Water works -20 months

 I had all these big plans for doing so many works and activities with LJ after Christmas and so far I've just been a total slacker!

I did manage to set up these water activities one afternoon while I was trying to clean the kitchen to keep LJ occupied.

This is the first time he has experimented with pouring water other than the bath tub.  I put two jugs into a baking pan with about 1/4 cup of water and a cloth to wipe up spills.  Funnily enough it took him a few tries to figure out he had to switch containers each time he emptied out the water.  He kept trying to pour out of the same container even though it was empty.

 He also enjoyed just pouring the water into the pan so he could wipe it up. 

I showed him how to squeeze the water from the cloth back into the container.

I changed it up a bit for him by giving him two bowls and a sponge.  I added a drop of purple food coloring to the water to make it a bit more interesting and for him to be able to see the water he still had to soak up a bit easier.  He transferred the water from bowl to bowl several times before we moved on to the next activity which was pouring into a funnel.  This actually turned out to be a many step activity because he had to remove the funnel and pour the water back into the jug and then place the funnel back onto the container which was quite a challenge.

I remember at this age L was pouring her own drink at meal times from a tiny jug.  I think LJ needs a lot more practise before I'm going to let him loose with any unsupervised water!!

On the shelves-19 months

 I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season.  It was very busy at our house with lots of family visiting and fun was had by all.  

I did manage to get a few works on the shelves for LJ in December.

Melissa and Doug pattern blocks. 

 I got these off of the used children's items site I belong to for a very reasonable price.  They come in a wooden box with several different wooden frames.  I just take out one at a time which has pictures on both sides.  I put it along with the shapes it needs into a basket for LJ to do.  

 Mystery Bag

Although we have been using the mystery bag for exploration for a while now we have only just started using it for stereognostic recognition.  I put an assortment of known objects into  the bag.  LJ pulls them out and names them.  He then puts them back into the bag and I ask him if he can find a certain one without looking.  He enjoys playing this game and is usually successful.

Putting Cheerios into a pill container.  

I bought a seven day pill sorter for my pills and vitamins but before I put it to use I gave it to LJ to sort Cheerios into.  He had great fun opening the sections to get the Cheerios in and out.

We even managed some Christmas themed activities.

Here is a Christmas mystery stocking with a tiny snowman, red ribbon, needle felted Christmas tree and several candy canes.  

Pushing colored pompoms through the correct hole and then retrieving them from inside the shoe box.  LJ was pretty random on when he chose to match the colors.

We did several Christmas crafts together but this one worked the best with both children.  Simply gluing tiny pompoms onto a pine cone to make Christmas trees.

 They both enjoyed this activity and they turned out nicely!

18 months- On the shelves

Okay I have to admit I've been totally slacking the last about 5 weeks.  We got out of our great routine and I kind of lost enthusiasm on making up activities.  In fairness though I have been working on another exciting project which I will blog more about after Christmas.

Poor LJ he actually asks me for work and says "roll,roll, roll".  Then I feel all guilty because he is desperate to do things.

These are some of the things he has been doing.

 

Matching.

This is great for vocabulary and matching.  I hold all the cards in my hand and give him one at a time.  He says what it is and then (hopefully) places it on the table.  Once all the cards are laid out I hand him the matching one which he has to find.  This is very easy for him now.  They are kept in a little wooden box and he loves to take them out and put them back in as well.

 

Simply posting little hearts through a slot.  Always fun.

 

Color tablet box one.  I made these out of paint samples using the three primary colors to start.  Once again the box is a big hit!  It's funny when I did this activity with L years ago she was so gentle with the cards.  LJs cards are all bent and twisted : )  I present a color and name it and then give it to LJ to place on the mat and say the name.  Once they are down I give him the other one to match.

 Sorting colored beads.  Once again only using the primary colors. 

 I filled this glass money jar with water and put a shot glass at the bottom.  Together we took turns putting coins into the slot and watching them sink to the bottom.  I also enjoyed trying to get them into the shot glass, however I don't think LJ even realised it was in there. 

 

 Thanks to Itty Bitty Love inspiration I sucked it up and got out the lentils to scoop and funnel.  I have to say I was way more enthusiastic about this one than LJ was.  Maybe we'll try it again in a month or so.

 

...and one of my all time favourite works.  First drop fluffy pipe cleaners into a maple syrup bottle.

 

 Then try to fish them out.  Very carefully!

 Oooh the concentration!!!

 

LJ just can't get enough of doing his work and I am the only one that is holding him back at this point.  In the new year I am going to try to get back into that good routine we had going in the fall.

Snow Bath = Awesome!!

One of the activities that L and LJ had in their advent calendars was a "Snow Bath"

This was in L's words "Awesome!!"

 

I got the inspiration from Growing A Jeweled Rose.  If you want sensory bath ideas this site has them all!

