Linnea's latest

Yesterday, she was abandoned cruelly at the creche, which is remarkably willing to take drop-ins with warning, and adored it. She cried as we were leaving, but more because she wanted us to play too than because she didn't want to be alone. When we went to pick her up, she didn't want to leave. Then we dropped her off with Nicky, while we went to the hospital, and when we came back she was happy enough to come with us.

So she now quite likes being left without us, which is useful, though I suspect she'd walk off with anyone friendly who knew her name, which is less useful. I'm looking into getting her a place in a nursery one morning a week, because she'd enjoy it; it's difficult to find affordable places that aren't very regimental though.

This morning when I went in to her (after being woken a full hour early by someone beeping madly at an empty car abandoned in the middle of a one-lane one-way street, like that was going to help anyone) she grinned at me and rolled around luxuriously in her bed, saying "Oh, good sleeping!" Then she insisted that Rob and I go back to bed so she could have her usual morning play with us there, which today included climbing onto me and saying "Oh, your hair is neat!" (er, no, darling, but thanks for the vote of confidence). She was so pleased with the reaction that she said Rob's hair is also neat, which is at least true, since it's a blade four all over and can't currently get untidy.

Later, she asked Rob if he was going to work, and when he said he was, she sat him on the floor, fetched his bike helmet, put it on his head, fastened it under his chin, and said "You say Bye Nea soon," sadly.

East Reading Adventure Playground (ERAPA)

Play hall includes a soft playroom,craftroom and music/library room. Outside structures accessible to wheelchairs including roundabout and swing. Special needs groups welcome. Please book. Outside has 24 hour access. Playgroup and tooddler group. Youth club.Use for childrens' parties.

(None of those typos are mine, they're from the council website).Anyway, that's where we were today - the Berkshire Home Educators group hires it on Friday afternoons for get-togethers and we went and had a go. It was great. From 12:30 to 4 pm Linnea played with kids of all ages (up to about 14, I think) and a wide variety of backgrounds, in a safe, challenging environment. she took to it immediately, much more enthusiastically than the groups of kids her own age we usually go to, though she does enjoy those as well and we won't be skipping them for a while yet.

The downsides... their electric equipment is regularly safety checked and the kettle didn't pass this month, so we had to use an urn for hot water. The fold-down changing mat in the disabled loo is too high for people as short as I am. It was hard to choose which tea to drink because there were so many options. Not all of the children were lovely all of the time. Man, life is tough.

The upsides... the children were incredibly well-behaved and sensible, and the adults were lovely, and everyone was welcoming and pleasant. They had decaf Earl Grey tea. I can cycle there in 40 minutes the long way along the river. We saw a heron, and loads of swans and geese and ducks and cygnets and goslings and ducklings. Neither Linnea nor I got sunstroke.

We're going to go again, I think.