Easter Quest

Saturday's One-Day-Holiday-Club went really well. Just a dozen children [plus parents, superb helpers and a small baby] but it was a lovely atmosphere. We were looking at Mary, the mother of Jesus. She was there at five important points in Jesus life. 

1. His birth [obviously] 
2. When he was a boy and she lost him in Jerusalem and found him in the Temple
3. At his first miracle [Water into Wine at the Wedding]
4. The Crucifixion
5. After his Resurrection on Easter Day
   

We did lots of crafts - window spinners, pop up cards, Easter Gardens, bead hearts and crosses, decorated biscuits, and an Easter Colouring Book. 

The children worked so hard, and parents helped. I had pre-prepared shapes from fondant icing [hearts, crosses and butterflies] so they could ice biscuits. Two members of the team supervised this popular activity.[Thanks Ann and Di]
We also had a 'Trail' finding five locations representing the Bible stories featuring Mary. At each point there was a stamp so children could mark their card. These are four locations. There was also a simple wooden cross on a green 'hill', The stamps spelled out 
M A R Y 💜

And we sang songs and played games - and finished with a simple lunch* together.
It was worth doing, even for a small number - and children and parents were so appreciative

* ham or cheese roll, crisps, yogurt, piece of fruit. Easy for the team to prepare, and children and adults enjoyed sitting round chatting and eating.

I've already emailed one blogfriend copies of the notes for this event, including full craft instructions. If anyone else would like details, to use it with their groups, please email me. 

This week, concentrating on the kitchen!!

Of FITS And Fitters

Some churches run holiday clubs in the summer holidays and call the FITS - Fun In The Sun. You cannot really call it FITS in Spring - the weather is less predictable. There may be no sun, just April Showers. 

Having declared last year was definitely our last club - the 3- day-programme was just too demanding,  Bob was having a lot of back pain. Sadly nobody felt able to take over this year. So we'll do an Easter Quest. It will include a light lunch, and lots of different crafts and challenges happening at once.  The parents will be asked to stay [thus ensuring there are enough adults to help with glue and Easter Gardens] 

Thank you everyone for your lovely ideas about badges yesterday, so many people mentioned making ones about Kitchen Fitters. It reminded me of a cartoon I came across recently. And thank you to Elizabeth at Small Treasures for sending me this cartoon which made me chuckle

The ceiling is now smooth and plastered, the screed* has been laid on the floor - tiling this morning. Painting the ceiling and fixing the electric sockets are next on this list. [why do we use the same word for 'a long speech' as we do for 'a level floor'?]

I'm Considering Becoming A Pin-Up Girl...

Pottering around in the loft, I came across my Super-Badge-It badgemaker. I needed a lot of badges for a conference, and it was easier and cheaper to make my own  - so Steph bought this for me. I have used it a lot over the years. Over half term I was conscious that Rosie is really into badges right now. Look...

There are lots on her rainbow jumper. A number came from the Science Fair. I have been wondering about making some more badges next time she and Jess are here. Or perhaps some for children's crafts at church.
Or maybe a couple for myself. 

But there are too many other things to do right now. Like Kitchens and Holiday Club and Collaborative Stitching and...

Venerable Beads

Rosie had such fun during half term, using Hama beads for the first time. But first we had to sort the colours into plastic bowls to facilitate her design work.

This meant the task took longer than I'd expected. I remembered that when we were in Kirby Muxloe, I had them all sorted into glass jars - but when we moved, I emptied them all into two big tubs, and recycled the jars, to make packing easier [and lighter]

But last week, whilst watching TV in the evening, I sat with a tray on my lap, and Bob's sharp needle-nose tweezers, and sorted the lot. It took hours

I haven't many spare jars at the minute, but this is what 10,000+ beads look like all neatly separated by colour [I gave up with black, white grey, and stuck those all in together]

Despite declaring last year that we had finished doing Holiday Clubs, we are going to run a One Day Event in the Easter Holidays. As I was sorting, a craft idea involving threading the beads occurred to me [but nothing with hot irons, when you have a crowd of youngsters to contend with!] 

I immediately stopped sorting, and grabbed my tin of mini Tiptree jars.

