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Archive for August, 2009

I have been having to think a lot lately, for all sorts of reasons, what a parents actual role is.

To nurture, and protect.. Sounds simple enough dosn’t it.

But to nurture and protect from whom?

Nurture is easy.. To nurture a child is to let them become who they want to become. To allow them to be sad, happy, upset, cross, angry, loving, to discover there bodies, minds and develop there own interests..

To protect. From themselves, the state, others, people whos ideas i dont agree with… fears, phobias, electricity… what are we meant to protect our kids from, and what is it we arent… In olden times… as asha calls anything from before she was born… but i will think back to my childhood.

We were able to go out alone, at the age of five. I used to cross the road to play with my friends without supervision, and was trusted to come straight home if they wernt in..

We used to play in the road, as a group unsupervised, and no neighbour would say it was antisocial.. Its playing for goodness sake.

We could play drs and nurses in each others bedrooms, and no parent, or grandparent would go up the wall, because a boy was in the girls bedroom!

Are kids today allowed freedom, or are they sufficated by social rules and expectations, and what is the role of a parent…

Comments please…

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In May we were listed in the top 100 parent blogs by http://gettingink.typepad.com/getting_ink/

I was sad to see we have fallen off the list, but not surprised, so many great blogs out there!

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Email: ,,,,,,

Thursday 27 August 2009

Dear Hywel Williams,

I am writing to you over the current green paper, on disability and
social care. In it there are plans to hand over the money given out in
Attendance Allowance and possibly DLA.. to local councils, and for them
to use the money to provide the services.

As often the amount given in A.A / DLA is far less than the council
could buy the services in for, and the impact this would have on
families, and vulnerable people would be devastating, I urge you to act
on this.

The DLA care could not pay for the amount of care my husband provides
me with. 24 hour care, 7 days a week.

If we lost the income of the DLA care, we would not be able to afford
to heat our home, to the level I need, I would not be able to maintain
my independence, or live at home with my daughter as the council would
not provide us with oil and wood for heating, as part of a care need!

Currently my husband tenders to my most personal care needs, and i
would lose my dignity if I were to be expected to have these needs
tendered to by another person, indeed it would cause difficulties
within our family, as my young daughter would find this confusing.

This suggestion that they are going to hand over the money from the
most vulnerable and poor section of society.. the elderly and disabled
to the local government for care, is outdated, and goes against the
independence which we are lead to believe that those with disabilities
have a right too!

Please also could you ask for an explanation of why such unclear terms
were used in the green paper when people’s future is at stake and they
are supposedly being consulted with.

Finally please could you let me know what the party’s policy on this
matter is.

Yours sincerely,

V……….

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Claimants have less than 80 days to prevent their DLA and AA being abolished.

A government green paper has revealed proposals to stop paying ‘disability benefits, for example, attendance allowance’’ and hand the cash over to social services instead.

Under the plan, current claimants would have their disability benefits converted to a ‘personal budget’ administered by local authorities and used to pay for services – not to spend as they wish.

Once the green paper consultation period ends in 100 days time, if an almighty row has not been raised, it is likely that both major political parties will see the lack of outrage as a green light to end both DLA and AA.

We’re looking for a minimum of 1,000 claimants, carers and support workers to join our campaign to save these benefits from being abolished.

http://www.benefitsandwork.co.uk/disability-living-allowance-(dla)/dla-aa-cuts

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There is nothing more disheartening that believing your disability has gone away, and doing all the fun things I have been doing the last few weeks and then Wack, wollop BANG.. I couldnt get out of bed this morning. It took me to 11 am, to move my legs, then mid day to hold my own weight…

I am sore, battered and frustrated once more.. The trusty chariot, is going to be making some more tours i feel the next few weeks, and i am sad, because i had hopped i was managing my disability better..

OUCH!

Asha on the other hand, has had a reminder of why mummy cant do stuff, as today and yesterday she has been fetching carrying, and on the whole HAVING to behave herself.. and as always, she has been GREAT at being my little Angel…

She has even cleared up her toys before bed.. and helped sort her room out, with a friend, so she now has a double bed we can both sleep in, in her room! Her idea!

Vicki xx

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here’s an address to send them to for re-cycling.

Energizer Ltd. Recyc…ling, Freepost, LOL2311 Dunstable, Bedfordshire, LU5 4YY.

Just for the information people.. As well… erm….

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We have been having a few days at home, in order to re-juvenate and relax, and collect our thoughts..

Today Asha loved baking a cake, and decorating it with chocolate and sugar strands. She has also had a go tonight at making origami frogs, she was sat on the floor looking through her books, and suddenly ran to me saying.. “mummy can we make, can we make” and we did make :d

She has also just played, on the floor in nearly every room of the house, there is little pools of Asha’s toys. She has loved the time and space.

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We have been going to the fun days at Penrhyn Castle, with a friend who is a child minder, who is also home schooling.

This week the fun day was Knights and Princesses. Being slightly insane, we decided to challenge each other to wear a dress. I decided to wear my wedding dress, and D found a lovely purple dress to wear.

