A is for Appreciation and Acorns

I had to post about this special gift we received from a sweet mom in my "MOPS" group.  She hardly knows us...yet she showed up at our door with a delicious meal and this precious diaper cake which she made!  Might I add she also has 3 young girls!  Lisa, thank you so much.  You brightened our day and I pray God's blessings on you and your sweet family. 

Oh yes, and she brought these fun glow necklaces for Savannah and Noah!  They were beyond thrilled...especially when daddy says, "Let's go in the bathroom where it's dark and watch them glow!!!" So here we ALL go into our teeny bathroom.  So fun!  

Here's a little spontaneity...
Savannah has been  talking a lot about letters and beginning sounds.  It's so cute to hear her say, "puh - puh - puh - puh - PUMPKIN" after we have talked about the sound the letter "P" makes.  Sometimes, she "tries out" other words... For example, she might say, "puh - puh - puh - puh - fork!"  =)  Big mommy smile!  This then takes us to another teachable moment about the sound the "f" makes!  There is something about this foundational knowledge combined with the innocence of a child that excites me!  The joy of watching a child as they learn something new never gets old! 


So, on this particular day last week, Savannah was playing with an acorn.  "Mommy, acorn starts with 'A'! she yelled with such delight.  We had not been outside all day, so she and I headed out  on an "acorn hunt."  She was still in her pj's (had been all day) and was happy to carry a little cup from her play kitchen to collect her acorns.  After collecting, we headed inside and created this....

Quick little craft, but she enjoyed it (anything with glue is ALWAYS a hit with Savannah) and maybe the letter "A" means something more now.  


***We still have the remaining acorns in a little container reserved especially for creative play. =)  

Busy days with trays!

Here's what Savannah's been up to lately...

Painting with cotton balls!
(I gave her some clothespins to hold
the cotton balls....she just wouldn't
have that!
She loves paint on her hands...)

...budding artist?  we think so...

This was probably favorite tray day!
On the left, smooth pebble rocks,
some small gardening pots, and
several "transferring" utensils.
On the right, a measuring container
with macaroni pasta, the pasta box,
a glue stick, and a "scoop."
Inside the macaroni were several
hidden items
(stickers, raisins, a hairclip...).  

Her face as she began finding the
hidden objects.

Glueing the pasta onto the box=FUN!
She loves glue.  

Tray #1 - paper, colored pencils, markers,
and a ruler with stencil shapes/numbers.
She didn't really enjoy using the ruler...
Oh well, we'll try that another day.

Tray #2 - Lace the animal!  

She worked for several minutes to lace the first hole....was so proud of herself.  Then she got tired of that and asked for the pasta tray.  =)

Another favorite!!!
Play-Doh and cookie cutters!

Dear cookie sheet/tray, whoever invented you probably never thought you would hold play-doh, rocks, beads and paint, but I am so grateful to be able to repurpose you to fit the needs of our little nest.  And so thankful to www.1plus1plus1equals1.com for the inspiration!

Down By The Bay

At a recent trip to our library, Savannah chose the book, Down By The Bay.  It's a simple (silly) story, really....but Savannah loved it the first time it was read to her!  Much to our surprise, after only hearing it 2-3 times, she had memorized it! Watch the video posted above if you're ready for "story time." 

Trays!

We're getting on a little bit of a routine around here as far as "set times" to do certain activities goes.  One of those being crafts/hands-on learning activities!  The absolute best time, we have discovered is right after Savannah's nap...mainly because Noah usually sleeps for another hour beyond that!  So, this gives the two of us uninterrupted time!  There is a wonderful resource here for a concept called "tot trays."  I love them....Savannah LOVES them!  She asks me now everyday before her nap...."Mommy, what's my tray gonna be today?" (Some days, I already know...some days...my mind is stirring as she asks that question and I am also asking myself..."what IS her tray going to be today?"  Some days the activity exposes a skill...some days the tray is just fun!!

Since we've just started, each day is a new tray!  And that's exciting to both of us.  Most days, we work on them together.  There have been a couple of days where I work with her for a while, then leave her to work independently while I do something else. 

Why do I love the "tray" concept?  

• it's different!
• it engages Savannah!
• it gives her a sense of space helping her to understand what supplies go with the activity.
• it makes clean up easy!
• the trays can be prepared quickly using the simplest of materials.

So, here goes...this was our first tray.  She found them in the kitchen when she got up from her nap.  There were 2.  She could do them both, but had to choose one at the time and put that tray back before moving to the next one. 

Tray 1) 2 pipe cleaners and a container of beads! That's it! But you would have thought I had set out a bowl full of skittles!

Tray 2) A wooden square with objects/numbers (english and spanish) and 3 markers (this came as a set from Michael's for .49! I purchased several!)

The bead tray was her first choice, although she did them both.  After drawing with the markers on the square, she asked to do the bead tray again!

Then, she asked for the tongs!  So, I brought them out and added them to the tray.  

Reason for the laughter in this picture...I made a bracelet with one of the pipe cleaners and some beads, and she thought it would be so funny to pull all the beads off!  =) Silly girl.

Since then, she has asked for the beads several times!  

