Pillow Pit

Ashton is getting very mobile now! Although he still tends to go for the caterpillar crawl more often than the conventional way of crawling, he is getting round and into everything none the less. So, today we got all of the pillows and blankets from around our little home and made a giant pillow pit!!!

To begin with Ashton just looked at the mass of pillows all over his bed room floor as a bit of an inconvenience! He couldn't get over to his keyboard, or his toy basket! So mummy got into action and jumped up on top of the pillows and showed Ashton how to get over the pillows. Once Ashton saw me crawling over the pillows to the other side he got a huge grin on his face. It was now Ashton's turn to give it a try.

Although he found it a little tricky at first, Ashton was determined to get over the pillow mound to play with his toys and climb all over me! So I kept going backwards and forwards showing him how it was done and eventually he made his way to the middle of the pillow pit! He was very proud of himself and from there he had a great time rolling around in the pillows!

HOME MADE WRAPPING PAPER

Ashton has a birthday party to go to tomorrow, we have already been shopping to buy the present, but instead of buying wrapping paper, we decided we would put a little extra love into the wrapping process and make the wrapping paper ourselves!

Now, this little project turned out to be a little more challenging that I had expected now that Ashton is on the move. He was determined to see how much of our kitchen he could cover in paint! Luckily we have lino so it washed off easily. But yet again I will say to all those who are asking . . . "Is is really worth the mess?" . . . "YES!" The present looks way cooler with our homemade wrapping paper on it, and Ashton and I had a great time patting and stomping our hands and feet all over the paper in all sorts of colours!

Now I just can't wait to get to the party! Happy 1st Birthday Caleb!

Yip Snap Yap! By Charles Fuge

"Dinner time for greedy dog . . . Chomp, Munch, Chew!

Curl up with a sleepy dog . . . Hrumph, Zzzzz, Phew!"

For all you doggy, puppy lovin kids out there... this is the book for you! It is another Charles Fuge book, I just can't help myself. It is very cute and totally worth reading though.

This book explores lots of different types of dogs, which means you get to use lots and lots of describing words and play with different sounds and do fun comparisons too. Great for a straight bedtime read, or to use as a discussion book too.

Its a wonderful rhyming book, a quality that, if done well, will win me over every time! And once again Charles Fuge delivers illustrations that are just as fun to look at as the book is to read! LOVE IT!

Activities to do with this book:

* Ask the children to think of some other types of dogs that they could add to the story. They may be able to talk about their own dog, or think of some dogs in their own neighbourhood.

* Have the children act out and pretend to be the different dogs as you read about them and make the sounds the dogs make in the story too! ;o)

ROUND AND ROUND THE DRYER

Ashton discovered the clothes dryer today. I had him with me while I was doing the laundry and as I put some of the clothes in the dryer and turned it on he became extremely fascinated. He couldn't take his eyes off it, and when I asked him if he wanted to touch it and moved him up to see closer he was quite unsure of it. (Which is very unlike Ashton, he is into everything an holds back for nothing!)

So we stayed and watched and talked about the dryer for a while. You may think "Ok, thats a little odd." But it was something he was very interested in and I quickly thought about what learning he may get out of it. We talked about the sound it was making as the clothes went around and around, and occasionally had a zipper hit up against the window, and we talked about the clothes going around and around in the hot air to get dry. I said the words "around and around" quite a lot, as this really was the object of his fascination.

After a while of saying "round and round" each time I would say it, he would grunt a little sound out after me. He was really taking it all in. Then as I walked away he continued to keep his eyes fixed on the dryer... as I turned the corner he lent down so he could still see it and made the same little sound as he tried to see it.

We continued on with the round and round fixation for a little while after that as we walked through the house and found other things that went round and round. We even sung the little rhyme as we did the action on his hand of, "Round and round the garden like a teddy bear, 1 step, 2 step and a tickley under there."

Although it was a random object of focus, I still think it was a good little learning moment and rather fun that it was impromptu (hence the no photos.) He is really starting to be very aware of his world and very determined to make sense of it all!