At Penrhyn Castle Fun Day

Not perfect enough for my little girl, she also got picked out to help Bimbamboozle to do his magic, which even tonight – she is talking about, and saying how wonderful he is, and how funny it was when he changed a nappy… so yet another picture coming up..

Them knots

We also went around the castle, and looked at the play room, and spent some time looking at the big trains in the old stable blocks..

Great fun.

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Dear Friends,

I know some of you will be familiar with this, for others you may not be aware
of what parliament is about to do in your name. Codex Alimentairus is a law
designed to hand over the control of natural remedies to the pharmaceutical
giants. One more attempt to regulate us – with potentially dire consequences.
Unless we take this last opportunity and act now we will not be able to buy
vitamins or health/nutritional supplements without a doctor’s prescription -
they will be banned from 31st December 2009.

You may think this can’t happen, you may think why haven’t I heard about this
before. The reason is that there are vested interests, giant multinational
pharmaceutical companies, and it’s not in their interest that you know about and
oppose this. They and our lawmakers in Europe are banking on public apathy.
Despite considerable pressure already exerted our government is still planning
to implement this law – UNLESS THERE IS MASSIVE OPPOSITION IT WILL GO AHEAD.

Like many health and safety matters this was started with good intentions, in
1962 by the United Nations, to establish international free trade foods but has
become a major threat to our civil liberties and freedom of choice.

As the song says: YOU DON’T KNOW WHAT YOU’VE GOT TILL IT’S GONE

Please, sign the petition to the Prime Minister . . It takes 10 seconds! This
is for our health, and well-being and the health and well-being of our
children. Please copy and paste the link below …”

http://petitions.number10.gov.uk/vitamins/

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Whilst I cant claim to be an avid fan of the politics behind the National Trust as an organisation, I am a definate fan of there FUN days.

Today was Alice in Wonderland at Penrhyn Castle. Along with Chris, from the Harlequin Puppet Theater The oldest purpose built puppet theater in britain , at Ros on Sea – Well worth a visit!!

Asha loves the national trust fun days, as she gets time to do some crafty project – todays was decorating a fairy cake,

and making a plate rabbit. Also today she planted some seeds, in little pots. As well as this there was the colouring in competition, and the trail – with a prize for everyone who did it..

she also enjoyed having a go at lawn crochet, and hoop playing..

Added onto this, about three hours of Bimbamboozle,and time to play in the large grounds, fun play area and if you want visit the castle, or stable areas where there are displays such as the steam trains, old dolls etc etc..

Anyway, today we had agreed to meet some friends there, who did the fancy dress parade, as well. We didnt do it this week, but are going to endevour too for next week.

Having fun doing all mad stuff at the moment but I fall asleep as soon as I get home at night, exhausted!!

(Photograph of Chris, and Asha, kindly provided for by Debbie Pritchards Proffesional Child Minding Service )

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I was woken this morning at 7.30 to Asha climbing in our bed.. some time later, Steve got up and made Asha and I breakfast in bed…

I then had to get ready to go to Bangor to meet Debbie, and we had planned on the rather expensive play area, or Greenwood forest. HOWEVER we decided weather wasn’t reliable enough for greenwood, and the play area was quite expensive for a day, which it would be heaving on. Also it was quite expensive for the little ones, plus food!

I had on my list of places to visit this year Pillas Palace, so we trotted over the Anglsey again.. and went to see the tarantula, centipedes, butterflys, red eared terrapin and other wonderful animals… We didnt look as much as I would have liked because of “all the legs”

We did have a great time on the bouncy castle, and indoor play area though.. and the food was very reasonable price wise.. I feel this is an area which lets foal farm down. The cafe is tooo expensive there.

Anyway.. after that we all headed back to Bangor, and did the charity shops and other such shops… I bought Asha a new pair of trainers, which actually fit her.. Yes Clarks trainers, she is size 9.5 e/f on one foot and 9 d/e on the other!! No wonder I have struggled to get her shoes to fit!

Right… going to go downstairs now, as asha should be asleep, and isnt and i have packed lunch to discuss with steve for tomorrow….

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Pillas palace
Gypsy wood
Greenacres – done
foal farm – done
sea zoo – done
plas newydd – done, or at least the grounds are.
conway nature reserve
welsh mountain zoo -done, or at least the swings are
st cybils well
south stack light house
an out door concert.
black rock sands

So still on the list is :

South Stack Light House
Black Rock Sands
Out Door concert..
Pillas palace
Gypsy wood
and Conway Nature Reserve….

They are all do-able in next three weeks.. yes????

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That Steve has a wonderful web site project he can really get his teeth into for the next few weeks. Its demanding, but fun and challenging for him, and hopefully will be another show piece, to show what he can do.

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To Dawniy for emailing me to ask me how to comment… And to my husband for sorting out the problem so now you can comment, more easily!

Thankyou, both of you!

Vicki xx

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about the badman report….

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