by jo

ForTheGirl – Girlguiding’s New Campaign

Girlguiding recently launched the campaign ForTheGirl.

ForTheGirl is on YouTube and was shown in cinemas at the Girlguiding Screening of Beauty and the Beast recently.

If you have never been a part of Girlguiding you might not know what it’s all about.

If you were a part of Girlguiding years ago you might think it’s all about loving God and worshipping the Queen.

Things have changed.

Girlguiding has changed.

We still sing the same song at the start (it did change a few years ago) but Girlguiding is different.

Which is where Forthegirl comes in.

Girlguiding to me is recognising each girl is different. Each girl has strengths that others don’t. It’s about inspiring girls to do good things, to be the best they can be. To have fun. To work through their Brownie Adventures and have them come to me telling me they have done some badges on their own.

I want to inspire the girls we work with, and for them to make me proud because they’ve done it on their own. Every time a girl comes to me and says they’ve done a badge I’m delighted.

Which I’d say is the message in ForTheGirl. There’s so much more though.

I want each girl to do their best and have a brilliant time.

Having said that, getting 30 girls aged 7, 8 and 9 to listen can be difficult. But then it’s also challenging fun for the majority of the time too. I come out of a meeting buzzing with ideas for the next one. Hearing their voices and ideas is inspiring and gives us ideas in return.

I want to work with 30 confident girls who can turn around and say “this girl can”.

Because that’s it. We’re ForTheGirl. Each girl deserves a voice and to be heard.

I like to think Girlguiding is doing that.

Later this year Girlguiding is going to be doing a campaign to take on more volunteers as leaders. I made the step up last year after helping at Rainbows for two years. We all make a difference.

Read more at Girlguiding.

by jo

Training to be a Leader in Girlguiding

I made the decision in September that I would start my training to be a leader in Girlguiding. It was a fairly easy one to make – I had helped out at H’s Rainbows for a couple of years and was a Brownie and a Guide when I was young, so I knew what it was all about.

So what exactly does the training involve?

Well… up to now we’ve really just hit the ground running. Our Brown Owl left before Christmas and we agreed to split things three ways. I’ve taken on the accounts which is quite interesting in itself. I had no idea that each member of Girlguiding has a census fee that must be paid each year. Fortunately I got into the system right before it was due.

We’ve had last minute changes of plan, suggestions of things, doing meetings ourselves as Tawny Owl was ill (there are two of us training), and just trying to make things fun.

It was just the other day I realised, every week we look after up to 30 girls. That’s the same as H’s teachers. I’ve always said I could never be a teacher and yet I’ve got the patience for Brownies! Maybe because I was one once. Then again, I went to school…

I’ve attended a training course to learn about planning meetings, and other than that I’ve just gone on what I know. The girls seem to get on the best when they’re writing postcards to Girl Scouts and Brownies around the world – so much so we shifted one badge to a different term and did the World Guiding badge as a lot of it fitted in with what we did on Thinking Day.

What do I get from it? I’m not entirely sure. I enjoy it, and as long as I’m enjoying it I’m content. I like being one of the cogs that makes things flow rather than a leader. I can step up if I need to, but more often than not I’d rather just go with the flow.

Obviously that doesn’t always work in a room full of 7-8-9 year old’s…

The main reason is I want to make a difference. I don’t remember my Brown Owl or any of the other helpers but I remember having a brilliant time at Brownies and Guides – so I want our girls to have fond memories of their time. If I can do that, it’s a result.

I’ve started a new blog which goes into more of the activities we might do or are working on. Girlguiding Activities is its name – nice and simple.

I have no idea how often it will be updated but there are so many ideas out there it’s somewhere to keep my brain calm when I’ve had too many ideas. Which is most of the time…

by jo

Sutton Utd v York City

Another bucket list thing ticked off, H has been to watch York City play. Seeing as Sutton United’s ground is two stops on the train for us it was easy to get to as well.

sutton united v york city

York City are my home team. My long-standing support lies with Tottenham, but when you’re up north in the eighties the chances of seeing them are next to non-existent. So I watched York City for many years until I got a paper round and couldn’t go to Saturday games any more.

