My baby at big school

My little Summer born boy started big school yesterday. I cried for four hours the night before. Not just because I would miss him but because it feels like an end of a chapter.
For 7 years I have been a mummy to a baby or pre school aged child (when I'm not at work that is) and now they're both at school I have visions of sitting in front of the tv drinking tea two days a week while I'm waiting for twenty past three.
I'm sure I can find a billion things to fill my time.

I hope that big school is a happy place for my baby to be and that he makes new friends. I hope he isn't scared to ask when he's unsure and that there's someone to comfort him when he's sad.

How is it only half past one?

The Great Outdoors

The more time the small people stay outside and away from 'screen time' the better if you ask me!

Cardboard box shop...

We had a new flip chart delivered to work today. It came in a big flat cardboard box. I was inspired to turn it into a role play shop for our play session tomorrow. This literally took me 30 mins to cut out the windows and paint the details on. I think I might add a few things in the morning but was quite pleased with the results.

I'm on a bit of a role with my cardboard creations thanks to a bit of Pinterest inspiration! Any other ideas would be gratefully recieved.

Sorting

I'm having a post seizure day which leaves me lacking in energy and get up and go. I did a little search on Pinterest for ideas of things to keep the 3 year old entertained while I could conserve energy! I was drawn to some ideas based on Montessori philosophy...
Firstly he sorted objects into the correct category water, land and air (made all the more complicated by daddy handing us something that resembled the Loch Ness monster)

Next we had a chat about animals that ate meat and those who ate vegetables. We talked about the correct terminology, ideally we needed to add omnivores int the mix but thought we'd add that category next time.

Bubble painting

I was inspired by a friend from work to try bubble painting at home. I mixed some ready mix paint with water and fairy liquid and let the little one blow into it through straws. We then printed the paper onto the bubbles which left a lovely texture.

I need to experiment with consistency as the bubbles didn't stay long. Samuel enjoyed blowing the bubbles far more than the finished product

Advent Calender

I'm not sure when my mum first made this advent calender, but it's been used every year since and I love that it's now a tradition for my boys! I'm doing it a bit differently this year, as well as the obligatory chocolate coin there will be some stickers from the Christmas story. I'm hoping they'll work together to complete the story and also learn the art of taking it in turns!

Sensory Bottles

I mad some sensory bottles last night for our baby area at work. It took a bit of experimenting to find out what worked best. I used the following things:
- plastic bottles with screw on lids
- hair gel
- glitter
- string of beads
- ribbons
- sequins
- shells
- small shark toys
- beads

Some of them worked better than others, my favourite by far is the one with te beads in one part water and one part hair gel. Love the way the beads swirl around!