Kitchen cupboard creations

When I've got mundane jobs to do in the kitchen that are done faster without help, Orla joins me on a tablecloth spread on the floor, surrounded by melamine bowls, each containing a tablespoon of some intriguing and tactile substance. She has a couple of empty bowls to mix things in and a couple of spoons to scoop the ingredients up with if required. You can go as tidy or as messy as you like, depending on the substances you choose!

We use pasta shapes, rice, couscous(all either cooked or uncooked for different textures), different cereals - oats, cornflakes, rice crispies, etc - dried fruit, flour... anything that comes to hand in the store cupboard (though I don't recommend sugar!). Orla is rapidly and completely absorbed, experimenting with fingers and mouth to experience the different textures of the ingredients around her. She loves running couscous or flour through her fingers, and the cereals and fruit come in handy as on-the-go snacks! I avoid adding water to the mix these days after one rushed and naive afternoon, when I had to try to remove a floury cement from both daughter and kitchen tiles...

Peepo Pots

Orla and Mummy were feeling tired this afternoon, so we needed something simple and fun to while away half an hour. This activity is great - it takes a couple of minutes to set up, and teaches so many key skills while you're having fun. I gathered together a handful of pots, pans, tubs and jars with lids and raided Orla's treasure basket for items that could be put inside them. Then we sat on the floor together, and tried putting the items in different containers, putting the lids on and taking them off again. Simple, but look at what your little one's doing...

Motor skills and dexterity are developed through placing objects inside the different containers and trying to place the lids on accurately. Spatial skills are tried and tested as your child experiments with which objects fit into which containers. Object permanence is learned and reinforced as we remove the lids - "Peepo!" - the object is still there, and this raises a giggle every time! Plus Mummy gets to introduce and repeat 'opposites' with visual aids - 'in' and 'out', 'on' and 'off', 'heavy' and 'light'(objects/receptacles), plus vocabulary about the objects and containers they are playing with.

In the last small Tupperware box, I placed a snack - a perfect way to end the game, when Orla was starting to lose interest!

Create a Treasure Basket

I put together the foundations of Orla's treasure basket just before she was six months old. I had read about the benefits of heuristic play - children's exploration of everyday objects and experimentation with them - and the idea of a treasure basket that she could dip into and that I could add to, update and regenerate in order to create something that she could enjoy for many months, or even years, really appealed to me. The fact that it costs almost nothing to make was an added bonus!

The idea is to collect objects that are made from materials other than the smooth, shiny plastic that most children's toys are made from, allowing the child to feel, mouth and play with a wide variety of shapes, sizes and textures. Aim to collect 20-30 objects to begin with; over time, as your baby grows old enough to handle other objects, or requires new items to add interest, you can increase to 60-80 objects. You may need to find a bigger basket, too!

I began with a shallow, straw bread basket, approximately 16 inches in diameter. I collected together cotton, silk, wool, fleece and felt items, wooden spoons and hairbrushes, a bamboo calligraphy brush, loofah, sisal and sponge objects, grosgrain, satin and glitter ribbons, tin boxes and metal spoons, a rubber ball, a feathered shuttlecock, large smooth pebbles, a straw tablemat, a ball of silver foil, cardboard tubes, postcards and thick paper coasters... and so the list goes on. As you can see, I was able to pick most of them up in half an hour as I wandered from room to room. Since then, I have found or acquired silk purses, individually knotted beads, a fat pincushion (minus pins!), a hessian chopstick sheath, wooden top and toys, to name but a few - and a much larger and deeper woven willow basket with a handle!

Keep the basket away from everyday toys, somewhere it can be put away between playtimes. When you want to use it, choose a time when your child is happy and rested; clear away all other toys and introduce the basket, allowing him or her to choose the objects that look most appealing. Let them play for about 30 minutes or so, or until they begin to lose interest. Some items (the paper and card) will disintegrate and need to be replaced; others will last the lifespan of the treasure basket, when you can return them to the drawers they came from...

Orla has spent countless hours enjoying her constantly evolving heap of treasures and I've loved finding new additions for her to examine. And because the point of the exercise is non-directed exploration and discovery, I've been able to sit back, watch her indulge her natural curiosity - and to enjoy a HOT cup of tea and the Guardian quick crossword, too!

Why write this blog?

I'm a very lucky lady. I live in Penang, Malaysia, with my husband, who works (as I used to) in an international school and daughter Orla, who has her mummy at home with her full-time. The sun shines everyday, we have access to many facilities suitable for entertaining little people and a circle of friends with young children. However, some days it's so hot and humid we don't want to go outside for long, or our friends are busy... and Mummy needs to find activities to amuse an energetic 14 month old.

I suspect that there may be other mummies out there in cyberspace who are tired out, stressed out or racking their brains for new forms of entertainment for their little ones. I'm not guaranteeing that I can produce a carnival of absolutely original or brilliant ideas on a daily basis, but I hope that documenting things that Orla and I do together will help out other mummies who haven't slept too well recently, or who need a few minutes to enjoy a cuppa in peace. Some of the activities will be for mums and babies to play together; others are meant for independent, explorative play - after all, we all know how important it is to have a little 'me' time!

You'll have seen many of the ideas before, or will want to adapt them to suit you and your child, but I hope you'll enjoy dipping in from time to time to find something you'd forgotten, or when you just don't feel up to creativity and originality! And if you have any contributions, I'd love to hear from you, too...