York have not had the easiest ride. After the eighties wave of excellence we started hovering around the lower end of the league. Occasional moments of excellence, a rivalry with Luton Town of all teams, a few trips to Wembley with accompanying songs and support who never gives up.

H on shaun's shoulders

These last few seasons have been bad. We had a manager who seemed to put out statements about how hopeful he was we’d stay up (when we had lost again), who got replaced a few months ago. Now he’s running the club on a day to day basis. Sigh. Oh, and now York are third from the bottom in the Vanarama League. It’s all looking like we’ll drop to the Vanarama North.

Every point is crucial. So we headed to West Sutton on the train, and took the short walk to the club. This is proper football. Non-segregated around the ground, some seating available in the main stand but everyone mixed together. Very suitable for kids (apart from some songs but it went over their heads and was far enough they couldn’t hear).

Entry cost £15 for Shaun, I had my NUS card so it was £8, and £3 for H. Not cheap, but we’re supporting the football clubs which have no money. (Sutton do have a bit of money after their FA Cup run, but that’s a freak thing and a great thing too that even H might gain as Sutton United run one of her PE classes at school)

For most of the game the York players didn’t look like they knew each other. There were occasional moments but nothing seemed to happen. A couple of late substitutions and being 2-0 down, we started to head towards the exit. But then it happened! We scored! I’d joked as we started to leave “watch this, they’ll get two back now to stop us from leaving” – could it happen?

sutton united v york city

There was no more than two or three minutes left. The goal was by us as we were on the York side (the joys of having a ground you can walk around), and it felt like actually, we could do this. AND WE DID!

2-2 final score. Blimey. Those last ten minutes were worth it. Given York’s usual pattern is to go ahead then concede in the dying minutes, this was what we needed. When Sutton scored their first goal H handed me my vintage York City scarf (well, 1980s one) with a look of sadness, of all hope disappearing. This time H was on Shaun’s shoulders cheering with the biggest smile on her face.

Football at this level is so important. There is very little money – though some players still earn silly money. It isn’t like going to a Tottenham game. H needs to see that this is where it all begins. If you’re lucky a talented player might come through your ranks (though will get pinched by a bigger club). But that player could be your neighbour, your classmate…

We left Gander Green Lane and found a local child-friendly pub in the Robin Hood on West Street, Sutton. It had board games so H set up a chess game, then followed that up with Scrabble while we watched the Lincoln FA Cup game.

We have to keep everything crossed York can get enough points to stay up. A couple of wins could do it, depending on the other results. We don’t have long.

sutton united v york the end

by jo

In the upcoming weeks…

This year is going to be a much quieter one as far as treats and things go.

Last year was a pretty crazy one – we did loads of fun things and often did them if we happened to be somewhere. It was all very last minute.

This year there are still some good things happening, and as usual H doesn’t know half of them.

dick and dom live

Coming up next month we’re going to see Dick & Dom live at St Albans Arena. I’m quite looking forward to this as Dick & Dom in Da Bungalow was my hangover choice of programme back in the nineties. Shaun also appreciates their very daft sense of humour. Seeing as they’re still going strong and have found a big new fan in H, I think she’s going to love it. I just hope we don’t get too messy..  sounds like it could be. We’ve got to get the Thameslink home…!

After that Annie returns to London. We saw the touring production twice, both times with Lesley Joseph as Miss Hannigan. This time it’s going to be Miranda Hart – she’ll make a fantastic Miss Hannigan (and she also sounds pretty excited about it too). So we’re looking forward to that – we’re going in May. You can book tickets now! There’s lots of information over on the Facebook page of the production.

miranda hart in Annie

I really like SeatPlan – it’s a site where you can add reviews of your seat at the theatre, and it’s handy for working out the best places to sit. I’ve added a few reviews over the last few years but haven’t won any free tickets yet!

If we’re lucky then we may be able to squeeze a trip to see School of Rock around my birthday. I don’t celebrate my birthday any more, It’s more fun celebrating other people’s. H and Shaun seem to enjoy celebrating mine though so I have to do something to keep them happy. This should.

The theatre isn’t our only love. There’s also football. Next weekend FA Cup Giantkillers of the 2010’s Sutton United take on FA Cup Giantkillers of the mid-80’s (aka my home team), York City. So I’m taking H to her first York game* as Sutton United is a very short train journey away.

