Today's little treasures

I'll be honest, I've been slightly dreading the school holidays. I love my kids but the thought of seven whole weeks with nothing planned seemed a bit daunting. Usually our days are pretty mapped out for us; baby group on Monday morning, preschool Tuesday through Thursday mornings, mommas bible study on Wednesday mornings, baby group Friday morning, another baby group on Saturday morning and church on Sunday. So you can see why to me the holidays seemed like a big gaping chasm!

Well, we're only on day one so I don't want to get too cocky too soon but I am already starting to realise it's maybe not so bad. I'm discovering that little J has an amazing imagination and when I give him space without any plans he comes up with some great ideas for how to spend our days. I'm also realising how easy it is to let days pass by and not notice or appreciate the little treasures in each day. So here I am going to catalogue some of the treasures I'm grateful for today:

1. Days when the kids make all the plans. Today little J took me for a walk to the local pet shop and then to the park. His little sister loved the animals (and loved trying to eat sand at the park). On the way home he pretended to be an explorer in the jungle and then that we were being chased by elephants and had to run home. (Prizes for guessing which episode of charlie and Lola inspired him ha ha.)

2. Reduced price food. We stopped by Asda garage on the way home to get naan bread and instead found reduced price flatbreads and reduced cake too! 23p angel cake is hard to say no to ;)

3. Boston tea party. This great cafe chain has just opened up near our house and we went for a quick drink. I've been missing grandmas lemonade since getting back from America so was excited to see they sell lemonade and ice tea, not to mention the cheapest cream tea in town.

4. Tiger. No, not the animal, a new shop that has opened in the mall. It's full of all kinds of bizarre things, many of which will provide hours of fun over the holidays. Today I got a kite for little J and a ball for little miss A that is full of glitter that moves around as you roll it. I've also got my eye on their paper dolls with stickers for a later date. Go check it out and if you're a child of the 80's like me you may discover some of your teenage years hiding in there!

What are you thankful for today?

I will give thanks to you, Lord, with all my heart; I will tell of all your wonderful deeds. Psalm 9:1

Playhouse craft

Since getting back from sunny Portugal we've had plenty of rainy days stuck at home so I've had to come up with ideas to keep little J amused. While we were on holiday little J loved being able to use keys to unlock our hotel room. Now we're back home he is frustrated that the lock on our front door is too high to reach (much to my relief or else he'd be running out in the street!).

The other day I had a brainwave. I grabbed a large cardboard box we were about to throw away and began designing little J his own play house. I flattened the box and lay it on the floor so I could draw out the windows and door. Little J promptly plopped down on his belly  beside me with a handful of crayons and began colouring in my design. In fact he spent the rest of the afternoon at work with his crayons and was sad when I told him he had to stop for dinner.

While he was in bed that night I set to work cutting out window holes, a door, a letter box and most important of all a key hole. When little J got up the next morning he was excited to see our creation complete and ready for play time.  Since then he's played in there every day with his bears and even got me to sit in there and read stories with him. It's proved to be a great way to pass the rainy days.

When he gets bored of this creation my next plan is a pirate ship with a treasure map and treasure chest so he can recreate a story he's borrowed from the library. I'll let you know how that goes :)

Six on Sunday - rainy day ideas

Due to illness/teething/bad weather we've had a quite a few days indoors recently. When you have a very energetic little boy it can be hard to know how best to keep him occupied on those days.

1. Play dough 
As a kid I remember my mum making home made play dough for us and had been looking for an excuse to give it a try. The basic recipe is:

1 cup plain flour
1 cup warm water
half cup salt
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 tablespoon cream of tartar
food colouring

Just mix it together over a low heat until it pulls away from the sides and clumps together. If it's still sticky cook it a bit longer. We didn't have any cream of tartar and didn't want to walk to the shop in the rain to get any so we made ours without and it still turned out ok. One thing I learned was make sure you mix the food colouring with the water before adding it instead of trying to add it after cooking - much less messy and better results too.

For some more exciting play dough recipes including scented, glittery or glow in the dark go to Nurture store for loads of great ideas.

2. Nursery rhyme puppets
Little J is just about old enough to handle basic arts and crafts so I decided to look for some age appropriate crafts to try. He loves singing songs so I was thrilled to stumble across some nursery rhyme themed crafts. He loves singing itsy bitsy spider so we decided to give that craft a go. I cut out all the pieces while he was having his nap so there would be no chance of him getting hold of the scissors. When nap time was over I handed him a bag of parts and we started to assemble our spiders together. He loved sticking on the googly eyes and enjoyed playing with the pipe cleaners too. I found it quite hard to judge where to put the finger holes and how big to make them part apart from that it was a very simple craft.

