Book Display Shelves

It has been a very busy week. Time seems to be slipping through my fingers! I've spend most of last week and this week researching two topics, bookshelves and modern cloth nappies.

This write up is on bookshelves. I really, really, really want a front facing display book shelf. I want. I'm almost, no I am obsessed with finding the perfect display book shelf, one where the book covers face outwards. The advantage of a front facing bookshelf is the book covers are on display and thus young people are attracted to the books, consequently encouraging reading and more importantly returning the books.

Here are my requirement

• able to display front covers
• free standing - we are renting and I don't want to put holes in the walls
• durable -  can handle the knocks and bumps it's likely to encounter.
• ageless - should age well and not look out of date 5 years from now. Also neutral color (not gender specific.)

My finding so far are in the picture above and below is a summary.

Œ	Imaginarium Book Library $59.99 available at Toys R Us
	Wooden Book Storage Organiser $49.99 available at Toys R Us
Ž	Junior book display. I love this book display and it would be prefect for our living area, unfortunately sold out and I haven’t found a similar design available for purchase in Australia.
	Book display. Sloped book display shelves on one side and deep shelving on the other side. I like the idea of wheels, makes it easy to move and clean underneath. I have no idea the cost of this. But it looks sturdy and well made. I imagine this would last forever. Made by TP Preschool Equipment . Website http://www.tppreschoolequipment.com.au
	Double side book display. Good if you have lots of books, unfortunately sold out as well. Website http://www.teaching.com.au
‘ & ’	6 & 7 Similar to number 4 except no wheels.  Number 6 shows the shelves and number 7 the book display. Available from http://www.teaching.com.au
“	Wire book display stand. Available from http://www.wooldridges.com.au

So far I'm thinking maybe number 6 & 7‘’.

Shelving I would have considered if we weren't renting.

If we weren't renting a google search showed loads of wonderful parent's who have used clever ideas to create display shelving for books, for example

• Ikea spice racks in this Montessori bedroom here
• Rain Gutter book shelf here
• Recycled Wood Pallet Shelving here
• DIY project - Flat wall book shelves here

I showed my husband another picture (not the one I've linked to on this page) where someone had used Ikea spice racks to display books from knee height to eye level of an adult. I thought it was wonderful and very clever. He said "that's a neat climbing frame." It never occurred to me that it might serve another purpose. I'm also fairly confident at least one of my little people would see a climbing frame as well.

Anyway check out this website if you want inspiration for children's bookshelves.

Salad garden update - Lovely and lush

Our salad garden has grown. It looks lovely and lush. We have lettuce, chives and basil. We have started to harvest the lettuce. Only one out of our three Kale plants has survived. I take turns taking one of the girls out to water the salad garden. Sometimes A & G's are not very accurate at aiming the spout at the plants. Let just say I'm lucky the Brisbane climate is warm this time of year.

I would have loved to have taken a photo, but there are two of them and one of me!

Montessori Materials - Look what arrived!

Look what arrived last week! I'm so happy with theses. Direct from At Home with Montessori we received our order for our Palmer Grasp Cylinder Block and the Pincer Gasp Cylinder Block. We also have the interlocking discs (not photographed here. )

A & G are very good with the Palmer Grasp. The girls have examined and scrutinised these blocks very closely. When they pull the cylinder blocks out they like to poking their fingers into the hole. I have placed both blocks on a shelf in our living area.

A loves the Pincer Grasp block. I have to keep track of where she crawls to when she has the cylinder in her hand(s). So far I've found the cylinder under the sofa, in the kitchen, under the desk in the study and in the treasure basket.  Her other favorite place to put the cylinder is her mouth.

Bedtime reading for babies and infants

This is the newest addition to our growing library. Time for Bed is written by Mem Fox. This book starts with a mother reading to her child, with every turn of the page other "animal" parent bids goodnight to their young. The book ends with the child asleep. This book incorporates a broad variety of animals from the familiar warm and fuzzy domesticated animals (cat, dog and cow) and wildlife (fish, snake and bee). I love this book for its lyrical rhythmic verses and beautiful realistic illustrations. A lovely gentle book and a perfect read to slow down the pace just before bed.

Mem Fox, is a well know writer of childrens' books such as Possum Magic and Hattie and the Fox (which I remember from when I was a little girl.) We also own two of her other books Where is the Green Sheep and  Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes. Kylie at How we Montessori reviewed Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes and I agree with all her comments. Like her I love the global feel of Ten Little Fingers. You can read her review here.