I Like Myself By Karen Beaumount

I like this book for the general principle behind it being, loving yourself for who you are and not caring what anyone else thinks. I like it because it's zainy and fun in terms of some of the ideas they come up with for reasons why or how you would like yourself... because personally I think I'm quite a different person, which characteristics and traits that others may find odd. I like the illustrations in the book, they are really bright and exciting and being the story to life even more. And I like how it gets the imagination going for thinking of unusual things you may like about yourself that may often be forgotten. Oh and I like how it rhymes and explores opposites! . . . I think this book has got me into an "I Like" mode. ;o). It is a fun book though and a great read for picking up and encouraging positive self image.

Activities to do with this book:

* Have a spot light session. Either with your class or with your family. Take turns having someone sit in the "Spot Light" (which is just a special chair that you could decorate up all nice, so whoever is sitting in it feels special.) The person sitting in the spot light becomes the centre of attention and everyone else has a change to say what ever they like about that person.

* Alteratively, go around the room or ask the child you are reading to, to think of some things that they like about themselves. Try and think of some really unusual things, just like the little girl in the story did. Then talk about what you might do if someone said or did something to you which wasn't very nice, talk about positive reaction strategies so that they feel confident to deal with it when it may occur.

EXPLORATION BASKET

A couple of weeks ago I blogged about Ashton's basket of toys and how we changed the contents to have a theme or focus to try and keep things interesting. We started by going on a hunt to find any and all toys or objects wooden, and Ashton really enjoyed playing with the new contents of his toy basket. Eventually though, his interest and attention levels did drop and the flinging of toys out of the basket soon became the object of his focus.

So we mixed it up again, we went and found lots of different types of ribbon and material to fill his basket. Ashton thought it was great as we rummaged through Grandma's sewing drawers to find off cuts to fill the basket, he was pulling them out faster than I could collect them!

He loved exploring and playing with the new basket contents and again, his play and focus slowed down. He loved pulling the velcro apart with me and hearing the noise it made. He discovered elastic, which gave him a little bit of a fright as it pinged back at him when he decided to pull back on it while it was in his mouth... yet still anchored down with both hands!... I tried to warn him! His favourite of all was the silky ribbons, as Ashton has a bit of an obsession with tags and soft pieces of material!

So the basket change up has become and will continue to be a regular happening for Ashton and I... it keeps things interesting for him in discovering new objects to play with and classify as we select different themes... And it keeps me on my toes, watching his play to see what he is interested in and to observe when he wants to change things up. Our most recent basket change up has been a 'technology' theme, with the basket full of remote controls, a camera, old CD's, a microphone and other techno wonderful gadgets!

A REALLY MASSIVE TOY MOBILE!

Today I might have just taken my "Polkadotty Mummy" status to another level by creating my craziest contraption ever! I had an idea in my head and I knew what I wanted to achieve. . . and in a way it came out better than expected, but when I look at it more and more, I just can't help but giggle! So, here it is...

Yes, it is very innovative... Its a really massive toy mobile, that doesn't break! and before you go laughing your head off at my amazing kiwi ingenuity !!! Let me just give you the story behind the concept.

Ashton loves watching the mobile going around while he is in his cot, but he loves it so much that often he gets a bit excited and starts to reach for it. With this enthusiasm he has now broken two mobiles! We have no more!!! So I wanted to channel this enthusiasm or desire to

catch the objects as they moved around as I think it is a great little activity to develop hand-eye co ordination, and lately Ashton has been very focused on developing that skill.

So the idea behind doing this home made, massive, toy mobile was to give Ashton something to play with that would have objects moving around him that he could track and try and catch! Of which he did... and enjoyed... so all I can say is... "MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!" ;o)

Sometimes I like to curl up in a ball By Charles Fuge

This book might just be one of my all time favourites! It is such a simple, beautifully illustrated, easy to read story that you just can't go wrong with it.

The story is about Little Koala and the things he likes to do for fun, and the thing he likes to do most of all... and the thing he likes to do most of all, is something I'm sure most of us can relate to! (I won't give away the ending though! You'll have to go and read it yourself!)

When I read this story I like to get the children I am reading with, to act out or do the actions that little Koala is doing in the story. Such as, curling up in a tight little ball, or pulling funny faces and jumping really high to see how much noise they can make when they land!

I have never come across a child or an adult who doesn't fall in love with this story... and to make it even better there is a whole other set of books about Little Koala's adventures that are just as cute and fun to read.

The Very Hungry Caterpillar By Eric Carle

No book blog would ever be complete without a review or a mention of one of the best children's books ever written. 'The Ver Hungry Caterpillar' By Eric Carle!