It didn't take long to put a scoop of mixed beads into each of 30 jars all ready for April!

Have you ever done any crafting with Hama beads? 

They are fine until you catch the edge of the jar with your elbow, and sprinkle them in a rainbow all over the carpet!

And The Walls Came A Tumblin' Down!

When Cornerstones was built, there was a particular building regulation rules [I'm sure it has a proper name] that said all the front gardens had to be 'open plan' with no high walls or fences, to give the impression of spaciousness.I believe that even now, you are not supposed to have a front fence more than 1 metre high. Not that many of my neighbours seem bothered by this - after 50 years we have high fences, ginormous hedges, and sturdy walls in the close and neighbouring streets.

Our front garden remains totally open - fortunately the dog who used to visit us regularly and leave a small deposit no longer seems to be walking this way! Our side garden has a one metre wooden fence. When we moved in, we had small walls dividing us from our neighbours' front gardens. Here's Adrian strimming in April 2009, the week we first got the keys. You can see the little wall behind him.

Here's Bob in 2012 at the wall on the other side [round the corner], preparing to put grids in the gravel to enable him to wheel his motorbike on to it. The drive is half the size now, because of the Lathe Palace and Carriage House.

But the bin men knocked down that end pillar some year ago, and just before Christmas took the next few bricks out.

We realised the wall was in a very weak state. Furthermore, it requires careful parking to put a car down the side - the driver door has to be opened carefully, and it is incredibly hard to get a child in and fasten their carseat whilst avoiding banging the wall with the open car door. So we decided to get rid of the wall completely. Next door is up for sale - we thought it wise to do it before any new neighbours arrive. Bob hired a skip, it arrived at 10am yesterday morning. [and there was me thinking post holiday club I could rest!]

Boots, goggles and gloves at the ready I realised the wall was even weaker than I had realised. The wall was quickly demolished. Bob saved the capping stones which will go back later. We also removed rubbish from the back garden- the damaged screening from the old oil tank, and some broken fence panels.

By 1pm our skip was neatly packed, and we went inside for homemade soup. I think it looks much neater now the crumbling wall has gone, and obviously more accessible. 

The other front wall was modified by a previous neighbour with two large crazy dogs. She added a fence on her side, well over 1m tall, all round her garden. Subsequent tenants have never removed it.

A satisfactory morning's work. Now  I can rest!

Joseph and His God Made The Pyramids Rock!

 

Holiday Club is over! I never got many photographs during the sessions, I was so busy. But the children made wonderful models of Joseph in his coat of many colours, and produced some lovely 'mask' bunting, and hieroglyph door hangers

I prepared a bookmark for every child- including their name in hieroglyphs...and then we had a last minute booking on Thursday evening. At 11pm I suddenly realised this child needed a bookmark. So fired up my computer and sat there in my dressing gown sorting it out. She had a long name - would she want it shortened? I decided I might as well do both, just in case. And as there were three to a sheet, I was left with a blank one. Which was good as someone turned up on Friday morning without booking first!

The team were brilliant. We are only a small chapel, but there were twenty of us working on the three mornings, and Friday evening. Children and parents were so appreciative - with over 50 attending the Family&Friends night

Nick, our minister, presented Bob and me with a "Lifetime Achievement Award for running Children's Holiday Clubs" which was lovely. 

Someone else can run the club in future...

We’re gonna swim up the Nile, we’re gonna open the scroll,
We’re gonna have some fun as we get to know about Joseph,
The Hebrew boy called Joseph
We’re gonna ride on a camel, gonna dance in the sand,
We’re gonna see what God was doing in the land of Egypt,
The mighty, mighty land of Egypt.
Cos Joseph and his God made the pyramids rock
Cos Joseph and his God made the pyramids rock
Sing and dance at the pyramid rock, jump and jive at the pyramid rock
Celebrate at the pyramid rock
Cos Joseph and his God made the pyramids rock!

Such a catchy theme tune [video borrowed from another church, thank you]

        

Off The Menu...

