN at 5.30 am aah!
A couple of kids nicknames/phrases I’ve forgotten to note, Hafsah’s name is Biryani as her grandmother called her Hafsah rani, bari syani (Queen Hafsah, very wise) and as 'biryani' rhymes, has stuck. M also used to say to her ‘Hafsah you’re marBellous!’
So having a serious ‘shall I take him out of nursery’ moment, but then try to remember how difficult it was for the boys to make friends here until they grasped Swedish. If I change the nursery, who knows it may be just the same or worse, and H found it hard to settle in this nursery due to his shyness, The 2 nicest teachers have left and the remaining one has not been around for a while (I hope she’s just on holiday), and there is no clear leadership, there’s no one in charge of each nursery, just one lady who sits in the school office who I could contact but she seems too removed to talk to about these everyday matters. Du'a for- guidance-time I think!
Re the victory, managed to overturn the decision re Hafsah’s surname, as the tax authority wouldn’t let it be spelt as we wished. We got the British embassy involved and finally they realised someone in Stockholm had made a mistake! So it is possible to change things in Sweden, not easy, but ‘så är det’ ‘that’s the way it is’ does not always rule.
Other notables from Hafsah’s side, is she’s quite good at sitting up now, she suddenly feels more ‘solid’. Although I came across M and H’s baby books just now and she is about 1kg less in weight than they were t 6 months. She likes to bang the table with her hand, as well as splashing violently in the bath with hands and feet. Much to my disappointment, she quite liked the free sample I got of baby food, whereas she’s been spitting out my home-made savoury stuff. I think my creations were too lumpy, I don’t know how they get it so smooth. I mean, apparently it had broccoli in it, but I couldn’t see anything, no green at all! She’s also managed to suck properly and feed herself water wit her Avent magic cup, with the spill-proof bit on (which requires a fair amount of sucking power). Last night I remembered the technique of deciding not to breastfeed between a certain time (E.g. 11pm and 2.00pm and gradually extending it). The night before it had seemed to be every 1 or 2 hours! So when she woke at half midnight, I offered water which was stubbornly refused (it could have apple juice in there you missed your chance!) so I knew she wasn’t thirsty. She managed to sleep half an hour later, but woke around 330am and I fed her and then AGAIN at 5.30 am aah!
A couple of kids nicknames/phrases I’ve forgotten to note, Hafsah’s name is Biryani as her grandmother called her Hafsah rani, bari syani (Queen Hafsah, very wise) and as 'biryani' rhymes, has stuck. M also used to say to her ‘Hafsah you’re marBellous!’
Saturday, November 04, 2006
She's attached!
Try not to be boring, but still the sleep deprivation continues, and DH offered to take Hafsah and give her expressed milk last night as the previous night she’d woken 5 or 6 times and I was on the point of collapse. In the end she managed to sleep in nearly 4 hour blocks anyway and wouldn’t really show interest in milk in a feeder cup. Anyhow her cries managed to wake me even when I was sleeping in the other room and fed her around 2.30 am. She has the habit now of throwing her head back once she’s had enough and I’m trying to wind her, as if to say, now I want to sleep. I just don’t want any tummy pains to wake her in half an hour or so! So when the clock said 6.30 am and I thought it would be 4.30am I was pretty chuffed. I know that it’s about as good as a bottle-fed newborn but at least I felt like I had a brain!
The other day I had to take M to his Quran class on the bus (well it takes 2 buses, as right across town). Winter had really begun, with snow on the 1st November (kids got so excited, hang on it was still on the ground in April!) It was so cold, and M was very patient, and liked to count how many stops we had left. He also copied the recorded names of stops that come over the tannoy in a ‘proper’ Swedish accent (not Skånsk from round here). Came home and it must have been the longest I’d ever been away from Hafsah (almost 4 hours) and was she pleased to see me! She started flapping arms and legs and smiling and generally very happy, and when I went out the room to put my coat etc away she started whimpering. Ah, what it must be to be a working mum leaving them every day!
