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We have some issues, already for quite some time with Littlelish and preschool. I’ve tried to ignore them in the hope that it is just a phase and they will pass but Littlelish says she hates preschool.
When I asked her today why she hates preschool she told me it was because she “already knows everything that is important in the world”.
“Mummy I know about listening, about holding hands when you are told to, about being kind, about playing with others.”
What’s more she said she hates the activities at school, she hates writing, she hates reading… Quite frankly it’s leaving me a bit worried. Especially with her starting school this September.
There is no doubt that Littlelish is an exceptionally bright little thing. We’ve known it since she was small. I know all parents think their child is bright but Littlelish really is. She can sound out 3 and 4 letters words which means she is already reading basic books. She can spell and write short words too. Her vocabulary is outstanding for a child of 3. She uses words like captured, injured and gulp on a daily basis and if you ask her the meaning of some really grown up, complex words she will be able to tell you without hesitation. She also speaks Dutch and can translate between the two languages. She is really into science in a big way and will be able to tell you all about gravity and earthquakes if you ask her.
I’m sure it’s all linked with her being highly sensitive and we are really just trying to understand it all and figure out the best way, as parents, to deal with it. I’m very much led by her and what she wants to do. I never force work or activities upon her (nor could I, she is so strong willed). Mostly she likes to be social, play with her friends or make up imaginative games. Sometimes I feel guilty, that I should be pushing her more, to develop her obviously very capable brain but then I think she is so little, knows so much already I’d rather just let her have fun and relax. After all she will be at school soon enough.
Yesterday we found out which school Littlelish will be joining in September. It’s a wonderful, small school with a very warm, friendly atmosphere. I’m hoping it will suit her sensitivities well. But I’m also so nervous about how she will take to a full day spent on learning activities. Especially as many of the initial activities, phonics, numbers etc are things she has known for more than a year now. I’m hoping to goodness they are prepared to work with us on providing activities that will stimulate her and not leave her feeling bored and uninspired.
Which is exactly how she seems to be at preschool at the moment, not being challenged by her peers or teachers is really getting to her. She has even started to occasionally speak like a baby again which as I just read in this excellent article (about young gifted children at school) is often the case when trying to fit in with their peers. Littlelish is a child with a true love of learning, I really hope we can give her the education she deserves when school time comes around!
Well I wish I had more joyous news. It’s been rather a sickly couple of weeks in our house. I’ve been struggling with an unknown stomach ailment which has really been bothering me. I’m almost unable to eat, to which I know most of you would say – lucky! But unfortunately it is ridiculously painful and rather worrying. Needlesstosay motivation has been pretty low (which is rather frustrating as I have so many things I want to and need to do!) so we’ve been trying to relax and take it a bit easy.
Littlelish has also had chickenpox. She came down with them quite badly and it made her feel very ill and feverish, I hated seeing my little sunshine all lifeless and spotty! I was super proud of how she coped without complaining and how brave she was. In fact she was trying to convince us the whole time she didn’t have chickenpox “Mum these are not chickenpox, they are in fact birthmarks, that’s all”
I thought I’d share our top tips to get you through chickenpox relatively stress free. We bought nearly the entire chemist after a certain fussy little lady refused some of her treatments. We also found some things worked better than others!
- Paracetemol – for the fever. Remember you are NOT allowed to give ibuprofen to kids who have chicken pox.
- Piriton – Yes this is allergy medicine but it also works on chickenpox and stops the itching from the inside. We had to smuggle it in milk but it worked wonders and the difference in scratching was remarkable when she took it.
- Aqueous Calamine lotion – doesn’t dry the spots out (which can make them itch more!) like normal Calamine lotion does.
- A soft fleecy cuddle blanket – which she used to itch her spots rather than her nails…
- Baths – lots of warm baths, we tried both porridge oats and bicarbonate of soda both are meant to sooth…
- Distraction techniques – Tv usually works wonders here :/
- Love – Lots of cuddles!
I’d love you to comment and add your own if I’ve missed any that worked for you!
Image: www.soulcolour.com
Littlelish: Mummy, what colour is your soul?
Mummylish: Oh good question, I don’t really know!
