Cleaning up for Tea

Mr. T has a sweeper! It is a wonderful Bissel sweeper and because the handle came in sections, I could just leave one off and it's the perfect length for him. The biggest bonus is that he thinks it's fun, so when I make him clean up a mess he made, he still enjoys it. It is so neat to see him taking initiative and cleaning up when he sees a mess, even if he didn't make it. I hope that we never have to assign "chores" and that he always views helping out the family as a joyful way to serve.

Mr. T got a new ceramic tea set for his birthday. The old one had seen better days and had lost a few pieces (which is why I purchased it hodge podge from thrift store to begin with, but it lasted from Mr. T's 18 month tea discovery till his 3rd birthday) over the year and a half we had it.

He picked out his own cup and saucer. I love the colors of the Fiesta Ware. It is a very happy colored tea set and very sturdy. I am also very fond of Mr. T's big boy haircut, but I wonder where my little boy has gone.

And here he is focusing to make sure the tea pours into the cup, and only into the cup. There was a little spillage, but his coordination has gotten very good. And when we were finished he took his cup and saucer and pot all over to the dishwasher. I think we will be learning about tea sandwiches and making some scones for tea this week. I love how he has really begun to enjoy serving and how easily please and thank you come. I am so proud of the little gentleman and the big helper he is becoming! What is your favorite special time each week with your little ones?

And so he doesn't feel left out, Mr. F has been exploring quite a lot now that he is crawling and trying to pull up!

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Cinnamon Dough Fun

This was one of our Christmas Angel projects . It's fun, easy and smells great! First, gather your ingredients: applesauce and ground cinnamon. We added cinnamon essential oil to these, but you don't have to do that.

Mix it all up in whatever quantity you need. We used about 50% more cinnamon than applesauce to get a good dough consistency.

Roll it out on a cinnamon covered surface and use your favorite cookie cutters to make shapes. Place your cut outs on a parchment lined baking sheet and bake at 200 degrees for 2 hours. If you are making ornaments, don't forget to punch out a hole for the string before baking!

And enjoy all your fun shapes. These make great gifts, great Christmas tree decorations and wonderful potpourri for bathrooms if you freshen up the scent with a little oil every now and then. Mr. T had a great time making these and our house smelled amazing for days! He was also super excited to give the "I Love You" hand ornaments to his teachers.

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Table Setting Tray

So that place mat I made forever ago finally got pulled out to practice table setting! We got a band set for Christmas and the wooden crate it came in was a perfect fit for the mat, and I can carry the supplies we need for practicing on it no problem. We decided that since Mr. T can reach his activity table better than the kitchen table, we'd practice here first. 

Mr. T really likes puzzles so this was right up his alley! He had a ton of fun figuring out what went over which shape and then moving things around and taking everything off and starting again. I had a blast just watching him concentrate (quietly) for such a long time :)

And once everything was all put away, Mr. T decided it was time to take a ride in the tray. My little ham. What do you use to help teach your little ones how to help out around the house?

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