There were two in the bed(room) ...

and the little one said, it's crowded. Move over! 

Well, it is crowded in our little second bedroom, but this is temporary. Two weeks ago, Jojo could randomly scoot around but would end up moving backwards just as often as forwards and often ended up stuck under the coffee table.

How'd I end up here?

Hey Mommy, you gonna do something about this please?

But last week, he turned into a man on a mission.



Normally this mission involves getting over to his sister's toys to do some exploring (and annoying).  He still isn't doing a full crawl but definitely has the army crawl down as well as the the inch worm/ hands and knees face plant maneuver. Mix in some toe pushes and he can cross the living room in 2 minutes if he puts his mind to it. Seriously, this kid is non-stop movement

We don't do cribs, preferring the Montessori Floor Bed concept (doesn't that sound so much nicer and less redneck than "mattress on the floor") for times when co-sleeping isn't the best option. This meant it was time for some changes - I don't want to miss him waking up only to hear a big thud as he lands on the floor :-(

So we brought up another mattress and rearranged things to give him a little napping spot. He'll normally only take one nap in here a day - his first and the only one he consistently takes on his own. His second nap is during Lucy's nap time so Jojo I can snuggle in my bed while she has her room to herself. If he takes a third, and that is getting to be a big if these days, he is normally in the boba on my back or Craig is home from work and I take my chance for a break using Jonah as an excuse.

Don't worry about the stuff on the wall, it's affixed with velcro not nails and isn't going anywhere. And the pillow is for when I'm nursing him, it goes on the floor as extra protection from falls when I leave him there. 

Since we all know how much Lucy loves change, I started preparing her about 3 days before the big shuffle. She still ended up very upset, trying to convince Craig he couldn't open up her door because she had "shut it very tightly" this time" as soon as she caught sight of the mattress. After a few hours she was okay with it though.

Eventually, I think we'll move them to a low loft with a floor bed underneath it - like this. But for now this works. The only toys she keeps in here are her stuffed animals and dolls so the lack of floor space isn't a big issue and right now we still do quite a bit of snuggling with Lucy in her bed and I am hesitant to lose that until we have to. Time is moving so fast that I'm sure Jonah will be in here full time before I can even blink. I don't think I'm particularly happy about that.

Montessori Baby: Octahedron Mobile

Jonah got a new mobile a few days ago after the last one met it's unfortunate demise during a tantrum thrown by a certain toddler. She's still asking for daddy to try and fix it and it should be pretty easy for him to do so but I'm debating whether or not to actual try. If we do, we'd keep rotating them every week or two to keep things fresh but I might want to to let natural consequences serve a purpose. She was pretty upset that she ruined Jonah's mobile but he wasn't - he loved this one! 

He really seemed to like the blue one. These pictures were taken around 7pm which is normally the time of day when he has to be nursing, worn in a wrap or constantly bounced or he is fussy which is how I knew how big of a hit it was.

This was also one of the cheapest and easiest to make using the template and tutorial from Little Red Farm. I already had the dowel and clear string so it only cost $1.50 for three pieces of scrapbook paper from Hobby Lobby. Definitely worth the effort!

Joyful Learning in October

Back in September Lucy and I started doing the Hubbard's Cupboard curriculum - Joyful Learning. I hesitate to even call it a "curriculum" because for us it consists of a monthly playdough, a bible verse, songs and fingerplays, books and a few art projects.  (We skip a lot of the projects and the sensory bin and I add in other theme things I find). I also add in more bible stories/songs that relate to the theme. 

I've been thinking a lot about preschool type stuff lately and have a whole lot of thoughts on topics that I would love to talk about someday but right now I'm not only still processing how of things will actually work (as opposed to theories and concepts) and because I don't have the brain power to do that. Craig thinks "Mommy brain" is just an excuse but I am positive I lose at least 10 IQ points with each kid. Actual, my lack of brain power is why we are doing Joyful Learning. I don't have to think up anything unless I want to. And sometimes I do, and sometimes I don't.