Littlelish: (Thinks a while and then says) It’s white. Souls are white and they get greyer and greyer the older you get.
x
A fab guest post about getting girls into science!
Image: www.ehow.com
Some subjects are easier to engage kids with than others. Science can be one of the trickier ones, as it’s often perceived as ‘geeky’ and difficult to get to grips with. But, I think there are plenty of ways to get your children excited about science and shake off its ‘uncool’ image.
Girls and science
Before I look at how you can change your child’s perception of science, I’d like to talk briefly about girls’ relationship with the subject – because in the UK, the US and Canada, there is a clear achievement gap between the sexes. In fact, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development recently revealed that in these three countries, 15-year-old girls were outperformed by boys in science – but the reverse was true across the rest of the world.
There are a lot of theories about why this is. One common suggestion is that gender inequality in society causes these gaps by stripping females of the confidence in their own ability to achieve in science.
Image: www.123rf.com
Other commentators, like development consultant at the UK Resource Centre for women and science, engineering and technology Rachel Tibbell, believe that trends like this can be traced all the way back to childhood. Speaking to the BBC, Mrs Tibbell noted toys kids are given during this time are more than just something to play with – they also help children build perceptions of their roles in society.
So, while parents should be sure to encourage their children in science no matter what their gender, if you have a daughter, try to take particular care to both buoy her confidence and ensure her toys and books don’t reinforce poor gender images/roles.
Image: www.flickr.com
Top tips for engaging your child with science
Let’s now have a quick look about what you can do to get your child excited about science!
• I must confess, science didn’t much interest me when I was at school – something I kick myself for these days, because now it fascinates me. To help your child really engage with the subject, try to show them how it is directly relevant to the world around them. For instance, talk to them about the chemistry behind baking, or how science helps keep rollercoasters on their tracks.
• It’s also worth buying kids’ science kits. These are not only fun, but also help children learn about key scientific processes and give them the freedom to experiment. A candy-making chemistry kit, for example, lets them learn about how sugar crystallises, as well as find out about temperatures, weights and measures, while making delicious sweets.
• When playing with toys like this, or when baking (after all, baking is basically chemistry!), ask your child to read the instructions or recipes aloud. Doing so helps them interact with and understand the steps and processes involved, and also means they are more engaged with the whole activity, so they’re likely to get much more out of it.
Image: www.chefdruck.com
• Remember to give your children verbal encouragement. This could be particularly important for girls, as the research I mentioned above shows that a lack of self-confidence in science leads to poorer performance.
• If you’re helping your child with a science experiment from a kids’ kit, or you’re doing a spot of baking with them, don’t give them the answer if they get stuck. Instead, ask them leading questions to help them come to the right conclusions themselves – this should not only help them learn, but also boost their confidence by giving them the sense of achievement of working it out successfully.
Image: www.ronaldslabbers.com
She’s 3 and a half but we’ve already got to that stage…
(It’s dinner time)
Littlelish: Looking forlornly at her dinner… Muuuuum, did this turkey have to die so I could eat it?
Mummylish: (No way to tell an untruth here) Um. Yes darling it did.
Littlelish: Oh well then I don’t want to eat it.
Mummylish: Ok, if you really don’t want to that’s fine…
Littlelish: (Thinks to herself for a while) Pasta doesn’t have to die does it mum? It wouldn’t run away while a hunter was trying to catch it, would it? Giggle giggle…
Mummylish: No darling it wouldn’t.
Littlelish: Yeah I’ll just eat pasta.
Groan…. pass me the veggie cook book!
I’m here, I’ve survived and you know what I think I’ve made it to the other side.
And I’m proud of myself. I’m proud I have made it this far after taking one of the hardest, bravest decisions of my life. I’ve organised a house for Littlelish and I, moved our things in, made it a home for us, been able to make the transition smooth for her, maintained good (if not always) relations with her Dad. I’ve done the practical things, I’ve called the lettings/energy/broadband/water company, found out what support I am entitled to. Best of all I’ve made this happen on my own*, took hold of my life and decided to steer it where I want it to go. And it feels good.