Why is this book so fantastic! Why should every child own a copy. . . ? (as suggested by the Daily Telegraphy on the back of the book.) Because even though it is a very short and simple read, there are so many learning/teaching moments within the simple yet effectively illustrated book. (There you go, three reasons in one sentence!)

Teach about the life cycle of the caterpillar/butterfly... which in itself is one of the most magical and amazing life cycles to witness. With this story the youngest reader can begin to make sense of, and understand the process that takes place.

Learn about the days of the week... practice counting and number names... talk about different fruit and food that the caterpillar might eat... need I say more.

Well, I will say just a little more. I have used this book as the focus of many activities with children I have worked with in early childhood settings. Some ideas for you...

* Make your own Hungry caterpillar pieces that your child could use to tell the story themselves. Draw, cut, laminate and if you have a magnetic board or the fridge, put magnetic pieces on the back so they can display the story as they tell it.

* Do a Hungry Caterpillar Picnic. Find each of the items of food and as you read the story have your child pretend they are the caterpillar eating through the different items of food. (You may not actually eat 5 oranges, but 5 orange pieces.)

* Encourage your child to use their imagination and act out the story as you read it to them.

Happy Reading!

ICE ICE BABY

The way this activity with exploring ice evolved was a little unusual. . . but learning often happens in the most unexpected places. . . and that is why my moto, along with Polkadots is "Make every moment a teaching moment." You have to be ready when to grab each moment of interest with your child, because thats when they will really be paying attention!

So this morning when I was getting my meat out of the freezer for dinner, Ashton managed to reach out and place his hand on the frozen package, (still wrapped in plastic I might add.) Usually, he would start to bang and pull at the object of his focus, this time was different though, once his hand came down, it stayed there, flat on the icy surface and then slowly he raised his head up with big wide eyes to meet our gaze. This was obviously something quite different to anything he had ever touched before.

Ashton didn't want to stop touching the frozen meat, but seeing I didn't think this was the best toy or object to play with. I put the meat away and got out two ice cubes and put them on his high chair tray. His reaction to the ice cubes was just as priceless! He dived down to pick up the little cube and immediately he stopped, cold ;o) in his tracks and just held it still in his hand (as you can see in the photo below... love it when I capture the moment!)

From then on Ashton was intrigued with the ice cubes, chasing them around his tray as everything became more slippery with the cubes melting and leaving more water. This was also exciting for him to find more water appearing on his tray to splash around in.

Getting a closer look. (What this photo doesn't portray are the quiet groan that he was doing while he held it... Like, "Um this is really cold, why can't I feel my fingers.")

Once the ice was all melted I decided to let Ashton explore a little bit of contrast from the freezing cold ice cubes and brought a little bowl of warm water to his chair. Seeing the water, he went to splash around straight away, but when he felt the warm water he went still again and just left his hand submerged there for a few seconds... as if he was just letting his body enjoy the 'defrost!'

We both had so much fun exploring the ice and warm water, so we are going to explore it again tomorrow... just with a slight twist! Stay tuned!

I SPY WITH MY LITTLE EYE... SOMETHING WOODEN

One of Asthon's favourite things to do at the moment is empty toys from his toy basket. Fun huh! Basically once it is put in front of him, it is a race for him to see how quickly he can unload his toys. I had three theories as to why he was doing this. . . a.) he was exploring his motor skills of 'grab and throw'. b.) he was bored of the toys he has been playing with in there for the past week or so. Or c.) he was just testing out his destructive powers.

I would like to give Ashton the benefit of the doubt and think his motive was option A or B. If it was option A then he is going to continue doing this act no mater what i do. If it is B then I came up with the idea of changing one or two of the toys every other day, and it was amazing to see how observant and aware of this he was. As he was going through his basket emptying as son as he came across the new toy or object he would stop and have a good inspect of it and then continue playing with it.

So I thought I would take Ashton's basket of toys to a different level, instead of just having an assortment of all sorts of random toys we were going to find all toys and objects made of 'WOOD!'

We started by taking our basket out and went on a 'Wood Hunt'. As we walked around I chanted "I spy with my little eye something... wooden." While we walked and chanted we touched all the objects we passed until we found something wooden. Although Ashton probably was unaware as to the specific reason or purpose of our hunt he loved walking around touching and exploring all of the different surfaces!

