What's Inside?

E loves to play What's Inside?!!

To do this activity, I put a toy (block, rattle, lamb, etc) in a tin and shake it up and ask "What's inside?" E gets SO excited...she grins, waves her arms, and kicks her legs. I then help her open the tin to see what is inside. We talk about the concepts of in/out and open/closed. O joins in on this activity and guesses what is in the tin. This is a fun, simple, and quick activity for babies and toddlers!

Touchy, Feely Books

Several people have asked about the different activities that I do with E (she is 8 months old), so I am going to try to post more baby activities.

Our primary activity with E is reading books aloud to her. Lately, we've been reading more touchy, feely books. She touches the texture, and we talk about whether it is soft, bumpy, etc. O also loves this activity :) In addition to reading aloud to her everyday, we recite nursery rhymes and do fingerplays with her daily. She especially loves "Itsy, Bitsy Spider," and she has even made the sun motion a few times.

Sensory Beanbags

I made E a set of sensory beanbags for Easter, and she LOVES them!!! (O has started choosing E's clothes in the mornings...just in case you were wondering :)

To make the beanbags, I chose several different types of materials...cotton, fleece, satin, corduroy, flannel, and velvet. On one side of each beanbag is a textured material and on the other side is a visually stimulating material. I cut 4 inch squares out of the material, sewed 2 squares back to back, trimmed the corners, and turned the beanbags. I filled 3 of the beanbags with stuffing, so they are actually mini pillows instead of beanbags...I didn't want to put beans in the fabrics with a looser weave because I was afraid that the beans would come out and be a choking hazard. Three of the beanbags are made from materials with a tighter weave, so we filled them with rice, lentils, and beans (1 material in each bag) so that she would have different sensory experiences with each bag. The beanbags were so easy to make, and I'm thankful to my mom for finishing them for me...I don't have the patience to sew the openings closed after flipping and filling the bags :)

1st Sign!

E signed her 1st sign today...milk! Yay!

Do NOT Buy This Skwish Ball for Your Baby!!!

E was just playing and mouthing this Skwish ball when one of the beads came off in her mouth. This toy is marketed for babies ages 0 to 12 months, but obviously it is very dangerous and should not be given to children who still put toys in their mouths.

I'm still shaking at what could have happened. Luckily, she didn't choke on the bead, but just let it drop right out of her mouth. We've had this ball since O was a baby and both girls loved it. I'm sad to see it go, but I'm very thankful that E is ok.

E's Treasure Basket

I'm SO excited that E is big enough for a treasure basket of household items to explore. The idea for a treasure basket full of different textured items came from How To Raise an Amazing Child the Montessori Way by Tim Seldin. This was one of the 1st Montessori books I read and one of my favorite.

I had a lot of fun gathering objects for E's first treasure basket. The items include a small, velvet pillow, a toilet paper tube (I let her mouth this for a few minutes before removing it...I didn't want it to come apart and get in her mouth), a silver rattle (that belonged to Elliott when he was a baby), one of O's unit blocks, a baby food jar filled with mulitcolored pony beads, a sea sponge, a small metal whisk from O's play kitchen, and a plastic bottle with a marble inside. E LOVED exploring (tasting!) all of the objects in her basket. She even threw the velvet pillow about 3 feet. O and I were amazed, and I think E was surprised, too :) E was happily engaged in her play for about 15 minutes or more which is A LOT for her 5 month old self! I'm looking forward to putting new objects in E's special basket each week!

A Simple Baby Toy

E LOVES her new toy! I put 4 of O's beads onto a piece of elastic and knotted it at both ends. E grins, laughs, waves her arms, and kicks her feet in excitement when I pull the beads apart and clack them back together. More than anything she loves to chew on the elastic knots :)

E's Birth Announcement

I was happy with how E's birth announcement turned out, so I thought I'd share :)

To make E's birth announcement, I printed the information on iron-on paper and ironed it onto a onesie. Then we had several photo shoots before deciding on the perfect picture. I uploaded the pics to snapfish and ordered 4 x 6 prints for the announcement. I intended to turn it into a card, but I couldn't find a card on the site that didn't have extra "stuff" on it, and I wanted to just have the picture. Unfortunately, I edited the pic before ordering it, and E looks a little green in the pic (it looked fine on the computer...just not so good in person). I bought 4 x 6 envelopes, but I was so late sending them that I eventually just added them in with our Christmas cards. I'm REALLY bad about sending cards. I always make a list of people to send them, too, but by the time I finally send them, I forget to look at the list. Then I don't know who I've sent cards to and who I haven't. So...if anyone that we know in real life reads this blog and you didn't get a birth announcement, now you know why :) I know there are several that I forgot to send because I have extras, and I didn't order extras :(

The idea for this birth announcement came from an old issue of Martha Stewart Kids.

Homemade Baby Toys

O and I recently made this rolling toy for E, and she really likes it! We put a marble, bell, pom poms, and pipe cleaners into an empty Coke bottle (2 liter), and we shake it and roll it around on the floor for E. O loves to make things for her baby sister.

Here is a rattle that O made for E for Christmas. It's a plastic test tube that she filled with beads and pom poms. I bought the test tubes after Halloween (they had nasty gooey candy in them.) She made several test tube rattles...one has bells in it and another has small balls in it. We're also planning on making a few discovery bottles for E to enjoy!