Sure I am not quite there yet, I’m still in process of building my empire ;) but the spark is back. The drive, the determination and the sparkle is back. Best of all I’ve discovered that it all comes from within me. After a few unsuccessful dating attempts (who knows I may share more about these one time!) I’ve realised I don’t need to rely on someone else to fulfill me, I am fulfilled. I am strong, brave and competent. I have the capability to be happy on my own. Although really I am never alone because I share my world with the most beautiful little girl guaranteed to make me smile every day, my Littlelish.
* I say alone but really I mean with the support both financial and emotional from my amazing family and friends. Thank you, I love you so much.
I’ve big things planned for the blog so watch this space :)
This blog post has been written and rewritten, over and over in my head. Trying to get my fingers to type the words is another story. For once it is here, for everyone to read, it is real.
And that is the reason I haven’t been able to write a post for some months now. It’s been eerily quiet over here, I don’t know if you noticed…
But the reality of it is, the last few months have been anything but quiet in my world, in fact my whole world has been shattered by a gloriously ear piercing, screechy kind of noise. It’s the sound of pain, heartache, sadness, anger, despair, grief…
Daddylish and I are separating.
We have had to face the hard, indigestible fact that the relationship we’ve been fighting for for all these years has run it’s course. It is so sad. Especially as we have always been the biggest advocates of the family unit, wanting to provide our gorgeous Littlelish with a stable family home more than anything.
This will mean some big changes for Mummylish and Littlelish in the coming months and a few small changes for Lish Concepts too. We will be taking you with us as we venture into the unknown. I’ve no doubt it’s going to be emotional, perhaps a little scary but hopefully also inspirational and heartwarming :)
I’m still going to be working on creative projects, style ideas and design inspiration as and when I feel inspired,which will hopefully be often.
Good news is we’ve already found a new little house, a tiny, old cottage with a perfect country kitchen and a hen house in the garden, which speaks to my soul and inspires me. It’s a happy place. Our happy place, welcome x
I haven’t posted a ‘through the eyes of a child’ post for a while. I used to find it was wonderful to share all the funny, innocent pearls that come out of my daughters mouth. Yet it seems recently Littlelish is growing wiser and wiser by the day. She sees things with so much clarity, a perspective way beyond her 3 years. There is not so much childish naivety to laugh at, she sees the world through deep, bright, sparkling eyes.
Today we were sat at the dinner table, just her and I (as Daddylish was working). She suddenly launched into:
“Mummy when I am older, I will have a flower shop. Yes, I will have a lovely flower shop in town that people can walk by and come into to shop. I will live above the shop with my family. I will have 4 children, 2 girls and 2 boys and a dog. And I will still be Littlelish”
This is the first time she’s actually spoken about what she wants in the future and it really touched me. I questioned “why a flower shop?” and she answered quite simply, “I like flowers, they make me happy”. It reminded me how important it is to stop and look at things with the eyes of a child now and again, remembering the simple things that we love, the things that make our inner child happy. After all it doesn’t have to be so difficult, like Littlelish put it at the end, we are still the same little girl or boy…
What did you want to be when you were little?
We’ve been busy learning to read for sometime in our house. Littlelish turned 3 in the summer and is therefore a pretty early reader. She picked up her phonics very quickly and was soon ready to move onto the trickier stuff like blending and segmenting. Unfortunately I’m not a teacher which has meant I haven’t always been able to know how to support her in her learning besides reading lots and lots of books! I went looking for online games to support her learning but often they were poor quality, not using the phonics system, very American or expensive!
And then the lovely people at Teach Your Monster to Read told me about their brand new, FREE, online game developed for the Usborne Foundation, a charity set up by Peter Usborne (who also founded The Usborne Publishing company).
The game has already won gold in both the Practical Preschool and Primary Teacher Update awards. It’s what we’ve been waiting for – a fantastic, educational, engaging way of teaching little ones to read… and what’s more it is free!
The game’s primary aim is to develop children’s speed and accuracy of grapheme (letter) recognition. Children work through each grapheme (in the same order as Letters and Sounds) practicing each one using one of four minigames. Complete the minigame and you will receive a letter and a prize reward for your hard work. Along the way, there are opportunities for the child to practice aspects of reading like blending or segmenting.