Once we had found lots of different wooden objects to fill our toy basket we brought the basket back to the room to play with and it was amazing to see how much Ashton's play and exploration of the objects in the basket slowed down. He took each object out one by one and really took his time with it! We have been playing with the wooden toy basket for one week now and he is only just starting to get back into his 'grab and throw' routine! Maybe its time to go on a 'Plastic Hunt!'

Fidgety Fish by Ruth Galloway

With Ashton's current enthusiasm for clapping I found this a great book to read today! This book is made up of lots of mini poems about the different creatures that live in the sea; 'Clickety Crab', 'Amazing Angelfish', 'Smiley Shark' and many more. So, as I read each little poem I would tap or clap out a beat and encourage Ashton to clap along with me.

To begin with I found Ashton just clapping randomly as we read, but towards the end his clapping to the beat definitely started to fall in time with mine. He really enjoyed watching the pictures and clapping as we read. It made the story a lot more interactive and is also a great way to teach children about rhythm and rhyming schemes. Not every poem had the same beat, so we explored some fast and some slow beats. It was lots of fun! And the illustrations were very bright and colourful to look at!

Fidgety Fish and Friends

"Swimming and skittering under the sea.

With a smile and a swirl and a swish.

All of his friends love to play every day

With the fabulous Fidgety Fish!"

BUBBLE, BUBBLE, BUBBLE... POP!

I couldn't have asked for a better response from Ashton as we explored bubbles this morning! His reaction to the bubbles appearing and floating down in front of him was just as magical as the bubbles themselves are!

I have been wanting to explore bubbles with Ashton for a while now but kept forgetting to buy any solution or a bubble wand while we were out. So today I decided that I would be a resourceful mother and make my own bubble wand out of a tin can with both ends cut out and then made my own mixture (after looking up a recipe online).

It took a bit of experimenting, trial and error to begin with to get the solution right, but once we got things moving, right from the first bubble Ashton was following the bubbles around the room, with his mouth open with awe! (Which he quickly found wasn't the best idea when the bubble pop right above you! You get a mouthful of bubble spray!)

Ashton's automatic response to the bubbles was to reach out and with an almost reverent approach would try to touch them, as if knowing they would pop when he touched them. The first few times when the bubbles did pop either before he could get to them, or when he touched them he gave a slight jump, surprised at the little splatter they gave off as they burst. But this did not stop him being eager for more, actually would get quite antsy with me when I didn't produce them fast enough!

I just love this photo below! It totally captures his wonder for the bubble!

WATER PLAY FUN!

Nothing is more relaxing, yet at the same time more exciting than playing with water... for a child under 5! Well this is the case for my child anyway. Ashton has discovered his love for water, you can see the excitement take over his body whenever he hears the shower turn on, or when we walk into the pool area, or even just fill the sink for he dishes.

So, lately have been filling up a big mixing bowl full of water, (sometimes warm, sometimes cold... just to mix it up and keep things interesting.) I add a few of his toys for him to play with and he is occupied for the next half an hour!

Ashton loves catching the water and letting it pour over his hands, so I put in little cups that have holes in the bottom of them that can let the water run out in a shower effect. (If you don't already have a container like this, get an old tupperware container and hammer some holes in the bottom. Works a treat!)

He has also been enjoying having objects in the water that float. He thinks it's very funny trying to catch them as they bob away from him each time he tries to pick the floating objects up.

But most of all he just loves to splash and kick as big as he possibly can! I actually think he

loves the sensation of the water jumping up to splash him in th

e face. He loves getting frights so maybe this is the equivalent of a self indued fright!

LAUNDERING ABOUT

One of Ashton's newest play areas is. . . the laundry basket! I don't know if this is a typical place for children to want to play, but we discovered while playing at Aunty Dionne's house the other day, then he spotted our laundry basket sitting in our lounge area and got all excited!

So to make it a little more comfy I filled the bottom with a pillow and placed a blanket around the sides. Ashton loved bopping up and down in there playing peek-a-boo.

At the moment Ashton is trying to master the skill of pulling himself up on things, but with his balance on his legs still "under development" he can get a bit of a lean on and can't correct himself very easily. Although in the laundry basket he has discovered he can use the back of the basket to anchor himself and push off it. He is able to stand up and sit down pulling his own weight and correct himself if he looses balance.

