After the party!

Good afternoon all ,

Poppy and Amelie (sunflowers) had  a joint birthday party at the weekend which was  a great success judging by the tales we have heard :-) . After the party , a pair of glasses where found and have been handed to me . Poppy's mum is very concerned that somebody is not seeing too clearly! So if you were at the party and everything is a bit of a blur now - I may be able to help- let me know if they're yours!

We are still looking for anyone who would like to join us for our Ladies Evening Thursday 29th September - if you know anyone who operates a party plan , or makes and sells craft items etc - please ask them to get in touch .

We are also still looking for  a cleaner - please spread the word as the last thing we need to do after a very long day here is clear up the mess we have made :-)

A reminder that the nursery will be closed on Monday 26th September for the local holiday-but we are open on  Friday 23rd(had  a few queries about this as the schools are closed)

Marion

Update

Good afternoon everyone ,

I hope you're all enjoying our lovely if rather late summer as much as we are. We've continued to make the most of it , with the children enjoying all manner of activities in the garden and further  afield . Everyone has been for walks around the village. The sunflowers ventured on a trip to the bear factory where they made Sonny the Dog , who is now happily resident in the sunflowers room and looking forward to visiting all the children at home. The bluebells are going Easter Anguston tomorrow afternoon(dont forget to leave their car seats for us) and are enjoying a visit to the library as I write this. The new P1's who are with us for the settling in period have been entertaining us all with their accounts of 'big' school - such exciting times! :-)  
The children have also been watching with interest the progress of the 2 busy men currently working on the schoolhouse roof - this has prompted discussions about heights , tools , Bob the builder,  safety and jobs - learning opportunities galore!

For those of you who have been impatiently waiting for more news of Natalie's baby - your wait is over . We have been quiet about this , as baby Katie has been unwell ...a worrying time for all , but especially for Natalie and Tony . I am delighted to tell you tho , that Katie is now much improved , and they were allowed home last night. I have just spoken to Natalie , who is out  for a walk with her new daughter , and they are obviously both thrilled to be home and enjoying some fresh air! We cant wait to see her :-)

We are planning our next fundraising event on Thursday 29th September 6:30pm to 8pm. We are currently putting together a group of stalls from cookwear to candles to custom cakes... so if you know anyone who would be interested in coming along , please ask them to contact me . Tickets will be on sale for this event soon, so please bring along your friends and families - all welcome. There will be wine and nibbles on offer , as well as the chance to get a head start on the dreaded Winter Festival shopping(sorry!)

And finally , another appeal..... Rachael , who has been helping us with the cleaning over the past couple of months is not able to continue for much longer , so we are once again looking for a super duper cleaning person - please , please , please let me know if anyone is interested . Please note though that due to the times , we are not able to employ anyone under  16- there are very strict rules regarding the employment of children   and working after 7pm is not allowed. But I do thank those of you who offered the services of your family members last time - glad to see that work ethic! And my thanks to Rachael for your help the last 2 months :-)

Marion

Update

Good Friday afternoon to you all ,

I have had an excellent response to my appeal for parents to join our forum , and we now have enough to go ahead. My thanks  to : Mirijam Green , Susan  Yule, Lyn Cowie, Angela O'Brien, Hazel Farquhar , Sacha Waldin and Alison Siggins . You can still join us if you wish tho!!

And finally , we still don't know the name of Natalie's new baby daughter , but I hope that I'll be able to let you know on Monday . She did weigh in at a very respectable 7lbs 7oz tho , and we've already seen some pics- she's gorgeous :-)

Have a lovely weekend- more next week

Marion

Congratulations!!!!!

To Natalie and Tony on the safe arrival of their daughter at 6:45am today :-)

All well - though no doubt tired! That's all the information I have at the moment but will let you know when we have anything else.

Ahhhhhhh - its Friday , the sun is shining and we have  a new addition to the Craigton family- happy day !

Marion

News

Good afternoon everyone ,
I'm very pleased to let you know that Culter will soon have an exciting new addition to our main street. Two of our parents , Duncan and Jacqui Grant , are very talented jewellery designers and will shortly be opening a studio - Lava Jewellery Design , 265 North Deeside Road . The premises will include an appointment area where you can discuss your requirements , a workshop with a viewing window so you can see the beautiful pieces being made , as well as  a retail display area where you can view the entire collection , along with individual one off pieces. Some of us at Craigton have been privileged to see some of the pieces in the past , and I can assure you that they are absolutely stunning! They will be opened by 10th September so if you're thinking of treating yourself(or anyone else!)  go and see them and they will design and create you the most beautiful jewellery.

And to Duncan and Jacqui - all of us at Craigton wish you great success in your new venture!

