As I mentioned back in December, I have been trying to do more fun photo shoots with the boys. They're growing so fast, that it helps me capture them as they grow. I've started posting about it in hopes of inspiring other budding photographers.
This New Year's Even shoot was our most recent. Unfortunately, Archer had a cold and was a bit cranky, so these were the best we got.
I used this backdrop and then just black fabric for the "floor." I got them little New Years hats and noise makers for props. I'm hoping to be able to use this same backdrop every New Years so I can see them change over time. I also made sure the hats didn't say the year, so hopefully, I can get a few years out of them.
I feel like I always need the disclaimer that while I call them "learning activities," we really follow Archer's lead. We don't force things when he's unhappy about them. He loves stimulation, so they provide good ways for us to spend time together.
Physical Development:
Archer is crawling now and he is loving the new found mobility. We're trying to give him ample opportunity to explore and practice his new skills. Crawling around Xander's room is a favorite, as is chasing the dogs. Archer has started pulling himself up on us and likes to stand. I have a feeling it won't be too long before he starts pulling himself up on furniture or other things around the house.
Archer is really enjoying trying to eat finger foods, although he does not have as many options as he would like due to lack of teeth.
Reading:
While we did take a two week break from our Doman-style flash cards, they are still our primary means of exposing him to new words in English and Spanish. He watches Tweedlewink occasionally and really enjoys Your Baby Can Read a few times a week. Archer has really started liking books. His favorites are the That's Not My... series from Usborne, Noisy Farm and some old books we have that have photos and giant flaps. Archer recently learned to turn the pages and gets so excited about it, that he sometimes does not have the patience to feel his touchy-feely books.
Spanish:
We also still do a Spanish Little Reader lesson most days, although I changed the settings so he only see the words and pictures, with non of the phonics. The lessons are much more interesting to him that way. He also watches Kid Start Spanish a few times a week and absolutely LOVES it. I'm slowly working on making and acquiring more books for him in Spanish. He got several for Christmas.
Math:
Not much has changed here. We still do one Little Math lesson most days.
Baby Shelves:
Now that he is mobile, Archer likes a lot more stimulation. He loves exploring new toys. Here are his current shelves.
Top left is a basket with his musical eggs and his Ticky Tok toy. The eggs each make a different noise when you shake them, which he enjoys.
Bottom left is his ball pounding toy. He likes hitting things (including himself) with the hammer, watching the balls go down the ramp and tasting the balls. He has yet to figure out how to actually hit the balls with the hammer, LOL.
The top right has a tray of some of his Lalabloom toys. While they twist and pop together, Archer still mostly eats them. I put them out mostly so he can taste feel the different textures.
Right middle has his little popping toy. These little guys pop up when you press down on them. Xander gets a big kick out of them and Archer likes watching them pop, especially if we do it all at once for him. Once again, though, he mostly likes eating them.
Bottom right has his Touch and Feel puzzle. He likes looking in the little mirror, feeling all the pieces and scattering them around the room.
So the kiddos aren't the only ones learning new skills around here! My babies are growing much too fast, so I'm always working on memorizing all the quiet little moments with them before they've changed again (hence the blog name). Learning photography is one way to help me capture them at each stage.
I'm hoping to average about one "photoshoot" with them each month (in addition to all the daily pictures with both my phone and regular camera). Since I've been having fun brainstorming relatively inexpensive set-ups, I thought I'd share with other mamas who might be interested.
This was December's set-up. I purchsed this Snowman kit to use for the hat, scar and pipe, figuring the boys will be able to build snowmen outside with it after the shoot. I borrowed a white fuzzy blanket and some indoor snowballs (the boys are getting some in their stockings, but I didn't want Xander to know that). I used some face paint sticks for his nose and the "coal" on his chest. Since all of our cloth diapers are patterned, I used one of our reusable swim diapers. You could also go without a diaper and just use the scarf or snowballs to cover up!
All in all, I'm thrilled with how they turned out! I'm also thinking I need to keep an eye out for this type of blanket when they go on sale. It provided such a great matte background!