...Stay tuned for more of our "tot tray" encounters from this past week...and in case you're wondering, Noah will be doing trays too! =)

Bears, Tongs, and a Recycled Egg Tray

I'm always on a search for some fun activities that Savannah can enjoy (but that do not require a lot of $$$).  She's a busy bee and it's a joy to watch her learning.  Yesterday, the activity was simple!  We've been recycling lots of things (egg cartons, lids from bottles and jars, baby food containers, etc. etc. etc.).  Setting out an egg carton, a pair of small wooden tongs from my kitchen, and some bear counters we had....a game was formed!

Her "challenge"...use the tongs to transfer the bears to the egg tray. 

And the result...

She loved this little game and had no idea she was developing fine motor skills, eye-hand coordination, and lots of other great things!!  =)


She had bears left over and was perplexed at what to do with them. Too funny.  I offered her another tray and she gladly took it filling it with the rest of the bears.  Of course, she wanted to use the tongs to transfer them back to the container too!  


Will definitely be bringing out the tongs again...

"School" supplies, Dora panties, and a new book....loving the small things of life!

Ever since I was a young girl, the smell of a brand new box of crayons has made me smile.  I have always loved "school" supplies and it was always one of the hi-lights of the new school year..... to go and purchase these brightly colored necessities.  Admit it, you must share these feelings too! Well, Savannah is not in "school", but WalMart already has their school supplies on sale.  We go through markers and crayons quickly around here, so when I saw these in large bins for $1, I couldn't resist.  Crayons were only 25 cents! For $4, we brought home some supplies that will keep Savannah busy for quite a while!  And she'll love every minute... Except, I am going to open the crayon box first! 

Potty training is still a part of our life; however, it is much easier now and Savannah is doing so well.  It was time for new "undies" so I let her pick at the store today.  She chose exactly what I would have expected...Dora.  We decided to get the 4T even though she wears a 3.  (We wash LOTS of "undies.")

And in other news, my $4.65 book arrived this week!  (used from Amazon) I had read other "mom blogs" where this book seemed to be quite the resource!  It is full of creative, educational, low-prep, fun activities for young ones!  Great for rainy days, HOT days, and holidays.  I already have several picked out and stashed up my sleeve ..... I'll be sure to post some of our "busy" activities.  

Loving the small things of life today...

"Great things are done by a series of small things brought together."
-- Vincent Van Gogh 

Hot day = Library day

Today was just too hot to go out and play, so we packed up our "book bag", some sippy cups of water, and our library card and headed to the library! Savannah was excited and wanted me to find the Owl Babies book, first thing!!! This is a book we read many months ago, turned it in, and she has not since forgotten what a good read it is. So, while Savannah meandered the aisles of books, I was on an Owl Babies mission!

What a joy to watch her picking out books and "reading" them.

I wandered over to the "parent" section keeping an ear out for miss yellow who was one aisle over. The sounds of books sliding off metal shelves, some falling on the floor.... and pages turning let me know she was still just one aisle over. But it wasn't long before I was calling her name....then calling again. Not getting a response, I was on my feet to the end of the aisle where Noah was sitting patiently in his stroller. I looked both ways only to see her...........

---sitting beside a little boy on a comfy bench in a quiet corner. When I asked her what she was doing, she told me she liked his bookmark (notice on the left), so she sat beside him. Maybe she thought if she sat with him, he'd give it to her.....who knows?

As with any young 3 year old, this position didn't last long. She was up and looking for more books....and yes, she brought me the little boys bookmark. He was so engrossed in his book, he didn't notice. We kindly walked it back to him and placed it back beside his still leg.

Such a big girl picture! (We placed MANY books on the "put back" cart.)

After a bathroom trip, book checkout, and another bathroom trip....we were on our way back out into the heat to the car. Savannah plopped on this bench and I decided to try to get a shot of her and Noah when a sweet lady walking up said, "Would you like me to take a picture of all of you?" So here we are!

And here is little miss yellow with her....you guessed it, Owl Babies book.

We have already read it 3 times today! Sweet little story... Gotta love the library!

Good Night Moon

We LOVE this game! I saw this game packed away in a cabinet at our church and recommended it to my grandma as a gift idea for Savannah's birthday. Granny found it at Toys R Us and as soon as Savannah opened it, she recognized the famous green bedroom with the distinct room articles....and that bold yellow title...she didn't need to read. She knew it was Good Night Moon.

Based on the Margaret Wise Brown children's classic, this game requires no reading skills and has several educational features! One of the most obvious skills is turn-taking. At three years old, Savannah is at the age where she needs to learn how to take turns. There are several game options, but we have chosen the simple "hold up a card and see who has it on their board....give it to them to place on their board" option! Sounds a little boring, but not to a 3 year old who hasn't had experience with board games. There is no "loser" in this game...that lesson will come soon enough.

It teaches matching and memory skill-building. Helps develop cognitive, visual, and language skills too! Not to mention the important social skills: following rules and sharing and respecting others! The age recommendation is 2.5 to 6 years old. I don't know that a 6 year old would enjoy it, but if you have a young child at home, this game is a great one to have in your stash!

Just thought I'd share! And now, good night stars, good night air, good night noises everywhere.