I believe the foods not eaten by ancient Egyptians to be these [but I am happy to be corrected]

spaghetti, chocolate, fish fingers, crisps, coffee

burgers, tea, pizza, swiss roll, tomatoes

And yes, they did eat hippos - in fact, some historians believe that King Tutankhamen was actually crushed to death by a hippopotamus! [It is not clear if this was alive at the time, or just rolled off the dining table on top of him]

Kings need to watch their diet  - King Henry I of England reputedly died of eating a surfeit of lampreys in 1135, and King Adolf Fredric of Sweden died in 1771 after eating a champagne banquet followed by fourteen semlor buns.

What Did The Egyptians Eat?

We did a quiz with the children - which foods do they think ancient Egyptians did or didn't eat. I believe that there are 10 items on this collage which were not in their diet. Which do you think they are?

Answers this evening!

Don't Take It Lyin' Down!!

Tate and Lyle have announced they are dropping their iconic lion from some of their packaging! Since 1883 they have had that amazing picture of the dead lion surrounded by the bees, with the quote from the book of Judges."Out of the strong came forth sweetness" I love this story. However it appears that some "Gen Z" consumers might be offended by this 'religious symbolism' What?!?! Have they actually had any complaints? Both Jews and Christians have this story in their scriptures - might they not be upset after almost 150 years to have it suddenly considered offensive?
However Tate and Lyle are at least retaining the image on their tins, if not the squeezy bottles. It is after all the longest branding image in continuous use, according Guinness World Records.

I was just about reconciled to this, when somebody pointed out that the new design [no words. just a stylised lion with a bee above its left ear] looks rather like Margaret Thatcher. Now I cannot un-see that image. I shall be buying Sainsbury's Squeezy Syrup for my pancakes henceforth!

I do not have the energy to rant properly - Holiday Club is going well, but it is rather tiring!

Liz - who knows that I love the poem "This is just to say" by William Carlos Williams has just sent me this pastiche by Daniel Kennedy..

I have removed

the dead lion

that was on

the syrup can

and which

you were probably 

saving 

for breakfast

Forgive me 

it was so dead

so inexplicably dead

and so covered in bees

Thanks Liz! 

Just To Say Thank You

So many people have been kind and helpful in the last week or so. I cannot possibly them all, but here are a few...

The guy at North Tuddenham Garage  As I turned off the A47, about 3 miles from home, an orange warning light flashed up "Tyre pressure low, check asap". Bearing in mind that another blogger had recently mentioned an incident where this happened, then the tyre exploded, I was a little anxious. I was nearly home but passing the garage. I pulled in and went inside "Hello, are you OK?" said the woman at the desk "Yeah, I'm fine - but I'm not sure about my tyres" I said. She fetched a young chap from the workshop, who checked all the tyres, and two were rather low, so he pumped them all up to the correct setting, "Do you know how to reset the warning message?" I said I didn't, the car is new to me. He showed me and wished me a safe journey home. "What do I owe you?" I said, and he grinned "Nothing!" 

Then my church friends- so many have volunteered help in one way or another with the club, which starts this morning. Yesterday at noon I posted in the WhatsApp group that we would be getting everything ready at 2.30pm, and would appreciate help chair shifting etc. Nick, the pastor, and five others turned up. All the furniture was sorted by 3pm.  

Bob was there till 5pm working on the technical stuff. [thanks Bob] Do you like the coat-of-many-colours? I made that about 25 years ago. It's been used loads of times since in plays and holiday clubs etc.

Thank you to Karen, at Sew Creative in Norwich. After 20+ years, the time has come to upgrade my machine and she was so helpful, answering all my questions. I went in with 2 models in mind, and she suggested a third [between the two in price] I was able to try everything out, and take my time, and finally reached a decision. There will be more about this later.

Thank you to Rosie for a lovely time last week. We did so much, and learned so much, and read lots of fun books...and her visit was top-and-tailed by seeing the rest of her family. Jess is a proper little character too. What fun we all had together.

Thank you to my neighbour Justine, and her daughter Brooke - good friends in the everyday ups and downs of life.

Thank you Kirsten - the collaborative stitching continues to prove both a challenge and a joy -and I am sure I have learned much more than I would have done without it.