10 months old and self feeding

A, eating with her spoon

A & G turned 10 months yesterday and we have been moving away from me feeding them mush food. We use a combination of Baby Led Weaning and Montessori. I have committed to providing more opportunities for A & G to feed themselves mushy foods.What a mess and noisy affair as they like to make clucking and sucking noises when they eat.

For breakfast they have either porridge, omelet, bircher muesli and/or toast. For snacks, they have one of the following Cruskett with avocado, crackers and cheese, yogurt and fruit. I try to have  seasonal fruit available for them. At they moment they love strawberries. But the strawberry must be whole and the green leafy part must be left on the strawberry or they will not eat it.

Lunch usually starts with finger food followed by a mush meal which I was feeding to them (if they were in the mood for me to feed them), if not more finger food.

Dinner is served at the table as a family (recent change). Mainly finger food, with a side serve of vegetables or salad. They like salads, its very interesting to look at, bits of the salad taste familar, like carrots, pear, and sweet potatoes.

In the last week I have made an concerted effort to have dinner ready for everyone at an appointed time (hence the slow cooker.) Dinner is served at the big table and everyone eats together. It has been a process of  trial and error to find the right time to eat as a family. So far 5:30 pm is working for us.

A is a professional at using a spoon and whilst most of it ends up on her or on the floor she enjoys her food (see picture). G on the other hand is still waving her spoon around, her preference is to use her hands and when it comes to mush food, she either dumps it on the ground or wears it.

When I see how much mess two little people can created, I tell myself, long after the mess has been cleared we will only have memories and photos to show for these moments.

About Us

Hi I'm Kelly, live in Brisbane, Australia. I am a mum to twin girls (A & G), born July 2011 and they are non-identical.

I started this blog to share information about twins, raising them, sharing what worked for me, things I would have done differently and my new passion Montessori. I’m not a Montessori purist or trained for that matter. I came across Montessori when G started crawling and I wondered how I was going to survive two moving babies. Should I buy a playpen? Where will I set it up? In my living area? It will keep them safe but what implications would it have. I wanted them to be safe, but I also wanted them to explore and experience what life has to offer, within boundries.

I had heard of Montessori before, but I thought it was aim only at the 3+ age group. It's not. Since discovering Montessori I’ve made changes around the home which I know have made life at home easier and I will endeavor to share some of my experiences with you.

No two day is the same, no two children the same, but everyday is a new day to learn and enjoy.

Happy reading.

Treasure Basket

If you have read How To Raise An Amazing Child the Montessori Way by Tim Seldin, you may have come across the Treasure Basket. Creating a Treasure Basket was one of the first Montessori things I did. It's simple and doesn't cost a lot to put together, just some thought in gathering the items together.

Above is our Treasure Basket. The basket came from Sam's Warehouse for $8 and everything else we already had in the house. Below is a picture of what is in our basket at the moment

• rattle
• shoe
• bowl
• baby wipe wrapper (see below)
• stainless steel egg cup
• silicon egg ring
• wooden spoon
• stainless steel sugar bowl
• box

Top Favorites

Shoe - A&G are fascinated by shoes, they don't have shoes at the moment, so I brought a pair placed one in their basket. This shoe has been closely examined by them on numerous occasions and is often the first item to be extracted.

Rattle - I know it's plastic, but they love it. It came from a charity shop, they use to just shake it, but now they roll it across the floor. They are also very enthralled by the small balls rolling around at the ends.

Sugar bowl - Feels different and has an interesting lid with a small handle at the top to practise their pincer grip. They like to lift the lid up, then let the lid go and listen to it clatter. Oh wow, what an interesting noise that makes. Let's do that again. On occasions they have been known to fight over the sugar bowl.

Bowl (Green) - A new addition to the basket and by far their favourite . It makes a very interesting noise on the tiles, and is the right shape and size to spin across the tiles.

Black box  -  Another  new addition to the treasure basket it contains three items inside which rattle, A&G are practising taking the lid off the box. It take a lot of concentration.

Lastly the baby wipes. This is a empty packet, which I have cloth wipes inside. They like to take tissues out of box, and this is a variation. At home with Montessori covered this in her blog where they used a pringles tube. .

Books for Infants

Here are two of our favourite books. Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown

and The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle.

I remember been enthralled by The Very Hungry Caterpillar when I was young and now I have children I see why. There are so many aspects covered by this book (life cycle of a butterfly, days of the week, colours, counting, food variety, the moon and the sun and it is interactive)  A&G like to explore this book by poking their little fingers in the holes the caterpillar has created.