It was cold and snowy last weekend and I wanted to come up with a way to keep Xander busy without screens. We hadn't done a STEM/STEAM challenge in a while, so it was the perfect opportunity.
The scenario:
I told him that his job was to make a "helicopter lift" to carry the stranded penguins back home. The helicopter was a piece of string tied to a stool and a large paper clip I'd bent open. He'd have to build a lift or boat that he could swing the paper clip to, pick up and then set down on the other side of the water (we set out paper to symbolize the water, for a tougher challenge, you could spread them out and go from one sheet of paper to the other). Whatever he built had to be strong enough to carry all the penguins (we used about 10 from his Toobs).
The Materials:
I gave him pipe cleaners, aluminum foil and tape. We used the paper for the water and the string and a large paper clip for the helicopter.
Building his lift.
Xander had my husband and me each make a lift also. We ended up with some VERY different designs.
Using the string and paper clip to hook his lift ended up being a lot tougher than he expected.
The first attempt crashed in the water.
He made it, but only with one. He ended up having to re-design his lift to make it accommodate all the penguins.
Trying out a different design.
This is a challenge that could easily be done with other toys. We thought about rescuing Santa or Saving the Polar Bears (which would be a good environmental science tie in activity), but Xander wanted penguins.
I've always kind of considered myself a toy snob, although not at all based on cost (one of my son's favorite toys is a piece of PVC pipe). Clutter stresses me out and I don't like waste, so I've always been kind of picky about what I buy my kids. So many toys are played with for a week or so and then left to collect dust. I always look for things that have high replay value and will last for years. So much learning happens through play, I want to make sure the things I buy provide ample opportunities.
Recently several people have told me that we always have great toys and have asked for help shopping for their little ones. Since I love shopping for kids and helping out other mamas, I thought I'd create and share list of toy ideas. It ended up being GIANT to try to accommodate different genders and interests and provide lots of inspiration. I'm sure I'll add to it as I find new things.
General Tips:
I usually look for something open ended. If it can be used in flexible ways, it is likely to be used more often.
I try to avoid things with lots of lights and sounds. Now there are definitely exceptions to this rule, but if a toy does all the "work," then kids will lose interest quickly. Once they have pressed every button, they have kind of exhausted the toy. Also, my husband is an audiologist and says a lot of baby toys are loud enough to cause hearing damage. He recommends putting tape over speakers of loud baby toys.
Materials that will last through a beating are always a plus. For babies and toddlers I try to avoid too much plastic, since it all feels the same. Instead, I try to find a variety of textures.
Collectibles and stuffed animals really depend on the kid. While some kids love them and will get a lot of use out of them, that has not been the experience in our house. Action figures, stuffed animals and other collectibles just end up in a toy bin forgotten (Lego Minifigs being the exception). Same goes for toys based on characters. Some kids use them all the time, others outgrow them really quickly and then won't play with the toys because they're "too little kiddie."
Not a tip for buying toys, but for extending their use is that any toys with lots of parts and pieces need an easy to use container with a lid. Toys are no fun if you have to hunt down all their pieces. I keep all the boxes (mostly cheap plastic shoe boxes) of toys in the basement and then rotate them upstairs. I don't even mind if multiple boxes of toys being used at the same time, as long as everything finds its way home when it is done.
When giving a gift, a book that goes with the theme of the toy is a great addition! I didn't include books on this list because it is already long enough!
Zoobs* - I like that the STEM set has challenges for kids to accomplish, in addition to the free building. There are also sets with motors or glow in the dark pieces. Z-Bricks also let you attach Zoobs to Legos to extend the play.
Magnet Building Sticks - Just little rods and spheres, but we've had these out a lot over the years.
Wedgits - An interesting building toy. We've had them for years and recently just added the Wedgnetixversion, which are magnetic.
Marble Run - Younger kids love watching the balls go through, but might need help constructing. Some, like this Hape Marble Run, are wooden and involve more stacking. Others, like this Meland one are plastic tubes that connect together, which is the kind I got since Xander was pretty young when I purchased it. The Q-Ba Mazes have smaller pieces that give more options to put together, but are a little more challenging. The Techno Gears version combines gears and marble runs.