Thank you to Nina [and her Mum] at the Flow Craft Cafe in Dereham - in the last four months you have become such a good friend, a kindred spirit in the craft world - and provider of the best teacakes too.

Thank you to you, my blogfriends, who have posted such encouraging comments- and some sent lovely private email messages. And I see those same people posting on other blogs with kind words too. I know some regard the internet as a dark and sinister space- but there are wonderful corners of love and light and friendship too. 

The kids at one Leicester school where I did lots of supply work loved the song which had the chorus "So I mustn't forget, to say a great big thankyou - no, I mustn't forget"  

Thank you Lord for all these good people

What are you thankful for this week?

 

Crazy Costumes In The Close

Everybody round here is dressing up, it seems. Last week was crazy. Monday - Jess was at the Ice Palace. 

Tuesday Bob in his chef's whites. Wednesday Rosie was Egyptian King Tut in Swaffham. Thursday Saxon King Raenwald at Sutton Hoo. 

Then as we were driving home on Thursday afternoon, Brooke's mum messaged me for help. Brooke needed a Superhero costume for Friday. Did I have a Batman mask and cape she could borrow? 

No. But I did have an old black sheet and a sewing machine. I've made so many capes that I can rustle them up really quickly. I found a hood pattern on the net. Brooke was very pleased with the outfit. They've had a lot going on this week, and had completely forgotten about Superheroes Day. I was glad I provide something. 

At Kirby we always had a Dress Up Day during Holiday Club - I'm rather relieved we aren't doing that here. Last time we did Pyramid Rock I dressed up as Cleopatra, in a long white floaty dress. But that was in a warm July, not a wet February. 

A Second Help[ing Of Mincemeat

Make a cup of tea, and grab a mince pie or slice of Belgian cake...for I have fallen down a rabbit hole full of sailors, spooks and secrets. I've unearthed more info about "the man who never was" and those who created him.

[1] in 1938, Admiral Godfrey issued a now famous memorandum, later named "The Trout Memo" The memo reads, in part: "The Trout Fisher casts patiently all day. He frequently changes his venue and his lures. If he has frightened a fish he may 'give the water a rest for half-an-hour,' but his main endeavour, viz. to attract fish by something he sends out from his boat, is incessant." The memo lists 54 ways that the enemy, like trout, may be fooled or lured. #28 was the suggestion that misleading documents might be planted on a body to fool the Germans. This inspired the idea of Operation Mincemeat

[2] The memo was actually prepared by his secretary - at the time a young 30 year old chap who later went to work with Montagu and Cholmondley on OM. His nickname for Godfrey was "M" [because she terrifies me as much as my Mother"] and he worked closely with "Q" department which produced all those hidden compasses, maps concealed in silk linings etc for the use of spies and escaping POWS. And this debonair chap was none other than Ian Fleming! This was a decade before he began writing the Bond novels - but you can see where much of his inspiration came from. Macintyre does give lots of credit to IF in the book - and there are random remarks in the film just in case you didn't make the connection!

[3] Ewen Montagu took the body of Glyndwr Michaels from the crowded St Pancras Mortuary, to the smaller, quieter mortuary in Hackney[built in 1890 in the Rectory Garden, next to the parish church] Ewen M was a significant member of the Jewish community in London, and after the was became a judge. Martin Sugarman of the Jewish Ex Serviceman's Association, felt that Montagu's part in the helping Britain win the war ought to be recognised. So two years ago a plaque was unveiled 

[4] There is also a Special Forces Memorial Grove as part of the National Arboretum now, where OM is remembered with a plaque. The Hackney Memorial acknowledges 'a corpse' but the Staffordshire one names Glyndwr Michaels. Now here's the thing - it was 1996 when historian Roger Morgan discovered Glyndwr's name, unredacted in some declassified reports. 

[5] But there are those who say "the man who never was never was a Welsh tramp". The plot thickens. Everything relates to another incident in April 1943 - the unexplained explosion and sinking of HMS Dasher on the River Clyde,  close to the town of Ardrossan. There are those who believe that the corpse transported to Spain on HMS Seraph was in fact one of the fatalities from Dasher. 