I think the main reason he enjoys playing in the basket is because he can be independent! And its a great place for playing hide 'n' seek! Who would have thought! Fun, play and learning turns up in the most unexpected places!

The Little Mouse, The Red Ripe Strawberry, and THE BIG HUNGRY BEAR By Don & Audry Wood

A cute little story that is great for one on one reading as well as big group story time. Little mouse can't resist picking the red ripe strawberry, even when she knows BIG BEAR might be coming for it! Her quest to keep is safe and the lengths she goes to do so is very entertaining and has been illustrated beautifully!

Discussion ideas:

* I like to use books to get children thinking, and predicting. So when reading this story, I always ask the children I am reading to to predict what they think Little Mouse might be doing? As that is the first question and opening sentence of the book.

* I also like to ask them to think of ways they might hide the strawberry to keep it safe from the bear. Do they have some better ideas? If they are old enough they could draw their own illustrations of how they would hide the strawberry!

The Best Loved Bear By Elizabeth Fuller and Diana Noonan

A story everyone who has ever loved a teddy bear to bits can relate to. A nice little story, with a great little message. Although its hard to judge or measure the love any of us have for our teddy bears, I love the way Fuller and Noonan depict the small acts of care, kindness and love that the little boy in the story has for his best bear friend.

Not much else to say, other than its a cute story that seems to strike a chord with me. ;o)

Adventure Idea:

* Show your bears how much you love them by going on a teddy bears picnic. Have your child choose which bears they would like to take for their picnic and have them help you prepare the food you will take. Ask them what they food they think their bears would like to eat. Maybe each bear has its own favourite food?

* Have you own 'best loved bear' competition. Invite special judges and get all your bears all dressed up and ready for display.

AUTUMNAL ADVENTURE

Ashton had a sleepover with his cousins last night and you can't have sleepover at Aunty Carly's house without going on an adventure!

During our drive home from picking up Delta and Anika, Delta pointed out to us that all of the leaves on the trees were changing colour, and that this meant it was now Autumn. We decided while we were driving that this would be the focus of our adventure . . . we would go on a Autumn leaves hunt and collect up as many different coloured leaves as we could find.

So we set off in Grandma's new Radio Flyer wagon! (her dream of owning one finally come true!) and kept our eyes peeled for leaves of red, yellow, orange and sometimes brown! We found a row of trees that were all of the above and quickly jumped in amoungst the fallen leaves to have a play. As we jumped around on them the leaves crunched and crackled under our feet. This was very entertaining, especially to Ashton, who got so excited by the leaves that, surprise, surprise, he wanted to EAT them! He also loved scrunching them in his hands and as the girls and I threw them up in the air around us, he would watch them all land with a bit of a giggle!

Once we were finished having a play, we started finding the leaves of different colours and shapes that we could use in our Autumn paintings. There were so many to choose from and all such beautiful colours! Then we headed over to the grove of Oak trees at the back of the pond to set up our painting stalls.

It was so much fun painting underneath the Oak trees with the fallen autumn leaves all around us to inspire our paintings. Using glue we stuck leaves onto our paintings, and Ashton even dipped the leaves in the paint and painted with the leaves. It was also nice to get out and enjoy the change of the seasons!

Oh, did I mention that Ashton wanted to eat the paint too! (Note: All the paint, is non-toxic!)

SHUFFLE AND BOOGIE

It was time to let loose and have a boogie today! So we set our iTunes on shuffle and let the music tell us how to dance! Because the music was on shuffle, we never knew what would come on next. It was really rather exciting. If it was a slow, jazzy song, we would do a waltz type dance. Then "Switch" by Will Smith came on and boy did we bust a groove on that one. The Wiggles made their way into our mix and we did the actions that went with the song and we even got some orchestral music "Sonata Alla Turca" to be exact.

We danced and let the music guide our feet and Ashton thought it was hilarious! He was either giggling or had his face beaming with a smile the whole time. He became particularly entranced when he spotted our reflection in the mirror, he really enjoyed watching those crazy people dancing in front of him.

