University of Sussex for one Fresher

Posted on September 22nd, 2018 - Fiona

Last weekend saw many 18 year olds head off for their first term at University. For us it was Felix who was about to sample university life for the very first time. The excitement, the anticipation, the 2 years of A level studies all building up for a new life with so many hopes and fears. Sussex was his first choice, not an easy journey from Cornwall, but helpfully just 4 miles from his Grandmother. This was certainly a benefit for Nick and me as we had somewhere local to spend the night and make sure Felix had all he needed for the term.

Apologies for the average photo quality, they are all phone snaps.  I never intended to make the post, but how could I not record such a significant event.

 

Sussex University Campus

A good feeling

Right from the prospectus and the open day Felix was sold on Sussex. It has a lovely campus feel to it with everything on one site from bars to lecture rooms and even a bank and a shop.  Arrival was made very simple and we had Felix’s room key in minutes. With 12 students to a floor in his halls of residence sharing just 1 kitchen, 2 showers, 2 loos and a bath they were all going to need to be very sociable very quickly.  This was no problem and the kitchen soon became the meeting hub as everyone arrived.

Felix’s Halls of Residence

 

Lets Party

We left Felix there for his first night, the girls on his floor already filling him in on the wrist bands he needed for the evening party at the Student Union.

Home for the next year

 

Thankfully we had plenty of extended family in Sussex to take our mind of things that first night over a balmy autumn garden BBQ.

 

And so 8 becomes 7

A week on and life is sweet for Felix who is making the most of Fresher’s fortnight. Of course I’m missing him already; his siblings not so much, we came home to room chaos back in Cornwall as Theo called “shotgun” on his bedroom and the ripple effect of this filtered down to the smallest room now being redecorated for Felix in the holidays.

Reflections

Two years ago it was our Eldest going off to Cardiff for University. Early in his second year he decided it wasn’t for him and came home. He is now happy here perusing a career in carpentry (he was studying economics), we have learned so much from his experience and hope that Felix has made the choices that will see him through a happy 3 or 4 years at Sussex. He is studying Marketing management with psychology, but I’ve encouraged him to gate crash a couple of other lectures in the first week to be sure he has made the right choice.  

 

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Blackberry Biscuits and Stick Pencil Writing  

Posted on September 21st, 2018 - Fiona

Every year when blackberry season comes round I can’t resist a little baking fun with the kids here. However I have made our yummy blackberry muffins so many times I was keen to try something new. My other easy to make recipe is biscuits and I figured a few blackberries squished in would add a new dimension to a classic recipe.  To this we added a little fun pencil making and blackberry juice ink for some creative nature writing.

Blackberry picking

Before any of the activities could start we needed to go blackberry picking. I knew all the best places that had escaped Farmer Nick’s careful pruning this summer and we headed off with collecting punnets.

We washed the blackberries. Next the children helped to shape the dough into rounds and place them on baking trays before pressing blackberries into the dough balls.

Making blackberry biscuits

Our mix made 2 large trays which went into the oven to cook.

Blackberry Ink

While the biscuits cooked, we put the rest of the blackberries through my old fashioned hand held cheese grater to create blackberry ink.

 

Stick pencils.

Sticky fingers were washed and the children ran off to find sticks they could turn into pencils in the fairy gardens.

 

 

Decorating pencils was great fun. We used coloured floristry ribbon and wool and then took them to Theo who whittled the ends with his penknife into a nib for writing. The smaller sticks fitted into a pencil sharpener which was even easier.

 

Blackberry writing on recipe cards

Then came the fun part; Everyone took a piece of card and stuck the biscuit recipe in the centre, before dipping the decorated pencil nibs in the blackberry ink to add writing and pictures. Some ribbon around the edge completed the cards and made a lovely keepsake and holder for the pencils.  

 

 

The only thing left to do was to sit back and sample our blackberry biscuits.   

 

Recreate Blackberry biscuits and stick pencil writing at home

This would be a fun and educational activity to recreate from a family blackberry picking walk.

What you’ll Need	Blackberries and a pencil shaped stick collected from a walk Biscuit ingredients: Flour, butter, sugar Something to squish the blackberries for ink (we used an old fashioned cheese grater) Ribbons Sharp knife or pencil sharpener for the stick. Card to write on (we used a cereal box cut up)
Educational Benefits	Creativity Cooking health and safety and lessons Dexterity The opportunity to explore writing through the ages
Suitable For	Age 4 – 12

 

 

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The Bear, the Piano, the Dog and the Fiddle

Posted on September 17th, 2018 - Fiona

You have to love a good story with a real moral behind it. Lincoln Children’s Books, part of the quarto Group, have brought a real tear jerker to market with the Bear, the Piano, the dog and the Fiddle. Written by David Litchfield, this book is a follow up to his award winning book, the Bear and the Piano. If ever there was a case for true friendship lasting the test of time then this story is it. A dear story, a fun plot and a real test of friendship that children and parents will adore.  Read on to discover more and for your chance to win a copy.

