The Extreme Reading Jean (by sarah)

So Jean's friend came up with an idea over Christmas and that was EXTREME READING which he did and took photos of to school. The school promptly nicked the idea or though he is helping coordinate so nicked isn't the right word!

Anyway Jean is now Extreme reading - the book of choice is How It Works written by the XKCD comic guy - this was one of her Christmas presents - it was supposed to be mine but she got excited about it when she saw Al wrapping it. It has now been read several times!

We took it to the climbing wall because extreme sports can always be improved by reading right? Cause everything is improved with reading... Not sure what we are going to do as a follow up though!

New Year Walk 2015 (by sarah)

A new year is upon us and after a night of much fun and poetry writing and the such like it was time to do lots of DIY and go for a walk. We went to the Forest of Dean. We love walking but it has not always been a possible pass time, this year we hope that will not be the case.

In all aspects life is exciting and uncertain at the moment but in good ways and Mary is starting to actually like walks through trees though she was still very glad to get back to the car much to Jean's disappointment - she wanted to run around in the "wilds" more.

We found a dragon pretending to be a tree - no really!

Alaric got stares and stares and stares (there were a lot of people about), I don't know if it was the three pairs of legs, the cloak, pink/purple hair or the Christmas Pudding hat - he say's they looked like they were worried he was a weirdo who would eat their dogs or something - I don't think he was wrong. The girls loved it.

I thought he looked brilliant - he said the Christmas Pudding hat was the least surprising of the combo for the norms 🙂

We found a river - it had been bound - like the rest of the forest.

It is sad and wonderful at the same time.

We thought on resolutions and projects and goals and wants and wishes as we walked round the lake.

One of mine is I want to post my stuff here more rather than being sucked into Facebook - having said that there is a 2015 Walks album but I plan to post one or two pics from each walk only - we plan on there being a lot of walks. People have been asking me to do more of the poetry photo twitter things I sort of started doing accidently this year just gone - ah what happens when you get a smart phone.

My camera is a bit broken so it started to act up at this point - but there were birds - lots and lots of them - they seemed happy 🙂

I love the muted colours of winter - greys and browns that seem smudged together and expectant.

Some of the birds were walking on water - there was some ice but not sure if they weren't just birds that do that - with the surface tension. It was still a wonder what ever.

The day light was beginning to go bringing the first day of the new year to a kind of close - we are expectant and awed by this year already and what ever happens it will be busy but fluid, adaptable and hopefully lovely.

There are writing projects and events including being guest poet and lunching a comic book - there is cuddly science and knitting, metal work and house decorating, there are friends and family and climbing. Mary and Jeany are progressing at astounding rates something that should not slow. We look forward to sharing parts of their adventures as they explore the world around them.

Happy New Year.

Advent 21 – Hama Mania (by sarah)

This is supposed to be an ice cave with the light filtering through and casting ice staligmites into dark relief. I am nearly out of white paint!

The girls have been creating many christmas crafts - not least of which of are the hama bead projects including presents to people like teachers.

Also the Nativity/school play was written by the kids and in French with flutes and violins played by some of the kids 🙂 I still have had no minced pies but did do Carol singing.

(photos)

Advent 19 – Bojustu (by sarah)

It is day 19 of Advent and I am so not really ready for Christmas but here is today's painting - it is supposed to be Father Christmas's sled in the northern lights

This week Jean learnt stuff that is apparently not widely known outside of Japan, seeing the rugby players on route I am so glad she is doing jujitsu or bojutsu as it was today. This involved large sticks that I couldn't help but compare to English quarter staves as they and archery were like the only things I was ever any good.

(photos phone)

Day 16 (by sarah)

Painting 16 is a mythical type castle tower - I am looking forward to discovering the story behind the tower 🙂

Also on the 12th we had the Posada family - a little wooden nativity set that makes the rounds round the village and appears in the church (even though we don't live in the village anymore we still get a turn), Mary was most concerned that the baby Jesus did not have a blanket even though I explained what the swaddling was. So I ended up knitting a little sleeping bag - I think Al packed it away with the figures though as I haven't seen it since!

(photos)