Forehead Art

We discovered (by accident) that forehead art is very intriguing for "baby sister." O loves to put stickers on everyone, and E was fascinated when O put stickers on our foreheads a couple of months ago. Since then we often put on "forehead art" to entertain the baby. We might look a little crazy, but we have fun!

Paper Plate Faces

O and I made the paper plate faces for "baby sister." O made the one on the far right, and I love it. She said he's grumpy :) E enjoys looking at the faces. We play peek-a-boo with them and talk about the different feelings.

Handpainted Rolling Giraffe

O is proudly making all of her gifts for Baby Sister this Christmas. She enjoyed painting the rolling giraffe (using acrylic craft paint). After she is finished, we'll paint it with coat of mod podge to give it a finished look. (We will watch E closely to make sure she doesn't put this toy in her mouth. The paint and mod podge are nontoxic, but it can't be good to get it in your mouth...)

The Most Amazing Baby Quilt EVER!

(and I don't mind saying that since I didn't make it!)

They say it's the thought that counts...if that is true, this quilt is worth millions! I've been thinking about and planning this quilt in my mind for more than a year, and it turned out BETTER than I expected! I did the planning, purchasing, and cutting, and my mom did ALL of the sewing! Isn't she AMAZING?!!! (I planned to help, but I'm not a very good seamstress, and I certainly can't sew while nursing a baby which is how I spend my days :)

Now, let me tell you about the quilt...My favorite side is the Visual Stimulation/Peek-a-boo side. We decided to only use red, black, and white fabrics on this side.

Mom sewed clear plastic pockets onto 5 of the squares and created a flap to cover the pockets creating a peek-a-boo effect. O has already put one of her drawings into a pocket, and we plan to rotate pictures and drawings through the pockets for E to enjoy :)


The other side of the quilt is the Texture/"I Spy" side. I chose several "busy" fabrics so that we can play "I Spy" with the quilt when E is older. To add various textures to the quilt, we used fleece, flannel, velvet, satin, and corduroy fabrics. Many of the different textures were cut from my old clothes (my favorite cords from my college days and a velvety red Christmas shirt that I loved), which makes if even more special to me.

We had fun making this quilt. It was hard to find the time to do it (I cut all of the squares before E was born, but that was as far as we got), but it was well worth the effort. I hope that E loves and treasures this quilt as much I do! Thanks, Mom! We love you!!!

Sweet Feet

I have a weakness for baby shoes, and I was excited to find these sweet shoes at the 2nd hand shop for about a dollar. O was even more excited since they look a little like ballet shoes, and O LOVES to dance (which means that "baby sister" loves to dance, too, of course!).

Montessori Baby Toys

If you're looking for the perfect gift for your Montessori baby, this is it!
These sweetly simple Montessori baby toys are sold in a set by Pinkhouse Handworks, and we were so pleased when Janice agreed to send us a set to review. The toys are from or inspired by the Assistant to Infancy Montessori training for ages 0 to 3.


The 5 toys included in this set are a crocheted rattle, interlocking discs, wooden grasping beads, egg and cup, and peg and cup. The toys are intended for babies ages 3 months and up, and an information card is included that gives the approximate age at which to offer each toy and the purpose of each.



I love the simplicity and beauty of these toys. The rattle fits perfectly in E's hand, and she immediately and happily put it in her mouth :) I'm looking forward to introducing the other toys to her as she gets older. Make sure to check the Pinkhouse Handworks Shop for more simple and sweet Montessori baby toys.

Edit to Add: Pinkhouse Handworks is offering FREE SHIPPING on the set of Five Montessori Baby Toys.

What We've Been Up To...

making handmade Christmas gifts, of course! My mom has been busily sewing a very special quilt for E. I chose, cut, ironed, and arranged the squares, and she is sewing it all together. I may try sewing a little myself, but I'm always afraid that I'll ruin it since I have trouble sewing a straight seam. Hopefully, we'll finish the quilt very soon...I've been planning this quilt since long before I was pregnant with E, and it's exciting to finally see it coming together.

Can She Get Any Cuter?

I don't think so! She's 11 weeks old today and growing up way too fast.
<>

Time Flies!

Ema is 2 months old today! I can't believe it! I'm rereading Dr. Sears The Vaccine Book in anticipation of her 2 month appt which is in the morning. I can't wait to see how much she weighs (she's big!) and what her percentiles are. I'm off to write my long list of questions and concerns...

Pregnancy and Infant Loss Rememberance Day

Today is Pregnancy and Infant Loss Rememberance Day...remembering our baby who would have been 5 months old this month.

Floor Time

I realized that all of my posts have been about O lately, and I really should include Ema a little more :) We've started having floor time in her room in the mornings, and we are all enjoying it. O is a little Mother Hen, and she LOVES her baby sister. She loves it if I need the room for a minute, and she always assures me that she will babysit while I'm gone. "Baby Sister" loves O, and she especially loves it when O sings to her. She even cooed at O a few days ago when O was singing to her. It doesn't get any better than that!!!

I will eventually post pics of Ema's semi-Montessori bedroom. You can see the floor mirrors in this picture. It appears that Ema is looking at herself in the mirror, but I don't think she can really see them at all. I need to lower them. She was laughing in this picture. I love that she has started smiling, cooing, and laughing.

Edit to Add: Several people have commented that they are surprised that I use "Ema's" name...don't worry! Her name is NOT Ema :) I didn't want to use 2 initials because I find it annoying when I read something and EVERYONE is called an initial. "Ema" is our baby's blog name...it's a play on her "real" name :)