3. Building a den
After a particularly bad nights sleep due to teething, we were all tired and needed a low key indoor activity to keep us amused. Earlier in the week little J had been trying to use the clothes airer as a den so I figured why not give him chance to do it properly.  I took the clothes airer into the lounge along with plenty of cushions and sheets and we set up a den. I love this idea for making a den but for now the airer and sheets would do. I curled up with little J and read books for a while but it turned out he was still quite full of energy and soon wanted to get out and run around the house again. In the end hubby and I fell asleep in the den while little J headed to the kitchen and started making his own dinner!

4. Visiting the library
Little J has quite an impressive book collection and loves to read at every available opportunity. As a result he goes through phases where he gets bored of the same old books (not to mention how bored mummy and daddy get reading the same ones over and over again).  Luckily we live only 5 mins from the library so I've started taking little J for a visit every couple of weeks to read some new books and choose a couple to take home. It's a great way for him to regularly have new books in the house without me having to keep finding extra space for an ever growing collection. It's also a good way of teaching him about looking after things properly and how a library works.

5. Messy church
Last rainy weekend just happened to be Messy Church at a church near us.  A lot of churches seem to run these but we'd never been before. When we arrived there we several crafts set up around the room on the theme of Easter. We spent the first hour making chicks, decorating cookies, colouring pictures and planting a mini garden. When the crafts were done we all went into the main church area and sung some kids worship songs with actions and had a brief interactive talk about the meaning of Easter and Jesus being the best gift ever. After that we all had dinner together and got home just in time for pyjamas and bedtime. It was really good fun to go together as a family and also great to see little J interacting with kids of all ages and (mostly) having a great time (he got a bit frustrated that no one passed him the ball in football and couldn't understand that the other kids didn't know what his shouts of 'rah rah rah dah' meant, but other than that he loved it).

6. And finally....
Not entirely rainy day focused but still great for days when you're short of ideas - check out this great list of ideas for things to do every month of the year.

Six on Sunday

As I sit here listening to the sound of little J snoring over the baby monitor, I'm enjoying a rare moment of peace and chance to reflect on things that have inspired me or made me smile this week. In honour of my friend Lizzie's 5 on Friday, here's my 6 on Sunday:

1. We've just started getting into Geocaching. Armed with a hand-held GPS and a bunch of clues we went off in search of hidden treasure. It made our trip to the local park more exciting and it was great finding things we must have walked past many times without realising.

2. We've finally started doing family Bible time and it's going pretty well. We've been using some great material written by a friend of ours that you can get free online here (or even better buy a copy and support our dear friend, Glen). It's short enough to fit in before I rush off to work but it's meatier than most and very Christ focused.

3. Thanks to my new chores rota, I've actually found a better balance in life and had chance to sit and read articles and play on pinterest. I just found this great article that beautifully describes what it's like to be a stay at home parent, as well as giving tips on how to make more meaningful connections with our loved ones.

4. Even on the rainy days we've tried to get little J out of the house. Earlier this week we only made it as far as the cafe at the end of the street but what a great place! Comfy sofas, long communal tables that force us to be un-British and talk to strangers and the cheapest pot of Earl Grey in town. Add to that daily specials, friendly service, books/newspapers to read and cute little touches like jars of sugar cubes with mini tongs and you've got a winner of a place to while away a rainy afternoon.

5. There are many things I hope to teach my son and values I hope to instil. One is the importance of helping others. I'd really love to get our family involved in volunteering and doing regular mission trips abroad (any suggestions?). I just got an email about one of Save the Children's latest campaigns. Could you spare some time to read to a child who is struggling in school?

6. And finally, if you're struggling for ideas of what to do at home with the kids, pop on over to Nurture store and sign up for their free weekly emails packed with fun and educational ideas.

Less toys, more fun

I'm starting to realise that having less toys helps J to grow more.

The other day we got home from a busy day with friends and both the boy and I were super tired. I'd hoped we might both have a little nap but it soon became clear J wasn't gonna go along with my plans. I got him out of his cot and brought him into our bed. As usual, he instantly started climbing over me and exploring the things my husband and I have left on the bedside table.

J got hold of an almost empty loo roll and amused himself for ages tearing off the last few pieces and shredding it, using it as a telescope and pretending it was a trumpet. Then he started dropping bits of shredded paper over the side of the bed to watch them flutter to the floor. One simple household object allowed him to work on imagination and both his gross and fine motor skills. Who needs toys, eh?!

A few weeks ago I started rotating J's toys so he has only a handful of toys and books out at a time and I've really seen him learn so much more in a short space of time. I read this article the other day about the benefits of not having too many toys and I'm finding it to be so true. We want the best for our kids and it's so easy to think that involves letting them have every cool toy out there but just think about all the things they will miss out on learning if their little lives get too cluttered. Less really is more!

Child's play - part 2

Do you ever find that despite your child having loads of toys they would much rather play with anything other than their toys?!

