Salaams, This is a recipe that I’ve written down a few times and each time I’ve managed to lose it. It’s a family home made natural recipe for a cold and as far as I know it doesn’t exist on the internet. I just want to say thanks to my lovely sister in law who […]
A Recipe: Curry – A Cold Remedy — PeacePrayerLove@ the7ofus.blog
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Good morning, afternoon or evening wherever you are or whatever time you happen to read this note. I haven’t been able to blog this weekend as together with many Muslims around the world we welcomed Ramadan in the UAE last Thursday. Our kids have their advent calendars ready and we made our own Ramadan celebration board to really get into the mood.
Muslims around the world fast from dawn to dusk for 30 days. Fasting because God asked them to do it. Of course it allows us to be more aware of how fortunate we are but the main essence of Ramadan is to get closer to God through extra prayer and worship. So if your students seem more tired this month cut them a bit of slack. In fact over here we’re only teaching from 10am-2pm these days to ensure the students get some time to rest and recuperate. It is fascinating to note that almost all the Worlds Religions practice fasting as a way of getting closer with their Lord.
This week in lockdown have a go at cutting your children’s hair – we bought a Wahl hair trimmer from trusty Amazon and after waiting around a week for delivery our sons were finally able to get a haircut – albeit reminiscent of old Phil and Grant Mitchell from way back when! It was nice for them to finally be able to see again 😜Following on from our Prank Wars last week, the girls managed to convince their little sis that she was also having her hair cut – cue her new phrase “Heeeeeeyyyy.” Which caused me to finally shut down Prank Wars.
We have been in lockdown for 6 weeks now and the kids are really getting antsy now; I’ve had to step up my game and be more available for them – another reason why this blog did not get written earlier. Obviously they just need to go out and run it all out which is really impossible at the moment even though the country is slowly lifting bans and easing up on shopping malls, the hot weather is also a deterrent these days. Luckily PE with Joe is available online 24/7 so sometimes we repeat workouts (“Oh look! Joe is on AGAIN!!) The ‘Scooby Doo’ one is a firm favourite now! We’ve also realised that sometimes you just gotta let them fight it out, so yes- we have had some ‘refereed/ wrestling matches this week!’
All in all its been a pleasant week and we have been busy creating content for the launch of LoveLearning.Online Lessons next week which we are excited to share with you very, very soon! The online lesson are free to join and the apps we use are free to use as well. Please do register below, we look forward to meeting you and your offspring in the first lesson!
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Hello everyone! Welcome back – I want to shout out to our new readers all the way from US, UAE and India – it’s time like this in a global crisis we really realise how alike we all are!
This week has been very busy with the increase in online sessions for our children with their school and the continuation with our online lessons for our students. We haven’t had a lot of down time as a family so we didn’t really do anything as arty as these guys right here; Making heart window decorations (but I have put it on my list for posting in our neighbourhood FB.) Also you gotta love Banksy -always on point 😊
During the week I was reading popular blog posts and read about lots of parents helping their kids make crafts and i’m sure we’ve seen the Dads on facebook turning their houses into full blown restaurants and drive thru’s. Now if I know my audience, I know that most of us are too busy to do all these fancy things so we’ve come up with some more easy ideas to have fun at home -ENJOY 🌞
So the restaurant idea was the easiest because all it involved was changing our venue for eating, the plan originally was to eat outside but by the time the food was ready it was dark so we changed to a meal in the living room, we placed cushions around the coffee table and with a ramadan lantern and a couple of candles managed to create a Moroccan theme. We managed to eat our food happily and the hardest part was bringing plates two meters further into the living room. They enjoyed it so much i’m doing it again for them right now so they can eat their lunch while I write!
So what have we done this week?? Well, it all started when my daughter came into the kitchen one morning to tell me the toilet was smoking – and lo and behold he was – cue the prank wars 😷😎
So when you’re bored of learning all the dances off of TikTok look for pranks
Make sure you talk to the younger ones about expectations and not to get overly offended or maybe even keep your more sensitive kids out of it. Once you’ve had enough of pranking each other try some of these “Never have I ever” questions for a bit of down time.
Parenting tip of the day: Whilst searching for ideas i came across “Who’s most likely to ….” and I’m gonna be honest and say I don’t care for that idea too much with the negative connotations but it could be used in a positive way. Children tend to believe what we tell them so if we say they’re the most likely to end up in prison, chances are they might well be; conversely if you tell them they’re the most likely to become a heart surgeon they might well be.
I’ve tried to stay offline this week as much as possible apart from their actual lessons but if you’re interested in online activities that you can set them up with while you continue working on the side? Go to Quizziz an online quiz website with thousands of ready made quizzes which will ensure your children can stay on top of or even learn some general knowledge whilst having fun. (Watch this video for help getting started.)