Story Overview

Friendship is put to the test when the old fiddle player feels his moment to make it big time in music has passed him by in favour of a rather famous bear. However his little dog has a trick up his sleeve. The Fiddler is astounded at his little dog but also feels a pang of jealousy and doesn’t always do or say the right thing. However they are best of friends, and in the end friends look out for each other, even if years have passed in between.

What we thought.

We loved the storytelling with the special bond between the Fiddler and his dog. The story is backed with beautiful and numerous illustrations throughout to lead you through each scene and is the perfect length for a bedtime story with a happy ending and a morale tale.

Need to Know

Format	Hardback, 40 Pages
ISBN:	9781847809179
Size:	8.661 in x 11.811 in / 220 mm x 300 mm
Published	September 6, 2018 by Quarto Knows
Retail price	£11.99
Stockists	Quarto Online, Amazon, Wordery, Waterstones

 

Win your copy of The Bear, the Piano, the Dog and the Fiddle

For your chance to win this heart warming tale, simply follow the instructions below. Good luck to all taking part

The Bear, the Piano, the Dog and the Fiddle Book Giveaway

Disclosure

We were sent our copy of the book for the purpose of this review. Out copy can be found in the Coombe Mill games room library for our holiday guests to borrow. All thoughts and opinions expressed here are my own.

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Creating Illusion and exploring perspective at the beach

Posted on September 15th, 2018 - Fiona

I can’t resist a little beach art when I have time on my hands at our local beach.  Simply stacking rocks and pebbles creates a fun photo and is a great balancing act. Initially I planned to just photograph the rock stack, before it became a shooting target for the kids. However an idea came to me as Jed was hovering in the distance. He is often the one who ends up photo bombing my pictures but this time he gave me a great idea. Perspective was something he had struggled with as a child and I really wish I’d thought to do this with him then. However this was my chance to demonstrate that mystifying concept of perspective again and create a clever illusion at the same time.  

It’s just an illusion

I explained what I was trying to achieve. He began by just reaching out with an arm. I showed him on playback and he chuckled at the illusion of him adding the last rock to the stack. Tickled by the effect he was game for trying a little more. We opted for climbing the stack. While the end result isn’t perfect, it gives the idea.

Jed adding the final touches to my Rock Stack

The rock stack photo I originally planned

Creating illusion and exploring perspective as Jed threatened to photo bomb my rock stack photo. 

This little bit of fun photography has inspired me to experiment further in the future with perspective and illusion. I have wound perspective into our activity hour sessions with the children staying here in the past and separately tried rock stacking in the river. I think I will revisit both again next year with a little photo illusion fun added too.

Have you ever tried creating illusion and exploring perspective with photography?   

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Creative Nature Boards in Stick Frames

Posted on September 14th, 2018 - Fiona

I had one of those sun and showers afternoons where everyone was on site and looking for something to entertain the children. Suddenly sign up for my Activity Hour soared, but I had predicted this and was ready with a great activity that would work from little ones to teens. Creative nature boards in stick frames gave enough scope for everyone to make them as detailed and bespoke as they chose. The idea was to collect the things that reminded them of the nature around them at Coombe Mill, strung together in DIY frames decorated in their own personal styles and colours.

 

 

As we all gathered and I explained what we would be making the heavens opened. Undeterred we headed out in search of sticks to form our frames. The Fairy  Gardens was a popular hunting ground as the canopy of trees kept us sheltered from the rain and there were plenty of fallen branches ideal for what we needed.

 

Stick Picture Frames

Back under the veranda of the games room we began to form frames from our sticks overlapped in a criss-cross design and tied up with wool. The older ones could do these themselves while the little ones needed help.

 

If help was needed forming the frames, it certainly didn’t extend to decorating them. From the very youngest there was a clear direction on colours and patterns for decorating the frames. It was a great way for everyone to add their own individuality to their frames.

 

Nature Boards

The nature boards were cut from cereal boxes, with a whole punch on each side through which wool was thread and tied to the stick frames.

 

 

Finally there was a break in the rain and everyone dashed off in search of colourful memories of Coombe Mill to decorate their boards.

 

 

We used double sided tape for the children to fix their nature into position and felt tip pens for any writing.

 

 

I was thrilled with the results from all the children. It was a lovely use of a showery afternoon on the farm with some great keepsakes to take home.  

 

Recreate a Nature Board in Stick Frame at Home

This would be a lovely activity to recreate from a day out in the countryside at any time of year.

What you’ll Need	Nature collected from a walk 4 Sticks String, tape and hole punch Cardboard (we used cut up cereal boxes) Colourful ribbon (optional)
Educational Benefits	Creativity Imagination Dexterity The opportunity to discover nature in any one season
Suitable For	Age 4 – 10

 

 

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