Wembley Stadium SSE giant sponge hands

We have tickets as usual for the Women’s FA Cup final on the 13th May because they always do such a good deal for Wembley, though if York continue their cup run maybe they’ll make it back there too. I’d rather they concentrated on the league…. that would be the week after the FA Cup Final.

I haven’t mentioned that I’ve put H and I down for more tickets to see Adele – this time at Wembley Stadium. Wembley-blooming-stadium. This is that shy girl that was shown around work back in 2007 or something, getting introduced to everyone before she had put out any music. Now look at her. Blimey.

So that’s it so far…. a few things to keep us busy. Add to that an active PTA that I’m part of, plus all the responsibilities with Brownies that I’ve got and things are really busy here – it’s all good!

* strictly speaking H has been to a York City game, when we were in the play off final at Wembley. I was about six or seven months pregnant at the time… that counts, right?

by jo

Mini Rumpus – Woodland Tales at The Vault, London

We visited The Vault in the arches underneath Waterloo Station today, to see what Mini Rumpus – Woodland Tales was about. Billed as a fun event for children up to age 11, it felt suitable for H, and it had a bar, so suitable for Shaun and I too!

Mini Rumpus The Vault

Mini Rumpus – Woodland Tales is happening this weekend – so if you’re reading this and it isn’t the 4th or 5th March, you’ve missed it – but never fear, it will be back. It’s a quirky event in an equally quirky venue.

The Vault makes me think of clubs where you have an area made into a creative space for everyone to use. Mini Rumpus – Woodland Tales definitely does this. It’s a great space!

Mini Rumpus Tell Tale Tusk

In the main room there are live bands – at the end Tell Tale Tusk played some lovely tunes (including a cover of The Cure’s Lullaby) – by then we were tired and had got seats in the upstairs bar area which gives you a great view of the stage. Shaun and H had a game or three of Connect 4 as well!

Mini Rumpus Mask Decorating

There are craft rooms too. The main room had loads of bits to decorate a mask you’re given at the start. After that we went to the main craft room. They had run out of headbands for rabbit ears so she made do with a dream catcher (which she loves!). You could also do pom poms or some painting.

Mini Rumpus upstairs bar

There are three bars. One is upstairs (with a view of the stage), one is at the back of the main hall (without a view) and the other is in the food area.

One table in the food area had Mario Kart Double Dash set up, so H got to have a play on it with a random boy. Us parents were wanting a go as well, and did get a chance! (I suspect if it was on purpose, it was the only child-friendly game – nice touch though!)

The face painting lady was brilliant. She costs £5 for children and was quick too. H chose to be a dog (after I persuaded her not to be Yoshi as the lady was so good!) and looked fabulous!

Mini Rumpus crafts

For four hours in an area which has its own buggy area, plus has a cloakroom (£1 for kids coats, £2 for adults) and the bars, it’s pretty good. I spotted tickets are available at LittleBird too, so you can make some savings there.

Mini Rumpus groovy lights

Mini Rumpus – Woodland Tales has a jamming area, beatboxers on the main stage, an under 5’s area too. As well as this there was a man designing t-shirts with whatever you want on it (£8) and a lady selling wall hangings. There is LOADS going on and plenty of time to do it.

DJ Sets in between each act came from DJ Charlie Chuckles who played plenty of child-friendly tunes.

Mini Rumpus figs in wigs linedancing

There was a bit of line dancing by some ladies dressed as cows, Figs in Wigs.

Mini Rumpus – Woodland Tales is on this weekend – for more information head here.

Shaun said to me he thought this would be something H was getting too old for. We asked her afterwards. “I loved it! I really enjoyed being in the little room upstairs, playing games and listening to the music. Oh and I really loved the Kazoo’s at the end”

Mini Rumpus kazoo orchestra

Yes, there was a Kazoo Orchestra, and H got one which she HAS NOT STOPPED PLAYING! Wah. But she’s happy! My ears……

We received guestlist places to attend Mini Rumpus – Woodland Tales – thank you for the opportunity!

Mini Rumpus Trailer 2017 from Rumpus Party on Vimeo.

by jo

Painshill Park – We Returned and Found Our Happy Place Again

Painshill Park is somewhere we’ve visited since H was a baby. It’s in Cobham, up the road from Claremont Landscape Gardens. We haven’t been for a couple of years, so put this to rights recently.

