Tag Archives: outdoors

Outdoor Balancing Course

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Doesn’t this look like fun? Scrap yard obstacle course with Mudpies and Sunshine

Mr Sunshine is building a chook house with unwanted wood from local building sites – meaning totally free :) The wood he had gathered was piled high under our patio until Zoe decided to drag some if it out onto the lawn and make her own obstacle course. Scrap yard obstacle course with Mudpies and Sunshine - best in pjs

The girls have brainstormed lots of different games and created rules like you wouldn’t believe. Lots of negotiation…and then lots of fun. Their favourite way to play is to create a complete loop and set a target number of laps to complete…whilst setting a maximum number of times you can fall off/touch the ground before you have start all over again.  Once they were out there in complete darkness until bedtime completing a gazillion laps for just one game. Serious balancing with Mudpies and Sunshine

Zoe is a big fan of “free-range” play on the obstacle course.  Scrap yard obstacle course with Mudpies and Sunshine -walk the plankAnd yes, they are in their pajamas! Outside first thing in the morning for some balancing course ACTION… Scrap yard obstacle course with Mudpies and Sunshine - arms helping balance

Zoe just loved being able to design her own course (which she did on another day – see…different pajamas!). Competence competence competence – something that girls (and boys) thrive on when they get the chance to feel it.Organising the course with Mudpies and Sunshine

 

Won’t it be sad when Mr Sunshine finishes the chook house and the balancing fun is gone? We may have to head out to the building sites again and see what we will find (in our pajamas).

Thanks for dropping by!

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Camping and Making Friends

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It’s been quiet on the blog because we have been away camping and having a lovely relaxing time.

I’m not sure how relaxing it was for the kids. They played hard all day, they made friends and ran with the crowd, they swam, bounced, rode, chatted, shouted and laughed. They had a ball but they weren’t relaxing!

We stayed at a caravan park that had a bouncy pillow, swimming pool and water playground. Just perfect for the remaining hot days of summer.

What I found interesting was how in the freedom and relative safety of a caravan park, at early evening time, kids of all ages would come together. They would congregate at the bouncy pillow and play game after game together. There were no fights, arguments, tears or tantrums. There were also no parents involved. The kids negotiated, gave their opinions, considered the capabilities of the little ones and in general acted as one cohesive group. Ages ranged from 4 years old – 16 years old.

Camping Fun with Mudpies and SunshineZoe loved playing with the little Irish boy who was in the campsite next to us. Isn’t it great when you have the whole bouncy pillow to yourselves?

It was also Mr Sunshine’s birthday – so we went all out for his birthday cake. Took me hours to make ;)

Birthday cake Mr Sunshine with Mudpies and SunshineWhenever the water playground was “on”, Ebony was there. Waiting for the water buckets with Mudpies and Sunshine

One time I went underneath the buckets with her and the anticipation is palpable.  Screaming is compulsory under the buckets. Zoe loved them too!

Water playground with Mudpies and Sunshine

I love this pic of Zoe taking a break against the tent whilst watching the other kids on the bouncy pillow. Yep we were right next the bouncy pillow. Kids thought it was christmas!Watching the fun with Mudpies and Sunshine

So we had fun. Mr Sunshine had a relaxing birthday. The kids got to enjoy bonding with new kids and playing on amazing equipment. And we all can’t wait to pitch the tent again. But reality is good too – this morning Zoe asked if there would a craft waiting for her when she got home from school.  Yes! Paint and celery here we come :)

Have you been camping lately? Do your kids enjoy it? I would love to hear your experiences.

Thanks for dropping by!

Science Lab

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Science Lab is one of the girls’ favourite organised activities. They are always asking to do it, but I keep it to a minimum so they don’t get tired of it. Plus each time they have done it they have played for up to 2 hours – I don’t want to mess with that kind of free time by over doing it.

I first came across the idea on Valerie’s blog and saw it again on pinterest and knew straight away it was a winner :)

The lab is more fun if you have ALOT of transparent containers of all different shapes and sizes. You could get away with 3 or 4 but the more the merrier.

Here is what we have used recently:

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We also use two droppers that we aquired from some Bach remedy products. Perfect for those very delicate experiments. The girls used the funnel from their mudpie kitchen as well.

We start by filling the three large squirt bottles with three primary colours (a few drops of food colouring + water).

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Now it is set up time. We have a bucket filled with clean water under the table for refills.

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So this is the table – all set to go, clean and organised.

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Then I invited the girls to come outside and “start experimenting”. They were only too happy to oblige.

Here are the girls in action:

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The colours look so beautiful in the sunlight.

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Here are three girls busy experimenting with colour (from another ‘Science Lab’ time we had earlier this year).Image

Ebony had a friend over and they all had a ball. Zoe loves using LOTS of colours and ends up with browny/black concoctions. When they want to start over they just pour the unwanted contents into the garden.Image

It takes alot of concentration to get that blacky/browny colour just right :)

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It gets messy and the daylight can start to fade… unlike their my love for ‘Science Lab’.Image

It involves water, creating and colours. How could any kid resist? So easy to do, with such great rewards.

Don’t forget to meet the nutritional needs of such young scientists :) Image

I can almost guarantee your little ones will enjoy this activity. Give it a go and enjoy!

Spontaneous Saturday

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Warm weather in your neck of the woods?

Kids wanting to get outside but say they have nothing to do?

Well you might like to try this. It’s quick. It’s wet. And best of all – it’s messy.

In other words – perfect (for outside!).

This wasn’t a planned activity – the girls were outside, in the shade, playing mud pie cafes together.

Then Ebony called out for me to “come and look at her mud footprints”.

There really isn’t much to it. Start with a large container of mud delicacies.

Then insert feet that are itching to make an impression.

Then groove around whilst making nice muddy footprints on the ground.

When finished, soak your feet in lovely cool clean water. Extra points for wearing my sunhat :)

Quick, fun, spontaneous mud footprint art. So post-modern.

Thanks for dropping by and joining in on our Saturday.

Hope your family is having a wonderful weekend!