Showers at Shibden

I met my daughter and granddaughters (and their dog!) at Shibden Park recently, for a couple of hours. We had a great time, exploring the park and the playground. There was opportunity for that ageless tradition of 'feeding the ducks' - and yes, we used proper bird food, not bread. It was a windy day and there were some very sharp showers but we managed to dodge the worst of them.

Then we had a ride on the little train, which happily has started running again with suitable modifications to promote hygiene during this time of coronavirus. They were spreading families out in separate carriages and staff were disinfecting the seats between trips. It is quite hard, I find, to remember to keep sanitising hands and so on. The little ones are better drilled in it than I am - but then, I rarely touch things when I'm out, whereas they were using the play equipment and so on.

My youngest granddaughter, in particular, has always been super-excited by this little train, ever since she was tiny - but for all of us, it was refreshing to do something 'normal' and joyful for a change.

We tried a 'selfie'... It wasn't especially successful as I had the phone on the wrong setting - doh! But then, these days, I am better a little blurred!

Happy Birthday Gran!

Among the many skills that my daughter and granddaughters have (apparently) been polishing in lockdown is the ability to make stop motion animation. I was thrilled to receive this on my phone this morning. (Equally thrilled that I've managed to upload it here for posterity!)

Feeling so blessed to have such lovely family and good friends. We may still be 'locked down' but I've seen friends today and received so many messages and cards. I'm excited to be seeing my grand-girls tomorrow - for the first time since early March.

Cookie chaos

I had a really lovely Christmas with my daughter and family. Our Christmas dinner was roast beef, for a change from the traditional turkey, and very tasty it was too; vegetables cooked to perfection and very tender beef from the local butcher in Hebden Bridge. Then we all lolled around, as you do, in a contented glow and played board games and charades, with much hilarity. I forgot my camera so I only have a few phone snaps and nothing worth sharing!

On Boxing Day, though it was dull and drizzly, we had a walk with our extended family plus Cookie, my grand-dog. He's still only a puppy but he's pretty well-behaved. He runs ahead sometimes but he keeps running back to check where the family are and he comes back when you call him. We were, however, in an unfamiliar area so my daughter mostly kept him on his lead. Leads are for playing with and getting tangled up in, of course! Motherhood is quite an art with two lively kids and a puppy!

Cookie seemed to like the new, soft bed I bought him for Christmas, anyway. It'll probably get chewed... Most things do! He is settled in with the family quite happily and even I, unused to dogs and initially not keen on the idea, have adjusted. In fact, I think he's a real softie (or perhaps it's me that's the softie!)

Bring me sunshine

Well, that was a bruising result in the General Election. I spent most of the 'morning after the night before' feeling numb and disbelieving. I think at the moment what hurts most is that lies and obfuscation seem to have won the day. I haven't the heart, nor is this the place, to go into detailed analysis. I do, however, fear for the future and for my grandchildren's future. I hope (pray) my fears are proved wrong. 

On a more positive note, my extended family went out for a Christmas meal on the evening of election day and we had a very happy time. Back at my daughter's house afterwards, I noticed these two pictures pinned up in the kitchen. Both were created by my granddaughters at school. Both brought rays of sunshine into my life.

Elodie's sunflowers were a response to Van Gogh's famous picture (left) and I really love her version. Inspired by but not a copy of; she has really interpreted it in her own way. It's interesting that from quite an early age she seems to have particularly enjoyed making paintings from her careful observations of actual objects or other images, rather than from her own imagination (though she also does that too, of course). In this painting, I particularly like the freedom she's allowed herself in some of the paint strokes. 

Madeleine's figure drawing is maturing, as it does. There's an interesting article about a child's development in art HERE and it suggest she is quite age-appropriate. (She's just five.) Her figures have 'a clearly differentiated head and trunk, with arms and legs in the appropriate locations'. There are details: hair, fingers, fur on the dog. She has also included a baseline, with the figures lined up along the bottom of the paper rather than free-floating in space.  Clearly, she feels the dog is an important part of the family now, though they have only had it for three months. She has drawn her daddy with his arm in plaster. He broke his wrist a few weeks ago!

