In January we moved our family of five out of our home in Brisbane (Australia) to Wiltshire in England. Otto was three months old when we left. As you can imagine it's a big move that required a lot of planning. We spent over a month in temporary accommodation and much longer without any of our shipped toys and belongings. If I was going on a holiday for a week or so I wouldn't worry about bringing any mobiles or many toys or materials. But for a couple of those weeks, we were still in Brisbane, my husband was still... Read more →
There is no substitute for good Montessori materials, however, let's not be too precious about it, most of us have mainstream toys in our homes too. Today I am sharing some of the mainstream baby toys we have and are currently using. All of these have been carefully selected, but from Amazon or from other popular online toy retailers. They don't take the place of Montessori infant materials but each has a specific purpose, each brings something to the child. Most of these are suitable for 3-6 months+. Plan Toys, Grimm's and Brio are some of our favourite mainstream toy... Read more →
We moved to the UK mid January however some of our (new/rented) furniture is still arriving and we only recieved our personal items from Australia last week. Finally, some shelves for Otto! This is a part of our living area, it is next to our dining area and adjacent to our kitchen (which is also our laundry!). This area is so well placed, I can be in the kitchen/laundry and still supervise him. I can be close if needed but he can have his space too. Because it's so close to our dining and kitchen, I think I might put... Read more →
I love giving my babies discovery baskets! With Otto (pictured above) and Otis, I've introduced them at around four months of age, when the child is able to explore things well with their hands. I've found it a great way of exposing them a wide range of objects where they can use all of their senses. It allows them to experience new smells, tastes, weights, textures and colours that standard baby toys just don't allow. I keep Otto's discovery basket on his shelves in our living area, where he is always supervised, not in his room which I consider 100%... Read more →