“You have to be odd to be number one”

I am a little bit of a book hoarder, especially with the books the boys love the most. If i see copies of the books we love in charity shops (even if we already have more than one copy), i have to buy them. That probably seems a little odd i know but they com in extremely handy for craft ideas and various activities. We used a copy of Cat in the Hat last year to make bunting for Opeie's Birthday which turned out great. Last week it was cold and wet out and i wanted to come up with some games to entertain Opeie but that were educational too.

We had a shabby looking copy of Fox in Socks that i had brought for 10p so I thought it would be fun to cut numbers out of the pages and use them for some fun games.  I'm always trying to get Opeie more familiar with his letters and numbers and thought that including images from one of his favourite books would make the activity more fun for him.

We scattered the numbers around the room and cranked the music up. Our own version of musical statues. Instead of being as still as he could i stopped the music, shouted out a number and he quickly had to run to it. I then hid the numbers around the house and told Opeie to track them down, bring them back in to the lounge and put them in order. We finished up with putting numbers together to make bigger numbers. A simple yet fun set of activities.

We've got plenty more books to cut up, i wonder what we will do with them next?

"What is there more kindly than the feeling between host and guest?"

I had big plans for getting out and doing something this morning with Opeie but as i dragged our wheelie bins down the path before getting in the car to take Seth to school i buttoned up my coat and watched the steam come from my mouth as it hit the cold air, it was freezing. Winter is well and truly here. We loaded the troops into the car and as i looked back in the mirror before heading off i saw snot running down Opeie's face almost reaching his lips, ewww! it was clear that we weren't going anywhere today. We did our usual rounds and when we got home i asked Opeie what he wanted to do? "Picnic with my toys!". A boy that knows exactly what he wants, nice and easy for me.

I went hunting for our parasol that has been in the cupboard under the stairs since the warm weather upped and left, i thought I'd go for a sunny day kind of picnic, we didn't want the make believe sunshine melting our Haba cheese after all. Opeie loves role playing with his play food and he loves feeding his toys. I guess he sees me helping him all the time with things and then wants to recreate that with his favourite characters.

As always there were no shortage of guests and on the menu Haba's finest cuts of meat, fruit and vegetables and a cheese selection that was worthy of the finest imaginary crackers, all courtesy of The Toadstool. Opeie likes to be the head chef, Waiter and Host and as he served up the food he made idle chit chat with his guests.

I really love how much Opeie loves role playing and it is so good for his development. Its great for his speech and his confidence and its so nice to play with him and listen to all of the things he has picked up from us, the books he is read and the programmes he loves. His love of play food is what has been the driving force for his Christmas present this year. Since receiving these from The Toadstool they have become one of the firm favourites during play time and i cant recommend them enough. If you are stuck for something to buy your toddler then look no further than this great site that has a huge selection on offer. These are perfect as stocking fillers. Word got round about what was being served and toys were queuing around the block.

Play food isn't all about the roleplaying, as a toy and as a learning tool it can be very versatile. Finding coloured plates and then organising the food on to the correct plates by colour is a favourite game of Opeie's and with the smaller items like the cheese and meats you can make fun counting games. Its one of the great things about playing with your child, whatever you are doing they are always learning, taking everything in.

It didnt get any warmer outside but with warm food in their bellies and endless cuddles from a very loving host the toys and Opeie continued to have fun throughout the afternoon.

For a great selection of soft play food perfect for your role playing children visit thetoadstool.co.uk

"3, that's the magic number"

Today Opeie counted to 10 for the first time and were so proud of him. We starting calling the numbers out and he copied us all the way. Mrs M had such a lovely look on her face while he was doing it, it was so cute. Opeie's speech has been coming on so well over the last few months and he comes out with new words daily so its great to know he is moving in the right direction.

I'm selfishly counting down the days until i hear the words 'daddy i love you' i think I'm going to be an emotional wreck when i hear it.