My parent brought my sister and I a Swan plant when we were little. They may have brought two, so we wouldn't fight over one plant. The Monarch Butterfly likes to lay its eggs on the leaf of the Swan plant. I remember visiting the plant each day and to our delight one day we discovered little white eggs on the leaves. We watched avidly as the little caterpillars hatched, ate the leaves on the plant, grew larger, turned into a chrysalis/pupa and eventually a butterfly. It truly was an amazing experience to witness. I hope to provide the same experiences with my children. I feel it is important to create opportunities for real life activities and memories that will be remembered many years after the event. Since they have one of the best books on the life cycle of a butterfly, why not investigate avenues to provide them with a real life experience.

Both these books are Big Board Books otherwise known as lap books. They cost more than the normal board books, but I buy these where possible.  A & G like to touch the pages, help turn the pages, sometimes sit on the page, and press their faces closer to the book to look as whatever has caught their fancy. The bigger the book the less fussing and frustration experience by everyone.

PS : Please note the Swan plant is declared a weed in some states of Australia.

Our Local Library

I love the library. It's free! As a twin mum I look for places that provide good parking and easy access to the facilities, including a door wide enough for a twin pram to enter and move about. Libraries tick all the boxes. Also some libraries have undercover parking so on a rainy day they are perfect places to visit.

I have always loved libraries. I aim to instill a love of books, or more importantly reading into my children. We read to the girls everyday and we visit the library every fortnight. I often travel to other libraries, as each library offers something different. The libaries do get busier with the after school crowd, so I prefer to visit before 2:30 pm. This allows A&G the opportunity to leave their pram and explore the library.

This is the children's space in our local library. Libraries today are different to when I was young. Beautiful don't you think? A special space design for little people.

All the board books are stored on the bottom shelf. Little people (crawlers and walkers) can move about this space without parents worrying about the books been torn by curious little individuals.

There is enough open space for tummy time, crawlers and walkers. Plus enough room for our twin pram to move and park up without been in the way. Before A&G crawled I would often lay a blanket on the floor and put them down for tummy time.

The library also has a selection of toys members can borrow (including puzzles and pretend play items). Every week they display a "Toy of the Week." When we visited an activity centre was the toy of the week and it kept A&G very busy.

So if you haven't visited your local library recently give it a try, there is something for everyone.

Top Tips for Formula Feeding

I'm not sure where I read about this, but it sure kept me sane.

You may or may not know you can make formula up in bulk. Well if you do know this, are you currently counting each scoop as you add it to the preboiled water?

Tip number 1 - you can use your kitchen scales to weigh the amount of formula you require.

On the side of baby formula tins the makers of the formula detail how many scoops per mils, for example for 250mls add 5 scoops. You can multiply this out for lets say 1 litre = 20 scoops. But when your tired it is so easy to miscount 20 scoops of formula.

Take a  close look at the formula tin. On the tin is a reference to how much one scoop of formula weighs (1 scoop = 7.8 grams.) If you multiply 7.8 grams by 20 = 156 grams. Now you have the total amount you  need to make up 1 litre of formula.  156 grams is easier to remember (write it down in a prominent place), quicker to scoop out (use a normal spoon, forget using the scooper supplied with the tin) and leaves less margin for error.

Please refer to the formula tin you are using for the scoop weight amount and number of scoops.

Tip number 2 - Use two jugs.

We always used two jugs. One with formula made up that we were using and one with preboiled, cool water waiting for the next batch. Why? We tried having two jugs, but that didn't work. Something about electric jugs, that signify cup of tea. Wouldn't you know it, both jugs are empty when you desperately need some water to make formula, or the water is piping hot! 


I hope this helps another parent of multiples.

Opportunities for Gross Motor Skills

We do not have stairs in our house, so we do not have the option for A&G to climb up and down steps. I have improvised by placing the cushions for our sofa on the floor and creating a step.  G can climb up onto the sofa easily, A on the other hand is still building up her confidence to climb up to the second level.

The beauty of our sofa is it's free (!) and it can be configured differently depending on how many cushions I want to place on the floor.

G worked out very quickly how to climb up and I taught her how and where to climb down. I will do the same once A works out how to climb up.

There's nothing more pleasurable then watching your child learn to do something for themselves. The big smile on their face is worth a million dollars.

Freedom of Movement

We own 1 baby gate, which is currently dismantled. A & G can move freely throughout our house. Rooms I do not want them in I close the door, for example the laundry. I have select toys, activities and a mystery basket in various locations in our house.

A&G have been wake from their morning nap for about an hour. I gave them a  morning snack consisting of a whole strawberry and 1/2 a Cruskett with avocado. Since snack time, I've been observing them discretely and they have been very busy.