The other day I had to take M to his Quran class on the bus (well it takes 2 buses, as right across town). Winter had really begun, with snow on the 1st November (kids got so excited, hang on it was still on the ground in April!) It was so cold, and M was very patient, and liked to count how many stops we had left. He also copied the recorded names of stops that come over the tannoy in a ‘proper’ Swedish accent (not Skånsk from round here). Came home and it must have been the longest I’d ever been away from Hafsah (almost 4 hours) and was she pleased to see me! She started flapping arms and legs and smiling and generally very happy, and when I went out the room to put my coat etc away she started whimpering. Ah, what it must be to be a working mum leaving them every day!
Friday, October 27, 2006
Congestion charge..
should be introduced in Malmö. No really if my nose was a city it would be called London and eucalyptus oil and kitchen roll would be the currency, approximately one sheet per 10 miles/ minutes.. So amazing how a cold can inhibit brain function, and I try to ignore it, and think Alhamdulillah I don’t have cancer or something. But oh for being tucked up in bed being brought marmite fingers and cups of tea. I do try to think of the people worse off when I’m generally being ungrateful (like now), the sisters in Iraq having to collect litter all day just to earn enough money to get some food for their children. I try to think how Allah has planned the world, and bacteria have to be part of it, otherwise we’d have piles of dead stuff around for a start. Anyhow I had a few seconds respite when I opened the dishwasher soon after it had just finished, how amazing, it washes my dishes and is a facial steamer at the same time! Allah is testing us all and I am just getting the SATS in terms of illnesses, some out there are doing their A-level physics.
On a different tack, in my quest to understand Swedish culture, and maybe some may say be ‘integrated’ I found by chance the English translation of ‘Pippi Longstocking’ by Astrid Lindgren (the Enid Blyton of Sweden ?)
All children seem to know her, they sing songs, watch films have museums about her. So I stumbled upon this, trying to find an English book at a level suitable for S and M in my local library. In fact I’m quite enjoying it This book was written in the 1940’s as I can tell from some of the quotes but my children do actually recognise the stories which have been adapted into films shown now and again at nursery/ school and on the cartoon in American English on children’s channel POP. Knowing a little Swedish I can come across a few translation anomalies which give a slight chuckle but why do they always have to translates kronor into crowns? I suppose England did have crowns in the 40’s but now people do know the word kronor don’t they? But the funniest chapter so far has been ‘Pippi starts school’. Now if you put it in the context of it being 1940’s, Sweden where homeschooling is frowned upon, it made refreshing reading. She is nine year old girl who lives on her own with a horse and a monkey in a Swedish village. One day her friends try to persuade her to go to school. (The village residents have not managed to force her as she has superhuman strength and very forthright) In the end she decides herself, because she feels it’s unjust not to have the school holidays. When told to meet her friends to walk to school at 8 am she replies ‘no, no.. I can’t begin that early. And for that matter I think I’ll be riding to school’ When asked by the teacher what 7 and 5 make she replies ‘Well, if you don’t know, don’t think I’m going to work it out for you!’ At the end of the day she’s travelled the 7 seas with her father and has learnt a thing or two in the University of Life!
The other book I’m reading (for myself) is ‘In search of sleep’ by Bonny Reicher, which I got to back myself up, as I figure the only thing I can be sure to change abouth this sleep deprived era is my attitude. Things are a problem if you think they are. So I’m half way or so through it. So far most of it reflects a lot of my own thoughts e.g. can all children really sleep through by 6 months?, and interesting but unfortunately not detailed enough bit about physiology of sleep Controlled crying is a waste of time (I have apparently been trying to ‘Ferberize’ my kids in the past with this method) and one’s instincts to pick up, feed the baby are usually right. The other interesting bit I’ve read is that how we, society tend to associate you r baby sleeping through, meaning you are a ‘good’ parent and hence the converse is that if they aren’t I am in the wrong, so you get double guilt if you try to let them cry, and it fails. You are going against your instincts and not succeeding as a parent in the eyes of others as well. If any of this makes sense it’s a miracle as I was trying to stop Hafsah making a peep last night, hence fed her countless times, as H had slept from 5.30 pm and I didn’t want him to wake up at 4 am if he heard her crying. He would probably then require me getting up properly at this ridiculous hour. As it turned out he slept 14 hours, (with a quick wake up for milk at 9 pm). After many days of late bedtimes, he needed that!! (and he was just as bad a sleeper as Hafsah was as a baby, so maybe there’s hope!)
