Sunday nugget 12th January

We've missed a few weeks as christmas and the guinea pigs have somewhat taken over our time and home.  I'm not going to fill in the blanks as it is unnecessarily onerous.  This week has been our first week of the year back in the swing of things. 
Monday we did a load of jobs in the morning, and had the afternoon with friends.
Tuesday we tidied our bombsite of a home before going to highfields playground,  then library,  the garage and street dance.
Wednesday was ballet and tap then walled garden. 
Thursday gymnastics,  then friends over.
Friday was going to an open day at wild about play,  which will be running a home education group in a  few months,  followed by a very exciting science club on the subject of elastic energy.
Week is a bit packed at the moment,  with little to no time at home doing anything other than chores.  Need to create a bit more space in the coming weeks if possible.

I have undertaken a new meal planning  and cooking regime yo help me out of the meal anarchy which has been raging for longer than I would have desired.  It involves little movable squares with meals on which I put on a calendar according to the time i have available to cook. Then attempting to cook breakfast lunch and dinner in one go,  hopefully cutting down my cooking time.  So far I feel like I've ignored the kids every morning.  Hmm,  might have to review this.

Piggie mania

Evan and Autumn have been really excited about Guinea Pigs since cuddling some at Chatsworth in Autumn.  Evan had a particular relationship with one Guinea called Patch.  We talked about it, read books and decided to get our own Guinea Pigs.  We went to our local Animal Farm in Graves Park, where they had plenty to choose from.  Autumn chose a lovely little one who is mainly grey with a white face, and called it Lily Bobtail (after her favourite Peter Rabbit character), and Evan chose the one that looked most like the Guinea he loved at Chatsworth, and named it after the same.

Life has become a cycle of cuddles, and cleaning out fitted in among our usual things ever since.  We have learned a lot about how to tame Guinea pigs and the best ways to look after them.  We have taken an unconventional approach to our Guinea Pig parenting, which is probably no surprise to those who know me...  here are some of the things we have learned:

The spot on Mite preventative sent the Guinea's a tad whappy, so we are reviewing different treatment / healthcare.

To tame our Guinea pigs we are cuddling them at least 1 hour a day, and giving them on the floor with us time for upwards of an hour.

During cuddles we are doing "super cuddles" which basically involves a type of swaddling so they feel safe and secure.  Lily seems to need this more than her older friend Patch.  Whilst in this super cuddle, we sometimes utilise the doll slings to hold them close. (but we keep the children downstairs whilst we do this to keep things safe)

We will be ensuring good health and less likely to suffer with mites through a good diet and plenty of cuddles and exercise.  We will endeavour to use Neep Oil if we do discover mites causing issues for either of the little Guineas.

We are using fleece and towels as bedding which means easy quick cleaning.

So that is the practical aspects of caring for our Guinea's.  We are also finding out about ourselves.  I have found myself having to spend lots of time sitting down, without trying to achieve lots of stuff, and I am actually quite enjoying this.  Autumn, who is not usually known for her stillness is increasing the amount of time she is able to sit still and be with Lily.  sometimes the urge to faff overwhelms her, but she is now able to sit there for around 15 minutes at a time.