Theme: Wild Animals

Well, this week didn't work out quite so well. We were a bit busier and didn't do any of our themed activities until Thursday. As I sit here blogging on Sunday afternoon there is still one craft we haven't got to, although if Toby's feeling creative when he wakes up I may give it a go. Also, I ordered one of those bug viewing boxes for Toby, with the magnifying glass in the top. It was returned to the sorting office on Monday because I wasn't in to take delivery. Graham finally picked it up for me on Friday, we excitedly unpacked it, and... the viewer was hopelessly blurry. So much for that bright idea.

Anyway, enough of the stuff we didn't do. On Thursday we made birdfeed cakes. This was one of the reasons I needed those 16 yoghurt pots! I punched a small hole in the bottom, poked a piece of string through and tied a nice chunky knot.

Then Toby helped me measure out 2 pots of breadcrumbs and 4 pots of birdseed. I melted a 250g block of lard (although I believe suet is recommended), poured it in and we stirred it all up. I guess the breadcrumbs compressed, because it actually only filled 5 yoghurt pots in the end.

They've been in the fridge for the past few days and I just got one out to check that it would actually come out of the pot! A few snips in the base and a shove, and it came out quite easily - and almost all in one piece.

The RSPB do a nice children's bird book with a "guess who?" format. Toby has enjoyed reading it even though it's a little advanced for him, so hopefully once we get some visitors to our birdseed we can use it to find out who they are.

Our outing was a trip to Attenborough Nature Centre, over towards Nottingham. It's a network of lakes formed from old gravel workings, bordered by the River Trent. Graham wasn't working that day so was able to join us, and we had a pleasant walk round. We investigated a variety of insects, even without the bug box.

Damselfly?

Looking at a snail

Scarlet lily beetle

One of those flies that wants to be a wasp

There were lots of water birds with their babies, from the ubiquitous mallards to swans, Canada geese, coots, and something I've tentatively identified as an Egyptian Goose.

Coot with babies

Egyptian goose

Look! Ducklings!

Teenage mallards

Finally, there was a kids' section inside with beautiful pokerwork wooden blocks and puzzles, lift-the-flap questions, and colouring sheets.

The last craft is set up and ready to go, so I'll update you with how that goes!

Comments

Supercars and Selfies on the South Coast

We drove south on a wet, wet Saturday in August. The windscreen wipers swished endlessly back and forth, as we debated whether it was worth stopping anywhere except for the overcrowded motorway services. By the time we reached Winchester, the wipers had subsided to an occasional flick across the screen. We decided to stop. Of course, as soon as we left the car park there was a brief shower, but we ducked into the City Mill, now a National Trust property. There was a large room full of the usual kind of displays about flour milling; a recently renovated garden; and downstairs, the mill race running at full tilt. The mill is built right across the River Itchen. Winchester City Mill garden The mill race Water wheel (awaiting renovation) We stayed dry as we explored further into Winchester. There was even some blue sky for our selfie by the cathedral! But as we walked back to the car the rain hit us like a hose on full blast. An overhanging building provided some slight shelter, but the wa

National Forest Way: Calke Abbey to Ashby de la Zouch

All the best walking blogs have maps on. I finally figured out how to add a route map to mine. If I get time, I'll add them to the previous posts as well, so you can see where I went. So, here are the two walks which made up the next stretch of the NFW. Walk 1 I started from the National Trust property and walked along by the lake, up the hill by the deer park, and down to Staunton Harold reservoir - all very familiar. Calke village postbox featured a highland cow on top. Lake at Calke Abbey Herd of deer A short stretch on the road took me to Dimminsdale, which was new to me. There are records of mining at the site from the 13th century until the end of the 19th century. It's incredible to think that people worked there for so many hundreds of years. Now it is a secluded landscape of still pools and shaggy trees. Dimminsdale I crossed a small section of the Staunton Harold estate, then went up a private lane with some rather nice houses. My turning point was where the Nati

Reading for Spiritual Formation 2023-24

I wasn't sure whether to read another set of theology books this year. Could the time I spend on it be better spent on something else? At what point does it become reading for the sake of it, without having much impact on my wider life? It's difficult to tell. However, as usual, I had a growing list of books I wanted to read. I do need to think about what I'm doing as well as what I'm reading, and I don't expect to continue this specific discipline indefinitely. But I decided there was space for at least one more year of Reading for Spiritual Formation. So, without further soul-searching: The Books. Three Mile an Hour God Kosuke Koyama Japanese theologians are few and far between; Christianity is still very much a niche religion in Japan. Kosuke Koyama was Japanese and appears to be both influential and accessible. Not every theologian is both! So I'm excited to read his recently republished book Three Mile an Hour God. It was originally written in 1979, and is

Martha's Marvellous Munchies

Search This Blog