Hafsah likes me to put my cheek back and forth against her mouth while she makes a noise, and so it makes her sound like she’s saying ‘mama’ or ‘baba’ aah.. She was also sucking away on the lid on my bottle of water the other day and making it vibrate so I kept thinking my mobile was ringing!
Eid was fun (for the kids) as they went to pray, went to the indoor play centre, filled with loads of Muslim kids (as it was a school day) and then they got their Lego pressies which arrived just in time from eBay/ Amazon (a bit of a panic if Eid had been on Sunday !)
Personal note, buy Eid presents as much in advance as poss as always a high chance of me being too ill to face Toys r us, hate it anyway…..
They wore their nice new shalwarqameez that MIL , mashAllah so organised, had brought over with her in April. So all I had to do was exhume the ironing board for its twice yearly view of sunlight and find some elastic to thread in the trousers.
LOTS of sugar was eaten as well as the novelty of crisps (we hardly ever buy them here as they only have the big size packets).
Another unrelated oddity of Sweden that people on the Wright stuff would be amazed at as they were when apparently jewellers in the UK are to be asked to have height markers by the doors so that they don’t have to guess shoplifters’ heights, yes, I spotted them in our local supermarket ages ago, quite sensible if you ask me esp. as average height will be more than 6 ft I expect!!
Sorry if you were expecting to find some home-ed amazing achievements but we live. hope and make du’a ………
On a different tack, in my quest to understand Swedish culture, and maybe some may say be ‘integrated’ I found by chance the English translation of ‘Pippi Longstocking’ by Astrid Lindgren (the Enid Blyton of Sweden ?)
All children seem to know her, they sing songs, watch films have museums about her. So I stumbled upon this, trying to find an English book at a level suitable for S and M in my local library. In fact I’m quite enjoying it This book was written in the 1940’s as I can tell from some of the quotes but my children do actually recognise the stories which have been adapted into films shown now and again at nursery/ school and on the cartoon in American English on children’s channel POP. Knowing a little Swedish I can come across a few translation anomalies which give a slight chuckle but why do they always have to translates kronor into crowns? I suppose England did have crowns in the 40’s but now people do know the word kronor don’t they? But the funniest chapter so far has been ‘Pippi starts school’. Now if you put it in the context of it being 1940’s, Sweden where homeschooling is frowned upon, it made refreshing reading. She is nine year old girl who lives on her own with a horse and a monkey in a Swedish village. One day her friends try to persuade her to go to school. (The village residents have not managed to force her as she has superhuman strength and very forthright) In the end she decides herself, because she feels it’s unjust not to have the school holidays. When told to meet her friends to walk to school at 8 am she replies ‘no, no.. I can’t begin that early. And for that matter I think I’ll be riding to school’ When asked by the teacher what 7 and 5 make she replies ‘Well, if you don’t know, don’t think I’m going to work it out for you!’ At the end of the day she’s travelled the 7 seas with her father and has learnt a thing or two in the University of Life!
The other book I’m reading (for myself) is ‘In search of sleep’ by Bonny Reicher, which I got to back myself up, as I figure the only thing I can be sure to change abouth this sleep deprived era is my attitude. Things are a problem if you think they are. So I’m half way or so through it. So far most of it reflects a lot of my own thoughts e.g. can all children really sleep through by 6 months?, and interesting but unfortunately not detailed enough bit about physiology of sleep Controlled crying is a waste of time (I have apparently been trying to ‘Ferberize’ my kids in the past with this method) and one’s instincts to pick up, feed the baby are usually right. The other interesting bit I’ve read is that how we, society tend to associate you r baby sleeping through, meaning you are a ‘good’ parent and hence the converse is that if they aren’t I am in the wrong, so you get double guilt if you try to let them cry, and it fails. You are going against your instincts and not succeeding as a parent in the eyes of others as well. If any of this makes sense it’s a miracle as I was trying to stop Hafsah making a peep last night, hence fed her countless times, as H had slept from 5.30 pm and I didn’t want him to wake up at 4 am if he heard her crying. He would probably then require me getting up properly at this ridiculous hour. As it turned out he slept 14 hours, (with a quick wake up for milk at 9 pm). After many days of late bedtimes, he needed that!! (and he was just as bad a sleeper as Hafsah was as a baby, so maybe there’s hope!)