It is all meticulously detailed by a married couple from Ardrossan, John and Noreen Steele in the third book they have written about the disaster.

Personally I am not convinced that the corpse was in fact a seaman named John Melville, and  was not Glyndwr. But I do agree with the local MP for Ardrossan, Patricia Gibson, who raised the subject of HMS Dasher in Parliament last year on the 80th anniversary of its sinking. I have carefully read the transcript in Hansard[this was a deep, deep rabbit hole I fell into!] 

But I do the the Hon lady was right, in saying that those bereaved by the Dasher Tragedy are entitled, after 80 years, to have some proper answers to their questions. [Read her speech  yourself, if you want to!]

But for now I am leaving WW2 secrets and moving on to more pressing matters - like getting Rosie's bedroom ready for her arrival shortly, and finishing Holiday Club plans, and working on my Cross-stitch Collaboration!

Finally,  a HUGE thank you to Will in NZ for alerting me to the books of Reginald Victor Jones, another WW2 science boffin. Norfolk libraries do not stock any of his works - but I now have his biography on reserve!

Sunday Best

So how's the new year working out for you? I can't believe we are three weeks in already. My word of the year PACE is proving a good choice. Some days I have been frantically busy, other days the pace much slower. This past week I had to take it easy after the tooth business. My dentist said it was the biggest tooth in my mouth - and I should not expect to feel better before the weekend. I decided to accept his wisdom and not fret about "things left undone". So I spent a couple of days snuggled in my armchair, doing word puzzles, reading watching TV, and dozing. Without any guilt feelings at all. And by Friday I was able to get going again on Holiday  Club preparations.

Our bodies are not meant to work incessantly like machines - we are designed to need a break.  Many scientists have established that people taking a break every 7th day work more efficiently on the other 6th. A Sabbath rest is good for us. 

In Mark chapter 6 Jesus urges his busy disciples to "Come apart and rest for a while". My mum used to say "if you don't rest, you will come apart!" 

For many people, their work patterns and family circumstances mean they cannot take a Sabbath rest on a Sunday. For so many years, we were occupied with church responsibilities every weekend and made a habit of taking" time out"on a Monday. Retirement, is a privilege - we are grateful for the more relaxed pattern of Sundays here at Cornerstones. 

This is my favourite day of the week, when I can take time out to share in worship,[in church, or on Zoom, or listening to the radio] and make space for connection with family and friends. Of all the days of the week, I like Sunday best! 

I do hope you are able to find moments of space and peace sometime in the week ahead... 

It Was Red And Yellow And Green And Brown And Blue...

I've cleared all the Plaster of Paris and associated stuff from the Futility Room. Forty plaques are drying out in the back bedroom. Now I'm preparing ranks and ranks of little men

They are plastic bottles with pipecleaner arms and polystyrene heads, standing about 10"/25cm tall.

At Holiday Club the children will decorate coats with many colours and each dress their "Joseph" model to take home. They do remind me of the terracotta warriors in their serried ranks...

But they will be much more colourful when they are completed

Plaques Of Egypt

Not a misprint - I really DO mean plaQues and not plaGues. The Holiday Club next month is all about Joseph, so one of the craft activities will be painting some plaques

We did this back in 2011 in Kirby - here are some of the ones from that club - with the Egyptian figure, and the frieze of hieroglyphics at the top.

They are made in a mould using plaster of paris. I have three dozen to prepare

AND ONLY ONE MOULD!

This means mixing up one cup of plaster, pouring it into the mould, and going away for an hour. Coming back, turning it out and doing another. It is a laborious process. Back at Kirby I produced over a hundred - but it was summer, so I think they dried quicker. It still took over a fortnight.

This time, I have got some 'mould release' which is really making a difference- Bob found the recipe online - you mix a small amount of vaseline with white spirit to the consistency of single cream. Apply a thin layer to the mould [with an old toothbrush] It makes turning out a doddle. No cracked pieces this time round. I have lined the bedroom window sill with tin foil so they can stay on there and dry out. Then I will put on a base coat so the children can colour them with felt pens this year, poster paint is too messy in our limited space at Chapel. 

