Tidy Bookshelves 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 Books! We all have them. Some of us have a lot of them. How do we best store them? We want to protect the books, we want to display them beautifully and we want them to be easily accessible to our children. For babies, toddlers and preschoolers it's definitely best to display them forward facing, so the child can see the cover. It's also best to avoid overcrowding or overwhelm, you can observe your child but it's never a good idea to overcrowd a bookshelf! In a... Read more →

Do you use loose parts in your home? They are not a Montessori concept. Montessori materials have a clear purpose and a control of error. Loose parts are simply open-ended toys and are often materials you can find around the home. Lots of our loose parts/toys have been inspired by the RIE approach, you can see a list of recommended toys and materials here. If you want to know more about the RIE approach, I have enjoyed listening to and reading Baby Knows Best. We are still using a lot of discovery baskets in our home too. Here are a... Read more →

I'm always looking for fresh food ideas for my family so today I'm sharing some of the dips and spreads that my kids are loving. These are colourful, rich, vibrant and perfect to serve with fruit, vegetables, crackers or perhaps some sourdough! Hummus - my whole family love hummus. My number one tip is from Smitten Kitchen - remove the skin from each chickpea before putting them into the food processor. This takes time but is worth it, the result is a creamier and smoother texture hummus. If you haven't tried it before, please give it a go, it makes... Read more →

In our home, it's all about board books!! Otto cannot be trusted with any type of paper book, it would be quickly destroyed, ripped and/or eaten. But I also want to provide a wide range of books for him, not just the usual baby board books. So I've found a few nature-based board books that I love, that I'm happy to have in our home (that spark joy!!) and that will last through toddlerhood. American Museum & Natural History ABC Birds - this is a gorgeous and large/oversize board book. It is striking and would make an impact as a... Read more →

Ten months is such a lovable age. The child is getting into everything, exploring often with their hands and mouths and crawling around, climbing and pulling up on things. Their coordination and verbal skills are increasing. Here are five things I'm noticing at ten months. Object Permanence. Object permanence materials are well used at this age. Otto has the coordination and concentration to use his object permanence box with tray, his object permanence ball push and his ball tracker which has an object permanence box repeatedly, with intent and focus. Peek-a-boo with play silks and even hide and seek behind... Read more →

Today I'm sharing a whole range of hand washing and care of self stations. Some of these are in Montessori schools and some are in home environments. The above example is by Nido de Montessori, a Montessori school for children from 18 months in British Columbia. There are two examples here, by Montessori Mother a Montessori guide in Berlin, Germany. The second example (pictured outside) is made from an Ikea wine rack, they have removed the middle shelf and added the wheels - brilliant! This hand washing station is in a home environment in Southern France. This is a fantastic... Read more →

Today I'm sharing some of the handmade materials that I am loving, buying and DIYing on Etsy. Aren't these beautiful? Set of Eight Sun candleholders gradient-coloured. We have this one and I think it's a lovely alternative to the stacking rainbow. Wooden Stacking Sun. This is a sensory set for a treasure basket, I'm taking inspiration from this one to DIY and add some texture to Otto's baskets. Heuristic Play Baby Basket. Loving this, if it was in the EU I would order it immediately. Flower Paint Jar Holder. The only reason this one isn't in my cart is because... Read more →