Mostly we just carry on with our normal routine, and SP joins in and helps. Sometimes I save things to do that I know she'll like: for example, if there is any labelling to do, I make a note on a memo thing on the fridge, and SP gets out the labeller and does it for me.
We usually have her 3 days a week, and she stays over for one night. She'd like to stay over for both nights (probably because she gets to stay up ridiculously late), but I am a firm believer in leaving them wanting more. So in the long holidays, we stick to one night.
She likes to have things that she's in charge of. So, she gets to collect eggs (I try not to collect them on the days she's not here, so she has plenty to collect) and she writes the date on them and puts them on the Egg Skelter. She lets the Girls out and puts them in as necessary, and gives them their treats. If they need cleaning out, she does that. She helps me with worming, heath checking, and playing with them.
She comes to the allotment and gets on with unlocking everything, cleaning and refilling waterers, collecting eggs. At home, she measures out some of the cat meds. She goes to the shop (we're lucky the shop is very close by) to get Bagels for lunch. She fills the bird feeders. If she stays over on Air Rifle night, she comes to the Club with us.
She also takes on other "jobs". Picking (and eating) tomatoes and cucumbers. She mowed the grass yesterday, which was an amazing feat as the lawnmower is big and heavy. She did some weeding. We do some cooking. I've made her various articles of clothing (none of which have been particularly well sewn, I'm still learning) and she always seems pleased with them.
She's also been helping DH kit out his workshop, she's not just a girly girl. Today's task has been laying interlocking matting. He couldnt do it on his own because he's one handed at the mo.
She asks questions all the time, about anything and everything. Some are easy to answer, some are more tricky. She learned last holiday about fertilised eggs (why you don't need a cockerel to have eggs but you do if you want chicks, what a fertilised egg actually is, why a fertilised wgg won't necessarily result in a chick, what incubation is, what is thw difference between a hen incubating and us using an incubator, why hens go broody even if they don't have eggs.... etc).
This time we've had some detailed questions about chicken breeding. Today's line of questioning started with "If we wanted to have Gloria hatch eggs, would we take Gloria doen to the allotment to be with Henry, or would we bring Henry to the Garden?" I explained that we probably wouldn't do either, we might put fertilised eggs fro one of the other Girls under Gloria, or actually we might consider bringing in fertile eggs from outside to refresh the bloodline. She likes full and honest answers, and she remembers the details. If we didn't tell her that bringing in outside eggs was a possibility, and then we did this next year, she'd feel that we hadn't told her the truth.
So, today's discussion included explaining Henry's relationship to various Allotmenteers, and why there were two girls (his full sisters) that we wouldn't breed with him
It's not all just "work" though. We go out sometimes (although she seems just as happy at home, as long as we're 'doing' something). We (rarely, special treat) have a water fight. I bought a pop up pool to use, but the weather has been rubbish, certain;uy not good enough to warrant ruiing our grass over.
She eats whatever we put in front of her, doesn't always like it but it's not a drama when that happens. She loves to pick the vegetables from the garden and eat those.
She enjoys being here, and tells her mum all about everything she's done (however mundane it may seem to us). It won't be long before coming to us will be a bit of a bind for her, so I'm happy to enjoy it while we can