Rosie was very excited to see all the Egyptian stuff when they called yesterday. I am not a very tidy worker, everything in the Futility Room has a thin dusting of white powder - Liz and Jon wondered if I was establishing a Meth Lab. Further to yesterday's post about Lost Things - my new filling came out during Sunday breakfast!

Rain Did Not Stop Play

It rained a lot on Saturday. The planned family walk was cancelled. The family asked if they could come over to Cornerstones instead. I decided we needed a Plan Of Action. 

Signs went up on doors and windows outside. The IKEA igloo playtent was put up in the lounge, and swathed in an old blanket. 

Inside the Bear Cave I put all the teddies I could find plus some cushions, a bag of storybooks, and a box of cups, plates and cutlery. And we waited for the grandchildren to arrive. They really enjoyed having a pretend picnic. 

Jess was telling little stories and chatting to the bears - and Grandad was involved in the fun too

After lunch I baked biscuits with the girls, while Mum and Dad went for a stroll in the rain. It really didn't take long to assemble the "props" - and it was much more satisfying than just sitting in front of a screen. I got the igloo for about £5, back in 2010 and it's been well used, as a prop at Church Holiday Clubs, a play tent for the grandchildren and a Dinosaur Cave during Lockdown. 

But I will admit, I was utterly exhausted by the time they all went home! 

 

Birthday Cake

 

It's my birthday, but instead of a conventional cake, I've made a batch of Swedish Semlor Buns. These are definitely my best yet. The Cornerstones oven is better than the one in Dorset for bread, I think. I am finding hard to realise just how old I am - it's two years since I became an OAP, we retired, and I got my bus pass! But still young at heart

For the last week, I've been singing this song from Holiday Club and dancing in the kitchen like a seven year old. [Please note, this is NOT me on the video. She's a youth worker from Wakefield] But I think the joy of this song is so infectious. The children have really enjoyed the tune and the actions. I hope you enjoy it too. 

Resting!

These five little owls were part of Wednesday morning's crafting. I love the way the children arranged the wings in different ways, and made each bird their own individual creation.

Wednesday evening we had over 60 attending the Family and Friends Evening. It was quite brilliant. The adults were so appreciative. The team were given chocolates to share. I'm so grateful to have had the chance to work together with such a lovely crowd of people.

Bob and I were thanked at the evening session, and presented with a plant, and also a bag of freshly baked croissants to have a lazy breakfast on Thursday morning! How incredibly thoughtful.

 

One Day More...

Holiday Club has been going really well. The team are working so hard, the children are lovely, the parents are appreciative...and it is more exhausting than ever! I love doing it, but I accept that I do not have the energy I had twenty years ago. I haven't taken any photos like I usually do, of the children's crafts.

Fortunately we have Rosie staying with us this week, so she kindly posed with her makes...she says that she is enjoying the club.

A little house, a dancing girl and a little purse. All made from recycled items [old Xmas cards, milk bottle tops, CDs and cotton reels, and empty milk cartons] 

This is the final day, and as well as this morning's session, this evening is Family and Friends Night. 

I may spend Thursday in my PJs.

We've Been Here Before! Welcome home!

We'll be up at the crack of dawn in order to get the final bits ready for Holiday Club. The title is Restoration Station - and we are looking at three incidents in the life of Jesus where he restored people to wholeness.[We can't call it The Repair Shop, because that name belongs to the BBC]

Bob and I have been doing Children's Holiday Clubs together for over forty years. We have some really great memories. 

Especially from our two decades in Kirby Muxloe - and I've been thinking so much about friends there as I have prepared for this club. 

The year we went to Kirby [1995] was also the year Gary Lineker came back home to Leicester to live, having retired from playing professional football. He was 33, and had never received a red or yellow card in any game - an all-round good bloke. He became the ad-man for a local company. This was the commercial which started it all.

Watching it makes me a bit homesick for Leicestershire - but also so very glad that 28 years later Gary Lineker still IS "Mr Nice Guy" . I'm so glad he is not afraid to speak out for those who really need it, and tell the politicians their behaviour is unacceptable. God bless you, Gary. [and please God, bless our little Holiday Club too...]