Recently I noticed J was barely touching his over flowing box of toys and was getting into all kinds of mischief. Then I read this great article about toy rotation and decided to give it a go. I split all his toys and books into three boxes and put one in the lounge, one in his room and one in our room (to keep him occupied when we want to stay under the duvet for longer on a Saturday morning).  Each box contains at least one ball, a soft toy, a shaker or noise maker, something textured and something that is a bit of a puzzle (stacking rings, shape sorter etc) as well as a cloth book, at least one textured book, a book with flaps or similar and a variety of other books. Every couple of weeks I rotate the boxes.

The difference has been huge. Now J loves playing with his toys and can easily see exactly what is in the box without having to pull everything out. He's playing with things that he doesn't usually play with, reading his books more and amusing himself for longer periods of time. It also means I don't end up reading the same couple of books over and over at bedtime!

I also sat and wrote a list of all his toys and split them into categories like the blog suggested. It really did help me to see where J had a lot of similar type toys and was perhaps lacking in other types and has helped to influence what we buy him for Christmas.

While we're on the subject of child's play, we discovered a great game to play on rainy days stuck at home - HOME MADE BOWLING! We grabbed some empty plastic bottles from the recycling pile, set them up in our long narrow kitchen, got a soft ball from J's toy box and began to bowl. J is too little to know how to throw yet but, as I knocked the bottles down and whooped with joy at my achievement, he squealed with excitement and handed me the ball to throw again.

Why not give it a go? :)

Through the eyes of a child

As an adult I don't find shopping all that exciting. Once upon a time I used to shop for fun but now I try to avoid it as much as possible. I think there are probably a lot of other things in life that I used to find fun as a child but now as a grumpy, cynical, eternally busy grown up I rarely take time to see the fun and the beauty in simple everyday things.

Today I went shopping with my 11 month old son. We spent an hour in one department store and bought nothing but we had a great time. While hubby browsed the coffee machines and kitchen gadgets, we smelt lots of different scented candles and talked about their colours. Next we headed for the furniture section where J had great fun banging on a big metal coffee table that looked  like a giant steel drum. We tested out sofas and pulled funny faces in mirrors and opened drawers to see what was inside. While hubby and I looked at towels and bedding, J crawled around and tried to get under the beds. At one point he crawled into a gap under a couple of display tables and started using it as a den!

J sat in a rocking chair for the first time and grinned and giggled as he rocked back and forth. Then he climbed down and crawled off into the soft furnishings section where he found lots of cushions with different textures to feel. From his point of view the store was like a giant sensory adventure playground. Thinking about it now it probably was a really good learning experience - chance to use his different senses, develop his spacial awareness and grow in confidence as he explores new surroundings.

Why not try taking some time out today to do something just for fun and try to see life through the eyes of your childish self again?

Quiet time book

For years now I've been hoarding old cards, scraps of material, wrapping paper and other such things waiting for the day I might need them. Finally that day has come - that day was today.

Today Josiah and I had a craft filled afternoon. I quickly made him his own guitar to keep him amused while I rifled through my craft box to find materials to make Josiah a new book.  I has a load of leftover blank cards from when we made our own wedding invitations which were ideal as nice strong double thickness pages. Next I had to think of ideas for what to put on the pages. Here's what I came up with:

 Soldiers with glittery textured hats.....

Lumpy bumpy bubble wrap....

 Bright coloured stickers with simple pictures drawn on....

 A variety of different textured hearts....

 Felt letters....

 Bright textured paper in one of his favourite colours...

 Bright smiley faces and a character with googly eyes....

I hole punched the pages and tied them together with ribbon and then it was time to give it to the boy for his verdict. In all the book took me about 20-30 mins - really very quick and easy. What did Josiah make of his new book?.....

He instantly loved it - result!!!

I am the music man...

There is nothing that catches Josiah's attention quite like music. Theme tunes have him stopped still and when daddy plays guitar he's totally mesmerised. He likes to reach out and touch daddy's guitar and try to join in but daddy's not such a fan of grubby little hands on his pride and joy.

Well now Josiah has his own make shift guitar and can join in with daddy any time he likes. He loves banging the strings and it doubles up as a great drum too. Who knew you could have so much fun with a loaf tin and some elastic bands.

Child's play

So I finally found a use for that out of date box of risotto rice at the back of the cupboard...

I remember when....

I remember when morning snuggle time was peaceful and relaxing. The boy would wake between 6am and 7am and I'd bring him into bed with us where I'd lie there and feed him and doze a little as we snuggled peacefully. After he'd had his milk I'd lie him in between hubby and me and give him a toy or a book and he would happily amuse himself while I snoozed for another 20 mins or so.

Oh how things have changed!