Painshill Park view from Turkish Tent

Painshill Park and Claremont are both landscape gardens, and have similarities. Painshill Park has some unique features which make it a place we love going back to – though it has been some time.

Painshill Park looking towards the five arch bridge

Imagine some gardens which have random things built in them because that was the done thing when you’re a wealthy person. So you build a ruin because you can. Or you build a Turkish Tent because it looks great on top of a hill. Then there’s the Gothic Tower, which has fabulous views. Lest we forget the wonderful Crystal Grotto which is now restored and looks amazing.

Painshill Park Crystal Grotto

We used to go on Mother’s Day or Father’s Day as one parent would get in for free, which would keep costs down. We’re now Historic Houses Association members, so can now go whenever we want. It was a sunny day, the kind where you aren’t wrapped up which meant we had to get back to Painshill Park.

Painshill Park

It hasn’t changed, but there are changes. The Crystal Grotto is now restored and looks so much better for it.

The Temple of Bacchus is being recreated and will complete in July this year – that’s going to be one to go back for.

Painshill Park Gothic Tower

Over at the Gothic Tower there are big changes. I don’t remember there being toilets there before, but there are now. There’s a small pop-up cafe on the first floor which has a good selection of food which you can take out. That section of Painshill Park isn’t so isolated any more. I even made it to the top of the tower to check out the views for the first time.

Painshill Turkish Tent and Five Arch Bridge

My favourite view is from the Turkish Tent, looking across to the Gothic Temple. You can see the serpentine lake, and in the middle the island where the Crystal Grotto lives.

Painshill Park Woollett Bridge

What I’ve always liked about Painshill Park is how almost everything is accessible. There are areas which would be difficult for people with mobility issues or buggies, but Painshill have alternative routes. But bear in mind the Gothic Tower has a spiral staircase to the top. While it’s a lovely walk it might be worth having a baby carrier if you want to climb the tower.

It’s a lovely day out, a picturesque walk and even though you’re right by the A3 and the M25, there isn’t any noise from cars. I love Painshill Park.

For more information head here.

Painshill Park reflections

Country Kids

by jo

World Thinking Day 2017 – Girl Guiding Fun

Every year on the 22nd February Rainbows, Brownies, Guides and onwards celebrate World Thinking Day. I’ve always found it a fun day and am so happy the tradition continues to this day. Here’s what we did for World Thinking Day 2017.

World Thinking Day 2017 badge

World Thinking Day 2017 was the 22nd February. All Guides of all ages celebrate it – from Rainbows to leaders. It’s a day to think about other Guides around the world. Besides this, you can wear your uniform to school if you get permission from the head teacher.

This year felt like a big deal – the majority of schools came on board and said children could wear their uniforms. I would say most of our group did – and they loved telling us about it as well.

Our meeting was the day after Thinking Day, and I thought it would be good to post about what we did.

I signed up to the forums at Guiders.co.uk. A lot of other groups from around the world were asking if anyone would like to swap cards or postcards. I’m also part of a Brownie leaders group on Facebook so found loads of other groups to swap with there.

I also messaged Facebook friends with children of a similar age to H to see if they knew anyone. I got a couple of troops in the US which when I told the girls, they were pretty excited about.

World Thinking Day 2017 Quiz and dot to dot

Once we’d had pow wow, the girls went into their sixes. I found a quiz on the internet for Thinking Day, each six got a copy of the Brownie Adventures book to find the answers. It made me happy to see them all work as a group and make sure everyone got a turn to answer a question. This gave us time to set up the next task – writing the postcards!

I bought some simple postcards from WH Smith – you can buy packs of 25. I printed out some World Guide Badges which the girls could stick onto their cards if they wanted, or they decorate the card. The content was their choice. The girls had read cards from other groups they knew what kind of things to write.

Thinking Day Brownies Around the World

Our main leader picked up some girl shapes from Poundland (12 for £1). I found some pictures of uniforms from other countries and printed them out for each six, laminating them for future use. I made sure the pictures were on both sides.

Each girl could choose which uniform they wanted to copy and had a choice of eight different ones.

