Changing Things Up

You've just got to do it...you simply have to change things up a bit. Our babies have a good routine down when it comes to the big things like eating and sleeping, but when it comes to exploration and play, variety is the name of the game. I talked to my good friend who specializes in early childhood development and she enjoys "setting up an environment" for the next morning the night before for her twins. I got off the phone with my progressive San Fran mom and thought "Catherine, you're creative, get into it!" Not that I'm not "into it", but sometimes mornings can be tough for a tired mom and my creative juices just aren't flowing yet, no matter how many cups of coffee I've had.

So, for a tired mommy on a Monday morning, I either take a deep breath and come up with something new or I pull from the activities currently in the rotation. These could last 10 minutes or 10 seconds, so I just keep 'em coming.

Here are a few that we like to do:

"Cheerio Shake": put Cheerios in the snack cups and let them go wild. They love the sounds and eating/playing all at the same time. Mantra= sweep later
"Pillow Pile": I take cushions & pillows out of the tv room, relocate them to our big room and pile them up into a tower. They love pushing them around.
"Orchestra Conductor": Simple, I turn on Mozart and act like a conductor. Two out of three wave their arms along with me/the music
"Babies on a Blanket": weeeeeee! I lay a blanket on the floor which all the babies immediately sit on. Then the fun begins as I pull them around.
"Couch Climbers": (shown above) Reposition the pillows & cushions of the couch all over the floor and as mini towers on the couch. This makes our tv room into an obstacle course.
"Dance Party": Duh - turn on mommy's favorite music and let loose. Each baby gets their turn to dance in my arms while the others groove on the floor.
"Coin Shake": (shown above) Put coins into metal water bottles, make sure the lids tight and let them enjoy the loud clanging.
"What's in the Toybox": this is a another obvious one, but I have to remind myself to do it. I sit on the couch next to the toybox and take a toy out one at a time...placing it at a different location on the couch. They just stare in disbelief and rediscover old toys.
"Closet Explorers": Open the closet door. It's the easy. Of course, inspect the space and make sure it's safe, etc.
"Winter Gear": (pic shown w/ hat) I have a bag in the closet filled with winter hats, scarves, gloves, etc. Unzip that baby and put it in the middle of the floor for some "unpacking" fun