This morning started out much the same as it always used to - boy woke at 6:30am and came into our bed to have some milk. As I lay there trying to doze as he fed, he fidgeted and kicked me in the leg repeatedly. Once he was done I put him between hubby and me and handed him a couple of toys. He waved his teething ring in the air as if flying a spaceship and then decided to 'land' it on my head. He noticed I had my eyes shut so decided to pat my face repeatedly to make sure I was paying attention to him. Then he decided to amuse himself for a while by pinging my bra strap - thanks kiddo!

He soon got bored of me and decided he wanted daddy to play so leaned over and patted daddy's face. He then grabbed daddy's hair too for good measure. This resulted in grunts from the husband as he flung a pillow over his face to shield himself from the boy's advances. School boy error - a few weeks ago this would have worked but now that Josiah has learnt the concept of "hide and seek" it only served to make things into a game.  He giggled as he pulled the pillow from daddy's face and grinned as he patted daddy's face some more.

Something tells me that it could be a very very very long time before hubby and I get another lie in!

Isn't it funny that when our little ones are tiny and unable to move around we find ourselves wishing they were more active and could 'do more fun stuff'. But once they can move we find ourselves wishing they couldn't!

I do love watching Josiah exploring the world now though and love helping him to learn about his environment. I've been pinning all kinds of ideas on Pinterest for creative play but here's a quick one I stumbled across when trying to amuse a grumpy boy one morning.

I had my sewing box out looking for something and Josiah was fussing and grumpy. I noticed a bag of ribbons and said to hubby 'they might be fun to play with later'. Sure enough, I come home later to find hubby had given Josiah the ribbons to play with and he loved it. So many different colours and textures to play with and it's a nice calm activity (as opposed to banging stuff together and making lots of noise like the boy does with most other things).

Things I wish I'd known - Part 2

Welcome to part two of my series on things I wish I had known sooner about parenting.

Today's topic is TOYS!

When buying toys before Josiah's birth we didn't really know what we were doing and just got what we thought would be good. As time has gone by we have been surprised by what toys have and haven't been a success. For example, we got ourselves a Blossom Farm Sit Me Up Cosy thinking it would be better than a standard play mat. Josiah loves the animals that come with it and enjoys their sounds and textures and how easily the legs fit in his mouth. However, the sit me up cow bit has been very little use at all to be honest. Whenever we used it to help prop him up while learning to sit he just fell sideways and got his head wedged between the two rings! For our next child I will definitely be investing in a play mat with hanging toys above it instead.

Now, instead of me telling you what toys aren't good, let me tell you which ones have come out as favourites. Here's my tops toys list:

1. Stacking cups. Josiah has a set with holes in the bottom making them fun for pouring water out of at bathtime. The bright colours, building towers and knocking them down, learning to put them inside each other and being able to pretend to drink out of them all make these a huge success in our house.

2. Wooden spoon. Great for teething, for banging things during the 'learning about noises' phase and generally just fun to wave around to work on spacial awareness. Be sure to only give your child an old well worn wooden spoon so as to avoid splinters.

3. Teddy bear. This is Josiah's bedtime bear. He loves cuddling his bear as he falls asleep and now he's a bit older he falls asleep chatting to his bear (cute but kinda annoying at 4am). The knot in the hat is also great for sucking on and teething. The bear is so light and soft that he has been able to pick him up and throw him around the cot from a very young age and I have no fear of him accidentally being smothered by the thing. I've had to go out and buy a spare bear so I can wash the original as it's been so chewed and well loved.

4. Books. Josiah loves books and now at 8 months old is really loving ones that have different textures he can feel. He also has a couple of cloth books that he loves because he can turn the pages by himself and the pages make different noises when he turns them. Some favourites we have found are...
Squishy turtle and friends - a cloth book that has an octopus with felt legs, shiny fish, an oyster to open and various other textures to feel.
Poppy Cat's Farm - a board book with cut out windows that teaches animal noises while playing hide and seek.
That's not my snowman - there's a whole range of these board books with different textured bits on every page.
Baby Touch - Rainbow - he doesn't actually own this one, just gets super excited looking at it in the book shop while daddy reads boring books. It's a brightly coloured board book with textured bits on each page. It's part of a series of textured books teaching things from animals to vehicles.
Baby Teether Book - a board book with a chewy teething bit and rattle. Great for taking when you're travelling as it's like 3 toys in one.

5. Textured soft toys. Josiah has a toy dog that has to be one of the best designed toys he owns. It's got different colours and textures, a mirror, rings round its ankles that make it easy to grab and teeth on, a jingly sound and skinny legs he can easily grab. He loves this thing so much he's almost chewed the poor things ear off! Here's a video of when he first got the dog for Christmas last year.

Lamaze do a great range of these brightly coloured, multi textured, noise making toys.

How about you? What toys would you recommend?