Some girls were quicker at this than others so we had a World Guiding Badge dot to dot for them to fill in. If they finished that then they help others in their six.

World Thinking Day 2017 dolls

To finish off we had a World Thinking Day Candle Ceremony which is a nice way to finish the day. With us having 25 Brownies there it took a long time; In future we’ll send the girls through in twos!

I enjoyed celebrating World Thinking Day 2017. It was a good excuse to get my old Brownie and Guide Badges out as well!

The theme for World Thinking Day 2017 is GROW. I’d like to think that our meeting has helped our Brownies grow their knowledge of other girls in other parts of the world doing the same as them.

I’m hoping that next year we’ll get more Brownies from other countries! If you’re reading this and you’re a leader drop me a message as we would love to swap cards again.

I’m a leader in training at our local Brownies. Thank you to all the Guiding Resources linked above who have these fantastic ideas for Thinking Day!

by jo

The Everything Machine by Ally Kennen

Imagine if you had access to a machine which could make anything at all. The first thing you get your machine to do is make sweets, of course. A neverending supply of sweets. The Everything Machine by Ally Kennen is a story where this happens. But it wouldn’t be much of a story if it was about a machine that made sweets, so here’s our review.

The Everything Machine by Ally Kennen

The Everything Machine by Ally Kennen comes from Scholastic and is out now. In the book we meet eleven year old Olly, who receives a special delivery – a 3D printing machine. There’s a problem though, the machine has stamped on it ‘PROPERTY OF M.O.D and BRITISH SPACE AGENCY. WARNING. DO NOT TAMPER’ which when you’re eleven means you may as well have a go when nobody is around, right?

The Everything Machine blog tour banner

Even better, it prints anything Olly asks it to. So that’s a constant supply of sweets, a swimming pool for the shed and one other thing that Olly wants – his dad. His parents have separated and his dad moved out of the family home. So Olly with his brother and sister, Stevie and Bird created a Dad-bot.

H enjoyed reading The Everything Machine by Ally Kennen. We received the book when she was ill from school, and she had finished it by the end of the day.

H says “I liked this book because it’s funny but also dramatic.”

I asked her how it was dramatic, what happened?

“Bird tells Olly and Stevie to stop when they’re creating the Dad-bot. She warns them but the boys decide to carry on. She thinks she has added too many wires.”

What about the funny part – which bit did you find funny?

“At one point the Dad-bot ruins Stevie’s room when he asks him to tidy it up – that bit was quite funny!”

Would you recommend The Everything Machine by Ally Kennen to any of your friends?

“It would appeal to 7-10 year olds. I hope there will be more books about the Everything Machine!”

You can follow Ally Kennen over here, or over on Twitter here. This is Ally’s first book for younger readers, as she has written several books for teens – we’re hoping there’ll be more!

Ally Kennen

 

We’re part of a blog tour – check out the other reviews. Thank you for letting us join in – H had lots of fun reading the book – and also left a review in her own words over at Toppsta! The Everything Machine by Ally Kennen is available at all good bookstores and Amazon (affiliate link)

 

by jo

Controlling H’s Pocket Money with GoHenry

A friend recommended GoHenry to me – a bank card designed for kids. I hold my hands up, I am rubbish at remembering to give H pocket money, and that isn’t how it should be. So we ordered a GoHenry card to see if it would work for us.

GoHenry card

GoHenry is for children aged 6-18. They get a bank card, something which I never had at H’s age. Then again I didn’t get £40 in birthday money either. I didn’t want her walking around with a load of cash in her purse – she’s pretty good at losing things. We added the £40 balance to her GoHenry card and it arrived a few days later.

You get three months free at the start, which is a good time to work out if it’s the right thing for you. After that you pay £2.49 a month (and you can cancel at any time). That sounds pretty steep, but after thinking about it we’ve decided to go for it. Here’s my reasons why:

• I often forget to give H pocket money. I can set GoHenry to add the funds to her card every week on a Saturday. It is doing all my remembering for me, which is a good thing.

• It’s a contactless card. This is good as none of us need to remember a PIN number. Not everywhere does contactless, but it’s a help.