My goal is not to even have her learn any of this stuff, although I'm assuming she will because she's not a rock, but to spend some one-on-one time with her. We do this during Jonah's naps - and yes, he naps like a champ in his co-sleeper which still amazes me every single day. Maybe someday I will get used to it and it won't seem like a big deal but I kinda like experiencing mini-miracles one to two times a day. We are really enjoying.the time together (I started calling it school because I didn't know what else to call it but as soon as I start getting Jonah ready for his nap Lucy will come up to me and telling me "I want to do fun stuff with you." Unlike a lot of the other "preschool curriculums" (FIAR, rock star, tot school)  I've heard about, I can't really find much documented about this program online so I thought I would put up summary posts every month. I also have a Joyful Learning Pinterest board that I'm using to hold all the theme-y things I find. 

There are one or two themes per month. September's were home and family which worked nicely as we were about increase ours (family, not house :-) I didn't get around to posting the pictures of those activities because of said increase in family size but here is what we did for October with its fall/pumpkins themes.

Pumpkin pie playdough!

Make a nature tote (decorate the bottom of a cereal box with fall colored construction paper)

Trying out our nature tote

Counting trees

For the first eight, I put the glue where she told me to then she stuck on the correct number of leaves but for number 9 and 10 she did it all herself so her trees look more like bushes.

I already documented our trip to the pumpkin patch but when I told Lucy she might find some non-orange pumpkins there, she got really excited about having a blue pumpkin. I tried to warn her that green and white might be the only other colors she would but she insisted there would be blue. Obviously, there were not really any blue pumpkins but not one to settle for a second best color, she asked if we could paint it blue.

I love her expression in this picture. She was very meticulous in her painting. 

We watched a video about how pumpkins grow as well as read a story about a hamster that grows a pumpkin then had fun with this Montessori pumpkin life cycle activity free from Montessori for Everyone.

Demonstrating how little the seeds are.

I hung up our art work as we went. Clockwise from top we have:

• Leaf rubbing banner.
• Pumpkin patch painting. Fists in orange paint where pumpkins, thumbs in green paint were leaves
• Orange pumpkin "book" This was one pinterest find that I wanted to do but we didn't have time for but then the next week we did it at storytime anyway. Kismet!
• An "acorn surprise" painting. Paint an acorn then put it in a plastic container lined with paper. Shake then reveal the surprise!
• Painting with fall colors 
• Counting tree shown above

I don't have any pictures but she really loved the songs this month and was often heard singing "The leaves fall from the trees!" Our library is hit and miss when it comes to their book selection so we didn't get to read all of the listed books but it was easy enough to find fall and pumpkin books. I also took some good ones from this list.

Also not shown was the fall tree snack Craig made for her. A lot of the theme snack options, both in JL and on pinterest, are not healthy so I was really excited to find a real food treat that was fun. She was also my helper in many of my pumpkin cooking endeavours  At first she didn't believe me when I told her the stuff in the can was pumpkin but eventually she came around. I just don't think you can do preschool without snacks, am I right?

So that was October.  I can't wait to share with you all the fun stuff we have planned for next month and from the look on her face, neither can Lucy!

Montessori Baby: The Munari Mobile

I talked back here about how I wanted to buy or make some montessori mobiles before "baby" arrived. I ended up making four (Munari, Octahedron, Gobbi and Dancers). Several look a bit homemade but I still love them, especially since I made all for for less than $15 total! I'll try and get pictures of each one and include a link to the tutorial if there is one.

The Munari is the first one we are using, it's geared to babies 3-6 weeks although we put it up at 2 weeks because I wanted Craig to get around to it before he went back to work :-)

I used this tutorial which helped a lot but it was still the trickiest of the four to make and balance.

Jonah seems to enjoy it for the few minutes he'll lay on his back (we have some oversupply/reflux issues going on so back time doesn't last long as it often leads to massive spit up time) but hopefully as that resolves, he'll be able to enjoy it more.

Until then, we'll keep using these black and white art cards since they can be used with Jonah propped up on our knees. My SIL got them for Lucy when she was just a baby and they were a bit hit her first 6 months. Now she loves to show them to Jonah and tell him what sounds the animals make. It's a lot of fun to watch such a small baby focus so intently on something - even if only for a few minutes at a time.