Puppy in the woods

I had a day over at my daughter's house, looking after my grandchildren - and (rather scarily!) my new grand-dog - as the girls were off school for half-term and their parents were both working. When my daughter got home, we took the puppy, Cookie, for a walk in the woods. That's a very new experience for me, as I've never had a dog, ever. They are training him and taking him to puppy classes, so he's beginning to learn how to behave. He is allowed off the lead a little now, though cautiously, as he's still a bit unpredictable. He responds quite well to his 'mum' and 'dad', though less well to me. I suppose he isn't used to my voice and I'm not used to him so I guess my anxiety is discernable. The woods around their house are beautiful and the view from their front windows, over the Calder valley, is currently stunning with all the autumn golds.

It's not often I get a photo of me these days. My daughter takes the credit for these two, taken on her phone and used with her permission.

The serious business of ice cream

Saltaire Festival 2019
Another activity that needed intense concentration... the serious business of eating ice cream. Not just any old ice cream either... These were carefully curated concoctions of whippy ice cream in a wafer cone and sprinkles and raspberry sauce and a chocolate flake and a spoon! (They were most definite about what they wanted.) Not a drop was spilled.

The serious work of childhood

Saltaire Festival 2019
There were a few activities laid on for children as part of the Festival, perhaps not as many as in past years but my granddaughters certainly enjoyed themselves.

Here they were engaged in creating 'cameras' out of egg boxes, with plastic lids attached as 'lenses' and 'shutter buttons'.  They drew pictures on small pieces of paper to store inside as 'photographs'. Both of them settled down to the task with intense concentration, producing cameras that they seemed quite pleased with (even though the plastic lids kept falling off!)

Then there was the opportunity for a 'framed photo' - taken with Gran's camera, of course.

Day of Dance

Saltaire Festival 2019
Mid September in Saltaire means it's the annual Saltaire Festival. The first Saturday dawned fair and warm, delightful for the crowds who gathered. Teams of Morris dancers were dancing at various places throughout the village. There were at least six teams, including the border morris side from Otley, Wayzgoose (above), with their colourful traditional costumes. They make a lot of noise with their sticks, all rather exciting. Our local Rainbow Morris were dancing too, and Four Hundred Roses, the ladies who dance an interesting fusion of folk and belly dancing.

I didn't take many photos as I had my two granddaughters for the day. My focus had to be on them, making sure hats and toy dogs didn't get lost and drinks and snacks were constantly available. (Toy dog nearly did get lost!) When there are crowds, I get anxious about losing sight of them. It's a bit like keeping an eye on two fireworks! The girls are not really old enough or familiar enough with the village to find their own way home. All was well, however and we had a super day. They were enthralled by the dancing.

Ducks and bread

We had a super day out at East Riddlesden Hall, my local National Trust property (despite twice getting drenched in sudden heavy rain showers. The kids thought that was fun!)

They have some thoughtful activities to keep children amused over the summer holidays. Of course, the ducks are always there and they sell proper duck food in the shop, so you needn't worry about giving them unsuitable fare. My granddaughters were brave enough to hold seed on their hands and the ducks all came running to peck at it. Such a quacking and jostling going on! It was really very funny to watch.

The girls then had a happy time inside, hunting round the house for tiny wooden mice that were hidden in each room. When they had found and counted them all, they got a sticker. In the gardens, there were wooden bees hanging from the trees, each having an interesting fact about bees. The girls had to memorise at least one fact and, when they quoted them on the way out, they were given miniature pots of bee-friendly wild flower seeds to take home, adorned with a tiny bee. They were both rather thrilled with that.

Even better was the activity in the barn, where they were shown how to mix yeast, flour and water to make bread. Much kneading and shaping went on. When the dough was prepared, it went into a plastic bag to take home to bake. By the time we'd played in the adventure playground for a while, then had coffee and cake and were ready to go home, the dough (stored in the car boot) had already doubled in size. They later made pizza with the dough... and they had a great time making it.

All the staff/volunteers at the Hall were kindness itself and took pains to chat with the children and make them welcome. It was a truly delightful experience. Well done, National Trust East Riddlesden.

(And yes, my granddaughter does have pink hair! Temporarily anyway. A summer holiday treat.)

Sports Day

I went to watch my two granddaughters in their school sports day, just before the end of term. One is now seven and the other four. The younger one attends the local primary school part-time at the moment and will begin full-time in September. The seven-year-old has now done two full years there. It is lovely little school, with fewer than 150 pupils. It is friendly and caring, and they have a strong ethos of helping each other. The little ones, when they first start, have one of the older children as a 'buddy' and that really seems to work, giving them confidence, particularly at break times. It's the kind of school I wish all young children had the good fortune to attend.

