Some cozy nooks -M's room-

These last weeks we have been busy rearrenging our house so M can crawl everywhere and stand up on furniture with no danger.  Now that she crawls up and down at her will, she can decide where to spend time so we have set some activities for her in nearly each room of our house. There is, of course, her room, where she doesn't sleep yet but where there is a mattress so she can rest whenever she feels like it. I have to admit she has never used it but to climb, but there it is. The decoration in the room is scarce:  two pegs with marine elements ( a mermaid, and a flounder) on one wall; a picture made of knitted letters with M's name on another; a low shelf with a cloth dice and a cuddly elephant. There are also two baskets in the room, one with some books and the other with a weekly activity, as I mentioned in my last post. This week we have several pieces of fabric; a woolen scarf, a silk handkerchief, some velvet mittens, a piece of flannel, and a remnant of corduroy. She has scarcely paid attention to this, so interested she is in looking at the books, but I am already thinking ahead. I will prepare a matching activity with these remnants.

Hats on

In M's room there are two baskets, one containing several board and cloth books --including one I made myself; the other a weekly activity. This past week we had several hats in it: two straw pamelas with ribbons, a knitted cap, a bonnet, and a peaked cap. 

Once a day M checks the basket and although she is not very attracted to the hats, she enjoys seeing me taking one by one and trying them on. I offer one hat to her but she doesn't want to wear anything on her head.

This activity was intended both to make the routine of getting dressed a funny thing and as an introduction to body vocabulary. She already identifies the nose. I have realized one could do many other activities with the hats. They are made of different materials, have various sizes, and so on. However, since M is still very young and she is not very keen on putting on hats not even to have a look at the mirror, I will keep the activity for later on. Tomorrow I will change the contents of the basket... and will let you know what our new treasure hamper contains. I have several ideas...

A day trip to the city

Today we've gone to, in my opinion, the most enchanting neighborhood in Barcelona; Gracia. It was my idea to do a trip once a week but since it has been raining most of the week we have kept putting it of until today. It was raining as we set out this morning but my Little One seemed to enjoy the rain on her face.

One of the most exciting things of this neighborhood is that you always find a new store, workshop, or whatever and they can be incredibly creative. Today we have discovered a bagel shop! I adore bagels and was very disappointed to find out that the one bagel shop in Barcelona (Canuda st.) had been swept away by the ¿?crisis. So first thing on our arrival to the Plaza del Sol this morning, this pretty tiny corner shop with a large assortment of bagels. Later on we have dropped by the English 2nd hand bookstore and bought a book for papatò, another one for mamatò, and a Charlie and Lola board book for Little one. They had a cozy nook for children and she has enjoyed it until the lower shelves of bookcases were too appealing. One of her favorite activities currently is to take books out of the shelf...

We have had lunch at a gorgeous place called La Nena, a child-friendly restaurant where my lovely daughter has played a while with some blocks and then dived into her father's salad to pick the tomatoes. I have enjoyed a quiche and a mango juice myself. We have later got some nice tea, the expensive one we seldom buy. Its sweet parfum will remind us of a wonderful day.

Just rambling is wonderful. There are so many things to look at and enjoy.

Ten months already

Alongside this change of style I have decided to make, I will also change the language I use.

Now that my baby has turned ten months, I will start keeping a journal of her progress and of the activities we do. She has already a journal where I write to her since before her birth. The one here intends to be of a more public nature.

Some months ago, when she was around six and a half months and starting to sit upright on her own I collected some sensorial items and placed them on a basket.

This idea was inspired by Montessori's treasure baskets. Some of the objects I gathered were: a pineapple, a toothbrush, a silk neckerchief, a piece of string, a shell, a tiny tin box, a beaded necklace. She used to devote much time and dedication to the objects in that treasure basket, picking up one by one and scattering them all.

Today -she is ten months already- I placed the basket on her playing mat again, after having removed it for some weeks, and not only has she showed interest again but a kind of "I am already acquainted with this" feeling. She has taken every object and played with her favorite; the necklace, until one of her feet has got caught in it.