Toddler Tuesday: Mat Work

I've said before that I'm not a stickler for educational rules and theories. I like Montessori a lot but have no problems completely throwing out ideas that I don't think will work for us. But there are other ideas that I want to incorporate, but it just takes me a while to get to them. Work mats was one of those areas.

The idea of the Montessori mat is to give children a defined space to work. It helps them maintain order and gives them a way to save projects if they have to stop for some reason.

Mommy and Me time (reusing an older picture from the rowing Good night moon post - I'm even bigger now, haha!)

I just gave Lucy a work mat about two months ago and regret not having started earlier. She loves her mat and takes such good care of it - rolling it up and putting it away when she isn't using it and always saying "on my mat mommy" if we start to play something. I thought she would only use it for more "school' type but it is just as likely to have a tea set on it as a pouring set or counting work. I guess that makes sense because in her mind they are all "games." 

Color Tablet Fun - She figured out her pom-poms matched by herself and just had to include them so they are now a permanent part of the color tablet tray

I love it too. I really do see a difference in her play/work when she is using it. For more school-type activities, she can focused longer and keep things lined up nice and tidy. And it helps control the chaos that occurs during playtime. We've always had a "one toy at a time" rule and when it is just her and me at home she follows it  pretty well (when Craig is home it doesn't seem to work as well, probably because I am not as consistent with her - bad mommy). The mat helps reinforce that idea. If her mat is full, she has to pick up before she can get something else out. This is especially useful now that the rule is evolving into a "one game" at a time rule as she is engaging in more imaginative play and often plays with toys together - uses her blocks to make tables, chairs and beds for her duplo people or using her pattern pieces as pretend food. As long as it is still relatively contained by the mat, she is fine.

She's showing me her duplo town...a great example of what I consider "relatively contained"

Currently her mat is a small ikea rug that used to be in our kitchen. I believe it cost $3. It isn't quite ideal according to Montessori standards because it has a slight pattern but its red on red and I don't think it really detracts from her games/work. It was an ideal size to start with because it is fairly easy for her to manage on her own but she will also need a larger one though as several of her new tot school activities won't fit on the red one. But I've got plans so stay tuned!

This picture is basically here to prove that Lucy doesn't always run around in her undies - just most of the time :-)

Toddler Tuesday: Kid-friendly kitchen

When I was first designing our kitchen, I knew I wanted to make sure it was kid-friendly. The biggest thing we did in that area was what we call the "Craig pantry." They are a set of shallow lower cabinets under our pot rack. 

The cabinet on the right holds canned goods and pasta which a shallow shelf is perfect for because things don't get lost back. But the one of the left is probably my favorite - it's Lucy's cabinet. 

                                                   

The top two shelves are the ones she really uses. The white bins holds her silverware. We have this set but need to move up to this one. Then there is her utensil caddy which holds her mini whisks and spatulas although it looks a bit empty right now - she loves them and every time we mix something, she insists on using hers even though it isn't always very efficient to stir a double batch of pancake batter with a teenty tiny whisk. Below them are her mixing bowls - just the smallest two from a nesting set my mother-in-law gave us. These items pretty much stay in those places. 

The glasses are these Montessori weaning glasses but again, she is ready to move up to these. The bowls are pyrex custard cups that came with plastic lids - perfect for storing her uneaten yogurt or snack in the fridge for later. And her plates are just clear glass plates my mom had for when she hosted luncheons - she had about 50 so I "stole" 6. 

Lucy is responsible for keeping her pantry tidy and she does a good job. I didn't change anything when I took this picture. All the glass items tend to shuffle around since she is responsible for putting them away and she is often returning them to a empty shelf - but she does keep the bowls with the bowls and the glasses with the glasses, etc. And while you might think all the glass is dangerous but she has been using a glass cup since 6 months old and has only broken one glass and no plates or bowls so far. I wish I had that track record - I just broke a glass last night :-)

I take her dishes out of the dishwasher and stack them on the edge for her to put back on her shelf. She's been doing this for quite a while but until she was 2, it was optional. Now it isn't. Sometime she doesn't want to but I just remind her that it is her responsibility and we all help in our family and she's never really fussed after that (same thing with making her bed and putting her dirty clothes in the "dirty bin"). She also helps me unload the rest of the silverware which is nice since it lessens the amount of bending over I have to do. 

