looking back at baby elise part one: nature baby meets mr. universe

Elise turns one in a little more than a month!!!  Over the next few weeks, I'm going to celebrate by posting some of my favorite memories of her first months that I haven't shared on itty bitty love.  :)

 

When Elise was two weeks old, we took her on a hike to Pine Creek Falls.  At the time, she didn't like riding in wraps or slings, but we were desperate to get out and do something, so Hubs carried her, sleeping, in her car seat.  It's only a two mile hike, but it was hot and Hubs thought his arms were going to fall off.  (Not to mention, I had just given birth to a 9 lb 2 oz baby, and had spent the past several months before that eating A LOT of ice cream!)  Anyway, I was right in the middle of teasing Hubs about how buff his biceps were going to be, when who do we cross paths with?  The muscle man himself, Arnold Schwarzenegger.  Random.  Judging by how sweaty and breathless he was, we figured The Arnold was pretty impressed that Hubs was hauling a baby in a car seat around the woods!

Well, nearly a year has gone by, and we made it back to Pine Creek Falls this past weekend.  No celebrity encounters, but Elise road in a backpack instead of a car seat, and she was awake the whole hike, soaking it all up.  When we got to the falls, she ate cheese and cucumbers, and WALKED all around picking up sticks and rocks.  I am completely in awe of how much she's changed in a year.  Human development is amazing right?  My sweet little babe is growing up so fast - sigh - but I am truly savoring every moment of this adventure!

Hasta la vista, baby!

on the shelves - 10 months

 rings on a post

This wooden ring stacker comes with six rings in three different sizes.  

Elise started with one ring, and now she's stacking two!

 discovery bottles

Elise loves to shake things, and these bottles are visually interesting when shook.  

(left to right) colored water and dish soap, water and aluminum foil pieces, colored water and oil

 classified vocabulary: pets

According to Maria Montessori, when we talk to our ten month old, "the baby realizes that these words are meant for him, and he begins to grasp that we are saying them intentionally." (The Absorbent Mind)

 textured fabric basket

This basket holds squares of fleece, vinyl, satin, and mesh - all red, so that Elise can focus on texture.  I saw this on At Home with Montessori, and E has enjoyed exploring these fabrics for the past few months.  

The large squares are perfect for playing peek-a-boo! 

insect art cards

Elise continues to love Wee Gallery art cards.  
Now that the weather is getting nice, we're actually seeing some of these insects in our yard!  

 a jar of balls

I made this in and out activity with an empty peanut butter jar and five wooden balls.  The wooden balls are from this activity, but Plan Toys also sells sets of five balls for $5. 
(I know because I emailed the company to ask about replacements!)

a (partially) handmade gift

  I love giving handmade gifts to friends, but not only is it hard to find the time, sometimes it's a challenge to find the right pattern and materials, too.   Inspiration hit me last week, and I put together this partially handmade gift for our friend Ezra's first birthday.  I like how it turned out so much, I think I'm going to make one for Elise, too! 

nest - knitted and felted following this pattern and using wool scraps from my yarn stash
eggs - snugglemonkey (etsy)
robin - Folkmanis

elise was here!

breakfast:

playtime:

 

Happy early weekend!  My dad is traveling from Missoula this afternoon to visit us for a couple days.  Then, we'll be busy on Saturday and Sunday with a birthday party, a bike festival, gardening, and lots of outdoor play.  Fun, fun!  Hope you have some swell weekend adventures planned, too!

opening and closing activities for the beginner

Recently, Elise has shown a lot of interest in opening containers.  Taking the lid off a box is a fun challenge for her, but putting it back on is tricky.  To help her develop this skill, I put together a very simple opening and closing basket.   

 a double photo frame

and 

Hubs' old wallet

the frame
in action

the wallet  
in action

I also made this treasure box for Elise out of a shoe box.  

She loves opening it up to see what's inside!

Oh, and last, but not least

the original beginning opening and closing activity:  

the kitchen cabinets! 

a basket of hats

I got the idea for this hat treasure basket from Our Montessori Home.  Jessica describes this as a social activity for your baby, and she's absolutely right.  While Elise has enjoyed exploring the hats on her own, she's had a TON of fun trying them on with her friends and family!  It's also been a great way for everyone who's visited us recently to play with Elise. 

 
This was a super easy treasure basket to put together.  In addition to adult hats, I stuck in a few of Elise's hats, too.  Elise is not a huge fan of hats, so I'm hoping this playful experience will make wearing a sunhat down to the park a little more bearable for her.  ;)  Even Rosie has gotten in on the action, and she really doesn't like wearing a hat! 

I found this simple little board book at the library to go along with our basket.  It's definitely early 90's style, but Elise has been intrigued with the candid photos of kids trying on hats!

one more!

Ok, it's official, we are on an object permanence game kick!  Today, we tried this peek-a-boo box idea from The Stay-at-Home-Mom Survival Guide.  When I put it together last night, I had a feeling Elise was going to like it - it combines two of her favorite things: opening and closing boxes and pulling off photos stuck on with velcro!  Elise has been fighting off her first cold, so we've been snuggling and playing this game a lot.  Her reaction is so sweet when she opens the lid and sees herself inside.  :)

Happy weekend, friends!