A Little of This, A Little of That

Okay, I know this is from last week, but....
How cute is he, cowboy boots and butterfly outfit!!
I could eat him up!!!

Another visit from Miss Crystal!!! 

We are the luckiest kids anywhere.  Having our very own Story Time, with a professional!!  She picks the best books, books I have never heard of or didn't even know existed.  I love her!!!

Miss Crystal always starts off her time with us giving the kids a chance to tell her all their important information.  She is so patient and kind, the kids feel very special!!

I have to say that this has got to be my new favorite book.
"What's the Magic Word?" by Kelly DiPucchio,
although "The Wide Mouthed Frog" by Keith Faulkner and Jonathan  Lambert is pretty good too!!

Working on Independent or Self Help skills with the little ones can be very timed consuming and result in a lot of mess or frustration, but in the long run it is SO worth it.  We have been working on washing our hands independently for a long time, and Scamp is finally beginning to get it.  She is careful to get ON and OFF the stool, getting the soap has become very popular, and of course the washing can't be beat.  We sing a song when we wash, that way we know we have washed long enough to get all those itty bitty germs, and Scamp wiggles her body when she is singing (or I'm singing) and now that she is doing it herself somewhat, she just wiggles and doesn't sing.  To Cute!!!  Putting the time and effort in to help the kids reach these milestones is really worth it in the end!!  Not only am I proud of them, but they are so proud of themselves.

Just A Few Things We Do...

I just had to add this one... Scamp actually put that crown on herself!!

We have been learning about flowers this week.  Stems, petals, roots... we have been digging and scooping, we even found a seed that was open and we got to look inside.  Unfortunately I didn't get to many photos of those things as my hands were a little busy.  

Today we got to get outside and do a little Spring Cleaning of our toys.  

What better way to clean than with bubbles and water!!

Roo realized that her container had a leak.

Huh...

"That's ok Shell, I'll just hold it over the water"

I found Sprout investigating this paint container...

Trying to figure out why the water inside wasn't coming out...

"YELLOW, Shell!!"

"BLUE, Shell!!!"

"I wonder what will happen if I do this??"
Ok, I know she didn't actually say that, but I know that was what she was thinking ;)

She realized that it splashes down her book :)

Working those little fingers...
Getting strong so he can use them to write, draw, and hold the oh so coveted pencil, markers and crayons!!

Ok, so this is one of those moments that I just absolutely love!!

The Littles were off exploring the yard while the big girls were playing in the water table, I peeked around the corner when I began hearing giggling...

This Is What I Found...

A leak in the hose connection

"Can I stop it??"

"Can I drink it??"

"I think I can"

No Water...

Water!!!

"I Got It This Time!!"

Learning is an always evolving process for young children.  They see something to learn in everything they touch, look at, play with, or take apart.  I am just lucky that I get to go a long for the ride... it's not something I can always take credit for ;)

HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND!!!

Busy, Busy, Busy

While Spring has come to NC, today it was downright cold!!  Cold and Rainy!!  I was getting used to the early Spring weather, so much so that when we went for a walk this morning, I was actually surprised at how cold it was, BRRRRRRR.... 

Staying inside is hard on the kids after spending so much time outside over the last few weeks.  They love to move their bodies in the freedom that the outdoors allows.  Being inside this morning was a little hard on some of us ;)  So, what does a provider do in situations like this, you ask???

WE DANCE!!!

And Dance...

Laugh a little...

Dance Some More!!!
What a great way to get the wiggles out!!!

Miss Crystal, our local Librarian, is visiting today and I knew if we didn't get some more large muscle movement it may make for a wiggly, squiggly story time... so outside we went!!!

Had to stop to pick up some flowers for Mom!!

Scamp saw the big girls smelling the flowers along the walk, so...
She had to give it a try.

We directed her and Lil Bit towards the more fragrant flowers on the porch!!

Sniff, Sniff...

Mmmmmmmm!!

Now with all those wiggles out... we are ready!!!

Miss Crystal shows us what's in her special bag!!
We are getting excited!!

Miss Crystal ALWAYS remembers our littlest friends!!
She always has special books just for them to touch and look at!!
She is the BEST!!!

Miss Crystal also always remembers to bring the coveted STICKERS for the end of Story Time!!

Comparing is also fun :)

We began an art project today that will be finished tomorrow...

I wonder what it could be??

What a busy morning!! 

 My little friends were very tired by lunch time and could not wait for a snuggle and nap time.  

All that movin, shakin, and learnin, means our bodies and mind need a rest...

So we can do it all over again later!!!

Loads of Laughs!!

The whole crew is back from Spring Break this week and the vacations seem to have agreed with them.  They have come back to Shell's with lots of giggles and wiggles to share!!

Scamp has been cracking herself up these last 2 days!!  In doing so, the rest of us can't help but crack up.  I don't know about you, but there are only a few 18 month old's that I know who can make a joke, but joke she has been doing.

Yesterday I took down the Mega Blocks and she would hide it behind her back and put out her little hand as if to say, "Where'd it go?"
Then she would take it out and laugh!!  

Here she is making the big girls crazy by taking the blocks they needed, but she thought that was VERY funny!!!

We did get some counting in too :)

Today Scamp was again full of herself.

She would keep dropping the square and laughing... 

If your wondering what Scamp is doing... she is walking BACKWARDS, UP a little hill and falling down, then laughing of course!!!  Her little shoulder would go up every time she would walk backwards, like it was helping to keep her balance!!  She thought this whole thing was the funniest thing ever... We Did Too!!!