Activties for this year

After two months of summer holiday, the start of the school term also means the start of after school activities. 

Last year, the boys joined kids' gym every tuesday after school. On top of that, A1 had tennis on wed morning. They also had chinese lesson on sunday afternoon.

This year, we scrapped chinese lesson. It was not useful for the boys and I was disappointed with the program.

A2 wants to be at the kids' gym on tuesday so the boys would continue that. He would join A1 for tennis lesson too though not in the same lesson. And on wed afternoon, there is karate. 

Karate started two weeks ago. The boys had fun. With school on wed morning and birthday celebrations in the afternoon, by the time the boys reached karate lesson, they were exhausted. A2 slept in the car yesterday on the way there and he missed his lesson.

We just received the schedule for the tennis lesson. A1's would be on wed at 2pm and A2's on Saturday at 11am. We are going to request for A1's to be on saturday too. I would like the boys to catch a nap before karate lesson on wed. I do not want to rush around bringing and fetching the boys for their activities.

As for wed nap, it is complicated this month. They had been invited to four birthdays since school started and three were on wed afternoons. August and September birthday kids are having their birthday party now that school starts and they can invite their friends.

Speaking of which, I am preparing for A2's birthday party. We are reasonable this time. He is inviting six friends over. Seb and I should be able to handle eight kids.

As for myself, I shall continue with gym STEP. I also start to take piano lesson from a neighbour. I stopped my lessons when I had A1. I would like to brush up my skill. Today was my first lesson and my teacher said I had potential. That word is so french. I shall take that as a compliment.

A new school year

Yipee. The two long months of school holiday is over. The boys started school on tuesday and were excited to see their friends. This year, they have school on Wednesday morning as well. This puzzled A1 as he knew that wednesday was no school day.

I would prefer the old system but with the new government in place, the new education minister has decided to spread the learning hours to 4.5 days instead of jamming into a 4 days school week. This is meant for students to have a shorter day in school. However, it is impossible for working parents to fetch their children earlier. No aide was given to the towns and cities and each town hall is left to its device to best manage the situation.

In our village, the kids have a longer lunch break and school ends earlier at 4.15pm instead of 4.30pm everyday except wednesday.  On wednesday morning, school is from 9am to noon. This defeats the idea of the education minister. Our kids are more tired than before as they spend more time in school. A1's tennis lesson on wed morning would be push to the afternoon. If we have no programs on wed, I would make the boys take a nap on wed and I notice that they still need that.

We just have to adapt to the new rhythm.

In the photo, they were carrying the school bags I made while walking to school on the first day. Before the end of the week, they had each received two birthday invitations. Such popular boys.

A bag for my mother

 My mother is leaving France soon to go back home. When she saw me making the school bags for the boys, she asked if I could make her a simple bag with a zip. When I made my totes for friends, they often made the remarks that it would be great to be able to close the bag with a zipper.

I realised that it was time for me to take up this challenge. I turned to internet as usual and found a great site that explained clearly on how to make a zipped up bag.

I used the rest of the material from A1's bag and for the lining, I used fuchsia. The bag has both my mother's favourite colors.

Inside the bag, there are two pockets.

My mother is very happy with her new bag. It is a simple tote and just the right size for her. I bought more zippers and hopefully can make a few more to brush my skills.

School bag for A2

 As promised in my previous post, here is the bag I made for A2. As he only needs to bring a change of clothes to school, I made him a small haversack.

It is a pirate ships theme bag. When I showed it to A2, he was very happy and immediately had it on his back to show his father and his brother.

At the front, there is a transparent pocket. He can slot his drawings in it. At the back, there are two zipped pockets for him to put his treasures. It was really hard to attach the zips to the bag. This is a difficulty two bag and I took nine hours to make it. I had to unstitch my works twice. Good thing, it looks presentable in the end.

I am taking a short break. I made this bag in the midst of paint works in the house. Over the weekends, Seb and I painted our living room and dining area. Once the kids were in bed, I worked on the bags late into the night.

My next challenge is to do a zipped tote bag for my mother. She requested for one when she saw the school bags I made. I hope to get it done before she goes back home in two weeks time. 

New school bag

A1 is going to the grand section in Septembre. As he would be bringing school work home, he would need a bigger school bag to hold the A4 size folders.

I looked up on the book Seb gave me and decided to make him a cartable. I bought faux leather and cloth and bag accessories and sewed my way through three nights. Clocked up a total of nine hours and presented to my son his new school bag.

Though A1 asked for a bag with rainbows or planes, I made him one with submarines because I thought the prints suit him a lot. I showed the bag to uncle Tim and he said it was rainbow submarines. I think that impressed A1.

A1 loves it. I was happy. I realise that the shoulder straps are a bit wide for his little shoulders. Hoping he would grow broader in the months to come. 

It was not easy sewing this bag. I had to undo some stitches due to mistakes and if one look really carefully, one can see tiny needle holes at the back.This is only a difficulty level one bag.

I planned to make a bag for A2 and chose a difficulty level two bag. I shall post it soon. I just finished it yesterday after three working nights.