 The bottom holds wooden trays we use if we take our food outside for a picnic and some plastic stuff we use when other kids come over or for outside.

I also need to make room for a basket of kid-sized cloth napkins. She has just reached the stage where she wants to use a napkin instead of being attacked by a washcloth after every meal and depending on what we eat, that is normally a reasonable request. I just need to find the 10 minutes it will take me to sew up some. 

I've seen other Montessori toddler/preschool kitchen areas that have a dirty dish bin and sponge area but we didn't add that to her responsibilities until a month ago when we moved her from a high chair to a junior chair and she could get down on her own and now she is tall enough to put her dirty plate and glass on the counter after she is done with her meal so we do that instead. 

Putting together a kid-friendly kitchen took a little bit of planning but was well worth it. Lucy is able to be independent and I get some help that is actually helpful.

Tot Tuesday:Montessori's everywhere!

Lucy and I are tagging along with Craig on a business trip right now. While he's working, we've been exploring the city of Washington DC. We've having a great time so far, so much so that I'm too tired to write real posts but I just had to share these pictures.

When you keep your eyes open, Montessori really is everywhere. Lucy loved this rocket building activity at the  Smithsonian Air & Space Museum. She did it 5-6 times, and only stopped when another girl came up to give it a try. After the other girl was done, Lucy started up again. If she got it wrong, she would look at it then say "Oh, try again!" but if she got it right she would throw her hands up and say "One more time!"

I've been thinking that Lucy is almost ready for the pink tower and seeing her interest in the rocket confirms that. The pink tower is much obviously larger and more complicated so I think it will be a real challenge for her, but one that she probably will enjoy.

Toddler Tuesday

I am loving 18 months. All of a sudden Lucy just seems to get so many activities. We've had puzzles around that she could do with quite a bit of help, but now she's a pro. And she now loves matching which opens up tons of activities. She also understands tray work now and will get one tray out then put it up before getting another.

But of course, there always seems to be a directly correlation between the amount of time I spend prepping an activity and the amount of time Lucy spends on it. Example - this one took all of 30 second to arrange, but kept Lucy busy for quite a while.

What is it? Well, if it looks like Lucy is standing on a piece of painters tape stuck to our floor, you would be correct. Although to Lucy, it's a line for her to walk on. It tests her skill and requires deep concentration.

 She did it once then ran off. I thought that was it but she came right back. She just needed some skid-proof socks for better traction, or maybe she was cold :-)

Then of course, baby needed a turn too. 

 Her first line was just a few feet long but at her request, I made it longer and included a corner.

This is a great example of how important timing is and how kids develop at their own pace. This was originally an activity from Slow and Steady Get Me Ready but it was listed as an activity for 1 year 6 weeks (or what normally people would call 13 months). She could walk by then but did not understand the concept of walking on a line at all so I put it aside. Then recently I noticed she was more interested in physical things like walking backwards, spinning, dancing, etc. She could do them before when prompted, but now she spends 30 minutes just figuring out how to make her body move and really seems to enjoy challenging herself to go faster, longer and harder. So we tried it again and voila, fun fun fun! She started "walking on the line" with one foot staying on the line and the other off to the side but after just a few days she started getting both feet to stay on the line.

Another activity that illustrates this is this animal matching game. It's on several other sites so I won't claim it's new but I think my kid is cute, so I'm putting up more pictures of it. It is supposedly a activity for a 2-3 year old but if Lucy is 6 months behind on her line walking, she is 6 months ahead on her animal matching! So I'm learning to ignore the numbers and remember that I know my kid best. Anyway, her is Little Miss matching away:

I took 6 of these cards and put them on a tray with the matching animals that we already had. She could probably handle more but none of the other animals we have match the cards they have. Her animals are her most used toy though so we'll be getting more.

Lucy gets out the tray...

 lays out the cards

 and starts matching

 sometimes she will put the wrong animal on the card, look at us, shake her head no, pick it up and put it down correctly

then she stands back and admires her accomplishment.

*These pictures may or may not have been taken on the same day. The undies + pink socks combo is fairly common round here.