my long post break and wild strawberry picking
I have taken quiet a long break from posting to this blog. This was partly because I have recently welcomed a baby to my home for full time care, and as I’m sure you know if you are a childminder who cares for babies, I’ve been busy! It’s not that I didn’t have a moment to myself, it is more accurate to say that my head was (and still is to a lesser extent) in a different place to that needed for reflective writing.
When a new child starts in my home, it is important to me how that relationship begins and how everyone involved, the baby, my children and myself experiences that transition. In this case, my youngest and the new child are only five months apart. Although in the future this will result in a close friendship for them, for now it creates confusing emotions for a child used to the undivided attention of the primary carer. But I think that we have begun to turn the corner on this and I have in recent days been able to enjoy moments of happy screeching as the babies begin to interact comfortably with each other.
I take the children outside daily and today was the first day in quite some time that we did so in rain. So all wrapped up in rain gear and plastic buggy covers, we set off down the road. We had the happy experience to find that a nearby crop of wild strawberries was ready for picking and small though they are, when we set off for home, we had a good handful for dessert. My daughter led the foraging, informing me that I should ask the grasshopper who was watching us, where the strawberries were hidden. Needless to say, we found the best ones…under some straw and also right down on the bottom of the bushes, near the ground. This was a learning opportunity for me, I needed to get to my daughters height to find the best of the fruit. A lesson in slowness and perspective!
When we came home the children supervised the baking of some meringues which were enjoyed with the fruit after dinner.
ideal environments for children
As I begin down the Siolta road, I find myself thinking a lot about the environments I provide for the children. In many ways I am blessed in this respect. I have a pretty big house in the countryside with a large garden which is so important to me as I really feel that children need to spend time outdoors every day.
The ‘back’ garden which is actually to the front of the house (which is ”L’ shaped and sort of wraps around the garden but has the road to the back of it, sorry if thats confusing!) is fenced on three sides and open to a courtyard on the fourth. We are in a lovely secluded area and there is usually nothing but the sounds of birds and children to be heard.
In the garden we have a wooden tree house which the older children use as a den. This provides their much needed privacy and the sense that they have a space which is ‘off limits’ to the adults. They have decorated it themselves and they spend many a happy hour there, playing games, listening to music, doing homework (ok, maybe not always so happy).
The ‘first storey’ of this building is a space for the toddlers which consists of some log benches, arranged in a semi-circle to provide for conversation, and a waterproof mat for those who wish to sit on the floor. And thats it. And this space gets tons of use too, the occupants usually consist of the three year old and the 16 month old, using it as an extension of the beloved play house, which is a little pokey when they want to play together.
Another popular environment in the garden is the sand pit. I wrote with amazement a few weeks back about the wide range of age groups that find a use for it here. In the past few months children aged from a few months to 12 years have found a way to play here. It really is amazing the calming affect it has on them, but if you try it for yourself, you begin to see the attraction, just drawing a rake through it is akin to meditation. For more on this topic see Janet Lansbury’s post
This post has been edited for use on a public blog.
finding my feet
The sun was splitting the rocks this past weekend and judging by the radio, the enitre country was in their garden engaging in the great Irish tradition of attempting to turn a nice shade of beetroot as soon as the sun comes out!
Well, on Saturday I was not with them, but I was as happy as a clam to be just getting the odd glimpse of the lovely sunshine. Partly because us redheads are not really able for the heat, and partly because I was meeting up with fellow childminders to discuss our thoughts and ideas on childminding. I really enjoy the opportunity to meet with fellow childminders that I am afforded by being part of childminding Ireland, its great to meet up with others who are also racking their brains coming up with activities, menu’s and outings, makes me feel a little less crazy!
After hearing from the other childminders on their ideas and what they do in services, I always return home refreshed and full of ideas to try!
This evening the school age children here will be planting some herbs(donated by a friend in Dublin) and starting their nature diaries (idea came to me during Siolta training!)
And of course…I’ll keep you ‘posted!’