Walking the dog

A2 went for a walk with me and Handsome in the forest during my lunch break. When we were leaving the forest, A2 managed to walk Handsome on a leash.

Handsome is always excited to go to the forest so he pulls hard on the leash during the 100m walk from the house to the forest. Once we reach the forest, we would let him run free.
After the run in the forest, Handsome is usually tired and walks well with the leash to go back home.

As the dog turns two in a month's time, he is getting more obedient. Our aim is for him to walk obediently beside us without a leash. That is in training. . . . .

Arles

We visited Arles during our week's stay in Ardeche. It took us an hour and 10 mins to get from Montélimar to Arles as the boys wanted to take a train ride.

We spent the day walking around the old town. As Van Gogh had painted a lot during his stay in Arles, we could see information boards showing us where he took his inspiration from. Below was just one information on the painting "Starry Night Over the Rhoneis".

On many doors, we noticed this door knock in the form of a hand. We found it amusing and the boys tried to spot them as we walked along the narrow streets. There was one particular house which not only had this particular door knock but there was also a grapevine growing on its wall. There were bunches of grapes growing, even on the second floor's window. I wander how old were the house and the grapevine.

After a good lunch, we visited the arena in Arles. I knew about this arena from my visits at France Miniature. This arena is still in use today. In the old, old days, it had been a mini city with people living in it. There was a photo depicting how it looked like in 1686.

After the visit of the arena, we walked around and stopped for ice cream. There was music bands everywhere. Seb brought the boys to the park with a playground while my mother and I went to do a little shopping.

We then had dinner at an italian before taking the 8.20pm train back to Montélimar. My mother liked the thin crust pizza a lot and even finished the pana cotta which she tried for the first time. She liked that too.

On the train journey back, we were delayed an hour and a half. Apparently, the train before us was hit by a rock and had a broken window and could not move forward. So all the trains behind it were blocked. A2 was sleeping then. As for A1, he would not sleep even though it was past his bedtime. He kept asking questions on the train's situation. We arrived Montélimar really late and by the time we got back to our vacation home nearby Aubenas, it was already midnight.

We rarely took trains and that one time we did, we were delayed. Still, we enjoyed ourselves that day. Glad that I got to know another area in France.

Dog cushion

In his first year, Handsome destroyed all his cushions that we decide not to buy him anymore cushion. The dog cushions did not come cheap and having them destroyed in a few days' time was just like throwing money into the rubbish bin.

As Handsome grows older, he grows wiser too. He is doing less stupid stuff. So I felt he deserved another chance and sewed him a cushion. The home made cushion cost a fifth of the cushion we bought for him.  Another reason was that I wanted him to have an alternative than to sleep on the sofa when we were not in the living room. 

Often when I came down the stairs, I saw my dog hurrying to meet me. When I put my hand on the sofa, it was warm.  Despite having a blanket on the floor, he would prefer the sofa. He is an outdoor dog and I do not want him on the sofa. 

I took two pieces of left over fabrics (one was actually an old mattress protector) and sewed them togather. I put in stuffing and sewed a square in the middle so that the stuffing would not shift too much. I would prefer a darker color but I only had big white fabrics.

 Handsome got used to his new cushion quickly. He used it as his bed for the past two days. I had caught him chewing on it and had stopped him. Hopefully, this cushion would last a long while.

Pentecoste - Why the French work this holiday for no pay

Yesterday was Pentecoste and I did not work. 

Ten years ago, the french government decided that we should work on a public holiday and gave up our salary of that day to help the aging population. The day chosen was Pentecoste which is always on a monday.

I remembered the government saying that it was temporary and would only last a few years. 

A few years passed and the government changed the tone. Companies have the right to decide if they close on Pentecoste but they must still give a day's earnings to help the old. 

Some companies decide to make everyone work on Pentecoste while others close on this public holiday but make their employees work on an off day; be it a compensation day (RTT - reduction of time worked) or paid leave. 

My company chose to close on Pentecoste. When I was working full time, I had an off day (RTT) with every 9 working days. This is because we work 39hours a week and in France, the normal working hours is 35. Since we do not get paid for overtime, the company gives us a day off (RTT) for the extra 8 hours work. To compensate for Pentecoste, I would come to work on a RTT day. It was for me to decide when that would be since we could take RTT anytime we want. For example, today, my colleagues who were present in the office would apply for a RTT. They lost a RTT but they were even out with the replacement working day for Pentecoste. I think we have until the end of the year to even out this day.

This year, I work part-time and as such, I no longer have RTT. As I do not work on wednesday, I would have to work on one wednesday as my replacement working day for Pentecoste. I chose to do it tomorrow. 

Normally, my boys do not have school on wednesday. Tomorrow is an exception. When school term started last september, the teachers went to school on the first day to prepare. The children went to school on the second day. Tomorrow is a school day to replace the first day of school that the children missed.

Yes, this is France. It can be so complicated. With the kids in school, I can work tomorrow and one load off the shoulder. Until next year of course. 

