Friday 30 March 2012

What a Sunny Week!!!

It has been the most amazing sunny week and I've been  having such a lovely time with my two little boys!!
We had a visit from Pippa and her gang one day which is always lovely, all the children we care for seem to get on so well and we have some similar ages who play together beautifully.

We spent all week in the garden with water trays, paddling pools and lots of different toys were brought outside so all the children had free choice!











I just love the look on Baby 'A's face in this picture!!

Sunday 25 March 2012

One Garden Project Completed.....Almost

I'm so so so happy with the *nearly* finished article!

Last September I blogged (http://www.lookingoutforthelittlepeople.blogspot.co.uk/2011/09/garden-improvements.html) about the beginnings of the children's corner emerging in the garden, well I got offered some willow from a friend of my mother-in-law to start filling in the sides of the den, although I need LOTS more to get it filled in completely.

We had lots of help from my father-in-law this weekend to finish taking up the grass, we made the area a lot bigger than I had first intended but I think it needs to be this big, we made a little hill at the back from some of the grass sods for the children to climb/sit/roll down, I'm going to scatter some wild flower seeds back there too so this summer there will be lots of sensory sights and smells!


We then dug over the ground to make it a bit more even, lay down some wet newspapers as I had read somewhere this was good for deterring weeds etc, and then spread bark chips out. I think I need to get a couple more bags though as it's a pretty thin covering in some areas.

Also managed to get my hands on some big logs (in-laws again, they cut down their big Eucalyptus tree last autumn) for a seating area. And I have to say again I'm so loving it I wish I was a child again, I'd be out there playing all day!!




I've got lots of sweet peas and some mange tout starting off which I think I'll have growing up the den for some camouflage (and a healthy snack) this summer!

Still to do
- More bark chips for a thicker floor covering
- Find some more willow to fill in the walls
- Oh and I also need to finish painting my chalk boards for some outdoor mark making!!
- OH!! I also want to make a bug pile somewhere, as Eucalyptus doesn't support bug life I'll need to pick another spot to make them a little home

Bring on the Summer!!!!!

Wednesday 21 March 2012

Re-purpose, Re-use, RECYCLE!!!

This weeks treasure basket is all about recycling!!

The basket itself is made from newspapers folded into strips and then woven together. Not everything is pictured above but the basket includes:
- Old yoghurt pots
- Cardboard boxes
- Shredded paper
- Old curtain hoops with bits of ribbon tied on
- Cardboard boxes with beans in 
- Milk bottles
- Old herb jars
- Couple of discovery bottles
.....any other interesting bits I came across in the week!

There are all sort of interesting things to enliven the senses; different textures to feel, sounds to hear and even smells to discover!

Smells from the herb jars
Sounds from the musical instruments
Pots to put things in
More boxes to explore
Crunchy newspaper to feel and hear

Such simple things can be such discovery opportunities for little innocent eyes!

Friday 16 March 2012

Bit of Excitement!!


Georgia and I have been together nearly 9 years and on Tuesday night she asked me to marry her!
We have been talking about it a lot recently so I knew it was happening but its still an amazing feeling.
 Georgia made (yes MADE) the ring from a silver coin she bought on ebay, hammered down the sides and drilled out the middle. It took most of a day for her to do, the thought and time that went into it makes it even more special to me and it's something I'll cherish forever.

I love you angel, you mean the world to me xxx

Thursday 15 March 2012

Books, books, books

Another lovely morning with baby 'A', I thought those books would be coming out again, he doesn't have eyes for anything else at the moment so I'm indulging him as much as I can!
horses
and dinosaurs 
learning to turn the pages
just checking if there is something to feel in this book, you never know!

We had a really lovely morning the pair of us rolling around the floor just looking at the books over and over, these moments make my heart smile xxx

Tuesday 13 March 2012

A Lovely Monday!

Baby 'A' and I had a lovely morning together, we popped out to our local library to get some new books!
He really loves the 'That's not my....' series and always goes straight to where the texture is, even if he's never seen the book before!
We went home with four new books to look at and I'm sure they will be coming out a lot this week!

The librarian also gave baby 'A' a bookstart bear club pack, so each time we go to the library he gets a stamp in is passport, and every six visits he will receive a certificate. He really does love looking at books so I think we will make good use of this!

Then little 'C' arrived after lunch and we headed off for an afternoon of fun with http://wormseye-view.blogspot.com/.
She had a lovely St Patrick's Day treasure basket to explore, baby 'A' spent lots of time looking at all the different things.
Little 'C' joined in exploring the sensory box and found this lovely hair band and rainbow!
Next up was some lovely colourful hand prints....
....which magically turned into.....
LEPRECHAUNS!!!!

I do try not to do too many 'adult focused' activities, especially with very young ones. It's so easy to get caught up in having something to send home for parents. The focus really should be on the process not the product, but sometimes these things are just too cute not to do!! I've got another product focused idea to do this week but it is mother's day so I think I'll get away with it!!

The weather then started to warm up a bit so we decided to spend the rest of the afternoon in the garden
Having a look at new surroundings
Learning how to get around a new environment safely
Playing with Pippa's fantastic outdoor music wall!!
And meeting Pippa's lovely chickens Matilda and Gertrude.....oh mind your fingers!!

Such a lovely start to the week and great to get the kids in the garden! I can't wait for summer to arrive!

Monday 5 March 2012

A Day in the Dark....

Little 'C' was off ill today with a virus so baby 'A' and I had a day to ourselves!

After popping out first thing to get some supplies for activities later in the week, we decided to have a chilled out day playing in the dark!!

We sat in the box for hours in between food and sleeps, such a lovely day of one on one time