Hafsah likes me to put my cheek back and forth against her mouth while she makes a noise, and so it makes her sound like she’s saying ‘mama’ or ‘baba’ aah.. She was also sucking away on the lid on my bottle of water the other day and making it vibrate so I kept thinking my mobile was ringing!
Eid was fun (for the kids) as they went to pray, went to the indoor play centre, filled with loads of Muslim kids (as it was a school day) and then they got their Lego pressies which arrived just in time from eBay/ Amazon (a bit of a panic if Eid had been on Sunday !)
Personal note, buy Eid presents as much in advance as poss as always a high chance of me being too ill to face Toys r us, hate it anyway…..
They wore their nice new shalwarqameez that MIL , mashAllah so organised, had brought over with her in April. So all I had to do was exhume the ironing board for its twice yearly view of sunlight and find some elastic to thread in the trousers.
LOTS of sugar was eaten as well as the novelty of crisps (we hardly ever buy them here as they only have the big size packets).
Another unrelated oddity of Sweden that people on the Wright stuff would be amazed at as they were when apparently jewellers in the UK are to be asked to have height markers by the doors so that they don’t have to guess shoplifters’ heights, yes, I spotted them in our local supermarket ages ago, quite sensible if you ask me esp. as average height will be more than 6 ft I expect!!
Sorry if you were expecting to find some home-ed amazing achievements but we live. hope and make du’a ………
Wednesday, October 18, 2006
achoo!
The colds have continued and will InshAllah one day end, but now it’s become a way of life, blowing noses, administering calpol, cough medicine etc and feeling downright miserable. The whole family has been affected and it’s still barely autumn, with quite mild weather for the time of year (northern Sweden is in having minus something temps, but here is in the teens)
Trying to get through various boring bits of paperwork and came across a piece of paper which S’s teacher had written down for us about a fish that S had really enjoyed eating on a school trip to Sweden’s southernmost point earlier in the term. It was to a place called Smygehuk from a shop called Smyge Fisk & Rökeri and it was ‘horngädda’. Now for someone who’s repertoire of fish-eating goes as far as fishfingers or maybe the slightly larger pieces of breaded fish. I was shocked to discover, now I finally got round to looking it up, that he had eaten and ENJOYED pike !
Felt bad yesterday as M was asking me to find him some ‘work’ to do ie worksheets or something like that. Had found some on Curious George website but printer was so slow I gave up as needed to lie down,and let him play the online games instead. Any how he did end up doing a fairly brain-involved game which was basically digit span, where he had to remember the phone numbers asked by the Man with the Yellow hat and redial them. He did manage 3 ok but 4 was a bit more difficult.
H let the dental nurse and the dentist count his teeth at his first dentist appointment (somewhat reluctantly) He had by mistake said ‘Hej’ to the friendly nurse but then did his usual silent routine. He didn’t like the bright light, nor lying down on the chair but they found 19 and a half teeth and one has the beginning of a cary !! Not surprising due to his love of lollipops (and his weak-willed parents).
Hafsah is banging toys together when she has one in each hand and babbling ‘aba’ a bit. I am trying my own improvised baby signing which we shall see if it’s of any use.
Trying to get through various boring bits of paperwork and came across a piece of paper which S’s teacher had written down for us about a fish that S had really enjoyed eating on a school trip to Sweden’s southernmost point earlier in the term. It was to a place called Smygehuk from a shop called Smyge Fisk & Rökeri and it was ‘horngädda’. Now for someone who’s repertoire of fish-eating goes as far as fishfingers or maybe the slightly larger pieces of breaded fish. I was shocked to discover, now I finally got round to looking it up, that he had eaten and ENJOYED pike !
Felt bad yesterday as M was asking me to find him some ‘work’ to do ie worksheets or something like that. Had found some on Curious George website but printer was so slow I gave up as needed to lie down,and let him play the online games instead. Any how he did end up doing a fairly brain-involved game which was basically digit span, where he had to remember the phone numbers asked by the Man with the Yellow hat and redial them. He did manage 3 ok but 4 was a bit more difficult.
