Messy Play: Rice and Salt

Messy play is great for children's development. Its a chance to explore materials, their properties and cause and affect. I am aiming to set something up every week for L this year which will be a variety of materials and allow her different opportunities for play and learning. 

Happy Birthday from Bakers Days

I was tweeted a tweet which was hard to ignore. An invitation to sample cake! 

Who says no to cake?

Not me that is for sure.

Country Kids: Shorne Woods, Kent

I've lived in London for the best part of 10 years now. Five north of the river and five south of the river, with a short break back home in Suffolk in the middle somewhere. 

Traditionally does it

Before I go further I love Christmas. Love it. 

But.

Increasingly I see new 'traditions' and it's got me thinking. I am a traditional sort of gal, I like my tree real, I like it decorated in reds and golds with small lights which are white and not flashing. I like proper family feast days to mark this time of year. It is the most wonderful time of the year. And a time to wallow in the old traditions.

Morkus Christmas 2014: Lists

I have a long standing tradition, habit or insistance, of not talking about Christmas until after my birthday. I love Christmas but I like it to be contained to Advent in the main and not extended too long. Years of working in retail with two or three months of Christmas kinda kills it.

This year we are hosting for the first time. I am at once excited and terrified at the prospect. In 2012 J and I had a solo Christmas as a newly wedded and pregnant couple. We raided M&S and hold up on our own in our freezing flat with the Radio Times as our only timetable. It was fab but even putting a turkey breast joint in the oven for two for my more than a little stressed. 

Toddler Creations: Blue collage

This was one of my all time favourite activities to set up in my Reception classrooms. A large collage in one or two colours to work on collaboratively. Its a great activity to support sharing and discussion, it can help reluctant talkers talk as they focus on painting or sticking and it can be used for all sorts of great displays either as is or when cut up.

I decided in our week of colour based activities to set something similar up for L, I decided on blue as we are also making links back to our visit to the Tate Modern and the Matisse exhibition a few months ago.

Media Storm

Last week the lovely Hannah of Mums Days shared my birth story again via her Facebook page. It is one of over 100 birth stories shared by mums who have had every birth imaginable. 

My story isn't that unusual. You can read it here in full. The brief story is that due to an awkward presentation my labour failed to progress and it was felt that a caesarean would be the safest way to deliver baby. 

However, when Hannah shared this story again what followed was a media storm. Some ladies read my post and took umbrage with it. It was a sob story, it was overly dramatised, it was unnecessary to share the details, it was all me me me and they didn't need that in their lives. 

Sigh.