 

So here is what I did.  First off I put a drop of blue food coloring in the water and added a couple drops of peppermint extract.  I found the perfect foam snowflakes at the Dollar store and added in a little reindeer and polar bear to play with.  I set the mood by bringing in a bedside lamp instead of the bright overhead light and hung a few glowing icicles around the room.

 

For the snow I used shaving cream for them to paint the bath and themselves with and to make "real" snow I used baking soda with enough cold water mixed to give it a snow texture.  This is sooo cool as it feels and looks like real snow and just melts in the warm bath water.

 I cut out pieces of craft foam so they could make their own snowmen.

They played for ages and much fun was had by all. 

I think we may just do it again!!

Brown Bear Brown Bear-Toddler Story Stones

"Brown Bear, Brown Bear what do you see?"

We love this book by Bill Martin Jr., illustrated by Eric Carle

 

I thought it would be fun to make up some story stones for LJ and L to play with.  It's been years since I made these Enormous Turnip story stones for L.

This was one of those projects that sounded fantastic at the time but after about the fourth animal I was seriously wondering what was going through my head.  Anyhow I pushed through and now we have these cute story stones to go alone with the book.

 

 

For those of you who are interested in making your own story stones I just used regular acrylic craft paint and then covered them with a layer of Modge Podge.

LJ's Montessori Toddler Room

We've been doing some re-arranging around here.  Both L and LJ have moved on to another stage of development and we needed to make some changes in their rooms to keep up with their needs. 

 

The first thing we did was to move the Ikea bunk bed frame that L was using into LJ's room.  A little modification and it makes the perfect toddler bed(and climbing frame)!  LJ is still able to enter and exit easily either by the little door or by just climbing over the edge but it is so perfect because it contains him while he is sleeping.  LJ watched the whole move and was absolutely beside himself when he realised that this was now going to be his bed!!

I love that he is now old enough to have blankets, stuffies and pillows.  It makes his sleeping space so much cosier. 

Beside his bed is a basket of books.

 

LJ's shelf area hasn't changed all that much.  I keep a few activities for him which he does when he wakes up or when he's not quite ready to sleep and sometimes he just spends time in his room on his own.  I've also moved the ball tracker into his room. 

 Although the ideal thing is to hang artwork etc. at your child's level I have tried time and again only to have it torn down and either ruined or risking an injury.  So in the end I settled on hanging this beautiful wool village scene I got from Ecuador just a little above his reach.  It is so colourful and vibrant and LJ can see it perfectly from his bed.

 

The other big change in LJ's room is the dressing area.  We have gotten rid of the change table and replaced it with this little shelf.  On the top we are trying out a little care of self area.  LJ can brush his hair and there is a little bowl that I put a tiny bit of water in for LJ to use for his washcloth.  I am trying out the mirror as well to see if he will leave it be or have it off the wall all of the time!

On the bottom shelves I put out his outfit for the day.  I will leave giving him a choice of two outfits for a couple more months or I know he will just try to put everything on!

Once again there is a tiny stool to sit on while getting dressed but at the moment he just uses it to jump into his bed!

He also has his laundry basket where he puts all of his dirty clothes.

So there it is.  Still very simple and uncluttered.  It is also still my favourite room in our house, so calm and peaceful.  Now if only I can get L's room to have the same feel.....

The Montessori Payoff

I wanted to write a post to record a special moment that happened in our house the other night. 

L has been helping in the kitchen since she was a toddler and has been a Montessori child almost from the start.  Sometimes it has been supremely challenging and exhausting allowing and including her in everyday events such as cooking dinner.  Granted she does not always help. Sometimes she just plain doesn't want to and sometimes I'm just way too tired and don't have the patience but for the most part she does something.

Over the past year I have tried to give her more and more responsibility when making meals.  The other night all of the hard work and perserverence came together.

 

One of L's favourite dishes to eat and help make is soft tacos.  In the past she has grated the cheese and carrots, chopped spinach and put the tortillas on the plate.  Recently I have taught her how to use the can opener and cook the refried beans on the stove.

This specific night I was super tired and just couldn't get my but off the couch to start dinner.  I asked L to get the beans and can opener out. She yelled at me from the kitchen that she's done it and I still didn't feel like getting up.  I asked her to get the carrots and cheese out of the fridge.  All I could hear was angry protests from the kitchen.  I relaxed for a few more minutes.

 

When I finally got my but off the couch and dragged it into the kitchen I was blown away.  L had opend the can and had the beans cooking on the stove.  She'd gotten out the grater and had grated all of the toppings and put them on a plate and had gotten the tortiallas ready.  In a nutshell she had made dinner for herself and her brother ALL BY HERSELF without being asked.  She took the initiative and just did it.

Ahhhh I was soooo proud and so was she!