Front Entrance

• Both crawled to front door to look outside and watch the building activity at our neighbour's house across the road. 15 minutes.
• G  crawled to archive box waiting to go to storage. Stood up and banged on the box lid. She spent 10 minutes at this task which I think is a long time. She obviously loves to bang on things. A is still watching what is happening across the road. 
• G is bored now, lets out a squeal and disturbs her sister who turns around and squeals at her.
• A crawls to storage cupboards to open and close the bottom draw. G joins her and they enjoy 10 minutes opening and closing the draws whilst babbling to each other. Not sure what they were discussing but they sure were enjoying themselves.

Total time 35 minutes

Study (next to entrance)

• A crawls to study and sits under desk.
• G follows (2 minutes later) and starts squealing. The squeals echo so A joins in.
• The squeals are ear piercing, I go in and speak to them about using their inside voice when in the house.

Total time 5 minutes

Lounge

• A & G follow me to lounge area and both see the nesting cup tower I built for them while they were having their snack.  Both crawl to the tower to smash the tower down.
• A crawls over to the books and G uses the couch to stand up. She spends 5 minutes cruising from one end the next. A is still reading her book (upside down.) The book has photos of baby animals.
• G crawls over to join A reading, en route she is distracted by a noise from outside. Crawls back to entrance to investigate. (5 minutes)
• G comes back, rolls around on the floor in the lounge whilst talking to her foot. A discards her book and selects another book. (10 minutes)

Total time 20 minutes.

The grand exit

• G crawls off in direction of kitchen.
• A decides to join her. Discards her book and crawls off.

I can't see them any more, but I can hear one banging on the bongo drums and the other babbling in the hallway. The babbling sounds like A. I'm off to take a sneaky look at them.

Gardening Activity

I love vegetable gardens, as we are renting I'm limited to gardening in pots. A salad garden is always good to have and can be gown most of the year in South East Queensland. On the weekend I purchased a variety of salad seedlings. The other day the girls and I planted the seedling consisting of lettue and Kale. Not sure how the Kale will go in our warmer climate.

I set up the potting station in our garage. As they are too young to really garden, I did all the work and talked to them about what I was doing. They were most attentive, until A became bored and crawled off to bang on the drink fridge door. G remained and seemed facinated by what I was doing. I turned around to pick up the brush and shovel to clean up our mess. When I turned back around, two seedlings were missing and G had a lettuce leaf hang out of her mouth.

Success alround and finised off by the girls crawling to their room for an afternoon nap.

Creative montessori spaces on the cheap

Before I read up on Montessori we would put the girls down for tummy time and then give them rattles and toys. We all but put items in their hands, so they never really had to reach for anything unless they threw items out of their reach. Once I started reading up on Montessori we stop doing this, pared back the toys and were more thoughtful in our toy selection.

As mentioned earlier my introduction to Montessori coincided with G learning to crawl, so I knew we would need to make some changes in the house. I loved the idea of having a few select items on low shelving, but we are renting at the moment whilst we look for a house plan to build. I couldn't justify buying new furniture that may or may not fit into our new house.

My solution was to remove the junk in the cupboard of our TV unit and placed some of the select items on the shelf. When the babies went to bed we would just close the door and hey presto a clean tidy room.

G loved it, she loved to pull everything out and climb inside it even better. Working on her spatial awareness. The novelty of climbing into the cupboard has worn off, she moved onto bigger and better things, which I'll cover in another post.

A, at first wasn't a big fan, remember we use to just give everything to her. We knew she was capable of rolling we never gave her the motivation to roll. Eventually she realised if there was something she wanted then she had to move herself (in this case rolling.) Also watching her sister having all the fun was a big motivator to move. Consequently, she also figured out how to sit up.

Eventually I had to remove the doors as G liked to sit by the doors and swing the doors open/close/open/close and it became a hazard once A was more mobile and rolling. So the TV unit looks like this now. The items change, except for two books they like, the Fisher Price Shake Rattle and Roll Ring sorter (a gift) and the nesting cups (another gift) remained as firm favorites. The activity centre remained for a while, but has made its way to the garage, where all baby bits and pieces end up.

Night time sleep and naps

Today we are out of routine. We went to the shopping centre to buy a slow cooker and replacement printer cartridge. The outing was very pleasant. Except the girls fell asleep in the car on the way home. To be precise they fell asleep at the set of lights, a mere 2 km from our house. Not long enough to be considered a nap. I tried to remove them from the car asleep, to no avail. So the mini, mini power nap has been enough to keep them going for another two hours.

I've placed them in their beds, in the vain hope that they will play and then fall asleep. Over tired babies are every mother's nightmare.