Hope some of these ideas inspired you and give you a chance to have some social time with your offspring and inject a bit of fun into the mundane aspects of isolation. Please do let me know how it goes and if you have more ideas do share!
Hello!! Hope you’re all well, this post was motivated by reading all these posts and memes on social media about lots of families being stuck together and the thousands of parents who are finding this time hard. Especially working parents, we have to somehow to double the work expected normally because we’re under pressure to prove that we are actually working from home and do all the things at home without the usual help from people we outsource our chores to. We don’t even own a lawnmower so I was thinking of going out there with a pair of scissors today is what I’m talking about! My husband putting hand sanitiser on my son’s foot when he cut it, is another fun thing that happened today. We also played hide and seek and had to keep pretending not to find the 3 year old when she stuck her head under the sofa and I’m happy to announce- in an amazing turn of events our mish mash parenting style has somehow made the teenagers get around to not only cleaning their rooms but helped their brothers clean their room too!
IT IS HARD!! It’s not easy at all!! but you can do a few things to make it easier on yourselves by following three easy rules.
I really believe that organisation and planning are key to running a peaceful house but honestly we do still have times when everyone is just tired of being cooped up together especially with the new -no exercise rules. PE with Joe has been a life saver for us in this regard. As has story-time from Space and similar channels like National Geographic. Personally I don’t mind a bit of screen time each day and lets face it its literally a necessity now if we have other things to do but we should be mindful of how long they’re spending on screens.
I’ve found some really amazing websites online which allow the kids to have some downtime whilst also learning something (and their narrative voices aren’t as irritating as some of the kiddie YT channels,) one of these is NASA.gov -real pictures and videos taken in space provides prompts for some good, interesting conversations. Curiosity Stream has really piqued my interest and we will be getting the subscription as soon as I have a few mins.
Another point to note is to find something that you enjoy and do that as well, a good book, a long soak in the bath, doing your hair or nails will all give you a break and a chance to recover so you can be the best version of you. For me I like to keep busy so although my daughters started watching yet another Turkish drama (each episode is 2.5 hours long!) I try to stay outside and I began refurbishing a garden swing that we inherited when we moved to this house. I hope to share pictures soon and I also hope that my daughters will be so amazed that they might start learning to sew!! ( I can dream! can’t I?)
We’ve actually had a few moments of inspiration this most notably when we made KFC for dinner and also when my son logged into my husbands Google account on his PlayStation and we enjoyed an impromptu look through pictures from the summer holidays last year. We’re planning an online party with their cousins tomorrow as it’s the weekend here and I’m going to text my mum and sister to make some popcorn and poppadoms for a snack and we planned to cook a roast that we can enjoy in 4 corners of the world together.
Hope this post has inspired you to be a more creative and see the benefits in embracing this change for the betterment of the family. I am in no way, shape or form a perfect parent, I just wanted to share some ideas that have made life easier for me in the hope that someone out there will benefit. Take care, until we meet again. I’ll leave you with some images we’d all like to see in the house.
So what’s been happening folks? Been anywhere nice lately? (sorry bad joke!)
It’s getting a bit tedious trying to keep the children occupied at home but we’ve (un)luckily been busy with their schoolwork most of the week. My high schoolers are on zoom meetings now some of the time as well as my husband and I teaching pretty much all day. So a fun activity has been to send the littles off on a little hunt around the house… it keeps them occupied and the game can literally carry on for ages. I was on a facebook group where this lists were shared so i’m sharing them here too! Thanks to Amber Kothe and Yesette Terrazas.
Another game to play is to hide a smallish object or teddy bear in the room and get them to hunt for it, as they get closer you say hotter and as they get further away you say colder. They’ll start practicing their english as well, they’ll start saying boiling hot or freezing cold, it gets more fun as they get more practice and more creative at hiding the toy!
Once we got into the idea lots of old car games came rushing back to the memory – ‘Name, Animal, Place, Thing, Total’ took us on many trips to London from Lancashire and back again when my siblings and I were kids! Just take a pen and paper for each player and draw a table with 5 columns; one player has to say the alphabet under his breath and someone else stops him, whatever letter he’s on you all write a name, place, animal or thing with that letter. Then you mark it, if you answer is unique you get 10 points and if someone else has it then you only get 5. You can change place to country or city if you prefer and do football teams instead of ‘thing.’
Both this game and I-spy has to be played phonetically so the 5year old can join in but it’s also good practice for him to learn the difference between the two sounds ‘g’ makes. Simon Says and copy cat also take some time to play and the old family favourite ‘Oh the hokey cokey!’
I hope this helps you, please let us know how you get on in the comments, take care and stay home – stay safe!!
