Tag Archives: play

A present with longevity

28 Wednesday Nov 2012

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Review

My two year old likes five things at the moment: jumping in puddles, doing jigsaw puzzles, reading stories, searching for bugs and eating chocolate. And now it’s possible for her to do three of those things in one game.

The My Bugs game from Gibsons (taken from their My World series) is a brilliant variation on the jigsaw puzzle, perfect for kids my daughter’s age and upwards.

Frog is just learning how to piece jigsaw puzzles together and loves looking at the shapes and patterns to see if they match. But she also enjoys making her own “unique” shapes and regularly has to be reminded not to ram the pieces together if they don’t fit. Continue reading »

Dirty houses and grand plans

11 Sunday Nov 2012

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Do you ever have those weekends where you feel like you haven’t sat down once, but you’ve achieved nothing? That’s pretty much what this one’s been like for us.

Working the hours that I do means housework doesn’t get a look in Monday to Friday. But the long hours also mean a nice, comfortable, non-student grubby house is even more important to me. When I’m on downtime I want to be able to relax in a clean and cosy space, not one covered in hairy toast crusts, dirty washing and mouldy dust.

As anyone with young kids will tell you, it’s impossible to get stuff done when they’re around. The NLM was intent on trying out a new shopping app and downloading a whole series of new recipes to try (he gets his kicks where he can) so I was left to try and sort ten loads of washing while a grumpy, poorly toddler hung off my leg. Continue reading »

A beautiful turn of phrase

08 Thursday Nov 2012

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“Then cow said MOO! And monkey hit cow. The end.”

I listened to my daughter reading her waterproof books in the bath this evening. She was terribly grumpy and the story she made up reflected that. Each character in her fictional world came to a sticky end. It made me smile.

Every day my daughter – who’ll be two and a half at Christmas (how did that happen?!) – reveals a little more of her vocabulary. As she strings sentences together I get to know her in a new way. This child of mine, who I thought I couldn’t love any more, just squeezes my heart that bit tighter with every new revelation.

I love her interpretations of things at the moment. I can almost see the cogs in her brain whirring as she tries to fathom basic concepts and ideas.

“Where Daddy?” She asks when we return home from the childminder’s. “Working,” She answers for me. “Daddy working. Daddy teaching in school.” This is her answer for whenever he is out of the house, even if he’s at the end of the garden. It’s like she can’t quite get her head round the fact he may leave the comfort of our living room and her side for anything other than this mysterious “school” she’s heard so much about. Continue reading »

Why I don’t give in to the tiredness (mostly)

27 Saturday Oct 2012

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Friday afternoons are always a bit of a struggle. As soon as I finish my last radio shift of the week, tiredness hits me like a train. I drive home bleary-eyed, battling exhaustion and longing for sleep.

But, as everyone with children knows, sleep doesn’t come to those with kids. Not when you most want it anyway. So rather than giving in to the temptation to lounge on the sofa while my 2 year old laps up the latest episode of Andy’s Adventures, I try and do something with her.

It’s an afternoon with no clubs or toddler activity groups, so we do our own thing. Sometimes it involves playdough, sometimes it involves a cake at the garden centre cafe, sometimes it involves a visit to friends. Continue reading »

My first time

12 Friday Oct 2012

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Despite being a mother, you may be surprised to learn there’s a certain experience I have yet to try. Or that was the case until Wednesday this week.

I will never forget the day of my first time.

It was a special moment. When the time came, I knew it was right.I couldn’t put it off a moment longer. All my friends had tried it. I was feeling left out, but I didn’t want to crumble to peer pressure. Luckily, I didn’t have to. My body felt ready. I felt ready. It was time to do it. Continue reading »

The Toddler English Dictionary

23 Thursday Aug 2012

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When is an ambulance not an ambulance? When it’s a “nee-naw bans”. Didn’t you know? Yeah, the word “ambulance” is so last season.

The same goes for “ketchup”. It no longer goes by this name (where did the word “ketchup” come from anyway?!), it’s now known as “chechup”. A subtle alteration, but important just the same.

There are lots of words I thought I knew, having spoken English all my life. But, apparently, I am wrong. Continue reading »

I may live to regret this

22 Wednesday Aug 2012

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Review

When it comes to baking with my toddler, I should probably step up.

This time last year, when I was still a work at home mum, I managed to get at least one baking session in every couple of weeks. Now, we’re lucky if we have one baking session every couple of months.

It’s a shame really, because Frog LOVES it.

She enjoys the feeling of the icky flour and dough between her fingers, she loves to stir and pour in water and see the mixture come together. She loves to spoon the runny consistency into pots, or roll it out into a flat shape she can beat with her rolling pin. Basically, she loves to bake. Continue reading »