Legos - Once again, this is one of the few toys I don't mind having character sets for, since they still get used. There are sets for every age and interest level. We actually started collecting some of the Christmas Legos to use instead of a traditional Christmas Village. I figure it provides a good activity for us to do together every year.
Historical Monument Blocks - We recently got into these. Xander got the Colosseum for his birthday and has been having fun staging battles in it. There is also a Greek Set.
Magnetic Blocks
These end up getting their own category because they have been used pretty much constantly since Xander was 2. We've slowly added move sets over the years. Friends always enjoy using them also (as do adults). We've built on the ground, fridge and light table. There have been geometric designs, skyscrapers, ramps for toy cars, zoos with Toob animals and much more.
MagnaTiles - Now these are a bit of an investment, but they're great quality and have good magnets (which allows for better building). Two years in a row his only real birthday present was a big set of these. We also have the Glow in the Dark version.
Magnet Men - These were used to fill our Easter Eggs last year. They are so much fun and can hook together in lots of ways.
Active Play
Ultra Dash - This is a fun relay type toy that we often combine with Hilltops, rings and domes to create big obstacle courses.
Hilltops* - These will be in every age category! Little kids like them, but my 8 year old still uses them multiple times a week. They are used for climbing, obstacle courses and upside down for ring toss.
Wiggle Scooter- We got one with a much higher weight limit (AODI 3 Wheels Scooter Swing Motion Speeder), but it is currently stocked out on Amazon. Xander has a great time on it, but even his grandparents have used it. So fun.
Nerf Guns* - I never thought I'd be one to have toy weapons in my house, but Nerf Guns and other foam/inflatable weapons get used SO much! I love watching at gatherings when all the male family members have an epic battle. Also, to make it interesting, I used to write things on a dry erase board and then have him shoot certain words/answers with the suction cup darts.
Laser Tag Guns - These guns let you use different types of ammo and be on up to four teams. We have a set and two other cousins do too. Even though they're all different brands, they all work together so there was a massive laser gun fight at Thanksgiving with toddlers to adults running around playing. We also have the little bugs that you can shoot for target practice.
"Doll Houses"
Draw and Build Dollhouse- Modular magnetic dry erase pieces that kids design themselves. Just wish there were less girly colors!
Build and Imagine Dollhouses - Modular pieces that kids can put together in different ways (also makes storing easier). There's a castle, house and Marine Rescue Center.
Osmo - This is an interactive educational game for the iPad for ages 5-12. We started with the Genius Kitand the Pizza Co. The Pizza Co was definitely a huge hit, although Xander plays with all of the sets we have. I'm excited to get him the Detective Agency Set, too! There are also several creative games, as well as coding games that I think would be good for more tactile learners. We use code.org instead, which is a free coding website for kids.
Logic Games Solo puzzle games. These have been a big hit in our house. I actually started keeping a container out on the counter so I can rotate which puzzle we have out. Xander, my husband and my dad all tend to get them out while I'm working in the kitchen.
Detective/Spy Kits - Melissa and Doug has this good intro Spy Decoder Kit. ALEX toys has a couple of sleuth kits. This Master Detective Toolkit is a little bit more complex, so it is on Xander's list.
Magic Kit - I bought this one on a Black Friday deal a couple of years ago and it has gotten so much use we might expand with another set or book on card tricks. The Melissa and Doug sets look really well made.
Creative & Experimental
UV Pens - Write secret messages that can only be seen with the UV flashlight
Coloring Plates - Meliss and Doug make both a "girl" and a "boy" version that have their own carry case. Kahootz makes Action Plates and Fashion Plates, which seem to have more pieces. I got Xander the Action Plates on a whim and he ended up really enjoying them. They
There are lots of light table options. We built our own using wood, plexiglass and LED strips, but you can also buy them. There are big table versions that are definitely more of an investment and thinner panel versions like this one and this one.
* - Items with an asterisk appear on multiple lists due to being able to fit a wider range of kids, depending on ability and interest. I also see this as a good thing, because ideally, toys will last for years.