Talking of new ventures........ it seems that Natalie's baby just cant wait to meet us all and is on the way ....will let you know when I have any more news :-)

Marion

Back to School

Good afternoon everyone ,

Well I've often been told that the weather always improves once the schools go back and this year its certainly true! Hope you all make the most of it! I have had the pleasure of collection some of our new P1's and bringing them back to Craigton for the afternoons until they begin fulltime... so lovely to see them in their uniforms and full of stories about school :-) 

I've only had 3 parents brave enough to volunteer for the Parents Forum this year - my thanks to  Alison Siggins , Lyn Cowie and Sacha Waldin. However , we really do need more people - particularly pre-school parents as no-one from this section has volunteered . So if you'd like to join us , please contact me asap . Id like to have the first meeting in September. Look forward to a flood of volunteers!

The irritating problem with my email seems to have returned - if you dont receive a reply from me , please call  instead . I am replying , but some are not being received . Id appreciate it if you could add me to your safe contacts list , as some of this may be due to over zealous spam filters!

We are hoping to have a fundraising event late September/early October and are looking to organise a Ladies Evening(although the gentlemen are welcome too!)...if you have any friends/family who run Virgin Vie/ Jamie at Home or similar schemes , or who make and sell any products and would like to join us , please let me know.

Michelle was overwhelmed by the generous donations to her wedding gift - we gave her and her new husband:-) vouchers for John Lewis , and I believe they may be able to buy half the store! Thank you very much to those that made donations or who gave their own gifts- extremely kind and thoughtful of you ! I'm sure Michelle will thank you all herself , but it may take her some time to get to you all :-)

Natalie came into see us today ....she's very well although she's obviously missing everyone , and becoming a little uncomfortable.....you've all been there so you know what I mean...her baby is due next week and I'll let you know as soon as we have any news.

Dont forget to let me know if you'd like anything posted on here , and to leave your comments..the blog is for everyone at Craigton , so if you have anything you'd like to share , please do ! 

Marion

Appeal

Hello to you all on this very wet summers???? day !

We are currently without a cook . Whilst I really enjoy making the lunches(and I hope the children do too!) it does make a serious impact on my time. So if you know of anyone who may be interested in a part-time job , please ask them to contact me . They don't need to have experience or be a trained chef(though that would be nice!), just simple home cooking skills required . My last appeal for a cleaner was so successful , that I'm hoping you will be able to help again.

The sunflowers will be joined next week by Lauren Palmer , who is our new 4-6 girl. However, she will only be with us 3 days a week , so again if you know of anyone still at school who is considering early years/teaching as a career and looking for experience working with children, please let me know.

And finally , I am looking for volunteers to join the parent forum for the coming year . Ideally I would like two parent representatives from each department. Those of you who were on the forum last year are welcome to continue if you wish to ! The forum meets quarterly ,  usually  for around an hour and a half - but this depends on how lively the discussions are ! Please note that the meeting are on weekday evenings after the nursery has closed . Last year we had some excellent ideas put forward and I'm hoping for the same level of enthusiasm this year . If you'd be interested in standing , please contact me . I'm hoping that the first meeting will be mid-late September .

Thank you ,

Marion

Congratulations!!!!!

To Michelle(snowdrops) and her fiancé Kev , who were married in New York yesterday......FINALLY . They have been engaged for ever! I'm sure that you will all join us in wishing them a lifetime of happiness together :-) . Becky (buttercups) is arranging a collection amongst the staff for a wedding gift . If anyone would like to contribute , please see Becky . Michelle will return to Craigton on Monday 15th August when we'll celebrate with her.

Meanwhile , away from the Big Apple , we have been making the most of the summer(?????) - the children have been out and about exploring the local area with walks to the parks and along the old railway line . The buttercups had a very exciting trip on the bus to the bear factory , where they made Harry the monkey who is now a much loved addition to the group!

The sunflowers were very interested in the roadworks in Culter(you probably didnt notice them - hardy any disruption at all!) and have now made their role play area a roadworks site - they are enjoying using the road signs and learning about road safety at the same time....the diggers and trucks are quite an attraction too. They have also been looking at mini beasts , including real ones they have found in the garden and further afield. We now have some bird houses that will soon be in the garden , as well as well as the feeders already there , so hopefully we'll all be ornithologists!

All the children continue to be involved in tending the garden - they have been weeding and feeding(using our very own compost) and have enjoyed watching the plants grow. We have harvested (and eaten) strawberries, carrots , potatoes and radishes so far.

I am delighted to let you know , that thanks to your amazing fundraising efforts over the past year , that two members of staff have been able to begin qualifications :-) Maureen(sunflowers) has just started working towards SVQ III and Debbie(buttercups) SVQ II . They are both extremely pleased to be given this opportunity and I know they will work very hard to achieve their goals . This would not have been possible without your support and we all thank you- its very much appreciated .

A reminder ......some have not returned the Pre-school funding applications. Please do this as soon as you can - if you dont apply , you wont get the funding! If you don't wish to apply , please let me know this too - Thank you .

Looking ahead , please note that the nursery will be closed on Monday 26th September for the local holiday .

And finally - Natalie is enjoying her break before the arrival of her baby , but says she misses us! I'll let you know as soon as we have any news!

Hope you all have  a lovely weekend- and hey...the sun is shining :-)

Marion