What is age appropriate?

When family and friends had babies I never knew what you were supposed to get. I went into the shop and followed what it said on the box. Thankfully family sometimes would just tell you what they needed. Now that I have my own child it has gotten a bit easier to shop for other people's children. Saying that if they are above the age of 2 I'm still a bit stumped especially if they have reached the teenage years! 

What I have come to realise is that the age recommended on the box does not always ring true. The wee man never showed much interest in lots of his toys when he was a baby. They were more for show than anything else. Yes I am stimulating my child. Then suddenly when he was 6 months he decided that he wanted to play with the 0-3 month toys so I could not put them away. Even as he get's older "baby" toys are still interesting to him. Should I stop him and tell him he is too old for that?

Then there is the opposite where he is showing interest in things that are not designed for his age group apparently. It frustrates me sometimes when events say for children who are 3-5 years old. Unless it's a block of courses for swimming, baby signing, baby singing, baby jumping, one off events for the under 3 are few and far between. I think that overall people underestimate what my child can do, especially if I'm there to support him. With a year subscription to the Glasgow Science centre we tend to go quite a bit. It's worth every penny and my wee man discovers something new each time. They had something on called shiny time, a 1/2 hour to learn about things that are shiny. So he probably would not understand the whole science of it all but maybe it might fascinate and entertain him in some way. I had to convince the woman taking it that it would be okay. If he did not like it honest I would just walk away. She expressly said as long as I did my part. Needless to say he found exploring the shiny things interesting and got to use glue and glitter after which are like his favourite things! 

I find myself buying toys which all say from 3 and up. I get it that sometimes toys may have small parts which they may swallow. While at a friends my wee man discovered a toy with marbles that entertained him for ages and I watched him like a hawk thinking to myself if he tries to swallow that marble I probably won't be able to stop him. So though he enjoys it I won't be buying him a toy like that any time soon. A lady serving me in a store explained that certain parents will think it's safe for their children to be left alone with these toys if it did not have the warning. Health and Safety, I get it. We told you so, I get it.

There are toys though that I hope will be okay. He loves arts and crafts and baking and there is lots in these categories that say only suitable for 3 and up but I adapt and the wee man loves it. I have a huge Amazon wish list for him and a lot of them are deemed for an older child. He got a guitar for Christmas which says for ages 6+ but boy does he know how to rock it. So what has it come down to. Taking it easy, follow his lead and seeing what he likes not what it says on the box. In the end it does not take much to make him happy.

Fun on a bean bag

Create an ultra mini soft play at home on a rainy day. All you need apparently is one bean bag.

New Skills

The wee man is suddenly into adventure. He used to have this fear which seems to be slowly disappearing. You see it most clearly now when we go to the park. Climbing to new heights while mummy quietly says a prayer that he does not fall and hurt himself. He's not interested in the "baby" side of the park now. He has got new skills which he is determined to perfect.

I'm linking up with See it Snap it Love it over at Dear Beautiful where the theme is New.

Streching our legs at Mugdock Park

For our first proper stretch of our legs for the New Year we headed to Mugdock Country Park. A beautiful space just outside of Glasgow. It's perhaps one of the things I really appreciate about living in Glasgow, you only have to travel a short distance and you hit the beautiful countryside that Scotland has to offer. That is the thing I love about Scotland, it's beautiful countryside. It has been a while since we have had the wee man in the back carrier and he certainly does not complain about it as much as being in the pushchair. Maybe it's because he is a bit closer to his Daddy. It gave us the opportunity anyway to go for a nice walk and breathe in some much needed fresh air to clear away the cobwebs and appreciate the country park's natural beauty. The wee man was maybe a little bit miffed that he never got to jump in the muddy puddles himself but he made sure that daddy did for him!

Where there is water the wee man never misses the opportunity to throw some stones, sticks, leaves in.

Then it was his turn to have all the fun. Mugdock have only recently redeveloped their play park and it is pretty impressive. Something for everyone really. The wee man is getting a lot more brave when it comes to the adventure playground and I am learning very quickly not to underestimate him.

  

Silent Sunday

The Friday Song Choice

No mummy, No Daddy, It's mine!

So I got my 22 month old e-mail update from Baby Centre and the first sentence reads  "Strong opinions and rigidity are hallmarks of toddlerhood." Like no kidding! He quite firmly tells us "No mummy" or "No Daddy", "é mio!" (It's mine) pretty much all the time. Not only is it all his, he wants to do everything by and for himself. 

I've been told to choose my battles when it comes to reasoning with your child but damn I did not realise I had to start when he was so young. You think that self-determination and confidence is a good thing. It is but it is also admittedly a bit frustrating having to watch it play out. Come on mummies and daddies, you know what I mean. They are busy playing with their toys but they don't do it properly. The torn books, the stickers stuck upside down, the paint that goes everywhere except on the paper.

Sometimes the wee man gets frustrated when it is not working out properly, so you try to help, HA! it was better to just leave him to it. The wee man has always been a bit of a character but boy has it grown!