Sports Day, too, was organised largely in cross-school teams, with about 12 in each team, from the tiniest up to the eldest. My two were in the red team. Here you see them engaged in a game that involved transferring tennis balls from one large box to another, right down the team line, as quickly as they could. I loved how they both threw themselves into everything. The four year old, in particular, attacks life with her whole body! I'm so thankful for them both.

Seven and four

Children seem to be 'about three or four' for a very long time and then, when they start school full-time, they suddenly grow up quite a lot. My older granddaughter is just seven and has become taller, willowy and more markedly introverted, although still very sociable. She is getting more proficient at reading and writing and loves nothing better than sitting cosily with a book (preferably still with plenty of pictures) or having Lego spread all around and making detailed creations. 

My younger granddaughter, now four, is still very physical, bouncing around. She has a wonderful way of launching herself at you for a hug. She's very loving and remarkably empathic for a small child. Here, she was only pretending to be asleep, cosily wrapped in her new mermaid-tail blanket and cuddling a new soft toy that she identified to me as a 'mer-cat', a wondrous creation with a cat's face and a mermaid's tail. Mermaids, unicorns, ponies, puppies and kittens are everywhere in her world, and she always has some small soft toy in her hand. 

My heart is full; they are both so beautiful and I am so lucky to be blessed with them. These photos were taken on Christmas Day, in a rare moment of quiet (and with my new camera, yay!)  

A grand time with my grand girls

I had both of my granddaughters to stay at various times during the school holidays. It's good to spend time with them, together and separately. I'm usually too distracted to take photos and anyway it's hard to catch them when they are not larking about these days but I managed to get a few snaps with my phone. This is the older one, who will be seven in a few weeks' time. She is growing up so fast; starting now to lose her baby teeth, so that's a big milestone. They both love playing with 'My Little Ponies'. (An enduring toy. My daughter loved them too, thirty years ago!) I took her to Leeds, to the Royal Armouries Museum, where she enjoyed dressing up in costumes, and consented to pose by the elephant statue. 

She also introduced me to her favourite restaurant, Yo Sushi. She polished off several plates of sushi and seaweed, finishing off with a rather rich chocolate confection. I was impressed with her chopstick skills.

Another day we all went to Halifax's Piece Hall, where there were giant deck chairs to pose in, though the bright sun shining into their eyes was an irritant!

Trains and boats, no planes

My family have just returned from a holiday and we arranged to meet up for a day, before they all started school/nursery/work again. Lo and behold, it turned out to be a dry and sunny day, even beginning to feel a little warmer. We met at Shibden Hall Park, near Halifax, as it is about equidistant between our homes and has lots for the children to enjoy. Away from the paths, it was horribly muddy, so we all got a bit grimy. Nevertheless, we had a lot of fun.

There is a miniature steam railway that makes a circuit of part of the estate. The girls love riding on that and loved waving to all the people we passed. We had a picnic (first of the year!). Then we bravely decided to hire a rowing boat. My daughter turned out to have some unexpected skills in rowing and navigated us safely around the lake, and the girls managed to stay on board!

My older granddaughter found a painted stone, hidden as part of the craze that is spreading around the country for people painting small stones with nice pictures or positive messages and leaving them for others to find. (Locally it's called 'Calderdale Rocks!') After that, she started searching for them and found three altogether. We took a photo of each one and then she hid them again for others to find. All rather sweet and it kept her amused. They had a longish stint in the adventure playground (both the girls are quite brave in climbing, sliding and jumping) and then a well-earned coffee and ice-cream on the café terrace in the sunshine concluded a most enjoyable day out. I feel so blessed to have them.

Sophisticated tastes

We were going to have lunch in the garden centre café. It was heaving with people and had a long queue, and there was little on the menu that appealed. (My grandchildren are never very enamoured with the usual fare on the 'children's menus'.) However, M spotted an ice-cream van and so (on the grounds that life with Gran is meant to be an adventure and slightly naughty things are occasionally allowed), we had an ice-cream for lunch! (Plenty of fruit, veg and protein was consumed at other times during the day, no worries.) There were many products specifically aimed at children but, rather to my astonishment, she chose an Almond Magnum. You can see she enjoyed it and not a drop was wasted! She's a surprisingly neat eater for a small child.