I didn't get any photos of this adventure as we were both just too involved, but it was lots of fun and a great work out for me! ;o)

Bamboozled By David Legge

A fantastically quirky book that gives me a giggle every time! The story is actually more about the illustrations than the simple yet clever storyline. This story is about a little girl who goes to visit her grandfather as per usual, but on this particular visit can't help but feel something isn't quite right. The funny thing is, everything is not quite right! Cowboys and Indians running through the hall way, fish in the TV, dishing hanging out to dry and mowing the grass inside . . . Just to name a few . . . But those aren't the things that seem odd. Its not until the little girl is about to leave that she realises what it actually is!

I can look at this book over and over and find someth

ing new and odd in the illustrations every time! This is a great book for children aged 4+, but I would recommend it more for a one on one or small group read rather than a large group story, as the best thing about this book is sitting around pointing out all of the things that are just mixed up!

Activity idea:

* Play eye spy with the pictures and see who can spot the most unusual thing happening in the picture.

* You could even play crazy eye spy in your room by taking turns to secretly change or mix something up in the room. The other person then has to try and spot the mix up.

SOUND HUNT

Every Monday night at our house is family night! And no family night is complete without a game... so for Ashton and I that means daddy gets to join in our adventure for the day and tonights adventure game for family night was a "Sound Hunt"!

Ashton sat on the middle of the bed so that he could turn and look in all directions of the room. Kris and I then took turns hiding the bells in different places and playing them there till Ashton figured out where the sound was and turned in that direction.

At first Ashton was more interested and excited at the fact that Mummy and Daddy were hiding around the room! But eventually he figured out that the bells kept ringing in different

directions and became very good at identifying the new hiding place pretty quickly.

The Nickle Nackle Tree By Lynley Dodd

"In a Manglemunching Forest there's a Nickle Nackle tree,

Growing Nickle Nackle berries that are red as red can be.

I went to look last Monday; I was too surprised for words

On every twisty branch there was a jumble jam of birds.

One Ballyhoo bird, kicking up a din,... "

I had to start with a quote from this book, because the opening page says so much about how fantastic this book is! The words Lynley Dodd has uses and the names she has created for each type of bird is just fantastic! Not only are they fun to say and attempt to get your tongue around, they play with wonderful sound combinations that are great for children to hear. She also experiments with great alliteration which is a really good way for children to become familiar with letter sounds.

So for a book that is actually titled "a counting book, by Lynley Dodd" it is actually a book that teaches literacy just as beautifully!

Now let me get to the counting element of the book! The books layout really allows the child to focus on the individual number as it is introduced. With the illustration on one side and the single number and sentence on the other side, the children can count the number of birds, identify the written number, then relate the description of the birds to what they see within the illustrations.

I have often heard people say that this is one book they can read over and over again and never get tired of it! I second that notion!!!

MY LITTLE DRUMER BOY

We've played with shakers, the keyboard, bells and even castanets, so today it was time to bang it out on our very own drum set! The pots, pans and boxes came out and the noise levels went up!

I sat Ashton down on his mat and one by one surrounded him with the pots and pans, his eyes watching the scene unfold a little unsure as to what his crazy mum was doing... again! But it didn't take Ashton long to dive down onto the pots and start banging them with his hands.

Next I gave him a wooden spoon, a metal spoon and a plastic spoon to use as his "drum sticks" and although he had to suck on each of them all first, once the initial sensory exploration was over he was into it! Picking up each utensil one by one to pound them on top of the various containers. At one point Ashton even managed to get one spoon in each hand and do a double handed beat! He made sure he made use of every pot, box or pan, turning and twisting where he sat.

As Ashton's little drumming adventure continued he began to explore the pots and pans in different ways, turning the pots over to bang the spoons inside the pot. He placed other toys inside the containers to bang them around and make different sounds. It was really quite exciting to see his little mind ticking over, thinking of how he could make new sounds and then to see him respond with such excitement when he made one! His eyebrows lifting, his little legs kicking, his arms pumping, and we must not forget the squealing of pure delight!!!

Oooh! CONDENSATION! yum!

This isn't an adventure as much as it is a discovery, but it was too cute to pass up writing about. Each morning when Ashton and I open up the house for the day whenever we open up the curtains we (well I) say "Good Morning... (say the day of the week)". Its just a little ritual we have started and I like it cause its a nice positive way to start each day!

Just recently, as the weather has been getting colder, we have noticed condensation sitting on the window when we open up the curtains. I think Ashton discovered it quite by accident the first time, as his inquisitive hands reached out to play with the window, he liked the way his hand slide from side to side.

