Being Closer to Nature

 Being Closer to Nature

I think that one thing that I love about home schooling is the ability to get closer to nature and to chose what items I use to teach my children and where I buy them from.

One thing that I have always done with my children is to teach them that second-hand is OK to buy despite Covid 19.

I was not brought up to use second-hand and was told to always buy new, but now that I am a parent I am happy to teach.

Reduce

Reuse

Recycle

Upcycle

is the new way to live life.

So one thing that I am looking at doing is to keep some of the things that I teach seasonal and to be more closer to nature and use what we have around use to learn who to live life to the full.

This year we were not really able to do any foraging like we have in the past, so I am going to use the items that I already have around the house and have not done any thing with yet.

What we will do is make then in to gifts for our family and friends and also to decorate the house with.

So please follow us during our gift making session over the next few day(s)

A 2 Z of Home Schooling

   https://a2zhomeschooling.com/ 

I have added the link to A 2 Z of Home Schooling I have found this website to be every useful epically during 2020.

Due to everyone parent having to home school their children during 2020, any online help that could be given to a great help.  I belie that this is something that will continue in the future and be apart of every day life.

I have found with my children who addend main stream school that even the schools have taken to handing out online web sites and links for children to be educated at home.

So please feel free to look at this link and see if it can help you so home school your children in the future.

Wednesday 18th November 2020

Wednesday 18th November 2020

I can not believe that we are drawing so close to the end of an other year and the one thing that I can think of is how lucky that I am to still be alive and to be able to watch my children grow each day.

The hardest job I have had to do is to not just take care of myslef because no one else will do that for you, but to take care of my family.

I have used this time to go back to the drawing board and to work on my future goals and who I can hopefully move forward in 2021 and how my children will also.

One of the main things that I have done is go back to basics and I have done this by taking the time to draw up a budget plan and to try and average out my incomings and outgoings over the last 6 months so that I can start planing for the future.

I will add a budget plan link to this blog, if I have not already added one.

Making a boat a home.

Making a boat a home.

For the last 6 years my family have lived on a narrow boat. most of people ask “How can you live in a boat with children?” “What about the space?”

When the truth of the matter is, most narrow boats are about the size of a one or two bedroom apartment. One of the main things that people struggle with no matter where they live is space, and buying things that they relly need and not always what the want.

When we live in a world where we are somewhat encouraged to be materialist, we forget that 9 times out of ten we buy things that we do not really need.

When it comes to raising a family on a boat we find that we end up buy more things that we do not really need and a 100 things that we do.

When raising children you have to cove all eventualities and also make room for the changes that seam to take place over night when our children grow.

Yet the main things that children need are food, warmth and shelter.

When raising my children I found that the market for children items still is very limed to the travelling community and is amid at people who live in a standard tersest house and not even a modern apartment or new home.

Most furniture to day is also cheaply made and flat packed to help with “space saving/practicality.” Yet if you live on a boat the last thing that you want is something that is made from MDF, yet the items need to be robust and light weight where ever possible.

One of the things that I am looking into to designing and making product for boating families and would like to know about the types of things that you are looking for and struggling to purchase.

I know that the following are an issue.

Sleeping arrangements, (beds and bedding)

Storage, (for every day baby items)

Pushchair, car seat, baby slings and storing them.

Safety gates

Baby alarms

Then all of the other ways to help Child prof a boat.

I would like to know of any other times are an issue and of any product that you would be looking at buying and are unable to find.

"When it is not Lemons?"

“When it is not Lemons?”

People say “we are what we eat.” but how can this be “when it is not lemons?”

One of the things that I started to do last year was reading the packaging of what I buy, this 

made me look at where I buy things from and how much I spend.

For my main shopping I have been using Tesco's on line and have signed up to a fixed

monthly delivery service that means that I can have a delivery 3 days per week every month

providing I spend £40.00 per delivery.

This year I will shop around and see if I can cut my spending and only buy “lemons” and

 not be Sold a “LEMON.”

So last year I started looking at items and tried to STOP but any thing with Palm Oil in,

 

MSG and Artificial Sweeteners.

I am all for sugar and do not feel comfortable with eating a Chemistry set every meal so the 

more basic the ingrediency the better. (personal chose)

So back to the Lemons, I hate it when something claims to have Lemons in but then it says 

on the packaging, lemon flavouring, lemon essence.

I can not stand in the super market all day reading packaging so I do it at home when the 

boys are a sleep. I also look at who things are packaged to try and reduce the amount of 

products that I buy that have load of packaging that they do not need.

This year I aim to cook more at hoe form fresh so in January 2019 I will do my first shop of 

the year and by December 2019 I aim to reduce the amount of LEMONS I buy, sugar, Palm 

oil, MSG Artificial Sugar and packaging I use.

So the amount I will be spend on my January Shop is…