Gran duty

The childminder, who usually looks after my littlest granddaughter whilst my daughter is at work, has gone on maternity leave, expecting the birth of her own baby very soon. That means a few days of 'gran duty' for the next few weeks, stepping into the breach until the school holidays start. I must admit to finding it quite tiring, being on high alert all the time. M, however, is a delight to look after. Being two and three quarters, she likes to do things for herself and gets quite cross with me if I try to intervene (lifting her into the car seat, for example: "No! I do it!") Generally speaking, she is a very contented and secure little girl, with a remarkably long attention span. She loves building things with Duplo and Magna-Tiles, and will play for ages with little figures and her dolls' tea set. I also found a book with magic pictures that appear when you paint over the page with water. (I remember them from my own childhood, but these days they are reusable.) She loves discovering the pictures and keeps up a constant flow of chatter, exclaiming over what she sees. Utterly cute. I'm a very lucky gran.

Sticker fun

I haven't shown you a photo of this little one lately (my eldest granddaughter). Actually, she is not so little now. She's five and recently started (proper) school, which seems to have brought a multitude of both benefits and drawbacks. The benefits show in increased confidence and sociability but one drawback is that she seems to catch a lot more illnesses now, all the bugs that are going round! Since her mum now has a job, we grandparents find ourselves helping out on occasion. She recently had a nasty flu-type virus. Luckily the feverish worst came over a weekend but she was not able to go to school the following week so I went over to care for her. After a couple of days at their house and when she was on the way to recovery, I decided to bring her over to mine for a change of scene. We went to a craft shop and bought lots of stickers and she spent a happy time making pictures with them. 

The shop had an Easter chicken display, which provided a colourful frame for that cute little face! She's no longer all that keen to have her photo taken but a quick snap on the iPhone is sometimes tolerated. 

Girl power

These are my own two powerful girls on the Shipley Women's March. It's more than 100 years since suffragettes fought for the right of women to vote in this country. That didn't come, fully, until 1928. It leaves me feeling very sad that the struggle for genuine equality and respect for women and minority groups, and against racism still continues and, in particular, that we have to fight so hard against the prejudices shown by those in government, who are supposed to represent us. We seem in some areas in danger of going backwards. Who'd have thought that we'd still be marching in the 21st century? I don't by any means think that marching is the solution to the issues that confront us but it's good to feel the unity and the potential, locally and across the nations.  (See here for an article about the Shipley March)

Visting Santa

My son-in-law captured this lovely picture when my two little granddaughters, in that time-honoured traditional ritual, visited Father Christmas a few days ago. I love the tenderness shown by my five-year old to her little sister (and the care and attention that Santa seems to be giving) and I love the heartwarming innocence in their faces. I vividly remember the excitement and slight apprehension I felt as a child, doing the same thing.

Me and my stick

This is my younger granddaughter. She'll soon be two and is growing up fast. She is a prolific 'signer', having benefitted from the baby-signing lessons she has been to with her mum, but is now learning lots of words. Sometimes I just wish I could bottle moments for posterity... like the moment recently when we were all having lunch together and she gave me the most adorable smile and simply said: 'Happy'. She is a contented little soul. She is also a stick-gatherer extraordinaire. I think stick-gathering must be some atavistic human trait but maybe we grow out of it.

With love

Without doubt one of the best birthday gifts I have ever had, and one I shall forever cherish. This canvas collage was painted and glittered by my four year old granddaughter, Elodie (with just a little help from her mum, I guess). There she is, making a heart with her hands. She wrote her name herself too, though apparently the first attempt produced a barely readable 'Elo' in the middle oblong so that the finished word just appeared to be 'Die'... Probably not the best message for your 64 year old gran! Oh dearie me, haha!  A second attempt at 'Elo' down at the bottom left was more readable, thankfully. As I say, one to treasure. ❤ ❤

I also received a book from my daughter ('Reader, I married him' edited by Tracy Chevalier) which is a collection of short stories by various writers, celebrating the life and bicentenary of Charlotte Brontë - a spot-on choice, as I almost bought this for myself when I visited Haworth Parsonage recently. From little Madeleine (aged nearly two) I received some artisan chocolates; she had carefully chosen each one herself from the display. I feel so very thankful for such a lovely and loving family.