• We’ve set up extra tasks around the house. She’s working to earn an extra 50p a week, which I have to authorise. She’s motivated by this and wants to take on more tasks too. I also get a reminder on a Friday night as – you guessed it – I would forget otherwise. That works out quite handy, as we can all sit and chat about whether she has earned any extra money.

• I get an alert on my phone every time she buys anything. Shaun took her to the Science Museum this week, and I got an alert on my phone when she spent any money. I added another £1 as I thought she might want to buy more there.. and I could do all that from the app on my phone. The account can’t go overdrawn either.

• She feels pretty grown up at 7 to have her own bank card. She loved using it to buy things when we went away for a short break last October.

• If you wanted family to give money for a birthday (my mum often sends a cheque when she isn’t sure what to buy H), you can pass on the sort code and account number and they can credit the GoHenry account.

• There is an app. This is handy for someone like me who does most of her important stuff on the train to and from work every day.

• I can top up the card from the app, or set a monthly amount by bank transfer. Bank transfers and Standing Orders are free with GoHenry cards. Adding the funds via your debit card cost you 50p so I have a £10 transfer going to the account each month which is free. I need to encourage her to earn more bonuses…

• If you recommend a friend they get a customised card and you plus the person recommending gets £5 added to their account. You get three months free as well which is good for working out if the card is for you. I’ve had one so far so that’s two months free use which appeals to my money saving needs! This is my referral link.  The reward is given after the card has been activated.

I like that it’s giving H a sense of saving money, working to earn a bit extra and that we’re in control of it. She still has cash so it isn’t like she’s leaving that behind.

From ordering, the GoHenry card arrived within a couple of days.

Most of all, H is now saving her money to buy specific things (read : a spending spree in Smiggle). She seems to have changed how she thinks about money since we got the card.

I like that GoHenry has been created by parents for parents. They have good partners that back up the company. While you’re not going to earn lots of interest having your cash there (that’s what savings accounts are for), I think it’s a good place to start kids thinking about spending their money wisely. Or not. If they’re anything like H you can never have enough £1 creepy crawlies around the house…

by Karen

Reading Eggs – A Reading Tool for Children

Reading Eggs is a website that endeavours to help children to read quickly, in a fun and engaging way.

I’m sure that most parents, of a primary school aged child, will appreciate the pressure that is on children to learn to read.  My son, J, started reception in September, unable to read and barely able to write. However, by July, he will be expected to read well and be able to write a sentence or two. Frankly, to me anyway, this is scary stuff.

Now I am a complete bookworm and very keen for my boys to discover how fantastic reading can be. As a result, I had been curious about Reading Eggs but had never gone as far as to try it. I was excited to be given a years free access to the site and the Mega Book Pack to really explore and see what it was all about.

I will be completely honest. J is knackered, and still getting to grips with his full days at school. I will admit to being a little hesitant at giving him more school type things to do in the evening. However, in the name of research, I was willing to give it a go, as long as he wasn’t too tired or resistant.

On browsing the Reading Eggs site, I was very keen to get J on there to see his first impressions. The site itself is very engaging, bright and friendly. As his computer skills are just emerging, it was nice to see that everything is very user friendly and self explanatory. He only needed a little adult guidance in the beginning. Each of the initial levels concentrate on one letter at a time. These letters, and the sounds they make, are studied thoroughly, but not to the point of tedium, before moving onto the next level.

Reading Eggs J1Reading Eggs J2

J really enjoyed his time on the Reading Eggs site. He was giggling when the marshmallow mouse came out,  at the end of the first level, and at various other things. In the end, we spent a lot longer than we had planned to spend on there. J was very put out when I insisted it was very much time for bed!

After bed time, I came down to find an email from Reading Eggs with suggested homework. The homework focuses on the most recent lessons learnt, and easy ways that this can be supplemented at home.

Two weeks on and he is still hooked. I love the fact that J also has his own personal Avatar for the site. This is something that he really enjoyed making, and he gets excited to see, every time he switches on. J loves Reading Eggs, most days asking ‘can I do my eggs Mummy’ whilst his little brother goes to bed. It’s really nice to spend this time together, knowing that he is learning in a way that is fun to him.

Reading eggs are currently offering a four week free trial to the online subscription. Please click here if you would like to register. Offer is available until the 31st March 2017.