To understand better about France and its Pentecoste working day, read this: Why the French work this holiday for no pay

Smart doggie

We spent five days at Brittany. It had been almost three years since we were here. It did not rain much while we were there but only on Saturday was the sun shining bright. 

Everyday, we spent the afternoon at the beach. On Friday, a dog came to the beach. We thought it was ahead of its master but no one was behind it. It sat on the beach for a moment and then picked up a stick and went to Seb. Seb took the stick, threw it and the dog run after the stick and fetched it. He then brought it back and dropped in front of Seb and stepped back. He wanted to play. What a smart dog. 

The boys were delighted at the intelligent dog and started to play fetch with the dog. They took turns throwing the stick. When A2 threw the stick into the water, the dog would cautiously wait for the waves to sweep up the stick before picking it up.

We told the kids not to touch the dog as we did not know it well. They played with the dog for a good while before the master came looking for the dog. He told us that it had run away from the garden when it spotted another dog. And that it loved to play fetching ball with his master at the beach.

What a well educated dog. 

We are coming back to Brittany in August with Handsome. I wonder what his reaction will be  at the beach.

Sport's day possible on tues?

Last year, A1's sport's day in school was postponed and then cancelled as both days were raining heavily.

This year, the sport's day would be held on 27 May. 

Looking at the weather forecast, it announces storm. The sport's day would most likely be postponed or cancelled. 

The boys go for multi-sports activity every tues after school. It is usually in the community hall. But since a month, the boys are practising cycling at the school's car park. And every tues evening, it rains. Sometimes they cycled under the rain. Speaking of which, A2 can cycle all by himself. Happy for him.

So let's see if the weather changes for the better come tues.

A2 is off his training wheels

For the past week, A2 had been asking us to take off his training wheels on his bicycle and trying to cycle by himself. We helped to push him as he could not find the balance and the strength to start.
He was a cautious boy and started step by step. He practiced almost everyday for 15mins. Today, he did well. He could turn the handlebars and made a big turn.
It won't be long before he could find his balance when starting the bicycle.
Just four months short of his four years, he has joined his brother in cycling on two wheels. I would have to get on my bicycle if I want to catch up with them when the boys go out cycling. It is hard to catch up with the boys by foot.
Maybe the next post would be about me brushing up my rusty cycling skills.

Honfleur

Two sundays ago, we visited Honfleur with my brother and my sister-in-law. It was my second visit. My first visit was more than ten years ago. Seb and I could not remember how it looked like though we both enjoyed our trip then.

So it was good to come again to this lovely town. We had crepes for lunch and then walked around the town.

 

The children took rides on the merry-go-round and they had fun in the playgound at the park. We walked along the seaside too.

 

Here are some photos taken at Honfleur. 

 

3months to lose 2kg

It took him three months to lose two kilos. There is twenty more to go. Thirty more months. Let's see the final results in Oct 2016.

The pirate theme birthday party

The big day arrived. Yesterday, we celebrated A1's 5th birthday with his friends. My brother the balloon master arrived from Singapore the day before. He made wonderful balloons for the children.

A1 had a parrot perched on his shoulder. He also had a sword and a belt to keep his sword.

 Thank God for the fine weather. We had the party in the garden. For the decorations, we had red and black balloons with pirate flags banner.

Food wise, I made a chocolate cake with the number 5 mould. My sister in law decorated it beautifully. I also made pirate cookies. We decorated bananas to look like pirates. There was tomatoes and comté with pirate sails. Pop corns on pirate cupcake stand and lots of sweets. I found pirate theme candles and put five on the cake.

 

I made pirate hats out of black felt. Here is the site where I got the idea. It was simple and the children loved their hats.

http://www.simplesimonandco.com/2012/01/a-felt-pirate-hat.html

 

The dozen of children arrived at 3pm and we had many games to keep them entertained. There were "walk the plank"; sticking the eye patch on the parrot; 123 Soleil; mini treasure hunt; throwing a bean bag from a distance into a circle drawn on the ground; drawing on the floor with chalks among other games. Still each game did not take long and we were running out of ideas at times.

 

For prizes, we had pirate coins, mini puzzles, sharks, eye patches, erasers, telescopes, pirate rings. Most of the prizes were brought from Singapore.

 

My brother made more balloons swords and the kids had fun running and fighting in the garden. The only peaceful moment was when they were all seated and eating the cake.

 

 

A1 was a lucky boy. His friends brought him nice presents. Mostly Playmobil.

At 6pm, the parents came to bring their tired children home. The 3 hours was long for us. Though we were 7 adults, it was still tiring for us. Seb was the MC of that day. My brother made balloons and played with the kids. My sister in law and I did the logistics. My friend Denise helped to take photos. My friend Anca helped out and mostly showed the kids where the toilet was and even helped three children with their big business.

It was great to see everyone enjoying themselves. Made my efforts worthwhile.

 For A2's birthday, we had decided to keep it shorter. 2.5hours is max. We would welcome all help we could gather. Just hoping the weather would be as fine come September.