After playing their for a while I started to walk away for get ready for breakfast, but this was not the plan Ashton had in mind, he wanted to stay and play. So I put him down on the ground where he would be able to reach the window and continue playing with the condensation. As I sat back to watch him, it was great to see the way he used his hands and feet to play with the water. He was going up and down, from side to side and patting the window too.

Of course no discovery would be complete for Ashton without him testing the subject matter at hand with his mouth! He had no hesitation in leaning forward to give the ranch slider a great big kiss... or suck (whichever you prefer!)

Watch Out, Little Wombat By Charles Fuge

Anyone who knows me, knows that I'm a HUGE Charles Fuge fan . . . so I can't go too long without reviewing one of his books! Today it was "Watch Out, Little Wombat!" This is one of his books I had never read before so I was rather excited to sit down for story time today with Ashton to share it with him.

As always his illustrations are just beautiful! But one of the aspects which I love about Charles Fuge's illustrations is that they are so consistent across his books. This helps to really build the characters that are in his stories, particularly Little Wombat.

This story is about Little Wombat and his friends going out to find an adventure, (another topic that strikes a chord with me!) It is a cute little storyline, and although it doesn't have the lovely rhyming scheme that I enjoy in many of Fuge's books, it is a storyline that children could easily follow and get caught up in with their imaginations.

ASHTON'S FIRST HAKA

Flashback: I never got to Blog about this moment cause I wasn't blogging when it happened but I wanted to have it in our Blog... so I'm doing a flashback!

When Ashton was 3 1/2 months old I got a little bored one Sunday and decided that it was time for Daddy to teach Ashton his first Haka! Much to daddy's bewilderment and thinking "why would we do such a thing" we did it anyway! I got Ashton dressed up in his little All Black outfit that Grandma bought him and we got in place. Mummy behind the camera ready for the action, daddy behind Ashton ready to create the action!

Little did we know, it would be Ashton that would actually create the action! After barely saying the first opening phrase Ashton decided he would puke! Both of us (particularly me!) lost the plot and couldn't stop laughing! We did a 2nd take though and got through it all... very cute.

A CONCERT FOR MY TOYS

Our keyboard jam sessions a becoming a bit of a regular event at the moment. We have figured out a good set up where Ashton can really get into his groove and he holds nothing back!Today he was really excited to explore the percussion sounds on the keyboard. (Instead of it playing the standard sounds of each note, each key will make the sound of a percussion instrument.) He really seemed to notice the fact that each key was playing a different sound as you explored the whole keyboard, moving up and down the keys. He would play a series of sounds in from of him and the use the other hand to play another lot of keys.

At one point Ashton seemed as though he was even pulling a little bit of a song together as he would play a set of sounds then sit back and make a sound (sounding something like singing) and then proceed to lean back in to play another series of sounds. He repeated this pattern for

some time all the while conveying a mixture of excitement and concentration on his face.

During one of Ashton's breaks in the jam session he happened to spot his row of teddies up on the couch. Although this didn't stop Asthon from wanting to play the keyboard, he couldn't keep his eye off his toys. So I brought the toys down to sit on the keyboard so that he could do a concert for them. He really seemed to respond to having an audience and all of a sudden his playing became quite intense with his whole body getting into his playing, his legs kicking, his head swaying, his squeals more intense! It was like he was really putting on a concert for his toys! A moment I will remember and cherish for quite some time, it was definitely a Kodak moment . . . if those still exist ;o)

What will you be? By Simon French & Donna Rawls

I love finding any excuse to dress up. I have always loved dramatic play and it always intrigues me to see the kind of scenes children will re-inact when they get dressed up. Watching children engaged in dramatic play is a fantastic window into their world and how they percieve the wider world they are growing up in and trying to figure out!

So this book took got my attention straight away. Although it is not the most intriguing storyline, it is a great simple read that would be very suitable for a classroom or pre-school setting.

The story is set in a classroom with a teacher who has decided to have a dress up day with the children. He challenges each one of them to wear their most special outfit. Each of the children get busy deciding what they will wear, telling each other what they have decided to be and guessing what others might be.

This would be a great book to read to encourage and facilitate roll play, a special dress up session, or even a discussion around what kids might want to be when they grow up.