Baby Play Dough

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If you know me well, you know that my love for play dough runs deep. I’ve loved it for ages… It was a total lifesaver while babysitting and nannying as a teenager and university student, it was a staple in my Kindergarten classrooms when teaching, and it’s always out and available in our house now that I’m a mama. Over the years, Miss G and I have created some pretty amazing recipes… Amazing sand dough, gorgeous starry galaxy dough, lemony dough made with real lemon zest, chai tea latte dough, super soft chocolate dough, celebration dough full of foil glitter, the most fragrant ever gingerbread dough, vanilla mint dough {one of my favourite ever scent combos}, pumpkin spice dough made with real pumpkin… The list could go on.

Mess-Free Marble Painting for Babies

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Welp, it’s been exactly one week since my surgery and I’m officially ready to be done with resting and being low key… Sadly though, my body’s not feeling the same way. :/ While I think I honestly thought I’d just hop up off the surgery table with my three little incisions and be on my merry way, this whole having my appendix removed thing has slowed me down more than expected. What I really wanted to do today was to pop Sam into the stroller and go for a long walk in the sun, but with our neighbourhood still being incredibly icy and snowy, I decided not to chance it just yet. For today, my little man and I settled on some indoor fun that was sure not to cause a fall or popped switches – mess-free marble painting.

Discovery Baskets for Babies and Toddlers

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Miss G and I have been having such fun putting together fun little discovery baskets for our sweet Sam to discover and explore. He loves them because it means that he gets to put his curious little hands all over all kinds of things he may not often have the opportunity to explore, and I love them because they’re fun and super easy to pull together. Plus I get to watch him very carefully inspect each object independently, which in my mama opinion, is the cutest thing ever.

DIY Sensory Blocks for Baby

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Goodness… I’m pretty sure I put making these simple little sensory blocks on my to do list about 3 months ago. It’s ridiculous that it’s taken me this long to get to them given the fact that the entire project took about 10 minutes start to finish, but feel like that’s just my current state of life. Non-priority tasks aren’t happening as quickly as I’d like them to, but it is what it is. Either way, they’re made now, and I’m so happy with how they turned out! Sam loves them too, which is exactly what I’d hoped for. They’re sort of like a combination of a miniature sensory bottle {making them perfect for little hands} and these really fun little sensory blocks that I was highly considering buying online late one night {making them perfect for stacking and crashing}. They’re also part musical instrument, so multi-purpose indeed {hah – have I sold you on making a set for your bub yet??}

{Baby Play} Exploring Hot and Cold

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Oh goodness… Have this little guy and I ever been having fun lately! When Miss G was this same age, we were in a major state of transition {hello packing up an entire life overseas, moving home to Canada, staying with family for several months, and then resettling in a different city} and doing fun little activities probably wasn’t at the very top of my priority list. But this time around, things are different… We’re a year into being back in Canada {for the second time}, Miss G is now in school full days {*gasp*}, and I get to spend my days with our sweet little preemie babe who seems to be curious about almost everything.

Today’s fun? Exploring hot and cold – a very simple activity inspired by the curious little hands wanting to investigate my cup of morning coffee. ☺

Baby Sitting Practice Using Sensory Bags

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We did it! At 10 months actual age and 7 months corrected, our little preemie babe born at 27 weeks is sitting up independently! It took some time obviously, but my goodness – is being able to sit up ever a game changer! And not only for him and his play either… For me too- hello, being able to set your baby down on the ground for just a minute while you put on your shoes! Have I mentioned that I’m so proud of this little guy? The moment a ‘oh goodness, he’s so behind’ thought even considers creeping into my head, I remind myself that there was a time not very long ago that I wasn’t even sure we’d be leaving the hospital with our baby and gain some quick perspective. And so we celebrate each new milestone {whenever they happen} instead. ☺

Tummy Time Painting

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This little bub. Gosh, he melts my heart. At 8 months old {and 5 months corrected} now, we’re working hard on building his strength and motor skills and he’s already come so far! According to his physiotherapist, the number one thing we can do at this point to help his development along is tummy time. I’m absolutely not a professional, but according to her, it’s sort of ‘the gateway’ to many of the other skills he’ll be working on mastering in the upcoming months.

5 Simple Baby Play Ideas

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With our sweet boy now well out of the sleepy newborn stage, we’ve been having a total blast playing together while his big sister is at school in the mornings. Our little play sessions are more me sitting back and watching him play than anything, but I absolutely love it. It’s such a special thing to watch your little one become interactive, playful, and full of personality, isn’t it? I just adore it and sort of wish that I could freeze time to enjoy this stage a little longer, though I know I’ll think the next stage is just as much fun, or more likely, even better.

Floating Balloon Play for Babies

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Oh my goodness… At nearly 3 and a 1/2 months corrected, baby bubba is so much fun these days! Beyond being super social and chatty, he’s really starting to play now, and I just love it.