One of the things i’m enjoying is being at home with my preschooler and son in KG; they are really enjoying all the attention being lavished on them and being able to see us all day long with no long wait until we reach home from school. However they want to be involved and take part in lessons; last week I entertained them with dot-to-dot’s and colour by number printed from the internet but they’re getting a bit tired of that so I remembered an old favourite of ours when we had a sand a water table –sensory bins.
One of my main intentions in this blog is to make sure that the activities I choose are cheap or freely available so although we don’t have the sand table any more we can easily use a plastic tray of some sort and any props you find around the house. Take household objects like plastic bottles, cups, measuring spoons, funnels and get a plastic tray or box, fill it with sand or water and let them play, yes it will make a bit of a mess but it will give them practice with their gross motor skills. Those more adventurous families can even mix the two together but I don’t recommend it on the first day(!)
Get the children to practise writing by making lines in the water or sand. Each time you use the bins you can add certain toys like dinosaurs one or farm animals the next, be creative and add little props to make it more fun for the children. Let them make scenarios and you can let them create a story- it all leads to their development.
Another way to use them is to hide ‘a special object’ and they have to find it; all the while you will notice their language skills improving, their hands will manipulate the sand or water and they will probably even try to eat it – don’t get annoyed at them, this is all a normal part of growing and developing.
You can also use pasta, rice and lentils to change out the texture once they’ve had enough of the sand or water, just be sure to put some kind of cloth under the bin to collect it all or you’ll be finding grains of rice for weeks later! You can also put some pasta or rice in empty plastic bottles and give them wooden spoons and cooking pans to make music to change up the activity.
If you have any of those fancy stones you know those packets of painted pebbles we all buy ‘to do something’ with – they’re perfect for this kind of play. Another one that is nice is orbeez but you have to be careful when they squeeze them so hard they pop.
If you want to discover this idea further please do visit this awesome website https://littlebinsforlittlehands.com/books-bins-sensory-bin-play-ten-apples-up-on-top/ where she really makes interesting and amazing sensory bins.
Hope you and your little ones enjoy playing with the sensory boxes, please do let me know how it goes in the comments below. (I’ve added affiliate links from amazon to explain what I mean further and buying from these will benefit me at no additional cost to you)
I’ve thought about this a lot in the past week and I’m hearing that many of my fellow teachers have too. I’m sure that most of us enjoy the weekends by going out, socialising with other people, visiting fun places and having wide open beaches and parks to enjoy especially in the current beautiful spell of weather we’re having. Myself, I enjoy going for treatments at the salon it gives me an hour or so to myself in the generally quiet atmosphere of the salon while being pampered in some way; mani, pedi, blow dry, massage being in my top 4 choices so we decided to have a spa day at home today.
So for a simulated Thai massage I lay down on the floor and got my 3 and 5 year olds to jump up and down on my back. It was rejuvenating to say the least and it entertained them for a few mins too. Next it was time for a hair treatment so my eldest dyed my hair (and her clothes and the dining table!) I know I joke but it was lovely looking in the mirror after washing it and feeling a thousand times better. When it was being straightened and dried I honestly felt the worries of the week wash away. Next it was time for a foot soak and they treated me to a bath bomb for some extra fizz and texture. Even if I don’t manage to do my nails tomorrow I’m gonna call it a win and I’ve saved a lot of money into the bargain. so give it a go – mama (or papa or carer!) spa day by the kids.
As I mentioned last week we decided to cook together during quarantine and I noticed a difference today- I wasn’t giving instructions so much anymore, their instincts are kicking in; everyone contributed and we enjoyed a lovely home cooked dinner. They were missing their Friday night takeaway so I decided to make some home made fried chicken – it went down a treat. It got me thinking maybe this is a thing- can I find recipes for fast food online? and I found some!! Pizza Hut, KFC, Macdonalds, in this way I managed to meal plan for the next 3 days and who knows maybe they’ll prefer the home cooked versions, I’ll post pics as we make them.
I’ve seen a lot of schedules online and I’ve chose one each for the little kids and one for the middle child and I decided that we’re gonna do a 10am-9pm routine. It will allow them to enjoy a lie in, in the morning or play quietly; which will give me time to prep for my own teaching and also print out and check their lessons for the day. I will have a physical folder for each child and online version and we will build them during the next few weeks. The later start will mean that I will get some extra time with them in the evening when I’ve finished my own work and give us time to cook or do some other hands-on activity in the evening as well.
I hope that our ideas and schedules have given you the idea that homeschooling is actually way more fun than completing online lessons set by the teachers of your child, and that you can really start to be creative and enjoy the process rather than fret about assessment and achievement. Love Learning will be starting online schooling soon so subscribe to our site for updates and more activities straight to your inbox.