H let the dental nurse and the dentist count his teeth at his first dentist appointment (somewhat reluctantly) He had by mistake said ‘Hej’ to the friendly nurse but then did his usual silent routine. He didn’t like the bright light, nor lying down on the chair but they found 19 and a half teeth and one has the beginning of a cary !! Not surprising due to his love of lollipops (and his weak-willed parents).
Hafsah is banging toys together when she has one in each hand and babbling ‘aba’ a bit. I am trying my own improvised baby signing which we shall see if it’s of any use.
Sunday, October 08, 2006
I NEED SLEEP
Another bad week on the sleep front, and hence another bad week really. Hafsah has a cold and had been waking up 1- 2 hourly, a couple of better nights, maybe 4-5 hourly and now we’re back to an unsavoury average of 3 hourly. With my cotton-wool brain I’ve managed to order a book on the subject, but I’m not expecting miracles. Maybe just to understand why this is happening would help. My health visitor said to expect this throughout the first YEAR!! Well the other three were quite bad until then although I vaguely recall they got better around 8 months when they started moving (as in crawling, not changing their address which would most certainly give me a night’s sleep ) DH did try to have her with him and to offer water last week, but that didn’t go down too well. She would only stop crying if he held her and so every time he put her down she screamed, and also woke me up, trying to sleep in the other room with both doors shut. Result: 2 brain-dead parents instead of one. Then we gave in at around 2.30 am and I fed her, but then it was playtime according to Hafsah, so she’s not just using me as a dummy. She will fall asleep in the day without feeding for her naps. Now I am back at newborn stage where I just feed her and try to fall asleep during this and seem to feel slightly better for it, but yes I know I’m making future probs but I NEED SLEEP !!?.
Well when she is awake in the day she now flaps both arms simultaneously, has managed to grab my glasses a few times, and blows half raspberries with her bottom lip.
Other kids have somehow put up with my grumpiness, H still v keen on letters and have to spot all the letters on the drain covers etc on the way home from nursery, so far he knows: V, K, M, S, D, W; O, L, the last a bit unsure but was happy to hear it’s for llama which is one of his nicknames given by the kids (it slightly rhymes with his name). H also said a funny thing the other day as I was changing Hafsah’s nappy, which I paraphrase’ When will her willy grow?’
Have done the ‘worm hotel’ with the kids last week, but I think someone killed them by screwing the lid on the jar and depriving them of oxygen. There was one lying on the top not moving and it has already dissolved into the soil! There was one who was not as wriggly as the rest when we collected them so maybe he (or should I say she/he as they are hermaphrodite, we learnt) was on the way out anyway. They haven’t mixed the soil, sand and clay layers as well as expected, which maybe due to oxygen deprivation, or the swimming pool given to them by DH when he was trying to help keep the soil ‘moist’. Please don’t ring the RSPCA!?
Well when she is awake in the day she now flaps both arms simultaneously, has managed to grab my glasses a few times, and blows half raspberries with her bottom lip.
Other kids have somehow put up with my grumpiness, H still v keen on letters and have to spot all the letters on the drain covers etc on the way home from nursery, so far he knows: V, K, M, S, D, W; O, L, the last a bit unsure but was happy to hear it’s for llama which is one of his nicknames given by the kids (it slightly rhymes with his name). H also said a funny thing the other day as I was changing Hafsah’s nappy, which I paraphrase’ When will her willy grow?’
Have done the ‘worm hotel’ with the kids last week, but I think someone killed them by screwing the lid on the jar and depriving them of oxygen. There was one lying on the top not moving and it has already dissolved into the soil! There was one who was not as wriggly as the rest when we collected them so maybe he (or should I say she/he as they are hermaphrodite, we learnt) was on the way out anyway. They haven’t mixed the soil, sand and clay layers as well as expected, which maybe due to oxygen deprivation, or the swimming pool given to them by DH when he was trying to help keep the soil ‘moist’. Please don’t ring the RSPCA!?
Sunday, September 24, 2006
aah bless
Hafsah's fallen asleep in front of the Tarawih prayers, so shall rapidly escape to bed, night wa salamoaleykum
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