Littlelish particularly enjoyed customising her monster and selecting her reward for completing each section (interestingly her choice of prize was 9 time out of 10 food related!!). I was pleased that there were 4 minigames to choose from as this added variety and also meant the game could be geared to the level of the child. Littlelish got bored quickly of the first level games so it was good that there were more complicated games for her to play too.
Teach your monster to read is unlike any free online game available. The illustrations are superb, contemporary, amusing and they create a spark of imagination in the child so the adventure really comes alive. The game play is also brilliant, we didn’t encounter any glitches and the game didn’t freeze up on us like many online reading games I know!
I’d definitely recommend you pay Teach your monster to read a visit…While you are there why not check out their blog as they also have a cool Draw a Monster competition running until the 9th of November http://blog.teachyourmonsterto
The prize is a fantastic £150 worth of Usborne books! I’ve been checking out the entire set of first level reading books for Littlelish http://www.usborne.com/veryfir
They fuck you up, your mum and dad. They may not mean to, but they do. They fill you with the faults they had And add some extra, just for you.
But they were fucked up in their turn By fools in old-style hats and coats, Who half the time were soppy-stern And half more »
They fuck you up, your mum and dad.
They may not mean to, but they do.
They fill you with the faults they had
And add some extra, just for you.
But they were fucked up in their turn
By fools in old-style hats and coats,
Who half the time were soppy-stern
And half at one another’s throats.
During the latter days of my pregnancy I spent a lot of time resting and reading. It was summer time and I’d lie on my bed with the sunlight streaming in, reading. I didn’t read any conventional “what to expect when you are expecting”, “attachment parenting” “how to be the perfect mummy” books.
I read a book called “They **** you up” by clinical psychologist, Oliver James.
They **** you up is a brilliant book that basically explains that the way we are cared for in the first six years of our life has a crucial effect on who we are and how we behave. Nurture, in effect, shapes our very nature. The book really isn’t meant to be a pregnancy book but I can’t help thinking that actually it is one of the most important books to read when bringing life into the world. Sure it won’t tell you what to do, how to deal with sleepless nights and tantrums etc but what it will tell you is what NOT to do. It’s a real insight into just how important it is to offer a loving, stable, secure home life to children. I mean if what we do as parents forms the foundation for the rest of our children’s lives, how they view themselves and how they form relationships with others, we owe it to them to try to make it as secure as possible. I’m sure this is something we are all aware of just perhaps not something we always want to remember. It’s hard when you have such a realisation because the responsibility is enormous and at the end of the day we are only human ourselves.
Still it made me stop and think. Think about what I wanted to ‘equip’ my daughter with for the rest of her life. And when the beautiful Littlelish was born it made me stop and think about how I was handling a situation and what effect this could be having later on down the line. I know, I know that sounds very over analytical but for those of you that know me will know that I am actually quite a relaxed, go with the flow person. It didn’t make me anxious rather served as a good reminder of just how important my job as a mummy was. For example James explains the reasons for insecurity in most adults is down to a less responsive parent in the first year of life. Basically attachment is everything.
Yet I didn’t read any attachment parenting books either. Although I’m pretty sure we adopted many of the key concepts of attachment parenting. I’m an intuitive kind of person and being a mum came naturally to me. Littlelish and I had a very strong bond and I knew what she needed and I always gave it to her whether this was breastfeeding, responsiveness, cosleeping or wearing her in a baby sling. We never, ever let her cry it out or forced her to fit into our adult routine. This meant putting her first almost every time but at the end of the day that is what being parents is all about.
On further research I see that Oliver James has more books on parenting out, one interestingly titled “How NOT to f**k them up” and “Love bombing – reseting your child’s emotional thermostat”. Haven’t read these ones but if they are anywhere near as good as this one I’d say go forth and purchase.
It may just be the most important book you’ll ever read.
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I’m a freelancer in creative marketing with a background in design and styling but when I'm not working I'm doing the most important job in the world, being mummy to my beautiful little girl! I love to create and craft and have a passion for colour and beautiful detail. This blog is all about my life, my amazing daughter, my inspirations and creations!
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