My 5yo gave me the cutest of random hugs yesterday because I sat with him and his little sister and made a ‘hot wheels’ track for their cars, and I have to say all the hard work and time spent planning and researching is worth it for these few special moments with our precious sprouts. We also had a lot of fun playing ‘jack in the box’ with a amazon box that I didn’t use for the model, then we made a tunnel too! I’ll leave you with a pic of the race track to show you that it doesn’t have to be Pinterest worthy for your kids to have fun!
Take care – see you next time- stay home stay safe!
I’m writing this post at 1am probably because I drank too much coffee today trying to stay awake and do a zillion things at once. Long story short – I was teaching online during a thunderstorm outside and had to ensure all my own kids were actively engaged too. We did it -just about!
I wanted to write this post as a reminder we are only human and not to expect too much of ourselves during this time. In particular I want to focus on our teenaged children, and how all this change and upheaval has affected their mental health. Two months ago they’d only heard of one kind of Corona and now here it is affecting their daily life and I don’t know what your teenagers are like but I did manage to get some quotes from a few I know and it surprised me a little bit how deeply they think about these things. I honestly thought they’d be happy to have no school for a few weeks in fact I asked my friend’s nephew for his opinion for my blog today and his mum told us he was asleep and glad there was no college for a few weeks! Although some of the other teenagers are very worried and stressed about this whole new situation that’s come about affecting our ‘normal’ daily lives,
I don’t mind if I get the virus myself but I am worried about infecting my baby sister as she has a heart condition so she’s really vulnerable.
M, 14, Bolton, UK
I am probably one of the few people actively avoiding corona updates because of the stress and fear and anxiety it induces in me instead I am trying to focus on the positives. One of my friends pointed out our WhatsApp group was filled with articles and corona news ever since we first heard that the schools were closing so we’ve purposely tried to talk about other things as much as possible.
Anyway the motivation for this post was to support those who may be feeling blue after hearing all this news. For a normal healthy person the anxiety levels are rising due to the uncertainty of the last few weeks so spare a thought for this who suffer from anxiety and worry on a daily basis.
My advice is to deal with such issues spiritually, whatever your religious inclination normally is, call on your Lord to guide you, protect you and keep you safe. Keep the information limited and focus on things you can do and enjoy the free time you have to pursue your hobbies or catch up on your chores and spring clean like one of my sisters’ has decided to do.
I’m sad that I’ll miss my prom and I might have to wait another year to go to college.
R, 16, Devon, UK
I want to point out that our teenagers may be feeling extra worried and they have every right to be because they’re living though something their parents (and grandparents) are facing for the first time in their lives so they are bound to feel some sort of anxiety. I think we need to just focus on them and reassure them that this will pass and it’s a temporary phase. Although that’s easier said than done.
I feel like Corona has made everyone step back and think that this World is temporary.
M, 15, Dubai, UAE
Resources and references for this blog and links that can help:
Article Relaxation tips Building resilience Validate their feelings
It started normally but then spiralled into non-stop issues, I was helping one then the other then another one needed me – I was going a little bit crazy to be honest. Then I remembered the plan – oh YES ‘The Plan!’
The plan was hubby was going to take the little two out for a walk so I could work on whatever the others needed to do… unfortunately the plan did not work, ‘need to find a shoe, ‘ ‘need to change a nappy,’ ‘oh their t-shirt has a stain.’ I honestly thought this day is gonna be the end of me. Then I remembered its ok, deep breaths “we can do this.” I rolled my sleeves up and directed everyone to a particular job – in just 10mins the house was visibly tidier and my mind relaxed. The little ones went for a walk around the block; The electronics were locked up (in the safe!) and we started again.
We then spent a lovely afternoon playing cards (Maths) and hangman (spelling) with charades and ‘notes and crosses’ for a bit of variety.
During the week I was making dinner and accidentally put too much salt in I knew instinctively that I need to make a dough ball and chuck it in but I still double checked with my dad; when he confirmed I realised that I learnt how to cook by watching my elders cook; and I picked up some good tips along the way so I decided I’ll make more of an effort to include the kiddos in cooking
So the plan today was to prepare a roast chicken dinner together, Z cut a salad like a pro and the older girls took care of the oven jobs. We’d marinated the chicken the night before so we just did the sides and some garlic bread and we were ready to roll. As if to confirm my thinking was right Z asked me to teach him how I cut lettuce (I tell them to use a chopping board but I do it freehand myself!) I think the kids enjoyed their food because they had a hand in choosing what to cooking and then preparing it together. It’s definitely going to be a positive I take from COVID-19 that’s for sure.
Just as we were finishing dinner and wondering what to do next? as if by magic my brother sent me a lovely resource that I will share now with you from the lovely SCOUTS organisation. CLICK HERE!
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