Crayfish in the river and a cinnabar moth

We caught a moth outside on a sunny day. I put it in a jar and we tried to identify it. I thought it was a butterfly but it was impossible to find it online. Then we posted it up on facebook and were told it was a cinnabar moth. Caden wasn't too interested but Miles was fascinated. 

He had the job of releasing it back into the air when we had found out what it was. 

The boys have really been getting into playing out with the home educators group in Milton Keynes. There are lots of boys their age in the group now and of course they have known many of the children for years now so feel right at home. 

Here they are working out how to make the seesaw move with four of them. 

Their Uncle Pete came to stay. We took them to the river at Newport Pagnell and bought them some little fishing nets. 

 There were lots of boys down at the river already. The lads there were very friendly and they all joined in fishing together. 

We had a picnic on the green. 

Miles was very enthusiastic about his fishing, he got right into the water. We saw little fish swimming about, just out of reach though. 

Picnicking with Uncle Pete. 

Miles was being helped by this older boy to catch one of the little fishes further away. 

We found an orange ladybird and talked about how it came from the beetle family.

Some older boys came back with a dead crayfish they had found. They were all crowing round. Caden went up to have a look at it. 

We did a 'create your own pirate ship' activity from a cut out book. 

The boys are colouring in their people, ready to be cut out later. 

We visited Aylesbury to go do some research at the Bucks County Museum for a Home Ed. matchbox swap we are participating in. The idea is that you are allocated a family. You have a theme, which this month is on old fashioned games. You need to invent old fashioned games that fit inside a matchbox and that can be posted to the family you are partnered up with. There is an exhibition on at the museum that we wanted to get inspiration from. We liked the idea of tiddlywinks. So we have a plan... details will be on a further blog. 

We went to the park and had a picnic there before we popped in and visited some of their friends briefly too. 

Then, on the way back to Milton Keynes from Aylesbury, we detoured to the PYO farm at Ivinghoe. They loved picking the fruits and veggies. 

Here is Miles getting raspberries for the basket. 

Uncle Pete helping Caden to find the hidden raspberries under the leaves. 

Caden is pulling up carrots here... 

and Miles too. 

The kids rode in the wheelbarrow on the way back to the paying desk at the farm. 

Yay! We ate the beet tops and spinach with grated beetroot and carrots in a salad for dinner with some home made burgers followed by raspberries and strawberries for dessert! Lush!