Day time naps
When they were younger and had just past the sleepy newborn stage and become infants, around 12 weeks, I had a real battle with day time naps. There is a wealth of information on night time sleeping, but information on daytime naps were for me harder to locate. In hindsight I made all the mistakes, over stimulating them by picking them up because they cried, not picking up on their tired signs. In truth, I had no idea what tired signs to look for, and misinterpreted their different cries. A cry was a cry to me. As a result I spent a lot of time with crying babies. Over time I became to recognise the difference, don't ask me how, one day it clicked into place for day time naps. We did keep a routine diary and this did help to establish an ideal time to put them down for naps.


Nighttime sleeps
We were blessed with babies that slept through the night early, between 12 and 16 weeks. The first point I will make is the babies were breast feed until 12 weeks, and then we changed to formula feeding.

Between 12 and 16 weeks they decided that they would drink most of their night time bottle. We always gave a full bottle (260 mls) and let them drink as much as they wanted. The first time this happened I  had a sleepless night, they slept fine, but I just struggled to come to terms with them drinking 220 to 260 mls in one sitting. I was up checking on them every few hours. I also tried to give them a night feed, which upset them, they didn't drink and were very cranky about been woken up. Eventually I realised I had to step back, if they wanted to drink a full bottle and sleep the night through, who was I to interfere? They continued to sleep through but it didn't stop the nighttime parent visits to see if they were fine.

So as you can read for the above, whilst they were sleeping through the night it took a long time for our day time naps to fall into place. Two babies who cried most of the day was hard work. But I still consider myself lucky, because there just might be parents out there struggling with night and day sleep.

P.S       15 minutes after been put in their cots they are sleeping.
P.S.S    Forgot to buy the printer cartridge (big sigh)

Two little people

Meet "The Girls" I think they are 6 months is this picture. It was taken just before G started crawling.

Below - Meet G  - 9 months in this picture. She is our early crawler (6 months 1 week) and started cruising the furniture a week later. She can crawl really, really fast.

Below - Meet A - she started rolling at 7 months and crawling at 8 months. Not as fast as her sister but is catching up. Currently likes to be up on her knees and is working on standing up using the lounge chair.

Montessori sites I love

After the 2011 Christmas/New Year break I actively started researching the internet for information on baby proofing, weaning and crawling. What spurred this hub of activity? The girls had just turned 6 months and A loved food, she would watch anyone eating and took to eating mushing solids like a duck to water. G on the other hand did not want anything to do with food. I feel we may have pushed the solids on G and in reflections she just wasn't ready for it. G on the other hand showed signs of crawling at 6 months, she was up on her hands and knees rocking back and forward and sure enough at 6 months and 1 week she was off. A on the other hand showed no signs of wanting to roll.

The challenge of twins is you always have another baby, for want of a better word to compare too. One rolls the other doesn't - there must be something wrong, one eats the other doesn't - there must be something wrong, one crawls one doesn't - there must be something wrong. See the theme here?

As a mother I have to constantly remind myself to take a deep breath and be in the moments, because they fly by so fast. So how do you do that with two babies, so I searched and searched and came across two wonderful sites

How we Montessori - Australian based (Canberra) please note Kylie is not a twin mum, but her site is rich in information and links to resources. I've found her site to be invaluable.

Montessori on the Double - Stephanie is a twin mum and never ceases to amaze me with what she has achieved with her two little ones.

Wow what a discovery, and I've been hooked ever since. I won't reinvent the wheel by rewriting what has already been written, but if you are interested in finding out a different way/lifestyle/option for weaning, bedrooms for infants and much, much more head over to Kylie's site at How we Montessori and  Montessori on the Double.

Whoops it's rubbish day!

Almost missed it. It's rubbish day. Always a trial, as the girls nap at the same time the rubbish truck comes around. It gets noisy, so I do try to ensure the window in their room is closed so they have a good nap. I heard the truck in one of the back streets, and thought, um, I think the window is open in their room. So sneaked into their room and very slowly, and quietly closed the sliding window. It's a skill A very important one. One I didn't value until the girls came along.

What additional seemly small insignificant skill(s) have you acquired since becoming a mum?

Closing windows whilst sleeping babies are a mere metre away is one of many I've acquired since I became a mum. Might be worth a separate post.

Ever had one of those days?

Ever had one of those days, where the simple things are difficult? For example I need to scan and email one tiny document, but the printer is out of ink, which means it will not scan. (Big Sigh) Who would have thought that scanning would not be impacted by an empty cartridge, but it is. Leaving the house to buy a printer cartridge, (one item) is no an easy endeavour with multiples, especially when you don't need to buy anything else.

I'm currently debating how important scanning this document is. In light of "The Empty Cartridge" it is dropping fast to the bottom of the list.